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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (March 2, 2000)
Hand ED SOI RESTRICTED UNDER 17 REQUIRES ACCOMPANYING /DD/SST PARENT OR ADULT GUARDIAN CDLUMBIAW picturesLI DISTRIBUTED THROUGH SONY PICTURES RELEASING © 2000 COLUMBIA PICTUBES INDUSTRIES, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. www.sony.com/whatplanet COMIN G SOON SPORTS Page 12 THE BATTALION Thursday, March 2,U riwrsday. Mart JP BEAT0/Th til The Texas A&M men’s swimming and diving team prepares to host the Big 12 Men’s Swimming and Div Championships this weekend at the Student Recreation Center Natatorium. Aggies prepare to host Big 12 Championships BY MATT LAG ESSE The Battalion For some swimmers, a season filled with preparation will come down to a single race as they compete in the Big 12 Men’s Swimming and Diving Championship at the Student Recre ation Center Natatorium. Heading up the field of competition is the No. 1 ranked University of Texas who has yet to receive a blemish to its record, going 10-0 during the season. The 15th-ranked Aggies are also projected to finish strong as they dropped only two meets during the season. Rounding out the field compe tition is Iowa State University, the Uni versity of Kansas, the University of Missouri, and the University of Ne braska. A&M men’s swimming coach Mel Nash said that although UT is expect ed to win the title, there is still some uncertainty on who will vie for the sec ond and third spots. “UT is far and away the favorite, on paper they should take the title hands down,” Nash said. “As well as we are swimming with the guys we redshirt- ed 1 think that we are looking for a bat tle for third place with ISU.” According to Nash, the key to cap turing the second or third spot may be contingent on how well the relay teams perform. “Our relays are always a major part on how we do,“ Nash said. “We have really good well balanced depth but they must come together as a group.” Nash also said that many of the swimmers use the Big 12 Champi onship as an evaluation tool as they prepare to compete in the NCAA championships later in the year. “There are two different groups,” said Nash, “For some people thisisil peak meet of their year, while oni other hand we have some guys whoa using this to get to the NCAA’s.” The preparation process for lit championship has almost becomeroir tine for A&M, namely because the As- gies have hosted the event three ofthe last four seasons. Despite this fact Nash said that planning for (he chant' pionship involves the collaboration a number vital people and element! “Fortunately for me we have agreat sports staff,” Nash said, "There isa tremendous amount of work that goes into it ahead of time.” “Because we have hosted it it kind of runs on cruise control soilis not like we are starling from scratch' Both swimming and diving prelim inaries are scheduled to begin a.m. Thursday and run through ( Finals begin at 7 p.m. tudents four suf must sit clause ibstance-frei tobacc< id will not n iese subst; The Residi wed substa ring becausi inujfcpressed a dt students. Whi such anoptioi questions that First, subst ly to exclude! stances. No si use the substa A&M stud heed, the call from non-user College sh world w here f are numerous dents to live ir tnout fron One must < dorm as subst; the environme have access to lions barrings substance-fret While desi 0 | ingthepurpos of which dorn testing stage, I if an entire do Not only v substance-usii around substa Me T Strawberry entering drug rehab i / O O April 1 STRAWBERRY TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — For the third time in 10 years, Darryl Strawberry is taking a side trip to a treatment center, hoping he can get help for the cocaine problem that ended his season before it ever began. The New York Yankees slugger dis closed his plans Wednesday, two days after commis sioner Bud Selig suspended him for one year. “By the time you read this statement, I will have checked myself into a drug rehabilitation clinic, where I intend to be for trie foreseeable future,” Strawberry said in a release faxed to the team’s spring training office by his agent. “My goal is to take control of my drug addiction once and for all, and I be lieve this step is required in order to do so,” Strawberry said. It was his first comment since the penalty, the third drug-related suspension of Strawberry’s career. Selig did not make any provision for the troubled star to return early for good behavior. The statement, sent by agent Eric Grossman, did not detail where Straw berry is having treatment. A baseball source, speaking on the condition he not be identified, said the center is in Florida but not in the Tampa area. Strawberry thanked his teammates, manager Joe Torre, owner George Stein- brenner, the entire Yankees organization and his doctors for support and “a bedrock of love, understanding and hope beyond which I could have never imag ined.” “I also want to say to the fans every where, many of whom 1 certainly under stand are disappointed and perhaps even angry at me, I will work everyday of my life to restore the belief you have had in me,” he said. Steinbrenner has been one of Straw berry’s biggest backers. Asked if he want ed to comment, Steinbrenner said no. In 1990, Strawberry entered the Smithers Center in New York for alcohol rehabilitation. And in 1994, he spent 28 days at the Betty Ford Center in Rancho Mirage, Calif., for treatment of a sub stance abuse problem. Strawberry’s latest suspension has been the talk all week at Yankees’ camp. Early in the morning, on his first day at a spring training instructor, former Yankees captain Don Mattingly spoke of Strawberry’s problems. “Once I get past the general feelings at first — how could he do it? why did he do it? — you think about the person,” Mattingly said. “Darryl is a great person.” David Cone, perhaps the Yankees player closest to Strawberry, voiced the same feeling on Tuesday. “I’m extremely depressed,” the pitcher said. “It’s tough watching close friends stumble again. Because he’s sus pended and won’t be a Yankee this year doesn’t affect our friendship. I’m everybody in here feels the same.” While they hope he can come bad next year, his teammates know there’si chance the eight-time All-Star —wk turns 38 in two weeks—might bed® in baseball. “I just don’t know at his age,”firt baseman Tino Martinez said. “1 til this was going to be his last year anpvaj 1 think it would be hard to miss the wlioli year and come back.” The two-time World Series chi ons hoped Strawberry would be lltit main designated hitter this seasonal! salary of $750,000. He is a career Jif hitter with 335 home runs and 1,W RBIs. Last week, it was revealed Strawber ry had failed a cocaine test in January,! day later, baseball ordered himi practice field. Strawberry has not been at since that morning. While banned from the majorsanda! affiliated minor league teams, Straubtf ry could play for a club in an independent league. He did that in 1996 with the Si Paul Saints ofthe Northern League. The Newark Bears, owned by forme! Yankees catcher Rick Cerone, Atlantic City Surfol'the AtlanticLea^ want him. So do the New Jersey Jackals of the Northern League. The Solano Steelheads in Vacavill Calif, a team in the independent West ern Baseball League, also offeredStra 1 ,'- berry a contract. he Fed t reau of gation hiding sometl April 19,199. sb al agents ston and I WHO fAYS YOU CAN T CiT A fOil LUNCH?? our faMe oufsiefe Rutlefer Foutrfatrt ^'lortfay ard ^"ueselaij, 4^7 to sign up for tickets to trie Vx/omen s Week Awards Luncrieon featuring ^liss Jennifer Harris fligrit Dirctcr, ^1ars Fatrifinder Operations £>0 Student woMimwiiK.TiiMu.iDu' Gender Issues Education Services 979.845.1 107, GIES@TAMU.EDU live; Africar also re In response t ing Africa n-Ai I acknowb blacks and v battalion for do think sevi unsaid. It ap I feels t a the hands While it is flag flying off , a large attitudes wit they have ad lites ar socializing w time campus amanner th; Welcome. 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