New Braunfels Herald-Zeitung from New Braunfels, Texas • Page 10

'Wednesday, October I9o7 Sports New Brauntels, Texas Page 11A Unicorns clinch 13-4A title by downing SV TIM WAITS Staff Writer The New Braunfels Unicorns are entering the state playoffs as the undisputed District 13-4A volleybaU champion but the Smithson Valley Rangerettes gave them a rocky bon voyage. The No. 1 ranked Unicorns held off the feisty Rangerettes in a brilliantly played three-game match 15-11, 10-15, 15-7, for their first championship since 1964. "There will be no practice (today), not because we didn't make the playoffs, but because we did," said Unicorn Coach Claudia Perry, who was ceremoniously doused with a barrage of water bottles by her team after the match. Their title didn't come without a good fight.

In the first game Smithson Valley's Sheryl Parker made a diving save that enabled the Rangerettes to take an early 5-3 lead. Rachel McFarland put the Unicorns in command by scoring six unanswered points while serving, including three aces. Kelli Davis dropped a long hit between the Rangerette defense and Krista Wright put away a pair of spikes during the streak. "We had outstanding serving performances by Rachel McFarland and Kim Wingate," said Perry. Smithson Valley stayed within striking distance as Tonya Bowling ind Michele Hennigar scored on spikes to draw the Rangerettes within two, The Unicorns got the two back on sen-ice winners by Wright, but the Rangerettes kept coming with another kill by Hennigar, an ace by Stephanie Garney and cut the lead to one when McFarland was long with a hit.

Four errant Rangerettes' shots ultimately allowed the Unicorns to reach their 15lh point. Sheryl Parker passes to a Smithson Valley teammate. The Unicorns began the second game like they were ready to get on with the playoffs, rolling to a 5-1 lead. But the Rangerettes reversed that trend as Hennigar began her turn at serve. Hennigar unloaded two straight aces and Leslie McCoy spiked a Parker set.

A carrying violation on New Braunfels tied the game The Rangerettes went ahead 9-5 after forcing the Unicorns into more errors. McFarland ended the siring with a kill and added one of her match-high Statistics SMITHSON VALLEY Hennigar 2-0-11-6 (2), McCoy 0-3-4-1 (10), Vcwdenbaum 0-0-2-0 0). Bales 1-0-1-1 (2), Parker 1-0-0-1 (1), Schroeder 12), Phillips 0-0-0-0 ID, Carney 3-0-0-3, Sauer 0 0-0-0 Hyatt 0-0-0-0, Bowling 0-0-2-1. ToWlt: 7-320-13 fit). NEW BRAUNFELS Davis 0-0-3-2 110), Wright 2-1-M ISt, Vela 0-0-1-1.

Cook 0-0-4-0, McFarlind 6-0-7-7, Wingate 5-0-1-5 ID. Fcxney 2 0-0-2. (111. six aces. Smithson Valley kept the Unicorns at bay.

Ahead 13-10, Ashley Bales made a sensational dig at the front line that fell safely in the Unicorns' court. Garney gave the Rangerettes game point with an ace and Kim Vordenbaum scored on a kill to even the match at one game apiece. "We had to redeem ourselves for the way we played against them last time," said Rangerette Coach Louise Davidson. "We felt like we were playing for No. 1.

Of course the pressure was off of us." "We did not have as hard a time in our first match with them and 1 knew we had to get ready for what was coming, "said Perry. Wingate presented the Unicorns with two sizzling aces to open the final game. A Rangerette lift violation and a cross-court smash by McFarland had the Unicorns in front 4-0. Later, an ace by Wingate, Leigh Ann Forney and McFarland padded the Unicorns' lead ft-2. The Rangerettes hung close, to within three points at 8-5 after McCoy blocked an Amy Cook hit and Wingate went long on a spike attempt.

