Team shoots for title NU gymnasts hope to keep undefeated record By Chuck Green Senior Reporter The Nebraska men’s gymnastics team will be trying to preserve its undefeated record while aiming for its third consecutive Big Eight title this weekend. The Big Eight championships will be Friday and Saturday at the Lloyd Noble Center in Norman, Okla. After completing the regular sea son with a 19-0-1 overall record and a 7-0-1 dual mark, the nation’s top ranked Comhuskcrs will be looking to win the first of what Nebraska coach Francis Allen hopes will be three season championships. The other two include the Mid west Regionals, which will be in Norman, Okla., April 7, and the NCAA championships, scheduled for April 19-21 in Minneapolis. The Huskcrs were 6-0 this season against Oklahoma and Iowa State and are favorites to win the conference title. But, Allen said, the Huskcrs need to concentrate on performing their routines well and not about what the results were earlier this year. “Our guys respect both Oklahoma and Iowa State,” Allen said. “I think we’re out of both of their reaches as far as the team races goes, but we don’t want to lose an individual or team event cither.” Nebraska closed its regular season last Saturday by beating Houston Baptist 279.85-274.30. The Huskcrs were without the services of fresh man all-around performer Trent Dimas, who suffered from a serious throat infection. The H uskers ’other fresh man, Josh Saegcrt, replaced Dimas and scored a 54.75 in the all-around. It was Saegert’s first collegiate all-around competition. Dimas probably will compete this weekend, Allen said. “Josh did a heck of a job in a substitute role, but Trent’s 56-plus all-around is tough to replace,” he said. “Trent seems healthy, but some times it’s hard to predict how a strength zapping illness like he had might affect him.” Last year, four Huskcrs finished among the lop six in the all-around competition in the B ig Eight champi onships in Ames, Iowa. Nebraska won the meet with 282.15, easily outdis tancing runner-up Iowa State, which scored 264.90. Huskcr senior AU-Amcricans Pat rick Kirkscy and Mark Warburton both are returning conference cham pions. Kirksey won five individual titles in his career, including the all around, floor exercise, pommel horse and parallel bars last year. Warburton has won ihe still rings competition the last two years. Another senior All-American, Bob Steller, placed in all six events at last year’s conference championships, including a second-place finish in the all-around. Allen said the Huskers must focus on winning the conference champi onships before looking ahead to the regional and national meets. “We’re pretty sure we can win the Big Eight,’’ he said. “We also want (to finish with the top four) in the all around. “This team is ready for a good meet and a good score.’’ Finishing among nation’s top five teams goal of Comhusker women’s golf team By Jeff Apel Senior Editor The Nebraska women’s golf team will shoot for a top-five finish when it competes in the South Carolina invi tational this weekend in Columbia, S.C. Nebraska coach Robin Scherer said she would be satisfied with a top-five finish because nine teams enter the thrcc-day competition ranked ahead of the No. 36-rankcd Comhuskcrs. Those teams include an abundance of East Coast schools, all of which will have an advantage entering the invi tational on the par-72 Woodlands Country Club. Scherer said Nebraska will have to overcome the tournament's tough field and the challenge of having to adjust to a South Carolina-based course if it is going to finish in the lop five. She said courses in South Carolina pres ent special challenges because they arc lighter and have thick grass that docs not let the ball roll as much. Those rolls could hurt Nebraska, High Hopes Continued from Page 15 mcnt, said his injury look away some of his moves against Cross. “Since I was hurt in practice, I didn’t drill for the right moves,” Kclbci said of the match. “My liming wasn’t there for the shots, and I lost some of my reaction time.” But, Kclbcr said, “I’m sure I’ll sec him again” at the NCAA tourna ment. “We’ll be on the same side of the