Daily Newspaper and Travel Guide for Reeves County, Trans-Pecos, Big Bend of West Texas

Sports

Thursday, February 5, 1998

Swaim, Williams say hiring not official yet

PECOS, Feb. 5 -- Dan Swaim would like everyone to know he's
not yet the new head football coach of the Pecos Eagles.

Pecos Eagles' athletic director Bubba Williams would like to
know who told the Odessa American he was.

For the record, Swaim has tentatively been offered the post
of head coach, after serving the past two years as an
assistant under Mike Belew. But Williams was angry this
morning that the news leaked out before he and
superintendent Don Love had a chance to talk to the nine
other candidates for the post, four of whom already work
within the Pecos-Barstow-Toyah school district.

"Don is out of town, Gome (Olibas, school personnel
director) is out of town. I don't know who they called, but
they didn't call me," Williams said.

"It's not official until next week. The school board are the
only ones that can hire me," added Swaim, who said he was
called last night by the Odessa American after they were
told about his hiring by somebody else.

"I don't know who it was. They didn't get it from me, and it
was not from anybody in the administration," he added.

Love did not mention the hiring of Swaim during an interview
Monday on the UIL's redistricting, but Swaim confirmed he
was offered the job that day. Swaim, Love and Williams were
in Midland on Tuesday for a District 4-4A administrators
meeting.

Williams said Love, Olibas and members of the school board
were all in Austin today to meet with state education
officials. The board's regularly scheduled monthly meeting
is next Thursday, Feb. 12, the earliest time a new coach can
be officially named.

"Hopefully I will be offered the job next week, but that's
up to the board," said Swaim, who said until then, "I'll
just go along with business as usual."

Swaim and the other Eagle assistants have been conducting
off-season workouts with the players for the past month,
since Love reassigned Belew from his head coach and athletic
director's jobs to principal at Zavala Middle School.
Assistant coach Mike Ferrell also applied for the head
coaching position, as did ex-Eagle assistant coach Steele
Ewing, Zavala Middle School coach Jerry Parent and Pecos
High School teacher John Barfield.

Swaim was one of several assistant coaches from Odessa
Permian brought in by Belew after his hiring in April, 1996.
He played for Belew when he was an assistant coach at
Permian during the 1983-84 seasons, and spent four years
coaching in the Ector County ISD junior high system before
being hired as defensive end, tight end and flanker coach.

In taking over as head coach, he'll face the same problem
Belew had two years ago -- raising the participation level
for football, after a number of sub-varsity players either
did not come out to play or quit during the 1997 season.

Pecos' junior varsity and freshmen teams were 9-1 and 6-3 in
1996, but both went winless this past season, while the
varsity posted 4-6 marks in Belew's two years as head coach.
One advantage Swaim will have is this week's UIL
realignment, which took the Eagles out of their
traditionally tough District 4-4A group and into the new
District 2-4A, which features three schools -- Fabens, Clint
and El Paso Mountain View -- moving up from Class 3A and two
others -- Canutillo and San Elizario -- that posted losing
records in District 3-4A this past season.

Swaim's first game as Eagles' head coach will be in Odessa,
at Ratliff Stadium on Sept. 4 against Denver City. Pecos
will then face Alpine, Fort Stockton, Crane and Kermit
before opening District 2-4A play, and district officials
are to meet on Monday in the El Paso area to work out the
1998 athletic schedules.

Netters host Loboes after loss to OHS

PECOS, Feb. 4 -- The Pecos Eagles tennis team will open the
home portion of their 1998 Spring season today, with a dual
meet match against the Monahans Loboes.

"It was originally scheduled for over there, but they had
to cancel out of a match we had here (in Pecos in April),
and so they said because of that, they would come over
here," coach Bernadette Ornelas said.

The dual meet will be the second of the season for the
Eagles, who dropped their opner last week at Odessa High by
an 11-6 final score.

The boys won five of eight matches on the day, while the
girls' victory came from Lorrie Minjarez in singles play.

"Tye (Graham), Jeff (Lam) and Jonathan (Fuentes) played
well, and the girls didn't win that many, but overall as a
coach I liked what I saw," Ornelas said. "Lorrie Minjarez
got the girls' win, and Rachel Pharoah had a good chance to
win. She got out there at about 4:15 and played until 6," in
a 2-6, 6-4, 5-7 loss to Sona Primera.

Fuenetes won his two singles matches on the afternoon,
while Graham and Lam won their singles matches and teamed up
for a doubles victory. Ornelas said a lack of lights at the
Odessa courts kept the girls from playing doubles.

