Sports briefs for April 18, 2005

Monday, April 18, 2005 | 10:30 a.m.

Rebels close out MWC play with loss

The 51st-ranked UNLV men's tennis team lost its final regular-season match, 5-2, to No. 60 New Mexico on Sunday at the Air Force Academy

The Rebels (15-7, 2-3) lost two of three doubles matches and two of three three-set singles matches.

UNLV senior Henner Nehles finished off a perfect run through the Mountain West.

His 7-6, 7-5 win against Max Jones moved him to 5-0 at the top spot in league play and made him a leading contender for the team's first conference player of the year award in nine years.

With the MWC tournament and NCAA tournament play still to come, Nehles' 26-8 overall singles record gives him the most wins in a season since Roger Pettersson's 27 in 1996.

It's the second time Muhammad has won the Easter Bowl. Last year she on the 14 doubles with Cristy Damico, and this year won with partner Brittany Augustine.

Two South Carolina players arrested

Two South Carolina football players were arrested early Sunday and charged with simple marijuana possession, raising the total number of Gamecocks arrested since the end of last season to 11.

Sophomores Josh Johnson and Ty Erving and another 18-year-old man were cited not far from the university after an officer smelled marijuana coming from the parked car the players were sitting in, according to a police report.

The officer ordered Johnson, Erving and Justin Johnson out of the car, according to the report, and found a small amount of marijuana.

Derby contender out

A respiratory ailment caused the Godolphin stable to say that British racing champion Blues And Royals will not compete in the Kentucky Derby. A winner by 12 lengths in his only start this year, the UAE Derby, Blues And Royals was to ship today to Belmont Park with plans to have him resume racing later in the summer.

Goalie scores

Seamus Kotyk became the eighth goalie to score a goal in American Hockey League history, firing the puck into an empty net in the Milwaukee Admirals' 6-1 victory against the San Antonio Rampage on Sunday.

Kotyk's goal gave the Admirals a 4-1 lead with 3 minutes to play. -- Sun wire services