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Daily Newspaper and Travel Guide
for Pecos Country of West Texas
Sports
Tuesday, May 4, 1999
Eagles to play practice games against Bucks
PECOS, May 4 -- The Pecos Eagles know who they'll be playing
this weekend, but who they'll play in the area round of the
Class 4A playoffs is still to be decided between a bunch of
Panhandle teams.
Pecos, which completed a 10-0 district season on Saturday
with an 11-0 win at San Elizario, earned a first round bye
in the Class 4A playoffs, and will play a home-and-home
series on Friday and Monday against the Alpine Bucks, one of
the five teams they've lost to this season. The Eagles will
host Alpine at 7:30 p.m. Friday, then go to Kokernaut Field
for a 7 p.m. game on Monday.
Alpine also earned a bye this week by going undefeated
through the District 4-3A schedule. Eagles' coach Bubba
Williams had hoped to play a practice game against Andrews,
but their former district rivals will face Midland Lee
before beginning the Class 4A playoffs on May 14-15.
The number of possible area round playoff opponents for
Pecos has been `narrowed' to five, following Monday's games
in District 3-4A and 4-4A. The Eagles will face the winner
of this weekend's bi-district round games between the
runner-up out of District 3-4A and the third place team from
District 4-4A.
Dumas beat Amarillo Caprock on Monday and tied Pampa for
the 3-4A title. The teams will meet in a playoff today to
decide first and second place. In District 4-4A, Plainview
can clinch third with a win over Levelland today, but a loss
could create a three-way tie between Plainview, Levelland
and Canyon in the standings.
Canyon Randall and Lubbock Estacado tied for the 4-4A title
and will coin flip today for first and second place. The
runner-up will face Amarillo Caprock in the bi-district
round.
Cross, Hounshell earn medals at nationals
PECOS, May 4 -- Taekwon Do instructor Steve Cross and
student Mason Hounshell recently competed at the United
States Taekwan Do Federation sanctioned Black Belt
Championships, held April 24-25 at the Odessa College Sports
Center.
Cross earned a gold medal in Power Breaking at the
tournament, his second from a National Championship' Black
Belt only competition. He also earned a bronze medal in the
fighting competition.
"I won my first national gold medal in 1994," says Cross, a
veteran competitor in these events. "But the competition
this year was much more intense. It was really quite an
experience."
Hounshell, who studies and acts as an assistant instructor
for Cross Taekwon Do in Pecos, placed second in his division
of the Power Breaking event.
Approximately 200 competitors represented some 21 states at
the Odessa meet. "It was awesome," said Cross, "It was
absolutely the best competition I have ever seen. It gets
better every time we hold a national event and we were
extremely fortunate to have been able to host it here in
Texas, especially this close to Pecos."
Cross also said that he plans to compete at the next
Nationals, which will be held in 2001 in New York City.
Cubans smash O's, ump nails protestor
By BEN WALKER
AP Baseball Writer
BALTIMORE, May 4 -- When they return to Havana, Omar Linares
and his Cuban teammates are sure to get hugs and handshakes.
A Cuban umpire, however, might get the biggest reception
from Fidel Castro.
In a game full of hard hits by the Cuban all-star team,
Cesar Valdez delivered the most stunning blow. Midway
through Cuba's 12-6 win over the Baltimore Orioles, the
umpire body-slammed and punched an anti-Castro demonstrator
in center field Monday night.
``Above all, I am Cuban,'' Valdez said. ``I just thought it
was the right way to do it.''
Linares and Danel Castro each got four hits, and Andy
Morales streaked around the bases with his arms spread wide
after a three-run homer in the ninth inning.
This game, delayed by rain for 56 minutes in the first
inning, marked the first meeting between the Cubans and a
major league team in the United States. Reliever Norge Vera
retired 20 of 22 batters before Delino DeShields hit a
three-run homer in the ninth as the Cubans avenged a 3-2,
11-inning loss at Havana on March 28.
``It was very apparent they wanted it much more than we
did,'' said Orioles manager Ray Miller, booed in pregame
introductions.
The Orioles, with a payroll of more than $78 million and the
worst record in the American League at 7-17, were already
getting booed at Camden Yards when the exhibition game
became a real slugfest in the fifth inning.
Shortly after three protesters ran into the outfield, a man
jumped onto the field down the right-field line. Carrying a
sign that said, ``Freedom -- Strike Out Against Castro,'' he
headed toward short center.
