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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 14, 1999)
Pabst gives credit to Pettit Sooners struggle defensively as NU dominates OU By Brian Christopherson Staff writer Oklahoma Coach Miles Pabst appeared very content after Wednesday night’s match at the NU Coliseum, surprisingly so for a coach who had just seen his team taken out in three quick games by the Cofnhuskers: Pabst, in his 22nd season as head coach of the Sooners, knew that an upset at the NU Coliseum was not like ly this season. “I wish we could have given Terry a better match,” Pabst said, “but we don’t have the team this year.” Oklahoma struggled all night defensively, and Nebraska feasted upon Sooner mistakes coupled with OU’s low .143 hitting average, and the fans were sent streaming to the exits hardly an hour after the National Anthem. “They were inexperienced, and their ball-handling is not as strong as some of the top teams in the confer ence,” Nebraska Coach Terry Pettit said. Pabst used most of his post-game comments to praise Pettit and his young team. “Terry has a huge team, and they tt If we were at the same high school level in Oklahoma as Nebraska, this would have been a hell of a match...” Miles Pabst OU head coach are a very good team,” Pabst said. “They might be about a year away with this personnel from really dominat ing.” The Huskers, however, looked very dominating Wednesday. Oklahoma came into the match with the second-best hitting percentage in the conference at .258 but was held way below that average by NU. “If we could have passed the ball to our setter all night, it would have been a good match, but we did not pass well or serve well,” Pabst said. The lone bright spot for Oklahoma was the play of junior Cathy Cook. Cook hit at a .500 clip, but even she could manage only eight kills on the night for the 6-11 Sooners. “Cathy passed well tonight and attacked well for us and limited her errors,” Pabst said. Cook has been a solid contributor, but Pabst said he was disappointed that he could not find more players of Cook’s quality within the state of Oklahoma. “Give Terry credit for getting high school volleyball going in this state way back when,” Pabst said. “Basically, every high school plays volleyball in Nebraska.” The same cannot be said for the state of Oklahoma. Pabst’s team has two women from Oklahoma. “If we were at the same high school level in Oklahoma as Nebraska, this would have been a hell of a match tonight, and over the years,” Pabst said. Nebraska has dropped the Sooners in three games in each of the past 12 wins and has now won 14 of the past 15 matches. Bench players spark Huskers By Brandon Schulte Staff writer They watch and wait - in case they are needed - like all understudies do. But the reserves on the No. 4 Nebraska soccer team are more than just insurance in case a star goes down. Regularly called to duty, they have been an integral part of the team’s suc cess this season by providing rest for the starters and a spark on the field for the Comhuskers. “The biggest thing about our team is our depth,” said reserve forward Danica Carey. “There shouldn’t be a drop-off when people come in off the bench. They should perform at the level of the starters.” So far this season there hasn’t been a drop-off. ~ - Reserves, all freshman or sopho mores, have combined to score 36 of the team’s 144 points on 14 goals and eight assists. Nebraska uses at least four substi tutes per game to keep the team fresh so it can play aggressively for all 90 minutes. Without strong back-ups, Carey said, it would be tough for the Comhuskers to play such a fast-paced game. “The most important part of our game is to play a high-powered and fast style,” Carey said. “If we didn’t have depth, it would be difficult for us to play our game.” The luxury of team depth was evi dent last weekend in games against Denver and Colorado when starters Lindsay Eddleman, Jenny Benson and Amy Walsh missed time because of injuries. Freshman Christine Latham and Breanna Boyd stepped into the line-up and propelled the Huskers to victory. In the two games, Latham scored twice and Boyd scored once. Through 14 games, Latham and freshman Kori Saunders have been the most successful coming off the bench. Saunders, a native of Overland Park, Kan., ranks fifth on the team in scoring with three goals and three assists. Her biggest goal may have been at No. 22 Stanford when she came off the bench to tie the score at one in the second half of a game Nebraska won 2-1. Latham, a forward from Canada, has started three games and scored three goals. As a three-time First-Team All Missouri player in high school, Saunders rarely, if ever, didn’t start. She said the adjustment has been diffi 66 If we didn’t have depth, it would be difficult for us....” Danica Carey NU reserve forward cult. “It’s definitely harder to come off of the bench,” Saunders said. “Physically it’s more challenging to wait there for a half-an-hour and then go into the game and play at the same intensity as everyone else.” Coach John Walker said the great est advantage of having so many quali ty back-up players is that each con tributes to the team in her own way. “Kori (Saunders), Christine (Latham), Danica (Carey) bring a high-energy level and are active physi cal players, Walker said. “Najah (Williams) has blinding speed. Each has different types of problems that they present. That’s nice because oppo nents see something completely differ ent from each, but they get the same things done.” Diednck learns he must be patient uimjmt/iy rrom page 14 offense. On his club team in Canada, he didn’t run the option, which is prob ably just as well. Although several high school teams in Nebraska run the play, most of them don’t run it well. For Diedrick, it was an eight- to nine-month process in fully digesting the Comhusker attack. By the end of" two-a-days last season, he was finally comfortable. “You think, ‘Oh, it’s the option. It’s just a little catch, a little 5-yard catch,”’ Diedrick said. “But start doing it. It’s harder than you think. It’s timing. There’s so much timing to it.” He redshirted in 1999. And then came the spring, when coaches hinted at a move to fullback, which, to Diedrick, figured they meant he had a lack of speed. “When testing came, I ran a good 40-yard dash time, and it sort of killed the question,” Diedrick said. “I did bet ter on all my tests. I really wanted to be an I-back. I wanted to prove to them I had die abilities to be an I-back.” Diedrick looked good in spring practice. He carried that performance over to the fall, where a strong work ethic and solid showings in late-game action earned Diedrick practice time with the No. 1 offense prior to the Iowa State game. Then, against the Cyclones, he had the best game of his young career. He didn’t run the option much - that might have had more to do with inexperi enced quarterback Joe Chrisman - but Diedrick displayed a nice package of toughness and moves in his 99 yards in a little less than a half. He wears the same No. 30 and has roughly the same size as Green did, although he might not have that kind of speed. No matter - Diedrick represents a tougher back who can gain yards between the tackles. Just a redshirt freshman, he’s a year away from reach ing his full potential. And he still has confidence - it’s part of his nature. But it’s a better kind of confidence, the kind that doesn’t demand everything happen next week, next game. “Everybody wants to be the first one on the field,” Diedrick said. “Nobody aspires to be No. 2 or No. 3. “But Correll and Dan are great players. I’ll do the best I can when I get in there. I know my time will come, whenever I get to start.” And Diedrick has to realize he’ll have to fight for time even when Buckhalter and Alexander leave. The Huskers recruited Robin Miller and Josh Davis last season, DeAntae Grixby is recovering from an injury and they already have one oral com mitment for next year. “We’re Nebraska,” Diedrick said. “We’re going to get the best I-backs in the country. I’m going to be competing with the best every year. But my learn ing experience will help me through that.” As it does every NU player. It’s Diedrick’s turn to watch others learn. His time is now. Samuel McKewon is a senior news-editorial and political science major and a Daily Nebraskan senior staff writer. Williams’ solo dinger propels Yanks to win NEW YORK (AP) - With a lead off homer by Bemie Williams in the 10th inning, the AL championship series opened with one of the oldest stories in baseball: the New York Yankees overtaking the Boston Red Sox. Williams hit the game-winning shot off Rod Beck, and Scott Brosius hit a two-run homer, triple and single to lead the Yankees to a 4-3 victory Wednesday night. In the first postseason game ever between the traditional rivals, the Yankees won their 11th straight post season game, and once again tortured their neighbors from New England. Boston took a 2-0 lead just seven pitches into the game on a run-scoring throwing error by shortstop Derek Jeter and Brian Daubach’s RBI single. Jose Offerman’s RBI infield sin gle made it a 3-0 lead in the second against Orlando “El Duque” Hernandez, who had allowed just one run in 20 career postseason innings. Williams then opened the 11* by sending an 0-1 pitch to straightaway center field, over the 408-foot sign. “I was due,” Williams said. “I was just able to get a good pitch and turn on it. I was just looking for a pitch out over the plate. I definitely didn’t want to pull out on the ball.” Atlanta continues its domination of New York ATLANTA (AP) - Leave it to Greg Maddux to bring pitching back to this postseason. And leave it to the Atlanta Braves to remind the New York Mets who’s boss in the National League. Maddux shut down Mike Piazza and the Mets for seven innings and John Rocker sprinted from the bullpen to finish them off, giving the Braves a 4-2 victory Tuesday night in Game 1 of the NL Championship Series. After two days in which baseball fans across the country saw Boston and Cleveland combine for 50 runs in two AL playoff games, Maddux and the Braves showed what really wins in October. Maddux, Mike Remlinger and Rocker combined on a six-hitter as the Braves beat New York for the 10th time in 13 meetings this year. Atlanta, which sent the Mets into a late tailspin that almost cost them the wild-card spot, has defeated them in 14 of the last 15 matchups at Turner Field. Discover Oxford University - Earn 6 Credit Hours ALL MAJORS WELCOME!!! Attend an information session: Mon. Oct. 11 Tues. Oct. 12 Wed. Oct. 13 Thurs. 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