The Akron Beacon Journal from Akron, Ohio • Page 13

Akron Beacon Journal Sports Horse racing Scorelinc: 375-8057 Sunday, October 12, 1980 ID) force llltfl flllS Win, Opinion f. Tom Melody Luzinski, Rose team to even playoff series iimuwimu i i aim mmmn; jjmuniM i.ujiii.u win i mmwuiimii.iiii i miiiiu wi mi wmumii I 4 i iff i Jj. i si ii i I HOUSTON (JP) After nine confusing, controversial innings with no decision in sight, Philadelphia slugger Greg Luzinski suddenly settled the issue with a game-winning double in the 10th inning that gave the Phillies a 5-3 victory over Houston Saturday and kept them alive in the National League playoff series. The Phillies, who had been six outs away from elimination, went to Luzinski as a pinch hitter, and he provided the game-winning hit for the second time in the best-of-five series. But when asked to comment on his dramatic double to the left field corner, Luzinski had little to say.

"I don't want to talk," he said, apparently angered by not being in the starting lineup. "I hit a double, Pete Rose scored on a heck of a play. We won and that's all I've got to say." PHILADELPHIA manager Dallas Green had replaced Luzinski in left field with Lonnie Smith, who set a rookie base-stealing record this season. But, after a series of controversial game-delaying plays and arguments, it was Luzinski who evened the series at 2-2 and forced tonight's deciding game in the Astrodome (8 p.m., Channels 5 and 23). Green said situations earlier in the game prevented him from going to Luzinski, "but that made it nice to have him there when I needed him." Luzinski's double scored Rose from first base with the go-ahead run after the Phillies had trailed twice in the game.

Left fielder Jose Cruz threw the ball to shortstop Rafael Landestoy, whose relay to the plate bounced in front of Astros backup catcher Bruce Bochy as Rose barreled into him. "Bochy was blocking the plate but he didn't have the ball," Rose said of his game-winning run. "That was the key to that play. He was concentrating on the ball. If he had the ball, he could have planted me." Rose gave credit to third base coach Lee Elia on the play.

"He saw the relays were coming up short in the outfield and gave me the green light," Rose said. "If it wasn't for ame him, I would have stopped. He showed plenty of courage in his decision." LUZINSKI, who hit the game-winning home run in the series opener, then scored the fifth run on Manny Trillo's double off loser Joe Sambito. The probable pitchers for tonight's game, which will decide whether the Astros or Phillies open the World Series Tuesday night against American League champion Kansas City, are rookie Marty Bystrom for Philadelphia and either Ken Forsch or Nolan Ryan for Houston. After the Phillies' rally, reliever Tug McGraw came in and protected the lead.

The Astros had tied the score 3-3 in the ninth off reliever Warren Brusstar on a walk to Landestoy, a sacrifice by Sambito and Terry Puhl's single to right field. It was the third consecutive inning game between the teams and marked the first time in playoff history that three games in a row had gone extra innings. The Phils had taken a 3-2 lead with three runs in the eighth, ending a scoreless streak of 18 innings. PHILADELPHIA got three consecutive singles off Houston starter Vern Ruhle in the eighth. The third hit, a single by Rose, scored Greg Gross with the Phils' first run and relief pitcher Dave Smith then yielded a single to Schmidt as the tying run scored.

Sambito came in and struck out Bake McBride, but Trillo hit a low liner See PHILS, page B13 N. L. PLAYOFFS Game 1: Phillies 3, Astros 1 Game 2: Astros 7, Phillies 4 Game 3: Astros 1, Phillies 0 Game 4: Phillies 5, Astros 3 TODAY Game 5: Philadelphia (Bystrom 5-0) at Houston (Ryan 11-10), 8 p.m. gest massacre ever, a 128-0 slaughter of Oberlin in 1916. As it was, the 63-0 pasting of the Wildcats, before a disappointing and dismayed Homecoming crowd of only at Dyche Stadium, was the biggest ever by a Buckeye team over Northwestern in 53 meetings.

It wasn't the worst setback in modern times for the beleaguered Wildcats, who seem to have outlived their usefulness in the Big Ten. Michigan adminis- See BUCKEYES, page B6 Philadelphia reliever Tug McGraw jumps for joy after final out Buckeyes' 63-0 romp just an athletic farce Thornton dares to be different Usually it is easy, usually an athlete is an athlete. And so the sportswriter trots out his stock questions, then does the best he can with what he gets stock answers. Yes, usually it is that way, usually it is easy. It is not that way, though, not at all, when the athlete is Andre Thornton, called by some those who find his way excessive God's First Baseman.

