University Daily Kansan / Wednesday, June 13, 1990
Sports
13
Athletes excel with books Women's volleyball serves up 3.16 team GPA
By Mendy Holmes Special to the Kansan
Ken Collier walked into volleyball coach Frankie Albitz's office at the start of the 1999 Fall semester and volunteered to guide and tutor the Kansas volleyball team.
Albiz took Collier up on his offer and now thinks that Collier's efforts helped provide academic direction to several of her sound members.
The volleyball team earned a cumulative 3.16 grade point average, the highest of any Kansas athletic institution. Vance, sports information director,
"I came from the University of Texas, which had a very strong volleyball program on the court and academically," said Collier, a KU professor of political science. "I had been a paid tutor there."
"Women's athletics tend to not get the resources that the men do. It's my way of contributing to the program."
Albiz, not really surprised by her team's performance in the classroom, praised Collier's efforts.
"Next year I'm going to put the freshmen and two of my other players in his program," she said. "We need to work with them to be forced and be helps with that."
Volleyball players were not the only Jayhawk athletes to score in the classroom. Five teams earned a 3.0 or better cumulative GPA last spring. One hundred twenty-six athletes earned at least a 3.0 GPA
The women's tennis team earned a 3.10 GPA, women's golf a 3.05 women's track a 3.04 and women's
Four other squads, men's tennis and swimming, women's basketball, and the football team had GPAs above 2.5 for the spring semester.
swimming a 3.0.
Wayne, Walden, administrative assistant in Student Support said his office worked behind the scenes to help Kansas' athletes.
"We help with some selection of classes and provide tutors," he said. "Kids doing the work is the bottom line.
“It’s pretty easy for students to find out how important academics is to their coach,” he said. “I don’t think any of the coaches we’ve got would compromise academics for a good record.”
Brad Demo, women's golf coach, echoed Walden's sentiments.
"To do well in the classroom is the same as doing well on the course," Demo said. "That's part of the competition."
perpetuity. Jayhawk successes in the classroom have been recognized by groups outside of the University.
group. The men's and women's swimming teams were selected by the College Swimming Coaches Association as recipients of the 1989 All-Academic Team honor.
KU baseball's senior center fielder Pat Karlin, a business administration major, was named third team Academic All-America.
The Big Eight Conference also recognized the marks by naming a number of Kansas' athletes to the Lee Jean Big Eight All-Academic
To qualify for the team, an athlete
must earn a 3.0 GPA in the previous academic year or cumulatively and be a team regular.
"They must be a regular," said Jeff Bollig, Big Eight service bureau director. "You can't nominate someone who puts on a swimsuit and doesn't get wet."
Women's swimming placed four athletes on the first team, while men's swimming, men's track and women's golf each had three athletes earn that honor. Baseball, both tennis squads and women's track saw two student-atlites honoredby the conference.
Athletes from several teams earned GPAs of 4.0 during the spring semester.
Smith Holland, offensive lineman for the football team and a business administration major, chalked up a 4.0 GPA for the third consecutive semester. Teammate Paul Zaffaroni, linebacker and also a business administration major, earned a 4.0 as well.
Tennis player Eveline Hamers and swimmers Jenni Gabrielson and Barb Pranger also earned GPAs of 4.0.
Three freshmen, Misti Chennault, a member of the women's basketball team, Cindy Lewis, who competes for the track team, and Duong Nguyen of the men's tennis squad also came away with GPAs of 4.0.
"I think, for the most part, the students are good about taking classes that help them," Walden said. "They're not just looking for pud courses."
Celtics name Ford as coach
The Associated Press
Team officials described Ford as "a guy who is truly a Celtic, a guy who has paid his dues."
BOSTON — The Boston Celtics named Chris Ford their new coach yesterday, moving the long-time assistant into the top spot.
goy who has told Ford told a news conference he expected his tenure to be a good time
He added, though, that it was "going to take a lot of hard work and dedication to get us back on top."
He said he wanted a team "that is going to play with fire, passion, emotion."
Ford, the only coach retained for Jimmy Rodgers was fired May 8, two days after the Celtics were eliminated from the league in the New York Knicks, had been considered the leading candidate.
But Dave Gavitt, named May 30 as chief operating officer to handle basketball operations for the Celtics, had talked with Duke
University coach Mike Krzyezowski in recent weeks concerning the job. Krzyezowski informed Gavitt last Thursday that he was withdrawing his name from consideration.
ford, who played 10 seasons in the NBA for Detroit and Boston and who is credited with making the first three-point shot in the NBA on Oct. 12, 1979, as a member of the 1979 along with a draft selection for Earl Tatum. He was a member of Boston's 1981 championship team.
He played one more season and then joined the Celtics' coaching staff for the 1983-84 season. He assisted K.C. Jones and Rodgers.
Ford, Detroit's second-round draft pick of Villanova in 1972 was a member of championship teams in 1844 and 1866, joining K.C. Jones, as the only men to be part of NBA titles in Boston as both player and coach. The latter three were head coaches.
Ford, 41, is the Celtics' eleventh
coach. Others include Red Auerbach, who coached the Celtics to nine NBA championships before moving to the front office after the 1966 season, Russell, Heinsohn, Dave Cowens, Bill Fitch, Jones and Rodgers.
