Florida Today from Cocoa, Florida • Page 20

2C FLORIDA TODAY, Monday, February 19, 1990 mama mmm AP names Montana! ooo shock Dawtoiia 500 Athlete of the Year "Earnhardt loses race, blows tire on final lap air COPE, From 1C FROM SPORTS FRONT PAGE JACKSON MONTANA 1 Joe Montana, who had the best season of any quarterback in NFL history in leading the San Francisco 49ers to their fourth Super Bowl victory, has been named The Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year for 1989. Montana began the year by capping a 92-yard drive with a 10-yard touchdown pass to John Taylor with 34 seconds remaining in the game to beat Cincinnati for the 49ers' third Super Bowl victory. During the 1989 regular season, Montana threw 26 touchdown passes with eight interceptions in leading San Francisco to a 14-2 record. And although it didn't count in the balloting because it occurred in 1990, he threw five TD passes in the 55-10 Super Bowl win against Denver which made the 49ers the first team in a decade to repeat as NFL champions and the second to win four Super Bowls. Montana won the honors in a three-way race with Bo Jackson, who plays baseball and football, and cyclist Greg LeMond.

He is the third NFL player to win the award in the 49 years it has been given. The others were George Blanda in 1970 and J. Simpson in 1973. He had 36 first-place votes and 253 points in the national balloting by sportswriters and editors. Jackson received 33 first-place votes and 228 points.

Jackson hit .256 with 32 home runs, 105 RBI and 26 stolen bases for major league baseball's Kansas City Royals, and gained 950 yards in 173 carries, a 5.5 average, in 11 games with the NFL's Los Angeles Raiders. LeMond, who won his second Tour France after recovering from gunshot wounds sustained in a hunting accident, was third with 26 first-place votes and 218 points. Tennis player invents eyeglass retainer A tennis player who was annoyed his eyeglasses slipped during play has designed a strapless device to hold eyewear in place. The eyeglass retainers are called WedGees. The inventor, Bill McCulley of San Diego, developed the idea using material from another sport, surfing.

where Victory Lane is before. "I've never had reason to know." His run to the front in stock car racing's richest, most-prestigious race caught most ev- eryone off guard. His father, Donald, stayed home in Spanaway, Wash. The local CBS affiliate in Seattle chose not to air the Daytona I' 500 in favor of an NBA game and a movie. But as Cope's story un- folded to radio listeners in the Pacific Northwest, station KIRO was besieged with telephone calls.

The movie was preempted after 30 minutes, and the 500 was broadcast. "I haven't been a stable fixture in racing," Cope said. "We came here to make the top 10, and we're going home as the Daytona 500 champion." For Earnhardt, whose long and successful career still lacks a victory at Daytona, it was especially difficult to absorb. "I was sitting there hoping to get to the start-finish line," he said. "I heard it (debris) hit the bottom of the car and pop the tire.

They didn't beat us. They just lucked into it. "This is the biggest build-up and biggest letdown I've ever had in racing. You can't kick the car and cry and pout." Earnhardt kept his car from hitting the wall. He limped across the finish line in fifth place.

Bill Elliott trailed Labonte across the line in third place, followed by Ricky Rudd in fourth. "I tried to make a move on Cope, but I couldn't catch him," Labonte said. "You got to feel for Dale. He was the class of the field." Earnhardt led 47 of the last 51 laps. He had a half-mile lead with seven laps remaining, when Geoff Bodine spun his Ford in the second turn.

Cope and Bobby Hillin stayed on the track during the caution to take the lead, while Earnhardt, Elliott, Rudd and Labonte stopped for tires. Less than a half lap after the race resumed with only five laps to go Earnhardt jumped from third to first. He was pulling away when he ran over a piece of bell housing from another car on lap 198. One lap later a mile short of the finish line the tire blew. "I knew the tire was going down on the backstretch," Earnhardt said.

"I tried to ride it out. It finally shredded, and then I had all I could handle keeping it off the wall." Cope drove a car numbered 10 to become the second car in NASCAR history to win with that number. The other No. 10 was driven by Greg Sacks at the 1985 Firecracker 400 a victory considered another of stock car racing's major upsets. Cope kept himself in position to win by running second most of the day.

His car was stronger and faster than about all but Earnhardt's. Ken Schrader, who won the pole position but had to start in the 41st spot after crashing his car in a qualifying race, was Earnhardt's early threat. Schrader's Chevrolet shot from 41st to second in 24 laps. But 32 laps later, his engine expired. Richard Petty, another pre-race favorite, was running in the top 10 when his Pontiac cut a tire and spun on the 27th lap.

He continued, but finished 34th, 17 laps behind. Petty goes flat, 6C. Results, 7C. McCulley took a piece of neo-prene, a synthetic rubber used for wetsuits, and fashioned a simple, wedge-shaped sleeve to fit over the end of each eyeglass arm. The neoprene is positioned behind the ear to secure the eyeglasses.

