Federer and Davenport at Top for Australian Open

Defending champion Roger Federer and four-time winner Andre Agassi could meet in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open tennis tournament after both landed in the top quarter of Friday’s draw for the season’s first Grand Slam event at Melbourne.

Top-ranked Federer won the Australian Open, Wimbledon and U.S. Open last season, the first man since Mats Wilander in 1988 to win three of the season’s four majors.

The 23-year-old Swiss star will open against Fabrice Santoro of France and could meet Thailand’s Paradorn Srichaphan of Thailand in the third round, Agassi in the quarterfinals and 2004 runner-up Marat Safin, seeded fourth, in the semifinals.

In the women’s draw, top-ranked Lindsay Davenport, the 2000 champion, could meet eighth-seeded Venus Williams in the quarterfinals and French Open champion Anastasia Myskina, ranked third, in the semifinals.

Agassi, the Australian Open champion in 1995, 2000, ’01 and ‘03, is seeded eighth. His status for the championship was in doubt, however, after he retired in the first set of a tuneup match against Andy Roddick on Thursday because of a right hip injury.

The 34-year-old Agassi is scheduled to face a qualifier in the first round and 2003 runner-up Rainer Schuettler in the second.

Fellow American Taylor Dent looms as a third-round opponent.

“It’s a tough section for Andre; he’ll have to be 100% fit,” Australian Open tournament director Paul McNamee said.

Davenport pulled out of her quarterfinal match in Sydney because of bronchitis.

Her first match next week is against 32-year-old veteran Conchita Martinez, an Australian Open finalist in 1998 and Wimbledon champion in 1994.

Venus Williams, whose best performance at the Australian Open was a loss in the final to younger sister Serena two years ago, opens against Eleni Daniilidou of Greece, who reached a career-high ranking of 14th about 18 months ago.

Serena Williams, who won her fourth consecutive major at the 2003 Australian Open, was drawn in the bottom quarter with second-ranked Amelie Mauresmo. Serena will open against Camille Pin in the first round.

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Top-seeded Silvia Farina Elia was upset by Yuliana Fedak, 6-2, 6-4, in the quarterfinals of the Canberra Classic at Canberra, Australia.

In other quarterfinals, Lindsay Lee-Waters beat Anca Barna, 6-4, 6-2, and will play Melinda Czink in the semifinals. Czink beat Marlene Weingartner, 6-3, 6-4.

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Second-seeded Gisela Dulko beat third-seeded Iveta Benesova, 7-5, 6-2, to advance to the championship of the Moorilla International at Hobart, Australia. Dulko will play Zheng Jie, who rallied for a 3-6, 6-4, 6-0 win over Li Na.

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The youngest male champion in Grand Slam history is going to help a new generation of young American tennis players.

Michael Chang, who won the 1989 French Open at 17, was appointed to a two-year term on the U.S. Tennis Assn.’s High Performance Committee.

“For me to have the opportunity to help make a difference in the lives of our top juniors and young professionals is very special,” Chang said.

“After 16 years on tour, I look forward to contributing and sharing my experiences.”

College Football

Tennessee safety Jason Allen said he would stay for his senior season instead of heading to the NFL after leading the Southeastern Conference in tackles as a junior.

Allen had 123 tackles, two interceptions and forced three fumbles this season. He was a third-team All-American and graduated in December.

Soccer

The U.S. Soccer Federation said it would start to recruit a replacement team for next month’s World Cup qualifier after the union rejected an offer to go to mediation if players gave a no-strike pledge through qualifying.

The USSF said it would use players who have never appeared at a U.S. national team camp for the Feb. 9 game at Trinidad and Tobago unless the regulars, who are unionized, agree to a deal by Feb. 1. The USSF intends to hold a training camp for the replacements in Carson.

Union head Mark Levinstein said the union would agree to a no-strike pledge only if management agreed to start paying players under the terms of the USSF’s latest offer instead of the previous agreement that covered 1999 to 2002.

Miscellany

Jockey Rene Douglas reached 3,000 career victories, riding Grey Misty to a two-length victory in the fifth race at Santa Anita.

The 37-year-old Panama native is the 122nd rider in North America to reach the milestone. He returned to California last fall after riding most of the last 10 years in Illinois, where he won four straight riding titles at Arlington Park.

A former USC and Oakland Raider kicker charged with shooting at the home of performers Siegfried and Roy will be sent to a mental health facility in northern Nevada for treatment, a judge decided at Las Vegas.

Cole Ford, 32, was ordered to the Lakes Crossing Center in Sparks after doctors determined he was not competent to stand trial on several charges, including felony assault with a deadly weapon.

Baylor baseball Coach Steve Smith was named coach of the U.S. national team.

Smith, who has led the Bears to six NCAA regional and two super-regional appearances in 10 years, will coach a team that will play against Japan and Chinese Taipei this summer.

Tasha Schwikert will be making her L.A. debut with UCLA when it plays host to a women’s gymnastics meet at 2 p.m. Monday against Nebraska.

Ric Sisler resigned as general manager of the Fullerton team in the independent Golden Baseball League.