IN BRIEF

CYCLING

Giro's mountain stage wears on Armstrong

Lance Armstrong looked weary, his face was drawn, and he was sweating profusely after losing 15 seconds in the first mountainous stage of the Giro d'Italia.

Yet the seven-time Tour de France champion was not upset. At age 37, Armstrong is still regaining his form after 31/2 years of retirement and a broken collarbone in March.

"I'm happy with my performance today. This was my first big climb since retiring," he said.

Italy's Danilo Di Luca won the fourth stage in an uphill sprint Tuesday, and Sweden's Thomas Lovkvist of Team Columbia-High Road took the overall leader's pink jersey from Alessandro Petacchi.

Lovkvist has a two-second lead over Di Luca in the overall standings, and Armstrong dropped from fifth to sixth overall, 28 seconds behind Lovkvist as the event reached San Martino di Castrozza, Italy.

COLLEGES

Woman indicted in Pitino extortion case

The estranged wife of a longtime aide to Rick Pitino was indicted in Louisville, Ky., on federal charges of trying to extort money from the Louisville men's basketball coach and lying to the FBI.

Karen Cunagin Sypher, 49, faces a combined maximum penalty of seven years in prison and a $500,000 fine if convicted of the two charges, federal authorities said. Sypher is the estranged wife of Louisville equipment manager Tim Sypher.

Karen Sypher's attorney, Thomas Clay, said she would plead not guilty during her arraignment today.

Also: The UNLV baseball team scored seven runs in the final three innings, erasing a 4-1 deficit to beat UC Riverside 8-6 in a nonconference game in Riverside, Calif. The Rebels improved to 26-27.

Utah rewarded basketball coach Jim Boylen with a raise and new contract after two years on the job.

Utah announced that Boylen has signed a five-year deal that will pay him $850,000 annually, with potential for $1 million with incentives.

Freshman quarterback Emmanuel Yeager, the star of coach Mike Locksley's first recruiting class at New Mexico, is leaving school because of an undisclosed family issue.

Locksley said Yeager, who had been touted as a potential starter next fall, has been released from his scholarship.

MISCELLANEOUS

Venus Williams tumbles early in Madrid Open

Venus Williams joined sister Serena on the sideline of the Madrid Open after the third-ranked player was upset 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 by Alisa Kleybanova in Spain.

Serena Williams, who retired from her match Monday with a right knee injury, watched from the stands as Kleybanova picked her shots well and ran Williams around the court.

Also: The storied Ferrari team threatened to not race in Formula One next season unless the sport's governing body revokes its new budget cap.

The Italian team, which has been involved in all 60 seasons of F1 competition, said the new FIA guidelines were arbitrary and would set a double standard.

The Japanese women's soccer team canceled a tour in the United States because of the swine flu outbreak.

The team was scheduled to play the U.S. team May 20 in Frisco, Texas, and May 23 in Sandy, Utah.

Julio Mazzei, who helped persuade Pele to play in the United States and coached the Cosmos to a North American Soccer League title in 1982, has died in Santos, Brazil. He was 78.