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Sports
The Battalion Page IB • Thursday, November 6, 2003
Running strong
Photo courtesy of: Evan O'Connell
Fifth-year senior Tommy Bonn has emerged as an All-American candidate for the Aggies in his
final year at A&M. Following his career as an Aggie, Bonn plans to train for the Olympics.
Tommy Bonn
finds his niche
in cross country
By Kyle Davoust
THE BATTALION
A t first glance, fifth-year senior
Tommy Bonn does not look
like a cross country runner.
His tall, slender frame may pass for a
basketball player or hurdler, but not a
distance runner.
It’s hard not to wonder how some
one this tall decided to compete in a
sport dominated by the under 6-foot
population.
“1 always played football and bas
ketball at (Lockhart High School),”
Bonn said. “My sophomore year, the
track coach, coach (Scott)
Hippensteel, kept asking me to run
track. He begged me to death, so I
finally gave in.”
Shortly thereafter, Bonn realized
that running was his sport and
Hippensteel his role model. He started
focusing on cross country and track,
letting other sports fall behind.
“I owe a lot to coach
(Hippensteel),” Bonn said. “He
opened the door for so many things.
He not only got me interested in run
ning, but he also taught me a lot of
lessons for life.”
Whatever Hippensteel saw in Bonn
seven years ago appears to be right.
Bonn finished high school as a two-
time Class 4A state champion in the
1,600-meter, the 1998 state champion
in the 3,200-meter and leader of
Lockhart’s 1998 state champion cross
country team.
This success did not go overlooked.
Bonn was actively recruited as a schol
arship athlete before choosing Texas
A&M.
Entering this senior season, howev
er, Bonn had yet to win a collegiate
cross country meet.
This is not to say Bonn had not
enjoyed success in his college career.
He has excelled in the 1,500 meter
run, even redshirting his sophomore
year to compete in this event at the
IAAF World Junior Track & Field
Championships in Santiago, Chile.
Despite all of this, though, Bonn
had still not lived up to his potential in
cross country.
But what a difference half a season
makes.
In just three races this year, Bonn
has been the Aggies’ top finisher twice
and the meet champion once.
His most impressive feat came at
the Great American Cross Country
See Bonn on page 3B
Nebraska keeps A&M’s
offense at bay in sweep
By True Brown
THE BATTALION
Nebraska volleyball coach Jeff
Cook had one goal going into
Wednesday night’s game against Texas
A&M: Control A&M outside hitter
Melissa Munsch.
Nebraska used a well-balanced
attack and a strong front line to limit
Munsch to eight kills and a .200 hitting
percentage as the Huskers blitzed
A&M, 30-22, 30-24, 30-19 at G. Rollie
White Coliseum.
The loss ended No. 21 A&M’s win
ning streak at eight games, and gave
the No. 10 Cornhuskers (21-3, 12-2
Big 12) their ninth consecutive victory
over the Aggies (17-6, 9-4).
Munsch took a 3.63 kill per game
average into Wednesday’s match, but
was held to just two kills each in the
first and third games.
“The key was Melissa Munsch,”
Cook said. “We slowed her down and
didn’t let her have a big night. Munsch
and Laura Jones are two of the best hit
ters in the conference. Sometimes you
do everything right and they still get a
kill, but our ability to slow her down
was key tonight.”
The Huskers’ front line played a big
part in that.
Nebraska, which leads the Big 12 in
blocks, posted 14.5 team blocks while
the Aggies had just three. Six-foot-two-
inch middle blocker Melissa Elmer
registered two solo blocks and eight
block assists, and the Aggies had a sea
son-low .102 hitting percentage.
Elmer also had nine kills and a solid
.375 hitting percentage.
“She’s our Melissa Munsch,” Cook
said. “We try to get her the ball as
See Volleyball on page 3B
Soccer team faces an uphill
climb in Big 12 tournament
By Troy Miller
THE BATTALION
In an odd Big 12 soccer season in
which the top five teams in the regular
season were separated by only three
points, Texas A&M finds itself in
unfamiliar territory as the No. 5 seed
in this weekend’s Big 12 Tournament
in San Antonio.
To really make heads turn, the No. 8
Aggies will face Nebraska in a match
that is usually reserved for champi
onship games, not the first round.
A&M and Nebraska are the only two
schools to ever win a Big 12
Tournament championship.
“We play Nebraska on Thursday, and
it makes the first game very important,”
said A&M junior forward Emma Smith.
“You can’t necessarily walk through two
games. Every game is important.”
The Aggies’ (12-4-3) first round
match with the Cornhuskers (11-6-1)
will be a rematch of their match in
College Station, in which the Aggies out
played Nebraska but didn’t get the
bounces as the Cornhuskers won 2-1
despite being outshot 17-6 by the Aggies.
The Aggies will have revenge on their
minds when they line up against
Nebraska at Blossom Athletic Complex
Thursday at 1:30 p.m.
“We’re coming off a hard loss on
Friday and we lost to Nebraska two
See Soccer on page 3B
CONGRATULATIONS!
Join the Celebration at the Clayton W. Williams, Jr. Alumni Center
NOVEMBER 6TH RING DELIVERY
Tickets distributed throughout the day, beginning at 7:15 a.m.
You must have a numbered ticket to get your Ring.
FEsnvmES begin at 2:30 p.m.
Ring distribution starts at 3 p.m. and ends at 6 p.m.
We encourage you to take the Bonfire or
Replant bus routes that stop in front of the building.
Prints of The Aggie Senior Ring by Benjamin Knox ’90 available for purchase.
You must bring your pink receipt and driver’s license
to pick up your Ring. If you do not have your pink receipt,
please bring your student ID and driver’s license.
SPONSORED BY
The Association
L^—OF FORMER STUDENTS®
lA/ea/ce The Aggie NetbUonJc!
As an engineer in
the U.S. Air Force,
there’s no telling what
you’ll work on.
(Seriously, we can’t tell you.)
United States Air Force applied technology is years ahead
of what you’ll touch in the private sector, and as a new
engineer you’ll likely be involved at the ground level of new
and sometimes classified developments. You’ll begin leading
and managing within this highly respected group from day
one. Find out what’s waiting behind the scenes for you in
the Air Force today. To request more information, call
1-800-423-USAF or log on to airforce.com.
U.S. AIR FORCE
CROSS INTO THE BLUE