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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 19, 2002)
11 KWrit. r HH BATTai Sports The Battalion Page IB • Thursday, September 19, 2002 Volleyball topples Kansas in Big 12 opener No. 17 Aggies sweep previously unbeaten Jayhawks lew Stubbs BA she By True Brown THE BATTALION The Texas A&M volleyball team got Ijust what it needed Wednesday night. After a disappointing defensive showing ■ last weekend at the Texas A&M ■ invitational, the Aggies (9-1, 1-0 Big 12) ■dominated the Kansas Jayhawks at G. ■ Rollie White Coliseum in the teams’ con- Iference opener, 30-24, 30-26, 30-26. Junior Tara Pulaski led No. 17 A&M's ■ sharp defensive play, leading the Aggies ■ with 14 digs and had already set a new ■career high with nine digs in the first game. "This was one of the best starts I’ve ever ■ seen this team do,” said A&M head coach ■ Laurie Corbelli. The previously unbeaten Jayhawks (8- 11. 0-1) didn’t have an answer for A&M’s ■ rock solid defense and were held to a .191 ■ attack percentage. "Kansas was leading the Big 12 in hit- Iting percentage and had two players who ■ hadn't been stopped,” Corbelli said. "Our ■ blocking was there, even though we only ■ got eight blocks. The positioning and tim- I ing of our blocks allowed our defense to do I a great job.” Corbelli said the difference for A&M was pregame preparation, something the Aggies struggled with this weekend against smaller schools. "Realizing that we weren't up for some of the teams we played this week end (was important),” Corbelli said. “It wasn’t that we didn't want to be prepared, but just finding how to get ourselves pre pared and ready helped. That is a chal lenge for most athletes and I think this team is learning that.” The Aggies set the tempo of the match early in the first game by jumping out to an 11-3 lead. A&M sophomore outside hitter Melissa Munsch led A&M in game one, finding several holes in the Jayhawks’ defense en route to 10 kills in the frame. When Munsch wasn't there for the kill, freshman outside hitter Laura Jones was. Jones finished the match with a team high .545 hitting percentage. "Munsch and Jones on the outside (had) 32 kills,” said KU head coach Ray Bechard. “That's 50 percent of the their offense, and they made plays when they needed to. That's a high order for a fresh man and sophomore, but those two are going to be good for a long time.” A&M faced its only deficit of the match early in the second game, falling behind 3- 2 and 4-3, but Munsch had a hand in four straight points to put the Aggies back on top for good. After the Aggies grabbed the lead, the tandem of Pulaski and senior middle block er A.D. Achilefu solidified A&M’s defense and kept the Aggies out front. The duo combined for 27 digs, almost half of A&M’s match total. Achilefu's two solo blocks tied the A&M high this season. Achilefu also had two solos against Southwest Texas State on Sept. 3. "Being in the back row tonight was a ton easier since 1 was behind A.D.,” Pulaski said. “1 think she touched every ball that came over the net. and it’s a lot easier to dig a ball that’s been touched.” Corbelli said the two were instrumental in getting the team refocused for Wednesday’s match. "A.D. and Tara pretty much lead this group with their preparation and their focus,” Corbelli said. “They are very patient and have learned how to compete over the years at a high level.” RANDAL FORD • THE BATTALION A&M junior Tara Pulaski goes for a kill in Wednesday’s match against KU. Paraplegic fulfills ‘Tonight’ show vow to swim channel— 20 years later SAN ANTONIO (AP)— Jason Pipoly is a ■ man of his word. He swam the English Channel, delivering on a ■ promise he made 20 years ago when he was 11 ■ years old and still had the use of his legs. The San Antonio resident made the vow on ■ Johnny Carson’s “Tonight” show after having ■ fallen short of his goal to become the youngest ■ swimmer to cross the 21-mile stretch of chilly ■ water between England and France. Last month, after 13 hours and 48 minutes of ■ slicing through the cold waves, a flotation device ■strapped between his legs to hold them up, he Hgmade it. Pipoly is the first American paraplegic to make the crossing; Australian paraplegic John McLean swam the channel in 1998. "When I got to France, I really wasn't thinking about much,” Pipoly said after his return to San Antonio. “I kind of had a smile and that was it.” Pipoly was paralyzed in a 1998 car wreck in Colorado. Thoughts of crossing the channel, as his father had done before him in 1980, had faded as Pipoly grew up. The self-described adventurer followed new pursuits. But one day after his accident, his mother pulled out the “Tonight” show tape and there it was, that promise he’d made. He began to train, adding longer practice swims to his routine. In June, the substitute teacher swam Canyon Lake for more than 11 hours in preparation for the channel. Now that he has met his goal. Pipoly said the crossing itself came only after thousands of training hours and hard work. “It’s been kind of like the cherry on top of the sundae,” he said. “The true accomplishment is to get people to try to go after their dreams.” Pipoly’s father, who watched his son swim the same channel he himself navigated 22 years ago, said his son had made him proud. "When you see someone with that kind of determination and drive, it’s kind of a foregone conclusion,” Carl Pipoly said. "It makes me feel happy as a parent that he’s not sitting around feeling sorry for himself and asking people to do things for him because he’s a paraplegic,” the father added. Jason Pipoly’s crossing isn't sanctioned by the Channel Swimming Association, whose rules forbid the use of any type of flotation device. But an association representative witnessed and timed his swim, and an official confirmed his accomplishment in an e-mail. Duncan Taylor, secretary of the Channel Swimming Association, added: “Long may his achievement act as a magnificent example to other sportsmen.” One vision. Many v id his pent much of irea on theism miles awa) the Moorea ra, Didier L couple checif- June 16. e. the FBI iss* ml. also ki»" ams. On StT letained byp r he alleged! an William ts with hishn' : while trying 10 ' ■old. I EGA ocietij tireniert Kol^ JPMorgan Chase Presentation Program: Retail Financial Services Date: September 24th Time: 7:00 PM Location: Rudder Conference Center Room 301 All majors welcome. Juniors and seniors are encouraged to attend. > p.tfl. jpmorganchase.com/careers
