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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (March 21, 2003)
AGGlELlft THE BATTALlos .H KIISY OF AWARE 1 Shadow Canyon at 11%. festival on was our biggest fi ay." he said. "Festivals It lusic Festival) give ustk er bands and hook up ri 'i seen in a while." :s, a senior accounting >r Pierce and O’Neill's ne a loyal follower wheni her to one of the duo’s J she became even moret: ent to a Jackopierce cor lester. lyrics) by heart, but they iter live than they doom m a big fan of the acoustic 1 will like someone lOtii >oth sing and play.” a senior marketing majoi ickopierce’s concerts in aore than four years ago i ever since. Gates saidsk ling to the duo’s music ‘s an element that main s not. ■;dly a band you would radio,” she said. “Theydo d have their own sound n I like them so much.’’ oecarnival.t iYAK 3 for every walk of life 979-764-7772 oss Dress for less) Sports The Battalion Page 5 • Friday, March 21, 2003 Aggies head to Lubbock for three-game series No. 23 Red Raiders provide formidable Big 12 test By Troy Miller THE BATTALION The Texas A&M baseball team has been looking to make a move in the Big 12 Conference ever since its last Big 12 championship in 1999. A series win over powerhouse University of Nebraska showed signs that the Aggies may be ready to contend in the Big 12, but now they must try to sustain that momentum on the road in Lubbock against No. 23 Texas Tech University. The emotional high of open ing Big 12 play at home against Nebraska seemed to cost the No. 19 Aggies (19-6, 2-1 Bigl2) when they lost to the University of Texas-San Antonio, 6-5, on Tuesday in San Antonio. “We got our emotions so high (against Nebraska),” said A&M Head Coach Mark Johnson after Sunday’s win over Nebraska. “(UTSA) will be a real challenge for us.” Now A&M travels to Lubbock, where the Aggies have won one game in their last six contests at Tech’s Dan Law Field. One of A&M’s many strengths comes from its pitch ing staff, which owns a 3.42 ERA. Sophomore pitcher Logan Kensing (4-2) will start Friday night in Lubbock. Senior left-hander Zach Dixon (3-0) will start on the mound Saturday, and junior pitcher Matt Larnum (5-0) will get the nod on Sunday. Before Big 12 play kicked off, the Aggie pitching rotation was perceived to be their largest problem, but so far that has not been the case. “I think we were over-* pitching a little bit (against Nebraska),” Johnson said. “I think we’re going to learn from it.” Junior Scolj Beerer, who has pitched 17.2 scoreless innings in the closer role, leads the Aggie bullpen. Texas Tech (17-8, 1-2 Big 12) will start junior right-hander Steve Gooch (3-2) in the series’ first game Lriday. Gooch owns a 3.32 ERA and leads the Red Raiders with 48.1 innings pitched. Saturday’s starter is jun ior Juan Razo (2-1). Razo has been pelted for 21 runs in just 34 innings of work, yet he leads the team with 25 strikeouts. The strength of the Red Raiders lies at the plate, where senior outfielder Scooter Jordan leads the team with a .426 bat ting average. Jordan reaches base in 56.1 percent of his at bats. Tech relies on junior catcher Evan Shahak for power, as he has hit a season total of six home runs and boasts a .303 batting average. The Aggies counter with a lineup that has all nine starters batting above .300. The Aggie bats are led by junior Cory Patton, who added to his team high total of four home runs against LTSA. Behind Patton is Justin Ruggiano, hitting in the cleanup spot with a .337 batting average. On paper the Aggies look to be head and shoulders above Texas Tech, but when these two schools lock up on the athletic fields, anything can happen. “Our guys are ready to play every day,” said junior pitcher Kyle Parcus. “I think we’ll be able to match what Tech does (in Lubbock).” JOHN C. LIVAS • THE BATTALION A&M junior pitcher Matt Farnum releases a pitch against Nebraska last weekend. Farnum (5-0) is scheduled to start for the Aggies on Sunday. Softball team hosts No. 5 Nebraska A&M meets No. 15 Tide By Pete Burks THE BATTALION If road games are supposed to tough en up a team, consider the No. 23 Texas A&M softball team as tough as they come. The softball players have become road warriors as they have been on a month-long odyssey across the country, playing tournaments on both coasts. But this weekend the Aggies will finally return to the Aggie Softball Complex. Although returning home will be nice for the Aggies (21-11), there will be no rest for the weary as the No. 5 University of Nebraska. Cornhuskers come calling this weekend. A two-game series between the teams begins Saturday at 2 p.m. and ends Sunday at 1 p.m. Overall, the Aggies went 9-5 on the road, going 5-2 in the first half of the trip and 4-3 in the second half, including losing two games in a row in the Blue and Gold Classic. The Aggies also played a doublehead er against Texas Tech University before coming home, splitting the doubleheader 1-4 and 10-1. The Aggies simply couldn’t get their offense going in the first game, managing only one run when freshman Kristin Gunter knocked in sophomore second baseman Adrian Gregory in the top of the sixth inning. But in the second game, the Aggies finally found their groove, jumping to an 8-1 lead by the top of the fourth, led by senior outfielder Cheryl Fowler and senior shortstop Crystal Martin, who each hit home runs to help seal the win for the Aggies. The Aggies need to be ready for the Huskers this weekend if they expect to get off to a good start in Big 12 play, and nobody knows that better than Aggie Head Coach Jo Evans. “Nebraska is a great team, and they are ranked in the top five,” Evans said. “They were the preseason pick to win the Big 12, and their record reflects that. Junior pitcher Peaches James throws a good drop ball, and she really keeps the ball down. Also, they have a freshman phenom in Summer Tobias, who throws See Softball on page 7 By Jeff Allen THE BATTALION The No. 11 Texas A&M men’s ten nis team has faced a constant barrage of challenges to start the year from the nation’s elite teams, including 10 of the nation’s top 50. The story coming out of Tuscaloosa, Ala. hasn’t been much different. The No. 15 Alabama Crimson Tide have seen their share of tough competition during the first few months of the 2003 season as well. The Crimson Tide (13- 4) has come up against 10 nationally- ranked opponents in their first 17 matches, while competing in a very competitive Southeastern Conference. “We’ve had a good year,” said Alabama Head Coach Billy Pate. “But the recent SEC matches are disappoint ing because those are so important. This league is so difficult, every team is capable of beating everyone else.” The two teams will meet this Saturday at the A&M Tennis Center in a match that is sure to have poll impli cations. The match is only the fifth meeting between the two clubs, with the first four going to A&M. Their most recent meeting came during the 2000 season when the Aggies downed the Crimson Tide in College Station 6-1. This year, the Aggies boast an eight match win streak, seven of which have come at the Tennis Center on their cur rent homestand. During that stretch, the Aggies made the most of their home court advantage, outscoring their oppa- r -“-.T "VfV 4 1 —— r- See Tennis on page 7 wowem's WftTWf S women’s HfNKlf base of $29.98 & high,| bllier coupons. ConnollieiiseilMFi* i refunds, online ilems of purcliseoM 1 I i per customer. Expires:3/3l/03- Student Car Loan Specialists in LAWRENCE MARSHAli GEI YOU IHTO A CAR OR TODAY! Bad Credit... No Credit... Foreign Students If you’ve been told you don’t qualify for a car loan, call the student loan specialists at Lawrence Marshall. We’ve been putting students on the road for more than 30 years. 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