By Darren Ivy
Summer Co-editor
Nebraska Women’s Basketball Coach
Paul Sanderford didn’t have to go far to land
his latest basketball recruit for the upcoming
season.
He just went several blocks to the
Nebraska Coliseum to find two-time All
American volleyball player Lisa Reitsma.
The 6-foot-4-inch Reitsma, who used up
her eligibility in volleyball, gave up a chance
to play on the United States National volley
ball team this fall so she could return to
Nebraska one more year to play basketball
and complete her degree.
“I have always wanted to play basketball,”
Reitsma said. “So I debated (my decision) for
quite a while. But there would have always
been the question, ‘what if,’ and this was my
last opportunity for basketball.”
Even though Reitsma dreamed of playing
basketball someday, she never took the aspira
tion seriously until this spring, when
Volleyball Coach Terry Pettit mentioned that
Sanderford was interested in having her join
the NU women’s basketball team.
“Coach Sanderford thought I had poten
tial to add to the team in the post position,”
Reitsma said. “We both think I can help the
program out a little bit”
For Sanderford, the volleyball team is
becoming a top recruiting spot — finding
Renee Saunders last season and now Reitsma.
Saunders said she had no idea Reitsma
was going to join the team until Sanderford
said something to her, but she was happy to be
teammates with Reitsma again.
“She has the height can block shots and
Alan Yoshimoto/DN
NEBRASKA VOLLEYBALL and basketball
player Lisa Reitsma relaxes after a work
out at the Bob Oevaney Sports Center
Friday morning.
has a nice touch from the outside,” Saunders
said. “She will have to get conditioned to run
ning because there is a lot more of that in bas
ketball. Once she does that, the intensity,
competitiveness jumping and blocking are all
the same.”
Sanderford also is happy to have Reitsma
on the team.
“I’m really excited about Lisa joining our
team,” Sanderford said. “She is extremely
quick for her size and she is very athletic.
With her quickness and leaping ability and
timing, I think she also has great potential as a
shot blocker.
“I think Lisa’s experience playing volley
ball at the highest level and in big games will
carry over for our basketball team.”
On the volleyball team, Reitsma was a
three-year starter^ leading the Huskers to an
NCAA title as a sophomore in 1995. She
ranks second on NU’s career list with 1,633
kills. She also ranks sixth all-time at Nebraska
with 337 block assists and added 35 block
solos.
Although Reitsma earned high acclaim
on the volleyball court, Sanderford said she
would have to play a lot of basketball this
summer to ease the transition from volleyball
to basketball.
“It was something that Lisa wanted to do
and the expectations are going to be very
high,” Sanderford said. “People are just going
to have to understand that it is going to take
some time before she feels comfortable, but if
she works hard this summer, she can definite
ly contribute to our team.”
Intramural basketball games with her vof
leyball teammates are the only basketball
games Reitsma has played since high school.
At Western Christian High School,
Reitsma was a Class 3A first-team all-state
selection as a senior. She averaged 18 points
and six blocked shots per game and was cho
sen the Des Moines Register’s 1994 High
School Girls’ Athlete of the Year.
To try to return her to the form that made
her an all-state player, Reitsma is working out
four days a week this summer.
“I have so much to work this summer, like
ball-handling and conditioning, just so I can
get on the floor.”
NU Men’s golf team
ends record season
By Tanya Wright
Staff Reporter
The 1998 season was a record-breaking one for the
Nebraska men’s golf team.
The Comhuskers had their best showing in school his
tory at the NCAA Central Regional Tournament, had a
golfer tie the school record for an 18-hole round, qualified
for the NCAA Championships for the first time in 20 years
—finishing 20* place.
“Therefc no question this is the best team I’ve ever coached,”
said Coach Larry Romjue, who coached at the NCAA
Championships for the third time in his 28-year NU career.
When the Huskers entered the NCAA Championships in
Albuquerque, N.M., May27-30, they ranked 29th nationally.
Led by Friesen’s first round three-under-par 69, NU was
10th after one day of competition but dropped to 20th on the
second day, eliminating the team from the tournament.
Individually, Friesen shot a second-round 72 giving him a
141 total and making him the only Husker to qualify for the
final two rounds of play. He finished in a tie for 37th place.
“It was definitely disappointing,” Friesen said. “We
were there as a team. It’s still nice to know that I was playing
well enough to make the (cut).”
To get to the NCAA Championships, NU, ranked 11* at
the time in the region and 38* nationally, shot rounds of
286, 282 and 289 at the May 14-16 NCAA Regional
Championships in San Antonio, Texas. These scores were
good enough for a fifth place finish out of 21 teams — the
best finish in school history.
The resurgent NU play, after a disappointing ninth place
finish at the Big 12 Championships, was keyed by juniors
Jamie Rogers and Friesen.
“They had something to prove,” Romjue said. “They
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