IN BRIEF

GOLF

Verplank holds slim lead in Florida tourney

Scott Verplank led by one shot Friday after two rounds of the Children’s Miracle Network Classic in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.

Verplank (12-under-par 132) made enough birdies on his first nine holes that he wasn’t too bothered by closing with nine straight pars, giving him a second straight 6-under 66 and a one-shot lead over Tag Ridings, Stephen Ames and Ryan Armour.

Also: Laura Davies carded a 7-under 65 in windy conditions to take a one-stroke lead after the first round of the Mizuno Classic in Shima, Japan.

The 44-year-old English player leads American Reilley Rankin and Japan’s Chie Arimura, who are tied for second.

Justin Rose shot a 3-under 68 to take a four-stroke lead over Padraig Harrington in the Volvo Masters in Sotogrande, Spain.

Rose was at 4-under 138, the only player in the 55-man field under par.

U.S. Open champion Angel Cabrera shot an 8-under 63 to take a two-stroke lead in the suspended second round of the Singapore Open.

HOCKEY

Senators sign Spezza to seven-year extension

Senators center Jason Spezza agreed to a $49 million, seven-year contract extension that allowed Ottawa to lock up the final member of its potent first line.

The 24-year-old would have been a restricted free agent after this season but now will be with the team through 2014-15.

Also: Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Niclas Wallin is expected to be sidelined about a month because of a right shoulder injury that will require surgery today.

The Vancouver Canucks will be without two of their top defensemen, losing Kevin Bieksa to a calf injury and Sami Salo to a broken nose during a loss Thursday to Nashville.

Bieksa will miss up to eight weeks, but it is unclear when Salo will return.

The San Jose Sharks signed defenseman Sandis Ozolinsh, adding the seven-time All-Star to their roster after an extended tryout.

Al Arbour, the Hall of Fame coach who guided the Mike Bossy and Bryan Trottier-led New York Islanders to four straight Stanley Cup titles from 1980 to 1983, has been given a gift by the team 13 years after he said goodbye for the second time.

Tonight, Arbour, 75, will step back into his familiar role as coach for one more game — No. 1,500 with the franchise that he helped make famous.

HORSE RACING

Curlin goes up for sale after fen-phen ruling

Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Curlin is up for sale, with a new group of more than 400 owners interested in a payday for the best thoroughbred in the country.

Details haven’t been worked out about where and when the likely Horse of the Year will go on the block, but lawyers involved with the horse’s owners said it could be soon.

That’s good news for 418 people awarded the rights to a 20 percent stake in Curlin as part of a lawsuit against two of the colt’s original owners for their part in bilking them out of funds from a $200 million settlement involving the diet drug fen-phen.

TENNIS

Nadal wins, advances to Paris Masters semis

Rafael Nadal of Spain beat Mikhail Youzhny of Russia 6-4, 6-2 to reach the Paris Masters semifinals and take a step closer to a rematch against Argentina’s David Nalbandian.

Nadal, who lost to Nalbandian two weeks ago in the Madrid Masters, next plays Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis, a 6-4, 6-4 winner over Spain’s Tommy Robredo.

Nalbandian will play 10th-seeded Richard Gasquet after the Frenchman beat 15th-seeded Andy Murray of Britain, 6-3, 0-6, 6-4. Nalbandian needed nearly three hours to subdue fifth-seeded David Ferrer of Spain, 7-6 (3), 6-7 (3), 6-2.

Also: American star Lindsay Davenport advanced to the Bell Challenge semifinals in Quebec City, beating France’s Stephanie Foretz, 6-4, 6-0.

She will face second-seeded Vera Zvonareva of Russia in one of today’s semifinals. Zvonareva beat eighth-seeded countrywoman Olga Poutchkova, 6-2, 6-1.

In the other quarterfinals, American qualifier Julie Ditty beat compatriot Vania King 6-4, 3-6, 6-4, and third-seeded Julia Vakulenko of Ukraine routed fifth-seeded Olga Govortsova of Belarus, 6-3, 6-2.

Two UNLV singles players and a pair of doubles teams are still alive in the main draw of the Rebel Classic Men’s Tournament at the Fertitta Tennis Complex.

Top seed Elliot Wronski had a first-round bye, then beat Vicente Joli of Fresno Pacific 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 to move into today’s semifinals. Also advancing for the hosts was Luca Barlocchi, who defeated Matt Carroll of Fresno Pacific 6-4, 6-2, then moved on by default over teammate David Campbell.

In doubles, second-seeded Wronski-Wesley Burrows had a first-day bye, and Matt Kunkel-Bryan Miller advanced with an 8-6 win over Mario Foelz-Maxime Adam of Fresno Pacific.

UNLV senior Elena Gantcheva fell in the first round of consolation play at the ITA Indoor Tennis Championships at Columbus, Ohio.

Gantcheva, ranked 50th, was ousted by eighth-ranked Georgia Rose of Northwestern 6-3, 6-0 to end her fall tournament season.

MISCELLANEOUS

Drug tests far-reaching at 2010 Winter Games

More drug tests will be conducted at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia, than at the 2006 Turin Games in Italy, and the search for cheats will extend into the athletes’ village, training centers and even private residences, officials said.

“We will test any time, anywhere,” said Jeremy Luke, the director of anti-doping for the Vancouver Olympic Games Organizing Committee.

Also: Two doctors who doled out illegal steroids and human growth hormone prescriptions to perhaps thousands of people were sentenced in Providence, R.I., one to two years in prison and the other to a year’s home confinement.

Ana Maria Santi and Victor Mariani, both of New York, pleaded guilty in federal court this year to charges they were paid by New Jersey businessman Daniel McGlone to write medically unnecessary prescriptions for customers they never had met or examined.

Santi was given two years in prison. Mariani avoided jail time, with a prosecutor and judge describing him as far less culpable.

Senior Marcelus Kemp and sophomore Brandon Fields will be benched for the UNR basketball team’s scrimmage against Seattle Pacific today for violating team policy, coach Mark Fox said.

Lisa Leslie scored 19 points in her second game back with the U.S. national team after the birth of her first child, leading the squad to a 90-74 exhibition victory over host Connecticut in Storrs.

Six Nevadans — Larry Barnson, Pat Christenson, Jim Duschen, Dennis Finfrock, Mike Lommori and Jerry Wager — will receive the Lifetime Service to Wrestling Award from the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum tonight for their promotion of the sport in the state at a function at Rhodes Ranch Golf Club.

Katie Carney scored the game’s only goal in double overtime as UNLV’s women’s soccer team captured its fourth straight Mountain West Conference regular-season championship with a 1-0 victory over 24th-ranked Brigham Young at Peter Johann Memorial Field.

The Rebels, who improved to 5-1-1 in league and 10-4-5 overall, will be the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament, which begins next week at BYU in Provo, Utah.

UNLV will receive a first-round bye and will play its first game at noon Thursday.