Albuquerque Journal from Albuquerque, New Mexico • Page 77

"ii" iT nji I I i i i i i i i v. AMlPQVK JOURNAL Sunday, March 13, 1977 F-5 Hippos uv Albuquerque Has Its Own Bronx Bomber BART neap ripp iw-l -if Muccio was born and raised in that of land formed by the East River and the Harlem River, directly north of Manhattan. The Broni is named after a Dane named Jonas Bronck, who in 1641 acquired 500 acres for 200 hectares and the stream filtering into the Harlem became known as Bronck's River. Muccio lived on Sedgwick got on the IRT at Marshall Parkway and got off 10 stops later at 161st St. to see his beloved Yankees play ball at their great stadium.

But Muccio took a non-stop out of the area after graduating from DeWitt Clinton High School two years ago. The old neighborhood is now almost all blacks and Puerto Ricans and for a red-haired Italian kid like Steve, that meant trouble and fear as soon as you stepped onto the pavement. He attended a Catholic grade school, where kids prayed for things like peace and good health, Once at Clinton, you prayed you could make it home safely after school. Before baseball took to plastic grass and free agent reentry drafts, the term Bronx Bombers struck fear in the hearts of American League pitchers and National League pennant winners. Every kid from Poughkeepsie to Pawtucket knew Di-Maggio and Dickey, Mantle and Maris.

Every World Series, Mel Allen's mellow autumn voice could be heard around the world and when television became popular, even the Gillette Blue Blade parrot became synonymous with Yankee Stadium and the Bronx Bombers who did their bashing there. The Bronx Bombers are more the Sin City Slashers today, but in keeping with the line drive tradition recently established by Thurman Munson and Mickey Rivers, there's a new Bronx Bomber on the horizon. He's sweet-swinging Steve Muccio, the sophomore left fielder for New Mexico, and he's called Bronx Bomber by his teammates. '4. i VA 1 'usTW 1 "My freshman year, I got into fights' all the time," Muccio recalls.

"Got jumped a couple of times, broke my nose twice. My mom, she's an English teacher at DeWitt and she wanted to put me back in a parochial school. "But my brother Vinnie said, 'Naw, let him so I stayed. Vinnie is about 6-1 and weighs 240 and he told me not to take anything from them." Them were gangs like the Black Spades and the Brothers Four and a scared white kid like Steve was fodder for their shakedowns. "So after Vinnie talked to me, this one guy tried to shake me down after school," said Steve, who looks a little and talks a lot like Dodgers' catcher Kevin Pasley.

"I told the guy 'Don't bother me, I don't have any "They told one of the guys to check me out and I started punching. It was a big fight. Guys came from nowhere to help me or hit me." But after the brouhaha, nobody laughed at Muccio anymore, but going to school was still like traveling through a war zone. "It was scary," Muccio says. "I used to go to school scared.

I said to myself, 'God, pretty soon somebody is gonna come up and ask me for money. What am I gonna "And kids were shooting up in the washrooms. Guys would OD (overdose) in the halls. They'd try to rape teachers. Guys would attack teachers with chairs and try to stab them, especially when grades were about to come out.

"But, you know, I liked going there by my senior year. After I graduated, I really missed it." Muccio joined a distinguished list of Clinton grads, like Sugar Ray Robinson, Dolph Schayes, Eddie Lopat, Nate Archibald, Lobo baseball Coach Vince Cappelli, Butch Lee, Steve Sheppard, Lobo basketballer Billy Reid and even state school Superintendent Leonard DeLayo. Vr: "fi Ft iff i Ok liX JL 1 if -mi Muccio was a tight end on Clinton's football team and' had offers to play at New Mexico, Michigan State, Cornell and Dartmouth. But the 6-0, 170-pounder chose baseball and enrolled at Valencia Junior College in Orlando, Fla. He tranferred to UNM last fall.

"I love it here. It's really nice," says Muccio, who's been drafted in past years by the Reds and A's. "From what I've seen so far, we could have a good team. Most of the team is left over from when (Bob) Leigh was coach and we have only three scholarship players Mat Mahaf-fey, Mike Hunter and myself. Journal Photo by Jin Nachtwey Lobo Left Fielder Steve Muccio "He Told Me Not To Take Anything From Them" play with any team in the show, but his dream is to wear Yankee pinstripes.

"Gee, maybe I'll get drafted by the Yankees," Muccio says. "That's been my dream all my life to have my friends come down to see me play at the stadium and I'll leave seats for them. "1 just want a chance, but if that happened, I'd be the happiest guy in the orld." "Everybody talks about how tough ASU and Arizona are, but they have to hit the ball and we have to make the plays. I think we'll be in the games and we'll beat 'em a few times. I'm looking forward to playing those teams." Muccio is also anticipating a major league career.

