Image provided by: Texas A&M University
About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (May 10, 1978)
New season for four teams THE BATTALION WEDNESDAY, MAY 10, 1978 Page 11 ■rt Bond liometi is final We have not fared well in the playoffs the past few years. This year By DERRICK GRUBBS The Texas Aggies begin a new iason this weekend. I After posting a 36-12 record ’rough regular season play, the C champs will march into the fcond annual Southwest Confer- e post-season tournament hop- to earn a berth as the host team the South Central NCAA Re nal beginning May 19. . The Ags have yet to make it to the South Central tournament at |; ! cae Ranger Stadium in Arlington and, t la i * for the past three years, have had to >asebai|gttle for an at-large bid to the Mid- ^ as,i [west Regional. After competing hitheiiBee years in the NCAA playoffs, Lubt has not earned a trip to the Whenl;H]lege World Series, stood f» ,, \Ve have not fared well in the e cr yi |1 ;Byoffs the past few years,” says really ^ggi t . coach Tom Chandler. “This year we have approached it with a id coac ^ niew hat different attitude. Be- ork Bo: j re we have sandwiched our work- 3a( T juts between taking final exams, shortst; his year we have pushed back all ,er t is ip hr workouts to 4:30 to give our dler. players the chance to concentrate on ft-for-! |eir exams and on baseball at the i his 1: iroper times.” 7 baseM f— that pti n go oul! 1 you’l y I’ve e around s amazifl imeso we have approached it ery on m we b with a somewhat differ- raduat enf attitude. — Texas _ AirM baseball coach Tom Chandler. Rhe emphasis of the pre- lurnament workouts this week has In on conditioning. Disch-Falk k, the home of the Texas Long- ns and site of the tourney, is as- oturfed and usually very humid, iandler therefore feels it impera- ve that his players are in top physi- ishape. In sizing up the other three tour- §||ent teams. Chandler stresses a |w dimension surrounding the Ible-elimination tourney that did ot exist during the regular season. When it boils down to winning [fee games or losing two,” the e coach reasoned, the team that -iy have the least talent could win [ if they just get one great game om a pitcher and one or two clutch its. assessing the other teams, I’d I to say that Baylor has the ad age in hitting and power. Ar- insas has the most team speed and treat player in Tim Lollar, who is >ul,le n as a pitcher and a hit- n Houston has good overall speed id an excellent front-line pitcher in Blum.” e Houston Cougars will be StM’s opponent in the first round the tournament Friday night at 8 ffi. Houston finished fourth in the I fhe SWC with a 14-10 league record and come into Austin with a 28-19 sea son mark. The Coogs took two of the three games from A&M in the first SWC series of the year in 1978. Blum, a senior righthander who was fourth in the SWC in strikeouts, held A&M to just six hits in the opener, as Houston claimed a 6-2 win. A&M came back to take the sec ond game, 5-0, on a 3-hitter by Mark Thurmond. The Aggie de fense broke down in the third game, allowing UH to come away with a 4-3 victory. Blum will likely start against A&M Friday night in Austin. He is 10-2 on the season with a 2.42 ERA. The Houston lineup with their 1978 season batting averages, will have junior Mark Alexander (.292) at third base, senior Gary Weiss (.296) at second base, junior Jay Beard (.341) in centerfield, junior Bobby Hollas (.283) at first base, senior Danny Lopez (.250) in right- field, junior Donnie Randell (.278) in leftfield, freshman Mike Breslin (.258) the designated hitter, junior Jeff Copeland (.230) at catcher, and senior Steve Kovar (.301) at shortstop. Beard gave A&M trouble in the regular-season series, going 6-for-13 in the three games. The All-SWC candidate leads the team in hitting, RBI’s (34) and homeruns (nine), and has also set school records this year in season at-bats, hits, and RBI’s. He was fourth in the SWC in hitting this year with a .347 league average. Kovar, with 85 assists during league play, set a new SWC record. A&M will go with basically the same lineup it has used for the past few weeks, with the possible excep tion of the lefthanded designated hitter, where either junior Mark Warriner or freshman Rodney Hodde could get the nod. Chandler has not announced his starting pitcher for Friday’s game. It will either be junior lefty Mark Wc Take Care Of Our Customers! If your calculator’s gone out right be fore your exams, we’ll fix it or loan you another one ’til it is fixed. Calculators Batteries • Accessories We Do ft All •if) We want your problems as well as your business. .oupot’s Bookstore Northgate- Across from the Post Office Ail epic fantasy of peace and magic. Couldn’t find a seat Iast week? ONE LAST CHANCE! 