Wednesday, March 4, 1987
Daily Nebraskan
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Sports
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Team ready to take on tough season
By Jeff Apel
Staff Reporter
Kister
With a challenging schedule, Nebraska base
ball coach John Sanders said, the Cornhuskers
are anxious to start their season.
Sanders said the
schedule presents a
formidable challenge
because the Huskers
will play 20 of their 60
games against nation
ally ranked opponents.
Sanders said this
schedule includes four
game series against
both No. 4-ranked Ok
lahoma State and No.
12-ranked Oklahoma
as well as two-game series against Wichita State
and Oral Roberts.
"It's a good schedule," Sanders said. "We're
proud of it."
Sanders said he's anxious to get the season
started because Nebraska has several players
who he said could have an immediate impact on
the Husker program.
These players include inficlders Ron Crowe
and Ken Sirak as well as outfielders Vincent
Limon and Joe Federico, he said.
"They are all good, solid players," Sanders
said of the top newcomers. "They have a mixture
of speed and power."
Sanders said Nebraska has enough new talent
to supplement the loss of such players as All
American outfielder Paul Meyers, infielder Larry
Minis and pitcher Phil Harrison from last year's
team.
Sanders said Nebraska has moved Todd Bunge,
who played right field last season, to center field
' in an attempt to ease the loss of Meyers.
Limon and Federico will fill the remaining two
outfield positions, Sanders said.
Sanders said the Huskers' infield also appears
to be solidified, although the Huskers are
experimenting with moving Mark Kister from
third to first base.
Sanders said Bruce Wobken will start at
shortstop, and Crowe and Sirak will anchor the
second- and third-base positions.
The catching duties will be handled by either
Tim Pettengill, Steve t'rampton, Charlie Colon or
Kister, Sanders said.
"We lost some outstanding people from last
year's team," Sanders said. "But we feel we have
quality people to replace them with."
Sanders said Nebraska has not established a
starling pitching rotation yet because new
pitching coach Tom Pratt is still working with
the Nebraska pitchers.
Sanders said the Huskers will establish a
pitching rotation during the early part of their
season by testing as many pitchers as possible.
"We have several people who are flexible,"
Sanders said. "They are capable of short relief,
middle relief or even starting."
Sanders said it is critical that Nebraska
establishes a consistent pitching rotation early
in the year because the Big Eight conference
competition appears to be solid.
While the Cowboys and the Sooners are being
tabbed as the early favorites for the 1987
conference crown, Sanders said it's too early to
establish a pre season favorite.
"There's been a fine line between the top four
team for the last couple of year," Sanders said.
"This year's Big Eight race also looks very good.
It's going to be real competitive."
NU a favorite in Road Runner Invite
By Rich Cooper
Staff Reporter
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Sippel
Nebraska's women's softball team will open
its 1987 season today in Las Cruces, N.M., when
it faces No. 19 Arizona and Toledo in a double-header.
The Cornhuskers,
ranked No. 3 in the
NCAA, are competing
in the Road Runner
Invitational, which
features four top 20
teams.
Nebraska coach Ron
Wolforth said he doesn't
think the Huskers
should be ranked No. 3
in the nation because
they have problems
with injuries going into
the invitational.
"We haven't had a practice yet where everybody
on the team has been here," Wolforth said. "And
what worries me is we will be the top-ranked
team in the tournament this weekend."
Wolforth said the area of the team which is
hurting the most right now is the outfield.
Starting left fielder Lisa Winchester will not see
action this weekend because of severe shoulder
tendinitis. Right fielder Janelle Frese is just"
coming off a head injury and is questionable for
this weekend.
Wolforth said the team's pitchers also have
some injury problems. Donna Deardorff is
bothered by an ankle injury and Marlys Handley
is just beginning to recover from mononucleosis.
The teams playing in this weekend's tourna
ment will be No. 5-ranked California, No. 8
Fresno State, Arizona, New Mexico, New Mexico
State (which upset No. 7 Arizona State earlier in
the season) and No. 20 Iowa State.
Wolforth said the pitching staff, when it is
healthy, has people that could start on any
pitching staff in the country.
Nebraska's pitching staff in the fall led the
Huskers to a 12-2 record. The Huskers won their
last 10 games; nine were shutouts. The pitching
staff had an earned run average of .29 in the fall.
