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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (March 7, 2003)
THE BATTALl reak mtinued from pagel urance, if possible. For students who aret for spring break, s asures can be take ure safety. Barone said® its should stay togeil ile traveling to popii ing break destinations. The biggest mistake si its make is not staying ir groups,” he said.Tln v people get into Before leaving, make si icles are serviced and g well and always ki ere you are by taking he closest city in case tkdown, he said. Barone said that if theal iks down, pull over ■ of the road, turn the on and wait for a ln| )rcemerit official fo: Police officers, s uties and highway ;ers all have uniform sW patches identifying ik icies they serve," he sal ok at these closely to vei are police officials." he number for Tea dside Assistance, whicii! he back of all Texas drivis ices, is 1-800-525-5555, 'olice also said student ild let someone they tms w of their arrival anl irture times in case ofn rgency. You can't control tin ins of others," Bart* , “(but taking these pre- ions will) reduce crimimi munity and increase [y as well as enjoymentoi ig break.” Sports The Battalion Page 3 • Friday, March 7, 2003 Antoine has Aggies on the Wright track Downtown Bryan in the Brazos Valley rn) Bryan h the Best Mexican Food" jr 19 Years at: 7am-9pm Sun: 7am-2pm ALIGN » Chief »h Friday during the fall and springsem# it University holidays and exam periods)* , TX 77840. POSTMASTER: Send Station, TX 77843-1111. is A&M University in the Division of Stude'’ 1 014 Reed McDonald Building. Newsroom site: http://www.thebatt.com >r endorsement by The Battalion. For can’ fled'advertising, call 84 5-0569. AdvertisiS m. Monday through Friday. Fax: 845-2o • s A&M student to pick up a single copy® is are $60 per school year, SSO forthe’* charge by Visa, MasterCard, Discover, A&M boasts one of nation’s elite young players RANDAL FORD • THE BATTALION MM freshman Antoine Wright leads the Aggies in rebounds per game and ssecond on the team in scoring, behind senior Bernard King. By Dallas Shipp THE BATTALION He’s only a freshman, but forward Antoine Wright has already made an impact on this year’s Aggie basketball squad, which will finish with a .500 record or better for the first time since 1994. Wright has been one of the biggest factors in revitalizing the pulse of basketball at Texas A&M this year and leads the Aggies (14-12, 6-9 Big 12) with 6.6 rebounds per game and is second in scoring with 15 points per game behind senior guard Bernard King. The 6-foot-7 forward from San Bernardino, Calif., was ranked the No. 1 prep shooting guard in the nation and the No. 4 overall prospect in the country out of high school last year by ESPN.com after leading Lawrence Academy in Groton, Mass, to the state championship. Wright was also a member of the gold medal-winning 2002 USA Basketball Junior World Team, which he said is his most memorable experience as an athlete. “It’s always an honor for any one to represent their country,” Wright said. “Just to be asked to try out was something special.” Athlon rated Wright among the top 10 freshmen in the coun try and ESPN long-time college basketball analyst Dick Vitale named him a “Diaper-Dandy.” As one of the top recruits in the nation, Wright was courted by some of the top basketball pro grams in the country, including No. 1 Arizona, No. 4 Texas and No. 12 Maryland. So, why did he choose A&M? Wright’s Amateur Athletic Union basketball coach from California, El vert Perry, said that he contacted A&M Assistant Coach Lew Hill, who he grew up with in New York, to tell him about Wright. s4 w Saturday, 12:45 p.m. Gallagher-lba Arena Stillwater, Oklahoma “I told him I had a kid that’s gonna be a great one and they needed to get on him early, which they did,” Perry said. “(A&M) recruited him the longest, they were on him as early as his sophomore year and it was an ideal situation. (A&M) had good players, they just needed a great player and he fits right in.” Perry said that he told Wright that anyone could go to a school like Arizona or Texas and play with five or six McDonalds’ All- Americans, but it took someone special who could go anywhere and make a difference. “I told him A&M will not stop him from going to the (NBA), if anything it will help you get into the (NBA),” Perry said. “(A&M) was 12th last year and now they are sixth or sev enth, great players can go any where and get it done.” Wright said that the coach ing staff at A&M was the main reason he chose to play for the Aggies, along with the fact that he would get to start as a freshman. “At a lot of other