The Optimist (Abilene, Tex.), Vol. 87, No. 25, Ed. 1, Friday, November 20, 1998 Page: 4 of 8
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Sports
JL November 20 1998 Friday Page 4
r"
Runners plot course for top national finish
Wildcats counting on meet's depth to aid them
Jared Schroeder
Managing Editor
Cross country coach Jon Murrays
"dilution theory" will have to hold
true for the mens team during the
NCAA Division II championship
meet in Lawrence Kansas Monday.
The theory concludes that the
national meets deep Field of runners
will help dilute and spread out top
teams like No. 3 Adams State Col-
lege and No. 1 Western State Col-
lege that have six or seven good run-
ners unlike during the South Cen-
tral Region meet when Adams and
"Western finished their entire teams
during the gap between ACUs first
four runners and its fifth.
"Regiohals was a three-team
race" Murray said. "We have the
best four runners in the nation.
Our score will not be pushed up a
lot by the depth while their score
is made larger."
The Wildcats finished third
behind Western and Adams at
rcgionals Nov. 7 in Abilene.
Freda Valdez who qualified
individually for the national meet
will accompany the mens team.
"We have the best region no
doubt in the country" Murray said.
"The meet will include a lot of the
same people plus South Dakota."
The team is aiming to finish
among the top four in the nation
Murray said. The best finish in
ACU men's cross country history is
seventh which was in 1996.
Finishing four runners in the
top IS and then finishing the
teams fifth runner in the top 60
will put the men among the top
teams in the race.
The gap between the team's top
four runners and its fifth has
plagued the team all season.
The Wildcats finished first
third seventh ninth and 41st in
the regional meet.
The Wildcats suffered a setback
Wednesday when Dustin Hawcs
sprained his ankle during practice.
If Hawcs cannot run Monday
alternate James Bagley will take his
place.
The University or Kansas' Rim
Rock Farm course will be the site
of the meet. ACU finished third on
the UK course during the Jayhawk
Invitational Sept. 12.
"We ran well on it" Murray
said. "The course doesn't hurt us.
The hilly ones hurt us this course
has some hills. It is challenging but
not extremely difficult."
The course is one of the best in
America he said.
A RUN IN THE park: Members of the men's cross country team prance along the Nelson Park path
during practice Wednesday. The team will leave for the national meet in Lawrence Kan. Friday.
NO MICKEY MOUSE GAME
Top Division II teams
to clash at Disney tourney
Jared Schroeder
the way through eight places.
ACU which opened the season
with a 79-73 exhibition loss
against an Austrian club team
will begin the tournament against
the University of Southern Indi-
ana No. 18 Friday.
"They are solid' and well
coached" Williams said of South-
em Indiana. "They are up-tempo.
We will match up well."
The Wildcats have worked on
the weaknesses the Austrians
of Jhe.tpp rJlYJsiopJI.tearns jn jthe jeji.pDontirinepnicticjeljis.
nation. includmc Ben tlev'Conece. Lweel.iaiHJ-. . ..Ab.Ltz
No. 4 and Arkansas Tech Univer- State University or Bentley Satur
day. The championship game will
Managing Editor
The women's basketball (cam
is going to Disneyworld on
business.
Despite beginning its season at
one of America's No. 1 tourist
attractions the team will be kept
busy focusing on the Disney Divi-
sion II Tip-Off Classic's competi-
tion Friday-Sunday.
The tournament includes eight
sity No. 11
"Outside of the Elite Eight
tournament I believe this is the
premier Division II basketball
tournament in the country" said
Don Landry president of the Divi-
sion II Commissioners Associa-
tion in a statement.
The Wildcats were invited to
the tournament and will share
tfieir representation of the Lone
Ijjtar Conference and South Cen-
;tral Region with West Texas A&M
university.
"It will be a bench-mark for us
on a national level" coach Wayne
'Williams said. "The atmosphere
will be a playoli type atmosphere.
' Each team will play three games
and the tournament will play all
be Sunday.
