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page 10
daily nebraskan
friday, april 7, 1978
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Surprise-big league baseball has started, already
Unless vnil are tmtv a HipharH fan thp inctoort of tho WnrU Cariac olnnn nhm.t knng fiAo frnif-ol'o It'e nart nf tho mmp nf sppino the samp nIH tpame in tV
unless VOU are trulv a diehard fan the instead nf thp Wnrld Qnrioc jlr-.no ah it
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start of the 1978 Major League Baseball. mid-June when your team is 24 games out
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acasuii jjiuuduiy suppcu oy unnuuceu on oi nrsi piace ana me lone star pucner oi
A r nrA ni r 1 A a J J j l I 1
uic icdin jusi came uown wiin a sore snoui
der. The team may win only 50 games all
year but as long as someone drives in 100
runs or wins 20 games, the season is a suc
cess. This is' what makes baseball so much
fun. Cheering for the losers. It won't mean
a hill of beans ten years from now that the
Mets finished a mile behind the first place
team. Or that the Tigers star pitcher is a
Wednesday.
Secluded out here in comfortable mid
western security, perhaps not many Ne
braskans give a hang about professional
baseball. We've discovered scattered poc
kets of Kansas City Royals fans here and
there, but we feel most Nebraskans don't
know their Red Sox from their White Sox.
(We live, eat and breathe football, remem
ber?) Jim , mike . 1
KamccarthiM
Now, we like to feel that we're two
pretty knowledgeable people when it comes
to sports, including baseball. And like most
normal red-blooded Americans we follow
the winners, right? The New York Yan
kees, the Los Angeles Dodgers, etc.
Such is not the case. You might call the
following the true confessions of fans who
follow losers. Our favorite teams are, hold
the giggles, the Detroit Tigers and the New
York Mets. Both have had their elorv davs
j j
but recently have fallen on hard times, or
as the publicity men say, "rebuilding
years."
Detroit won the world championship in
1968, and after a brief stay at the top in
1972, it's been the pits. A couple of years
ago they bottomed out with 102 losses in
one season and the Tiger fan was crushed.
The Mets took it all in 1969 ("Miracle
Mets") and returned to the World Series in
1973. After that it's been all downhill. The
final blow was Tom Seaver's defection last
year to the Cincinnati Reds.
Each year you pray for that rookie to
turn out to be the next Henry Aaron or
Sandy Koufax. Each victory over the
league powers became a personal victory
for "our" team.
You begin to look for individual success
bona fide fruitcake. It's Dart of the came.
But since we are loyal fans, we have a pro
position for pro baseball in an effort to
even things up a bit.
Let the Yankees spot Detroit a 20-game
lead at the start of the season. Just like you
used to do at the corner lot when you were
a kid. The reasoning always seemed sound.
"You guys got Tommy Smith (the best
hitter in the fifth grade) so you gotta give
us a 10-run lead."
Why not give the Mets a 20-game head
start over the Phillies? We get sick and tired
of seeing the same old teams in the World
Series every year.
There can be no surprise winners in pro
baseball. In a season that lasts almost six
months the element of surprise is easily
lost. There is no sneaking up from behind
in baseball.
Oh well, we can always dream. Someday
the Mets and the Tigers could meet in the
World Series and then well have the last
laugh. Until then, well quietly retire to our
respective closets where we can cheer our
losers in good -hearted peace. Who needs
the Yankees?
UNL team, nine others vie in Softball tourney
Despite thirty years of coaching soft
ball, this spring will mark the first time
UNL coach Don Isherwood has coached
women.
Before he became a UNL coach, Isher
wood coached Valentino's - an AAA
men's Softball team in Lincoln's city league.
However, after Marcia Walker quit as bas
ketball and softball coach, Isherwood was
hired as interim coach.
Isherwood 's squad, which compiled a
34 record in Oklahoma during spring
break, will take a 7-6 record into this week
end's Husker Invitational.
The tournament begins today when
UNL faces the University of North Dakota
at 2:30 pjri. at Muny Fields, 22nd and M
streets. Two games will be played simulta
neously in the three-day, double elimina
tion tournament. The championship game
will be at 2 pjn. Sunday.
North Dakota's appearance in Lincoln
for a Thursday practice will be the first
time Isherwood has seen the team. Because
it is his first year coaching women, Isher
wood said his own squad is new to him as
well.
"North Dakota just got funded for soft
ball," Isherwood said. "We had hoped to
see them when we were in Oklahoma, but
K t ----- - -JCtiZ'---
Photo by Marie Biiiingsley
UNL's number one Dlaver. Dan Slnhnth nrartifpc fnr tfiP NIphracL-a Invitatinnal
which begins today at 12.30 p.m. on the men's P.E. courts. Sloboth will take his
11-5 dual record into the meet that includes four other Big Eight teams.
the temperature was 30-35 degrees. So we
finished our games and went home."
