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

Sports

March 24, 1998

Eagles open district with Sweetwater trip


PECOS, March 24 -- Compared to last year, the conditions
will be great tonight, when the Pecos Eagles open the
District 4-4A portion of their 1998 baseball schedule, with
a 7:30 p.m. game tonight in Sweetwater against the Mustangs.
They're just hoping the results will be as good tonight as
they were for their trip to Sweetwater a year ago.

With temperatures hovering around 30 degrees and wind
gusting out of the north at about 40 miles per hour, the
Eagles defeated the Mustangs last year on Sweetwater's home
field. When they meet tonight, temperatures should be about
40 degrees higher, which should be good news for the Eagles,
who were shut out in their only cold weather game so far
this season.

Pecos bounced back to win four straight games since then,
the last a 10-9 win over Crane eight days ago. Since then,
Eagles' coach Bubba Williams said "The kids have looked very
good in practice. They're very enthusiastic and their
attitude's good. I think they're real fired up to play."

The Eagles will probably face the same pitcher they faced a
year ago in their 4-4A opener in Pecos, lefthander Jared
Shelton. He allowed 11 runs on 11 hits in 4¶ innings of work
in an 11-2 Pecos victory, but that was the game the Eagles
had to forfeit a week later, when it was found outfielder
Oscar Luna had been paid a $5 prize for being on a
third-place team in a basketball tournament the previous
weekend.

It wound up costing the Eagles a playoff spot, but tonight,
none of the Eagles are in any eligibility trouble, though
they will face a much better Shelton this time around.

"He's a big kid, about 6-4, 240, and he throws the ball
pretty good," Williams said. Shelton struck out seven Pecos
batters last year despite the rough outing. This year, coach
Tony Heredia said the senior's earned run average was below
0.50 through the first three weeks of the season.

Pecos will go with junior Louis Valencia, 3-0, who picked up
the win in relief against Crane eight days ago. It's his
second-ever district start, having pitched the Eagles'
season-ending game at Fort Stockton a year ago.

Williams said he would also have Cisco Rodriguez at catcher
tonight, with Luna in center field. The two had split time
behind the plate during pre-district play. The only spot the
Eagles' coach wasn't sure of today was left field, where
either Eric Aguilar or Kevin Bates will start.

Pecos, LV seek first 4-4A win


PECOS, March 24 -- The Pecos Eagles and Lake View Maidens
will both be trying to shake off rough starts to District
4-4A softball play today, when they meet in a 5 p.m. game at
San Angelo.

Neither team has made it past the fifth inning so far in
district. Pecos dropped their first-ever district game at
Fort Stockton a week ago, 14-3, then were outscored by
Sweetwater at home on Friday by a 19-9 final score. Eagles'
coach Tammy Walls said she is still looking to improve her
outfield defense, which hurt Pecos in their loss to the
Mustangs.

Lake View, in its second season of girls softball play, has
dropped a pair of 11-1 decisions, a week ago to Big Spring
and on Friday against Fort Stockton. It left the Maidens
with a 6-12 season mark, while the Eagles stand 1-8 so far
in their inaugural year.

The tough part of the schedule comes up for Pecos after
today. They'll take on current district co-leader Big Spring
at home on Friday, then face last year's regional champ
Andrews a week from today.

Golf teams close out pre-district play


PECOS, March 24 -- Pre-district tournament play closed out
for both the Pecos Eagle boys and girls golf teams this past
weekend, with the girls placing fifth out of 10 teams at the
El Paso Invitational while the boys were eighth in a field
of 22 schools at Fort Stockton.

District rivals Andrews, Lake View and Big Spring were 1-2-3
at Fort Stockton, shooting 602, 624 and 642 scores. The
Eagles' rounds of 334-343-677 placed them eight strokes
behind tournament host Fort Stockton, which shot a 669.

Junior Casey Love finished seventh in the individual
medalist race, with a 78-79-157 score. Lee Lyles and Jason
Salcido were next for the Eagles at 172, with Lyles shooting
86s both days while Salcido shot an 85 on Friday and an 87
on Saturday. Dallas Jarrett had an 85-92-177 and Chris Ryan
shot a 92-91-183 to round out Pecos' scores.

Eagles' coach Kim Anderson said he'll have all his players
out this Saturday, when the three-round District 4-4A
tournament begins at the Reeves County Golf Course. Pecos'
four rivals this past weekend, plus Sweetwater, will make up
the field, which will tee off starting at 8:30 a.m.

Pecos' girls played their rounds in El Paso at Painted Dunes
and Emerald Springs, where coach Tina Hendrick said one
round of next year's District 2-4A tournament will take
place, after the Eagles are relocated into their new El
Paso-area grouping.

All the teams that finished ahead of the Eagles this past
weekend were El Paso area Class 5A, along with Roswell
Goddard and Alamogordo. The Rockets won the tournament with
a 700 score, while El Paso Hanks was next at 713 and
Alamogordo third at 731.

"They (the El Paso 5As) are usually the ones that get out of
regional, and Goddard just has some real good and talented
young ladies," Hendrick said.

Like Love on the boys' side, Sarah Armstrong placed seventh
in the medalist race for the girls, shooting consecutive 87s
for a 174 total. Alva Alvarez shot a 90-92-182, Kim Clark
had a 98-95-193, Amanda Stickels shot a 99-95-194 and Amanda
Hernandez had a 111-100-211.

District play for Pecos' girls will begin on Saturday at Big
Spring. It's the second trip there this season for the
Eagles, who placed fifth in the Steers' two-day tournament
last month.

Pecos shot a 743, 10 strokes behind fourth place El Paso
Coronado.

