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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 23, 1996)
January 23,19% inite se c-hing my behav- g ability, watcb tend to be.” pect preferential ority.” if it revolves ecept a job be do, not because e so many nes you tend ganizations," — David Loft esidents’ Countil ife and fisheries lees was encour- ent’s first year, it, although I’m lo may not have nmunity health i was worth sit y come together d the event dur' 1 spring, soon a debt-limit es- n, the president mits on future sse over borrow' > put on the table be is prepared to bt ceiling, and in kly we are teii)' ngrich said. >rrow more mon- i, Rubin has said ordinary steps to n mid-February, debt limit was oin has kept the ing money from ids and deposit- e. ise’s most effec- epublicans has iemand/ag- ex-t Medicaid and } administration | OOP’s plans on to be ited >lic ti Page 1 sent plans ti \venue to sis mpics will im mtrol plan anl an. ', Texas Depart- •tation public it' , said Texas A' 1 ' n did not begin ruse the origin^ o high, is think Texas ction is withic isdiction, Calli College Statioa ,o undergo com te roads, residents and ic city is doini alliham said, ng part is that of College Sta- e actually statf ding Wellborn- /ersity.” se of Texas M ils are collabo' ite officials t 1 ject. be officials ad rove Texas M d access roads, i projects ad on other road-' Drive between md FM 2818 i* o four lanes t 11 traffic to th 1 residential b ordinance pr°' nd pedestrin 5 construction ted to be con 1 ' 96. i on Wellborn M 2818, which Tic flow to one completed W ar. The Battalion Tuesday january 23, 1996 Sports Page 7 sports GLANCE t/a nt a Aspirations Police investigate Mason battery charges NEW YORK (AP) — Police on Monday were investigating allega tions that New York Knick forward Anthony Mason punched a man during an after-hours melee in a bar. Robert Towns, 35, needed stitches in his head after the al leged fight, police said. Mason has not been charged. Patrol officers first received a report of a disturbance at the Crane Club at 4:30 a.m., said Offi cer Noreen Murray. When they ar rived, they found a group of about 20 patrons, including Towns, argu ing outside. Towns told officers that moments earlier he had been struck by sever al people, Murray said. He identi fied Mason as one of the attackers. Murray didn't know if Mason had been questioned. The Knicks next scheduled game is Tuesday night against the Chicago Bulla. ChiSox grab Tartabull for two minor leaguers CHICAGO (AP) — The Chicago White Sox, looking to add more power and protection in their lineup for Frank Thomas, acquired outfield er Danny Tartabull on Monday from the Oakland Athletics for two minor leaguers. Chicago sent left-handed pitcher Andrew Lorraine and outfielder Charles Poe to Oakland. "I get the opportunity to be in a lineup with a force in the game like Frank Thomas," Tartabull said. "You can only benefit from being around a guy like that." The White Sox did not re-sign Lance Johnson, the AL hits leader last season who is now with the Mets, and they traded veteran Tim Raines during the offseason. They recently signed Tony Phillips and earlier acquired outfielder Darren 1 Lewis and veteran designated hitter Harold Baines. "This trade will help both teams," / LM/and general manager Sandy Alderson said. "Danny will have an immediate impact for the White Sox and we have obtained a pitcher who could help us this season as well. Also, this will give us an opportunity to reshape our outfield." Astros come to terms with third baseman HOUSTON (AP) — The Houston Astros on Monday signed third base- man Sean Berry for the 1996 season. Berry, 29, was traded to the As tros last month from Montreal in ex change for pitcher Dave Veres and catcher Raul Chavez. Berry had 14 home runs to tie for the Expos club lead last season. He also had a career-best .318 average, with 55 RBI and 22 doubles. No financial terms were an nounced immediately. With the deal, the Astros avoid going to arbitration with Berry. His signing leaves catcher Rick Wilkins as the lone Houston player eligible for arbitration. Buccaneers hire Dungy as new head coach TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Tony Dungy's long and frustrating jour ney from the NFL's youngest defen sive coordinator to a head coach ended today. The long-time assistant, inter viewed but passed over by four other teams in the last 10 years, will get a shot at trying to turn the Tampa Bay Buccaneers into a winner. "I feel that they are very, very close," the 40-year-old Dungy said at a mid-afternoon news con ference announcing his six-year contract as the sixth coach of the NFL club. The Bucs have young players and a nucleus ready to take off. The build ing blocks are there, he said, all the team needs is consistency. Miami 96, San Antonio 89 Atlanta 105, Houston 96 Vancouver 100, Milwaukee 92 SCORES ROUNDUP UPCOMING EVENTS Men's Basketball The A&M Men's Basketball Team travels to Houston's Hofheinz Pavillion Wednesday night to take on the Houston Cougars in a South west Conference matchup. Women's Basketball The Lady Aggies take on the Houston Lady Cougars Wednesday night beginning