The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current, February 11, 2000, Image 7

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    SPORTS
lay, February 11,2(XX)
THE BATTALION
Page 7
Men’s swim team hosts No. 1 ’Horns
irly Sunday, 20
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■ Winless in its four games since a Jan.
■ victory over Oklahoma State, the
pcasA&M men’s basketball team (6-
[2-1 Big 12) will look to end its skid
. , -turday at Reed Arena against the Uni-
3tlV6 3CtlO!|rsity of Colorado (13-9, 4-6 Big 12).
off is set for 5 p.m.
The Aggies are coming oft'a brutal
ix game stretch in which they faced
SI Insas, Iowa State, Missouri and Okla-
ma State twice. The one game of the
JP BEATO/the Battalion
jiM junior forward Carlton Brown looks pass the ball against the
fiversity of Kansas Jan. 17 at Reed Arena.
gs look to end skid
against Colorado
BY AL LAZARUS
The Battalion
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rded with an 81-75 A&M ic
I After a 32-point loss to Oklahoma
ate last Saturday, the Aggies were not in
id for state eoveiration this week — a break sorely need-
1, A&M coach Melvin Watkins said.
“We gave the team a couple of days
fto get back to their studies and rest
. h law makers Mada ieir legs a little bit," Watkins said,
side LlGov. FraiUl TheAggies likely will be without the
demanding that Bit. jervices of senior forward Jerald Brown
• aim C order to po, |ho has missed A&M's last three games
scd. but he agreedti ' p'atk.ins atoibu^TtH hand ’
m the plan. The tw. losing streak n,,i K A yg>es current
pa and Mmlhavewt^ " 1 P drt ^y 1°Brown’s absence
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have since found tbs
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opped up althougl
aes, said shuttle prt
Dittemore.
“I thought we were really turning the
comer and beginning to play some good
basketball,” he said. “Now, with Jerald
out, our rotation’s changed again and that
makes it difficult.”
Like the Aggies, the Buffaloes are en
tering an easier portion of their schedule.
With only two ranked opponents re
maining it its final seven games, CU is
poised to make a run at the NCAA tour
nament w ith a strong finish.
Colorado coach Ricardo Patton said
the Buffaloes know better than to look at
Saturday’s game as an easy win.
“We’ve got to certainly play well on
the road against Texas A&M," Patton
said. “I’m sure Texas A&M is looking at
Colorado like, 'hey this is a team we can
heat.' It would be foolish for us to think
there are any easy games left on our
schedule.”
The Buffaloes, who have won only
two road games this season, are coming
off a 70-58 victory over Nebraska Tues
day in Boulder, Colo.
1 falftime of Saturday’s game will fea
ture a ceremony honoring A&M's 1980
men's team, which defeated North Car
olina in the NCAA tournament before
tailing to eventual national champion
Louisville in the Sweet Sixteen. TheAg
gies finished the season 26-8.
BY MATT LAGESSE
The Battalion
Following a physically draining
practice Wednesday, Texas A&M
swim team captain David Morrow
beamed a look of confidence as he dis
cussed his preparation for Saturday’s
match-up against the top-ranked Uni
versity of Texas Longhorns at the Stu
dent Rec Center Natatorium.
“I am looking forward to swim
ming against UT,” Morrow said, “It is
going to be some of the best competi
tion 1 face until conference and
NCAA. We know that when we face
UT we have to be at our best.”
Thus far teams across the nation are
finding that their “best swim” may not
suffice as Texas has yet to lose a meet
this year, enabling them to retain sole
possession of the top ranking in the
country.
The 15th-ranked Aggies have also
proven to be a formidable force with a
6-1 overall record including a 129-114
victory Jan. 28 against LSU.
Devout adversaries in any other
arena of NCAA competition, Morrow
says that Texas A&M and University
of Texas swim teams share a genuine
respect for one another both in and out
of the pool.
“We are friends with a lot of them,”
Morrow said, “After the meet is over
we talk a little bit have fun and joke
around with them, and when we are not
competing we root for each other.”
Morrow also said that, ironically,
members from both teams, in some in
stances, wind up becoming teammates
when they compete on national squads.