Wildcats leaders Jackie Buchcr
and Jill Kurschner are both at less
than 100 percent Williams said.
Both are recovering from knee
injuries. Emily Berry is nursing a
sprained ankle.
The team will take a short
break for Thanksgiving and then
compete in the ACU Classic The
Wildcats will play St. Edward's
University at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 27
and Missouri Western University
at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 28.
St. Edward's nearly defeated
WTAM 79-75 Monday.
The Wildcats beat MWU 86-83
in the semifinals of the regional
tournament last season.
Women's basketball schedule
20-22 Disney Division 11 Tip-OfT
Classic Lake Buena Vista Fla.
27 St. Edwards Abilene 7:30
pm. (ACU Classic)
28 Missouri Western Abilene
7 JO pro. (ACU Classic)
Dec. 3 Cameron Abilene 6 pjn.
14
'17
9
Jan. 2
'7 .
14
Southwestern Oklahoma
Abilene 6 pm.
East Central Ada Okla 6 p m.
Texas Wesleyan Abilene 7 pm.
Southeastern Oklahoma Durant
Okla. 6 pm.
Wayland Baptist Abilene 2 p.m.
Angelo State San Angelo 6 pm.
Eastern New Mexico Portalcs
NM 530pm. MST
West Texas A&zM Canyon
6 pm.
Texas A&M-KingsvUle
Abilene 6 pm.
16 Texas A&M-Commerce
Abilene 2 pm.
21 Tarleton State StephenvUIe
6 pm.
22 Texas Womans Abilene 7 pm.
23 Midwestem State Wichita Falls
3 30pm
30 'Angelo State Abilene 6 pm.
Teb.4 Mldwestem Abilene 6 p m.
5 Texas Womans Abilene 7 pm:
6 Tarleton State Abilene 6 pm.
1 1 'West Texas A&M. Abilene
6pm.
13 'Eastern New Mexico Abilene
6pm.
18 Texas A&M-Commerce Com-
merce 6 pm.
20 Texas A&M-Klngsvule
KingsviUe 6 pm.
23-27 Lone Star Conference tournament
Lone Star Conference game
Tigers
to test
Wildcats
Robert Bentley
Pass: Heidi McDonald pivots to pass the ball during practice drills in Moody Coliseum Wednes-
day. The women's team departed for Lake Buena Vista Fla. Wednesday evening.
Sports Assistant
The men's basketball team will
continue its two-game road trip
Saturday against East Central
Oklahoma University.
ECU' tould be looked at as
ACU's counterpart in the Lone
Star Conference with both
teams ranked second in their re-
spective divisions ECU in the
North Division and ACU in the
South Division.
The second-place prediction
for ACU however could be
marked with an asterisk. The
Wildcats were given the most
first-place votes in the LSC
South but did not have as many
total votes as West Texas A&M
University the team ranked first.
The Tigers will open their
season against ACU Saturday.
ECU was 20-9 9-5 in the LSC
North last season.
The conferences pre-season
MVPs will also square-off. ACU's
Jared Mosley who paced ACU
last season in points and re-
bounds averaging 19.9 points
and 4.4 boards per game is the
South Divisions MVP.
ECU guard Roland Miller who
is the North Division's preseason
MVP led the conference in points
per game 29.2 last season.
Several newcomers are expect-
ed to bolster the team's lineup
with five new players donning
the purple and white this season
three of whom will bring Divi-
sion I experience to the team.
Guard Dante Rabb and for-
ward Ryan Jama both played in
the Big Sky Conference with
Rabb at Montana State University
and Jama at Weber State Univer-
sity. Guard Derek Strickhn play-
ed one season at the University of
Missouri-Kansas City.
1 ACU opened its season Thurs-
day against Southeastern Okla-
homa State University.
rlSC Notts
Cameron wins Lone Star Conference Volleyball Championship
Cameron University won the Lone Star Conference Volleyball Championship
with a five-game victory 14-16 15-8 15-17 16-14 15-10 against West Texas
A&M University Saturday in Lawton Okla.
