BRIEFLY : HRUDEY DOFFS MASK, REVEALS SPORTSCASTER.

Byline: Daily News Wire Services

After 15 years in the NHL, goalie Kelly Hrudey is trading in his skates for a microphone.

Hrudey, who played the past two seasons with the San Jose Sharks after stints with the New York Islanders and Kings, retired Thursday. He said he has reached a three-year deal with the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. to provide commentary for hockey games.

``I knew that I had no interest in going anywhere else,'' Hrudey said. ``I had no interest in leading the life of a gypsy.''

Hrudey, a backup last season to Mike Vernon, had been pondering retirement for some time. His decision was cemented when the Sharks signed free-agent goalie Steve Shields earlier this month.

Edmonton Oilers defenseman Kevin Lowe, 39, retired and joined the team as an assistant coach, ending his playing career at 19 years.

Walt Kyle, an assistant with the Mighty Ducks the past two years, became coach of the AHL's Hamilton Bulldogs.

BASKETBALL: Latrell Sprewell's $30 million lawsuit against the NBA was dismissed by a federal judge in San Francisco. Sprewell, whose one-year suspension for choking his Golden State Warriors coach, P.J. Carlesimo, was reduced by an arbitrator, claimed the suspension was racially discriminatory and violated his right to make a living.

U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker left room for the suit to be revived, giving Sprewell's attorneys 30 days to tie their legal claims more closely to the facts of the case. But Walker said they should seriously consider dropping the matter.

The United States, perennially one of the most feared teams in the world, was shocked by Lithuania 84-82 in a first-round game of the world championships in Athens. The last time the United States lost in a world championship or Olympics was in the 1990 world championships to Yugoslavia 99-91 in the semifinals. Since then, the U.S. had won 26 games.

GOLF: Betsy King marveled at the attention heaped on Se Ri Pak, then went out and played her best round of the season in the first round of the du Maurier Classic in Windsor, Ontario. King, a rookie on the LPGA Tour the year Pak was born, missed only one green and never came close to a bogey in a round of 8-under-par 64 that gave her a one-stroke lead over Meg Mallon and Wendy Doolan.

Pak was five strokes back after a 69 that included three nice par saves but not nearly enough birdies.

Former champion Nick Price, Paul Azinger and Russ Cochran shot 65s to share the first-round lead in the St. Jude Classic in Memphis, Tenn.

Matt Kuchar, tempted to turn pro after strong performances at the Masters and U.S. Open, will defend his U.S. Amateur title next month, then return to Georgia Tech.

SOFTBALL: In Fujinomiya, Japan, ex-UCLA star Lisa Fernandez homered and pitched a one-hitter as the United States beat Australia 1-0 to win its fourth straight title in the Women's World Softball Championship.

TENNIS: Defending champion Filip DeWulf of Belgium needed just 57 minutes to rout Austrian Thomas Muster 6-2, 6-4 in the third round of the Generali Open in Kitsbuehel, Austria.

NCAA: Gonzaga University was put on four years probation after the NCAA determined a former athletic director had improperly deposited university funds in a private fund over which he had sole control. The NCAA said Dan Fitzgerald maintained the private fund from 1981 through mid-1997 and was the ``sole signatory'' for the fund that totaled nearly $200,000.

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PHOTO KELLY HRUDEY

The ex-Kings goalie is retiring after 15 years in the NHL to be a hockey broadcaster.