Gavitt, who was Big East commissioner, said at the news conference announcing his appointment with the Celtics that Ford would be given every consideration for the vacant coaching job
Ford, who led the Celtics to four victories in Rodgers' absence last season, will coach some players he competed with or against. The Celtics' corps of aging stars includes Larry Bird, Robert Parish and Kevin McHale, all members of the 1981 championship team.
After Kryzezewski withdrew, Auerbach said he planned to be in touch with the company that he hoped a new coach would be named during that time.
But Ford first had to sit by while Gavitt and team president Red Auerbach with Kryzewski.
Keith Thorpe/KANSAN
Thirty-love
Brine Matthys, Prairie Village senior, concentrates on a forehand hit during game of tennis.
Thomas, Pistons take charge
The Associated Press
PORTLAND, Ore. — The Detroit Pistons took command of the NBA Finals last night, when Isaiah Thomas took command in the second half.
was determined that the shot did not beat the buzzer.
Thomas hit a bank shot with 26 seconds remaining and the defending champions held off a desperate rally and beat the Portland Trail Blazers 112-109 for a 3-1 lead in the best-of-7 championship series.
The outcome was in doubt for just a few seconds after the game as the team lost 3-1 in penalty attempt, apparently tying the game. After the officials conferred it
Thomas scored 32 points in the game, 22 in the third quarter to seemingly put the Pistons in control as they extended a five-point half-time lead to an 81-65 advantage with 2:16 left in the quarter.
Portland, responded with an 8-0 run to close the gap to eight, then rallied further in the fourth quarter, taking the lead on a baseline jumper by Terry Porter with 5:21 to play. The lead changed hands five times before Detroit's Joe Dumars hit two free throws to make it 9:47 with 3:47
to go.
The Pistons stayed in front until Clyde Drexler made two throwies with 31 seconds for a 107-106 lead.
with 32 seconds to kill. Porter then lost control driving to the basket and Thomas was fouled after picking up the loose ball. He made both free throws with 8.4 seconds remaining for a 110-107 lead.
Porter made two free throws with 6.5 seconds and Gerald Henderson scored on a breakaway layup with 1.2 seconds left.
No team has ever failed to win the championship after taking a 3-1 lead in the series.
Ripken unfazed by his streak in baseball
The Associated Press
BALTIMORE - Cal Ripken moved past Everett Scott and into second place behind Leigh Gouhir on baseball's "Iron Man" list yesterday when he played in his 1,306th consecutive game.
tiptips broke the tie with Scott when he started at shortstop for the Baltimore Orioles as he has every game since May 30, 1982. He needs 822 more games to match Cleburne for consecutive games played.
"I try not to think about what has transpired and what could possibly transpire," Ripken said before the
game with the Milwaukee Brewers. "I have to fight the urge to look ahead and don't like to look back and think about what has happened. You have to force yourself to think that way.
"I think I'll be proud of the accomplishment but I don't think there will be a real big, special feeling that comes over me," he said. "I don't like to downplay it, but tonight is just going to be another game for me."
Although Ripken isn't too impressed by his streak, his peers certainly are.
"It's amazing," Brewers infielder Paul Molitor said. "He can take a
foul ball off the foot or get hit by a pitch."
"I'll be relieved in a way," he said. "I've had trouble understanding the meaning of the streak and all the attention that has been poured into it. Sometimes it can be a little distracting."
Ripken, the subject of intense media scrutiny in the days leading up to the tie-breaking game, said he would not miss the tape recorders, notebooks and TV cameras.
when Ripken began his streak the day after sitting out the second game of a doubleheader, he had no idea what was ahead.
Sports briefs
MISSOURI REQUESTS EXTEN-
SION: The University of Missouri
wants more time to respond to an
upper-level inquiry about its
篮球 program.
the program has been under investigation for more than a year. The letter of inquiry was received May 2, with deadline of today for the university's written response.
He said additional time was sought so everyone involved would have the opportunity to review the response.
But Dick Tamburo, athletic director, announced yesterday the university had requested a 14-day extension.
CANSEGO LEADS VOTING: Four Oakland Athletics, headed by top vote-getter Joe Canseco, were the leaders at their positions for the
tee on Infractions, Alan Williams of the University of Virginia, and normally are approved. He said the process should be completed within the next day or so.
um Marchiony, NCAA spokesman,
said such requests are reviewed by
the chairman of the NCAA Commit-
American League All-Star team in voting announced Monday.
Canseco, with S34,B12 votes, was joined in the outfield by teammate Rickey Henderson. Catcher Terry McCoy and pitcher Mark McGiwls also led in the voting.
Kansas City players who placed in the voting by position were catcher Bob Boone in seventh place, first
bassman George Brett, fifth, third
bassman Kevin Seitzer, eighth,
shortstop Kurt Stilwell, sixth, and
outfielder Bob Jackson, fourth.
Other league leaders included Steve Sax of the New York Yankees at second base, Baltimore's Cal Ripken at shortstop, Boston's Wade Boggs at third base and Seattle's Ken Griffey Jr. in the outfield.
Dean Buchan, associate sports information director, said Lavender vaulted 17 feet 6 inches last spring.
Lavender, of Wichita Falls, Texas,
holds the Texas state prep record in
the pole vault.
POLE VAULTER COMMITS: Jayson Lavender, a three-time Texas high school champion pole vaulter, will attend Kansas in the fall.