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BARCELONA, Spain -- Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid both slipped up in the Spanish league on Sunday to tighten a compelling title race even further. . Atleticos march toward its first title since 1996 hit a bump when it lost 2-0 at Levante, although its city rival failed to make up much ground as Madrid needed a spectacular injury-time equalizer from Cristiano Ronaldo to salvage a 2-2 draw at home against Valencia. Barcelona had written off its title defence after drawing 2-2 with Getafe on Saturday, but its rivals stumbles have put it right back in the hunt. Barcelona trails Atletico by three points, while Madrid was left five points behind with an extra game to play after Ronaldo deftly used the sole of his right boot to turn in a cross in the 92nd minute. "It was a tough round for all three at the top and the league is more wide open than ever," said Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti. "I always said it would come down to the last game." Madrids draw meant that Atletico can clinch the title if it takes four points from its last two games because it holds the head-to-head tiebreaker over Madrid if they end up level on points. Atletico hosts Malaga next weekend before finishing the season at Barcelonas Camp Nou. "Now the league is that much more interesting," Atletico coach Diego Simeone said after his teams nine-round winning run came to a halt at Ciutat de Valencia stadium. Levante pressed Atletico early and was rewarded when Papakouly Diops corner kick hit Atletico left back Filipe Luis in the chest. The ball bounced out of reach of scrambling goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois before settling into the net in the seventh. Atletico improved after bringing on substitutes Arda Turan and Adrian Lopez after halftime but conceded again when striker David Barral beat Courtois in the 69th. Far from bemoaning the setback, Simeone said that defeat was "the best thing that could happen" to his team to keep it focused on the run-in not only to the league title but also to the Champions League final with Madrid on May 24, a week after the league concludes. "Three weeks of high intensity and emotion await us," Simeone said. "This is the ideal moment for my men, for my players. We have three finals ahead of us and we have to concentrate on the first of those against Malaga next Sunday." Four days after its commanding 3-1 victory at Chelsea to reach the final of the Champions League, Atletico was brought down by the modest Levante side that has outperformed expectations thanks to coach Joaquin Caparros defensive focus and Keylor Navass goalkeeping. "We didnt want to mess up a title for anyone, I hope they (Atletico) win it," Barral said. "We want to finish the league in the best fashion we can." The match was marred at the finish by a group of Atletico fans who directed racist jeers at Diop. The player from Senegal responded by doing a dance. He later called for an end to such racist displays. Valencia arrived to the Bernabeu after its demoralizing exit from the Europa League semifinals when it conceded an injury-time goal to Sevilla on Thursday, while Madrid was flying high from its rout of Bayern Munich in the Champions League. Valencia turned to a set piece to grab the lead in the 44th when defender Jeremy Mathieu got in front of Raphael Varane inside the six-yard box to head in a corner kick. Ancelotti sent on Angel Di Maria at halftime to spark Madrids attack, and the forward lobbed a ball for Ronaldo to flick on for Sergio Ramos to nod home in the 59th and add to his two goals against Bayern. Valencia wasnt done, however, and Dani Parejo drove in a squared pass from Feghouli in the 65th after Seydou Keita had won the ball in midfield to start the move. Ronaldo then appeared to save Madrid from a costly defeat by flicking in Di Marias cross to take his league-leading tally to 31 goals this season. He reached 50 goals in all competitions for the fourth straight season. Elsewhere, Ramon Azeezs last-gasp goal gave 10-man Almeria a 3-2 win at home over relegated Real Betis to help pull his team out of the drop zone, while Sevilla drew 0-0 at home with Villarreal. . Vladimir Guerrero added a solo shot and two RBI for the Orioles, who have opened their season with five wins in six games for the first time since 2008. Jim Johnson (1-0) fanned three and allowed one hit in 1 2/3 scoreless relief innings. I have not glanced at a stat sheet or the board about batting average, Orioles manager Buck Showalter said. . -- Sam Lacey, a former NBA All-Star centre who spent most of his 13-year