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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 27, 1998)
- !1 “O” Street PRESENTS_ I I '. ■* .■ ? ■ ;r __••'■ • • - .- -.-- -> ewcomers to spell relief for NU pitching standout RELIEF from page 7 is too much for one pitcher to carry. “I can keep doing it - and it’s not that I don’t want to - but it’s a lot of wear and tear on your arm,” Voss said. “Sometimes I can go out and win when I’m not at my best, but why do it if I don’t have to? I could do it physically and mentally, but I don’t really want to if it’s not necessary.” If Christie McCoy and Lori Tschannen have their way, it won’t be necessary. Tschannen, a freshman left-han der from Walnut Creek, Calif., and McCoy - who joined the Huskers last year after transferring from » College of San Mateo in California - * hope to provide some relief for Voss this season. “Lori has been good in a real positive way,” McCoy said. “She is very strong and very knowledge able, and I would love to get more innings in. Whether they give me a couple or 20, I’ll do the best with what I can. I think Jenny will enjoy that.” So will NU Coach Rhonda Revelle. The addition of the left handed Tschannen particularly pleases the sixth-year coach. . This season marks the first time since 1984 that the Huskers have had a pitching staff comprised of both right- and left-handers. “I am excited because it gives us two different looks,” Revelle said. “Both ways are effective and it is very helpful to have a left-hander. Lori can throw into the hands of a right-handed batter.” The pitching staff will have its hands full this weekend when the Huskers (4-3) travel to Columbus, Ga., for the NFCA Leadoff Classic. Seven of the NFCA/USA Today’s Top 10 will compete in the four-day tournament. NU plays Auburn at 4:00 p.m. and No. 2 Washington at 6 p.m. today. Voss, who faced over half of the 20 teams in the tournament last sea son, thinks the Huskers could catch some teams off guard with their pitching depth. “A lot of times teams will only focus on that known ‘ace’ who everyone else focuses on,” Voss said. Nebraska holds an even greater advantage than it may appear, Voss said, because the three pitchers are a close-knit unit. “When I’m in the dugout and someone else is pitching, I’m with them all the way on every pitch,” Voss said. “It’s us three together, not each one of us apart. I told them I needed them to help me, and they need me to help them.” Nebraska track teams to defend conference indoor championships ■ The Husker men look for their fifth straight title, while the NU women vie for their 19th straight. By Andrew Strnad Staff Reporter Conference bragging rights are on the line this weekend as the Nebraska track team travels to Ames, Iowa, to defend its throne as Big 12 indoor track champions. A win for the Cornhusker women’s team would mean a 19th straight indoor conference champi onship. The Husker men have won four straight indoor titles and are favored to win their fifth over Baylor and Texas. NU’s strength lies with its depth, Husker Coach Gary Pepin said. Nebraska has three competitors in the top five in the conference in both the 35-pound weight throw and the shot put. Anchoring the Huskers in the weight throw is two-time conference champion Scott Warren. Warren, a senior, holds the fourth longest throw in die nation this season at 67 feet and 3 XA inches. The 1997 All-American said he believes NU has the depth in the field events to overcome the strengths of the sprinting schools of the South. “Baylor is loaded at the sprints, from the 55 (meter dash) to the 800 (meters),” Warren said. “But that’s it. We should be able to score major points in the field events.” Joining Warren in the throws is junior Joe Erdkamp, who also has an NCAA provisional mark in the weight throw (64-3), and sophomore Jack Melson. Melson’s mark of 59-9 in the shot put last weekend put him in contention for an individual championship. His strength will likely help the Huskers rack up enough team points to win the meet, Warren said. “Coach (Marie Colligan) has said that 100 points will definitely win the meet, and we’re probably the only team that can reach that level” Warren said. The NU women will have a tough time defending their crown, as another deep group of sprinters from Texas will be looking for revenge. The Longhorns had bad luck at last year’s conference championships as their 4 x 100 fell down and another sprinter tripped over a pole that fell onto the track from the pole-vault pit. “(Texas has) a lot of sprinters, and we don’t have the depth in the field events that we had last year,” NU sophomore Carrie Braness said. Braness, a 1997 All-American in the high jump, is currently third in the conference with a provisional mark of 5-9% and will also compete in the pentathlon. Former Husker star Erstad agrees to $7.5 million deal 1st basemen to give $200,000 to Little League ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) - First baseman Darin Erstad, the first overall selection in die 1995 free-agent draft, has agreed to a $7.5 million, four-year contract with the Anaheim Angels. The 23-year-old former Comhusker hit .299 with 34 doubles, four triples, 16 homers, 99 runs scored, 77 RBIs and 23 stolen bases in 139 games last season - his first full year in the big leagues. “Darin epitomizes the hard-work ing, dedicated athlete,” Anaheim General Manager Bill Bavasi said after the deal was announced. “He knows one style of play. We look for ward to his contributions as our cur rent nucleus of young players develop together.” Erstad, who made $175,000 last season, gets $500,000 in 1998, $800,000 in 1999, $2.5 million in 2000 and $3.45 million in 2001. In addition to the four-year con tract, Erstad’s agent, Jeff Moorad, said his client wilLbe donating $200,000 during the term of the contract toward the development and upgrading of Little League facilities in the Southern California area. Erstad also will establish a perpet ual scholarship at his former high school, Jamestown High in Jamestown, N.D. Husker swimmers in third From Staff Reports NU diver Danny Bergman and the Comhusker 400-meter relay team led the Nebraska men’s swim team to a third-place finish after the first day of competition at the Big 12 Championships in College Station, Texas, Thursday. The Huskers racked up 187.5 points, while defending champion Texas scored 257 points. Host school Texas A&M is in second with 201. Bergman, a junior from Alpine, Utah, surpassed the Big T2 record of 537.50 points with a score of563.37 in the one-meter dive. In the 400-meter relay, Texas was disqualified in the preliminaries to open the door for the Huskers. The Longhorns owned the thhd-lastest time in the event David Foster, Valeijis Kalmikovs, Adam Pine and Mark Bennett com prised the relay team which won with a time of 3 minutes, 16.17 seconds. NU’s DeForge excited for last game at home WOMEN from page 7 ness, I don’t have to prepare for her after this week.” The Cyclones have had little problem handling Big 12 competi tion this year. ISU is the only team to defeat conference champion and fifth-ranked Texas Tech this season. I SU has found success in a bal anced attack, with four of its starters averaging more than 13 points per game. But Fennelly said he expects a challenge in Lincoln. “I’ve told people this week that I thought this would be the toughest game on our schedule,” Fennelly said. “It’s the last game of the con ference season, it’s their senior night, and ite a game that will impact the conference standings. “But it’s great for the kids because this is the kind of game that will simulate a Big 12 or an NCAA Tournament game for them.” Note: NU center Charlie Rogers is listed as probable for Saturday after being sidelined for three weeks with a stress reaction in her leg. Guard Brooke Schwartz is listed as questionable because of an injured calf.