Boys Singles
Jonathan Fuentes defeated Brett McKinney, 8-4; Tye Graham
defeated Bret Presly, 9-7; Jeff Lam defeated Brian Demling,
8-0; David Lam lost to Nathan (o last name available), 8-2;
Sonny Cylia lost to Jarrett Cuningham, 8-0; Fuentes defeated
Matt Hemmingway, 8-5.
Girls Singles
Teresa Minjarez lost to Shanna Moody, 6-1, 6-2; Vanessa
Miranda lost to Kathleen O'Hearn, 6-3, 6-1; Erin Dominguez
lost to Lena Turner, 6-1, 6-3; Rachel Pharoah lost to Sona
Primera, 2-6, 6-4, 5-7; Lorrie Minjarez defeated Jamie
Qualls, 8-5; Tiffany Jarrett lost to Amy Heath, 6-4, 7-5;
Sarah Metler lost to Elva Castelazo, 8-3; Priscilla Levario
lost to Madeline Boles, 8-0; Veronica Valenzuela lost to
Stacy Stone, 8-1.

Boys Doubles
Graham and J. Lam defeated Presly and Nathan, 8-6; D. Lam
and Cylia lost to Demling and Jarrett, 8-1.

Pecos hosting area `C' meet Saturday

PECOS, Feb. 4 -- The Pecos Aquatic Club will be hosting the
annual West Texas `C' swim meet this Saturday morning at the
Pecos High School natatorium.

The meet is for `C' level swimmers from ages 8-18 from
around the Permian Basin. The `A' and `B' division finals
will be held later in Midland.

Pecos' `B' and `C' swimmers competed recently in a meet put
on by the Odessa Aquatic Club at Permian High School.
Earning first place finishes in at least one event were
Jessica Fobbs, Catherine Minjarez, Teddie Salcido and
Rebecca Wein on the girls' side, and Daniel Quintana and
Will Oglesby on the boys' side.

Results for the meet are listed below:

Girls
8 and Under
Jessica Fobbs -- 1st in 25 yard butterfly; 3rd in 25
breaststroke; 3rd in 50 freestyle; 4th in 25 free.
10 and Under
Cathy Minjarez -- 1st in 50 yard backstroke; 1st in 100
freestyle; 2nd in 50 breaststroke; 2nd in 50 butterfly.
Teddie Salcido -- 1st in 100 individual medley; 2nd in 100
free; 4th in 50 back; 5th in 50 breaststroke; 7th in 50 fly.
Sara Wein -- 3rd in 50 breaststroke; 4th in 50 free; 9th in
100 free; 12th in 50 back; 9th in 100 ind. medley.
Michelle Wein -- 5th in 50 free; 14th in 50 back; 10th in
100 free.
Lindsey Shaw -- 3rd in 50 back; 6th in 100 free; 7th in 50
free; 8th in 50 fly.
Korto Darpolar -- 8th in 50 free; 19th in 50 back; 15th in
50 fly.
Ashley Mendoza -- 4th in 100 free; 5th in 100 ind. medley;
6th in 50 fly; 9th in 50 breaststroke; 11th in 50 back.
Pecos `A' (Mendoza, S. Wein, Salcido, Minjarez) -- 1st in
200 freestyle relay.
Pecos `B' (M. Wein, Fobbs, Darpolar, Shaw) -- 5th in 200
free relay.
11-12
Lauren Wein -- 2nd in 50 butterfly; 4th in 50 backstroke;
4th in 100 ind. medley; 6th in 100 freestyle; 8th in 50
free.
Jessica Minjarez -- 4th in 50 breaststroke; 5th in 100
free; 6th in 50 free; 6th in 50 fly; 6th in 100 ind. medley.
Kelsey Flores -- 7th in 100 ind. medley; 9th in 50
breaststroke; 9th in 50 fly; 10th in 50 free; 12th in 50
back.
Christina Clary -- 7th in 50 breaststroke; 8th in 100 id.
medley.
Pecos `A' (Flores, Clary, Wein, Minjarez) -- 2nd in 200
freestyle relay.
13-14
Rebecca Wein -- 1st in 200 individual medley; 2nd in 50
freestyle; 2nd in 50 butterfly.
11-18
Rebecca Wein -- 1st in 100 backstroke; 1st in 200 ind.
medley.
Boys
8 and Under
Josh Elliott -- 5th in 25 yard butterfly; 7th in 25
backstroke; 8th in 25 freestyle; 10th in 50 free.
Matthew Oglesby -- 2nd in 25 fly; 5th in 50 free.
Michael Wein -- 8th in 25 back; 8th in 25 breaststroke; 9th
in 25 free; 11th in 50 free.

