Friday, November 1, 1985rThe Battalion/Page 9
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Sports
Photo by GREG BAILEY
Texas A&M swimmer Jeff Marks works out at the Downs Natato- ming schedule. The A&M men’s and women’s teams travel to Aus-
rium Thursday in preparation for the start of the Aggies’ fall swim- tin today to compete in the Southwest Conference Relays.
A&M dives into swim season
Aggies start hectic weekend with SWC Relays
“It’s (the Southwest Conference Relays) a good meet
for us to start the season with, because we traditionally
are a strong relay team. We also get a chance to see
where everybody is in terms of training at this point. ”
— Texas A&M Swim Coach Mel Nash
By KEN SURY
Sports Writer
Let’s hope Texas A&M’s swim
teams don’t fall asleep in the middle
of their races Saturday morning.
But that wouldn’t be diflicult,
considering the busy weekend the
Aggies have in store.
Both the A&M men’s and wom
en’s swim teams begin their 1985-86
season today in Austin, competing in
the Southwest Conference Relays.
An both teams follow with another
meet against and Arkansas and
Texas lech Saturday at 10 a.m. in
A&M's Downs Natatorium.
“We don’t ease into the season at
all,” said A&M Coach Mel Nash, who
begins his seventh season with the
Aggies. “Every year we’ve (the Aggie
swim teams) gotten better. This
year’s no exception.
“Our women’s team will be com
parable to last year’s, while our
men’s team will be much improved.
It should be a real good season for
us.”
Last year, seven swimmers paced
A&M’s women’s team to an 11th
place finish in the NCAA Cham
pionships, while All-American Chris
O’Neil and the men’s team placed
23rd.
Nash predicts a healthy women’s
team to finish between 10th and
15th this season. Even the injury to
one swimmer, Nash said, could tum
ble the team down to 30th because
the team would lose depth. In fact,
the women’s team is so shorten
swimmers, it can only fill 12 of the
14 relay teams in any given meet.
Four All-Americans return to this
year’s women’s team: Seniot Jody
Tanner, freestyle and backstroke
specialist; senior Meegan Wright,
breaststroke; junior Britt Hoefs, l>ut-
terfly; and sophomore Kelley
Johnston, an all-around swimmer.
The Aggie men’s team will be led
by O’Neil, a senior and one of the
top butterfly swimmers in the coun
try.
“I wish I had him for another four
years,” Nash said.
Other standout upperclassmen on
the men’s team include seniors Jeff
Marx and Clark McDonald, and ju
nior Chris Emig. Marx, a breasts
troke specialist, and Emig, a back-
stroker, were named honorable
mention All-Americans last year.
McDonald, a freestyle swimmer, has
ualified for the United States
wirnming Nationals for two years in
a row.
Well, that’s the national outlook,
but how will A&M stack up at today’s
SWC Relays?
“It’s a good meet for us to start the
season with, because we traditionally
are a strong relay team,” Nash said.
“We also get a cnance to see where
everybody is in terms of training at
this point.”
Nash said he expects the A&M
men to finish third at the Relays, be
hind Texas and SMU.
In the women’s competition, Nash
said the Aggies could finish any
where from second to fifth in Aus
tin.
“Texas is just awesome, they’ll win
easily,” Nash said.
However, he expects the next
four places to be a tough battle be
tween A&M, Houston, Texas Tech
and Arkansas.
And speaking of Tech and Arkan
sas, after the Aggies arrive home
from the Austin, around 10 p.m.,
they’ll wake up Saturday morning
and host those same two teams in
dual meet.
Nash said he feels the races this
weekend should be exciting, but not
particularly fast, since most teams
are just beginning to swim against
SWC competitors.
“You don’t look for world record
times to be set now," Nash said.
He added that a swimming team’s
season is really divided into three
segments.
The first, Nash said, are the dual
meets, where both men’s and wom
en’s teams compete, in which swim
mers learn their potential and hone
their skills invcompetition.
During the second segment the
swimmers “fine tune” their strokes
for the SWC Championships. And
the third segment is NCAA competi
tion.
So even though the Aggies are
just beginning, this weekend they
are definitely diving head first into
the competition.
