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

Sports

Monday, February 9, 1998

Eagles end hoop season with loss to Steers

By JON FULBRIGHT
Staff Writer

PECOS, Feb. 9 -- The third quarter was the problem again for
the Pecos Eagles Friday night, though they almost got
through unharmed in their final game of the 1997-98
basketball season, in Big Spring against the Steers.

The Eagles, who have seen third quarter scoring problems do
them in six times in District 4-4A play, scored 10 points in
the first five minutes of the period on Friday, and while
the Steers had widened their 28-26 halftime lead, Pecos was
still within six after a 3-point basket by Marisol Arenivas.

But a 9-0 run over the final three minutes of the period
turned the Steers' 42-36 lead into a 51-36 advantage, and
they were able to maintain a double-digit lead the rest of
the way before winning by a 77-60 final score.

The Eagles' perimeter defense broke down late in the first
period and in the third period, leaving Kara Hughes open to
hit five of her six 3-point baskets. "We had a little
problem out there, but I'm still proud of them. They never
quit all year," said Eagles' coach Brian Williams.

Senior post Lorie Marquez closed out her career with
probably her best game of the season. Marquez had only five
field goals but spent most of the night on the foul line,
going 14-for-17 as part of a 22-for-41 night from the line
for Pecos.

"She just an outstanding player," Williams said. "I'm mad at
her because she hasn't taken the SATs yet, and a lot of
(college) people are not going to give her a chance until
she does,"

Marquez got Big Spring's Marlena Light and Traci
Bellinghausen into early foul trouble, and the Eagles
outplayed the Steers for almost the entire period. the
Eagles took an 11-4 lead off a Penny Armstrong jumper, a
fourth-try attempt on that series -- something Pecos has
been at the wrong end of for most of the season.

The Eagles' lead could have been even bigger, but they
missed several other chances inside, two off behind-the-back
passes from Arenivas. "Sticks did a real good job this
year," Williams said. "At the first of the year we had a lot
of turnovers, but she cut that down a lot."

The misses would hurt Pecos later, when they left Hughes
open at the top of the key on two straight trips down court.
She hit 3s both times to get Big Spring back into the game,
after a turnover-filled start.

The Steers got to within 12-10 by the end of the period, and
took their first lead at 17-16 in the second period on a
three-point play by Keesha Lott.

The lead would change hand three more times before the half
was over, with Big Spring going ahead for good 28-26 on a
Krissi McWherter rebound lay-up after two Ivy Thorp foul
shots tied the game at 26-all.

Hughes' third quarter 3s came early, but it wasn't until
Nadia Cole's basket with 2:54 left in the period which
started the 9-0 run that the Steers had a comfortable lead.

The bulky Cole didn't do as much damage inside as she had in
the team's earlier meeting in Pecos, but she did hurt Pecos
from the foul line in the final period, both with free
throws and with a jumper shot. Cole was 6-for-8 from the
line in the quarter, and on one miss, got the rebound at the
foul line and sank a jumper to put a break on the Eagles
last comeback attempt, after foul shots by Marquez and Shay
Lara capped a 10-5 run that cut a 60-42 gap to 65-52.

Williams was able to get all his players into the final
minutes of play, and all but one Eagle was able to get on
the scoreboard. Aside from Marquez' 24 points, Arenivas was
in double figures with 11, while Hughes' 18 led Big Spring,
followed by Cole with 16, 12 of that in final period.

Big Spring's win gives them a 6-4 district record and third
place in the final 4-4A standings. The Steers will face El
Paso Parkland in the bi-district round of the playoffs later
this week.

The Eagles ended up with a 2-8 mark in district and 12-15
overall. They lose all their starters by Lara for next
season, when they'll go into the new District 2-4A,
featuring five El Paso-area schools.

"I'm excited about next year. I know we're going to be a
young team and a lot of freshmen are going to have to be up
on the varsity next year, but I think it's going to be
exciting in district," Williams said.

PECOS (60)
Arenivas 2 6-8 11; Lara 2 3-6 7; A. Marquez 2 0-0 6;
Armstrong 3 1-2 7; Orona 0 1-4 1; Quiroz 0 0-0 0; L. Marquez
5 14-17 24; Levario 1 0-0 2; Hathorn 0 0-2 0; Thorp 0 2-2 2.
Totals 15 27-41 60.

