Image provided by: Texas A&M University
About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 29, 1983)
nt , to Aggies eshnien/soplioij, • Id ucnt morctlu in the country, Texas A8cM The Battalion Sports Monday, August 29, 1983/The Battalion/Page 1B ' iiniiiiiii mu m Freshmen to play key role in Aggie volleyball season s hovvfarthe ° complete At r °cess. Estable ~ your Alain iskas, your f| •n’t play lave to, several years I* ave thedeptln P Ireshmenot :erized sen/ia dion forwli s of sources; results < with yourip; ations. ts are i -Zip by John Wagner and Scott Griffin Battalion Staff ■ I It couldn’t have been any sim- iufcA )lier ' Two teams with equal re- 11^* :ords — Texas and Texas A&M I ffv W I -stood tied lor I irst place in the southwest Conference. They vould meet in the final regular men Reason game. At stake, the conference’s vol leyball championship. T he win- rerwould take home the confer- nce crown. The loser would be A/ill enables breed to settle for second best. For the Texas Aggie vol leyball team, the match took on pic proportions. They won heir first eight SWC games, and radbeen in first place all season tong. But key injuries, including he loss of two-time all-America oey Vrazel, had taken their toll. The Aggies dropped their ninth and the pt onference match to the Univer- L»/i+h fmirini ity of Houston. A loss to Texas witn iourto* TOul(1 end their title chances . And the Longhorns were not obe denied. They defeated the \ggies to claim the SWC title, sut all was not lost for A&M’s 1982 season. They went on to he NCAA tournament (losing n the first round to Arizona) md finished the year ranked )n, fill out at 14 in the c untry. Along the way coach Terry Condon’s squad picked up three [ournament championships, ihree all-SWC players and a S2- 13 record. Condon was named SWC Coach of the Year, along «th Texas’ Mick Haley, and hit- Lisa Johnson made the Academic all-America team. Alas, that was 1982. This year iiolds less promise. Only two tarters return f rom last season, tod Condon says three to four freshmen will play prominent 'oles in the Aggie attack. But the fourth-year Aggie Coach Terry Condon says UT is SWC team to beat coach says she’s ready to face the challenge of rebuilding with young recruits. Condon recruited five fresh men in the off-season: Angi Smith, from Houston Clear Lake; Stacey Smith, from San Antonio Jay; Chris Zogota, from LaGrange, Ill., Brookfield; Mar garet Spence, from Houston Clear Lake; Lisa Williams, from Dallas Carter, and Laura Hop pe, from Houston Spring Branch. Of the five, Smith, Zogota and Spence are possible starters. “Angi and Margaret are out side hitters, a position with the least depth,” says Condon. “Both will have a load to carry. Angi is particularly strong in good volleyball court sense. Chris will pair with Cathy She’ll be young but she’s played a lot of good volleyball in Illi nois.” One plus for this year’s team is size. Condon’s starters will almost all measure six feet in height, with the only exceptions being 5-11 sophomore Kim Leach and 5-7 senior Cathy Frederick. Cathy Frederick will play key role in 1983 season Ironically, it is Frederick — the shortest member of the team — who has one of the biggest roles. “Cathy Frederick is going to play a major part of this team in that she’s going to have to keep the group mentally together,” Condon said. “It will be vital that she keep her head in the game, keep the setting going, move players around, talk to the fresh men and help them out as much as possible.” Another key player for the Aggies will be junior Chemine Doty. Doty, an second team all- SWC player in 1981, injured her knee during the 1982 Sports Festival'and was redshirted. If she can return to form, that will help give the Aggies added depth. A third key player will be Sherri Brinkman. “Sherri is our top returning player,” says Condon. “She’ll be middle blocking again. We’ll be looking toward her strength and experience for help in a lot of areas.” As a 1982 all-SWC selection, Brinkman ranked third in the conference with four blocks per game. She was also a starter and team captain on the 1983 Sports Festival South team that won the silver medal. In addition to the new play ers, Condon will be working with a new type of offense. “No one has seen it before,” Condon said. “Players will be in positions they are not accus tomed to due to lack of strength in certain positions and the pow er we have in others. Middle blocking will be very strong with Brinkman and Doty. Outside hitting will be shaky and our set ting will be young. We expect some mistakes in that area. “We have to face the fact that we’re going to lose some match es. The team has to be able to accept that and then learn from it.” The defense will consist of two versions similar to the ones used by last year’s squad, Con don said. As far as the conference race is concerned, Condon said, “Texas is going to be tough. Houston should be strong. The rest of the conference is up for grabs. “But you never know,” she added. “Any of us could give Texas a run for their money.” And though she picks the Longhorns to once again finish first, Condon doesn’t rule out her own chances for at least a post-season playoff spot. “Realistically, our goals will be two-fold — to finish in the top three in the SWC and qualify for the NCAA tournament,” she said. “We could be good this year. We could be really good. It just depends on how we handle ourselves, what kind of mistakes we make and how we learn from them.” A&M’s Linda Clausen hits the net as she puts the ball over during a game last season. Clausen is one of six Aggie letterwinners returning in ’83. SALE ENDS SATURDAY Open Daily 9-9 Closed Sunday We Honor [MasterCard THE S/WaiNG PLACE Vj e. hase plan build qe of / the inest i you right 5701 K mart* ADVERTISED | MERCHANDISE POLICY p Our firm intention is to have every adver- tised item in stock on our shelves M an w| advertised item is not available for pur- Sj chase due to any unforeseen reason. K marl will issue a Rain Check on request gi for the merchandise (one item or reason- |;| able family quantity) to be purchased at the |j sale price whenever available or will sell |;i you a comparable quality item at a compa- rable reduction in price. Folding Metal Chair Handy for extra seating, folds to store. Durable. Sale Price 7 77 Men’s, Women’s 10-Speed Bike 26" lightweight frame, derailleur gearing system, stem- mounted shift levers, caliper brakes. Full Assembled $ 88 N120C 12" B/W Portable TV Take-with Price Compact portable has low power consumption, instant picture & sound. $ 76 WELCOME BACK AGGIES Sale Price Data Center Binder File pockets, calendar\inside clip ; and paper 11 x 8V2 inched. 2 94 Stresstabs mew Cflfl POTENCY OUU STRESS FORMULA VITAMINS 4 87 Stresstabs® 600 with 60 tablets. Stresstabs poHNiv niiii STRISS w TM •FORMULA ■mam vhamins ♦ ^on 4 87 60 Stresstabs® 600 with iron. 4 87 Stresstabs® 600 high- potency. K-223 20", 3-Speed Portable Fan Rugged steel construction with baked enamel finish. Rotary dial switch. Handle. Sale Pri< 19 2700 Texas Ave., South