The Los Angeles Times from Los Angeles, California • Page 155

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 1997 C23 LOS ANGELES TIMES rprn iiiUrp paean PI Voicing Opinio 4 4 on Mess at CSUN Is t's time to put up or shut up, time 7- -A to speak up or forever be quiet. On Tuesday night, from 7 to 9 at Cal State Northridge's Performing Arts Center of the University Student Union, students, faculty 5DNQHEIMFR i Tto i ii r'" FRANK W1ESE Lu Angela Tunw Wide receiver Jerome Henry of Cal State Northridge is knocked out of bounds by defensive back Joe Barnes of Idaho State during Matadors' 31-22 victory Saturday night. Not Does oEasy and community members will finally have the opportunity to express their opinions about the future of Northridge's athletic program. Theopen community forum comes four months to the day after Northridge administrators tried to abolish four men's sports. i It also comes just as Northridge's Task Force on Intercollegiate Athtoties is preparing to offer solutions and recommendations for the program's future.

Said Dr. Keith Richman, chairman of the task force, "I view this as a very important meeting." Such a meeting should have held before Northridge administrators made their 11 jnformed and ill-advised decision on June 11 to cut baseball, volleyball, soccer and swimming. In hindsight, though, maybe it was a blessing that Northridge President Blenda Wilson, Vice President Ronald Kopita and Athletic Director Paul Bubb blundered so badly in failing to adequately consult with students community members. subsequent public outcry forced them to accept the appointment of the special task force to investigate Northridge's many1 athletic problems. The task force has shown real ihdependence and competence in six weeks of regular Monday night meetings.

They've worked i diligently, sometimes past 1 1 p.m.! jhey've asked tough questions and bought out experts to help figure out the mess known as CSUN athletics. And what a mess, indeed. From dealing with an $800,000 deficit to figuring out how to comply with gender-equity requirements to the absence of any long-range fund-raising plan, this is a department in serious need of help. Coaches, students and athletes have complained about being deceived. Please see SONDHEIMER, C24 m(m) Big Sky: Northridge builds 22-point lead but falters in second half and has to hold on to beat Idaho State, 31-22.

By FERNANDO DOMINGUEZ TIMES STAFF WRITER NORTHRIDGE Maybe it looked and felt too easy. Maybe they started putting the game in the bag without checking it for holes. Maybe they shifted into cruise control and nearly lost control Whatever the case, Cal State Northridge's 31-22 victory over Idaho State in a Big Sky Conference football game Saturday night in front of 2,718 at North Campus Stadium was more survival than artistry. "We are killing ourselves," said Aaron Flowers, Northridge's quarterback. "We don't put teams away.

There's no way we can win like this next week at Eastern Washington." The Matadors (5-5, 3-3 in Big Sky play) dominated the first half before allowing Idaho State (2-7, 1-5) back in the game with a puzzling performance in the second half that nearly ended a three-game winning Please see CSUN, C25 rj I y. I II If HIM III Northridge 31 Idaho State 22 Big Sti Betnlti Eastern Washington 31 Northern Arizona 14 Montana 37 Portland State 7 Weber State 52 CS Sacramento 14 Cal Poly San Luis Obispo 20 Montana State 19 (nonconference) Big Sky Roundup, C25 FRANK WJ1SSB Loi Angela Tunes Erik Gardner of Cal State Northridge moves in on Anthony Elgaaen of Idaho State. Moorpark Has Look of Title Contender iQDDffiCl Ell The Cal State Northridge Women 's Basketball Team Is Hoping Freshman Guard Edniesha Curry Can Help Turn the Struggling Program Around "-41 -C Moorpark's Jesus Villavicencio said. "And then our next three or four could take care of things." Villavicencio placed seventh with a time of 20:30 over the four-mile course and Rey Coro-nado was 11th in 20:38 to help Moorpark to its first victory of the season against San Diego Mesa and Glendale. Moorpark finished 36 points behind first-place San Diego Mesa in the Golden Coast Invitational in September and the Raiders were 0-4 against Glendale entering the meet, but their top six runners ran superbly.