BIG SPRING (77)
McWherter 4 0-0 8; Lott 4 5-7 13; Jackson 0 0-0 0; McBee 0
0-0 0; Haddad 1 1-2 3; Bellinghausen 5 2-4 12; McLellan 0
0-0 0; Hughes 6 0-0 18; Smith 0 0-0 0; Light 3 0-0 7; Cole 5
6-9 16. Totals 28 14-22 77.

Pecos 12 14 10 24 --60
Big Spring 10 18 23 26 --77
Three-point goals: Pecos 3 (A. Marquez 2, Arenivas), Big
Spring 7 (Hughes 6, Light). Fouled out: Big Spring,
McWherter, Light. Total fouls: Pecos 18, Big Spring 28.

Steers run past off-target Eagles

By JON FULBRIGHT
Staff Writer

PECOS, Feb. 9 -- Pecos Eagles' post Omar Hinojos had the Big
Spring Steers' post players in foul trouble almost from the
outset of Friday's game. But he couldn't do anything about
the Steers' outside shooters, and the Eagles couldn't do
anything with their own outside shots.

The Eagles, winless in District 4-4A but looking to tie the
Steers for fifth in the standings, instead suffered their
first blowout loss over the district season, as the Steers
used a trio of first period 3-pointers to grab a big early
lead and kept going, on the way to a 72-49 victory.

"They were hot and we were not," said Eagles' coach Mike
Sadler. "Omar played hard, all of them played hard, but Big
Spring was hot as a pistol and we were cold."

Both Greg Wollenzein and Casey Crowley picked up three fouls
in under six minutes against Hinojos, who was able to drive
baseline to the basket easily during the opening quarters.
The two Steers would be gone by early in the fourth quarter,
while the Eagles' senior scored 17 points in the first half.
But the rest of the team could put in just six, and no Eagle
could hit a shot from further than 10-feet from the basket
until Jeremy Herrera's 3-pointer with 4:17 to play.

Meanwhile, Justin Myers hit a pair of 3s and Andy Hall added
one from the corner in the first period, during a 13-2 run
that turned an 8-6 Steers lead into a 21-8 advantage.

Pecos stayed even with the Steers in the second period, but
could cut the lead under 10 only once, when a Fabien Adame
lay-up made it 25-17. Chauncy Ford's buzzer jumper gave Big
Spring a 37-23 lead at the half, and that margin would climb
to 54-31 after three periods, as Ford and Hall began finding
open shots inside.

Hinojos would get only two more points in the second half,
as his struggled at the foul liner continued with a 5-for-10
night. Ford wound up as the game's high scorer with 20
points, going 6-for-6 from the line, while Colwey had 10
before fouling out.

Jacob Chavez got open inside for a couple of baskets and
also made it to double figures with 10, despite an off-night
from 3-point range.

"I thought our juniors played well. Mark (Marquez) came in
and did a good job, and Oscar (Luna) is always hustling out
there," said Sadler, whose team fell to 0-8 in district
going into their final two games, Tuesday at Fort Stockton
and Friday at home versus Sweetwater.

The Steers also won Friday's junior varsity game, snapping
Pecos' two-game win streak with a 59-53 victory.

PECOS (49)
Garcia 0 0-0 0; Herrera 1 0-0 3; Perea 0 0-0 0; Barreno 0
0-0 0; Luna 1 1-2 4; Martinez 0 0-0 0; Navarette 2 2-2 6;
Hinojos 7 5-10 19; Matta 0 0-0 0; Adame 0 2-2 4; Marquez 1
3-4 5; Chavez 3 3-7 10. Totals 15 16-27 49.

BIG SPRING (72)
Williams 3 0-0 6; Myers 3 1-2 10; Watson 1 1-2 3; Hall 4 0-0
9; Rollins 0 0-0 0; Wollenzein 3 3-4 9; Cowley 6 0-0 12;
Ford 7 6-6 20; Blagrave 1 0-0 3. Totals 28 11-14 72.

Pecos 8 15 8 18 --49
Big Spring 21 16 17 18 --72
Three-point goals: Pecos 3 (Herrera, Luna, Chavez), Big
Spring 5 (Myers 3, Hall, Blagrave). Fouled out: Big Spring,
Wollenzein, Cowley. Total fouls: Pecos 13, Big Spring 22.

