The Associated Press

ERIE, Pa. - Michelle Wie squandered a late lead, losing the last three holes and her second-round match to In-Bee Park on Thursday.

Wie led 2-up heading to the 16th hole but was eliminated in the early round of the championship for the second straight year. The 14-year-old from Hawaii lost in the first round in 2003.

"I knew she was going to come back. ... I left myself in a really hard position," Wie said.

All square going to the par-4 18th, Wie hit her second shot within 15 feet. Park's second shot landed about 60 feet from the hole.

Park, of Henderson, Nev., hit her putt close, and Wie conceded the putt. Wie knocked her birdie putt several feet past the hole and the match ended when her second putt hit the edge of the cup and rolled away.

"It was one of those things," Wie said. "It passes right by and you don't know what happened."

NBA

BRYANT CASE: Prosecutors and the woman accusing Kobe Bryant of rape are asking the judge to ease a gag order so they can respond to widely publicized evidence they say is favorable to the NBA star.

The woman's attorneys, John Clune and Lin Wood, said in a court filing Thursday that the gag order prohibits them from responding to claims made by a defense witness who has distributed derogatory information about their client on the Internet.

"Unrebutted, this 'garbage' is allowed to be elevated in the mind of the public to the undeserved status of fact," they wrote.

Bryant has pleaded not guilty to felony sexual assault. He has said he had consensual sex with the employee of the Colorado resort where he stayed last summer. The trial begins Aug. 27, with the last pretrial hearing scheduled Monday.

If convicted, the Los Angeles Lakers guard faces four years to life in prison or 20 years to life on probation, and a fine up to $750,000.

Earlier this month, District Judge Terry Ruckriegle broadened his gag order to prohibit all lawyers, witnesses and others connected to the proceedings from talking to reporters about the case.

NETS: New Jersey signed free agent guard Ron Mercer to a two-year contract worth just more than $3 million Thursday.

The seven-year veteran fills the team's hole at two guard and adds another scoring threat to go alongside Jason Kidd.

The 6-foot-7 Mercer played with San Antonio last season, averaging a career-low 5.0 points and 13.2 minutes a game. He joins his seventh NBA team, having previously played for Boston, Denver, Orlando, Chicago and Indiana.

Mercer has averaged 13.9 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 414 career games, while shooting 43 percent from the field.

MAGIC: Orlando re-signed guard DeShawn Stevenson. He played in 80 games last season for Utah and Orlando, averaging career highs of 11.4 points, 3.7 rebounds and two assists.

In 26 games with Orlando, Stevenson averaged 11.2 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.5 assists. Although Stevenson started 24 games for the Magic, he will back up Cuttino Mobley.

Tennis

PROKOM OPEN: French Open champion Anastasia Myskina beat fifth-seeded Iveta Benesova of the Czech Republic 6-3, 6-4 Thursday to reach the semifinals in Poland.

The top-seeded Myskina will next play 2003 runner-up Klara Koukalova of the Czech Republic, who defeated Lubomira Kurhajcova of Slovakia 6-2, 6-1 in the quarterfinals. The other semifinal pits ninth-seeded Flavia Pennetta of Italy against wild card Marta Domachowska of Poland.

CORRECTION

The University of North Carolina is the second-winningest men's college basketball program in NCAA history, with 1,827 victories. Kansas is third with 1,825. Kentucky leads all programs with 1,876. An Associated Press report published in Sunday's paper was incorrect.