The Palm Beach Post from West Palm Beach, Florida • Page 57

P.S., TV Listings, D8 Outdoors, D2 SECTION THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 1983 The Post Free Agent Sowell Is Playing So Well for the Dolphins Strock, USFL Showboats Are Close to Terms By Dave George Staff Writer MIAMI Robert Sowell bad one football career cruely ripped from his grasp a few years back. But the one he got in return this week has more than made up for that disappointment, giving him the same fast-forward thrill enjoyed by rock stars whose first record goes gold. personnel. "The time has come to make a decision. We've made some outstanding offers, as good as anybody could.

We're expecting a decision tonight or at the very latest tomorrow. Then we could set up something and fly him in. We've just at the point where we've been through all this before and it's time to make a deci- Strock has been a contract holdout from the Dolphins' camp for six weeks. The Showboats said earlier in the week that they were issuing an ultimatum, either sign with the USFL team no later than yesterday or the offer would be withdrawn. Turn to STROCK, D4 MIAMI A Memphis Showboats official said yesterday that he expected a decision from Miami Dolphins free agent Don Strock either last night "or tomorrow at the latest" on whether the veteran quarterback is going to sign with the United States Football League team.

"We're close on Strock," said Charlie Armey, the Showboats' director of player Final roster cutdown day came and went at the Miami Dolphins' camp Monday and left Sowell standing, a befuddled grin on his face an1 a finaor tuMtihina I fjjJS I Dubenion while working out on a high school track back home. Dubenion lives in the Columbus suburb of Westerville and remembered Sowell from his all-state days as a high-school player. He arranged a tryout in Miami, finally breathing a whisp of hope into a life that had gone stale. "I was just staying in shape, waiting to hear from one of the teams," said Sowell, who intercepted five passes as a freshman at Howard and was named second-team ail-conference cornerback. "I was waiting on my special eligibility, something I had to fill out before I could try out with any NFL teams.

Otherwise, I would have had to wait until my (college) class graduates." Sowell, 22, already was tired of waiting. At the time of his father's illness he had returned home to enroll in a technical school and spent a dismal year afterward working two jobs rustproofing cars and unloading trucks at a warehouse. He jumped at his first chance to return to football, going north to a tryout with the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League. Even that, however, led to disappointment. Turn to DOLPHINS, D5 1 C2fS I on his right hand in an- I ticipation of dialing 3r nome wiw me gooa news.

Sowell knew the folks back In Columbus, Ohio for Shula, who more than once referred to him as Robert Little, probably a subconscious reference to the wee wildman's 5-foot-10, 170-pound frame. There were further indignities for Sowell in the course of the exhibition season, like the misspelled monicker "Sewell" on the back of his game jersey. Let it be known that the guy pronouces his name Sew-WELL, as in "He plays so well for a midget." However, things weren't going so well for Sowell until he ran into Dolphins scout Elbert so he won't let them do it." Sowell has that same fighting spirit, reflected in the way he beat odds that probably were even longer by making the Dolphins. He chiseled out a crack in the roster for himself with a suicidal style of special teams mania that isn't to be believed. With every preseason kickoff, Sowell threw both life and limb into the fray, impressing coach Don Shula long before he knew the name of the free agent from Howard.

Sowell seemed to present a mental block water and sewage department all the same. "My dad, he fell in a gas tank at work and got gas in his system and it's been eating away his brain," said Sowell, who played one season at Howard but had to rush home to support the family when his father suffered a stroke and his cousin died all in one frantic week. "He fell in a tank about five years ago where they mix the chemicals to clean the water we drink. But he won't let them operate on his brain because they said the chance of him dying if they operated was 90 percent, Sowell could stand a quick fix of optimism his 19-year-old brother working on the garbage trtick, his 23-year-old sister on welfare and his 41-year-old father, still recovering from his second stroke but back to work at the city I Steve Hummer Sports Editor Sa 4 Goals by Kidd Lift Strikers 5-0 Smallest Crowd Since 1977 (7,024) Watches Team Clinch Playoff Spot Strikers Stagger Into Postseason Manic To Play Finale, D5 By Jon Marmor Staff Wrltar Hudson had an assist, giving him 22 for the season and 84 in his career, placing him third on the NASL's all-time assist category. The first half resembled a scrimmage between the Strikers and a high school team.

