Sports
Huskers shoot for win in ‘rivalry’
Probable Starters:
Nebraska (19-4,9-2)
Amy Stephens G
Amy Bullock G
Kim Harris C
Ann Halsnc F
Maurticc Ivy F
Colorado (16-8,6-5)
Bridget Turner G
Annan Wilson G
Crystal Ford C
Tracy Tripp F
Molly Wampler F
By Mark Derowitsch
Senior Reporter _
Colorado football coach Bill McCartney
isn’t the only Buffalo coach trying to start a
rivalry with Nebraska.
Nebraska women’s basketball coach
Angela Beck said Colorado may have begun a
new rivalry with the Cornhuskers the last time
the two teams played. The Buffaloes defeated
Nebraska 84-69 in Boulder, Colo.
“If we want to beat anyone in the conference
and if we have a rival, it’s with them,” Beck
said. “Last time, they shoved it in our face. We
work and play hard, but we never shove it in
anyone’s face.
“We didn’t take it too kindly.”
Beck said Colorado’s talent adds fuel to the
rivalry, just like the Huskcr football team’s
rivalry with Oklahoma.
“Colorado played us very tough here last
season,” Beck said. “They probably have the
most talent in the league. It’s very difficult for
us to match up with them because they have big
guards. We just have to try to do a good job and
play with intensity.”
But Colorado coach Ccal Barry said the
Buffaloes don’t have a specific rivalry with
Nebraska.
“1 think every team is important,” Barry
said. “From our standpoint, we’re struggling to
stay in the top half of the Big Eight. Our game
against Kansas State (an 86-70 win Wednesday
night) was just as important as Nebraska. We
can’t afford a letdown at this point of the
season.”
Beck said Nebraska must play good defense
to defeat the Buffaloes.
“They have a balanced team and they are a
good shooting team,” Beck said. “They have
one of the better man defenses in the conference
and with their depth and talent, it’s going to be
a difficult game for us.
“But I think our kids are looking forward to
it,” she said. “We won’t have to do very much
to get up for it.”
Barry said Colorado also must improve on
its defense.
“They have an explosive team,” Barry said.
“Not many teams in the country can keep up
with them offensively, so we have to go out and
play better defense.”
Colorado, which enters the game with a 6-5
record in the Big Eight and and a 16-8 mark
overall this season, is led by guard Bridget
Turner. Turner, a 5-foot-8 junior from Aurora,
Colo., averages 13.5 points per game.
Forward Tracy Tripp and center Crystal
Ford average 12.4 points per game for the
Buffaloes.
Barry said Colorado needs a balanced attack
to win Big Eight games.
“We’ve got more balance than most teams,”
Barry said. “We don’t have a great player like
a Maurtice Ivy or an Amy Stephens. We have
to have everyone contribute to win.”
The game is scheduled for 8 p.m. Saturday
at Bob Devancy Sports Center.
NU softball coach anxious about upcoming season
By Mike Kluck
Staff Reporter
If the Nebraska softball team
played all of its games on paper,
Coach Ron Wolforth wouldn’t be
worried.
But since the Comhuskers play
each game on the field, Wolforth is a
little nervous.
Wolforth said his nervousness
stems from the return of only 14
players from last year’s team that
compiled a 41-11 record, won its
fourth consecutive Big Eight cham
pionshipand wasascmifinalistin the
NCAA World Scries.
Wolforth said he is also anxious
because the Huskers have been
ranked as high as Nq. 2 in the nation.
He said the high ranking causes him
to be critical during practice.
“I am overcritical at practice
because they arc a great team and
have the chance to compete for the
national championship,” Wolforth
said, “although wc don’t have the
intensity of a No. 2 team right now.”
Wolforth said the prcscason rank
ing has built a positive pressure that
is building into a tradition to play
well. He said the pressure and tradi
tion can be derived from the Husker
football and volleyball programs,
both of which arc known for their
winning ways.
Wolforth said a successful season
will rest on the shoulders of senior
pitchers Lori Sippel and Donna
Deardorff.
Sippel, who was 26-3 last season
with a .36 earned run average, holds
Nebraska records for most strikeouts
with 84, most career shutouts with 41
and most no-hitters with eight. Her
8.65 strikeouts per game and winning
percentage of .845 are also school
records.
Deardorff, who was 19-6 last sea
son with a .37 ERA, is second in
career shutouts with 32.
“Our pitching should be our
strong point this year. Wchavclwoof
the finest pitchers in the country in
Donna Dcardorff and Lori Sippcl,”
Wolforlh said. “It is their senior year,
and if Nebraska is ever going to have
a great year, this is it. It should be a
big and important year for us to help
boost our recruitment in the future.”
Wolforlh said the Huskers have
other weapons.
“We have three people who can
steal SO to 1(H) bases, and we have
three people who can hit the ball a
long way,” Wolforlh said. “Our team
will have a combination of speed and
power this year.”
Wolforlh said one of the power
hitters Nebraska will rely on is senior
Margie Ogrodowicz, who hit .315
last season while scoring 46 runs.
Wolforlh said Ogrodowicz is the
best all-around player he has worked
with. Ogrodowicz is a very consistent
defensive player, he said, who can
cover all the offensive aspects of the
game.
Shortstop Jane Kremer and
catcher Ruth Chalwin will also be
relied on heavily this year, Wolforth
said. Kremer, who hit five home runs
last season, and Chatwin, who col
lected 15 runs batted in, will provide
power to the Husker lineup.
Wolforth said his only concern
entering the season is a lack of depth.