brackets,” he said. “Whoever wrestles the best there will be in the champi onships.” The Huskcrs arc one of four teams that will enter the meet with nine qualifiers in the 10 weight classes. Oklahoma State, the defending na tional champion, and Penn Slate each have qualifiers in every class. Along with Nebraska and top ranked Arizona State, Oklahoma and Iowa Stale each have nine qualifiers, while third-ranked Iowa has wres tlers in eight classes. “Going in, you have to look at the teams with the most potential for finalists, and then the difference be tween potential and probable final ists,” Neumann said. “It looks like Arizona State has the edge in that they could realisti cally have four finalists, and they also have good supports at other weights. Oklahoma State will figure heav ily in the final team scores, too, Neumann said. “Oklahoma State is probably the most balanced team in the tourna ment,” he said. Nebraska’s best chances for final which will be matched against a tal ented field that will be preparing for the NCAA championships later this year in Hilton Head, S.C. The teams in the competition that arc ranked ahead of the Huskcrs include No. 7 Georgia, No. 13 Duke, No. 14 Fur man,No. 16Indianaand No.23Soulh Carolina. Twcnty-ninth-rankcd Oklahoma, 30th-rankcd North Carolina-Wilming ton, 33rd-rankcd Florida State and 35th-rankcd James Madison also will compete. The remainder of the invi tational’s field includes Memphis Stale, Michigan State, Minnesota and Ohio State. Scherer said the tournament’s field is causing her to take a realistic ap proach towards the competition. That approach will be tested Friday, when the invitational begins. “Normally you wouldn’t be satis fied with a top-five finish because you always like to win,’’ she said. “But in this case, a lop-five finish would be an accomplishment because (the invitational) is going to be a isis hinge on wrestlers who have led the Huskers all season, including Kelber, Scott Chenoweth at 167 and heavyweight Joe Malccek. Kelber and Chenoweth earned All-America status last season, and are coming off of Big Eight tournament finishes they called “disappointing.” Chenoweth finished third at the conference meet. But Neumann said the NCAA tournament is a “good place for re demption.” “Until the Big Eight finals, I was -4 4 Oklahoma State is probably the most balanced team in the tournament. Neumann wrestling coach -1 * “ sure Jason would be the lop seed (at the NCAA tournament),” Neumann said. “But I’m sure that after losing to Cross, people may have some doubt.” Kelber, though, will be tough to beat this weekend, Neumann said. “Jason is a powerful wrestler who’s focused now,” he said. ‘ The only way that (loss to Cross) hurt was in the seeding. I think it helped him refocus on what he needs to do to win the tournament.” Chenoweth suffered the biggest upset of the Big Eight meet when he lost his semifinal match to Iowa State’s Matt Johnson, 4-3. The loss dropped him into the consolation bracket and halted the Huskers’ early meet mo challenge.” Scherer said the invitational will provide Nebraska with a unique op portunity. “It provides us an opportunity to show how good we are,” Scherer said. “We could make a good im pression.” Scherer said the Huskers need to get better production out of the bot tom part of their lineup if they’re going to make a good impression. She said the lower portion of the Huskers’ lineup has been inconsis tent throughout the spring season. “It’s not that they don’t have the talent,” Scherer said, “it’s just they need a little more experience.” One golfer who has plenty of ex perience is Joanne Brooks, a sopho more from Tauranga, New Zealand, who recorded a second-place finish at the Peggy Kirk-Bell invitational two weeks ago in Winter Park, Fla. Brooks has been Nebraska’s top golfer throughout the fall, and is ranked 56lh in the individual collegiate rank ings. menlum. But Chcnowcth, a junior, responded with two straight technical falls in the consolation round of the meet “Scott has had a great season,” Neumann said. “He just didn’t wrestle well in the semifinals at the Big Eight meet.” Neumann said he thinks Chc noweth, like