Their 3-0 lead should have been more like 6-0 had Kidd been a little more accurate. After 15 minutes of no action, the Strikers got serious and the avalanche began. Teofilo Cubillas went around Rowdie defender Glenn Myernick as if the letter's shoes were implanted in cement. Thus alone, Cubillas passed in front of the Tampa Bay net, where Kidd scored his first goal, and 14th of the year, with Mark Longwell draped all over him, at the 16:05 mark. Bruce Miller nearly gave the Strikers a 2-0 lead nine minutes later.

Ray Hudson looped a perfect cross from the right side in front of the Striker net. Miller, who beat his defender by a mile, skied and headed the ball just over the empty net. Kidd made up for that a little later. After falling down and missing a shot a moment earlier, Kidd made it 2-0 with his 15th goal. Defender Bob Bo-litho picked off an errant pass by Row-die midfielder Jan Van Der Veen, raced down the right side of the field and his pass to Branko Segota easily eluded Myernick.

Segota walked in on Tampa Bay goalkeeper Skip Gilbert, playing his first NASL game, and fired a bullet that bounced off Gilbert's arms. The rebound came right out in front of the net to Kidd and he tapped it in at the 26:57 mark to make it 2-0. They weren't pressed often, but when they were, the Strikers responded with some solid defense. Bolltho came to the rescue with 13 minutes left in the first half when he stopped a shot by the Rowdies' Peter Baralic, who was aiming at an empty net with Striker goalie Jan van Beveren out of position. At the 6:39 mark, Bolitho did it Turn to STRIKERS, D5 fef -s a Mtm" 1 kVfc I 1 9w FORT LAUDERDALE Try to look at it this way: The Fort Lauderdale Strikers just ran out of time.

It finally came to the point where they had no more choice in the matter; no more opportunity; no more options. It all ended last night, in front of the smallest Lock-hart convention since the Strikers' introductory 1977 Brian Kidd blew it. The plot of an entire season was wiped out on the last page. The Strikers have to go to the playoffs. Throwing together the first losing season of their history wasn't enough.

Their goalie and best player spending most of the season trying to beg a ticket out of town wasn't enough. Rumors of the team moving either to Minnesota or oblivion weren't enough. Fan interest sagging like a bloodhound's jowls wasn't enough. Even some roast beef revenge from a banquet two nights ago that had most of this team doubled over wasn't enough. They still have to stagger into the postseason for the seventh consecutive season.

Kidd saw to that last night when he danced through the cadaverous Tampa Bay Rowdies for the first four goals of a 5-0 victory. That assured the Strikers of winning at least 43 percent of their games this season, plenty good enough in this league. At 13-16, with one game of possible import left Saturday in Washington, the Strikers are left trying to recover from this victory. Kidd, sipping an orange juice in an equipment closet after his first four-goal game, had to be persuaded into the spotlight to answer for his actions. He walked slowly past the washer and dryer and spare shoes, to his locker, where he spoke as softly as a child about to be punished.

"I'm not really that happy," Kidd said. "Making the playoffs is no great shakes for the Strikers. You have to set your sights much higher." As two-toned as the ball they boot, the Strikers still are fond of reminding the few still left to listen that past Saturday comes the Second Season. All the dirt of the past has at least been smoothed out for a dubious run at the Soccer Bowl. In other words, what has all gone before was just a five-month exhibition season that is gratefully closing out this week.

A couple other leagues have a similar format, only they go by the more familiar initials of NHL and NBA. Leave all troubles, no matter the size, at the doorstep to the playoffs. That idea came to the Strikers at about the same time as did their name. 7 "I saw a little glint in the team's eyes," said coach David Chadwick, who has to look for the little things. "Saturday (when the Strikers lost to division leader Tulsa) was a demoralizing defeat," he said.

