attalion
Sports
Page 9 • Tuesday, August 31, 1999
fhunnjto 0 0B0lM 0
Scoring Threat
/acuation.butj. |,
^" io " Junior Nicky Thrasher has knack for finding hack ofn
unior Nicky Thrasher has knack for finding back of net
BY JASON LINCOLN
The Battalion
os out there h,
: und ONLY nt;®
a,” he said, “li®
her CuriousCe;B n oar *y look at the 1999 Texas A&M Soccer Team shows a powerful squad ca-
le one dayotk«f e scoring goals at any time. Yet in previous seasons, when goals were few-
r had. f art h er between, Nicky Thrasher managed to get the job done when it was
king of hm ntost. This year, the junior is looking to keep up 1998’s pace with the hope
{bringing national respect to the Aggies.
it that it's bn ^ ver ^ le weekend, in A&M’s first two games of the season, Thrasher found the
an not go 14 t ^ le net tw i ce to { ea d die Aggies to 4-0 and 5-0 wins over Oklahoma State
,i ] u , . liFersity and the University of Oklahoma, respectively.
“These first two games are a great confidence booster,” Thrasher said. “If you
| ■ some of the polls, several left us off even a top-20 ranking. What does that
Bor our level of talent? With these two games we wanted to make a statement,
otjust for us but for the country.”
fP PtlfPjBhrasher graduated high school a year early to join an A&M team filled with
> Brans, who helped the young forward develop into a powerful scoring threat.
'he 17-year-old’s drive quickly won her a starting position and the respect of the
iren flEping staff and teammates.
[■When she came into the program, she was literally a kid,” A&M soccer coach
a Buerrieri said. “She got a great example by being a 17-year-old on a veteran-
h AAtpfj3miiiated team in ’97. One of the things we’ve loved about her as a coaching staff
ishe puts 100-percent effort into everything she does.”
SELES (AP)-|l n 1998, Thrasher led the Aggies to the second round in the NCAA tourna-
innocentplejJ enl an ^ was selected offensive MVP of both the A&M team and the Big 12
■he whitesur# rnarnent - She led the team with 10 goals in the regular season, including
jly confessed iB g a me-winners.
American DO' P' iras ' ler a ' so score d three goals in the Aggies’ Big 12 Tournament game against
lt ing up a Jew® 3 State University. She finished the year with seven assists and a team leading
ter full ofchtfj? , i,n,s ' .
) Furrow Jr ; H eason a " er season ’ ^ seems scoring goals is what Thrasher does best,
nvvers <... f"* SC0I ' e as many [goals] as I can, and if I can give the ball up, I will do it
Rerin ^ | erv l™ 6 ’” s h e said. “1 would love to set up my teammate for a goal. As long as
,., . YKball is in the opponents’ net and we’re in the lead, I’m satisfied. Of course I
i no inten M, a j ot j 0 j- g 0a i s ] j 5 u t whatever comes, comes. ”
In many cases, a player’s performance is merely a reflection of how hard the
o judge .v. layer worked in the offseason. In Thrasher’s case, the offseason was merely a
itered oneiorm n( j season fjii ec | with the same winning tradition. She played on an amateur
ly ol slainie (am anc j “y nc j er yp” team that played for a national championship. The experi-
lleto sal aC' |ce S helped make her even more of a scoring threat, Thrasher said,
lleto, 39, was:P[ never h ave an offseason,” she said. “For me to play at that high level of in-
k- 10. >n$ity all summer really helped me keep the edge.”
IS Be much ^c ch a nnntrihi 11 ac \A/i th h at nl th a h i ni
“1 looked up to her a lot during my [redshirt year in
1997], because she came in here ready to play,” Rem
ington said. “Then last year, she just stepped it up, led
our team in goals and was a great leader for us. Just
her presence on the field helps us out a lot.”
Thrasher leads the team by showing the effort that
helped lead the Aggies to success the last two sea
sons. Guerrieri said her motivation has not gone
unnoticed.
“Nicky is one of several players that is always
ready to go,” he said. “It’s contagious and spreads
throughout the team. It shows the freshmen the standard
this level and what’s expected of them.
“She comes out and exceeds our expectation just with
will. My only hope is she gets the recognition on a national
is as deserving a player as I have had.”
jk
fT
%\\t
at
her own
level. She
“As long as the ball
is in the opponents’ net
and we’re in the lead, I’m
satisfied.”
— Nicky Thrasher
A&M junior forward
the arraign®:
ing, the govei
[As much as she contributes with her play, the junior’s off-field roles have mold-
lier into a true team leader.
ite-criraesife scoring Ahreat, sophomore forward Michelle Remington, remembers the
1 encompfc ; |mple Thrasher spt from the beginning of the two players’ careers at A&M. B
r five people,, i
Idren, thesa:
i Communin'
Granada I
rces separate
t tempted
ct attornep’s
iunder charge
nd added tef
lainst Furrow
and federalt'
tial death per
/e suggested!
fense based or)
CODY WAGES/The Battalion
e Services (e'l
h Disabilities:
f people wtic
a language,
45-1637
fo@ats.taiwl
Koldus 12c f
ic &
or
I highly
Dlunteer
several
3f great
Tuesdays: Karaoke Live
BIG $42 TOURNAMENT
FREE POOL, FREE DARTS
$2.50 PITCHERS & $1.50 CHUGGERS
Thursdays: $1 U-Call-Its
All Ladies FREE ‘til 10
Ladies over 21 FREE All Night
$2 OFF Cover with Student I.D.
LIVE MUSIC EVERY
FRIDAY & SATURDAY
Welcome Back
Aggies
PAHA JUHfSl [PAHUUIMSI
1 Large 1 Topping Pizza & Breadstix
*9.99
"Customer pays applicable sales tax. Additional toppings extra.
Not valid with any other offers.
Eleven Fifty
1 Ex-Large 2 Topping Pizza
$
11.50
"Customer pays applicable sales tax. Additional toppings extra.
Not valid with any other offers.
Late Night Special
1 Large 1 Topping Pizza
6.99
10 p.m.-Close
"Customer pays applicable sales tax. Additional toppings extra.
Not valid with any other offers.
College Station
Acftfie Bucks Accepted Here
1100 D Harvey Rd.
764-7272
601 University
Northgate & TAMU
846-3600
VISA
BBBBBBM