Sports
Nebraskan
Thursday, July 18,1983
City baseball outlook growing
By Jeff Zeleny
Senior Editor
The possibility of minor league baseball
coming to Lincoln could prove to be a bigger
gamble than supporters once thought.
Under a plan being considered by the
Lincoln City Council,city keno profits would
provide $1.3 million in funding for Sherman
Field renovations, and build a second field
nearby for Lincoln youth baseball programs.
But city officials disagree about the risk
involved with using keno funds that are not
yet available.
“Risk and opportunity are two sides of the
same coin,” said Ken Haar, city council mem
ber. “It’s a risk, but I think it’s a small risk. I
look at this as an opportunity for the city of
Lincoln.”
Lincoln Parks and Recreation director Jim
Morgan said using kcno-gcncraicd funds be
fore they actually became available was po
tentially dangerous.
“If the Slate of Nebraska goes into the
lottery system, keno will dry up,” he said.
“Will it take five years or 10 years? Thai’s the
question.”
Most officials do agree professional base
ball in Lincoln would benefit the city greatly,
but the city council approved last week a plan
to spend SI0,000 to study the city’s baseball
field needs.
Morgan said the study would include ar
chitectural engineering consulting work. *
“Before you can make the next decision,
you have to have good information,” Morgan
said. “When you start talking about designing
and developing this, we need to buy some
skills.”
Haar said the survey was a good method to
make more information available to baseball
proponents.
“I just think it would be good for the city,”
Haar said of professional baseball. “It’s the'
sort of thing that has benefit for all of Lincoln.
-44
Risk and opportunity are
two sides of the same coin.
It’s a risk, but I think it’s a
small risk. I look at this as
an opportunity for the city of
Lincoln.
— Haar
city council member
-ft “
It’s great family entertainment and a good
community thing.”
Although no specific organizations have
expressed interest in Lincoln, Morgan said
Miles Wolf, founder of the Northern League
and editor of Baseball America was aware of
Lincoln’s interest.
“Miles has expressed interest for the city
of Lincoln, providing the city can update
Sherman Field,” Morgan said.
Wolf could not be reached for comment
Wednesday from Durham, S.C.
Adding a professional league of any type
to the city would be a great asset for Lincoln
baseball enthusiasts, said NU baseball coach
John Sanders.
“I just think it would be positive,” he said.
“It would be an uplift for baseball in general.
Any lime there is an uplift in general, there is
an uplift specifically.”
Sanders said Wolf was enthused about
bringing baseball to Lincoln. The Northern
League would be good for the NU program
also, he said.
“It would provide an outlet for our play
ers,” he said.
The Northern League has a variety of
players, Sanders said, and would be better for
the city than a specific professional club.
“It would kind of be a mixed bag,” he said.
“The Northern League concept holds better.
Locally franchised it could be belter spirit.”
Jennings earns highest honor
By Derek Samson
Staff Reporter
Karen Jennings, the most decorated wom
en’s basketball player in Nebraska history,
added the final collegiate award of her ca
reer when she was announced the winner of
the Wade Trophy.
The Wade Trophy is annually given out
to a woman senior All-American that is
committed to academics, and has served as
an exemplary positive role model for wom
en in sports.
“I was excited and really shocked,"
Jennings said. "To be honest, I real ly couldn ’t
believe it
"It was an incredible award to receive
considering all the community things that
went into it”
The trophy is named after Margaret Wade,
who became the first women’s college coach
to be inducted into the National Basketball
Hall of Fame in Springfield, Mass. Wade
retired at the end of the 1978-79 season, with
a high school and college coaching record of
610-112. .
Among some of the past recipients of the
award are Nancy Licberman, Lyncltc
Woodard, Cheryl Miller and Teresa
Wcathcrspoon.
“I looked at that list and just said ‘ Wow ’,"
Jennings said. “They were all my role mod
els as 1 was growing up."
Jennings, who is the all-time leading
scorer in Comhuskcr history, said her team
mates deserved some of the credit for her
receiving the honor.
“In a way, 1 hate receiving all these
awards and not having my teammates get
anything," she said. “I feel like I get too
much attention and they didn’t get enough,
but I couldn’t have done any of it without
them.”
Jennings said she had enjoyed the help of
others as well.
“I feel very fortunate for everything that
God gave me. I feel very fortunate to have
been given the athletic ability and the oppor
tunity,” she said. “Of course. I’ve had good
coaching and my parents have been very
I feel very fortunate for
everything that God gave
me. I feel fortunate to
have been given the ath
letic ability and the oppor
tunities.
—Jennings
former UNL
basketball player
--—tt -
supportive, too.”
The trophy will be presented on Novem
ber 21, at the Women’s Basketball Hall of
Fame Tip-Off Classic in Jackson, Tenn. It
has been sponsored for three years by Dansk in
and Shape Magazine.
“All the honors are great, but this is
special because it’s so many things and it’s
on the national level,” Jennings said. “For
me to be chosen for something like this on
the national level really means a lot.”
Jennings will graduate from UNL in
August with a degree in exercise physiolo
gy. She has signed with a French team and
will begin her professional career August
15.
Award Winner
Nebraska graduate Karen Jennings
is the 1993 Wade Trophy Award
winner for leadership and academic
excellence Tn women's basketoair ~
Previous Whiners
1992 Susan Robinson
Penn State
1991 Daedra Charles
Tennesee
1990 Jennifer Azzl
Stanford
Scott Monroe/DN
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NU volleyball sets sights
on tough year, coach says
By Derek Samson
Staff Reporter
The Nebraska Volleyball team has
used a competitive non-conference
schedule lo help ihc Comhuskcrs win
17 Big Eight tides.
Nebraska coach Terry Pcuil said
this year’s schedule wouldn’t be any
different. Scheduling lough teams,
Pettit said, helps prepare the
Comhuskcrs for post-season play.
’’You always want to play the
toughest teams because it prepares
you for the Big Eight tournament and
the NCAA tournament as well,” he
said. “Every year our schedule is about
like this.
“We always try to play some of the
strongest teams in our region."
The Comhuskcrs will start their
regular season Sep. 1 at home against
Iowa. They will then travel to Univer
sity Park, Ra. for the Penn Stale Invi
tational Sep. 3-4.
“That’s a very tough match to have
that early in the year,” Pcuil said.
“(Penn St.) will be ranked in the top
I 10 without a doubt and arc going lobe
very lough ai home.”
Among the other opponents the
Huskcrs will be facing in non-confer
cnee play arc Louisiana State and
Georgia at the Firstier Invitational in
Lincoln.
“That’s going to really be a chal
lenge. Georgia is probably the tough
est team in the south.” Pettit said.
“Both LSU and Georgia will be in the
lop 10.”
Nebraska will also host the Arby’s
Classic Sep. 10-11. Teams compet
ing along with the Huskcrs will be
Washington, Wyoming and Louis
ville.
“I really won’t know until the sea
son begins, but if I had to guess, I
would say Washington will be the
strongest of those teams,” Pettit said.
“They’ll be in the top 20 for sure.”
“Colorado will be very good this
year,” Pettit said. “I think alter Colo
rado and Nebraska, there is going to
be a drop-off in the Big Eight.”