Kelbcr, will be refo cused for the national tournament. “I think he’d be disappointed if he wasn’t in the finals,” Neumann said. Malecck, the Big Eight’s heavy weight champion, has a good chance at the national title, too, Neumann said. 4 ‘The key for Joe is that he’s wres tling better now than he has in his enure career,” Neumann said. “That’s not a guarantee in this meet, but you have to feel good about his chances.” For four of the remaining six Huskcr qualifiers, it will be their first NCAA meet. John Buxton, the conference cham pion at 118, and 177-pound runner up Corey Olson arc freshmen ranked 12th and seventh, respectively. Sopho more Chris Nelson is No. 4 at 190, and transfer Todd Engcr, a junior at 150, was a Division III 142-pound All-American. Dave Drocgcmucllcr (134) and Paul Herrera (142) arc making their sec ond NCAA appearances. Herrera is ranked No. 6. Neumann said he is happy with the way his team has performed through out the season. “Wc had talked about next season being the year because wc will have a lot of people coming back,” he said. “But now that we’re here, wc don’t want to let the opportunity go to waste.” fin-te£— Osborne expects televised opener Nebraska football coach Tom Osborne said that the Ncbraska Baylor game “almost certainly’ ’ will be televised. Nebraska’s game against the Bears, which will be in Memorial Stadium, tentatively is planned to be moved to Sept. 1 to accommodate the national broadcast by ESPN (cable channel 23). The game origi nally was scheduled for Sept. 15. “I can’t really make an official announcement on the game until we hear a definite approval from ESPN,” Osborne said. “But we have agreed, and we understand that we have an agreement from Baylor.’ Nebraska’s share of the $300,000 promised to each team would be two-ninths ~ $66,666. The other shares would be divided among the seven Big Eight teams. Osborne said he doesn’t foresee problems with moving the game to an earlier date, “other than it makes the summer a little shorter.” Baylor returns 18 starters - nine each on offense and defense -- from last year’s 5-6 team. UNL rugby team earns important win The University of Ncbraska-Lincoln men’s rugby team accom plished an “unheard of” task when it defeated the Omaha GOATS 19 13. Nebraska’s Jim Wiggs said the win was a big one because the GOATS -- which stands for the Greater Omaha Area Touring Side - arc a formidable opponent. “Beating the GOATS is unheard of by a collegiate side,” Wiggs said. A side is the name for a team in rugby. Nebraska recorded its win against the GOATS by using a penalty kick by Mark Palmer to lake a 15-13 lead, then used a try by Brian Chaffin to score its final points. Wiggs said the try was a big one because it showed that Nebraska was a superior team. The try was set up when, after Palmer converted Nebraska’s penalty kick, the Comhuskcrs kicked to the GOATS. In rugby, the team that just has scored normally is kicked to, but Wiggs said Nebraska elected to kick to give the GOATS one last chance to prove that they were a better team. That effort was in vain, as the GOATS quickly committed a turnover and Chaffin recorded his try. Wiggs said Nebraska cherished the score by Chaffin. “We basically took it and rubbed it in their face,” he said. Wiggs said the win, which raised Nebraska’s record to 2-0, was a big one. ———————————————————I I *' HOMEMADE PASTA FOR TWO PLUS ONE QUART OF PEPSI I 5.95+tax ! Two orders of spaghetti with red sauce and four pieces of garlic cheese rolls. Plus one quart. I I Dine In. Carry Out or call lor Delivery in service area. 3 . One coupon per order, please. ¥_-— I I 13IH40&.47V124S I 14S» 4 Supaoor .... 435-6000 cvBIBRB I ■ 745 So ItSi Si .... 477-6661 EXPIRES I «£A°a . ..47W070 MARCH 31,1990 I ■ 4120 Sa 4Sm St .. .443-2401 DM . u — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — J TWO 8" CHEESE STEAKS PLUS ONE QUART OF PEPSI j j 5.95+tax J | Dine In. Carry Out or call for Delivery in service area I ■ One coupon per order, please | ■ 13lh*OSl.473-1246 B I Mih A Superior .... 435-6000 I ■ 74S So 11V) St .... 477-66#I EXPIRES ■ 4 St ....477-0001 EXPIRES . 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