Donna Warner, vice president of marketing for GFG Enterprises, the company McCulley formed to market WedGees, said, "It holds the eyeglasses in place, yet you dori't have a strap around your For information, write WedGees, 170 Sixth San Diego, 92101. Or call (800) Sabres' Mogilny given leave of absence Zl, The Buffalo Sabres have put lieft winger Alexander Mogilny, the first Soviet hockey player to defeet to the U.S., on indefinite medical leave of absence. Mogilny will receive professional therapy and counseling to help him deal with his fear of flying "as well as other problems that might have come up during his transition to his new culture," according to a statement the team released Sim-day- Mogilny, who left the Soviet national team after May's world championships, has missed the Sabres' last four games after failirfg to show up for a team flight to St. Louis on Feb. 10.

Compiled by Jewell Humphrey i imm 1 1 1 Sunday's question: Who was the 1975 U.S. Women's Open golf champion? Sunday's answer: Sandra Palfft-er Today's question: What NHfc team won the Stanley in 1940? Answer tomorrow 4 -ii AP RACING PAST CHECKERED FLAG: Derrike Cope drives his Chevrolet Lumina across the finish line of Sunday's $2.1 million Daytona 500. Cope ran at an average of 165.761 mph to win $188,150 at Daytona International Speedway. mm Titans host playoff opener West Melbourne 580 Wickham Road BASKETBALL COLLEGE: BCC 724-0240 or 724-0243 Satellite Beach 1100 A1A next to Atlantic Plaza 773-9380 or 773-9381 Vero Beach 270 Old Dixie Highway 569-0151 or 567-1876 TIRES FOR THE 90's ALL LOCATIONS OPEN MON-FRI SAT. two teams tied for second in the conference behind St.

Petersburg Junior College, and a coin flip will decide which team is seeded higher in the playoffs. St. Petersburg won the Suncoast Conference title to earn an automatic berth into the state tournament. The winner of the Suncoast playoffs, which run through Thursday, also will advance to the state playoffs. The Titans have to be considered a long shot to win the title.

But they have proven that they should not be overlooked. They came within four points of beating St. Pete, and upset Manatee and Polk. "(Smith) has them playing very solid basketball," St. Pete coach Jack Coit said.

But first the Titans must stop some other long shots the ones put up by Florida College. By Mark Woods FLORIDA TODAY The Brevard Community College men's basketball team opens the Suncoast Conference playoffs at borne with a game against Florida College at 7:30 tonight. The Titans, 12-18 overall and 7-7 in the conference, split their games with Florida College during the regular season. On Jan. 16, the Titans lost 90-82 in Temple Terrace.

But Feb. 6, they rolled to a 93-57 win their largest conference victory in the Cocoa campus gymnasium. The difference: Florida College's shooting. "They're a dangerous team for us," BCC coach Don Smith said. "They're a good perimeter shooting WE DO IT Your One Stop Full Service Outlet For Your Car Or Truck team, and that's what we give up." In many cases, BCC opponents have died by the jump shot But Florida College is one of the teams that can thrive on it.

In the first meeting, Michael Adams scored 36 points and had three of Florida College's 11 3-point baskets. In the second meeting, Adams finished with eight points and the team had four 3-pointers. "We just have to play good defense and hope they don't shoot well," Smith said. If the Titans win, they will meet either Polk CC or Manatee CC. The TUNE-UP SPECIALS 4 cyl.

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"I've been throwing it for four or five years," Handley said. "My control is a little bit better now." So is his health. Handley battled shoulder problems a year ago, but is stronger thanks to a special weight program. The stopper role also has made him stronger mentally. "I enjoying coming into a game with all the pressure on me," Handley said.

"I kind of thrive on the pressure." By David Jones FLORIDA TODAY As a junior with the Florida Institute of Technology baseball team last year, Paul Handley was what you'd call a handyman. "I did a little bit of everything," the Fayetteville, native said. "I was a starter, a middle reliever, a short reliever. You name it, I did it" This year, his senior season and swan song, brought a new role and amazing results. Handley, 3-0 in 13 appearances over 37 innings a year ago, has matched his record eight games into this season.

"He has been outstanding," FIT MOTORSPORTS H-SPEED RATED coach Les Hall said. "He's done a great job adjusting to the role." That role is the stopper the top gun out of the bullpen. Handley was a perfect 3-0 as Florida Tech raced to a 9-0 start and earned the seventh spot in the NCAA Division II poll conducted by Collegiate Baseball magazine. It is the first time the Panthers have reached the nation's top 10 with a new poll and possibly higher I v.r SIZE PRICE P16560HR-14 S62.86 P19560HR-I4 $64.74 P20560HR-14 $71.31 P22SHrVH S77.81 P19660HR-I5 $67.28 P20560HR-1? $68.25 P21560HR-15 $74.56 P21565HR-15 $79.50 SZE PRICF P17S70HR-13 $51.35 P1B570HR-13 $55.45 P16570HR-14 $60.52 P19570HR-14 $63.77 P20570HR-14 $66.69 m. 11 SP SPORT D40 M2 and speed rated for ultrahigh performance.

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