In Brief

HORSE RACING

Japan's Victoire Pisa captures
World Cup, world's richest race

Japan's Victoire Pisa won the $10 million World Cup by a half-length Saturday, capturing the world's richest horse race in a lift to the disaster-ravaged country.

Three Japanese horses were entered in the race in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and the March 11 earthquake and tsunami clearly were on the minds of the owners and trainers. Many wore polo shirts with the word "Hope" on the sleeve and the date of the double-disaster on the back.

Victoire Pisa, a 4-year-old colt ridden by Italian jockey Mirco Demuro, was timed for the 1¼ miles in 2 minutes, 5.94 seconds. Transcend, also a Japanese entry which led most of the race, finished second. Monterosso was third.

The World Cup was the highlight of the eight-race card that featured 110 horses racing for $26.25 million.

In earlier races, Godolphin Stables, owned by Dubai ruler Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum, again proved a force.

Three of his horses won, led by Rewilding, who romped in the $5 million Sheema Classic. A second victory came in the $2 million UAE Derby, in which Khawlah edged Master of Hounds. The third win was by Skysurfers in the $1 million Godolphin Mile.

Also: Pants On Fire came from just off the pace to win the $1 million Louisiana Derby at Fair Grounds Race Course in New Orleans.

Mucho Macho Man, the 3-2 favorite in the Kentucky Derby prep, finished third.

Sent off at odds of 6-1 and trained by Kelly Breen, Pants on Fire covered the 1 1/8 miles in 1:49.92 under jockey Rosie Napravnik.

Animal Kingdom roared to the front at the turn, then held off Decisive Moment to win the $500,000 Spiral Stakes at Turfway Park in Florence, Ky.

The 3-year-old colt, ridden by Alan Garcia and trained by Graham Motion, thrust himself into the Kentucky Derby picture by easily turning away a late bid from Decisive Moment to win by 2 3/4 lengths, covering 1 1/8 miles in 1:52.32.

Worth Repeating took an early lead and held off a come-from-behind charge from Honour the Deputy to win the $100,000 Tokyo City Cup at Santa Anita in Arcadia, Calif.

Ridden by Martin Pedroza, Worth Repeating took the lead in the field of five older horses heading into the second turn, stretched the margin to two lengths by the top of the stretch and won by a half-length, covering 1½ miles on dirt in 2:29.23.

LOCAL COLLEGES

UNLV men's swimmers finish
19th at national championships

UNLV posted its best finish ever in the NCAA Men's Swimming and Diving Championships, placing 19th after picking up points in the 1,650-yard freestlye and the 400 free relay.

The Rebels bettered their previous best finish of 21st at last year's nationals. They ended the four-day meet in Minneapolis with 57 points, 19 more than last year's total.

UNLV got points on the final day from Kier Maitland in the 1,650 free after the senior placed 12th in a time of 14 minutes, 54.91 seconds. The Rebels' other points came in the meet's final event, the 400 free relay, with Kyle Virva, Cody Roberts, Charlie Tapp and David Seiler coming in 16th in 2:55.42.

California held off Texas to win its first team title in 31 years.

Also: Trent Cook went 3-for-4 at the plate, and Marvin Campbell was 2-for-4, but the UNLV baseball team lost to New Mexico 7-6 in a Mountain West Conference game in Albuquerque.

The Rebels (18-8, 1-4 MWC) led 4-0 after 1½ innings but surrendered six unanswered runs over the next three innings and never recovered.

The UNLV softball team lost to No. 15 Oregon 8-4 in a game shortened by rain at the Mustang Classic in San Luis Obispo, Calif.

Ashlii Holland and Paige Emerson had home runs for the Rebels (15-12).

The College of Southern Nevada softball team beat No. 12 College of Southern Idaho 13-12 and 12-4 in a doubleheader at the Russell Road Recreation Complex.

In the opener, the Coyotes (24-18, 17-11 Scenic West Athletic Conference) rallied from a 12-6 deficit with seven runs in the bottom of the seventh inning, including an Alicia Firelein grand slam to pull CSN within 12-11. Megan Jaramillo later had an RBI single, and the Coyotes won it on a passed ball that scored Andi Felese.

In the second game, CSN broke a 4-4 tie with eight runs in the bottom of the fifth to win on the run rule. Firelein was 2-for-2 with four RBIs, on a two-run homer in the first inning and a two-run single to start the fifth-inning outburst.

The CSN baseball team swept Colorado Northwestern Community College 4-2 and 14-1 in Rangely, Colo.

Cameron Harper had a three-run homer in the third inning of the first game, and Chipper Smith threw a complete game, allowing five hits and striking out seven.

In the second game, Kris Kaplan went 2-for-2 with a three-run homer for the Coyotes (16-16, 5-11 SWAC).

MISCELLANEOUS

Wranglers' troubles continue
with eighth loss in nine games

The Wranglers' late-season scoring woes continued in a 2-0 loss to the Bakersfield Condors in Bakersfield, Calif. -- the team's eighth defeat in the past nine games.

Las Vegas (36-27-5, 77 points) was outshot only outshot by one (25-24) but couldn't break through against Condors goalie Brian Stewart.

The Wranglers have been outscored 28-11 over the past nine games, failing to score more than two goals in any of those contests.

Meanwhile, the division-leading Condors won their 11th straight game.

Also: Bonanza High School graduate Jason Zucker scored off a rebound of his own shot 11:14 into the second overtime to lift Denver past Western Michigan 3-2 in the NCAA hockey regional semifinals in Green Bay, Wis.

The Pioneers (25-11-5) advance to play top-ranked North Dakota today in the regional final.

An ailing Andy Roddick was eliminated in his opening match at the Sony Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne, Fla.

Roddick, the defending champion, had trouble breathing because of chest congestion and lost to Pablo Cuevas of Uruguay, 6-4, 7-6 (4).

Roddick received three visits from a trainer during changeovers in the second set. He came down with a bronchial infection last month and said he plans to see a doctor when he returns home to Austin, Texas.

No. 1-seeded Rafael Nadal and No. 3 Roger Federer easily advanced to the third round.

Nadal beat Japan's Kei Nishikori 6-4, 6-4, and Federer defeated Radek Stepanek of the Czech Republic 6-3, 6-3 for his 762nd victory, tying him with Pete Sampras for seventh place in the Open era.

Yuriorkis Gamboa stopped Jorge Solis in the fourth round to defend his WBA and IBF featherweight titles in Atlantic City, N.J.

Gamboa (20-0, 16 knockouts) delivered a sensational performance before a sellout crowd of 2,913 at Boardwalk Hall's Adrian Phillips Ballroom. The Cuban defector who now lives in Miami knocked down Mexico's Solis (40-3-1) five times, including twice in the fourth.

Juan Agudelo scored a 59th-minute goal to give the United States men's soccer team a surprising 1-1 draw against Argentina in a friendly at East Rutherford, N.J.

Esteban Cambiasso put Argentina ahead in the 42nd minute after a run to the goal line by Lionel Messi. Angel Di Maria's initial shot was stopped by goalkeeper Tim Howard, and Cambiasso scored on the rebound.

Olympic gold medalist-turned-pro wrestler Kurt Angle was arrested early Friday after he was found sitting behind the wheel of a sport utility vehicle in the median of Interstate 29 near Thompson, N.D., the North Dakota Highway Patrol said.

Highway Patrol Capt. Kevin Robson told the Grand Forks Herald that Angle, 42, failed a field sobriety test and was arrested. The charge is actual physical control, which means he's not accused of drunken driving but of being behind the wheel of a vehicle while intoxicated.