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Sports

Friday, October 31, 1997

Eagles' eyes on Tigers in bi-district

PECOS, Oct. 31 -- The Pecos Eagles had a poorer record and went in
against an opponent with a better mark last year, and came out of Van
Horn with their first bi-district victory since 1990.

Saturday afternoon, the Eagles will head to Van Horn with much of the
same cast from a year ago, and they'll be hoping for the same results,
when the Eagles take on the El Paso High Tigers in a 3 p.m. match.

Coach Becky Granado will be seeking her first career playoff victory at
the same site where coach Nora Geron earned the final victory of her
37-year career last year, when the Eagles downed El Paso Burges. This
time, they'll be facing the Tigers, who defeated El Paso Bowie a week
ago in their match for second place.

El Paso High's win improve them to 20-9 on the season, while Pecos was
losing to San Angelo Lake View to fall to 17-11 overall. The Eagles'
came in with only a 13-16 mark a year ago, but they swept 21-8 El Paso
Burges by 15-9, 15-11 scores, to advance to the area round.

Lori Marquez had a big game offensively for the Eagles, while Sherrie
Mosby scored off blocks three times in the second game against Burges.
Granado said blocking will be key again on Saturday against El Paso
High, which features a trio of tall front line players.

"We're going to have to contain No. 4 (Rosa Barrios) and No. 7 (Nadia
Reta). Those are their strongest hitters," Granado said. Against Reta,
she said the Eagles "have to take the (side)lines away, and we have to
take the cross court away," from Barrios.

Both of the Tigers' hitters are about 5-9, and El Paso also uses 5-11
Tricia Rodriguez at middle blocker.

"If our kids play we can beat them, but we're going to have to play
smart ball," Granado said. "They're tall, but the thing we have going
for us is they hit it to our strongest (blocking) side."

The winner of Saturday's game will face Lamesa, the District 2-4A
champion, in the area round of the playoffs. Granado said if the Eagles
win, it will probably be next Tuesday in Midland.

Lake View and Bowie play their bi-district match Saturday evening in
Alpine, with the winner there getting defending 4A state champ Hereford
next. District 4-4A winner Andrews gets the weekend off, and will face
either Dumas or Lubbock Estacado in their area round match.

Pecos suffers scares, bad trips

By JON FULBRIGHT
Staff Writer
PECOS, Oct. 31 -- A scary runner and a scary offensive line made Pecos'
sub-varsity football team's pre-Halloween trips to San Angelo and Alpine
unpleasant Thursday night, while the Zavala middle school gridders got a
scare in their bid for an undefeated season.

The seventh graders overcame a series of fumbles and over 100 yards in
penalties to remain unbeaten, as they downed Alpine by a 16-6 final
score at Eagle Stadium. Crockett's eighth graders weren't as lucky, as
they dropped a 26-8 decision at home to the Bucks.

Down in Alpine, the Bucks' junior varsity won for the second time this
season over Pecos' freshman, this time by a 46-14 final score, while the
Eagles' JV were shut out in San Angelo by a 36-0 margin.

"It wasn't as bad as the score showed. They had one fast running back,
and he broke a couple of long ones on us, and that pretty much was the
difference," coach Jay Ragland said. "When you're fastest kid runs about
a 5.0 40 (yard dash) and he runs a 4.5 you're not going to catch him if
he gets behind you.

"We had three chances to score inside the five, but came away empty all
three times," said Ragland, whose team closes out its season at home
next week against Fort Stockton.

Freshman coach Tino Acosta said the Bucks controlled the line in their
win. "They just lined up behind their big linemen and overpowered us,"
he said.

Pecos' scores came on a 60 yard kickoff return by Chris Bryant and a two
yard run by quarterback Alex Garcia, with Eric Armendariz adding the
extra points.

Zavala trailed for the first time all season on Thursday, after Alpine
converted a late first-half fumble into a touchdown. But the seventh
graders would reverse that in the second half, scoring twice after
recovering bad option pitches by the Bucks.

Eddie Mata scored both touchdowns for Pecos on runs of three and six
yards, with Matthew Levario and Robbie Ontiveros hooking up on the
two-point conversions.

The eighth graders missed an early scoring chance due to penalties, then
saw the Bucks score twice in the second period and once in the third
quarter off runs of two- and six-yards and an 18-yard TD pass. Pecos cut
the lead to 20-8 on a 68-yard pass from Richard Rodriguez to Ricky
Plummer, but Alpine answered right back with their final score of the
night on a 36-yard pass.

Tonight at 7:30 p.m., the Eagles close out their home varsity schedule
against the San Angelo Lake View Chiefs. Lake View has won the last four
meetings between the teams, after Pecos took seven of the previous nine
games. Both teams are 4-4 on the season, with the Chiefs at 1-2 and the
Eagles 0-3 in District 4-4A play, and both need a win tonight and help
to stay in the playoff race.

Lake View needs victories by Big Spring at Sweetwater and by Andrews at
home against Fort Stockton to stay alive, while Pecos doesn't care what
happens in the Big Spring-Sweetwater game, so long at Fort Stockton
defeats Andrews by three points or more.