The Unicorns began their ascent to clinching the district title when Davis put away a Wright set and Wingate nailed the last of her five aces. McFarland's final ace gave NFL Fall meeting yields little progress in union negotiations KANSAS CITY, Mo. NFL owners, picking up the pieces from the 24-day players' strike, hope they can restart negotiations with the union to forestall new repercussions such as the possibility of postponing the two-learn expansion scheduled for 1989. But the union isn't interested and the stock market problems of the last two weeks, which the Management Council says has wiped out $39 million of the $40 million pension fund surplus, may add a new sjiag to the league's labor problems. At their annual fall meeting Tuesday, the owners did little to recoup from the strike, voting only to maintain a 50-man raster for the rest of the regular season with 45 allowed to dress (or any game.

They also gave teams all einht free moves off injured reserve they were supposed to have from the start of the season, meaning that in effect, they have 13 extra players. But a much ballyhooed proposal to split the season or add teams to trie playoffs never came up it barely had more than one vote let alone the 21 it needed to be approved. The owners did approve two exhibition games outside the United States neit summer. One will pit the Chicago Bears against the Minnesota Vikings in Goteborg, Sweden Aug. 12 or 13 and the other will be the Cleveland Browns vs.

New York Jets in Montreal the next weekend. For the first time in three years, however, there will be no preseason game in London, where the Bears and Cowboys played two years ago and the Rams and Broncos played last year. The owners also set next April 24 as the opening day of the Itttt draft, the first time it will be held on a Sunday. The final eight rounds will be held the next day, making it the first two-day draft since 1M2. And a proposal over whether to allow teams to sell stock publicly was tabled after a long and vociferous debate.

The Green Bay Packers are a community-owned non-profit corporation with 1,100 shareholders but no other NFL team allows public ownership. Instead, the talk was of trying to resume negotiations on a new contract with the NFL Players Association, which filed an antitrust suit seeking free agency and an end to the draft at the same time it sent its players back to work Oct. 15. Jack Donlan, the executive director of the Management Council and the owners chief negotiator, said he hoped to be back in touch next week with unjon head Gene Upshaw. Commissioner Pete Rozelle hinted that without a new labor contract, he might have to delay appointing a committee on expansion, which he had planned to do at the general league meetings in March.

Under the present plans, two new teams would begin play in 1989. Asked if the absence of an agreement could delay expansion, Rozelle replied: "1 hope not, but it could." Cowboys put seven on injured reserve IRVING (AP) The Dallas Cowboys have placed seven replacement players on the injured reserve list, including placekicker Luis Zendejas. Besides Zendejas, who has an ankle injury, Cowboys moved to injured reserve include: cor- nerback Jimmy Armstrong, toe; running back Alvm Blount, knee; linebacker Chris Duliban, knee; fullback E.J. Jones, back; wide receiver Sebron Spivey, chest; and linebacker Russ Swan, knee, These players won't be eligible for six weeks unless NFL owners decide to change the rules. Oilers cut 13 players.

including Allen Pinkett HOUSTON (AP) The Houston Oilers released 13 players and put three others, including regular running back Allen Pinkett, on injured reserve Tuesday to reduce their roster to 55 players. Allen Pinkett suffered a shoulder separation in Sunday's 37-33 victory over Atlanta. Replacement players Robert White, ankle injury, and Eric James, back injury, also went on the injury list. Released were: wide receivers Oliver Williams, Chris Darrington and Keith McDonald; tight ends Mitch Daum and Scott Eccles; cornerbacks Charles Clinton and Tony Newaom; linebacker Tom Briel; defensive linemen Bob Otto and Joe Dixoo; guard Jerrell Franklin; safety Kurt Kafentzis; and kicker John Diettrich. the Unicorns a 134 advantage and the Unicorns closed out the match after hits by the Rangerettes' Christa Hyatt and McCoy went out of bounds.

"We gave them a run for their money. Everybody who went out on the court did a good job," said Davidson. "We just had a few more errors than they did." "I've got to hand it to my seniors. They had an excellent year," she added. Hennigar led the Rangerettes in her final outing with a match-high 11 kills and McCoy said goodbye with a match-tying 10assists (with Davis).

