Sports
Setbacks didn’t stop NU volleyball team
By Darran howler
Senior Reporter
The Nebraska volleyball team’s
road to the Final Four has been filled
with potholes and detours.
Before the season began, Com
husker players and coaches said their
ultimate goal this season was to get to
the Final Four in Honolulu.
But, to reach that goal the team
first had to overcome several ob
stacles, Husker coach Terry Pettit
said.
“Look back at our season. We
began the season by graduating a
player (Lori Endicott) who we
thought was the best setter in the
country,” he said. “We thought Vir
ginia (Stahr) was the best middle in
the country and she had major shoul
der surgery. In Linda Barsness, we
lost a returning starter in our second
match of the season.”
But, the Huskers still made it, and
they arc now in Honolulu preparing
for Friday's 12:30 a.m. (CST) match
against UCLA. In the other match,
Texas-Arlington plays Long Beach
State.
The finals will be played Saturday
at 1:30 a.m. (CST).
“We’re tremendously talented,”
Pettit said. “There weren’t many
goups of people who said we could
still do it.”
The Huskers did it because of
dedication and desire during the first
three months of the season, Pettit
said.
i
“(Thai’s) when a group of people
said wc’rc going lo commit ourselves
to seeing this happen,” he said. “I’m
just really pleased for our players
because there were times when they
doubted themselves. There were
limes when there was fear and when
there was anxiety.
“I’m really pleased they had the
opportunity to confront something
and work through it.”
One of the players working
through it was freshman outside hit
ter Eileen Shannon, who found her
self in a starting role when Barsncss
went down with a knee injury.
Shannon, who plays the left,or
strong side, leads Nebraska in kills
with 457, an average of 4.27 a game.
She is third on the team in digs with
266.
Pettit said the Huskers’ overall
balance works in Shannon’s favor.
He said other teams have to respect
the threat of sophomore hitters Janet
Kruse and Cris Hall from the outside
and that of Stahr, an All-America
selection, in the middle.
“She’s playing with a team that’s
taken a lot of pressure off her,” he
said.
Shannon said Stahr consistently
has been effective in helping her
remain controlled in big matches.
“The older players calm me
down,” she said. “Virginia’s done a
good job of keeping me calm.
“But, usually I just try not to think
about being a freshman, being new.”
Shannon said she never thought
she would be playing in the Final
Four.
“When I was in high school, I just
never thought I would be playing in
the Final Four,” she said. “It’s all
new. I don’t know what to expect but
it’s something you always dream
about.”
Now that the Huskers have ful
filled one dream, it is time for an
other, Stahr said.
“It’s time to reset our goal,’’ she
said. “Our goal was to gel to the Final
Four and we’ve attained that.’’
When asked what the team’s goal
is now, Stahr said, “We’re not just
going out there to get a suntan. My
guess is we’re going for the diamond
and if wc play like wc played Satur
day (against Illinois) we can do it.
“(Against Illinois) we proved wc
can be a national championship
team.”
So while the season had its diffi
cult moments, Pettit said that is now
in the past.
“Right now the players arc play
ing for themselves, the stale of Ne
braska and the fans,’’ he said, “and
that’s certainly not a burden.’’
Note:
ESPN will televise the Final Four
on a tape-delayed basis, with the
semifinals Dec. 21 at 11 p.m. and the
final Dec. 24 at 11:30 a.m.
-1
NU coach says
practice not hurt
by absent players
By Jeff Apel
Senior Editor
An injury-riddled Nebraska foot
ball team continued preparing for its
New Year’s Day date by practicing
Tuesday in the Cook Pavilion.
Nebraska coach Tom Osborne
said nine players missed all or part of
the two-hour workout, which was
conducted in full pads. The workout
I was in preparation for the Com
huskers’ Fiesta Bowl matchup
against Florida State.
The players missing included run
ning backs Ken Clark and Terry
Rodgers, defensive tackle Kent
Wells, strong safety Reggie Cooper
and free safely Marvin Sanders.
Wingbacks Nate Turner, Brad Devall
and Kelly Prater and punter Mike
Stiggc also were absent.
Osborne said Sligge did not punt
because of a sore leg.
“I don’t think it’s anything seri
ous,” he said, “but he’ll have to lay
off fora while.”
Osborne said Turner missed the
practice because of sickness, while
Sanders was finalizing a class he
needs to graduate. He said Clark has
a sore toe, while Cooper still is being
slowed by a knee he had arthroscopic
surgery on following Nebraska’s 42
25 victory against Oklahoma.
Osborne said Rodgers aggravated
his knee while working on a cybex
machine, a device which allows indi
viduals to rc-strengthcn leg muscles
through lifting.
Osborne said the injuries did not
hurt the effort in Tuesday’s workout.
“We did have a good practice,”
he said. “We had some contact.”
Osborne said Nebraska probably
will work out in sweat clothes Thurs
day, and will work out in pads Friday
before scrimmaging Saturday. He
said the scrimmage may be at Memo
rial Stadium if the weather cooper
Team dissent caused
by players’ bad attitude
Nebraska forward Richard van
Poelgeest showed a lot of courage
following the Comhuskers’ 79-72
loss to Idaho on Monday.
