Ted Taylor
Omaha to
keep CWS
tradition
Thank y ou Jack Diesing Jr.
Thank y ou for keeping the state's
most important sporting event, the
Coliege World Series, in Omaha.
For eight days in June every y ear
since 1040. Omaha's Rosenblatt
Stadium has been, the center of the
collegiate baseball world and now.
thanks to Diesing and CW S Inc., that
w ill remain so through the y ear 2000
During the last 10 y ears. Diesing,
president of C'W S Inc., has done
every thing in his power to keep the
senes in Omaha
When the NCAA said Omaha
needed a bigger stadium or it would
move the tournament to the
Minneapolis Metrodome. Diesing
added seats to the stadium.
And this time before the NCAA
could even ask for more renovations.
Diesing dangled a S3 million check
m front of them and said in effect,
"just trv to take the CWS away from
us "
All of it has been, and will be.
monev well spent.
The monev means that for at
least the next two Years (>maha w ill
continue to be the sight of college
baseball's equivalent to the NCAA
Final Four
It means Omaha can keep
preparing for its weekiong eelebra
lion of everything that is good m col
legiate athletics
It is a week where eight teanw . T
voting men wb! tulfil! a dream of
making the ultimate road trip to
Omaha, of ail places but onh one
team travels home the National
Champion
A week w here thousand- of lan
from all oxer the country usuallx
places like Baton Rouge. La
College Station. Texas: Palo Alto.
Calif., and Tempe. Anz. make their
annual pilgrimage to the CWS like a
Husker football fan does to Miami
exerx January
A week my parents take off of
work and spend hanging out in the
parking lot and in the stadium with
best friends they have not yet met.
but will be on the next year's
Christmas card list.
A week when CBS and ESPN
make their annual visits to Omaha to .
do their part in putting the River City
on the map.
A week where every camera shot
of the crowd and the game allows
Omaha to put another feather in its
cap.
It's a glorious w'eek where more
than 20,000 fans pack the cozy con
fines of Johnny Rosenblatt Stadium
exery afternoon and night to show
the NCAA and the rest of the country
the College World Senes belongs m
()maha
its our little way of saying
thanks. Jack
Ted Taylor is a senior news-edi
torial major and the Daily
Nebraskan associate news editor.
NU women can’t shake road jinx
By Mike Kluck
Staff Reporter
LUBBOCK, Texas - Having won
seven of its last eight games -
including road games at Missouri
and Oklahoma - the Nebraska
women's basketball team was sup
posed to be ov er its road jinx.
It was a road jinx in which the
Cornhuskers fell behind by 20 points
in the first half at Kansas, Colorado
and Iowa State, and w'as forced to
attempt a second-half comeback.
The jinx reappeared Wednesday
night in front of 8.200 fans at a sold
out Lubbock Municipal Coliseum as
Nebraska fell behind Big 12
Conference leader and fifth-ranked
Texas Tech by 18
at halftime
before losing 87
62.
The loss,
Nebraska's worst
in 124 games,
dropped the
Huskers to 21-8
overall and 10-5
in the Big 12. Kubik
With the win, the
Red Raiders (20-5. 14-1) wrapped
up the Big 12 Conference regular
season championship. NU is now
tied for third in the league.
"Our defense was nonexistent
tonight," NU Coach Paul Sanderford
said. "Defensively, we didn't do a
good job, and we didn't keep them
off the boards.
"It just steamrolled on us. I felt
helpless on the bench - totally help
less. It was our worst performance of
the year."
The Huskers fell victim to a 20-4
Texas Tech run in the first half as the
Red Raiders expanded a 13-12
advantage to 33-16 with 7:05
remaining.
From the beginning Nebraska
could not stop the inside play of
senior Big 12 Player of the Year can
didate Alicia Thompson and junior
Angie Braziel. Thompson and
Braziel scored 23 ofTexas" first 25
points and finished the half with 3 1
of the Red Raiders 45 points.
“That's our strength to go
inside,” Texas Tech Coach Marsha
Sharp said. “It has been the thing
Please see WOMEN on 8
Huskers
roll to
key win
H Texas Tech loses steam
as Nebraska takes an early
lead and doesn't look back.
