Huskers
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REGIONAL from page lj
Hie Huskers are coming off their
fourth consecutive conference cham
pionship after narrowly defeating
Oklahoma 196.2-196.075.
Kendig said the close call at the
Big 12 Conference meet could serve
as motivation for the Huskers, whose
only defeats this year came at No. 2
Michigan on Feb. 9 and against sixth
ranked UCLA.
“I think that in some ways it pre
pared them,” Kendig said. “Just pull
ing together and helping out helped
them to learn to compete as a team.”
Sophomore Courtney Brown, who
tied the school record of 9.9 on the
balance beam at the Big 12 champi
onships, said NU is ready to start the
championship portion of its season.
Brown’s balance beam mark was
broken later in the meet by teammate
Shelly Bartlett, who scored a 9.925 en
route to a school record 39.575 per
formance in the all-around.
A senior, Bartlett is the sixth
ranked all-arounder in the nation.
Utah’s Angie Leonard and Traci
Sommer will lead the Utes. Leonard
is ranked fifth in the all-around and
Sommer is second in the nation on the
balance beam behind teammate Sum-j
mer Reid. *' % H' l
The Huskers defeated‘Arizona >
State on Feb. 23 in the Master’s Clas
sic, but Kendig said that victory
doesn’t matter anymore. The Sun Dev
ils are averaging a 196.115 score each
meet.
Nebraska will open the meet with
a bye and then begin the competition
on the balance beam, the apparatus on
which the Huskers scored a school
record 49.45 at the league meet.
Brown said NU’s performance on
the balance beam will set the pace for
the rest of the meet.
“We’d like to start the meet out
with a bang,” Brown said. “Beam
seems to be the event to make or break
us, so we’ll need to hit.”
■jizayfr.ii - Mm MfU£BfUN
AMIE DILL*UN ceapetes M the fleer exercise at the Vi| 12 Meet.
NEW YORK (AP) — David
Stern has an answer for those who
question the exodus of high school
stars and college freshmen for. the
NBA — Martina Hingis and Thra
Lipinski.
“Of course, we’d rather that
players go through college,” the
NBA commissioner said Thursday.
“But just lode at those two young
girls. One is 16 and is the world’s
top-ranked woman tennis player;
the other is 14 and is the world fig
ure-skating champion.”
Stem spoke at a forum spon
sored by Madison Square Garden
that included NFL Commissioner
Paul Thgliabue and NHL Commis
sioner Gary Bettman.
The discussion covered issues
from fan support to finances to
franchise movement to player mis
conduct The most compelling sub
ject was the influx of young play
ers into professional sports, particu
larly in basketball.
TWo of this year’sL top rookies,
Minnesota’s Stephen Marbury and
Allen Iverson of Philadelphia, left
after their freshman and sbpho
15 more yeftrs at Georgia Tech and
Georgetown. And now high school
players are getting in on the act.
Two years ago, Kevin Garnett
went directly from high school in
Chicago to the NBA draft. Now
-with the Umberwolves, he played
in this year’s All-Star Game.
Last year, Kobe Bryant and
Jermaine O’Neal jumped from high
school to the NBA. Tracy
McGrady, a high school player
from Durham, N.C., intends to en
ter this June’s NBA draft and
Lamar Odom, a New York star, is
considering a similar move.
Stem said the NBA asked the
union to consider an age restriction
on entering the league.
“We’d like to see a college Fi
nal Four with Stephon Marbury,
Allen Iverson and some of the oth
ers who have opted to come into
the NBA early,” Stern said.
“They’re more mature at 23 than
they are at 19, there’s no question.
“But, on the other hand, look
who the elder statesman is who’s
criticizing them — Charles
Barkley. I’d like to go back through
our records and find out how many
times Charles was fined for misbe
havior when he was younger.”
Thgliabue, whose league allows
players to enter the draft three years
after they’ve finished high school,
cited studies that demonstrate a
player who finishes college has a
longer and more lucrative NFL ca
reer.. . '
1 Bettman noted that the NHL
has changed its draft age from 18
to 19. And he said the league has
been trying to work out an agree
ment with the NCAA that would
allow players from Canadian jun
ior hockey to go to college. Cur
rently, Canadian juniors are not
permitted to play at U.S: universi
ties. ,
Huskers take two games from Jays
SWEEP from page 11
team would score again.
“We needed to create some runs,”
Revelle said. “That’s been one of our
themes all year, and we were able to
manufacture runs when the defense
presented them.”
In the first game, NU connected
on nine of its 19 attempts at the plate.
Designated player Christie McCoy hit
a perfect 1.000. McCoy has been hot
recently, averaging .667 in four games
last week while filling the offensive
hole left by injured shortstop Ali Vida.
“Christie was so anxious to prove
herself that she jumped the gun at the
beginning of the season,” Revelle said.
The Huskers were also aided by
pitcher Jenny Voss’ curve ball. Voss
(13-11) pitched two complete games,
giving up only five hits and commit
ting one error on the night Voss also
posted 11 strikeouts.
“It is so easy to throw well when
the fielding is good,” Voss said.
“When I know that I can trust the de
fense, 1 have less pressure on me.”
Revelle said the back-to-back wins
not only take the pressure off Voss, bid
the entire team as well. Nebraska
opened Big 12 Conference play last
weekend against Texas and Texas
A&M, winning the first game of both
doubleheaders before dropping the
second games.
“Those two losses stung,” Revelle
said. “We were snake bit, because we
knew we were capable of winning
those double headers. We needed to
prove we could come back and win a
second game.”
McCoy agreed with Revelle.
“These were good wins,” McCoy
said. “We hit the ball really hard and
we’re fielding like we should and
we’re building confidence.”
I
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_ . . JayCalderon/DN
JENNIFER UZAMA receives a bee freei Kelly Plnkepank.
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