"It even hit me so low that I had to take a day off. It was a confidence thing. If I was shattered then the players were probably worse. "Granted this was against a poor team (the Drowsies are 7-22), but we still had to stick in the goals. It was a nice feeling to get the goals." FORT LAUDERDALE They waited until the next-to-last game of the season to do it, but the Fort Lauderdale Strikers finally made claimed a spot in the North American Soccer League playoffs last night.

With Brian Kidd scoring four goals and assisting on the other, the Strikers routed the Tampa Bay Rowdies 5-0 to clinch a spot in postseason play for the seventh straight season. With the victory, played before 7,024 fans, the smallest crowd to watch the Strikers in Lockhart Stadium since the club's initial season in 1977, the Strikers completed a four-game sweep of the Rowdies this year. It evened the series between the two clubs at 11 games apiece, but was by far the most lopsided victory in the series. Nineteen of the previous 21 games had been decided by one goal. It was a rout from the very beginning.

Kidd had a hat trick by half time to give the Strikers a 3-0 lead and after he made it 4-0 with a penalty kick with 29:35 left ot play, he assisted on Branko Segota's 13th goal at 85:41. Kidd became only the fourth Striker to score four goals, and the first since Teofilo Cubillas did the trick two years ago. Steve David scored five goals when the Strikers were the Miami Toros in 1975. Kidd's nine points in the game also fell just one short of the record of 10 David set the night he scored five goals. The Strikers' victory, worth nine points, gives the team 128 with one game to play and means that Seattle and Montreal are battling it out for the final playoff spot.

Earlier yesterday, the Manic announced that it would in fact play ther season finale against Chicago on Saturday after earlier threatening to forfeit the game as a protest to an earlier controversy. Montreal had walked off the field in a game against Chicago last Sunday in protest of a referee's decision and when the league forced Montreal to forfeit the game, Montreal General Manager Jacques Burelle said he wouldn't let the Manic on the field for Saturday's game. That all changed yesterday after a meeting between Burelle and officials from Molson Breweries, owners of the Manic. Segota also had two assists and Ray Staff Photo by Dovo Hogorty Strikers' Brian Kidd celebrates after his second of four goals This was no time to be polite. The Rowdies couldn't have looked worse if they played with blindfolds, but the Strikers didn't spare any pity.

While scoring more goals than during any other game this year, Fort Lauderdale also manufactured only its second shutout of the season. "I'll take that for tonight," said midfielder Ray Hudson. "This really is the beginning of a brand new season. I'll take that into the playoffs. "You have to be optimistic when you're talk ing about the Strikers.

If we play with the same intensity, we could make it an interesting playoffs." There is a kicker to all of this. The Strikers are alive yet to win the Southern Division and a favorable playoff postion. With a maximum win Saturday against Team America and Tampa Bay shutting out Tulsa, your Southern champions are the Strikers. That's just around the corner from impossible. But with the Strikers fortune in September, it could just happen.

Then they certainly will have to enter the playoffs with an apology. Tampa Bay Fort Laudordala 1 2 Fori Laudardalo. Kidd 14 (Cublllail, 14 OT, 7, Fort Laudardala, Kidd IS (Bolltho, Sagota), 2 SI; 3, Fort Laudardala, Kidd It IHudton, Sagota), 30 45; 4, Fort Laudardala, Kidd If Ipanat-fy kick 60 S3, Fori Laudardala, Sagola I Kidd, Cublllail, IS 41. Shots: Tampa Bay 70, Fori Laudardala 70 Savet: Tampa Bay 7, Fort Laudardala Cornar kick: Tampa Bay 7, Fort Laudardala 9 Foull: Tampa BAy 7, Fori Laudardala IV Ofltldat: Tampa Bay 9, Fort Laudardala a Alt. 7,074 Evert, Lendl Score Easy Open Victories 'I'm never looking for tough matches.

