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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 25, 1996)
h • November 25] The Battalion Page 7 Monday • November 25, 1996 Fteu free To ^PPWODC Arts A> Respite first round loss, A&M fN soccer proud of accomplishments nati By Nicki Smith The Battalion ' TOLP 'p wm KNOW ME! _L i o understand how well the Texas A&M Soccer Team performed in their inau- guiul Big 12 Conference season, one must focus on what the Ag- Bs accomplished on the whole, Kther than look at their surpris ing loss in the first round of pCAA Championship play. The Aggies fell three games short of playing in the final four of the Championships by losing 5-3 to the Biversity of San Diego in the first round of the NCAA Champi- f piships. But what the team accom plished along the way overshadows the loss, which kept it from achiev ing its ultimate goal of playing in lity's fin3.iM'tf eFjn aJ Four. dy low, awT'Y' In addition to earning an over- one-time inert al 1 record of 19-4 and a Big 12 it salary raise. Conference record of 8-2, which Ire sitaafrcwff jn;;r ^ £ ‘^ fhe most wins in a season lilure of the soever by the Aggies, the team also i September. fiNshed with a sixth place nation- it solve thep: a ^ 'inking and were ranked no but it isastf on." uition incres Iso increase, t approve if mst hold a [ le. proposal info at http://vv® m. lower than 11th the entire season. | A&M Head Coach G. Guerrieri said there were many games along the way that helped the Ag gies achieve a winning season. “Our preseason success started in Canada, which helped us build momentum to capture wins over Duke University and Vanderbilt University, which were both good confidence builders,” Guerrieri said. “Then we had a 5-0 win over Southern Methodist University and a 2-1 over the University of Florida that helped us see that we could play with some big-named teams.” In addition, the four losses the team suffered all came from nation al powerhouse teams. The fifth- ranked University of Nebraska beat the Aggies twice, with the other two losses coming at the hands of sec ond-ranked University of North Carolina and unranked San Diego. Junior forward Bryn Blalack said if not for the closeness of the players, the team would not have done as well this season. “The chemistry among us was great,” Blalack said. “This was our third year playing together, so we were able to get really close and know each other’s strengths and Stew Milne, The Battalion weaknesses. Having some years under our belts really helped in tough situations.” Overall, the Aggies finished second behind the Lady Corn- huskers in both the Central Re gion and the Big 12. Along with making a team im pression on the national scene, the Aggies also had some individ ual players on the national charts. Blalack ended the season with 28 goals, 13 assists and an impressive five hat tricks, which ranked her in the top five on the national scoring charts. She also received the Big 12 Co-Player of the Year award. In addition, freshman goal keeper Melanie Wilson earned the Newcomer of the Year acco lade, while senior defender Tina Robinson took home the Big 12 Defensive MVP Award. Senior defender Sandy Ed wards said although the season ended too early, the individual performances on the team and fan support helped make the Ag gies a national contender that more teams respected. See Soccer, Page 8 Home openers Aggies display athleticism in 68-62 win over North Carolina A&T By Matt Mitchell The Battalion Battling foul trouble and opening night jitters, the Texas A&M Men’s Basketball Team opened its season Sat urday night with a 68-62 vic tory over North Carolina A&T at G. Rollie White Coliseum. The Aggies used intense de fense and solid bench play to outlast A&T in a furiously paced contest whose outcome was in doubt until the final minutes. After pulling away in the second half, the Aggies ap peared to have the game in hand with a seemingly safe 66-56 lead and 1:07 to play. But two straight three-point ers by A&T guard Jonathan Rich mond brought the visiting team to within four points before A&M freshman guard Steve Houston and junior center Dario Quesada each made one of two free throws to seal the win. “It’s always good to start with a win,” said Quesada, who had a career-high 15 rebounds for the night. “In the first game of the season you’ve got to come out ready to play.” Come out ready to play they did, jumping out to a quick 7-2 lead in the first two and a half minutes. The Ag gies then went suddenly cold as A&T held them scoreless for the next four and a half minutes to take a 12-7 lead. A&M got into early foul trou- ble