Chandler finding his top gear CHANDLER from page 16 knows exactly what to he has to do to win the race. He possesses a special set of gears that very few sprinters carry. He said he gets a feel for the competition and just does enough to win the race. Maxwell knows Chandler has yet to reach his top gear. “He has the ability to change gears when he is ready,” Maxwell said. “Great sprinters can do that “Great sprinters can be running along and all of a sudden, they can move one meter to two to three meters ahead of the competition, and (Chandler) has the ability to do that” In Chandler’s 200-meter final at the Big 12 Conference meet, his abil ity was very evident Brandon Couts of Baylor was the top-ranked 400-meter runner in the nation. As die 200-meter final began, Chandler fell behind to Couts. Before the first 100 meters were up, Chandler had caught Couts. By the end, he had a 10-yard lead. “My strategy was to just run up on him quick because I knew he was strong, tilt I had more speed on him,” Chandler said. “If I caught him early there wasn’t any way he was going to catch up with me. “I didn’t know I beat him that bad until I watched die tape the day after.” And when Chandler wins a race, he does what many sprinters do - he taunts. Sometimes he might taunt even before he crosses the finish line. Chandler’s traditional head turn, which he calls “grillen,” is becoming a more common sight to the rest of the nation. It is something Chandler started during his junior college days in Alabama. His friends would sit in the bleachers behind the finish line and they would always tell him to do something for them. When Chandler runs at the NCAA Indoor National Championship on March 10 and 11, he said the audience may see some “grillen.” “If I come through at the time I want, I will,” Chandler said. “Its like a habit now, once I get to the line it’s like I don’t feel anybody.” Pepin, Chandler win Big 12 titles From staff reports After winning the men’s and women’s Big 12 Conference Indoor Championship, Nebraska took home two of the top honors in the confer ence as selected by the coaches. Junior sprinter Chris Chandler was named the conference’s top male performer while Coach Gary Pepin was named Big 12 Indoor Women’s Coach of the Year. Training injuries sideline pitchers (AP) It was a bad day for catchers at spring training, with Brook Fordyce of the Chicago White Sox and Tom Lampkin of the Seattle Mariners learning injuries will side line them for four to six weeks each. Fordyce broke a bone on the top of his left foot during an intrasquad game Tuesday in Tucson, Ariz., feel ing it crack when he tried runnjng from first base to second on a pitch in the dirt. “I don’t know what happened,” Fordyce said. “I felt a crack and then it felt like my foot split in half.” The 29-year-old catcher, who signed a $1.5 million, two-year con tract with the White Sox on Nov. 17, is the team’s No. 1 catcher. “I can’t say I’m frustrated because things happen,” Fordyce said. “I just need to think about what I need to do to get back on the field as soon as possible.” Lampkin, Seattle’s backup, needs arthroscopic surgery to repair torn cartilage in his right knee. “This is a minor item they’ll fix, and then I’ll be ready for the rest of the season,” he said in Peoria, Ariz. He felt the pain this spring, but assumed nothing serious was wrong — until the team’s first sliding drills on Sunday. “I didn’t hurt it during sliding drills, but I noticed it then,” Lampkin said. “I already had blocked balls, caught pitchers and run after that. It was a fiill workout. I couldn’t sleep that night and then I got up yesterday morning and knew something was wrong with it.” Los Angeles Dodgers reliever Mike Fetters, impressive in the early days of spring training, strained a left quadricep muscle during a rundown in an intrasquad game in Vero Beach, $1 Mug Night si Mini Pizza Every Wednesday from 8pm to midnight 2 for I Calzones All day Sunday L(OLDChtOGCj)i 826*P'StrMt • (402)477-2277 Fla. “I’ll be all right in a couple days, I think,” said Fetters, a 35-year-old right-hander who signed a minor league contract with the Dodgers in December. “I’ll know more in the morning. I’m trying to make the ball club; I came into camp in the best shape of my life. This thing ain’t going to stop me. I won’t let it. I came here for one reason — to be a Dodger. I won’t settle for anything less.” Dodgers manager Davey Johnson initially said he thought Fetters might be out for a couple of weeks. When informed of Fetters’ appraisal, Johnson smiled and said, “What would you expect him to say? I hope it’s not as severe as we thought.” After skipping his throwing pro gram two days in a row because of shoulder stiffness, Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Curt Schilling felt well enough to continue his rehab Tuesday in Clearwater, Fla. Schilling, who had arthroscopic surgery Dec. 13 and probably will miss at least the first six weeks of the season, played catch for 13 minutes with bullpen catcher Ramon Henderson. “There was some tightness, but not enough to not throw,” Schilling said. “It’s just really kind of like a pinball. I have to bump and roll here, and whatever happens, happens and I’ve got to accept it.” Schilling lobbed 100 throws in the outfield grass at the Carpenter Complex, the first 75 from 60 feet and the rest from 90 feet. “Throwing 100 pitches at 20 per cent was certainly better than no throws, but I want to keep pushing to start getting the workload that mat ters,” Schilling said. In nearby Dunedin, Toronto Blue Jays catcher Darren Fletcher started rehabilitation of his right knee less tha$ 24 hours after arthroscopic suigery to repair a slight tear. “I’m ready to go,” Fletcher said. “I am shooting for two weeks. I want to be as close to game ready as I should normally be at that point. Today, I’m going to do some range of motion and lift some weights. Obviously, since I had the surgery less than 24 hours ago, the knee is going to be a little stiff.” Jason Dickson, who missed all of last season due to shoulder surgery, gave up three runs and five hits in just one third of an inning in the Anaheim Angels’ opening intrasquad game. in jupner, ria., Montreal manag er Felipe Alou said he expects Dustin Hermanson to pitch the regular sea son opener against Los Angeles on April 3. At Port St. Lucie, the Mets said A1 Leiter and Bobby J. Jones will remain behind when they open the season in Japan against the Cubs, then pitch the first two home games against San Diego the following week. John Rocker, suspended until May 1, agreed to a one-year contract with the Atlanta Braves. THE NEBRASKA LECTURES ' liMirf iifi'iii'm - v-.w. ....i Nebraska John Janovy Jr WHO'h !\H ( H-tJ \M1H WHOM: !ill- \ Wl.RM HNOfU Ot I‘A RANH is m I'K.tski t'\iu\ uni m much c~ 4 i, Archives ahoy! Come visit dailyneb.com. Aaaarrrrrr! University Theatre and the Nebraska Repertory Theatre present by William McCleery directed by Ken McCulough Student Preview; March 9 at 7:30 pm Tickets $5.00 March 10,11,21 -25at7:30 pm & March 11 & 25 at2:00 pm Studio Theatre Tickets: $6 students, $9 Faculty/StaWSr. Citizens, $10 All Others 472-2073 ¥ Thm f«t haw Wow» at fl W> Gonlfnualy wuicli Iht Qloba foe unt|ua cafotofs & ctafod bawl. tVary Wad. w* o