I wish I was able to pace myself for two weeks, but it's better to play well all the time. Coming into the tournament I was practicing well and I thought I was hitting the ball well. We always gain confidence when we win Ivan Lendl jsr 7 1 I I J'1 1 I A "That's why when I win the toss, I choose to receive serve." After that, it was a breeze for the women's No. 2 seed as she reeled off the next 12 games. "She basically didn't have anything to hurt me with," Evert said of her 17-year-old opponent, who joined the professional tour fulltime this past January, Lendl, who lost to Jimmy Connors in the final here last year and has yet to capture a Grand Slam tournament, never lost his serve as he dominated Segarceanu.

He had 5-1 leads in both the first and third sets as he took only one hour, 23 minutes to move into the second round. "I'm never looking for tough matches," Lendl said of his easy victory. "I wish I was able to pace myself for two weeks, but it's better to play well all the time. "Coming into the tournament I was practicing well and I thought I was hitting the ball well. We always gain confidence when we win.

The more matches you play the more experienced you get in any tournament." Asked if he felt he had reached his peak, the powerful right-hander said: "Last year may have been my peak and may be eight years from now. You never know." Yesterday's opening match on center court at Louis Armstrong Stadium was unusual in that it featured two players who are not ranked in the top 120 in the world. However, the brand of tennis they played was worthy of the spotlight. Hie Nastase of Romania, known as "The Clown Prince of Tennis," and Peter Fleming, better known as the doubles partner of John McEnroe, battled for just over threeours before Fuming prevailed 7-6, 6-4, 2-6, 2-6, 7-5. Results, D7 TV: HBO, 1 p.m.

NEW YORK (AP) Defending women's champion Chris Evert Lloyd and one of the favorites to capture the men's title, Ivan Lendl of Czechoslovakia, romped past first-round opponents yesterday in the U.S. Open Tennis Championships. Evert dropped the opening game before crushing Britain's Shelly Walpole 6-1, 6-0, while Lendl brushed aside Florin Segarceanu of Romania 6-2, 6-0, 6-2 at the National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadow. Rain put off the first-round match of Martina Navratilova, the top women's seed. She will meet Emilse Raponi Longo of Argentina in the first match today.

Besides the Navratilova-Raponi Longo match, the rain caused postponement of several other scheduled matches, including those involving No. 6 Wendy Turnbull of Australia, No. 12 Kathy Rinaldi of Stuart, and Canada's Carling Bassett. They all were rescheduled for today. Meanwhile, France's Yannick Noah, showing no ill effects from his knee injury or from the rain delay, defeated young Scott Davis 6-1, 3-6, 7-6, 6-4 in his first-round match.

The injury forced Noah to retire during a match in the Players' International tournament in Montreal, and he later pulled out of the ATP Championships for the same reason. Against Davis, a member of the U.S. Junior Davis Cup team and a qualifier here, Noah's all-court game was in command. The match was delayed for 75 minutes after Davis held serve to begin thfrfourth set. But Noah got the only service break he needed in the seventh game, then served out for the match.

In other matches. Mats Wilander of Sweden, seeded fifth in the men's singles, advanced into the second round with a 3-6, 6-1, 6-2, 6-2 victory over Guy Forget of France. No. 12 Johan Kriek, outlasted Harold Solomon 5- 7, 7-5, 7-5, 6-4; and No. 13 Steve Denton, who stopped Mike Gandolfo 7-6, 6-4, 6-4.

On the women's side, seeded players who won their matches early in the day included No. 9 Andrea Temesvari of Hungary, No. 14 Jo Durie of Britain, No. 10 Zina Garrison and No. 13 Claudia Kohde of West Germany.

Temesvari stopped Jill Davis 6-3, 7-6; Durie ousted Rose Fairbank of South Africa 6-1, 6-3; Garrison eliminated Leigh Thompson 7-5, 6-1 and Kohde defeated Marie-Christine Calleja of France 6- 2, 6-2. "I'm not the greatest starter," Everiedmitted when asked about dropping the opening game. 1 I -fv Tha Anociattd Pra Chris Evert Lloyd concentrates backhand she began defense of Open title by beating Shelly Walpole.