10 and Under
Matt Elliott -- 2nd in 50 butterfly; 4th in 50 freestyle;
5th in 100 ind. medley; 7th in 50 backstroke; 7th in 50
breaststroke.
Matthew Oglesby -- 5th in 50 free; 8th in 50 back.
Roger Quintana -- 4th in 100 free; 6th in 50 free; 8th in
50 breaststroke; 8th in 100 ind. medley; 10th in 50 back.
Trevor Eichorst -- 9th in 50 free; 11th in 50 back.
Pecos `A' (Quintana, Oglesby, J. Elliott, M. Elliott) --
2nd in 200 freestyle relay.
11-12
Daniel Quintana -- 1st in 100 freestyle; 3rd in 50
backstroke; 3rd in 50 breaststroke; 3rd in 100 butterfly;
3rd in 100 ind. medley.
Will Oglesby -- 1st in 100 fly; 1st in 100 ind. medley; 2nd
in 50 back; 4th in 100 free; 5th in 50 breaststroke.
K.W. Winkles -- 5th in 50 free; 6th in 50 back; 7th in 50
breaststroke; 7th in 100 ind. medley; 9th in 100 free.
Max Key -- 2nd in 100 fly; 5th in 100 free; 5th in 100 ind.
medley; 6th in 50 breaststroke; 7th in 50 back.
Pecos `A' (Winkles, Oglesby, Key, Quintana) -- 1st in 200
freestyle relay.

Girls' softball league planned

PECOS, Feb. 4 -- A meeting will be held at 5:30 p.m. Friday
at the men's softball field in Maxey Park to discuss
organizing a youth fast-pitch softball league in Pecos.

Pecos has just begun fast-pitch softball in high school,
but has no program for younger age groups. The youth league
would be divided into 8-9, 10-12 and 13-15 year old
divisions, said Pat Wein, who is helping organize the
program.

Anyone interested in coaching or helping out should either
be at the field Friday afternoon, or should call Wein at
447-6612.

Security tight before Olympics' opening

By ERIC TALMADGE
Associated Press Writer
NAGANO, Japan -- With a half-dozen heads of state and
thousands of tourists converging on the Winter Olympics,
authorities today tightened the 9,000-officer security net
safeguarding Japan's moment in the world spotlight.

The heightened police presence came as leftist radicals
claimed responsibility for a rocket attack on Tokyo's
international airport, boasting that they ``defeated the
heavy, counter-revolutionary security for the Olympics.''

With the largest Winter Games ever due to open Saturday,
officials acknowledged security is being tightened, but
played down the significance of the airport attack.

Some 6,000 police -- including 4,000 reinforcements from
across the country -- are being mobilized for the games in
Nagano, about 115 miles northwest of Tokyo.

An additional 3,000 security personnel are working for the
Olympic organizing committee.

``We have been reinforcing and increasing our security
measures at each of the related facilities,'' organizing
committee spokesman Ko Yamaguchi said today.

But he added that the tightened security was not a response
to any specific threat. ``This is a normal security
reinforcement just before the Olympic Games,'' he said.

International Olympic Committee officials also reiterated
their confidence in the Nagano committee's ability to
protect the games.

More than two-thirds of the expected 3,000-plus athletes and
officials have moved into the Olympic Village. An additional
200 were spread out in satellite villages near the skiing,
snowboarding and curling venues in the surrounding
mountains.

Without giving dates, Yamaguchi said six foreign heads of
state -- including King Juan Carlos of Spain and King Carl
Gustav of Sweden -- will be coming for the games.

Other foreign VIPs will be the grand duke of Luxembourg and
the presidents of Poland, Slovakia and Finland. The United
States is to be represented by Tipper Gore, wife of Vice
President Al Gore.

Officials acknowledged any incidents would be a major blow
to Japan.

``We will do our best to ensure the safety of dignitaries
from home and from abroad and tighten security at all
facilities,'' Yuko Sekiguchi, head of the National Police
Agency, said today, according to the Kyodo news service.

The agency set up a special force in Tokyo last month to
strengthen security during the Olympics, and urged local
police to keep a close eye on leftists.

The agency also suggested that major airports tighten
security during the games.

The Revolutionary Workers Association, a radical group that
has long opposed expansion of the Tokyo airport, issued a
statement today that it fired three homemade rockets into a
cargo area Monday night, injuring one airport worker.

The group said the attack was intended mainly as a protest
against the airport and Japan's recent decision to bolster
its military ties with the United States.

Left-wing radicals have frequently attacked the airport with
crude rockets, but Monday's was the first attack resulting
in injury.

Though there have been no security scares in Nagano, the
rocket attack at the airport has clearly increased concern.

Local police doubled the number of officers at the airport
in Narita, about 40 miles northeast of Tokyo, from 500 to
1,000 beginning in late January, said spokesman Akihiro
Adachi. They have also set up an 80-person force to
investigate the attack.

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