Thursday, March 10, 1988/The Battalion/Page 9
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Sports
A&M swim team
wants new facility
By Barbie Jones
Reporter
The Texas A&M swim team is
hoping that the University will
soon allocate funds for the con
struction of a new indoor swim
ming pool.
Mel Nash, A&M head swim
ming coach, said the Board of Re
gents was receptive to the idea of
building a new pool last year until
the actual dollar amount was pro
posed.
“The figures that were pro
posed ranged from $5-7 million
all the way up into the double dig
its,” Nash said.
Nash has no hard feelings
about the Board’s refusal of the
proposal however, because “aca
demics must come first among
the financial responsibilities of
the University,” he said.
Downs Natatorium, A&M’s in
door pool that was built in 1932,
poses many disadvantages for the
A&M swim team, Nash said.
Among these problems are
limited pool time and space.
David Kohel, a senior member
of the men’s swim team, said that
the teams must compete for pool
time with recreational swimming
and swimming classes.
Pool space is also a problem.
Nash said that because of over
crowding in the lanes, swimmers
may have to run over the swim
mer in front of them to really
“push" themselves.
The size of the pool also limits
the amount of swimmers the
team can have.
Because the men’s and wom
en’s teams practice together, the
total for both teams cannot ex
ceed 40 swimmers, Nash said.
“I must turn away many swim
mers who want to swim for A&M
because we have a ceiling limit of
swimmers we can carry and our
heads are touching that now,” he
said.
One of the biggest problems
caused by A&M’s older facilities is
recruiting.
“Recruiting in the last two or
three years has become a problem
because we have a good team
now, but the kids we need to help
our team improve are being re
cruited to top 10 schools,” Nash
said.
Nash said the training facilities
are good, but when recruits see
the pool they falsely believe the
University does not support the
swimming program.
Kohel said, “It (the pool) defi
nitely is affecting recruiting. You
just can’t recruit without top-
notch facilities like Texas has.”
A&M’s diving program was
ended in 1985 because of a lack
of indoor facilities.
This places A&M’s swim team
at a serious competitive disadvan
tage when competing in dual and
conference meets, Nash said.
In dual and conference meets
the competition consists of swim
ming and diving, so A&M must
start these meets with a point def
icit.
The advantages of a new pool
would be numerous for the swim
team.
For example, a new pool would
allow A&M to host conference
and national meets, Nash said.
Peter Staruch, a sophomore
member of the men’s team said,
“Being able to hold conference
and national meets would attract
young swimmers to come to A&M
and take a look.”
Kohel agreed with Nash and
Staruch.
“A new pool would bring more
recognition to the swim team and
perhaps build a stronger follow
ing,” Kohel said.
Despite the obstacles, Nash is
confident about the future of the
A&M swim team.
“If we had a good solid pool we
could be in the top 10 ot the
NCAA within the next three
years,” Nash said.
Ideal Olympic Games
are for amateurs only
Those horrid 1988 Winter Olym
pic Games are long over now and
many people are quite relieved and
happy just trying to forget them.
The U.S.
team didn’t
win a ton of
medals but
even now,
four years
from the
next Winter
Games,
some help
ful people
are working
toward what
they hope to
be a better
U.S. hockey
team. ^
It is now acceptable to have pro-
fessional players on Olympic hockey
teams and some countries had al
ready jumped on the bandwagon
during the 1988 Games while others,
including the United States, re
stricted their teams to amateur play
ers.
Now comes the news that Alan
Eagleson, executive director of the
NHL Players’ Association and the
Canadian hockey team’s chief nego
tiator, has suggested that the NHL
season be interrupted during the
Olympics to make players available
for the United States and Canadian
Olympic hockey teams.
The idea is to interrupt the season
and pay the NHL teams about $1
million per club garnered from
Olympic television revenue.
This is a dangerous idea.
Traditionally the U.S. team has
been made up of cream-of-the-crop
college players not NHL all-stars,
and it should stay that way.
Sure the U.S. would have a
greater chance at a medal with play
ers of the professional caliber but at
what price?
If the U.S. team officials decided
to let professional players on the
team, what would happen to those
college players trying to make the
grade?
It is feasible that the team would
be composed mainly of NHL players
with college players as supplemental
teammates.