When Isherwood assumed the coaching
duties, the players were on a weight pro
gram and were running on the indoor track
beneath East Stadium.
"I was here on a Wednesday and the
next Monday we went to the fieldhouse to
practice until the first game," he said. The
first time UNL played outside was in their
first game in Oklahoma.
"It had an effect because being indoors
just isn't the same as being outside," he
said. 'Trie outfielders can't catch fly balls
indoors, and when you are hitting, the balls
hit the wall. You can't tell if it would have
dropped in or if it would have been
caught."
UNL's most recent coach was George
Nicodemus, who coached the Huskers last
spring. Walker resigned before he coached
softball.
Senior first baseman Debbie Van Fleet
said the change of coaches did not cause
any problems.
"It was easy because we hadn't really
seen her (Walker)," Van Fleet said. "We
had been on the weights on our own. We
started conditioning just after she left."
Only four starting positions are secure,
Isherwood said, which may have caused
UNL's 36 errors in 13 games.
"One of the problems with the errors
is that people are being switched around
and they have to worry about being in a
new position," he said. "We have been im
proving every game, especially the hitting.
But the biggest problem is the errors."
The four starters who have been playing
at one position consistently include junior
centerfielder Cathy Foley, freshman left
fielder Peggy Conradt, freshman third base
man Shelley Scott - and freshmen cat
chers Laura Poe and Tammy Poe sharing
duties.
Isherwood said Van Fleet and junior
Julie Uryasz have been dividing the duties
at first base.
UNL pitchers are Connie Gonyea, Jan
Bartels and Karen Stone. Leading hitters
include Scott, Foley, Stone and Bartels.
Other colleges and universities playing
in this weekend's tournament include Peru
State, University of Wyoming, North Dako
ta State, Nebraska Wesleyan, Drake, Uni
versity of Missouri, University of Iowa,
Northern Illinois and Northwest Missouri
State.
UNL men's tennis squad
hosts invitational tourney
By Jim Hunt
The UNL men's tennis team will find
out how it stands in the Big Eight Confer
ence race when the Huskers host the Neb
raska Invitational at the men's physical ed
ucation courts this weekend.
UNL will tangle with the University of
Missouri at 12:30 p.m. Friday in first
round action of the tournament which con
tinues through Saturday.
It will be the fourth competition against
Big Eight teams for the Huskers. They have
dropped dual decisions to the defending
co-Big Eight Champions - the University
of Oklahoma (8-1) and Oklahoma State
University (9-0).
After the Nebraska Invitational they
will have more Big Eight dual competition
against the University of Kansas on May 5.
The Big Eight meet is scheduled for May
17-19 in Okalahoma City.
Led by Dan Sloboth and Jeff Schmahl,
UNL takes an 1 1-6 overall record into this
weekend's invitational.
Sloboth. the top singles player with an
1 1-6 dual record, and Schmahl. the number
two singles players with a 12-5 record, also
comprise the number one doubles team. In
doubles competition. Sloboth and Schmahl
are 11-5.
Besides being the top-seeded players on
the UNL squad, the pair also are ranked
high in statewide competition in Nebraska.
Last summer Sloboth was the top
ranked player in Nebraska and Schmahl
was ranked fifth, despite having to miss
competition part of the summer with a bad
ankle. The two also are the top-ranked
amateurs in Nebraska.
"Both Dan and I play a power game.
Schmahl said. "I play a strong serve and
volley game. I depend on my serve a lot.
"My baseline game is my weakness. I
don't have the strong ground stroke and
don't play as well against someone who
stays back on the baseline."
Schmahl said he has been satisfied with
his game this spring. He said he thinks he
has played well in the five singles matches
he lost except one. That defeat was offset
when he beat OU's Brian Crozier, who was
undefeated in Big Eight play last year.
Schmahl said he thinks the Huskers are
a stronger team than the squad which fin
ished sixth in the Big Eight last year.
"Dan (Sloboth), Phil (Woog) and I have
played together for three years," Schmahl
said. "The rest of the team is relatively new
to varsity competition.
"I think we are stronger at the top than
last year, but we lost a couple of players by
graduation. It will be interesting to see how
the guys who haven't had Big Eight exper
ience do this year."
The singles roster includes: Larry Rugg,
the number three singles player with an 8-8
record, Woog. the number four singles
player with a 4-2 mark. Kerry McDermott.
the number five singles player with a 7-7
mark, and his twin brother Kevin at 4-6. or
Randy Johnson with a 7-8 mark.
Schmahl said it will b tough to improve
on their sixth place finish.
The Cowboys and the Sooncrs should
be the teams to beat again this year,
because almost their entire squad returns,
he said.
Missouri should also be strong with two
nationally ranked players. Brian Mitchell
and Jon Powell. Schmahl said. However,
the Tiger's coach Jim Pnce. who has
coached several Wimbeldon champions, resigned.