He'll Governors Join Recruiting Game nr wirepnoto New Mexico's Michael Solomon, No. 456, Finishes third in the NCAA Indoor Track Championships Auburn's Willie Smith, No. 49, Won the 440 with a 48.28 and Missouri's Dele Udo Placed Second UNM's Michael Solomon Wins 600 "He was telling me about the governor calling John Harty," Bruce recalls. "He wasn't amused by it all." Bruce Kittle was a high school football star, too, a 6-4 1 230-pound defensive tackle who was being active ly sought by a number of college football teams, Melton and the University of Nebraska among them. Melton was telling the story about the governor and John Harty when the telephone Continued on F-10 Los Angeles Times Washington Post Service John Melton, a football recruiter from the Universi-ty of Nebraska, had just stepped through the front door of Bruce Kittle's home on Primrose Drive in Cedar Fa lis, Iowa, when the telephone rang in the den.

Melton hadn't even sat down. Bruce had met him at the door and they were standing in the living room. Mom was in the kitchen, cooking the roast beef and car rots. Dad was in another room. And Melton was telling Bruce Kittle this story about how the governor of Iowa, Robert Ray, was actually calling high school football prospects from Iowa and encouraging them to stay and play football in the home state.

Melton, in fact, was just telling Kittle how he had been wooing a young high school star named John Harty, out of Des Moines, when he found out that the governor had called the kid on the phone. Melton was irritated. WSU Nips UTEP in Indoor GOLF Just COME GET YOURS! at UNLIMITED 2109 San Mateo NE (just south of freeway) 268-9236 SPECIAL of the WEEK Hogan Shoes Overstocked HESS MOTOR COACH CENTER, INC. 13100 Cwitnri tlbuoJcaaM, NX. 1713 WOOD ALL'S 1977 CAMPGROUND DIRECTORIES Thr o' iqn.i1 i.ir p.ir rC CtOf i th.t' ii'i's A-'T h- q'PunclS AlL NE IM OEVA f'CS 150 Pair ot tost ST.

PATRICK'S DAY SPECIAL (One day only -17th) Any Green or Green Packaged Item 20o OFF pion, covered the two miles in 6 minutes 24.83 seconds. That eclipsed the old record of 8:30.91 set last year by Nick Rose of Western Kentucky. Western Kentucky's Tony Staynings was runner-up in 8:32.47 and Kimeto was third in 8:38.31. Texas-El Paso won the distance medley relay in a meet record 9:43.11 with the team of Fred Ongaga, Paul Njoroge, Frank Munune and James Munyala, all of Kenya. The old record was 9:43.16, set by Texas-El Paso last year.

The much-celebrated mile run field wasn't able to crack Jim Ryun's 10-year-old record of 3:58.6. But Wilson Waig-wa of Texas-El Paso won with a 3:58.9. Runner-up was Arkansas' Niall O'Shaughnessy with 4:01.13. Rono was thrid with a 4:02.76. Houston's Greg Edmond edged defending champion Harvey Glance of Auburn in the 60-yard dash final.

Edmond, the Southwest Conference champion and a transfer student from Louisiana State, won in 6.12 seconds. Glance, who won last year in 6.21 and was a member of the U.S. Olympic team's gold medal 400-meter relay team, finished in 6.18. Defending pole vault champion Earl Bell of Arkansas State wound up second to Long Beach State's Don Baird. Each leaped 17 feet 4 inches, but Baird had fewer misses.

HYSTER LIFT TRUCKS For the Best Deal on a New or Used Fork Lift, Call 877-0550 NOW! SALES RENTALS LEASES PARTS SERVICE ESCON, INC. HYSTER FORK LIFTS 4019 Broadway SI 877-0550 DETROIT (AP) Washington State, led by Kenyan runner Henry Rono. beat defending champion Texas-El Paso by a half-point Saturday to capture the 13th National Collegiate Athletic Assn. indoor track and field championship. Rono set a meet record in the two-mile run and took a third in the mile, while teammate Joshua Kimeto, also a Kenyan, took third in the two-mile and Brian Worden tied for fourth in the pole vault.

The Cougars totaled 25'4 points to 25 for Texas-EI Paso, which was trying for its fourth consecutive NCAA title. New Mexico's Michael Solomon captured the 600 with a time of 1:10.01 Saturday after coming in third in the 400 Friday to give the Lobos nine points, good for ninth in the team standings. The Trinidad-born Solomon thus succeeded teammate Charles Dramiga as the 600 champion. The Miners got in an NCAA record high jump of 7 feet inches from Greg Joy in the day's last event. But it wasn't enough.