Van Poelgeest said he and his
teammates have a lot of problems.
He said those problems center on
internal snuahhling. which erupted
; i
when a slew of players began to
question the reasoning of the
coaching staff.
Van Poelgeest’s comments
were surprising, especially consid
ering they were made in a subdued
locker room in which all of his
teammates could hear them. And
they came on the heels of some
squabbles by Tony Farmer, a trans
fer who has taken the role of team
loudmouth.
Fanner greeted reporters by
saying he “wouldn’t even talk to
the Daily Nebraskan.”
"F~ them,” he said in a loud
tone of voice.
Teammate Clifford Scales
quickly intervened and told
Farmer to “hush up.”
Apparently, two sports columns
which appeared in Friday’s DN
rubbed Farmer the wrong way. He
didn’t appreciate the truth that was
in them, including the implication
that Nebraska is a bad road team.
Never mind the fact that the
Huskcrs haven’t won a road game
since they posted an 86-85 win last
season against Chaminadc, a Na
tional Association of Intcrcolle
giate Athletics team. And never
mind that Nebraska has a dismal
15-35 road record during Coach
Danny Nee’s three-plus seasons
with the Huskcrs. And ignore the
glaring fact that the Huskcrs have
not won on the road in 13 consecu
tive games.
If you ask Farmer, negative
things should not be written. Truth
hurts, hev.Tony?
The truth also has hurt for Nee,
who criticized the DN for the same
columns. Nee took exception to a
statement which hasically implied
that Kelly Lively was a 6-foot-11
stiff.
incc saia Lively nas piayca a
critical role on this year’s team,
and had been unfairly maligned by
the press. He went on to say that
Nebraska basketball should not be
scrutinized by the papers because
the Huskcrs are not “the New
YorkKnicks.’’
Excuse me, coach, but if you
and certain members of your team
cannot take criticism, you are just
what the immortal Norm Stewart
says -- bush league.
Bush league in the sense that
you cannot take constructive criti
cism and, most of all, bush league
in the methods to which you re
spond to such comments.
If Nee or any of his team mem
bers think they arc going to intimi
date the DN by angrily confronting
staff members, yelling obscenities
or any other bush-league tactics,
they should think again.
The saddest aspect about this
whole scenario is Nebraska docs
have talent. Center Rich King has
Continental Basketball Associa
tion written all over him, and
Dapreis Owens, Lewis Gctcr, Carl
See BOLD on 8
David Hansen/Daily Nebraskan
Nebraska guard Clifford Scales dishes off an assist
against Texas Tech.
Brothers support each others’ Olympic bids
By Julie Naughton
Staff Reporter
Nebraska gymnasts Ted and Trent
Dimas don’t let their competitive
natures get in the way of their broth
erly friendship.
The Dimas’ said they do not see
gymnastics as a competition between
themselves even though they hope to
become the first brothers to compete
on the U.S. Men’s Olympic Gymnas
tics Team.
The Dimas brothers will continue
on their long road toward the 1992
Olympics on Jan. 28, when Nebraska
takes on Oklahoma and Iowa in a
triad meet. The meet will be the first
lime the brothers wiil compete to
gether as Cornhusker gymnasts.
The only sons of Theodore and
Bonnie Dimas, the pair began gym
nastics at the same time -- Ted was
eight and Trent was six.
The brothers trained at the same
club, Gold Cup Gymnastics in Al
buquerque, N.M., under the same
coach, Ed Burch. They both com
peted on the U.S. Junior National
Men’s Gymnastics Team and on the
U.S. Senior National Mcn’sGymnas
tics Team. Between the two, they
have competed on every continent
except Australia.
Bui through the years, the Dimas’
have remained friends.
“I’m happy when he wins, and
vice versa,’’ said Ted, a junior.
“There’s no rivalry there. We’re
stronger competitors when we’re
together.”
Trent agreed.
“We have different event
strengths also,” he said.
The brothers said there arc advan
tages to being at the same school.
“I feel much closer to Trent now
that we’re training together at Ne
braska,” Ted said. “We do well to
gether.”
Trent, an 18-year-old freshman,
was offered gymnastics scholarships
hy 42 different schools. Called the
lop men’s gymnastics recruit of 1989
by International Gymnast Maga/.ine,
Trent said he chose Nebraska not
only for its excellent gymnastics
program, but also because his brother
was going to school here.
“Ted was 70, 80 percent of my
decision,” Trent said. “We’re very
close, very family-oriented. He gives
me a lot of support.”
Both brothers say that if they make
the 1992 Olympic team, they will
hang up their handgrips soon after.
4 4 As soon as 1 finish my last event
in cither the Olympics - if I make the
team, or in the trials, -- that’s it," Ted
said. “I’m out of the gym.”
Trent said his goal of making the
’92 team is one of the only things
keeping him in the gym.
“If I didn’t have that hope -- that
Ted and I would make the team -- I
don’t know if I would stay in gymnas
tics,’’ Trent said.
Thcrealways is the possibility that
only one brother will make the Olym
pic team. Ted said he wouldn’t be
bothered if Trent made the team and
he didn’t.
See DIMAS on 8