NEW HAVEN, Conn. - Lisa Raymond overcame a loss in the first set and beat Nadia Petrova 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 Wednesday to advance to the quarterfinals of the Pilot Pen tournament.
Raymond, a wild card, used a backhand slice and drop shots in the last two sets to frustrate the fifth-seeded Petrova, who flung her racket toward the sideline when she was broken by Raymond to end the match.
Raymond, a former Florida Gator, is the second unseeded American to beat a rising Russian player. Mashona Washington, ranked 81st, beat Wimbledon champion Maria Sharapova on Tuesday.
Known more for her doubles play, where she has won 43 titles, Raymond came to New Haven after losing to eventual bronze medalist Alicia Molik in Olympic singles. She said she didn't expect to play singles in either tournament.
"Maybe the less pressure that I put on myself, when I just go out there and play freely, obviously, the better tennis I play," Raymond said.
Also reaching the quarterfinals was second-seeded Elena Dementieva, who struggled with a spotty serve but beat Claudine Schaul 6-2, 6-2.
NBA: Przybilla on move again
Free-agent center Joel Przybilla signed with the Portland Trail Blazers, putting the former first-round draft pick on his third team in the past year. The 24-year-old finished last season with the Hawks after being acquired from the Bucks in a trade in February. Przybilla left the University of Minnesota after two seasons and was chosen ninth overall in the 2000 draft. His career averages are 2.1 points, four rebounds and 1.37 blocked shots a game.
SPURS: Forward Linton Johnson III signed. He played for the Chicago Bulls last season, averaging 4.2 points and 4.5 rebounds in 41 games.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL: UConn aide resigns
Connecticut assistant coach Clyde Vaughan resigned one week after being arrested in a prostitution sting by Hartford police. The resignation came shortly after state officials learned that Vaughan was arrested two previous times on charges similar to the patronizing a prostitute count lodged against him Aug. 18, the Hartford Courant reported on its Web site. The discovery led a state judge to rescind a plea deal that called for community service. "This resignation has brought an appropriate and prompt resolution to a serious matter," UConn athletic director Jeff Hathaway said. "It also allows Clyde to focus his energies on his personal and professional future."
EAST CAROLINA: David Bell, a 6-foot-7 forward at La Salle the past two seasons, has transferred to the Pirates and will sit out one season under NCAA rules.
ET CETERA
HORSES: His dismal performance in the Belmont Stakes redeemed by an easy win in the Jim Dandy, Purge was installed as the 2-1 early favorite for Saturday's $1-million Travers Stakes at Saratoga Race Course. Birdstone, in his first outing since denying Smarty Jones the Triple Crown in the Belmont, and Lion Heart were the second favorites at 3-1.
BOXING: WBC president Jose Sulaiman said the sanctioning body has completed an agreement with German boxer Graciano Rocchigiani and has withdrawn plans to file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy. Terms were not disclosed. Rocchigiani won a $31-million judgment against the WBC after it took away his light heavyweight title in 1998 and gave it back to Roy Jones Jr., who considered abandoning it for a heavyweight campaign but changed his mind.
SOCCER: Arsenal beat Blackburn 3-0 for its 43rd consecutive Premiership match without a loss, breaking a record for England's top league set in 1978 by Nottingham Forest. ... The Italian league said it has suspended six players and fined four clubs for match-fixing after an inquiry started by Naples' anti-mafia police in May.
