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University Daily Kansan
Friday, April 23, 1954
DON SNEEGAS
Sneegas Aiming for Slam At Drake Relays Tomorrow
The experts who maintain you can't mix sports won't believe this, but Don Sneegas, Kansas, new javelin sensation, has built his throwing arm through baseball and softball.
"Pitching can't help but build up your arm," says the 6-1, 180-pound Lawrence native who will be aiming at a grand slam of the Midwest relays spear championships this weekend at Drake.
"I through the last four summers I've averaged three games a week pitching baseball or playing the infield in softball." Sneegas points out, "I've never had a sore arm, either because of baseball or the javelin."
Sneegas must have something. His winning cast of 196 feet $ \frac{9}{4} $ inches here last Saturday represented more than a 40-foot improvement over his first sophomore heave, a fling of 136-0 against Nebraska in a dual here last spring.
He threw 189-4 for an upset victory at Texas three weeks ago, thereby becoming the first Jay-hawker in history to capture this event at either Texas, Kansas or Drake.
This means Sneegas will be shooting for the sixth javelin slam in the annals of the Midwest wheel just a year after he failed even to earn a spot on KU's traveling squad.
Fact is, Sneegas broke into prominence on his very first road trip last May when he threw 184 feet 4 inch for second behind teammate Jim Swim to give Kansas a surprise 2-1 finish at the Big Seven meet at Ames. There was nothing mysterious about Swim's title, but nobody had heard of Sneegas. He was worth eight points in the Jayhawkers' second consecutive landslide.
His cast at Ames represented the trim local's all-time best until his stummer at Austin early this month. At the latter carnival he beat, Pete Mayeaux, Texas A&M's defending Southwest conference champion, and Wes Ritchie, two-time Kansas Relays king.
Here last Saturday he kept Ritchey from being the first man in history to win three Kansas spear crowns in succession. He again victimized Mayeaux and beat back a new challenger, Marion Hudson of Dana. All four place winners were grouped within six feet.
Now an athlete who didn't even report for track as a freshman two years age . . . serving instead as the Jayhawkers' batting practice pitcher . . . is shooting for the second grand slam ever achieved by a Big Seven competitor. Nebraska's Herb Grote is the only league thrower now within this magic circle. And he is the last of only five who have spun such a triple.
As a high school senior, Sneegas threw 179-10, still a Lion record. As a junior he hit 165-0. He started inauspiciously as a sophomore at 148.0. He tripled as a pole-vaulter and high-jumper.
He credits 10 extra pounds and improved technique for his successes this year, along with that strenuous summer baseball-softball routine.
"The most important thing for me is to keep my eye on the point of the javelin." Sneegas explains, "Coach (Bill Easton) finally has pounded that into me. If you don't watch the point from the beginning of the delivery until you let it go, you jerk your head away and down too soon and either slice or pull. By keeping your head straight you can get the javelin off in a straight line which is the main thing. I've also managed to increase my speed on the run-up."
Sneegas will run into three new and prominent challengers at Drake. Most formidable of these is Benny Garcia of Tempe State. His best throw to date is 189-4, but he fired 213-1 last year. LSU's Bob Childress, who pitched 195-11 for second at the Border Olympics and Joe May, of the same school, who spanned 185-10 at Loredo, are the other two.
Sneegas is an easy well-coordinated pitcher who presses the spear carefully aloft as if he were launching a model airplane.
Lloyd Mangrum and Ted Kroll fired 68's yesterday to take the first round lead in the $35,000 Las Vegas Tournament of Champions.
By UNITED PRESS
What manner of men are these new Pittsburgh Pirates?
Well, in the first place they're really boys, not men, and if you want to find out something about them, don't go to the Pirate roster—because a number of them are such greenhorns they weren't even listed earlier this spring.
And even though they don't terrorize the other clubs in the National league this season, they sure have the Giants scared to death.
It was a typical Pirate starting lineup that Manager Fred Haney sent on the field Thursday loaded with six rookies including Pitcher George O'Donnell, who was making his first major league start. But were they scared? No sir, they made three runs in the first inning, kayoed Giant pitcher Ruben Gomez with three more in the third, and coasted to a 7-4 victory.
Another thing—they like fresh air no more of this living in the cellar for them, at least not for awhile. Sixth place was their niche today and they could go higher.
Young Pirates Terrorize Giants
O'Donnell held the Giants to eight hits, stranded eight men on base, and would have escaped with only two runs scored against him had no rookie shortstop Gair Allie
committed two errors in the eighth inning.
Hat Rice, one of the three veterans in the lineup, drilled a three run homer in the first inning, scoring rookie Bob Skinner, who had singled. Skinner, who recently came out of military service and who never before played anything higher than class D baseball, collected a pair of singles a double and a triple for a perfect day at bat.
Allie, before committing his errors, had connected for his first major league home run. Rookie second baseman Curtis Roberts drove in two runs with a basesloaded single, continuing the timely hitting that he has delivered since he broke in at the start of the season—the first Negro ever to play for Pittsburgh. The sixth rookie in the lineup, Gail Henley, who once was in the Giant organization but never saw the Polo grounds, delivered one hit and drew a walk.
It was Pittsburgh's third victory in four games with the highly-rated giants this season. O'Donnell, who was "rookie of the year" with Hollywood of the Pacific Coast league last season, showed good control, walking only two men. He generally was ahead of the hitters.
In the only major league game scheduled Thursday, The Orioles
defeated the Indians at Baltimore, 4-1, on five-hit pitching by Duane Pillette, who gained his second straight victory. Pillette was given a working margin in the first inning when Baltimore scored three runs off starter Mike Garcia, sending him out of the game.
Whitfield to Run Mile at Penn Relays
Philadelphia—(U.P.)—The 60th annual Penn relays, spiced by the bid of Mal Whitfield for a mile championship, open at Franklin field today with a record 3,212 contestants from a record 511 colleges and schools entered in the 91 events spread through today and tomorrow.
The test of champions begins with the very first event, where Josh Culbreath of Morgan State defends in the 400-meter hurdles.
WASH YOUR OWN CAR For 50c
CHUCK McBETH
CONOCO SERVICE
at 9th and Indiana
A CAMPUS-TO-CAREER CASE HISTORY
"There wasn't a dull minute!"
DICK WALLNER, '52, left a trail of work as he whirled through a year of telephone training. Here he recalls the variety of his training jobs,
(Reading time: 36 seconds)
"Training can really be interesting. I found that out when I joined A.T.&T.S Long Lines Department after getting my B.A. at Cincinnati and my M.A. at Michigan in '52. Long Lines is the organization specializing in Long Distance communications. I was put in the training program, and there wasn't a dull minute.
"For instance, one of my jobs in the Traffic Department was estimating the exact number of calls that would be placed in a city on Christmas Day. My estimate was off by only 68 calls!
"Then in the Plant Department, I made a study of damage done to a certain cable. Found out that the most damage occurred in an area used by hunters. Some special public relations work among hunters helped improve that situation.
"And in the Commercial Department, I helped analyze the communication problems of one of the largest textile companies—it had widespread offices and plants. The recommendations made are now in use.
"The variety in my training has carried over to my regular job here in Cincinnati. My job is to see that good service is maintained for private line customers pipeline and power companies, theater TV and the like. Every day is different
"As far as I am concerned, I've found my career."
Like so many college people who have joined the Bell System, Dick has a job he enjoys. There are also job opportunities with other Bell Telephone Companies, the Bell Telephone Laboratories, Western Electric and Sandia Corporation. This is a good time to see your Placement Officer for full details.
BELL TELEPHONE SYSTEM
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