DONKEYS GROUNDED; REGGINA, CATANIA, SIENA STAY UP

Ten games were played on Sunday as the Italian Serie A season drew to its' conclusion:

At Bologna:

Second-half goals from subs Fausto Rossini (65') and Mauro Minelli (80') enabled Catania Calcio to assure themselves of Serie A soccer next season as the Elephants defeated Chievo Verona 2-0 at a neutral-site contest. The Flying Donkeys still would have stayed up had any of three other clubs---Siena, Reggina, and Parma---stumbled. All three won their games, and with their defeat, Chievo's six year stay in Serie A ended.

At Reggio Calabria:

Reggina secured another season with Serie A, thanks to their 2-0 home win over newly-crowned European champions AC Milan. Nicola Amoruso (8') and Daniele Amerini (67') provided the scoring for the Amoronto.

At Siena:

Thanks to goals from Massimo Maccarone (PK-23') and Paolo Negro (85'), AC Siena secured another season in Serie A with a 2-1 home win over Champions League third-round-of-qualifying-bound Lazlo.

At Parma:

With goals from Zlatan Muslimovic (8'), Igor Budan (16'), and Andrea Gasbarroni (88'). Parma defeated visiting (and UEFA Cup-bound) Empoli 3-1 to assure themselves of another season in Italy's top flight.

At Florence:

Fiorentina bounced back from their match-fixing-scandal-induced 15-point reduction to finish sixth (with a UEFA Cup berth in tow) as they defeated visiting Sampdoria big time 5-1. Reginaldo Ferreira tallied twice for the hosts (72', 90').

At Ascoli:

In their final Serie A match, Ascoli racked up a 2-1 home win over Cagliari Calcio. Andrea Soncin (17') and Michele Paolucci (78') provided the scoring for the Serie B-bound basement finishers.

At Leghorn (Livorno):

Cristiano Lucarelli's double (45', PK-57') helped Livorno double-up visiting Atalanta 4-2.

At Udine:

Palermo locked up a UEFA Cup berth with a 2-1 road win over Udinese. Andrea Caracciolo (14') and Eugenio Corini (71') tallied for the Eagles.

At Milan:

Powered by goals courtesy of Marco Materazzi (PK-12), Sisenando Maicon (60'), and Luis Figo (PK-67'), Inter Milan capped off an incredible season with their 3-0 home fistbeating of Torino. The Nerozzurri finished the season with 30 wins and 97 points.

At Rome:

Francesco Totti's double (10', 73') helped lift Champions League-bound AS Roma to a high-scoring 4-3 home win over relegated Messina.