FOOTBALL
Harris complaint dropped
The sexual battery complaint against Florida quarterback Treon Harris has been withdrawn, and the freshman has been fully reinstated by the university and the football team. The school said in a statement Friday that the woman who made the allegation “is not pursuing criminal charges against him at this time, but maintains the right to do so in the future.” The university added that it is not proceeding with any action against Harris. Florida Coach Will Muschamp responded by reinstating Harris, but said he will not play in tonight’s game against LSU. Under Florida law, the woman could be charged with a misdemeanor if authorities believe she filed a false police report. The Associated Press does not usually identify people who say they are victims of sexual assault. The school has protected her anonymity, too. A Miami native who chose Florida over in-state rival Florida State, Harris was banned from all team activities Monday while authorities investigated the allegations. He also was not allowed to attend classes. The school said Harris was accused of sexually assaulting a female student at an on-campus residence hall around 3 a.m. Sunday — hours after he helped Florida rally to beat Tennessee 10-9 in Knoxville. Harris was not arrested or charged with a crime.
GOLF
Lewis falls back
South Korea’s So Yeon Ryu shot a 6-under 65 on Friday to take a two-stroke in the LPGA Malaysia at Kuala Lumpur, the second event of the tour’s six-tournament Asian swing. Top-ranked Stacy Lewis (Arkansas Razorbacks), the first-round leader after a 65, had an even-par 71 to drop into a tie for 11th at 6 under. She had four birdies and four bogeys. Ryu birdied five of her first seven holes in hot conditions and finished with seven birdies and a bogey to reach 11-under 131 at Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club. Ryu won the Canadian Women’s Open in August for her third LPGA Tour victory. She also finished second in the Marathon Classic in July and has 11 top-10 finishes this season. Japan’s Akayo Uehara, New Zealand’s Lydia Ko, England’s Jodi Ewart Shadoff and South Korea’s Eun Hee Ji were tied for second. Uehara had a 63, Ko and Ewart Shadoff shot 64, and Ji had a 67. Defending champion Lexi Thompson was tied for 56th at 2 over after a 73.
Martin Laird wasn’t sure what to expect after a seven-week break. He hasn’t found too much wrong after two rounds of the Frys.com Open at Napa, Calif. Laird bounced back from his first bogey of the new PGA Tour season by making four consecutive birdies around the turn. One last birdie on the par-5 18th at Silverado gave him a second consecutive 5-under 67 and a one-shot lead over Bae Sang-moon among the early starters Friday. The three U.S. Ryder Cup participants, Hunter Mahan, Matt Kuchar and Jimmy Walker played later in the afternoon. Lee Westwood of England shot a 69 to at least avoid missing the cut, though he was eight shots behind. Laird was at 10-under 134.
Guy Boros birdied the final hole Friday for a 6-under 66 and a one-stroke lead over Tom Lehman and Marco Dawson after the first round of the Champions Tour’s SAS Championship at Cary, N.C. Hale Irwin, 69, who won the 2005 tournament at Prestonwood, opened with a 68 — the seventh time he has bettered his age this year. He had six birdies and a double bogey on No. 8. Hawaii Championship winner Paul Goydos and Larry Mize also shot 68. Defending champion Russ Cochran had a 72. Bernhard Langer, the 2012 winner, and Colin Montgomerie shot 73. Playing partner Nick Faldo had a 70. Tom Byrum had a hole-in-one on the island-green eighth in a 76.
Alexander Levy of France surged into the clubhouse lead on Friday with a 10-under 61 in the rain-affected second round at the Portugal Masters at Vilamoura. A downpour interrupted play for most of the afternoon and darkness fell on the course before all of the players could complete their rounds. The second round will resume early today, with the event reduced to 54 holes. The rain did not appear to hinder Levy, who made 10 birdies in a flawless round to move to 18-under 124. Only six players completed their rounds, with Rafa Cabrera-Bello of Spain (69) and Thomas Aiken of South Africa (67) tied for second, nine shots behind. Nicolas Colsaerts of Belgium, who narrowly missed out on a 59 on Thursday, was second at 15 under through 16 holes.