Joy, a Canadian, passed the 7-3 mark that Dwight Stones of Long Beach State set last year. Third was Villanova with 21 points, followed by Illinois with 16, Kansas with 12'a, plus Auburn, Alabama and Oklahoma with 10 each. Fifty-three teams scored in the two-day event held at Cobo Arena. Rono, a freshman who is the NCAA cross-country cham- EXPERT CLUB REPAIR HourvM'M St. 1M INTRODUCING GEORGE CREAGHE From Louisiana to Albuquerque I have founa people most cordial and very friendly eveTwne'e I go Moving to New Mexico was a pteasani experience for me I have been in sales work tor sevetai years and I like to work with the needs of people I would like to help you sell your existing home and help find that new home you ve always been looking for Can 294-8844 i-' rm- GOLFERS! IT'S CLOSE-OUT TIME.

1976-77 Pro Close-Outs now available on a first oome basis. Get 35 to 75 off and save $150.00 to $250.00 per set. Most sets are available in men's ladies, right hand, left hand, regular and stiff shaft. USE OUR 60 DAY LAY-BY PLAN. The following sets in stock: Ram X.S.

1,000, Wilson 1200, First Flight Phantom, Haig Ultra Dyne, Ram Accubar. First Flight F.T.D., Haig Ultra, PROFESSIONAL SALES PEOPLE WANTED WE OFFER YOU: INCOME WHILE YOU LEARN PROFESSIONAL TRAINING PAID VACATIONS ALL NECESSARY WORKING TOOLS GROUP LIFE AND HEALTH INSURANCE FINEST FACILITIES AND WORKING CONDITIONS OPPORTUNITY FOR ADVANCEMENT COMPANY CAR. PLUS EXPENSES WE PREFER: COLLEGE EDUCATION AGGRESSIVE AND AMBITIOUS PERSON WITH THE DESIRE TO EARN MORE THAN $20,000 PER YEAR SELLING AMERICA'S NUMBER ONE SELLING CARS AND TRUCKS SOME SALES EXPERIENCE HELPFUL. BUT NOT NECESSARY APPLY IN PERSON FOUR SEASONS MOTOR INN, PARLOR A ORC NOON TO 8:00 M. TUESDAY, MARCH 15 AND WEDNESDAY, MARCH 16 Ben Hooan Producer, Ram Brute.

MacGreoor M.T.. Pedersen 100, Duntop Maxtli, Wilson Staff (ladies left hand only), Lynxx 0 u.n., r.vj.M. vuruun ixjp, mwican rrecison, nyoer Lip, Ram R-76, A. Emblem, Pro Dyne, Royal Plus, and more. WE OFFER: 1 Free fit and advice by professionals in qolf.

ORTIZ COUNTRY'S BEST? 2. Indoor range with demonstrator dubs. 3. Swing Computer Analyist to check you for correct shaft flex 0 and proper swing weight. 4.

60 day lay-by plan until income tax refund check time. 5. Complete dub repair, regripping and reshafting service. 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 THIS WEEKS SPECIALS: ShoTS on sale, save up to $30 00 per pair. Zebra Putters, $42 95, save $15 00.

Veioreo Golf Gloves, reg. $7.00 to $8.00, now 3 for $10 00 Golden Ram balls. $7.95 per dozen. TIME TICKING namBwcQN TOOTA 725 WYOMING NE 265-6445 v. -J 0 0 ALBUQUERQUE Albuquerque native Steve Ortiz leads his New Mexico teammates in their quest for the WAC Gymnastics Championship this weekend here.

The WAC meet will be held at University Arena Thursday through Saturday, Mar. 17-19. "We can win the WAC and we could win the national championship," says lobo Coach Rusty Mitchell. "Steve can lead us. He can win the WAC title in several events.

It will be a great meet." Evening competition will begin Thursday and Friday at 7 p.m. with the individual finals Saturday night at 7:30. Ortii made it all the way to the semifinals of the 1976 U.S. Olympic Trials last spring. He was second in the All-Around in the WAC a year ago as a sophomore.

He's a straight A student and is a product of Albuquerque High School. "We've got an exciting team," Mitchell says. "This will be a great meet. Some of the country's best will be here. The WAC is the best gymnastics conference in the nation." Tickets are available at the UNM Athletic Ticket NO PHONE CALLS DISCOUNT 5602 Menaul N.E.

266-3454 OPEN MON. THRU FRI. 9 to 8 SAT. SUN. 10 to 5 A GOLF SPECIALTY DISCOUNT STORE.

OTHER LOCATIONS: St. Ptul, Dm Molrwi 1 Bctttndorf, lowi. 353 on fTloteo Phone 269 Mil EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER 0 000 00000000000.