"It was just super volleyball out there tonight," said Perry. "Smithson Valley's serves were just tremendous. They served with more authority and I have to applaud our setters. They put out some miles and kept the ball in olay." The Unicorns wind up the regular season a gaudy 28-4 and finish district at 13-1. The Unicorns' bi- district match is tentatively scheduled for Thursday, Nov.

5 at Blossom Athletic Center in San Antonio against the District 14-4A runner-up to be named later in the week. They will gear up for that match by playing District 28-5A champion Madison at 6:30 p.m. Monday at Unicorn Gym. NB freshmen, JV finish with victory The New Braunfels freshmen closed the season with a 15-4, 15-9 victory over Smithson Valley to garner second place in the District 13-4A race. The freshmen were 16-4 on the year and 12-2 in district.

"It was definitely a learning year for them," said Perry of the 19- member team. "They all made considerable individual progress. Some had no previous experience and I'm pleased with how they came along." The New Braunfels junior varsity New Braunfels' Krista Wright (23) and Kim Wingate (21) try to block a kill by Rangerette Leslie McCoy. (Photos by Deryl Clark) aiso ended its season on an up note, defeating Smithson Valley 15-7, 6-15, 15-8. They were 13-10 on the year and 10-4 in district.

"I think the JV, made up of 13 sophomores and one junior got stronger as they went along this year, "said Perry. Canyon fights off Lady Lions LOCKHART Canyon got a welcome surprise in Lockhart Tuesday night in the finale of the District 13-4A volleyball season. Canyon, bound for the bi-district portion of the playoffs as the 13-4A runners-up, played the Lady I Jons, who were hugging the bottom o( the district standings. But in its last game, Lockhart gave the Cougarettes all they could handle before Canyon came home with a victory. "Lockhart played real well and we responded.

It was just a well played match by both teams," said Canyon Coach Donna Boehle. "The final scores don't reflect how good the match was." With the victory, Canyon closed the season with a 12-2 mark, one game behind first-place New Braunfels. On the year, the Cougarettes are 24-7. Against Leah Krieg paced Canyon with nine kills and two aces. "She was sheer dynamite on the court," Boehle said of Krieg, who recorded seven of her kills in the second game.

Stacey Moeller added five kills and Lory Hill added four more. Jody Tyler, Wim Rittimann and Judy Schandua each chipped in two kills apiece. Schandua led the team with eight assists, with Jennifer Kyle contributing six more. Lockhart played very well defensively, Boehle said, forcing the Cougarettes to find new ways to attack on offense. "They (the Lions) brought back a lot of stuff.

They knew it was their last game of the year and they went all out. They were happy with their play when they left the court," she said. Canyon will have two playoff tuneups before the start of bi-district play, which is tentatively scheduled for Nov. 5. The Cougarettes will play at Leander at noon on Saturday, then will host San Antonio Marshall at 6:30 p.m.

on Monday. Cougarette frosh win district crown Canyon's freshmen volleyball team clinched the District 13-4A title with a victory' over Lockhart on Tuesday. The win gives the Cougarettes a 131 record and sole possession of first place. Team members are Melissa Daffin, Lori Winklemann, Marcy Odell, Kim Koehler, Kirsten Forrester, Nicole Kelly, Laurie Doll, Lori Sutherland, Amy Page, Amy Jones, Casey Scarborough, Sherry Hansmann, Stepanie Ayala, Jennifer Arnold, Kay Bundick, Jackie Cox, Kim Lehmann, Bevarly Natal and Cristy Waymer. Kyla Goodson is the team's manager.

Joy Scharf is the coach of this year's championship team. "There are a lot of talented ladies in this class," Boehle said. "They are a really fun group. They have good attitudes and work well together." District 13-4 A Oiitrict 13 4A Volleyball Tom vv New Braunfels 13 Canyon 12 Tivy 9 Smithson Valley 7 Hays 6 Clemens Lockhart 3 Boerne Tuatday'i Matches New Braunfels del. Smithson Valley 15-11 Canyon def Lockhart 15-6, 15-7 Clemens def.

