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Today, I was quite the news junkie.  Not only was it my second week as anchor for NYU Tonight but also my first go-round as the noon news correspondent for WNYU, our radio station.  So, here's today's top stories that I reported on:

Rick Santorum has officially suspended his campaign, saying he wants to devote more time to his daughter Bella who suffers from a rare genetic condition.  "This presidential race is over for me, and we will suspend our campaign effective today.  But we are not done fighting," Santorum said in today's news conference.  Santorum was Governor Mitt Romney's top opponent.  His exit clears the way for Romney to take the Republican Party's nomination, even though Romney's only secured 60% of the delegates needed to win.  Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and Representative Ron Paul remain in the race, but neither has shown to be a viable alternative to Romney.


Today, Syria was set to start pulling troops out of towns and cities, paving the way for a ceasefire to start 48 hours later.  But last night, a military bombardment of a town in central Syria killed 35 people, dashing the prospects of a UN-brokered truce to take hold. Troops and rebel forces also clashed near the country’s border with Turkey, and  a cameraman for Al-Jadeed television was shot dead in northern Lebanon.  According to the Turkish Deputy Foreign Minister, the April 10th deadline has become void.

North Korea has invited international journalists into the reclusive country to witness the launch of what they say is a weather observation satellite.  But, South Korea and the United States counter, believing the satellite launch is more likely a thinly disguised test of long-range missile technology.  The three-stage rocket is set for takeoff in mid-April.  Its launch is timed to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the birth of North Korea’s founder Kim Il Sung.

The special prosecutor investigating the shooting death of unarmed Florida teen Trayvon Martin has ruled against using a a grand jury in the case.  The motion means Prosecutor Angela Corey's office alone will decide whether to charge shooter George Zimmerman with the crime.  The case has captured national attention because of race and Florida’s controversial self-defense laws.  It's fueled public demonstrations across the country, including one on Monday that temporarily shut down the Sanford
Police Department in the town where the shooting occurred.

Wall Street continues to slump for the fifth straight day.  Today, the Dow Jone's Industrial Average fell almost 220 points and was on pace for its third triple-digit decline in four trading sessions.   Some analysts view the pullback as a buying opportunity, while others see it as the start of a long-awaited correction.  A Reuters poll from Monday shows most major Wall Street banks expect anemic growth in the US job market.  They believe the economic recovery will force the government to undertake another round of monetary stimulus.

Whew; know that the hard news has been presented, here's today's top sports stories: 

The Miami Marlins will be without a manager for the next five games.  The team's suspended Ozzie Guillen for comments he made in which he expressed admiration for Cuban leader Fidel Castro.  This morning, Guillen apologized to the City and says he respects the Marlin's decision to suspend him.  He's not concerned about the salary he will loose in the process, saying repairing his relationship with the Cuban-American community is more important. 

Baseball season is officially underway, and our New York teams are doing better than expected.  Don't look now, but the Mets are one win away from matching the best start in franchise history.  Tonight they play the Washington Nationals in hopes of matching the 5-0 record set in 1985.  And for the first time since 1973, the New York Yankees have averted a 0 to 4 start.  The Yankees opened the season with three straight looses before defeating the Baltimore Orioles 6 to 2 last night.  

Lamar Odom may be returning to the basketball court sooner than we think.  On Monday, he was deactivated from the Dallas Mavericks, and it's too late in the season for the Lakers to sing their former Sixth Man of the Year in time for playoffs.  But, these technicalities didn't stop Odom's former Lakers' teammate Metta World Peace from devising a plan to see him wear purple and gold.  He suggests Odom be a ball boy for the Lakers this season and then next year return to the court. 

We bring you their scores every week, but the NYU Athletics is attracting attention for their actions off the court in this latest video.  

The video encourages LGBT athletics to know it's possible to not only come out to their team but thrive in their sport as well.  The captain of the men's volleyball team, Jay Hayes started the initiative.  He is openly gay and wanted to share his story.  The video was released yesterday, in conjunction with NCAA Division III Week.