Sports
Wednesday, February 21, 1996 Page 10
Trevor Parks
Huskers’ Lue
earns respect,
redeems NU
LAWRENCE, Kan. — In a sea
son full of dark moments for the
Nebraska basketball team, one small
point guard shined brightly Mon
day night.
Freshman Tyronn Lue stepped
up big and made a name for himself
in one ofthe most difficult places to
play in the country during the*,
Comhuskers’ 81-71 loss to Kansas.
Lue dazzled the crowd at Allen
Fieldhousc, making one of the best
point guards in the country, Jacque
Vaughn, look as if he were the sec
ond-best point guard on the court.
Lue scored a game-high 21
points and made a career-high five
3-pointers in six tries to gain
everyone’s attention.
In the first half, he gained notice
by pushing the ball up the court so
fast that he had to wait for his
Cornhuskcr teammates to catch up.
When they didn’t, Lue’s lightning
quick first step helped him around
Vaughn for an easy layup.
“I played pretty good against
him,” Lue said. “The fact that he
might be an All-American makes it
more special.”
And Lue was playing with a
heavily-taped left ankle after he suf
fered a high sprain that caused him
to miss the second half of Saturday
night’s 72-57 loss to Oklahoma
State.
But at a crucial point Monday,
Lue sat on the bench holding a cup
of water instead oftryingtohelphis
team rally.
With 8:16 left and Nebraska
trailing by one point, Coach Danny
Nee substituted senior Tom Wald
for Lue. Lue returned a little more
than two minutes later, but the Husk
ers were trailing by four and they
had just turned the ball over.
By the time Luc got the opportu
nity to take another shot, Nebraska
was behind by 11 points, but that
didn’t stop him from making a 24
foot 3-pointer.
With his performance Monday,
he should earn a spot on the Big
Eight’s all-freshman team even
though he has been inconsistent at
times, turning the ball over 71 times
Luc also earned the respect of
the No. 5 team in the nation and
made a name forhimselfin front of
a national television audience.
With 1:16 left, Vaughn was
knocked to the floor along the
baseline. As Erick Strickland sank
a 3-pointer, Vaughn lay in front of
the Nebraska bench grabbing his
ribs. After being treated by the Kan
sas trainers, he walked slowly to the
Kansas bench, but not before shak
ing hands with Lue.
At least Lue — who will be
Nebraska’s true court leader next
season — has been gaining some
respect. And when it comes to
crunch time this season, maybe he
should be the one his teammates
turn to.
Parks is a senior news-editorial ma
jor and a Daily Nebraskan senior re
porter.
. , , w'**
Aiming to win
Matt Miller/DN
Nebraska junior outfielder Sarah Sinclair practices Tuesday at the NU Softball Complex. The 5-1 Huskers will play a
doubleheader this weekend in Omaha against Creighton.
Huskers hope to remain on track
By Mike Kluck
Senior Reporter
The philosophy behind the Ne
braska softball team has not
changed, but this season, there is a
new emphasis on success in the
Cornhusker program.
Third-year coach Rhonda
Revelle said the team’s immediate
goal of consistent hard work and
improvement had taken on an added
significance this year.
“The emphasis of improving
from game to game has always been
there,” Revelle said. “It has just
jumped up on the ladder. It has
surfaced as the team has come to
surface.”
Maintaining the team’s focus is
important if the Huskers want to
contend for the first Big 12 Cham
pionship, Revelle said. Nebraska
finished last season ranked No. 15
in the nation, its highest ranking
ever.
Because of the team’s talent and
experience, Revelle said, Nebraska
will not have a problem staying on
'If we do what we need to do consistently and do it
consistently, then well have success. ”
RHONDA REVELLE
Nebraska softball coach
track.
“This would be an empty goal if
we had no talent,” Revelle said. “If
we do what we need to do consis
tently and do it consistently, then
we’ll have success. We have the
talent to back up what we talk about.
We have to work on being funda
mentally sound in our heads.”
