Sports
Wednesday, April 24, 1996 Page 9
Big 8 ,ILJ^r
Notebook
The Oklahoma State baseball
team’s NCAA record for grand
slams in a season could be in jeop
ardy. The Cowboys have hit nine
home runs with the bases juiced
this year. They hold the record of
11, a mark set last year.
Iowa State senior outfielder
Darrin DeReu’s two triples last
week gave him a league-best eight
for the season and 20 for his career.
Heading into Tuesday’s game
against Iowa, DeReu needed just
one triple to tie the all-time Big
Eight career record. That mark is
held by Shawn Buchanan of Ne
braska and Chip Glass of Okla
homa.
* * *
Missouri senior Jay White
earned Big Eight player of the week
for last week. White, the only se
nior starter on the Tiger roster, hit
.600 in five games last week, help
ing Missouri to a 4-1 record. The
Tigers are now in first place in the
Big Eight with a league record of
13-5 and an overall record of 30
12.
Kansas State junior Jon Oiseth
earned Big Eight pitcher of the
week. Oiseth picked up a win and a
save last week and threw the final
four innings of a 7-4 win over Mis
souri , allowing two hits and no runs.
* * *
The 1996 NFL draft set a new
standard for Big Eight athletes. A
total of 28 Big Eight alums were
selected by an NFL team last week
end. An average of 3.43 Big Eight
alums were picked per round. That
rate surpassed the 1977 figure of
3.33, when 40 were selected.
Nebraska and Oklahoma each
had six players chosen, and Colo
rado boasted five draftees. Kansas
had four players chosen. Kansas
State, Oklahoma State and Mis
souri each had one. Iowa State was
the lone Big Eight school that was
void of NFL draft picks.
Academic honors keep on com
ing for Nebraska athletes. This time
it was the softball team. A total of
eight were selected to the academic
All-Big 12 softball honor roll. They
were: seniors Karla Knicely, Gloria
Von Rentzcll, Tobin Echo-Hawk
and Cody Dusenberry, juniors
Melanie Raimondi and Sarah
Sinclair, sophomore Jenny Smith
and freshman Kelly Pinkepank.
Over the last two weeks, the Big
12 softball race has heated up.
Third-place Texas A&M has won
eight of its last 10 games, second
place Oklahoma has won 11 of 13,
and league leader Oklahoma State
has won nine of its last 11 contests.
* * *
1996 will mark the first year of
the new Big Eight tennis format.
There will be a regular-season
champion in men’s and women’s
tennis, detennined by round-robin
play. Spring round competition will
determine the singles and doubles
champions. The tennis tournament
also will have a team champion,
based on team play at the Big Eight
Tournament, April 26-28 in Kan
sas City, Mo. Seedings for the tour
nament are based on the spring
round-robin play.
* * *
Oklahoma women’s soccer will
have a new coach next season. The
Sooncrs named Elizabeth Fletcher
as its new women’s soccer coach.
Fletcher was previously an assis
tant at North Carolina-Greensboro.
Notebook compiled by staff reporter
Vince D’Adamo.
Matt Miller/DN
Nebraska junior Steve Fish throws one of his176 pitches Sunday in the Huskers’ 11-7 win
over Kansas Sunday at Buck Beltzer Field. The Huskers will play host to Missouri today in
a doubleheader at 2:30 p.m.
Huskers Fish-ing for wins
By David Wilson
Staff Reporter
The bats of the Nebraska base
ball team have remained consistent
all season, but offense can’t always
support a team with a 7.32 earned
run average.
The facts remain simple. If the
Cornhuskersget good pitching, they
win ball games.
“It all slopsand starts with pitch
ing,” Nebraska coach John Sanders
has said many times this season.
The Comhuskers snapped a four
game losing streak — all losses to
Kansas — in an 11-7 victory over
the Jayhawks last Sunday. Junior
right-hander Steve Fish pitched a
complete-game 16-hitter.
“We definitely had to have this
one,” Fish said. “We couldn’t af
ford to lose five to Kansas. 1 didn’t
think we playedtoour potential this
series.”
The Huskers, 18-23-1 overall
and 7-13 in the Big Eight, will play
host to Missouri (30-12, 13-5) to
day in a doubleheader beginning at
2:30 p.m. at Buck Beltzcr Field.
Nebraska sits alone in the cellar of
the Big Eight.
The last-place team in the con
ference does not advance to the Big
Eight Tournament in Oklahoma
City, Okla.,May 16-19.
Pitching likely will determine
the Huskers’ chances of advancing
to the tournament. Nebraska has
won 10 out of the last 14 times'a
starter has lasted through the 11 fill
inning.
Only two Husker starters, jun
iors Fish and Pat Driscoll, have
thrown complete games this sea
son. They are the only Nebraska
starters with earned-run averages
below 6.85.
Driscoll, who owns a 3.48 ERA,
threw complete games in three con
secutive appearances before his loss
to Kansas last Saturday on just three
days rest.
Fish, who has started a team
high 10 games, threw his First com
plete game last Sunday against the
Jayhawks. He hurled 176 pitches
— the most by a Husker starter all
season—and allowed seven earned
runs.
“Thai’s a lot of pitches,” Sand
ers said. “But you have to look at
the type of pitcher. That would be
loo many for a guy that really pow
ers. But a guy that is a spot, in-and
out guy, that’s acceptable. It was a
really good performance.”
Fish also was throwing on just
three days rest, but said he was in
top shape when Sunday’s game
began.
“I told coach before the game
that I felt strong — that I could
definitely go today, and that I was
100 percent,” Fish said. “I wanted
to show that I could do it.”
As the game wore on, Fish said
he began to feel weary.
After fanning five Jayhawks,
Fish upped his strikeout total to a
team-high 54—just one more than
junior Jonas Armenta. Fish also
improved to 6-4. No other Huskcr
starter has won more than two games
this season.