Boerne, score unavailable Tivydef. Hays 1 2 5 7 8 8 12 13 Twins parade through blizzard of confetti ST. PAUL, Minn, i AP A motorcade carrying members of the World Series champion Minnesota Twins inched through a blizzard of confetti and rice as hundreds of thousands of deliriously happy fans jammed city streets to glimpse and touch their heroes. "I could cry. That is so nice I could cry," team owner Carl Pohlad said as he rode at the head of the parade Tuesday.

With 17,500 pounds of confetti and untold reams of toilet paper drifting from skyscrapers onto the parade route, two convertibles carrying Twins players caught fire. "Flames were coming out of the sides," said catcher Sal Butera. He said hot engine manifolds sparked the fires under his car and one occupied by pitcher George Frazier. No one was reported injured. A third confetti fire broke out under a parked convertible just after the Twins arrived at the parade-ending rally at the state Capitol, but State Patrol troopers extinguished it.

Police estimated that more than 200,000 fans turned out for the start of the parade in Minneapolis. Its arrival in St. Paul was delayed by more than an hour because fans slowed progress to a stop-and-go crawl. Some officers had their toes run over by cars in the motorcade as they struggled to buffer the pressing crowd. Fans stood on traffic lights at nearly every intersection, where the masses were up to 50 deep.

Construction workers waved from girders nearly 60 stories high, and people hung from openings in parking ramps and office buildings. "It makes you want to start playing again tomorrow so you can do it again next year," said pitcher Bert Blyleven, who like many of his teammates was wrapped in a knee-length fur coat. "It's the best recognition that any club could ever want." As the parade headed east on an eight-mile stretch of freeway between the two cities, fans waved from nearly every overpass. In St. Paul, where many waited five hours for the motorcade's arrival, fans nearly mobbed center fielder Kirby Puckett.

Crowd estimates ranged from 400,000 to 1 million for the entire event. Capitol security officers estimated the crowd at the rally there at more than 100,000. About 300 children reported themselves as missing to the Capitol's security staff, but by the end of the day all were reunited with their parents, said Katherine Dwyer of the Minnesota Historical Society's Capitol Historic Site Staff. City Center, a shopping mall in downtown Minneapolis, was closed for about 30 minutes on advice from police, said Suzy Gershow, public relations manager. "People got too rowdy and were partying a little too hard for our security," she said.

Gov. Rudy Perpich gave most state employees the afternoon off and many Twin Cities schools followed suit. Perpich proclaimed the rest of 1987 "Twins' Year." Rodgers selected as ML Manager of the Year NEW YORK (AP) Buck Rodgers says it was an organizational effort by the Montreal Expos that resulted in his selection as National League Manager of the Year. The Expos stayed in the NL East race until the final week of the season, finally finishing four games behind the St. Louis Cardinals and one game back of the New York Mete.

In his third season as manager of the Expos, Rodgers received 92 points from a 24-man committee of the Baseball Writers Association of America, easily defeating runner-up Roger Craig of San Francisco, who had 65 points. Whitey Hercog of the St. Louis Cardinals unished third in the balloting with 54 points. Others receiving votes were Davey Johnson of the Mets and Jim Leyland of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Rodgers was the only manager named on all ballots.

He collected 13 first-place votes, eight for second and three for third. Points were awarded on a 5-3-1 basis. "I'm getting the credit, but really it was a complete effort by the entire organization," said Rodgers, who was responsible for molding and motivating the Expos into a contending team. "We had a great chemistry that allowed us to get through a lot of adversity, and that's nnntOu 1 everybody had a hand and should share in." Between seasons, Montreal lost slugging outfielder Andre Dawson to the Chicago Cubs via free agency and traded relief ace Jeff Reardoa to the Minnesota Twins. Outfielder Tim Raines also became a free agent and did not re-sign with the team until the season was nearly a month old.

Still the Expos' record of 91-71 was a vast improvement over IMS, when Montreal finished fourth with a mark It was the fourth manager of the year award given Rodgers in recent weeks. "It's been very satisfying," Rodgers said in a telephone terview from California. Suck Rodgers.