20TH CENTURY FOX PRESENTS A RALPH BAKSHI FILM WIZARDS TICKETS $1 .25 On Sa I e 10:30 Doo rs Open 11:30 THURS. FRI . SAT. Color by De Luxe* ^ MIPNITE SHOW THURS, FRI ,SAtVi Qbc) INTERSTATE CINEMA I 'UNIVERSITY SQUARE SHOPPING CENTER 846-6714 & 846-1 Thurmond (12-0, 1.64) or junior righthander Mark Ross (9-3,2.67) Ross started the first game against Houston in the regular season and gave up 6 runs on 11 hits. He has won his last nine decisions, how ever, and had perhaps his best out ing of the year last week against Lubbock Christian when he struck out nine and did not walk a batter. Baylor has advantage in hitting and power. Arkansas has the most team speed and a great player in Tim Lollar, who is double poison as a pitcher and a hitter. Houston has good over all speed and an excel lent front-line pitcher in Billy Blum. — Coach Chandler. Senior shortstop Robert Bonner is still leading the team in hitting at .343 and brings a 12-game hitting streak into the SWC Tournament. Sophomore centerfielder Mike Hurdle, after going 8-for-10 in a Embrey’s Jewelry We Specialize In Aggie Rings. Diamonds Set — Sizing — Reoxidizing — All types watch/jewelry Repair Aggie Charge Accounts 9-5:30 846-5816 doubleheader against LCC last Fri day, moved into the No. 2 spot with a .327 clip. Junior first baseman Kyle Hawth orne still leads the team in home- runs (14), RBI’s (48) and total bases (101). He is hitting .323 on the year. Arkansas will meet Baylor in the other first-round contest Friday at 2 p. m. The Hogs bring a 31-11 season record into the tournament after finishing second to A&M in the SWC race. The Porkers boast one of the best pitcher-hitter combinations in the nation in senior Tim Lollar. The big lefthander, having recovered from a bruised shoulder suffered two weeks ago, led the SWC in hitting with a .423 average and was fourth in the SWC in pitching with a 2.28 league ERA. Lollar will be Arkansas’ starting pitcher against the Bears and comes in with a 9-2 season record. He also leads the team in homers with six and will serve as the DH when he’s not on the mound. The Razorbacks also have a strong All-SWC candidate in second base- man Johnny Ray, who hit .347 in SWC play to tie with Jay Beard for fourth. He also led the conference in hits with 34. Baylor brings a 26-17-2 season record into the tournament. The Bears finished third in the SWC with 15-9 league record, and led the conference in eight offehsive categories. Among those are team batting average (.307), homeruns (34, which set a new SWC record), runs (195), hits (242), doubles (49), total bases (405), and RBI’s (166). Burl Coker will be Baylor’s start ing pitcher against Arkansas. The senior lefty is 8-2 on the season with a 1.98 ERA. He is also one of the Bears’ top hitters, finishing fifth in the SWC with a .346 average. Coker also broke or tied five SWC records during the 1978 campaign. Junior Shane Nolen is another Bear who doubles as a pitcher and strong-hitting outfielder. He placed third in the SWC hitting race with a .374 average and tied for the confer ence lead in homers with six. Baylor leftfielder Mike Johanson led the league in ab-bats (100), total bases (61), RBI’s (34) and doubles (10, which also tied a SWC record). In all, the 1978 Baylor Bears UNIPERMS for LADIES & GENTS $ 25 o ° Milady Beauty Salon MANOR EAST MALL 822-0252 OPEN 6 DAYS A WEEK LATE EVENING APPOINTMENTS jBlue Bonnet Patch || Bluebonnet jewelry & Gifts i "Take Texas home with you" Fine Selection of Original Art 816 Villa Maria Across from Manor East Mall J FOREIGN LANGUAGE T-SHIRTS Choose from our selection of 43 snappy sayings in 18 languages. Each saying is screenprinted on a fine, colored T-shirt. For complete brochure send 25 cents and this ad to: CORNUCOPEIA T-SHIRTS P. O. Box 9301 Madison, Wisconsin 53715 MANOR EAST 3 THEATRES MANOR EAST MALL SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER ...Catch it. 7:30 9:55 MELBROOKS HIGH ANXIETY A RsyoFio-Gomedy Goto by DELUXE® c 1978 20TH CENTUR Y-F 9:35 9:45 BEST ACTOR RICHARD DREYFUS EAST Skyway Twin WEST IT’S STILL ALIVE PLUS DEMONS DEATH SPORT PLUS DEATH RACE ZOO Campus 846-6512 COLLEGE STATION I COACH’ EVERYBODY LOVES A WINNER! Starring CATHY LEE CROSBY MICHAEL BIEHN KEENAN WYNN A CROWN INTERNATIONAL ^ PICTURES RELEASE ~ METR0C0L0R® broke or tied 10 team and individual SWC marks. They are also the de fending tournament champions after winning it in it’s initial year last sea son. The losers of the first two games of the SWC tournament will play Saturday at 2 p.m. while the win ners in those contests will meet at 8 p.m. Saturday. This year’s Midwest will be at Johnson Stadium on the campus of Oral Roberts in Tulsa, Oklahoma. That regional is set for May 26-29. 846-6714 & 846-1151 T UNIVERSITY SQUARE SHOPPING CENTER MANOR EAST MALL A DIAMOND RING . . . THE REFLECTION OF THE BEAUTY OF THE LOVE YOU SHARE FOREVER! LINDSEY'S JEWELERS MANOR EAST MALL 779-3616 You’re ready to go home for the summer... IS YOUR CAR? Let us make your car ready by giving it a complete checkup before you leave... We’ll offer these specials through May 13 FRONT END ALIGNMENT WHEEL BALANCE Spin all 4 wheels Most American & foreign cars Most American & foreign cars ENGINE MinorTune-Up (Labor Only) 8 cylinder .... *21 00 6 cylinder .... *1 9 00 4 cylinder .... $17°° University Tire & Service Center 509 University Dr. 846-5613 (Next to Wyatt’s Sporting Goods)