career with the Kansas City Kings, has died. . -- Charlie Graham stopped 67 shots as the Belleville Bulls edged the visiting Guelph Storm 6-5 on Saturday in Ontario Hockey League action.NEW YORK -- For a pitcher with little buzz, Dillon Gee has transformed into a top starter. He nearly came away with his first professional shutout Sunday, limiting the Miami Marlins to three singles over eight innings in the New York Mets 4-0 victory. "Im not sure if Dillon is all that sexy of a pitcher," Mets captain David Wright said. "He just goes out there and gets the job done." Gee never topped 90 mph against the Marlins. Still, he didnt allow a runner past second base. "Hes not going to impress you with the radar gun. Hes not going to strike a lot of guys out," Wright said. "But what hes going to do is induce a lot of ground balls, pound the strike zone. And hes going to go out there and know how to pitch." Chris Young hit a two-run homer, and Wright had an RBI double and an outstanding sliding, over-the-shoulder catch of a foul popup with his back to the plate as the Mets took two of three in the series. Pitching a day before his 28th birthday, Gee (2-1) had the longest outing of a Mets pitcher since last August. He struck out six, walked four and threw 110 pitches -- his high since May 30, 2012, against Philadelphia. That was six weeks before season-ending surgery to repair a damaged artery in his right shoulder. He tried to talk Mets manager Terry Collins into letting him get a complete game. Gee has just four in 162 pro starts over eight years. "CG chances dont come along that often. It would have been nice," Gee said. Collins wasnt taking any chances, especially after Gee needed 23 pitches to navigate a 1-2-3 eighth. Coming in, batters were hitting .187 off Gee through the first six innings and .385 from the seventh on. "The one thing I didnt want to have happen is fourth time through the lineup, to have him hang a slider with a 113th pitch and have something go into the seats," Collins said. Gee is 12-6 with a 2.75 ERA since last May 30. Thats the eighth-best ERA in the major leagues, according to STATS, just ahead of Adam Wainwright and Madison Bumgarner. "Probably pretty under the radar, like I think a lot of players in this room," Wright said. "We dont necessarily have a lineup full or a pitching rotation full of household names." Carlos Torres followed with a perfect ninth that finished a thrree-hitter. . The Marlins felt flummoxed by Gee, who is 3-0 in five starts against them "Hes got a good sinker. He uses a cutter, curveball. Hes always got that changeup," Jarrod Saltalamacchia said. Tom Koehler (2-2), who was born in Bronx and grew up in New Rochelle, allowed four runs, five hits and four walks in five innings. New York went ahead in the second when Daniel Murphy walked, Young was hit by a pitch and Lucas Duda looped a ground-rule double down the left-field line that landed about a foot fair and bounced into the seats. Curtis Granderson walked leading off the three-run fifth and came home when Wright doubled to the base of the left-field wall, only his third extra-base hit since an opening day home run. After Murphy grounded out, Young had four straight fouls before sending a hanging slider into the left-field seats on the 11th pitch of his at-bat and the 22nd pitch to him from Koehler on the afternoon. "I kind of saw everything he had, and I think the advantage leans a little more toward my way," Young said. There was some superb glovework: Murphy made a barehand pickup of a three-hopper on the shortstop side of second to throw out Marcell Ozuna in the first; and Wright made the glamorous grab on Casey McGehees fourth-inning foul pop about 70 feet beyond third base. "Its kind of a panic slide because you dont want to go barrelling into that tarp," Wright said. New York completed a 6-4 homestand, leaving its record at 14-11. "Its impossible to beat your chest and kind of walk with a little pep in your step when youre not winning," Wright said. "You start taking care of business at home, you kind of gain that confidence and I think that that kind of shows on the field." NOTES: Mets pitchers are 0 for 41 at the plate this year, the longest hitless streak for any teams pitchers starting a season since at least 1974, according to STATS. The Braves began 2008 and 11 with 0 for 39 slides. ... Murphy has succeeded in 27 consecutive stolen-base attempts, six shy of Kevin McReynolds Mets record. ... New York is 6-0 when Recker starts this season. ... Jon Niese (1-2) starts the Mets series opener on Tuesday at Philadelphia, where Cole Hamels (0-1) makes his first home appearance this season. ' ' '