Go ahead and test him, go ahead and ask him about the knee surgery that made it impossible for him to play for the Cleveland Indians this season. Your basic athlete would whine and squirm, he'd tell you how much he missed the good, ol' boys in the clubhouse, how terrible it was that he was unable to assist his team. But not Andre Thornton. "I thank God for this year," he said. "Out of everything, comes a blessing.

"I was given quality time that my profession rarely allows, time to be with my wife while we await our baby, time to spend with my son, Andy." io embarrassment Andre Thornton says such things quietly, without embarrassment, as though there is nothing else that he an athlete should say. And so it is when he is preaching, a Bible ever in his left hand. He came to town Saturday, accompanied by 7-year-old Andy, to speak at the first Youth Day sponsored by the University of Akron chapter of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. No more than 100 gathered in the bleachers at Derby Downs to hear him, but this did not seem to dilute his enthusiasm. He spoke for approximately 30 minutes, stood unwavering as an ugly wind pounded against his tender knee.

His theme was The Uniqueness of Our Savior, Jesus Christ," but it was difficult not to consider another theme, the uniqueness of this first baseman, Andre Thornton. Later on, after he had spoken, Andre Thornton talked some about this, about what it is like to be differ ent. "As an athlete, I am bombarded with questions about the way I live, about the things I believe," he said "Some like me, some don't like me, because of my stand with Christ." And, he said, he knows why it is that he is bombarded with questions, why he seems to be unique. "People have a low opinion of ath- etes," Andre Thornton said. "People think of them as boozers, things like that." Sometimes, he said, he will be asked if there are any other Chris tians in professional sport.

Sure, there are others, he said. although there might not be any as eager as he to express their beliefs. Tragic death There has been talk that Andre Thornton "got religion" because of a catastrophic occurrence, the death of his wife and 2-year-old daughter in a traffic accident on the Pennsylvania Turnpike three years ago this week. He and Andy were only slightly injured. This is not so, he said.

"I have been doing this for eight, maybe nine, years," he said. And once he told Bob Nold, the Beacon Journal's baseball writer, "I have made my stand and that's why the world never will like Andre Thornton." Maybe that is why, in a profes sional career reaching back to 1967, he had been the property of Philadelphia, Atlanta, Chicago's Cubs, Montreal and Cleveland. Now, he suspects, he will be asked to leave once again. "Some changes have to be made by the Indians and you do not get quality players unless you trade qual ity players, he said. "I can only hope that I am still in their plans but I have no way of knowing." Anyway, he said, such things are in God's hands, not the Indians'.

"He will put me in the right place to do what He wants me to do," Andre Thornton said. An unusual statement, to be sure, yet a way of life for Andre Thornton, an unusual athlete. FOOTBALL FOCUS How the top 20 fared Here's how the Associated Press' Top 20 maior college football teams fared Saturday: 1. Alabama (5-0) beat Rutgers 17-13. 2.

So. California (4-0) played Arizona in night game. 3. Texas (5-0) beat Oklahoma 20-13. 4.

Pittsburgh (4-1) lost to Florida St. 36-22. 5. UCLA (5-0) beat Stanford 35-21. 6.

Georgia (5-0) beat Mississippi 28-21. 7. Notre Dame (4-0) beat Miami, 32- 14. 8. Carolina (5-0) beat Wake Forest 27-9.

9. Ohio State (4-1) beat Northwestern 63-0. 10. Nebraska (4-1) beat Kansas 54-0. 11.

Florida St. (5-1) beat Pittsburgh 36-22. 12. Oklahoma (2-2) lost to Texas 20-13. 13.

Miami, Fla. (4-1) lost to Notre Dame 32- 14. 14. Penn St. (4-1) beat Maryland 24-10.

15. Arkansas (3-1) played Wichita St. in night game. 16. Stanford (4-2) lost to UCLA 35-21.

17. S. Carolina (5-1) beat Duke 20-7. 18. Baylor (4-0) played So.

Methodist in night game. 19. Missouri (4-1) beat Oklahoma St. 30-7. 20.

