ByMkeKluck
Senior Reporter
Throughout the early stages of
fall camp, Nebraska Football
Coach Tom Osborne was con
stantly pes
tered with
questions
about the can
didates fa* the
starting quar
terback job.
But once
junior Scott
Frost
emerged from IMWMreMplii
the pack, a Benning
new topic be
gan to develop. Who will start for
the Huskers at I-back?
As Nebraska completed its two
a-day workouts with a major scrim
mage Saturday, the competition
between sophomore Ahman Green
and senior Damon Benning took
center stage.
Green, from Omaha Central
High School, was the leading
rusher with 61 yards on seven rush
ing attempts, and Benning, from
Omaha Northwest, had 50 yards on
five attempts, scoring one of three
offensive touchdowns.
“It’s open, but you don’t dis
count what happened last year and
what happened in spring ball. That
all factors in,” Nebraska Running
Backs Coach Frank Solich said.
“You don’t make major changes
U~-' ‘ ' . - .
No back that comes through here will
settle for second, and I’m not going to
start that.”
Damon Benning
NUI-back
from the first two scrimmages. But
as it continues, changes could be
made if it dictates.”
Last year, Green set the NU
freshman rushing record, running
for 1,086 yards and scoring 13
touchdowns. He became the first
Nebraska freshman to rush for
more than 1,000 yards; he was a
first-team all-conference selection
by the league’s coaches and the Big
Eight offensive newcomer-of-the-'
year.
Although Benning was side
lined with a pulled hamstring and
a sprained ankle last season, he still
rushed for 407 yards, averaging 6.5
yards per attempt. In the spring,
Benning was slowed with a pulled
calf muscle.
“This is the best Damon has
played since he has been in the sys
tem,” Solich said.
“I think now he’s doing things
at the top of his game in terms of
everything — his passing game,
running game, he’s doing a fine job
blocking. So he’s really tinned into
a complete player.”
Throughout his career at Ne
braska, Benning has served as a
backup. In 1993, Benning backed
up Calvin Jones, starting two
games when Jones was injured. In
1994, Benning backed up
Lawrence Phillips, and last season,
Benning relieved Phillips and
Green.
Last season after Phillips was
suspended, Benning started against
Pacific and Washington State be
fore spraining an ankle and giving
way to the true freshman Green.
“I just made up my mind that I
wasn’t going to be one of those guys
who wasn’t going to go out with
out a fight,” Benning said. “No
back that comes through here will
settle for second, and I’m not go
ing to start that.
“If I can go out there and earn
the job, I’m going to earn the job.
I’m going to do my best to make a
statement here in camp.”
Winsett, Weston
named as finalists
Former NU volleyball
sensations honored
beside top female
athletes.
By Trevor Parks
Senior Reporter *
Eight months after winning college
volleyball’s biggest prize, two key
members of Nebraska’s national
championship team are still receiving
accolades.
Allison Weston and Billie Winsett,
two of the most decorated players in
NU volleyball history, are candidates
for awards honoring the top women
athletes in the United States and the
world.
Weston, who now is an under
graduate assistant for the
Comhuskers, is one of seven finalists
in the team sports category for the
Women’s Sports Foundation Sports
woman-of-the-Year award.
The other six finalists for the award
participated in the 1996 Summer
Olympic Games. Shelia Cornell, soft
ball; Becky Dyroen-Lancer, synchro
nized swimming; Mia Hamm, soccer;
Chryssandra Hires, team handball;
Shannon Miller, gymnastics and
Aranxta Sanchez-Vicario, doubles
tennis.
Weston said she was shocked to see
her name among that group.
“It cones a lot from the success that
we’ve had as a volleyball team,”
Weston said. “Obviously, I couldn’t
have gotten there by myself, but it is a
great honor to be mentioned with those
people.”
The past three winners of the award
Rebecca Lobo, basketball; Lisa
Fernandez, softball and Sheryl
Swoopes, basketball — all woo gold
medals in the Olympics this summer.
Weston, who graduated from
Papillion-LaVista High School, woo
three player-of-the-year awards for her
performance at Nebraska. She was
selected the AVCA co-player of the
year, Volleyball Magazine’s player of
the year, and she was the first-ever
winner of the Morgan Trophy Award
given to the nation’s top volleyball
player.
“Never in a million years did I ex
pect to win all these awards,” she said.