TENNIS
Djokovic, Federer in semifinals
Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer set up a rematch of their Wimbledon final with convincing straight-set victories to reach the semifinals of the Shanghai Masters on Friday. The top-ranked Djokovic defeated David Ferrer 6-4, 6-2 to extend his winning streak in China to 28 matches, while Federer played a nearly flawless second set to beat Julien Benneteau of France 7-6 (4), 6-0. It will be the 36th meeting in their rivalry, which has been remarkably close, with Federer winning 18 of their matches and Djokovic 17. The players have split their four matches this year, though Djokovic earned the far bigger prize with his second Wimbledon trophy in July. “There is no clear favorite,” Djokovic said. “Every time we play against each other, it’s a thriller.” The other semifinal will feature two veterans playing some of their best tennis — Gilles Simon and Feliciano Lopez. Lopez, who knocked out an ailing Rafael Nadal in the second round, defeated Mikhail Youzhny 5-7, 6-4, 6-4 in the quarterfinals. Simon upset sixth-seeded Tomas Berdych 7-6 (4), 4-6, 6-0. It was his second top-10 victory of the week after beating fourth-seeded Stan Wawrinka in the second round.
Defending champion Samantha Stosur advanced to the semifinals of the Japan Women’s Open in Osaka by beating Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan 6-4, 6-1 Friday. Stosur, a two-time champion in Osaka, had nine aces. She will next face third-seeded Elina Svitolina of Ukraine, who beat Lauren Davis of United States 6-2, 6-4. American teenager Madison Keys, one of the favorites for the title, retired from her match against Luksika Kumkhum of Thailand with a shoulder injury while trailing 6-2, 4-3. Fifth-seeded Zarina Diyas of Kazakhstan rallied to beat Ana Konjuh of Croatia 6-7 (4), 6-4, 6-2 and will next face Kumkhum.
Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic reached her sixth semifinal of the season by defeating Madison Brengle of the United States 6-4, 6-4 at the Generali Ladies in Linz, Austria, on Friday. The seventh-seeded Pliskova, who is ranked 30th, will play Anna-Lena Friedsam of Germany, while Camila Giorgi takes on Karin Knapp in an all-Italian semifinal. Earlier, Friedsam rallied to defeat Stefanie Voegele of Switzerland 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 to advance to her first career semifinal. Giorgi defeated Marina Erakovic of New Zealand 6-3, 7-5.
BASEBALL
Manager interviews done
The Texas Rangers have interviewed interim manager Tim Bogar for the job as Ron Washington’s full-time replacement. Bogar and former major-league player Alex Cora were the last of the eight planned interviews. The team had no comment beyond announcing Friday’s interviews. After Washington resigned for personal reasons Sept. 5, the Rangers went 14-8 under Bogar to finish 67-95. Bogar was in his first season as Washington’s bench coach. Cora is now a manager and general manager in the Puerto Rican Winter League. Besides Bogar, the other internal candidates are pitching coach Mike Maddux and Class AAA Manager Steve Buechele. The others to interview were Pittsburgh bench coach Jeff Banister, Cleveland bullpen coach Kevin Cash, Boston bench coach Torey Lovullo and Chicago White Sox third base coach Joe McEwing.
New York Yankees fans hoping for change at the top this offseason likely were disappointed Friday afternoon when the club announced a new three-year deal for General Manager Brian Cashman. The Yankees missed the playoffs for a second consecutive season in 2014 but managing general partner Hal Steinbrenner did not hold Cashman responsible. The team’s GM since 1998, Cashman’s three-year, $9-million deal was set to expire at the end of the month. The move comes as no surprise. Back in early August with the Yankees on their way to an 84-78 finish, word emerged from team insiders that Cashman’s job was safe. A source also confirmed hitting coach Kevin Long and first-base coach Mick Kelleher will not return to the team for the 2015 season.
GYMNASTICS
Biles takes gold
Leading from start to finish, Simone Biles of the United States became the first woman in 11 years to win consecutive all-around gold medals at the gymnastics world championships on Friday at Nanning, China. Biles posted the top floor score of 15.066 to finish with 60.231 points and successfully defend the title she won last year in Antwerp, Belgium. Larisa Iordache of Romania won silver with 59.765 points, and Kyla Ross of the United States took bronze with 58.232. Biles held a 0.133-point lead over Iordache after three of four events. Iordache’s title hopes took a hit when she stepped out during her floor routine. Biles, who added to the gold she won in the women’s team event on Wednesday, is the first woman to win successive titles since Svetlana Khorkina of Russia in 2001-03, and the first American to win two consecutive since Shannon Miller in 1993-94.