Top-ranked Roger Federer and No. 2 Rafael Nadal will meet for the third time this year in the Rome Masters final today in Rome.

Federer advanced to his 13th consecutive final with yesterday's error-filled 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (5) win against No. 3 David Nalbandian. Nadal defeated Gael Monfils, 19, of France, 6-2, 6-2, in the other semifinal.

Nadal registered his 52nd consecutive win on clay and can match Guillermo Vilas' Open-era record of 53 wins on the surface if he successfully defends his title.

More Tennis

Justine Henin-Hardenne defeated top-ranked Amelie Mauresmo, 6-1, 6-2, to reach the German Open final in Berlin, where she will meet Nadia Petrova who routed Li Na of China, 6-1, 6-0, to pick up her 14th consecutive win on clay.

Kristi Miller, Lyndsay Shosho and Alison Silverio won the first three matches to lead Georgia Tech to a 4-0 victory against Penn in the second round of the NCAA Atlanta women's tennis regional. Georgia Tech (23-5), the No. 6 national seed, will face No. 11 seed Northwestern, a 4-1 winner against Purdue.

Arkansas (18-10) beat Michigan, 4-1, in the first round of the NCAA men's tennis tournament in Columbus, Ohio. The Razorbacks, seeded second in the Columbus regional, will face top-seeded Ohio State (26-1) in the second round today.

Basketball

Southern California freshman point guard Ryan Francis was shot and killed early yesterday while riding in a car in Louisiana, where he was visiting his mother. Francis, 19, was killed about 3:30 a.m. in Baton Rouge. Francis was among four passengers whose vehicle pulled up to a stoplight. The driver of another vehicle got out and opened fire. The driver of the car Francis was in attempted to drive away but Francis, who was sitting in the back seat, was shot multiple times. One person has been arrested.

Softball

Seventh-seeded Pitt upset No. 2 the University of Southern Florida, 2-1, at Ivy Field in South Bend, Ind. The victory marks the Panthers first Big East Softball Championship.

Top-seeded Long Island University captured its eighth Northeast Conference Tournament title, defeating Robert Morris, 4-2, at FDU Softball Field in Teaneck, N.J.

Youngstown State senior Tiffany Patteson hit a walk-off home run to right field as the Penguins defeated Illinois-Chicago, 2-1, in the Horizon League softball championship at McCune Park in Canfield, Ohio.

Baseball

The Seton Hill Griffins won their first NAIA Region IX title with a 2-1 victory against the Mt. Vernon Nazarene Cougars.

Riverhounds

The Riverhounds (1-0-2) battled the United Soccer League-leading Cincinnati Kings (3-1-1) to a scoreless tie at the Xavier University Soccer Complex in Cincinnati. The Riverhounds travel to Virginia to face the USL second place Richmond Kickers May 20.

Soccer

Liverpool won the FA Cup for the seventh time, beating West Ham, 3-1, on penalty kicks after rallying to a 3-3 tie in Cardiff, Wales. Liverpool goalkeeper Pepe Reina tipped a ball by Nigel Reo-Coker onto the post with a minute of overtime left before saving three kicks in the shootout.

Football

Matt D'Orazio threw six touchdown passes to help the visiting Chicago Rush (7-9) wrap up a playoff spot with a 70-47 victory against the Grand Rapids Rampage (5-11) in the final game of the regular season for both teams.

Clint Stoerner threw four touchdown passes to lead the playoff-bound host Nashville Kats to a 66-50 victory against the Tampa Bay Storm in the final regular-season game for both teams. Stoerner was 19 of 29 for 256 yards for the Kats (8-8). Shane Stafford threw four touchdown passes for the Storm (7-9).

Harold Robinson, the first black scholarship athlete in what would become the Big 12 Conference, died at 76. Robinson, a center who joined the Kansas State football team in 1949, died Tuesday at his home in Wharton, N.J.