In addition to Villavicencio and Coronado, Uzziel Gray placed 17th in 20:50, Alejandro Tinajero finished 26th in 21:02, Efrain Garcia was 28th in 21.06 and Danny Oliva was 29th in 2L08. "We all just raced our best," Coronado said. "That was our main goal coming into this meet." Glendale, which defeated Moorpark, 31-40, in the Western State Conference finals Oct. 30, had the best trio in the race. Julio Serratos finished fourth in 20:08, Rafael Ramos placed eighth in 20:31 and Jose Merino was 16th in 20:47, but the Vaqueros' fourth and fifth runners were 38th and 42nd.

"We didn't hold on," Glendale Coach Eddie Lopez said of the last mile. "I'm not trying to lay the blame on anyone, but when your fifth man is 42nd, you're not going to win." Ventura's Miguel Galindo had the other notable performance by a Please see RUNNING, C2ti Cross-country: Defending state champion Raiders capture Southern California meet. By JOHN ORTEGA TIMES STAFF WRITER ORANGE-The Moorpark College men's cross-country team 4 should think twice about messing with a winning combination. The Raiders won the Southern California junior college championships at Irvine Regional Park on Saturday to improve their season record to 2-0 while competing in white singlets with black shorts, yet team members talked afterward about changing their look for the state championships in Fresno on Nov. 22.

Moorpark's runners first shunned their traditional black tank tops when they took six of the top eight places in the Cuesta Invitational on Oct. 18. The defending state champions were even more impressive Saturdayconsidering the quality of competition when they placed six runners among the top 29 finishers to total 89 points. San Diego Mesa was second with 106 points, followed by Glendale with 108 and Saddleback with 180. The top 14 teams and the top 30 individuals not on a qualifying team advanced to the state championships.

"We knew our top three had to run very well and stay up there," bring herself to a level where she can someday play professionally." Abraham frequently mentions his seasons as an assistant, and no wonder. It reminds him of winning times. Long Beach State was 147-21 and reached the NCAA Final Four twice in the six seasons he served under Coach Joan Bonvi-cini, and Oregon State had winning records in each of his five years there. That's a far cry from his results at Northridge, although he has improved the team slightly from the 4-43 mark the Matadors achieved in the two years before his arrival. As good as Curry might become, she will need lots of help, as Abraham is well aware.

His recruiting efforts reach far beyond the Valley, in fact all the way to Europe. Two prize newcomers are center Viveca Lof, a 6-3, 21-year-old freshman from Taby, Sweden, and Neda Milic, a 6-1 freshman guard from Belgrade, Serbia, who has not played in two years because of two knee surgeries. "Viveca is in tremendous condition. She can play 40 minutes without breaking a sweat," Abraham said. "Neda has unbelievable physical skills.

She is not Please see WOMEN, C24 By STEVE HENSON TIMES STAFF WRITER NORTHRIDGE Coming off another dismal season played before small crowds, the Cal State Northridge women's basketball team needs something dynamic, something exciting, something entertaining. Give something a name: Edniesha Curry. The 5-foot-5 freshman from Palmdale High is a playmaking point guard Northridge Coach Mike Abraham believes can jump-start his program in a winning direction. "She is tremendously creative with the ball and she performs with an exuberance that gets people around her excited," Abraham said. Abraham, in his third season at Northridge, predicts Curry will be the best guard he has coached.

That doesn't seem like much of an endorsement considering the Matadors struggled to a 9-45 mark the past two seasons. However, five guards playing professionally are products of Oregon State and Long Beach State during the 11 seasons Abraham served as an assistant at those schools. "Edniesha loves to play and that's something that's been missing around here," he said. "She has a true dedication to JUS JOEL P. LUGAVEKE.

Angela Time 'Edniesha loves to play and that's something that's been missing around here. She has a true dedication to bring herself to a level where she can someday play NORTHRIDGE COACH MIKE ABRAHAM on guard Edniesha Curry, above.