CU rallied from a 2-1 deficit to win the final two games advance to this week-
U MH CI1U3 IIWUI L1VU1UU tl 3UUlUWC3l.JCg!UII iUUUMUlCm 1U lCMVEl
s w H n I 2Q.2. i ranked fourth in the region and will meet Ion seeded Reels Univer
sity 28-3 Friday.
J W1AM .0-0 raced uuougn conference piay unaeieatea in ine souui umsion
12k) and advanced to the LSC tournament championship match.
The Buffaloes arc ranked 10th In the nation and are the defending national champions.
(Cameron defeated Eastern New Mexico University In four games in the semifinals. WTAM han-
dled Texas ASrM-KlngsviIle University in four games.
m
Golfers score sixth place finish
Robert Bentley
Cox named player of the week
J Cody Cox has been named the Lone
Sttr .Conference South Division offensive
player of the week for his performance
during ACU's 36-29 double overtimevic-
tory against West Texas' A&M University
Saturday.
tCox engineered four touchdown dri-
ves and was 16-29 for 294 yards after tak-
ing oyer for John Frank 'in the second
half.
Texas A&M-Kingsville University's
Cedric Johnson a defensive back is the
LSC South Division's defensive player of
'the week. Johnson had two intercep-
tions whl?h he returned for 30 yards.
He' also recovered a fumble at the
Angelo State" University three-yard line
that led tothejavelinas first score of 'the
game. Johnson had four tackles and
broke upra passi '
Sports Assistant
The golf team ended its fall season at
the UT-Pan Am tournament Wednesday
with a sixth-place finish but also a little
more Division I experience under its belt.
The tournament played in McAllen
featured eight Division I teams after three
teams dropped out. ACU was the only
Division II team in the tournament.
The tournament was the Wildcats' sec-
ond straight in which they were the lone
Division II representative. The team fin-
ished fifth at the Hal Sutton Invitational
two weeks ago.
Junior Trey Barnes who led the. Wild-
cats by shooting 216 and placing fourth in
the individual standings said (he .team
was disappointed in the low finish but1
happy with the competition.
"Hopefully we'll get better playing
against better teams" Barnes said. "We get
competitive with those guys. We're not
just there for fun."
Barnes said the more intense competi-
tion against Division 1 teams wilhprepare
ACU for the spring season when the team
will face its Division II conference rivals.
"We've been competitive in Division I
even though we didn't come away with
any first-place finishes" Barnes said
"We're anxious to win especially having
been in all those tournaments."
The team was without junior Luke
Alverson who missed the tournament
with a pulled neck muscle. In the future
however the team will be without junior
Avnlsh Bhandari who will leave the team
to return to his native Kenya after the
semester.
Probable to take Bhandari's place on the
team ate John Inabnett and Jeff Wells.
ACU made significant progress In the
national standings going from 19th to
eighth.'
"We're looking a lot better than we
were last year at this time" Barnes said.
ACU was ranked 21st at the close of the
1997 fall season.
Aviators.
Update
Aiming to add to
their lead in the
Mayor's Cup the
Aviators played the
Odessa Jackalopes in
Odessa Thursday.
The Mayors Cup is a competition
between Abilene Odessa and the San
Angelo Outlaws.
Each team will play the other two
teams seven times during the season. The
Aviators are 2-1 against Odessa and 1-0
against the Outlaws.
The mayors will make "a friendly
wager" on which team will win the cup
a Western Professional Hockey League
statement said.
The Aviators improved their record to
14-3 with a 3-2 victory against the New
Mexico Scorpions Tuesday.
Upcoming home games:
El Paso Buzzards 7 p.m. Dec. 4.
Corpus Christl IceRays 7 p.m.
Dec. 5
k
f
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The Optimist (Abilene, Tex.), Vol. 87, No. 25, Ed. 1, Friday, November 20, 1998, newspaper, November 20, 1998; Abilene, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101603/m1/4/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Abilene Christian University Library.