My Sports News Digest

HALLE, Germany (TENNIS/Newsfeed) — Rafael Nadal lost in the quarterfinals of the Gerry Weber Open on Friday, beaten by Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-3, 6-4 in the Spaniard’s first tournament since winning a record seventh French Open.

Roger Federer, a five-time winner of this grass-court Wimbledon tuneup, was taken to three sets but defeated Canada’s Milos Raonic 6-7 (4), 6-4, 7-6 (3).

Kohlschreiber, who is seeded eighth, won this tournament last year. The 34th-ranked German ended Nadal’s 13-match winning streak.

“It’s not the time to look for excuses,” said Nadal, who won in Paris four days ago. “He played much better than me.”

Federer advanced despite 25 aces by Raonic. The Canadian had 13 aces in a first set he won in a tiebreaker. Federer broke serve early in the second and forced a third set.

Federer beat Raonic at Indian Wells in March and Madrid last month, going on to win both titles. The 16-time Grand Slam champion is now favored to win a record sixth title at Halle following Nadal’s exit.

“Today, from the beginning was tough for me,” Nadal said.

Kohlschreiber had eight aces, ending the first game with his first. He broke Nadal in the next – after the Spaniard saved two break points – and intensified the pressure by pulling ahead 3-0.

The German missed a chance to break the 11-time Grand Slam champion again in the first game of the second, and defended three break points to hold his serve three games later. Kohlschreiber broke again in the seventh game and quickly moved ahead 5-3.

“It was a world-class day for me,” Kohlschreiber said. “In principle I did nothing wrong.”

It was his first win over Nadal in nine attempts, although Friday’s match was their first meeting on grass.

“It’s more a tennis problem than a mental problem,” Nadal said. “The transition is difficult. It depends how much time you have. Playing on grass can sometimes be a bit of a lottery.”

Kohlschreiber next meets the winner of Friday’s match between third-seeded Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic and wild card Tommy Haas of Germany.

Mikhail Youzhny of Russia beat Radek Stepanek of the Czech Republic 6-4, 4-6, 6-4.

BOSTON (CBB/Newsfeed) — Boston University is moving to the Patriot League, leaving the America East conference at the start of the 2013-14 academic year.

“This is a really unique opportunity for us to challenge ourselves,” BU athletic director Mike Lynch said. “We will be entering a league that embodies the ideal of valuing academics as the highest priority while sponsoring very competitive athletic programs. That is our commitment too.”

The move involves men’s and women’s basketball, soccer, lacrosse, tennis, cross country, track and field and swimming and diving. Women’s field hockey, golf, rowing and softball will also be making the move.

The five-time NCAA champion BU hockey team will remain in Hockey East.

BU dropped its football program in 1997.

The Terriers have won 40 America East championships in 14 sports during their tenure in the conference.

“Boston University has a strong tradition of excellence in academics and Division I athletics, both of which reflect the core values of the Patriot League,” Patriot League executive director Carolyn Schlie Femovich said. “They will strengthen the League both in the classroom and on the field of play.”

The new conference includes American, Bucknell, Colgate, Holy Cross, Lafayette, Lehigh, Army and Navy as full members. Fordham and Georgetown are members for football and M.I.T. competes in women’s rowing.

“We are very impressed by the academic quality of the institutions in the Patriot League and by the league’s commitment to student-athletes while effectively competing at the NCAA Division I level,” BU president Robert Brown said. “We believe that the philosophy of the league is a good match for Boston University and that the schools in the league will give our athletes a rich competitive environment.”

HARTFORD (CBB/Rivals) – Connecticut has confirmed that basketball players Michael Bradley and Roscoe Smith have both been released from their scholarships, a move that will allow them to transfer.

The pair would become the fourth and fifth underclassmen to leave the program since the NCAA turned down a waiver request would have allowed UConn to play in the 2013 NCAA tournament despite failing to meet academic qualifications.

Sophomore Jeremy Lamb and freshman center Andre Drummond announced earlier this month that they will enter this year’s NBA draft, a move both were expected to make even if UConn had been eligible for the tournament.

Alex Oriakhi earlier announced he is transferring to Missouri for his senior season.

Smith, a 6-foot-8 forward, averaged 4.4 points and 3.4 rebounds in 33 games during his sophomore season, down from 5.4 points and five rebounds as a freshman, when he helped Connecticut to its third national title.

Bradley, a 6-10 redshirt freshman, was injured in the preseason and has never played a game for the Huskies. He was expected to compete for a starting job next season after the departure Oriakhi and Drummond.

Bradley has expressed a desire to be closer to his home in Tennessee and his ailing grandmother, but coach Jim Calhoun told The Hartford Courant school is still trying to work on a plan that would allow him to stay at Connecticut.

