SIDELINES
ON 3B
The Houston Astros de
feated the St. Louis Cardinals
6-4 to tie with San Francisco
fortheNLWild Card lead and
could take sole possession if
the Giants lose to the Padres.
ON 4B
The Big 12 starts confer
ence play in full swing this
weekend and is highlighted
hyTexas, Missouri and Okla
homa games.
Officials in Montreal formally
announced before Wednes
day night's game against the
Florida Marlins that the Expos
will be moving to Washington,
D.C.forthe 2005 season.
COMING FRIDAY
The A&M sports weekend
is chock full of games to at
tend, including football, soc
cer and volleyball games.
Look for complete previews
breach matchup.
BRIEFLY
The Texas Rangers lost to
the Anaheim Angels, 8-7.
Sports
The Battalion Page IB • 1 hursday, September 30, 2004
PAGE BY: JORDAN MESEROLE
Bring it on
Rivalries bring sports fans together on common ground
Here’s a memo to the Dallas Police Department in case it
forgot: In less than two weeks. Fair Park will be filled with out-
of-towners dressed in costume looking for a good time, some
cheap thrills and a way to raise some hell. Oh, and the State Fair
of Texas will be going on as well.
The annual Red River Shootout between the University of Texas
and the University of Oklahoma is set for 11 a.m. on Oct. 9 at the
Cotton Bowl in Dallas. Fans from all over will jam into an increas
ingly inadequate venue to witness one
of college football’s most
heated rivalries play out
before them, and you can expect nothing less
than bad blood between these two schools.
The showdown between the ‘Horns
and the Sooners is one of many bitter
debates across the nation that heighten
public interest in sports through its history
and game day spectacle.
There is something about a storied rivalry in
college and professional sports that heats the blood
and fills fans with spark and intensity unlike any
other match-ups. It’s that sense of pride, tradition and
inexplicable animosity you learn to acquire for your
swom enemy. Whatever the case may be - Yan-
kees-Red Sox, Ohio State-Michigan, Duke-North
Carolina or a host of others - rivalries in the world
of sports give even the most detached fan something
to cheer about.
Sunday, the annual season series between the New York Yankees and the Bos
ton Red Sox wrapped up at Fenway Park in Boston with an 11-4 Red Sox victory.
Though the Red Sox are three games behind the Bronx Bombers for the AL East
lead, they no doubt have some satisfaction that they finished with an 11-8 series
advantage this season over their rivals since the early 1920s when they sold Hall of
Fame slugger Babe Ruth to New York.
Fans across America watched last fall as these two powerhouses met in the AL
Championship Series, with the Yankees taking Game 7 in New York on an extra-innings
walk-off home run from Aaron Boone. For baseball in America, there could not have
been a better setting. Television ratings soared as almost every game included a bench
clearing brawl, exchanges of profanities and insults, and
in one instance, Red Sox pitcher Pedro Martinez toss
ing 72-year-old Yankees bench coach Don Zimmer
to the ground. Although it gets ugly at times, you
can always count on a rivalry to be an amazing
game to watch.
And even when there is clearly a dominant
team, the annual battle is never a given. There is
something special in the air that underdogs dig
down deep to bring to the fight.
Fans love to recount the histories of rivalry
among teams and take sides in the annual
matchup. These are the games you don’t
watch with apathy because nothing
else is on; you pull for somebody and
you fight to the death.
On the college gridiron, rivalry is a
given. Who could forget the Texas-Texas
A&M battle, now formally known as the “Lone
Star Showdown.” Alabama and Auburn duke it out each year
in the Iron Bowl, Ohio State and Michigan spill blood annually
for Big Ten bragging rights, and the contest between the Longhorns and the Sooners
See Rivalry on page 4B
RYAN IRBY
Sports Columnist
Texas A&M defeats Baylor 3-0 in quick match
By Shawn Millcnder
THE BATTALION
The Aggie volleyball team’s quest to end a two-match
losing streak looked to be in jeopardy at the outset of
Wednesday night’s match against the Baylor Bears.
The underdog Bears opened with an 11-6 lead on the
Aggies in the first game behind the play of sophomore
middle blocker Desiree Guilliard before the Aggies ral
lied to win the match 3-0, sparked by the furious serves
of Texas A&M junior middle blocker Kendra Felder.
A&M beat the Bears by a final score of 30-23, 30-19,
30-23 in the win.
The Aggies were looking up at the Bears 17-18 in the
first game when Felder started serving. When she was
done, the Aggies held a 22-19 lead that they would not
relinquish for the rest of the match.
“They just started serving tough,” said Baylor head coach
Jim Bames. “If we had continued to serve well we could have
stayed on top, but A&M really became the aggressors.”
Baylor had trouble all night returning serves. Bames
said his team matched up well physically but came up
short on returns.
“We just don’t have the experience,” Barnes said.
“All three or four of our passers are just learning how to
do it this year.”
Guilliard did her part to lead the Bears offensively,
recording eight kills. She also totaled seven errors and
See Volleyball on page 3B
Darkness Falls This October
at a Haunted House near you
,.,*??? -A o* Not for the
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October
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Group rates offered.
Party rooms available.
Call 774-1890 for more info.
1673 Briarcrest Bryan, TX
(The old Gattiland Location)
Excessive Productions Presents
$3.00 Off
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DARKNESS FALLS
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