Eleven games remain on the
Nebraska schedule, including a
doublehcader Thursday with UNO
and two doubleheaders with Wayne
State. Nebraska has only five Big
Eight games left.
“We’re going to have to win a
fair share of them if we want to
make it to the Big Eight Tourna
ment, which isdefinitely possible,”
Fish said. “If we play like we did
today and like the week we took
See FISH on 10
Tacha wins Big Eight title
From Staff Reports
Nebraska sophomore golfer
Rachelle Tacha won the Big Eight
championship Tuesday in Des Moines,
Iowa, iirmg a ca
reer-low final round
of 73.
Tachawasoneof
three Comhuskers
to shoot in the 70s
Tuesday to lead
Nebraska to a tie for
third place with
Oklahoma with a
twn-flav total of
Tacha 974. Oklahoma
State won the tournament with a 946,
and Iowa State placed second at 960.
Tacha, whose title was the first ever
individual championship by a Husker
golfer, shot a 227 to outdistance Okla
homa State’s JoJo Roberston.
Tacha dedicated her championship
to former Nebraska quarterback Brook
Berringer, who died last week in a
plane crash.
“I went in with a lot of confidence
and a lot of energy, knowing that if I
put a good round together, I could
come out on top,” Tacha said.
Nebraska coach Robin Krapfl said
she was proud of Tacha’s effort.
“She played some absolutely great
golf today,” Krapfl said. “This is one
of the toughest courses we’ll ever play
on, and the weather was absolutely
horrendous yesterday, so Raehelle’s
win is especially impressive.
“I couldn’t have been prouder of a
player if she were my own daughter.”
Nebraska, which entered the day in
fourth place, qualified for NCAA
regionals, which will be played at the
Champions Club in Omaha, May 9
11.
Heidi Stark shot a 74 Tuesday t
place 1 Oth, Michelle Patterson finishc
17th, Molly Mullin tied for 30th an
Maureen Regan placed 32nd.
In Hutchinson, Kan., the Nebrask
men’s team finished third at the cor
ference championships, 10 shots bt
hind Oklahoma and Oklahoma Stati
Oklahoma State won the title over th
Sooners in a playoff.
Ryan Nietfeldt was Nebraska’s to
finisher, shooting a two-over par 7
Tuesday to finish eighth. Trer
Morrison finished ninth, Josh Madde
was 12th, Steve Friesen placed 22n
and Jacques Paiement finished 37th
The Huskers probably will receiv
a bid to the NCAA Central Regiona
May 16-18 in Ann Arbor, Mich.
Graham
about NFL
By Mike Kluck
Senior Reporter
It was only natural for Aaron Gra
ham to dream of someday playing foot
ball in Texas Stadium.
pHu-u.ptnywP'iUli. ...ii.nujuww, “'I _ ,
uranam grew up
and played high
school football in
Denton, Texas, just
40 miles from the
Cowboys’ home
stadium. He always
has been a Dallas
fan.
On Sunday, Gra
ham was drafted by
laranam the Arizona Cardi
nals, ensuring that he will play at least
one game a year in Texas Stadium.
Although Nebraska’s starting cen
ter for the past two seasons was disap
pointed he wasn’t drafted by his favor
ite team, he said he was pleased the
Cardinals selected him in the fourth
round.
“I feel good about what’s ahead,”
Graham said from his father’s home in
Conroe, Texas. “Playing in the pros
has been a dream of mine since I put on
a Nebraska uniform.”
Graham’s moment of disappoint
ment came in the third round when the
Cowboys chose Florida State center
Clay Shiver with the 67th pick in the
National Football League draft.
Graham was the 112th player taken
in the seven-round draft joining five
other former Huskers who were se
lected Saturday and Sunday.
“Dallas had a chance, but instead of
taking a hometown guy, they decided
on somebody else,” Graham said.
“That’s OK. It just motivates me more.”
Arizona offensive line coach Carl
Mauck said Graham may have a chance
to play immediately for the Cardinals.
“I think he will have a better oppor
tunity here than at Dallas,” Mauck
said. “Here he will have an opportu
nity to step in and play a lot sooner
than he would in Dallas.”
Graham is the fourth member of
Nebraska’s 1994 line to become a
member of an NFL team. RobZatechka
plays for the New York Giants, Zach
Wiegert is a member of the St. Louis
Rams and Brenden Stai plays for the
Pittsburgh Steelers.
The 6-foot-4, 285-pound Graham
has all the tools needed to be a top
offensive lineman in the NFL, Mauck
said.
“He’s goingtoget a good shot at it,”
Mauck said. “I really like him, and he
is one of your typical Nebraska line
men, hard worker, good student and
well-trained.”
iviaucK saiu ne was impicsscu wiui
Graham’s quickness off the ball and
his ability to get to his blocks. Graham
was the second center on the Cardi
nals’ draft board, Mauck said.
He said Graham’s deep-snapping
ability added to his value.
Graham needs to work on his pass
3 blocking, Mauck said, mainly because
] he has not worked in an offense that
j throws the ball 30 times a game. And
of course, he will have to learn the
Cardinals’ system.
a ButGrahamsaidhcwasn’tworried
" about learning the Cardinals’ system
' or playing in a warm weather climate.
“The one thing I never got adjusted
e to through all my years at Nebraska
was the cold weather,” Graham said,
p “I grew up in the heat, and I am very
2 happy a warm weather team chose
t me.”
n The draft was also a sad time for
j Graham. On Thursday, Graham’s
former roommate, Brook Berringer,
died in a plane crash. But Graham was
e unable to attend Monday’s funeral in
, Goodland, Kan., he said, because his ✓
grandfather, James Graham, is very ill.