IN BRIEF

COLLEGE FOOTBALL

Ohio State's Small suspended for Saturday

Ohio State coach Jim Tressel said Thursday that receiver and punt returner Ray Small was suspended for one game "to start with."

Tressel confirmed that Small will not play when No. 12 Ohio State plays at Northwestern on Saturday. Team spokeswoman Shelly Poe said the suspension was due to a "repeated violation of team rules."

Small has been in and out of Tressel's doghouse for the past two seasons.

Small is second on the team in receptions with 18 for 149 yards. He is also the Buckeyes' top punt returner, with 18 for an average of 13.2 yards, tops in the Big Ten.

Also: Police are investigating a minor drug allegation against former NFL quarterback Ryan Leaf, who this week was placed on leave from his job as an assistant football coach at West Texas A&M.

Canyon police Chief Bobby Griffin says the investigation is in its preliminary stages but confirmed the allegation was that Leaf obtained a controlled substance by fraudulent means.

Three Florida State players have been suspended for Saturday's game against Clemson, coach Bobby Bowden said.

Bowden said wide receivers Bert Reed and Jarmon Fortson and linebacker Nigel Carr will not play this weekend for the 24th-ranked Seminoles. He said they were being disciplined for "not meeting their responsibilities." He did not elaborate.

GOLF

Stenson takes one-shot lead in China tourney

Sweden's Henrik Stenson made a 20-foot birdie putt on his final hole for a 7-under-par 65 and a one-stroke lead over defending champion Phil Mickelson, Sergio Garcia, Anthony Kim and Adam Scott in the HSBC Champions in Shanghai, China.

Playing in rain, fog and smog, Garcia could have carded a 65, too, but the Spaniard missed a 4-foot eagle putt on the 18th.

Also: Troy Matteson opened the Children's Miracle Network Classic at Disney in Lake Buena Vista, Fla., with an eagle on the Palm Course, ran off three straight birdies at the turn and wound up with a career-low round of 9-under 63 to take a one-shot lead.

Jimmy Walker, who needs to win the PGA Tour's final event to avoid going back to qualifying school, had a 64 and was one shot behind with Scott Verplank and Kevin Streelman.

MISCELLANEOUS

BYU eliminates UNLV in MWC soccer tourney

Top-seeded Brigham Young scored three second-half goals in a 4-0 victory over UNLV in the semifinals of the Mountain West Conference Women's Soccer Championship at Johann Memorial Field.

The 22nd-ranked Cougars did not allow a shot on goal against the fifth-seeded Rebels (11-7-3).

BYU (16-5-0) will play No. 2 seed Utah in the championship game at noon Saturday. The Utes (11-8-2) beat third-seeded Texas Christian 2-1 in overtime to reach the title game.

Also: The UNLV volleyball team beat Brigham Young 25-21, 25-20, 20-25, 23-25, 15-11 at Cox Pavilion.

The Rebels (14-11, 7-5 Mountain West) have won three straight matches against the Cougars (11-11, 4-8).

A sale to buy a minority interest in Horse of the Year Curlin failed to produce an acceptable offer.

The sale was by sealed bid, and the next step is a private sale of the 20 percent stake in the career money winner among North American horses.

A state judge had ordered the minority share of Curlin be sold to help satisfy a $42 million judgment against the horse's minority owners, William Gallion and Shirley Cunningham.

G. Larry James, who won gold and silver medals in track in the 1968 Olympics, died of cancer in Galloway Township, N.J. He was 61.

James teamed with Vince Matthews, Ron Freeman and Lee Evans on the U.S. 4x400 relay team, which won gold in Mexico City. He also won a silver medal in the 400 meters.