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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 14, 1996)
~ -- r? ' % Kansas State senior from Omaha has never beaten Nehraska in four years. By Sam McKewon StaffReporter This is die last chance for Toie Young. The native of Omaha and Kansas State se nior volleyball player will have her final to beat Nebraska on Fri day in Manhattan, Kan. The Wildcats, who play host to Nebraska at pm, have never beaten 53 previous contests. “I have a lot of excite ment for this game,” Young said. “My family and I have been waiting a long time for it.” Young, a play-set hit ter, has helped lead the Wildcats to their best record in 17 years. KSU is 10-4 in the Big 12, 22-5 overall, earning a * No. 20 ranking. Kansas State gave Nebraska its toughest match at home all year, a five-game marathon in which NU prevailed 15-11 in the final game. Young, who led the team in that match with 16 kills, said die has a little extra motivation playing the Huskers. “You always want to [day a little bit better against your home-state school,” Young said. “It means a lot more.” Young graduated from Omaha Burke High School in 1993 and was offered scholarships by several Division-II schools in addition to Kan sas State. One notable absence from that list was Ne braska. Comhusker Coach Terry Pettit visited Young at her home and told ho* that NU would wait to decide whether it wanted Young to {day on schol arship. While waiting for NU’s answer, Young reconsidered her options. “If Coach Pettit would have told me at my house to walk on and redshirt, I would have done that in a heartbeaC Young said. “But after I U-—1-——— -i— If Coach Pettit would, have told me at my house to walk on and redshirt, I would have done that in a heartbeat” Tor Young ■ KSU volleyball player thought about it a while, I realized I was good enough to play on scholarship. “That’s when I chose Kansas State.” Young made an immediate impact at KSU as a freshman, leading the team in matches played, kills and total attacks. She also led the team in kills and total attacks during her sopho more year. Despite the lofty numbers, Young couldn't lead her team out of the bottom half of the Big Eight Conference. She had to wait until her jun ior year, under second-year Coach Jim Moore, to taste success. “We started winning after the coaching change,” Young said. “Even in my sophomore year, I could tell our team was getting a lot bet ter.” Now the Wildcats are in the nation’s top 20 and have their best-ever opportunity to beat fifth ranked Nebraska, which leads die Big 12. Despite playing on the opposite side of the net, Young said, she held no animosity toward the Huskers. “I don’t have any bad feelings toward them at all,” Young said. “They have a great program, great coaches and great players.” FallS Sale Special Group 1QOOO Reg. 22990 to 25990 All Regular Stock Regular-Talls-Bigs Wools-Wool Blends Single Breasted Free Alterations Minnesota coach: We’re not scared of NU soccer team By Peter Mahhoefer Staff Reporter Before the 1996 season, Minnesota Soccer Coach Sue Montagne expected her Golden Gophers to be in the NCAA Tournament. After Minnesota lost three of its fi nal four games to end the regular sea son, Montagne wasn’t so sure. But the Gophers made it, earning a first-round tournament game against No. 5 Ne braska, Sunday at 1 pjn. at the Abbott Sports Complex. “We’ve been here before,” Montagne said, “It’s not a new expec tation for us.” The Gophers (13-6) are one of five Big 10 teams in the 32-team tourna ment field and own a 3-5 record against NCAA Tournament teams. Two of Minnesota’s losses this fall came to No. 1-ranked North Carolina and No. 3 Portland. “Playing against those two teams absolutely helped our program,” Montagne said. Ranked 18th last week, the Gophers fell from the NSCAA Top 25 this week after losing to unranked Northwestern in the first round of the Big 10 Tour nament. Nebraska (21 -0) is the nation’s only unbeaten and untied team. Hie Husk ers are 4-0 against NCAA Tournament teams and carry the No. 6 seed overall heading into Sunday’s first-round game in the West Region. “We aren’t scared of Nebraska,” Montagne said. “I’ve read they’re big, strong, tough and play a direct game.” Montagne has not seen film of the Comhuskers, who have out-scored 21 opponents 86-12. “It’s fun to play someone you have never played before,” Montagne said. Minnesota has relied on its tough defense all season, Montagne said. The Gophers nearly upset Portland on Sept. 14, losing 3-2 to the top seed in the West Region, and Minnesota has not allowed more than three goals in any game this season. The Gophers have out-scored their opposition 42-21. “Our defense is strong throughout,” Montagne said. Minnesota is similar to Nebraska, a third-year program making its first tournament appearance, in many way s. In die program’s fourth year, the Go phers —who lost to Wisconsin in the NCAA Tournament last year — will NSCAA TOP 25 De used totne cold Movemoer tempera tures in Nebraska. . , “We are practicing outside every day,** she said. “We .know it wfll be cold.**' Sarr i...***,' ! ■ 5 From The Associated Press t Four members of last year’s pre season All-America team went on to earn the same honor in the postseason, r Tim Duncan has to be hop ing that trend continues. The 6-foot 10 senior cen ter from Wake Forest was one of those four players recog- j m,,: nized last sea- wugnn r " » son, and on Wcdnesday he was the only unanimous choice for this year’s Associated Press preseason team. Duncan, the leading vote-getter on last year’s preseason team, av eraged 19.1 points and 12.3 re bounds as a junior. He was named on all 68 ballots by a nationwide media panel. Joining him on the preseason All-America team were Utah for ward Keith Van Horn, who was named on 63 ballots, Cincinnati for ward Danny Fortson (60), Kansas guard Jacque Vaulin (47) and . Stanford guard Brevin Knight (43). Duncan averaged 3.8 blocks last season as the Demon Deacons went 26-6 and won the Atlantic Coast Conference title for the second straight year. Four starters return from the team that came within one win of the Final Four, “I never thought he was leav ing,” Wake Forest Coach Dave Odom said. “He was looking for reasons to sustain what he wanted J to do anyway. Where the reverse of that is usually true, most of them want to leave, they see the money so they look for reasons to sustain that. “He wanted to stay, in my opin ion, and he looked for all the rea sons to justify that and it was easy to find them.” Vaughn, who averaged 11 points and 6.6 assists as a junior last sea son in leading the Jayhawks to 29 wins, tore ligaments in his right wrist in a pickup game in Septem ber. He had surgery and isn’t ex pected to return until conference play begins in January. •. Texas star *1. signs with Nebraska From Staff Reports Amanda Cleveland signed a letter of intent on Wednesday to play few the Nebraska women’s basketball team next season. Cleveland, a 6-foot-2 post player from Lancaster, Texas, chose the Comhuskers over Connecticut, Kan sas, Colorado, |fexas and Texas A&M. Last season she averaged 15 points and 10 rebounds per game and led Lancaster to its first state playoff ap pearance in 57 years. The Tigers fin ished the season with a 22-11 record. On Tuesday, Lancaster, which is ranked second in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, opened its season. Cleve land had 20 points and IT rebounds. Cleveland was a preseason Street & Smith’s honorable mention All American and was originally recruited by more than 120 schools. ~ Cleveland said she chose NU be cause of the academic support and the chance to play in the Big 12 Confer ence. # She became Coach Angela Beck’s first recruit from Texas in her 11 sea sons at Nebraska.