In brief: Roger Federer gets 300th Masters win in Cincy

Western & Southern Open: Roger Federer had another big moment. Those seem to happen for him a lot in Cincinnati.

Federer won his opening match at the Western & Southern Open on Wednesday, a three-set victory over Vasek Pospisil that was his 300th career victory during a Masters tournament. He’s the first player to reach the mark – Rafael Nadal is second with 281 such wins.

The big number was nice. After a two-hour struggle, Federer was glad just to have a chance to try to add to his unprecedented five titles in Cincinnati.

“It’s a nice, round number,” Federer said. “I’ve had some more important ones over the one today. Nevertheless, it’s nice to reach such milestones.”

The Swiss star didn’t take control until the middle of the third set, when he broke Pospisil twice for a 4-1 lead. Both players were sloppy in the breezy conditions.

• Williams holds off Stosur: Top-seeded Serena Williams kept her poise and rallied from behind in both tiebreakers to beat Samantha Stosur 7-6 (7), 7-6 (7).

Stosur got ahead 4-0 in the first tiebreaker before Williams rallied. Stosur had two set points in the second tiebreaker, but hit a shot into the net and another one long to even it. Williams won it when Stosur dumped another shot into the net.

• Murray, Isner advance: Andy Murray faced only three break points – and fought all of them off – during a 6-3, 6-3 win over Joao Sousa.

No. 4 Tomas Berdych converted only one break point while losing to Yen-Hsun Lu 3-6, 6-3, 6-4. John Isner moved on with a solid 6-3, 7-6 (1) victory over Marinko Matosevic.

• Svitolina pulls off upset: Third-seeded Petra Kvitova had trouble with her serve and lost to Elina Svitolina 6-2, 7-6 (2). Kvitova had nine double-faults and made just 52 percent of her first serves.

Sterling loses appeal to block sale

NBA: A California appeals court has shot down Donald Sterling’s latest effort to block the $2 billion sale of the Los Angeles Clippers to former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer.

The 2nd Appellate District Court issued a brief ruling saying there was nothing it could do because the team had been sold.

• Oden facing trial: A judge in Indianapolis has entered a not-guilty plea for former NBA No. 1 draft pick Greg Oden, who is charged with punching his ex-girlfriend in the face.

The Marion County judge set an Oct. 22 trial date for the free-agent center. Oden is charged with battery resulting in serious bodily injury and two misdemeanor battery counts.

MLS suspends Eddie Johnson

SOCCER: D.C. United forward Eddie Johnson was suspended two games and fined an undisclosed amount by Major League Soccer for violent conduct toward Real Salt Lake defender Carlos Salcedo.

Johnson kicked the ball at Salcedo’s back while the Salt Lake player was on the ground after a whistle, resulting in a yellow card.

• Martino signed: Gerardo Martino has been hired as coach of Argentina, less than three months after leaving Spanish club Barcelona.

The Argentine Football Association says the 51-year-old Martino will replace Alejandro Sabella, who stepped down after Argentina’s loss to Germany in last month’s World Cup final.

ASU linemen announces he is gay

MISCELLANY: Arizona State senior offensive lineman Edward Sarafin has told a local magazine he is gay, making him the first active Division I football player to come out.

Sarafin told Phoenix-based Compete, a magazine for gay sports, that he revealed his sexual orientation to his teammates nonchalantly last spring.

The 6-foot-6, 320-pound lineman graduated with a degree in Biomedical Engineering last spring and is currently pursuing his master’s.

• Van Dyken released: Olympic swimmer Amy Van Dyken-Rouen is being released from a Denver-area hospital to continue her rehabilitation after an all-terrain vehicle crash in June that left the 41-year-old paralyzed just below the waist.

The odds of her ever walking again are long but she has impressed her doctors and fans with her positive attitude.

• Fleshner, Bacon claim diving titles: Aaron Fleshner and Sarah Bacon won the 1-meter titles in the U.S. national diving championships in Knoxville, Tennessee.

Fleshner won the men’s title with 452.4 points, and Bacon took the women’s with 287.15.