Eagle girls finish sixth in opening golf tourney

PECOS, Feb. 9 -- The Pecos Eagles girls golf team placed
sixth out of 19 teams this past weekend in San Angelo, in
the Blue Division of the San Angelo Girls Golf Classic.

Pecos got to see all six of their District 4-4A rivals in
the two-day tournament, and wound up fourth in that group,
just behind last year's regional qualifiers, Andrews and
Fort Stockton. The Eagles shot a 381-364-745, while the
Mustangs shot a 373-358-731 and the Prowlers had a
377-358-735.

Big Spring had the top score of all 4-4A teams, a
367-359-726 to place third, while Snyder, who'll be
replacing Pecos in the district next year, won the Blue
Division with a 337-335-672 total. The Eagles' other
district rivals, Sweetwater and San Angelo Lake View, were
13th and 14th with 832 and 851 scores.

"Big Spring is short one of their big hitters, so they're
going to be the strong house," said Eagles' coach Tina
Hendrick, who was happy with their play of her top two
golfers, Alva Alvarez and Sarah Armstrong.

Armstrong just missed placing in the Top 10 individually
after shooting a 89-86-175 over 36 holes, while Alvarez had
a 94-88-182.

"Our two top girls are holding their own, and as a team we
came around on the second day and held our own," Hendricks
said. "We've got to get our number 3-4-5 players playing
with some consistency. If we can do that we'll be O.K."

Kim Clark shot a 95 Saturday after a first round of 108, for
a 203 total, while Amanda Hernandez shot a 98-96-194 and
Cindy Mauldin had a 100-95-195.

"I think our goal is to get up there and beat Fort Stockton
and Andrews," said Hendrick, who said she plans to look at
other possible lineups for the `A' team in the upcoming
weeks.

"I've got 11 girls out, but five of them were at the stock
show in El Paso, so I'll be looking at some different
combinations with them," she said.

The Eagles next tournament will be this Saturday, at the Big
Spring Invitational.

Baseball, softball teams start scrimmage play

PECOS, Feb. 9 -- Typical Spring conditions -- in other
words, windy weather -- will be in effect today and Tuesday,
when the Pecos Eagle baseball and softball teams play their
first pre-season scrimmages.

The Eagles will face the Kermit Yellowjackets at 5 p.m.
today in their first of three scrimmages before the season
begins, while the girls will play their first-ever scrimmage
at 4 p.m. Tuesday, at Martinez Field against the Monahans
Loboes.

Coach Bubba Williams will be minus several players still in
basketball, but will be looking to find a No. 2 pitcher
behind Jason Abila, as well as players in several other
positions before regular season play begins. The Eagles have
four full-time and three part-time starters back from last
year's team, which had to forfeit their opening District
4-4A game and wound up missing the playoffs for a sixth
straight season.

Pecos' girls had 18 players out last week and were expecting
12 more out today from basketball, as coach Tammy Walls
looks to put together a varsity starting lineup. They'll
face a Monahans squad that's in its second year of varsity
softball, the same as two of the Eagles' district rivals,
Sweetwater and San Angelo.

The girls will also scrimmage Greenwood on Friday in
Monahans, while the boys' next scrimmage game won't be until
Feb. 17, when they host Odessa Permian.

Steelers' assistant, Jones discuss head coaching job

DALLAS, Feb. 9 (AP) -- Jerry Jones said he planned to meet
today in Indianapolis with Green Bay Packers offensive
coordinator Sherman Lewis again as the Dallas Cowboys owner
keeps the wheel spinning in his head-coaching sweepstakes.

Jones disclosed his plans in an interview Sunday night after
meetings with Pittsburgh Steelers offensive coordinator Chan
Gailey, the latest addition to the line in Jones' ``help
wanted'' line for the opening left by Barry Switzer's
departure.

Switzer resigned Jan. 9 at the end of a 6-10 season.

Jones met with Gailey for several hours Sunday in
Indianapolis.

``We had a pretty extensive visit today, and it went real
well,'' Jones told Dallas television station KDFW Sunday
night. ``Obviously, his credentials speak for themselves.''

``I think the thing that impresses me most about him
professionally is that he's a great game-day coach. He makes
good decisions in the heat of battle,'' he said.