Fort Stockton (1-2 district, 6-2 season) at Andrews (2-1, 6-2): The
Panthers came close to upsetting the Mustangs at home a year ago,
despite playing without their top rusher Jacob Vasquez. He currently
holds the edge in the district rushing race with Andrews Shaud Williams,
who racked up 448 yards a year ago against the Panthers.

Williams isn't likely to get that, but the Panthers will have to find a
way to hold him to at least half of last year's total, while hoping
Vasquez can get outside against the Mustangs' defense. That could also
mean more action on defense for Williams, who has been mostly a one-way
player this season, and that could hurt Andrews, which really hasn't
found an alternative threat to their star back.

Big Spring (2-1, 6-2) at Sweetwater (3-0, 8-0): Just as the Steers
usually play poorly against Fort Stockton, whether or not the Panthers
have a good or bad team, they usually play well in Sweetwater, no matter
how good the Steers are (the Mustangs are always good). Big Spring
fumbled four times and had two interceptions last week, while allowing a
kickoff return for a touchdown in their 33-22 loss at Fort Stockton, but
the Steers are also the last team to defeat Sweetwater in regular season
play, at the Mustang Bowl by a 10-8 score in 1994.

Sweetwater may have relaxed a bit after jumping up on Pecos 21-0 a week
ago, but there were some big holes at times for Richard Gutierrez to run
through up the middle, while The Mustangs didn't have much success
covering receiver Oscar Luna. That could mean a big night for running
back Antwoyne Edwards, and a chance for quarterback Gabe Mendoza to make
some big plays. But to win, the Steers' defense will also have to make
some plays on quarterback Andrew Boatright, whose ability to hide the
ball on his option runs in the third quarter last week put the game away.

Old coaches in new places for NBA openers

By The Associated Press

NEW YORK, Oct. 31 -- The addresses have changed. The teams they are
exhorting are wearing different uniforms. The faces of the NBA's new
coaches, however, are very, very familiar.

Nine teams will have different head coaches than they ended with last
season when the 1997-98 season begins tonight with 14 games.

The league could also be without one of its best-known personalities as
Charles Barkley left up in the air whether or not he would retire from
the Houston Rockets.

The oldest of the new coaches is 67-year-old Chuck Daly, who returned
from the broadcast booth to the sidelines to take over the Orlando
Magic. Daly and his two championship rings from his days with the
Detroit Pistons impressed on the players what his style will entail as
the Magic try to improve on last season's 45 wins and first-round
playoff exit.

``He stresses, stresses, stresses defense and taking care of the ball,''
guard Nick Anderson said. ``And if you play good defense, defense will
make your offense.''

Another coach who will stress defense is Rick Pitino, who returns to the
NBA with the Boston Celtics after an eight-year stint at the University
of Kentucky that ended with consecutive appearances in the NCAA
championship game.

Pitino has to rebuild from the remains of a 15-67 season, the worst in
franchise history, and only four players will be back from that team.

``What I will tell them is feed on the emotion on defense and, on
offense, be poised and under control, making the right plays,'' Pitino
said. ``Don't rush on offense and don't play under the influence of
emotion on offense.''

Larry Bird will make his debut as a coach at any level with the Indiana
Pacers and he'll do it coming off a 6-2 preseason.

The other coaching changes were: Larry Brown from Indiana to
Philadelphia; P.J. Carlesimo from Portland to Golden State; Mike
Dunleavy from Milwaukee's front office to Portland; Brian Hill, who was
fired at Orlando, to Vancouver; Bill Hanzlik, a longtime assistant at
Atlanta, to Denver; and Eddie Jordan, who had the interim removed from
his title at Sacramento.

Friday night's openers have Indiana at New Jersey; Chicago at Boston;
Milwaukee at Philadelphia; Atlanta at Orlando; Toronto at Miami; New
York at Charlotte; Washington at Detroit; Cleveland at Houston; Golden
State at Minnesota; San Antonio at Denver; the Los Angeles Clippers at
Phoenix; Seattle at Portland; Utah at the Los Angeles Lakers; and Dallas
at Vancouver.

Barkley arrived in the New York area late Thursday night for a morning
meeting today with the NBA over his arrest earlier in the week in
Orlando, Fla. Barkley was charged with aggravated battery and resisting
arrest following the incident early Sunday. Police said Barkley threw a
bar patron, Jorge Lugo, through a window. Barkley said Lugo had thrown a
glass of ice on him and three people with him.

The 14-year veteran said he won't make a decision on retirement until he
meets with league officials, but indicated the league's response will be
a strong factor.

``If I can't get support from my league, maybe it's time to go,''
Barkley said.

History will be made this opening weekend as the NBA will have women
officiate games.

Violet Palmer and Dee Kantner were among the 58 referees selected to
work for the NBA this season, and it doesn't seem like they are
expecting any trouble from players who get a little out of line.

``We'll treat them just like any other player,'' Palmer said.
``Confrontation is part of being a referee. If they cross a line they're
not supposed to, they'll get a technical like any other player.''

The Bulls will be going for their sixth title in eight years, and
they'll do it without the injured Scottie Pippen for the first few
months.

Michael Jordan seems energized as Chicago goes for its third straight
title.

``I'm gearing myself up for a long season -- all 82 games and 15 playoff
games,'' he said. ``I don't know what burnout is. I haven't burned out
so far, so why worry about it?''

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