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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (March 7, 2000)
waits for IAAF ruling SHOT PUT from page 16 out of competition, both the Big 12 office and Byrne declined to comment on the situation. According to another source close to the NU team, Texas called other schools in the Big 12 and asked them to complain to the Conference Headquarters about Myerscough’s eli gibility. Longhorn Coach Bubba Thornton said he made no such phone calls but admitted to having “casual conversa tions” about Myerscough with other teams inside and outside of the confer ence. “I think people give me too much credit,” Thornton said. “I have a great respect for NU. They showed great integrity to hold him out. I don’t think any conversations I may or may not •• Bill Byrne s a hypocrite. He s only (suspending Myerscough) to look good.” have would have any bearing.” Thornton said Nebraska “without a doubt” did the right thing by holding Myerscough out of competition. All he was concerned with, he said, was mak ing up points on Nebraska, which defeated UT for the Big 12 Championships for the outdoor season. When asked if that included an attempt to get the Big 12 to withhold Myerscough from competition, Thornton said absolutely not. John Chaplain Olympic track and field coach Kansas State Coach Cliff Rovelto said he didn’t receive any phone calls from any schools. “I don’t think they would call for two reasons: It’s not something we want to be a part of because it would be a waste of time, and our relationship to Nebraska is better than theirs,” Rovelto said. Colligan said it was discouraging to see schools resort to tactics like this. “We think it’s unfair to even be sug McKewon: Town rallies around team GIRLS from page 16 -buying coaches and talent. When a coach asks parents to buys their teens $400 worth of stuff to make them better players, it’s no problem. Most money schools are usually big, too, because no school district wastes capital on a handful of stu dents. Size allows a pick-and-choose selection process from a pool big enough to ensure quality within it. South Sioux City fits none of these cliches. It is public, not rich, and not very big (enrollment 682). And yet it thrives, producing big time college players. Is it the muddy water in the faucets? Not likely. Rather, it’s a pipeline built from high school all the way down to grade school serving as the secret to the Cardinals’ success. Girls start young now, cultivating their skills six to eight years before it will ever matter. Coach Kelly Flynn scouts seventh graders who may someday play for South Sioux City. It’s a scene reminding me of “Friday Night Lights,” about a high school football team in Odessa, Texas, the town that stakes every thing in the success of the high school football team. When the writer told it like it was, nobody there was happy, because he told it like it was. He spoiled their fun with reality. Sports, no matter what we think, cannot remedy a singular problem with society. And though South Sioux doesn’t have the trappings of a dusty town in West Texas,it fits the blue-collar role, along with the sin glemindedness. After the Cardinals lost to Ogallala in the state finals last year, they thought about the loss for more than 350 days. After the game Saturday night, many said they had talked about the loss after every practice, before every game. It’s probably an overstatement, sure, but it’s indicative of their reali ty nonetheless. And if this is the real ity of the players, imagine the reality of their parents, often more zealous than their children. As a larger con struct, imagine the reality of the town. Understand this deceptive dimension will repeat itself in towns and schools all over in America, replicating in its own little way, until sports loses the aura that was unjust ly given to it years ago. Has South Sioux City fallen in the trap? That’s hard to say. The town probably faces the same odds as one would betting black on a riverboat roulette wheel. Certainly, I’m the spoilsport, playing devil’s advocate to the hard earned success of some very talented young women. If given the chance, nearly any high school team gladly would trade places with them. Any high school would for that matter. Let’s face it: A math team champi onship just isn’t the same. A high school football title has a lot more pride and money attached to it. And now, in one of the football capitals of the world, so does girls’ basketball. Equality indeed. Samuel McKewon is a junior political science major and a Daily Nebraskan senior editor. Creighton earns bid to Big Dance ST. LOUIS (AP) — Ryan Sears scored 15 ppints Monday as Creighton beat Southwest Missouri State 57-45 in the Missouri Valley Conference tourna ment championship game to earn the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA tournament for the second straight year. Sears was chosen most valuable player for the tournament as the Blue Jays (23-9) set a Missouri Valley season record for most three-pointers at 277, breaking the record of 268 set by Southern Illinois in 1995-96. The Bluejays made nine three pointers in the game after hitting seven on Sunday to upset top-seeded Indiana State. Sears, playing with a dislocated fin ger on his left hand, made three three pointers in the first half to help Creighton to a 35-20 lead at halftime. Matt West added 11 points and three three-pointers. Creighton, which has won five games in a row, also turned in a strong defensive effort. The Blue Jays held Southwest Missouri scoreless during a stretch of 7:18 in the opening half. With Sears leading the way, Creighton put together runs of 11 -0 and 13-0 in the opening half on the way to a 35-20 lead. Sears and Kyle Korver combined for three three-pointers mid way through the half to erase an early 11-4 deficit. Korver, Sears and West keyed a 13-0 spurt later in the half. gested that he be held out of competi tion without his situation being settled,” said Colligan. One national track official ques tioned Byrne’s decision-making. John Chaplain, U S. Olympic track and field coach and IAAF official, said he was aware of the decision to punish Myerscough and said Byrne was hypo critical if he sat out Myerscough because of pressure from the Big 12. “Get some balls and follow the rules,” Chaplain