So. Methodist (4-0) played Baylor in night game. Associated Press One streak over Central's Michigan's 23-game unbeaten streak came to an end in a 24-9 loss to Ohio U. Page B5. Another almost ends Alabama's 25-game unbeaten streak just barely survived in a 17-13 victory over upstart Rutgers.

Page B8. The XFLHeek 6 Will Jim Zorn again be a thorn in the Browns' side. A look at the Browns-Seahawks games plus NFL statistics and predictions. Page B14. Beacon page Bl WMU's Bob Phillips Roger Phcgley, Bill Laimboer and Don Ford.

Those are the players who carried the fight to the New Jersey Nets in the fourth period Saturday night in the home opener at the Coliseum. Although their efforts produced another defeat, the 99-96 loss bore almost no relationship to the 130-103 holocaust Kent is beaten on late TD pass By John Seaburn Beacon Journal staff writer The only tie Ron Blackledge wanted to see this weekend was the one around his shirt collar as he attended church today. On the other hand, he said, he might have accepted a 21-21 deadlock in Kent State's Mid-American Conference battle Saturday with Western Michigan. Certainly, he wasn't pleased with the 28-21 victory the Broncos wrested from the Flashes with 14 seconds to play before a homecoming crowd of 7,186 at Dix Stadium. "We lost opportunities and we didn't score when we should have," Blackledge said as his Flashes dropped to 1-4 overall and 1-2 in the MAC.

"It's too bad we had to lose one that way. We just let it get away." LIKE MANY coaches in similar situations, Western Michigan's Elliott Uzelac said he breathed a sigh of relief when quarterback Tom George hit split end Bob Phillips with a 23-yard touchdown pass that broke the tie with 14 seconds to play in the game. Alton Laupp added the conversion and the win moved the Broncos (4-2, 3-1) to within a half a game of league-leading Central Michigan, which lost 24-9 to Ohio U. The first two quarters featured 98 yards in penalties, four lost fumbles, a pair of interceptions that By Jack Patterson Beacon Journal staff writer EVANSTON, m. It wasn't a football game, it was an execution.

It wasn't even an athletic contest. It was a farce. Ohio State defeated the University of Northwestern 63-0 here Saturday and, really, it wasn't all that close. If Ohio State coach Earle Bruce hadn't finally called off the dogs at the start of the second half, with Northwestern trailing 42-0, the final score might well have approached the Buckeyes big Journal photo by Ron Kuner (95) after winning TD New Jersey visited upon Cleveland Friday night at Boston in the first game of the season. At this rate, the Cavaliers will be playing well enough to perform in public.

They did not really have to do that Saturday night. Only 5,731 customers showed up to see them, the smallest number in seven Coliseum openers and See CAVS, page B13 Punt to Pat late in the University 21-10 Saturday The Freeman's after Akron Zips had offense the Rubber But Padrutt's off the Zips THE Conference league and "I touchdown coach Jim Until opponent's "Then off and "That's THE return key Akron win By Dan Thorn Beacon Journal staff writer Snow's 41-yard punt return for a touchdown third quarter was the spark that the of Akron needed to beat Eastern Michigan afternoon. Zips scored initially on quarterback Tom 6-yard run, which capped a 69-yard drive took the opening kickoff. However, the fallen behind by the third quarter as their showed a homecoming crowd of about 6,000 in Bowl very little after the opening score. Snow's punt return, made possible by Mark block on Hurons' punter Rich Hanschu, put ahead to stay.

Akron scored an insurance touchdown in the fourth period. VICTORY, which counts in the Ohio Valley for Akron puts the Zips at 2-1-1 in the 3-2-1 overall. thought we showed good spirit in driving to the after taking the opening kickoff," Zips Dennison said. that touchdown, the Zips had not crossed an goal line for 13 quarters. we recovered their fumble after we kicked couldn't do anything," Dennison continued.

where I think we lost our offensive thrust." HURONS took advantage of that situation See PUNT, page Bl a'' See KENT, Cavs lose home opener to sports special Beacon Journal staff writer Bob Nold and our Super Fans panel both have some thoughts on the Cleveland Indians' 1980 season, page B12. Also inside Genuine Risk's caiver may be over, page B2. Firestone finally beats East, page B10. By Sheldon Ocker Beacon Journal staff writer It would be a deadly cliche if it weren't so true: It isn't important who starts the basketball game; what counts is who's in at the finish. In that case, the most important Cavaliers at this moment are Mike Mitchell, Bill Robinzine, Randy Smith,.