at 7:30 at C. Rollie White Coliseum. Wade's dreams: SWC, NCAA, Olympic Gold By Stephanie Christopher The Battalion Where can you find a man who thinks winning the final Southwest Conference Championship is just as important as qualifying for the Summer Olympics? Larry Wade practices at the Anderson Track Complex on Texas A&M’s West Campus. After winning the 55-meter hurdles competition at the Oklahoma Invitation al last weekend, Wade found out he had qualified for both the NCAA Indoor Na tionals and the Olympic Trials. As a whole, the Aggies brought home four NCAA indoor National Championship qualifiers from Oklahoma. Texas A&M Head Track Coach Ted Nelson said this could be the season Wade has been waiting for. “There is no doubt in my mind that Larry is the best in the NCAA,” Nelson sai'd. 4 If he is going to win the na tional championship, then he will have to continue to work hard and keep a positive attitude.” Wade said despite his chances at fu ture individual glory, his first priority will be with his team’s success. “Hopefully, I can make a profession out of track, but first I must take care of my business here” Wade said. Wade has earned the praise and re spect of many people, including team mate and another Olympic hopeful, An- janette Kirkland. Kirkland said one of the things that she likes best about Wade is that he is unique. “Larry has his own style and person ality, and this makes him special,” Kirk land said. “ He brings in a positive atti tude, which people learn from and pick up on.” Kirkland said Wade is the best in the nation, and last year he nearly proved it. In the NCAA Championships, Wade fin ished second in the 110-meter hurdles with a time of 13.41 seconds in Knoxville, Tenn. The time broke the track record and is the fastest in Texas A&M history. Many people say Wade has a heart of gold. This gold has nothing to do with his two gold loop earrings that he always wears while running. Wade said that his earrings do not have any special meaning. “ Everybody always ask me if I wear my earrings for good luck,” Wade said. “ The only thing that brings me any kind of luck are the black Nike socks I wear in every race in memory of my best friend.” Wade said that he feels really positive about his team. “ After the first meet, I was really im pressed,” Wade said. “If we keep our uni ty and come together, we will win the SWC title and the indoor and outdoor National Championships — God willing.” "Hopefully, I can make a profession out of track, but first I must take care of my business here." — Larry Wade Texas A&M Hurdler Kirkland now the hunted in 55-m field By Lisa Nance The Battalion If it is true that in life one faces many hurdles along the way, A&M senior track star Anjanette Kirkland should not have too many problems. Much like Superman’s ability to leap over buildings with a single bound, Kirkland has leapt her way into the Southwest Conference and A&M record books, holding school records for both the 55-meter and 100-meter hurdles. Kirkland rates as one of the top hur dlers in the nation and is considered the best hurdler in league history. Assistant A&M Track and Hurdlers Coach Abe Brown said that Kirkland ia a great as set to the track program and has not only improved herself during her time at A&M, but has also helped to improve the other hurdlers. “Anjanette loves the sport and loves the event,” Brown said. “She came to us as a freshman after having a lot of suc cess at the high school level. When she got here, there were good hurdlers — we have a strong tradition of hurdlers. “She became a student of the event and worked hard and got stronger. She was helped by others when she got here and now it’s her time to give back. Our hurdlers just keep getting better and better because of her.” Kirkland has started her senior sea son with the goal of winning outdoor na tionals in the 100 hurdles. She said that this will not be an easy task. “I have competition,” Kirkland said. “Every week I can be beaten on any giv en day or time. I never go into a meet thinking that I am going to win easy. I can be beaten.” Brown said that Kirkland’s main ob stacle in reaching her goal is the fact that she is the runner all other competi tors eye in each race. “Anjanette has now become the per son to beat,” Brown said. “It’s a lot easi er to get to the top than stay there. She runs the fastest times and until out doors are over in everyone’s mind An janette Kirkland will be the one to beat.” As a junior in the 1995 indoor season, Kirkland won the SWC title in the 55 hurdles tying her career-best record of 7.75 seconds. She went on to place third at the NCAA meet and earned All- American honors for the second year. She was also on the first place dis tance medley relay at the SWC Indoor Championship. Kirkland is the top returnee in the 100 hurdle in outdoor competition and the top returner in the 55 hurdles in the indoor season. Despite her excellence in both fields, Kirkland said she and the team are both shooting for the outdoor trophies. “Indoor is all good, but we’re shooting for outdoor!,” Brown said. “Indoors is a kind of training for the outdoors. It breaks the monotony of practices.” In 1994, Kirkland