said. “Be an athletic director. Or lobby to the NCAA until (it follows) international rules.” Chaplain also questioned whether or not Byrne was suspending temporar ily Myerscough for die right reasons. “Bill Byrne’s a hypocrite,” Chaplain said. “He’s only doing it to look good. Would he do it if it were football or basketball?” Chaplain said he wasn’t defending drug use, but doesn’t believe Byrne should “pickon” Myeiscough. “This is not about a bad little boy who took drugs,” Chaplain said. “It’s deeper than that.” Chaplain said the NCAA needed to re-evaluate its drug-testing system. “The NCAA should give test results to the LAAF and the USATF,” Chaplain said. “(It) should follow the same governing body of sports it’s a part of.” However, Colligan said Byrne made a tough decision, one that could be understood. “I’m not upset with Byrne,” Colligan said. “I’m upset with the wishy-washiness of the whole thing and trying to figure out people’s stances. We’ve followed every letter of the rules.” NU Soccer team wins; track has 15 in NCAAs From staff reports NU soccer team notches win The Nebraska soccer team got its first win of the spring season with a 4 0 victory over Southern California on Sunday in Los Angeles. NU will next play at home against Iowa on April 2. NU tracksters land 15 in Championships The Nebraska track and field team will send 15 athletes to the NCAA Track and Field Championships in Fayetteville, Ark., this weekend. Competing for the men are throw er Jeff Armitage, sprinter Chris Chandler, pole-vaulter Eric Eshbach, high-jumper Shawn Kologinczak, sprinter Dwayne McClary and long jumper Sheldon Hutchinson. Women competitors are the 4-by 400-meter relay team, high-jumper Carrie Braness, long- and triple jumper Dalhia Ingram, distance run ner Stella Klassen, sprinter Lesley Owusu, thrower Melissa Price and hurdler Emily Waibel. Husker baseball t schedule with bat From staff reports After a long road trip and a subpar weekend, the Nebraska baseball team needs a chance to get well. And that chance will come today at 2 p.m. when the Comhuskers take on the University of Nebraska at Omaha. All of the Huskers’ first 12 games have come on the road, and last week end, the team lost two of three to Oklahoma State. Coach Dave Van Horn said the home game is important for the Huskers on many levels, because it gives them a chance to get back on Buck Beltzer’s field and gain some earn opens home tie against Mavs confidence after a rough weekend. “We just need to get a home game under our belts,” he said. “It will feel good to play on our own field. All in all, this game should help us in the long run.” Van Horn said he’s been waiting to get a look at some relief pitchers who could contribute later in the sea son, and facing UNO gives him the chance to give them a dress rehearsal. A game between UNO and the Huskers was scheduled for last Tuesday, but it was rained out. “It would have been nice to get a home game in, but we’ve got a lot of home games coming up, so it’s not a huge loss,” Van Horn said. Use your noon hour to RELAX Tuesdays, 12:10-12:45 pm University Health Center, 15th & U Streets, Room 43 March 7 Breathing for Relaxation and Health/Magic Ball March 21 Calm Breath and Mindfulness Meditation March 28 Pond of Love and Inner Harmony Hey UNL, there's another UI in town & its atjlTlie Sun Tannery! March Ultrabronz introductory Special Buy 1 UitrcftbroAZ tan at regular price & receive a 2nd at 1/2 price (or 5 Traditional tans for $1 each) Tanning Lotion Special Thru 3/12/00 30% off all sample sizes 1101 Arapahoe On So. 10th & Arapahoe 423-6022 Asbury could be in final weeks as coach at KSU, says season hasn’t been too hard By Trevor Johnson Senior editor On the advent of the Big 12 tour nament, teams such as Iowa State and Oklahoma State are looking to increase their seeds for the NCAA Tournament. Missouri and Colorado are look ing to solidify their chances of getting into the Big Dance. Nebraska and Kansas State sim ply are trying to save their coaches’ jobs. KSU Coach Tom Asbury and his Wildcats find themselves at the bot tom of the pack this year. Their first round game against Kansas, which swept the Wildcats this year, doesn’t have the future looking much brighter for the beaten-down team. Nor do the reports out of Manhattan, Kan., that are saying Asbury’s job is on the line. After going 20-13 overall with a respectable 7-9 conference record last year, this year was looking up for Asbury. Though he had lost seven let termea, three of his starters are return ing. But inconsistent play and a power packed league saw KSU’s record dwindle to 2-14 in the Big 12 and 9-18 overall, one of Asbury’s worst ever as a coach. “What people don’t realize is these power conferences beat each other down,” said Iowa State Coach Larry Eustachy. “Teams that finish seventh in this conference could wind up No. 1 in a conference that was ranked 20th.” The stacked conference may have been a reality check for Asbury. Coming from Pepperdine, the coach had amassed a 125-59 overall record, leading the Waves to three berths in NCAAs, while winning the West Coast Conference three times and never finishing below second. He was named coach of the year twice. But the West Coast Conference was not the Big 12, and Asbury never did have a finish higher than seventh in the Big 12 and fourth in the Big 8, taking the team to only one NCAA appearance. During the losing streak, the boo birds came out at Bramlage Coliseum, some raising banners for his dismissal and calling for the welcome mat to be pulled out from under the coach’s feet. So far, Bobby Cremins of Georgia Tech is the most noticeable man in the nation who won’t be the coach at his school next year. Yet in a year when the coaching ax isn’t supposed to fall that hard, Asbury has been mentioned along with Nebraska’s Danny Nee as Big 12 coaches who will join Cremins among the unemployed. While Nee has lost his cool under pressure this year, infamous for calling Nebraska Alumni “sons of bitches,” Asbury said this year hasn’t been hard. “For six and a half years I was confronted with keeping my daughter alive, rushing to the hospital after practices,” Asbury said about his daughter who died while he was coach at K-State. “On a one to 10 scale on how dif ficult this season has been for me, this season has been a one.”