Meanwhile, Winsett is one of 10
finalists for the 1996 NCAA Worrian
of-the-Year Award. The award recog
nizes women in intercollegiate athlet
ics for athletic achievements, academ
ics and community leadership.
The other finalists include: Mary
Alice Brady of Boston College; Amy
DeVasher of Alabama; Kristi Kloster
of Kansas; Marya Morusiewicz of
Barry; Nikki Nicholson of Georgia;
Jenni Rademacher of North Dakota
State; Annette Salmeen of UCLA;
Samantha Salvia of Old Dominion
and Katie Smith of Ohio State.
The winner will be selected Oct. 6
in Kansas City, Mo.
Winsett, a native of Boonville, Ind.,
was a three-year starter at outside hit
ter and was recently recognized in
Successful Farmer Magazine 1995 as
voileyball player of the year.
Nebraska Unions
Your Campus Activities Centers
City Union • East Union • Culture Center
wbjcO*^ BACK STI*>BNts
City Union
Monday-Friday 7:00 a.m.-l 1:00 p.m.
Saturday 9:00 a.m.*11:00 p.rii.
Sunday * 12:00 p.m.-11:00 p.m.
East Union
Monday-Friday .... 6:45 a.m.-l 1:00 p.m.
Saturday 7:30 a.m.-l 1:00 p.m.
Sunday 8:00 a.m.-l 1:00 p.m.
Culture Center
Monday-Thursday 9:00am-9:00pm
Friday 9:00am-5:00pm. 4s
Friday evenings & weekends by reservation only
Young NU middle blockers
assume important positions
MIDDLE from page 9
“I never would have expected to play so
well,” Tauke said. “I knew I would be an op
tion with how many injuries we’ve had, so I’ve
been practicing hard, and it has paid off.”
Tauke’s play has impressed her blocking
mates.
“Tonia was there when the team needed her,”
Korver said. “She almost acted like she was
fearless out there. She wait out there and didn’t
care what everybody else thought. She just did
her job.”
Maser and Avery, the other two middle
blockers, have not recorded a kill or a solo block
after the first two matches. Maser, a 6-foot
sophomore, has been slowed by a nagging knee
injury and Avery, a 6-foot-1 redshirt freshman,
did not play against Hawaii Saturday night af
ter her debut Friday.
To help improve the middle blockers’ con
sistency, Avery, Korver and Thuke were the only
three players asked to practice Monday, the first
day of classes. „
It was practice time well spent, Korver said.
“We need a lot of work because we are all
inexperienced except for Stacie,” Korver said.
“Me, Tonia and Lisa are all inexperienced, and
I think we will come along as time passes.”
Nebraska might have been in bigger trouble
if Korver had not transferred this frill.
But while she was home in her hometown
of Adams in December, Korver began to think
about returning to her home state. She finally
made her decision to transfer to NU in April.
“I remember the whole day,” she said. “I
remember telling my coach. I remember tell
ing my team. I remember the moment I knew I
just told myself that there is no turning back.”
That was only the beginning.
The coach whom Korver liked so much,
GW's Susie Homan, failed to grant Korver a
release from her scholarship, even after ap
proval from Colonial Athletic Director Jack
Kvancz.
NCAA rules mandated that Korver—if she
was not released from her scholarship—would
have had to sit out this season, although she
would have been allowed to practice.
The problem continued until May 30, when
Homan told Korver she still would not be re
leased.
Korver and her family became involved with
the NCAA, and 'n June, a day before she was
Matthew Watts/DN
TONIA TAUKE, a true freshman from
Council Bluffs, stepped in to play a large role
in Nebraska's season-opening tournament
to fly to Washington for a tearing, Kvancz in
formed Nebraska that Korver was officially re
leased from her scholarship.
“She went there,” Pettit said. “She was the
newcomer of the year in the their conference.
She liked the school. She liked the team.
“She got great grades and she left only for
one reason, and that was because she couldn't
bear not playing Nebraska volleyball. How can
you not like that?”
Korver, who was going to have to walk on
at NU before picking up McFadden's scholar
ship, said she knew die made the right deci
sion after playing Friday and Saturday.
“I knew I was in the right place before this
weekend,” Korver said. “When I looked around
and saw the fans, I knew for sure this is what I
want It was awesome to say that 1 am from
xt-1_i_n
Nebraska, x