But Valdez, one of three Cubans on the six-man umpiring
crew, did not stand and watch. Instead, he charged after the
fan.
After a brief tussle, Valdez hoisted the man over his head
and threw him down to the ground hard. Valdez started
swinging, and landed a few blows to the man's head, before
Orioles left fielder B.J. Surhoff rushed in and pulled off
the umpire.
``He wanted to go back and hit the guy some more,'' Surhoff
said. ``I tried not to let that happen.''
``I thought he was just going to hold him for the security
people,'' he said. ``Next thing you know, he was throwing
haymakers.''
At one point, Valdez even pushed away Surhoff. Later, Valdez
asked one of the three American umpires to apologize to
Surhoff.
Orioles center fielder Brady Anderson got a close look at
the scuffle.
``I didn't want to grab the ump,'' Anderson said. ``It
seemed like a fair fight. You let guys fight if they want to
fight.''
Even as police led away the man, Valdez continued to shout
at him.
Three men from Miami who ran onto the field were given
criminal citations for misdemeanor trespassing. If
convicted, they face a maximum sentence of three months in
jail and a $500 fine. A 13-year-old boy, the son of one of
the men, also ran onto the field and was detained, but not
charged, police said.
``It didn't affect us at all, this lack of respect by the
spectators,'' Linares said.
As much as the players tried to focus on the field, it was
impossible to ignore the political overtones.
Before the game, Cuban manager Alfonso Urquiola was asked
whether he was afraid one of his players might run into the
Baltimore dugout chasing a foul ball and never return.
Urquiola laughed, as did Cuban stars Antonio Pacheco and
Linares.
``We are not concerned about that,'' Urquiola said through a
translator. ``We have no fear, otherwise we wouldn't be
here.''
There was a heavy police presence outside the ballpark to
monitor demonstrations, and Immigration and Naturalization
Service agents stood by just in case of potential
defections. By the end of the game, there was none.
Major league baseball personnel, meanwhile, were instructed
to point toward the nearest police officer if any Cubans
approached them about defecting. Orlando ``El Duque''
Hernandez, Rolando Arrojo and Rey Ordonez are among the
Cuban defectors now starring in the majors.
Unlike in Havana, where Castro sat in a front-row box, there
was no obvious presence of American government officials.
U.S. Senators Christopher Dodd, Patrick Leahy and Paul
Sarbanes attended, but sat in private boxes on upper levels.
Castro personally shook hands with every member of the
300-plus Cuban delegation before they left Havana on Sunday.
After the game, the Cubans began checking out of their hotel
a few blocks from the stadium a couple of hours after the
game ended at 12:18 a.m.
Buses carrying the Cuban delegation left the hotel around 4
a.m., and baseball and security officials reported no
defections.
The Cubans were to return to the communist island this
morning.
Danel Castro, picked to play shortstop instead of star
German Mesa, hit two triples and scored four times. His
two-run triple keyed a four-run second inning as Cuba batted
around.
Linares, who hit three home runs in Cuba's gold
medal-clinching victory in the 1996 Olympics at Atlanta,
went 4-for-4 and walked twice. Morales and Ariel Pestano had
three of Cuba's 18 hits, the most against the Orioles since
opening day.
Harold Baines hit a two-run double in the first, right after
the rain delay. But little else went right for starter Scott
Kamieniecki or the Orioles.
Orioles pitchers never retired the Cubans in order, and
Baltimore first baseman Calvin Pickering made three errors.
Albert Belle went 0-for-3 and struck out twice. After the
game, he was not seen in the Orioles' line as the teams
shook hands.
A cluster of Cuban fans behind their team's third-base
dugout spent the night waving flags and banners, blowing
whistles and dancing.
After the final out, the Cubans celebrated on the mound with
a Cuban flag. Several Cuban players saluted their fans as
they left the field.
Pecos Enterprise
York M. "Smokey" Briggs, Publisher
Division of Buckner News Alliance, Inc.
324 S. Cedar St., Pecos, TX 79772
Phone 915-445-5475, FAX 915-445-4321
e-mail news@pecos.net
Associated Press text, photo, graphic, audio and/or video material shall not be published, broadcast, rewritten for broadcast or publication or redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium.
Copyright 1999 by Pecos Enterprise
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