was dominant in the 100 hurdles throughout the outdoor season, winning the event at the Rice Bayou Classic, Arizona Shootout, A&M Invitational and the SWC Outdoor Championship. She posted a time of 13.436 seconds to edge Houston’s Dawn Burrell (13.440) and win the meet — setting the SWC Outdoor meet record. She finished third at the NCAA championships with a time of 13.41 seconds and set the SWC record with a time of 13.22 seconds, her best time ever, in the NCAA semifinals. In the 400-meter hurdles, Kirkland posted a season-best and team-best time of 1:00.97 seconds. In the 1994 indoor season, Kirkland won her first SWC title in the 55-meter hurdles with a SWC-meet record time of 7.75. She provisionally qualified for the NCAA Championships where she was a finalist in the 55-m hurdles. As a freshman, Kirkland qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championship post ing a time of 13.48 seconds — good for second-place finish in the SWC Outdoor Championships. She finished fourth in See Kirkland, Page 10 Dave House, The Battalion Texas A&M senior hurdler Anjanette Kirkland stretches at the Anderson Track Com plex. Kirkland will compete in the U.S. Olympic Trials in June. Phil s Foolproof Plan: How to improve your favorite sport N ot everyone is aware of this, but I come from a long line of exotic dancers. Mama Leone entertained the boys as an USO belly-dancer dur ing WWII. After his operation in Sweden, my Great Uncle Jessipe moved to Hawaii and nabbed fleet ing fame as one of Don Ho’s first hula girls. And I trust I need not bother you with the story of my dad, Chip, and his good buddy, Dale. We Leones are just naturally funky. Unfortunately, I got ahold of a defective dancing gene and am forced to find other, less provocative ways to “get down with my bad self.” I’ve decided to take the time to rethink some of the more boring sports out there and make them entertaining and viewer-friendly. National Hock ey League — The infrared puck that emitted blue and red streaks on TV screens during this weekends NHL All-Star Game was pretty goofy, but at least the league is mak ing an effort to spice things up. I have a couple of better ideas. 1. A two-point line: The league could put a purple line or some thing from one side to the other just above those face-off circles. A goal from the increased distance merits a bonus point. Bret Hull from way downtown! 2. Sudden death overtime in the dark: to rid the standings of those troublesome tie games, put a Coleman lantern on top of both goals, turn off the arena lights at the end of regulation, give the crowd night-vision goggles and let the action take its course. Pro Bowling — The mother of all boring sports, pro bowling is in desperate need of something catchy, something that says “white trash.” My suggestion: Bowl & Booze Tournaments. Sanc tioned by Anheuiser-Busch, partic ipants bowl a frame, then chug a favorite brew. If anything, it’ll make that last frame interesting. Marathon Running — Not what you would call made-for-TV, the traditional marathon needs some work. Cancel the New York and Boston Marathons and get ready for The South Central Run for Your Life Traversing over 26+ miles of captivating intersections, run ners navigate their way around Los Angeles’ roughest neighbor hood armed with a can of mace and a Swiss Army knife. Color scheme of running gear becomes a serious concern. Golf— The PGA, LPGA and se nior circuits run a close second to bowling on the snooze scale, so I’ve come up with a new rule — any thing over par and golfers lose a piece of clothing. Think about it. Craig “The Walrus” Stabler au nat ural at Augusta’s “Amen Comer.” Soccer — Referred to as “that communist sport” by most of my friends and family, big-time, in ternational football needs a little Americanization; i.e. more scoring. My plan? Forget about that con fusing offsides rule and get rid of those stinkin’ goalies. To make things a bit more chal lenging, the goals should move from sideline to sideline.You can’t tell me European fans won’t get a big kick out of this. Figure Skating — My mom’s favorite sport, figure skating needs to shed its pansy image for something more primitive. Top skaters should be encour aged to dress and talk in a shit ty manner and hire their own personal squadron of pipe-wield ing thugs to intimidate their ri vals. Wait a second ... Anybody else get deja vu? Major League Baseball — Our national pastime moved in the right direction with the expanded playoff system and recently ap proved interleague play, but games are still way too long. Two changes need to be imple mented: move the pitcher’s mound in a few feet and replace wooden bats with their aluminum cousins. The first team to score 20 runs or kill the opposing pitcher wins. Stock Car Racing — Why people pay money to watch cars go around an oval for two or three hours is a mystery to me. What stock car racing needs is more violence. I’m seeing some thing out of the old SpyHunter video game. For example, Dale Earnhardt oil slicks the field and avoids Kyle Petty’s heat seeking missiles and Ricky Rud d’s 20-mm machine guns to cap ture the Daytona 500. It ain’t just for hillbillies anymore.