A&M spikers turn out Georgia’s lights
By CHAREAN WILLIAMS
Sports Writer
ATLANTA — Thursday night was the night the lights w-ent out in
Georgia.
The No. 17 Texas A&M volleyball team had a 7-2 lead in the second
game of its match with Georgia, when suddenly the lights went out.
“We had that 7-2 lead and then the light just went out,” A&M Coach
Terry Condon said. “Before that, we were really moving well and playing
good defense. I was reallv worried about what might happen after that.”
What happened was the Ags turned the lights out on trie Bulldogs, 9-15,
15-4, 15-7, 15-11.
The match started slowly for the Aggies, who improved to 19-5 overall,
but in the second game they hit on all cylinders.
“The first game we were just real tired,” Condon said. “I told Sherri
(Brinkman) to wake up for two hours and then she could go back to bed. We
werejust standing around and Georgia wasjust playing real well. They were
hitting everything.”
Lne Aggies left Austin at 7:30 a.m. and arrived in Atlanta at 2 p.m.
“I was very worried about the schedule,” Condon said. “We just played
last night and then we had to turn around and play this afternoon. And
then we have to play tomorrow and the next day. I told them to just pretend
like they were in the pros.”
Georgia, which fell to 27-4 overall, gave A&M some incentive to play like
pros after the Aggies arrived in the “Peach State.”
“They (the Bulldogs) started talking across the net when they got a lead
and that got us fired up,” Condon said.
The Ags w'ere also ready to play to redeem themselves. Wednesday
night in Austin, A&M was dominated by No. 13 Texas.
“We were talking about how anxious we were to win before the match,”
A&M setter Chris Zogata said. “In the lobby (of A&M’s Austin hotel), before
we left (for Georgia), we were even excitea to play. This one felt real good.
“We really flowed as a team. Today we just went for balls and didn’t
worry about anything. Lesha (Beakley) and I crashed (together) a few times
today. It wasjust real different today. We went for everything.”
Outside hitter Cheri Steensma came off the bench to lead the Ags in hit
ting percentage at .400. Brinkman led A&M in kills with 16, while hitting
And blocker Margaret Spence had perhaps her best game in the middle
as she hit .230, had 11 kills and five blocks.
“Margaret did a lot better in the middle,” Condon said. “She blocked a
lot more balls and they set her more, so she had more kills.”
Playday
Volleyball & Other Games
Sunday, Nov. 3
2-5
Hensel Park
Free food & games for everyone
Any questions?
Call Student Y at 845-1626
Imperial Chinese
Restaurant
The Chef prepares your food the traditional and authentic
Chinese way. You’ll find Imperial has friendly service,
exquisit surroundings, and reasonable rates.
Chef Presents
Chinese Spaghetti!
Daily lunch special from $3. 55 includes soup /
Successful luncheon buffet every Sunday
To be the best is our primary concern
Open 7 days a week lunch & dinner
1102 Harvey Rd., College Station
carryout*mixed drinks*party room
764-0466
APPLICATIONS FOR THE
1986
COTTON BOWL
REPRESENTATIVE
ARE AVAILABLE
NOVEMBER 1ST
REQUIREMENTS:
Female student
2. Minimum GPR: 2.25
3. Completion of 1 semester
DEADLINE:
NOVEMBER 8th
STUDENT ACTIVITIES
208 Pavilion 845-1133
GUITAR STRINGS
A Factory Rep From Ovation Will Be in
The Store This Friday 3:00-5:00. He will
give you a FREE set of Strings and install
them for you FREE also.
Strictly limited to quantities on hand,
and to the hours of 3:00-5:00.
Key bo a ltd
Center
POST OAK MALL
i!* y
\ Register
For A
FREE
TER -Ova&arO*
Inc.
fOoiino fRcnm
Top of the Tower
Texas A&M University
Pleasant Dining - Great View
SER VING L UNCHEON B UFFET
11:00 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.
Monday thru Friday
$5.25 plus tax
Open each Home
Football Game
11:00 A.M. till game time
Serving soup & sandwich
11:00 A.M. — 1:30 P.M.
Monday — Friday
$2.75 plus drink
Available Evenings
For Special
University Banquets
Department of Food Service
Texas A&M University
“Quality First"