The top pitcher returning for Nebraska is Lori
Sippel, who pitched two no-hitters in the fall
against Western Illinois and Southwest Missouri.
She has seven career no-hitters at Nebraska.
Wolforth said he is a little concerned about
the team's hitting because it will be playing
without Winchester, who hit .314, and because
Margie Ogrodowicz, who hit .356 is "a little beat
up." The top hitter for Nebraska in the fall was
Jane Kremer, who hit .450 with two home runs
and 19 runs batted in.
Wolforth said the teams that could give the
Huskers some problems are Cal-Berkeley, Fresno
State and Iowa State, which defeated the Huskers
in the second game of the fall season.
"The California teams always have good
pitching," Wolforth said, "and Iowa State is a
very scrappy team that .has played us tough the
last year and a half."
Wolforth said the team's success will depend
on how well the Huskers hit in the tournament.
He said the team will be a little bit behind
everybody else in the tournament because of
Nebraska's weather.
"If we don't do well, then not practicing
outside will be no excuse," Wolforth said. "We
can do just as much inside as outside. The team
has a tendency with their success to take other
teams lightly. I hope they don't do that this .
weekend or it's going to be a long one."
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Andrea HoyDaily Nebraskan
A happy Day
Nebraska senior basketball player Bernard Day cuts the net after the Huskers 83-81 upset
victory over No. 20-ranked Kansas Saturday at the Bob Devaney Sports Center. Day played
In his last home game.
Senior sprinter Brown
anticipates championships
By David Mussman
Staff Reporter
Senior Jeff Brown, a sprinter on the
Nebraska swimming team, wants to "go
out with a flash" as he competes in his
last Big Eight championship meet for
the Cornhuskers.
"Mi-.rnr i - i- i ifirr1 -MM mix m.i. n. , 11 mm - I
Brown
Brown, a business-management major
from St. Cloud, Minn., smiled as he
reflected on four years at Nebraska and
the three Big Eight championship teams
he's been part of.
"I'm looking forward to this being
the last Big Eights and NCAA cham
pionships," Brown said. "1 really want
to make this the best. I want to show
everyone that it's been a good four
years."
Brown has never won an individual
title at the Big Eight championships.
He had his best finish last year when he
placed fifth in the 50-yard freestyle and
sixth in the 100 and 200-yard freestyle
events.
But Nebraska swimming coach Cal
Bentz said that Brown's swimming isn't
his primary contribution to the team's
success.
"His contribution is one of a team
leader," Bentz said, "and because he is
such a fierce competitor, that is a real
model to the rest of the swimmers. He
offers us more than his physical pres
ence. His emotional presence is ex
tremely important."
Brown said, however, that was jeo
pardized earlier in the season when he
caught pneumonia while training over
Christmas break.
"I didn't swim all the month of Jan
uary," Brown said, "and I'm just start
ing to get back in it."
Brown said the lapse hampered his
training for a while, but he is nearing
the point when his training was inter
rupted. "It was more of a frustrating exper
rience than anything," Brown said. "I
feel I'm in the best shape I've been in
so coming back wasn't as hard as it
would have been in the past. I'm keep
ing an open mind about it. I'm trying to
do the best I can under the circum
stances." Brown said he wants to improve the
marks he has set this season and make
See BROWN on 10
KLPs Manning wins Big Eight honor
KANSAS CITY, Mo. Danny Man
ning, poised to become the top scorer
in the history of Kansas basketball, has
been named for the second consecutive
season the Associated Press Big Eight
player of the year.
The 6-foot-1 1 junior was the choice of
all but two voters among a panel of
media observers who regularly cover
the conference. Ey an even bigger
margin, voters selected Oklahoma's
Harvey Grant as Big Eight newcomer of
the year.
Drawing one vote each for player of
the year were Jeff Grayer of Iowa State
and Derrick Chievous of regular-season
champion Missouri.
"They're great players, and that's
why I'm so thrilled for Danny," said
Kansas Coach Larry Brown. "Grayer
had a tremendous year. Derrick Chie
vous has had a phenomenal year. But
those kids should not feel slighted
because there just aren't many players
in the country who would be player of
the year if Danny was in their con
ference." While adapting to the loss of three
seniors off last year's Final Four squad,
Manning averaged 23.1 points and 9.5
rebounds in leading the Jayhawks to a
runnerup tie with Oklahoma.