The Huskers have 14 players
returning this season with playing
experience, including standout
pitcher Angela Blackwood, All
American shortstop Ali Viola and
All-American third baseman Tobin
Echo-Hawk, who is also the team
captain.
Viola, who hit .43 7 with 13 home
runs and 72 runs batted in last year,
was named the Big Eight player of
the year as a freshman.
Last weekend in Arlington,
Texas, the Huskers compiled a 5-1
record in their season-opening tour
nament, the Pepsi InterCollcgiate
Classic.
In the tournament, Blackwood,
a sophomore, won three games, in
cluding a four-hit shutout in the
quarterfinal game against Texas
Arlington. The Huskers won the
game 1-0.
Junior pitcher Melanie Raimondi
recorded a win against New Mexico,
and senior Stacie Stafford went 1 -1
with a 7-2 win over Oregon State
and a 2-1 loss to Oklahoma.
“Our pitchers had a great week
end,” Revelle said. “This needs to
be a standard weekend for them.
We don ’ t expect them to do a whole
lot more and not a whole lot less.
But there is no reason they can’t
perform consistently.”
In the victory over Oregon State,
Echo-Hawk went 4-for-4 with two
doubles and drove in two runs. But
the Huskers suffered a setback to
another in fielder during the tourna
ment.
Second baseman Heather
Hanselmann broke the middle fin
ger on her right hand and severed a
tendon against Oregon State.
Revellc said the injury would re
quire surgery.
The injury to Hanselmann will
require Nebraska to shift its lineup.
Gloria Von Rentzell will move from
first base to second base, and
Blackwood and Rachel Dunham
will split time at first base.
“All of the players we moved
have experience at their new posi
tion,” Revelle said. “But it’s still
going to be a challenge to us right
away.”
See SOFTBALL on 11
Pitchers need to improve, Sanders says
By David Wilson
Staff Reporter
The Nebraska baseball team re
turned home Monday after a last-place
finish in the Fiesta
Bowl Diamond
Classic in Tempe,
Ariz.
The Cornhusk
ers, who were
outscored 47-24 in
the tournament,
dropped all four
l_games, one to Texas
Sanders Tech, one to Ari
zona State and two to Northwestern.
“In the Texas Tech game, we played
competitively,” Nebraska coach John
Sanders said. “In the Arizona State
game, their pitcher dominated us.”
But Sanders said he felt that the
Huskers’ offense had been the team’s
strength so far this season. Nebraska,
2-5, scored enough runs to beat North
western, Sanders said, but the Husker
pitchers did not throw well.
“We have a lot of work to do. At
this point, after seven games, we’re
averaging 10 runs per game,” Sanders
said. “Our defense is acceptable, but
our pitching is just not good.”
The Husker pitching staff has al
lowed almost 11 runs per game. TTie
starting pitchers have maintained a
7.07 eamed-run average, while the rest
of the staff has combined for a 11.10
ERA. “We’re playing hard and we’re
trying hard, but our pitchers just aren’t
executing. We’re not getting it done.”
Junior Steve Fish opened the tour
nament on Thursday starting against
sixth-ranked Texas Tech. Fish was
pulled after allowing six earned runs in
five innings, raising his ERA to 9.31.
Fish held the Red Raiders to six hits
and walked five in the Huskers’ 7-3
loss.
Junior Jonas Armentamade his first
start of the season against No. 5 Ari
zona State on Friday and allowed the
Sun Devils to score seven runs in six
innings, raising his ERA to 11.05.
Backed by only 11 hits, the Sun Devils
defeated Nebraska 14-2. Although
Armenta has struck out eight hitters in
7 1/3 innings pitched this season, he
has allowed opposing teams to bat
.345 against him.
In the Huskers’ first meeting with
Northwestern on Saturday, freshman
Jay Siriani made his second start of the
year. He allowed seven runs in six
innings, raising his ERA to 8.10. De
spite giving up 11 hits to Husker hit
See PITCHING on 11