BOSTON - Every night for the last three weeks, Jeremy Abbott had the same nightmare. Beats By Dre Black Friday Sale . Hed implode in the short program of the U.S. Championships, buried in seventh place with an Olympic berth out of reach. "I would wake up crying, and it was just horrifying," he said. The reality Friday was nothing like that. A spotless performance set a U.S. record with 99.86 points in his final nationals before retiring. "I wouldnt say it was a dream, because I was very in it," Abbott said. "I was very focused and very aware of what I was doing the entire program. I think thats why it was as good as it was." The three-time U.S. champ leads Richard Dornbush by 7.82 points heading into Sundays free skate. "Honestly, I have much more confidence in the long program than I do in the short program," Abbott said. The only time he came close to falling was when he nearly tumbled during his celebration afterward. The three jumps were perfect, his footwork exuberant. Hes dazzled like this before at U.S. Championships, but there have been few of these moments since his last title two years ago. Abbott often struggled as he overhauled his training program. "When things didnt work at competition, I believed in what weve done," he said. "And I just kept plugging at it, and it paid off tonight." Usually he bubbles with energy in the lead-up to nationals, his favourite event. The 28-year-old Abbott felt strangely nonchalant this year until the day before he headed to Boston. "I just realized that I was leaving and this was the last one," Abbott said. "I had this flood of emotion and excitement and fear and dread and passion and everything. Since Ive been here, its been really joyous." World champions Meryl Davis and Charlie White felt the same way earlier Friday in their short dance. The 2010 Olympic silver medallists are well on their way to a sixth straight U.S. title. Skating to selections from "My Fair Lady," Davis and White broke their own record with 80.69 points to build more than a seven-point lead on Madison Chock and Evan Bates. Siblings Maia and Alex Shibutani were third; three teams will go to Sochi. The free dance is Saturday. "This is the first time we felt comfortable enough to let things happen naturally," Davis said. "This is the fifth time were competing the program. With this program, its all about being comfortable enough to let things happen naturally, and when you reach a point where it can be just fun, thats what we really enjoy about skating." Abbott has enjoyed U.S. Championships far more than major international competitions in his career. He beat Evan Lysacek at the 2010 nationals before the last Olympics, only to finish ninth when his countryman captured gold in Vancouver. Abbott held the previous U.S. mark for a short program, 90.23 at the 2012 nationals. Dornbush, 22, has struggled since coming in second in 2011 and didnt even compete in the Grand Prix series this season. Only the second skater of the night, he was spectacular from the get-go Friday, landing a perfect quad and triple axel that had the fans entranced. By the time his 2 1/2-minute program was done, the crowd was on its feet, Dornbush was on his knees throwing an imaginary punch through the air and celebrating a career best. "Im not sure any thoughts went through my head," he said. "I was pretty excited, pretty pumped." Jason Brown was in third after a smokin skate to Princes "The Question of U." He even wore a black and purple costume embellished with rhinestones around his neck and down his back and side, plus Princes "love symbol" on the back. He nailed a triple axel and a triple flip-triple toe loop with gorgeous flow to open the program. Brown, who just turned 19, added a lutz with both hands above his head, footwork that meshed with every element and with every nuance of the music, and speedy spins that had the crowd roaring. "I think the whole season has pushed every guy to just really push themselves to their limits because anything is possible at this event," he said. Defending champion Max Aaron was fourth, one of five skaters to land a clean quad. The U.S. will send two men to Sochi. Abbott knows exactly what stands between him and a shot at Olympic redemption: eight jumping passes, 13 jumps, three spins and two series of footwork. "That was just fun," he said. "I love to figure skate. When you hit all the technical stuff and you do all the athletic part, thats when you can really enjoy the performance." ___ AP Sports Writers Barry Wilner and Jimmy Golen contributed to this report. cheap nfl jerseys . 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Bryant wasnt happy after the Lakers fell behind by as many as 27 points before losing the back end of a home-and-home set to Phoenix, 102-90, on Sunday in the desert. St. Petersburg, FL (Sports Network) - Jake Westbrook was smooth through seven shutout innings, while Rays manager Joe Maddon and reliever J.P. Howell lost their cool in the eighth. Colby Rasmus belted a three-run homer in the eighth, an inning that saw the ejection of both Maddon and Howell, as St. Louis held on for a 5-3 victory over Tampa Bay to begin a three-game series. Westbrook (7-4) allowed two hits and fanned seven batters to snap a three- start winless stretch. Rasmus drove in four runs for the Cardinals, who have won four in a row. Yadier Molina added an RBI single. It took me a little while to get into a groove, but in the fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh innings I was able to get ahead in the count, Westbrook said. I guess it worked out for the better. It took me a while to get into that rhythm. Matt Joyce hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the eighth to follow Evan Longorias RBI double, but the Rays lost for the third time in four tries. Wade Davis (7-6) yielded six hits and two runs over seven frames and had a three-start winning streak snapped. Home plate umpire Vic Carapazza squeezed the strike zone on Howell in the eighth inning. Maddon was particularly upset at a call on a pitch that Howell threw that seemed to hit the inside corner to Lance Berkman. That pitch resulted in a walk. First base umpire Doug Eddings thhen called Howell for a balk and David Freese walked to set up Rasmus homer down the right field line for a 5-0 difference. wholesale jerseys. . Based on how the game was being called we started expanding our zone a little bit towards the end, Maddon said. That did not help us. A frustrated Howell slammed down his glove in frustration and when he got the ball back, threw that into the ground. He apparently was asking for another baseball from Carapazza, who then ejected the reliever. Second base umpire Dana DeMuth ejected Rays pitcher David Price and utility player Elliot Johnson, both of whom werent in the game at the time. Longoria doubled to right to score Reid Brignac in the bottom of the eighth, and then Joyce homered to right off Lance Lynn. Fernando Salas retired the side in order in the ninth for his 14th save of the year. Rasmus groundout plated Berkman in the second and Molina followed with an RBI hit to center. The Rays wasted a chance with two men on base in the second and third innings, and had B.J. Upton at third in the fourth inning when Sam Fuld fanned to end the frame. GAME NOTES:Westbrook moved to 7-3 lifetime against the Rays...Tampa Bay is 19-21 at home this season compared to 26-16 on the road. The Rays are 5-7-1 in series play at Tropicana Field. Last season, the Rays did not lose their seventh series at home until Sep 17-19 vs. the Angels. ' ' '