Since the arrival of head coach Ed
die Reese in 1979, the Longhorns have
been a mainstay at the top of the swim
ming rankings.
Under the direction of Reese, Texas
has captured five of the last 12 NCAA
championships and has produced 13
Olympians.
A&M men’s swimming coach Mel
Nash said that Saturday’s meet should
provide an indication to how the Ag
gies compare to the rest of the swim
ming elite around the country.
“We have some places where we
are extremely competitive and Satur
day’s meet is a great measuring stick
for us to see where we stand relative to
the rest of the country.”
In the past this friendly rivalry has
been one sided as the Longhorns, with
Reese at the helm, have never fallen in
a dual meet versus the Aggies.
Nash said that in order for the Ag
gies pull off the upset his team must
concentrate their efforts on staying
competitive throughout the meet.
“It is definitely an uphill battle for
us against Texas,” Nash said, “This
may be their best team ever it is com
parable to their late 1980’s teams
which won three NCAA champi
onships in a row.
JP BEATO/Thi:
A&M junior David Morrow starts his 100-meter butterfly race,
hosts top-ranked University of Texas this Saturday.
“We do have some places where we
are stronger than they are and we need
to take our wins event by event.”
Along with featuring some of the
elite swimmers in the nation, the meet
also serves as a prelude to the Big 12
Swimming and Diving Champi
onships, scheduled to be held at the
Natatorium March 2-4. The meet is
scheduled to start at I p.m.
No. 18 Wildcats travel to face women’s tennis team
BY BLAINE DIONNE
The Battalion
When the Northwestern University women’s tennis
team left Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport Thurs
day morning, there was a frigid 15 degree wind chill in
the air accompanied with a stiff northeasterly wind.
When they landed at College Station’s Easterwood
Interstate Airport Thursday evening, they were greeted
with a balmy 78-degree February spring day accompa
nied by what should be stiff competmon from a hungry
court opponent in the Texas the Varsjty
The Aggies will take on me
Tennis Center at 3.30 p.
in
today.
Their match with the Wildcats marks the beginning
of a full weekend for the Aggies, who also will travel
to Baton Rouge to face the
Louisiana State University Tigers
on Sunday.
First thing is always first,
though, and head coach Bobby
Kleinecke said he is excited about
getting 18th-ranked NU on his
home court.
“I think this is a great opportuni
ty for us,” Kleinecke said. “It’s a
challenge, there’s no doubt about it. But it’s an opportu
nity more than anything else and that’s what you look for
KLEINECKE
at this time of year.”
After their dual meet last weekend against Sam
Houston State and Stephen F. Austin, which featured
more than a few rusty performances, the Aggies will
need to be more than just confident to take advantage
of this “opportunity.” '
Kleinecke said he was aware of his players’ knowl
edge and he tried to use it in his pre-match planning.
“We talked to them about the game plans and what
we're looking to do against Northwestern,” he said.
“We just verified with them what they thought and dis
agreed or agreed with some of the things and we were
pretty close, so I feel pretty good about it. Now it’s just
a matter of going out and doing it on the court.”
PIZZA
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No limit.
Carry-out or delivery.
Offer good thru
02/20/00
Th
® Hours for North0at e
'•i 2am Fri. & Sat. 'til 3a*»
Northgate
501 University Dr.
409-846-3600
Post Oak Square Center
100 Harvey Rd., Suite D
409-764-7272
Bryan
3414 East 29th St.
409-268-7272
Mark
Your
Calendars!!!
Liberal Arts Career Week
& Career Fair 2000
Special Events
Thursday, February 17
Friday, February 18
Alumni Forum
6:00-8:00 p.m. Reed Arena
Social
8:00-9:00 p.m. Reed Arena
Career Fair
10:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m.
Rudder Exhibit Hall
Workshops
Monday, February 14
Tuesday, February 15
Wednesday, February 16
Resume Writing
7:00-8:15 p.m. Rudder 410
Interviewing
7:00-8:15 p.m. Rudder 510
Networking
7:00-8:15 p.m. Rudder 410