If both Smith and Bradley leave, Connecticut would be left with just six returning scholarship players: guards Shabazz Napier and Ryan Boatright; swingmen DeAndre Daniels and Niels Giffey, and centers Tyler Olander and Enosch Wolf.

UConn has just one signed recruit, 6-4 guard Omar Calhoun from New York. The school also has a verbal commitment from R.J. Evans, another 6-4 guard, who plans to transfer from Holy Cross, where he averaged 11.5 points last season. Evans, who graduates this spring, has one more year of eligibility and could play immediately.

UConn is expected to try and sign at least two more players this spring.

The Huskies have not had a losing season since coach Jim Calhoun’s first as the school’s head coach in 1986-87.

UConn faces a postseason ban because of several years of low scores on the NCAA’s Academic Progress Rate.

In its waiver request, the school argued the penalty was applied retroactively and hurts current students, who had nothing to do with the low scores and have made significant improvements in recent years.

The NCAA’s Committee on Academic Performance is meeting this week and may discuss changes to the R that would allow it to use data from the two most recent academic years when determining a school’s eligibility.

The governing body currently uses data from 2009-10 and 2010-11 in determining eligibility for the 2013 tournament.

UConn would qualify for next year’s tournament under the proposed rule changes.

TOLEDO (WIRE/CFB) – Ohio The Toledo men‘s basketball team will be banned from next year’s postseason because of past academic problems after the NCAA denied the school’s appeal.

The ban stems from several years of below-standard scores on the NCAA’s Academic Performance Rate that a year ago cost Toledo three scholarships.

The NCAA earlier this year banned Connecticut’s men’s basketball team postseason because of several years of low scores, leading two members of Congress to say that the system used to enforce the NCAA standards appeared to be arbitrary and unfair.

Toledo argued that the NCAA should consider its most recent academic performance from 2011-12. It said the team’s grades have exceeded the NCAA standards under second-year coach Tod Kowalczyk.

“It is simply a question of fairness,” athletic director Mike O’Brien said.

The NCAA approved rules in October requiring a school have a two-year average score of 930 or a four-year average of 900 on the R, which measures the academic performance of student-athletes, in order to qualify for the 2013 postseason tournament.

Toledo’s two-year scores from 2009-11 fell just short and the school said it would not have faced a postseason ban if the latest scores would have been considered.

“I fully support the NCAA and its efforts to improve academic integrity, but I don’t believe coaches and student-athletes who are doing the right thing should be penalized like this,” Kowalczyk said.

UConn officials made a similar argument in their unsuccessful attempt to appeal its postseason ban. In addition to the ban, Toledo will be forced to give up three regular-season games and cut its practice time.

The Rockets, who haven’t been to the NCAA tournament since 1980, were short three scholarships because of poor academics last season, but still managed to finish in the middle of the Mid-American Conference.

FAYETTEVILLE (RIVALS/CFB) – The former mistress of fired University of Arkansas football coach Bobby Petrino has resigned from her position with the program, school officials announced Tuesday.

Jessica Dorrell‘s decision to step down as the football team’s student-athlete development coordinator was mutual and there are no immediately plans to re-fill the job, Athletic Director Jeff Long said in a statement.

Dorrell will be paid about $ 14,000 to settle “all matters between the parties.”

“While Ms. Dorrell had a legitimate right to apply for and accept a position within the football program, the circumstances surrounding the former coach’s decision to hire her compromised her ability to be effective in such a position,” Long said. “She and I believe she should have the opportunity to move on.”

As part of her resignation, Dorrell agreed she would not attempt to sell or profit from her affiliation with Razorback athletics, officials said.

Dorrell didn’t immediately return a message seeking comment Tuesday night.

Long fired Petrino last week for not disclosing that he was having an extramarital affair with Dorrell, as required by conflict of interest rules at the school.

Dorrell, a former Arkansas volleyball player, was a Razorback Foundation fundraiser before she was hired over 158 other applicants for the coordinator position. Petrino announced March 28 that Dorrell would take over the position at a salary of nearly $ 56,000.

Their affair became public after the two went for a motorcycle ride April 1 and skidded off the road, putting Petrino in the hospital and resulting in a police report that contained her identity.

Long has said the two were in a relationship for a “significant” amount of time. Phone records show they exchanged more than 4,300 text messages and nearly 300 phone calls over the past seven months, and possibly photo and video content.

She was placed on leave after news of the affair broke.

Petrino has apologized and said he would not appeal his firing and seek any of the $ 18 million buyout that was part of his contract. He had the option to appeal as part of the seven-year contract he agreed to in December 2010. The contract was for more than $ 3.5 million annually and carried the $ 18 million mutual buyout clause in 2011 and 2012.