NFL gives Cleveland new team


By DAVE GOLDBERG
AP Football Writer
ORLANDO, Fla., Mar. 24 -- It's official. Cleveland finally
has the Browns back.

Sure the NFL had promised to give the city that Art Modell
deserted after the 1995 season a new team for 1999, complete
with the old Browns' uniforms and history.

But there was still a collective sense of relief when the
league's owners voted unanimously on Monday to give the city
an expansion team and backed it up by giving the team its
first major executive even before it has an owner.

He's Joe Mack, former assistant general manager of the
Carolina Panthers, who will build a personnel department to
scout college and pro players who will take the field for
the team's first exhibition -- the 1999 Hall of Fame game at
Canton against Dallas.

``Two things came through to us,'' said Carolina owner Jerry
Richardson, chairman of the NFL's stadium committee. ``How
strongly Cleveland wanted an expansion franchise and how
they wanted a decision sooner rather than later.

That decision came on a busy opening day at the NFL
meetings.

The owners also:

-- Approved the extension of the collective bargaining
agreement three years to the end of the 2003 season. The
vote was 28-1-1, with Wellington Mara of the New York Giants
voting no and Al Davis of Oakland abstaining.

-- Attempted to crack down on off-field violence with a new
policy that allows commissioner Paul Tagliabue to suspend
any player convicted of assault, spousal abuse, gun
possession or other off-field crimes.

-- Gave Tagliabue a five-year contract extension, to run
through 2005, and doubled his salary from $2.5 million per
year to $5 million.

The Cleveland decision fulfilled a promise the league made
to the city after Art Modell moved the old Browns to
Baltimore after the 1995 season.

But it wasn't clear that they would get the go-ahead at
these meetings until Tagliabue and Richardson visited the
new 72,000-seat stadium site a week ago.

``It was partly what we saw in Cleveland, that the stadium
is becoming a reality,'' Tagliabue said. ``Partly, it was
our conversations with the mayor and how the fans feel and
their desire for an expansion team.''

That brought full circle the most emotional move during the
two-year period when three franchises moved and several
others threatened to do so.

``I was one of the people who wanted to get this done,''
said Modell, whose announcement in 1995 that he would move
the team shocked everyone -- from fans in the old Dawg Pound
at Cleveland Stadium to Tagliabue and other top NFL
officials.

These Browns will move into a new stadium on the same site
as the old one, built in the Depression era. But the team
will wear the old Browns' orange and white and while there
will be permanent seat licenses, there also will be a Dawg
Pound designed for the average fan.

Some major developments are yet to come -- like selection of
an owner and a decision on the fee they will pay to play,
probably between $350 million and $400 million.

But Mack, who will operate under the direction of George
Young, the former Giants general manager who now is the
NFL's vice president for league operations gives them a good
start -- he helped Carolina develop into the most successful
first-year franchise ever when it finished 7-9.

Of the other actions on the first day of the NFL meetings,
the most important was ratification of the labor contract.

But the most interesting was the attempt at a crackdown on
off-field violence.

``The object is to deter misconduct,'' Tagliabue said. ``We
want to help the players keep out of trouble and we think
this is one way to do it.''

The latest in a long run of off-field transgressions by NFL
players include Dave Meggett of the New England Patriots,
accused of assault in Toronto and Tito Wooten of the Giants,
who is undergoing counseling after being accused of
assaulting a live-in girl friend.

Charges against Wooten were dropped when Wooten told the
judge that the couple had reconciled. The woman subsequently
committed suicide.

Meggett and former Patriots defensive end Steve Brannon were
charged with sexual assault in February after a 33-year-old
woman complained to police that she was assaulted at
Toronto's Royal York Hotel. The charges are pending.

The NFL's policy, sending players to counseling if they are
convicted of crimes, has been in place since last August.
But starting July 1, players will be subject to fines,
suspensions or both.

Tagliabue said the tougher disciplinary rules were not
prompted by the case of Latrell Sprewell of the Golden State
Warriors, suspended by the NBA for attempting to choke coach
P.J. Carlesimo. Sprewell's contract was terminated, before
being reinstated by an arbitrator.

But the NFL policy is worded to allow termination. ``An NFL
employee who threatens violent criminal activity against
co-workers shall be subject to discipline, including
termination of employment,'' reads a letter sent to the 30
teams.

LL and girls softball tryouts Saturday


PECOS, March 24 -- Tryouts for both the Pecos Little League
and the Pecos youth girl softball leagues are scheduled for
this Saturday.

The first-year girls softball league will hold their tryouts
at the Maxey Park T-Ball field starting at 9 a.m. for girls
ages 8-9. Tryouts for girls ages 10-12 will begin at 11 a.m.
and at 1 p.m. for girls ages 13-15. Collection of
registration fees prior to Saturday's session will start at
8 a.m., according to softball league official Pat Wein.

Wein said the league's first games are scheduled for April
11 at Maxey Park. The leagues will be divided into the 8-9,
10-12 and 13-15 age groups, and some coaches and umpires are
still needed for the games, Wein said.

While the softball tryouts take place at Maxey Park, the
Pecos Little League will be holding their annual tryouts
over at Chano Prieto Field on Saturday.

The league is still registering players between the ages of
8-12 for the 1998 season. League president Tony Aguilar said
Little League registration forms are available at the local
elementary schools, as well as at Gibson's True Value
Hardware on West Walthall Street, Big A Auto Parts on South
Cedar Street, and at the Reeves County Sheriff's Office.
Completed forms can be returned to Gibson's, Big A or to the
sheriff's office.



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Pecos Enterprise
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