—
By Shannon Heffelfinger
Senior Reporter
Hoping to lay a solid claim on the
fourth-place spot in the Big 12
Conference, the Nebraska men's bas
ketball team had prepared for a 40
! minute battle with fifth-place Texas
Tech Wednesday nmht.
But a cold-shooting Tech offered lit
tle more than a five-minute distraction,
and fans turned their attention to Nl "s
Tyronn Lue
In what max have been Lue's last
performance at the Bob Devanev Spoils
(. enter, the defensive-minded Huskers
(I*-10 overall and d-(> m the league)
nev er allowed Texas Tech (13-12 and
Si to come within 10 points after the 15
minute mark of the first half.
Lue grabbed four of NT "s l7 steals
in the Huskers' 82-05 win. The |unior
guard also led both teams with 23 points
as fails chanted "One more year" to Lue.
who has said he max forgo lus senior
year to enter the NBA draft.
"(Tnils were running through mv
bod\ when (the fans) did that." Lue said
"It felt good to know that the fans want
me back."
But for now. Lue said, he wants to
take a "wait and see" attitude. NL
Coach Danny Nee agreed.
"He's going to evaluate the situation
and do what's best for him." Nee said.
"If its not right, then he won't do it. He'll
stay and control his own destiny."
Lue took control of the game early
in Nebraska's fifth-straight win in two
weeks. He converted b of 10 attempts to
score 17 of his 23 points m the first half.
Lue finished the half w ith a 3-point
field goal with 0 Ob seconds remaining,
and Nebraska ended the period with a
42-24 advantage.
"The game was realty decided in the
first five to lb minutes." Nee said "We
established ourselves at the defensive
end. and we did a great |ob on (Corv i
( arr and (Stan) Bonewitz”
Nebraska used Larry Florence to
harass Carr, who struggled from the
field, making 4 of 13 shots.
The guard trio of Carr. Bonewitz
and Rayford Young, who hav e av eraged
53 points per game collectively this sea
son. combined for 35 points and made
only 9 of 31 field-goal attempts.
"They missed their shots earlv and
we made ours," Lue said. "They backed
off a little after that."
Even though the Eluskers rank
fourth m the league. Cookie Belcher
said, they have not lost sight of their ini
tial goal - an NCAA Tournament bid..
Michael Warren/DN
(TOP) NEBRASKA GUARD Cookie Belcher scrambles for a loose ball.
Jay Calderon DN
(ABOVE) NU POINT GUARD Tyronn Lue awaits his pregame introduction.
Former player running back to NU offense
By S am McKewon
Senior Reporter
A former Nebraska running back,
who also was part of Coach Tom
Osborne's first recruiting class, will
return to coach the running backs for the
( 'ornhusker ~
Dave Gillespie, currently an assis
tant coach and administrative assistant
at Kansas. wa> named to the position
Wednesdav bv NT Head Coach Frank
Solicit, who vacated the position when
he took over for the retiring Osborne in
January.
Gillespie will also be in charge of
evaluating recruits for the Huskers, sim
ilar to the position
he held at NU from
1986-1993 when he
was the recruiting
coordinator.
Solicit said that
(liliespie was a solid
selection for th
position, consider
ing his familiarity
w ith Nebraska's Gillespie
program.
“Having played here as a running
back and working here as a recruiting
coordinator, he knows the Nebraska
system," Solicit said.
Originally from San Jose. Calif.,
Gillespie was a part of Osborne's first
recruiting class in 1973 and played for
the Huskers from 1974-76. After his
playing career. Gillespie coached high
school football in Lincoln and Hastings
before returning to NL in 1985.
As recruiting coordinator at NL
front 1986-93. Gillespie had a hand in
overseeing the recruiting of 15 All
Americans for Nebraska, including
Tommie Frazier and Grant Wistrom. The
eight recruiting classes Gillespie oversaw
went on to post a record of 87-9-1.
"Dave helped put together three
national championship teams (1994.
1995. 1997).” Solich said. "He has the
work ethic necessary to be successful
and has demonstrated that lie knows
how to relate well to placers.”
When Gillespie left Nebraska, he
went to Kansas where he coached the
tight ends in 1994 and the defensive line
in 1995-96 He was an administrative
assistant to KU Coach Terrv Allen in
1997.