as the officials whistled them four times in the first four and a half minutes, including two fouls on starting junior for ward Calvin Davis. The teams traded baskets and miscues for the rest of the half, with neither team es tablishing itself as the front runner. The Aggies took their largest lead of the half at 30- 19 with 4:37 to go, but A&T inched back to within three at the close of the half, 34-31. See Aggies, Page 10 Stew Milne, The Battalion Guard Tracey Anderson flies high on his way to the basket Saturday. Lady Aggies pull out a close one against Bobcats, 62-56 Rony Angkriwan, The Battalion Forward Melissa Rollerson drives to the basket Friday night. By Jamie Burch The Battalion The Texas A&M Women’s Basketball Team was searching for a win when it faced South west Texas State University in its season opener Friday night. The team left G. Rollie White Coliseum with a 62-56 victory and discovered a gem in fresh man forward Kera Alexander. The Lady Aggies, playing without senior star center Marianne Sevin, trailed for much of the game, but with just under six minutes left in the game and the score knot ted at 52-52, the Lady Aggies posted a 9-0 scoring run. Senior guard Lana Tucker hit three of her last four shots down the stretch after shooting just 1- of-9 to start the game. “I wanted the ball in my hands at the end,” Tucker said. “Maybe that made the difference in my confidence. As a veteran basket ball player, I knew I had to step it up in that situation.” A&M’s stingy defense helped contribute to the nine point run, forcing SWT to turn the ball over five times in its final seven trips down the floor, including a shot clock violation. The Lady Aggies kept pace with the Lady Bobcats in the first half despite shooting just 25 percent (8-of-32) with sev en turnovers in the final nine minutes. Alexander and senior forward Melissa Rollerson each scored eight points, help ing A&M stay in the game. Led by junior guard Jerri Cooper’s 19 points and senior center Yolanda Wilkerson’s 11 boards, SWT led much of the first half, capitalizing on the Lady Aggies’ poor shooting and ball handling. See Lady Aggies, Page 10 flers Pay For jections 5ti mates leineke® ■re FREE! New Spring Semester Course Offerings in Mathematics Math 489-504: Mathematics of Finance For mathematics and finance majors. Prerequisite is business calculus (Math 142) or equivalent. Math 489-505: Preparing for the Actuarial Exams For anyone preparing for the first two exams. Prerequisites are calculus (1st exam) and linear algebra and statistics (2nd exam). Math 414-500: Wavelets For mathematics, engineering and science majors. Prerequisites are calculus and some linear algebra (such as Math 251 and Math 304 or equivalents). For more information, check out our web page at http://www.math.tamu.edu/ and follow the link to schedules, or call 845-3261. 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We Also Sell *Student Tickets to Europe *Travelers Checks * International Rail Passes EXECUTIVE TRAVEL 696-1748 1Z3 Walton at Texas Ave. S., Eastgate It’s not too late to sign up for Informational Meeting Times in November MON. NOV. 4 at 3pm WED. NOV. 6 at 3pm TUE. NOV. 12 at 4:30pm THUR. NOV. 14 at 3pm MON. NOV. 18 at 4pm WED. NOV. 20 at 4pm TUE. NOV. 26 at 3pm WED. NOV. 27 at 2pm *A11 informational meeting held in 358 Bizzell Hall West FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT Prof. Howard Marchitello Tues, Thurs, 10:00- 12:00 210C Blocker. 845-8320 Prof. Gary Halter Mon., Wed., Fri. 9:00- 11:00 024 Bolton Hall 845-3127 Study Abroad Programs 161 Bizzell Hall West 845-0544 Study at the Santa Chiara Center in Castiglion Fiorentino, Italy and earn Texas A&M credit! All classes in English! All majors Welcome! ARTS 350 : The Arts and Civilization Prof. Paolo Barucchieri LBAR 333: Italian Civilization & Culture: Italian Renaissance Literature Prof: Howard Marchitello POLS 316: Urban Politics Prof. Gary Halter STUDY ABROAD PROGRAMS OFFICE 161 Bizzell Hall W. - 845-0544 (IT - vs - ASM LOOKING FOR A PLACE TO CALL HOME WHILE IN AUSTIN FOR THE BIG GAME ? COME ON OVER TO AUSSIE’S SPORTS BAR & GRILL TO CATCH ALL OF THE ACTION ...9 TV MONITORS...VIDEO TRIVIA...2 POOL TA BLES...GREAT FOOD; FEATURING ANY BURGER OR SANDWICH IN THE HOUSE FOR ONLY $3.99! SOUND GOOD? WAIT! IT ONLY GETS BETTER!!! ...$1.00 MILLER LITE DRAFTS...$1.00 MARGARITAS BOTH ALL DAY / EVERY DAY!! WHERE ARE WE? EASY! NESTLED BETWEEN THE HYATT & EMBASSY SUITES, BESIDE TOWN LAKE 306 BARTON SPRINGS RD., AUSTIN, TX (512 HOTEL) 480-0952 * LARGE GROUPS WELCOME* * OPENING AT 9 AM ON GAMED A Y* Cl [■3 CT| mmmmmmmmmmmmgmmmmmmmmmrn If 18 —^dai t *