Jones is in Indianapolis for the NFL talent combine,
accompanied by son Stephen Jones -- the Cowboys' vice
president and director of player personnel.

Meanwhile, Cowboys special teams coach Joe Avezzano has
rejected an offer to become the Washington Redskins' special
teams coach.

The Redskins had given Avezzano, who had been with the
Cowboys since 1990, until midnight Sunday to decide.

Jones said he gave the Redskins permission to talk to
Avezzano, while the Steelers gave Jones permission to talk
to Gailey in Indianapolis, where the NFL winds up its annual
combine workouts Monday. If he is chosen, he would become
the fourth head coach in the Cowboys' history.

Gailey, 46, called his two hours with Jones a
``getting-to-know-you session.''

``It was a very informal talk, and it was a great
opportunity for me to get to know Jerry,'' Gailey said.
``I've had a long interest in becoming a head coach. Whether
or not it was the Dallas Cowboys, that's just one of the
fortunate situations that happened at this point in time.''

Jones has had at least eight interviews with four candidates
-- Lewis, Gailey, former UCLA coach Terry Donahue and former
San Francisco coach George Seifert. Gailey is the
``mystery'' candidate Jones has been talking about for
weeks.

Gailey has been the Steelers' offensive coordinator for the
past two seasons.

He drew criticism in Pittsburgh for his play-calling in the
AFC championship game, which the Steelers lost 24-21 to
Denver. First-year starting quarterback Kordell Stewart had
a fumble and three interceptions -- one of them on a
second-and-2 play from the Broncos' 35 on a drive that put
Pittsburgh in position to take a 21-10 lead.

Rather than give the ball to Jerome Bettis, who was on a
100-yard pace, Stewart threw into double coverage in the end
zone.

``There's some things we did well and some things we didn't,
and I'd rather leave it at that,'' Gailey said at the time.
``Sometimes 10-year veterans make throws like that. It's not
what you want, but it happens from time to time.''

Snow delaying Olympics' outdoor events

By TIM DAHLBERG
AP Sports Writer
NAGANO, Japan, Feb. 9 -- It snowed so hard the Board Bettys
were left playing with snow monkeys.

A storm that turned this Olympics into a wintry wonderland
forced postponement today of the first women's snowboard
competition. Men's combined slalom skiing also was scrapped,
as organizers scrambled to find new dates for a games under
snowy siege.

Soldiers wielding yellow plastic snow shovels replaced
skiers on the slopes as snow fell at a rate of an inch an
hour in the Japanese Alps.

The cross-country and biathlon skiers trudged on, though,
following tracks through wet snow that deepened as the day
wore on. Both races were won by longshots who gave some of
the credit to having picked just the right wax to help their
skis glide across the surface.

Forecasters offered little help, predicting snows would
taper off late today only to begin anew on Tuesday. More
than a foot of new snow fell on the Happo'one run, where the
first run of the men's combined slalom was postponed and the
men's downhill -- already postponed from Sunday -- is now
set for Wednesday.

The Board Bettys -- snowboarding lingo for the women
snowboarders -- had expected to race for the first women's
snowboarding gold medal in the giant slalom.

Instead, they passed the time playing video games at their
hotel and going to see the Japanese snow monkeys at the
Kanbayashi snowboard park. Weather permitting, they'll try
again to race Tuesday.

``When we woke up this morning and looked outside, we knew
it would be tough,'' U.S. snowboarder Lisa Kosglow said.
``It would have been by the grace of God to pull this off.''

Indoor sports fared better, as curling made its Olympic
debut in medals competition and speedskaters continued their
assault on records at the futuristic M-Wave arena.

``Hurry, hurry hard,'' American women curlers pleaded as
they pushed what resembled oversized teapots down the ice
while teammates frenetically swept the ice in front of the
advancing stones.

It didn't help, as Canada beat the U.S. team 7-6, the
latest in a string of disappointing showings for American
athletes, who have yet to win a medal.

In the luge competition Georg Hackl probably didn't need a
new yellow pair of slick booties to win his third Olympic
gold medal. He used them anyway, leaving the field in his
icy wake with the two fastest runs of the day to cement his
standing as the Olympic luger of the 90s. The 31-year-old
German soldier from Berchtesgaden in the Bavarian Alps
became just the sixth Winter Olympian to win the same event
three consecutive times.

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