schools I would have had to come off the bench,” Wright said. “(At A&M) I had the chance to start right away.” With that chance to play early came high expectations, See Wright on page 4 Softball team to spend break in Florida tournament series By Pete Burks THE BATTALION After traveling to play the University of Texas at Arlington only to have its game rained out, the No. 21 Texas A&M softball tehm will visit the Sunshine to compete in the Tallahassee Democrat invitational in Tallahassee, Fla. This will be the ’ourth tournament the Aggies have played in in as many weekends. A&M is shooting for its fourth tournament championship in a row. The Aggies will start off the tournament facing the Georgia State Panthers and Iowa Hawkeyes on Friday night. On Saturday. they will face the Florida A&M Rattlerettes before heading into bracket play Saturday night and Sunday afternoon. National powers Florida State University and University of Michigan may face the Aggies in bracket play. For Aggie Head Coach Jo Evans, the tourna ment will present the Aggies with a number of opportunities to improve their play against tal ented competition. “I am really looking forward to playing in this tournament,” she said. “I know we play Iowa, who’s ranked and who has a great program. They’ve been to the World Series many times, and facing them should provide for a really competitive atmosphere.” The Aggies 'will face a veteran team in the Hawkeyes (6-5), led by junior first baseman Amanda Hentges. Hentges has hit an impressive .556 with runners on base. i The Aggies should come into this tournament with momentum, having beaten some talented teams in the Stanford Classic last weekend. The Aggies put away host team No.. 11 Stanford University and No. 12 University of Georgia. A&M junior pitcher Lindsay Wilhelmson led A&M to the tour nament victory and was named Big 12 Pitcher of the Week. Wilhelmson was the winning pitcher in three WILHELMSON of the Aggies’ four wins last weekend and knocked in the winning runs in the championship game of the Stanford Classic to notch her third win. “I’ve just been trying to go out there and trust my defense because I’m not a strikeout pitcher,” Wilhelmson said. “I know as long as I’m relaxed and having fun, it will all work out. We should play some great games this weekend and hopefully come back with a few more wins under our belts.” After finishing the tournament in Tallahassee, the Aggies will get to spend their spring break in south Florida, taking on the likes of Florida International, the University of Massachusetts, Florida Atlantic University and Syracuse University in the Florida International Tournament in Miami. Spend your Spring Break with ns! LL Cool J Ashanti Friday, March 7, 7 p.m. Black Heritage Day sponsored by Kroger /Soft Jcvc Wednesday, March 12, 7 p.m. Thursday, March 13, 7 p.m. Miller Lite presents Pat Green Saturday, March 15, 4 p.m. Rockin' Roadhouse Tour, featuring Joe Diffie, Mark Chesnutt and Tracy Lawrence Wednesday, March 5 Ford presents Toby Keith Thursday, March 6 Clay Walker Saturday, March 8 Phil Vassar and Jamie O’Neal Sunday, March 9 Intocabie and Los Ires Amigos, featuring Little Joe, Roberto Pulido and Ruben Ramos, with special guests Johnny and Rocky Hernandez Go Tejano Day sponsored by Houston Chronicle Monday, March 10 Clint Black and Jerry Jeff Walker Tuesday, March 11 Brooks & Dunn Friday, March 14 Ray Charles and Ronnie MHsap Sunday, March 16 Target presents Alabama Ride the Rodeo METRO Express, sponsored by Ford and Your Texas Ford Dealers, from 8 locations around Houston. Rodeo METRO Express ticket is $2 for ages 13 and older, and FREE for ages 12 and younger. (Weekday Parking, Monday to Friday, is available on-site at Reliant Park.) Check out rodeo ticket availability at rodeohouston.com - updated daily. Rodeo tickets and season passes are available at ALL Ticketmaster locations, on the Internet at www.ticketmaster.com, and by phone at 713.629.3700. FORD HIDEOUT HEADLINERS 9:30 p.m. daily (ages 21 and older only) March 5 - Clay Farmer March 6 - Luther & The Healers March 7 - Mel Waiters Revue with special guest Patrick Green March 8 - Dave Alexander and His Big Texas Swing Band March 9 - Los Desperadoz March 10 - Jennifer Hanson March 11 - Emerson Drive March 12 - Two Tons of Steel March 13 - Cooder Graw March 14 - Radney Foster March 15 - Pinmonkey March 16 - Ezra Charles and the Works 2003 Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo™ You've never Seen it Like This! For more information: rodeohouston.com or hlsr.com Thanks to Our Heritage Partners: Reliant Energy, Ford, Coca-Cola, Gallery Furniture and Miller Lite