It is a far better program to bring
these college players into the Olym
pics than let the professionals run
rampant throughout the Games.
The Soviets once again won the
gold at these past Olympics, but they
were not in top form.
The Soviet team is in decline, and
the reason for the decline is the lon
gevity of its players.
Fewer Soviet youths are getting
hockey experience because of the
dominance of the older players.
There just aren’t a lot of opportu
nities to make the Soviet Olympic
team.
This would be a difficult situation
to imagine in the United States but it
is one to learn from.
If there is one thing that needs to
be done for hockey on the college
level in the United States it’s promo
tion.
The admittance of professional
players to the U.S. team may very
well be a discouraging measure for
young players.
The Olympics should be a cele
bration of amateur talent not profes
sional experience.
The U.S. team officials say they
will stick to amateur status for its
hockey team, and hopefully they
won’t back down when faced with
the pressure to win medals.
At this point, there is support and
disagreement from NHL teams
about the Eagleson proposal.
Lou Nanne, an executive for the
Minnesota North Stars, said the
price was right while Barry Shenka-
row, president of the Winnepeg Jets,
said lie didn’t believe the proposal
would come to light.
But Harold Ballard, owner of the
Toronto Maple Leafs, echoed my
sentiments when he said, “it’s an idi
otic idea.”
The best proposal for the U.S.
Olympic team is to keep the profes
sionals where they are enjoyed and
respected — in the NHL.
Lady Aggies
get first win
in tournament
The Texas A&M women’s bas
ketball team won their first game
ever in the Southwest Conference
Post-season Classic Wednesday
night, going to the wire with Ar
kansas and sticking it out for a 59-
58 victory in Dallas’ Moody Col
iseum.
Donna Roper scored 19 points
and hit the winning jump shot
with 26 seconds left. A&M’s Lisa
Jordon had 12 points and 13 re
bounds and Traci Thomas added
14.
. The fifth-seeded Lady Aggies
took an early six-point lead, but
found themselves down by six at
the half after the Lady Razor-
backs’ Robyn Irwin hit four field
goals in a row just before the
buzzer.
Arkansas was in control most
of the second half until the Lady
Aggies took the lead at the 7:27
mark when freshman Wendy
Jennings hit a layup to give A&M
the lead, 49-48.
The lead then changed hands
eight times until Roper hit one of
two free throws to tie things up at
57 with 1:19 left.
Roper then hit what proved to
be the winning shot making the
score 59-57. Arkansas had a
chance to tie it up with five sec
onds left, but Lisa Martin con
verted on just one of two free
throw attempts.
The Lady Aggies face Texas in
a semifinal game Thursday night
at Moody.
Cray
Pixley
Sports viewpoint
tennis team survives Rice assault for win
A&M women’s
HOUSTON — The Texas A&M
women’s tennis team held on the de
feat Rice 5-4 Wednesday.
The Lady Aggies are now 10-2
overall and 3-1 in the Southwest
Conference and will face a pair of
ranked teams in 15th-ranked South
Carolina and No. 8 Kentucky this
weekend at the Omar Smith Tennis
Center.
“We were fortunate to get out
with a win,” A&M Coach Bobby
Kleinecke said. “We kind of have
our backs to the wall as far as the
conference goes. You can’t lose twice
and expect to win the Southwest
Conference.”
In singles play, A&M’s No. 1
player Lisa Keller, taking over the
top spot from an ill Gaye Lynn Gen-
sler, defeated Emily Cates 7-6, 7-6;
A&M’s Cindy Churchwell beat Alice
Vodicka 4-6, 7-5, 6-4, and Rice’s Liz-
Sulzberger defeated Cindy Craw
ford 6-2, 0-6, 6-3.
In other action, A&M’s Susan Wil
liams defeated Lori Cronk 6-1, 6-0;
A&M’s Traci Nix beat Alison Culver
6-3, 6-3, and Rice’s Meghan Tanner
defeated Derryn Haygarth 6-2, 6-3.
In doubles play, A&M’s No. 1
team of Keller and Nix lost to Cronk
and Vodicka 6-2, 6-1, and Chifrch-
well and Haygarth lost to the Lady
Owls’ Cates and Sulzberger 6-1, 6-7,
7-5.
A&M’s No. 3 team of Crawford
and Williams ended doubles play
with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Tanner and
Culver.
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