Wolforth said Ann Halsnc, a
freshman who also plays for the
Nebraska women’s basketball team,
will provide a limited amount of
quality depth, even though she won’t
join the team until after basketball
season.
Wolforth said Debra Hoffman, a
guard for Nebraska, may be added to
the roster.
Wolforth said Jill Rishel,
Nebraska’s only sophomore, can
play in the infield or the outfield. He
said Rishel will be the Huskcrs’ lead
off hitter because of her offensive
power.
Wolforth said Oklahoma State
will give Nebraska its biggest chal
lenge for this year’s conference
championship.
The remainder of the Big Eight is
in the midst of rebuilding this season,
Wolforth said, which should elimi
nate them from contention for the
conference crown.
Wolforth said the Huskers should
know where they stand by the end of
March, when Nebraska w ill partici
pate in three of the premier tourna
ments in the nation during the first
four weeks of its season.
“It is going to be interesting to see
how we respond to the challenges,”
Wolforth said. “These first four
weeks will not tell what will happen
with the rest of the season, but how
we respond. If we come out of the
first four weeks as gangbusters, we
will be a force to be reckoned with in
the conference.
“If we don’t come out strong, we
could struggle through our confer
ence schedule.”
Wolforth said the Huskers have
the potential to win the national
championship this season if they
come together as a team.
Nebraska gymnastics coach
isn’t concerned with injuries
By Richard Cooper
Staff Reporter
Nebraska men’s gymnastics
coach Francis Allen isn’t worried
about not having all-around per
formers Tom Schlesinger and Kevin
Davis at full strength.
He might be, though, in two
weeks.
Allen said if the two senior all
arounders are not back in all six
events by the beginning of March,
the Comhuskers won't win the
NCAA title. The NCAA Champion
ships will be April 14-16 at the Bob
Devaney Sports Center.
“When we have Tom and Kevin
in the lineup, we’re a high-scoring
team,” Allen said. “With those two
guys in the lineup, we’re the best
team in the country. I know we are
not going to be tne No. 1-ranked
team going into the NCAA Champi
onships because we haven’t been
producing the high scores.”
Schlesinger and Davis have been
bothered by injuries all season.
Schlesinger injured his neck while
practicing on tire parallel bars in
early January and injured his right
ankle during last weekend’s UCLA
Invitational.
Davis, who competed in the all
around last weekend for the first
time since undergoing arthroscopic
knee surgery during the semester
break, is now battling a sprained
ankle.
The No. 5-rankcd Huskers will
square off against Minnesota in
Minneapolis Saturday. Allen said
the Golden Gophers are capable of
scoring a 278 and arc in a dogfight
for second place in the Big Ten with
Ohio State.
“Minnesota is a good team and
I’m sure they plan on beating us,”
Allen said. “Since this is a home
meet for them, they could score as
high as 280, so this is going to be a
tough meet for us.”
Allen said he will use sopho
mores Patrick Kirksey and Bob
Stellcr and freshman Ted Dimas in
the all-around. He said all three
gymnasts arc getting better each
week.
At the UCLA Invitational,
Kirksey finished with a all-around
score of 56.3, while Stelter and
Dimas tallied scores of 54.9 and
54.7.
Allen said junior Mike Epperson,
who missed last season with a bro
ken wrist, had his best meet of the
year at the UCLA Invitational.
Epperson averaged 9.3 in the four
events he competed in.
“Mike has made quite a come
back,” Allen said. “Last year at this
time, I wasn’t too sure if he would
ever return to gymnastics. But he
has worked hard, and he is starting to
look like the old Mike Epperson.”
Allen said Nebraska will receive
stiff tests from Oklahoma and Ohio
State in the near future. He said the
Huskers will have to practice hard to
prepare for those meets.
“We’re getting down to the wire
as far as getting ready for the
NCAA’s,” Allen said. “Tom and
Kevin will probably only compete
in two or three events this weekend
and then start working hard next
week.
“At least our younger guys arc
getting experience, which I think is
going to pay off at the NCAA’s.
“I’m not worried yet, and I hope
it stays that way.”
Doug Carrol I/Dally Nebraskan
Nebraska’s Kevin Davis competes on the parallel bars.
TAC pentathlon meet
set for Saturday
at the sports center
By Kyle Schurman
Staff Reporter
Athletes from across the nation
will invade the Bob Dcvaney Sports
Center Saturday for the Track Ath
letic Congress’ National Pentathlon
Championships.
Nebraska assistant track coach
Mark Kostck said many of the best
men and women athletes in the United
States will compete. He said some of
the top pentathlon athletes will not
attend, however, because this is an
Olympic year.
“We arc contending with an Olym
pic year,’ Kostck said. “We won’t sec
all of the best athletes because the
season gets kind of long.”
TAC is the national governing
body in track and field and will have
its indoor championships Feb. 26 at
New York City.
Most athletes who will compete in
the pentathlon championships arc not
affiliated with a school, Kostek said.
He said freshman Lynne Frey is the
only Comhuskcr who might compete.
Kostek said Frey will compete in
thcpentathloninthcBig Eight Cham
pionships Feb. 26 at the sports center.
Only women compete in the pentath
lon during the Big Eight meet.
Kostek said Nebraska wanted to
bring the TAC’s pentathlon champi
onships to Lincoln because the
coaches wanted to show that the
pentathlon is a major event.
The women’s pentathlon consists
of the 60-mctcr hurdles, the high
jump, the shot put, the long jump and
the 800. The first four events are the
same for the men, but they substitute
the 1,000 for the 800.
The meet begins at 8 a.m. with the
women’s hurdles. The meet is sched
uled to last until 1 p.m.
