Star Tribune from Minneapolis, Minnesota • Page 26

WednesdayMarch 151995Star Tribune TII2 FACT TIIH CSST C2T Slow start dooms Moose in 8-1 loss The New Jersey Nets, Indiana Pacers, San Antonio Spurs and Denver Nuggets are the current NBA teams that competed in the ABA before it folded in the 1975-76 season. Larry Brown coached them all. The girls' Class AA state basketball tournament kicks off today with a day-night doubleheader at Williams Arena. No. 1 Apple Valley (25-0) meets No.

2 Rochester Mayo (24-1) at 3 p.m. in the day's top matchup. PAGE 1 Pinieiia iosing appetite for repiacemenis perspective. Yes, he'd like to return to the circuit quickly, but there's still much work left, Irvan said. "We were here to see if I could do something with one eye.

My skills haven't changed, they have just gone seven months without being polished." Once on the track, Irvan wouldn't Concerned that his replacement piayers are putting on too much weight, Seattle Mariners manager Lou Pinieiia has put them on a diet. No more cheese, no more potato chips and no more ice cream, Pinieiia proclaimed. "I thought the way it was put to us was pretty much a put-down," said Duane Page, a pitcher for the St. Paul Saints in the independent Northern League last season. "If Ken Griffey Jr.

or Jay Buhner went 0-for-3, or Randy Johnson gave up some runs, I don't think their lunches would be taken from them." It sounds as if Page's head is getting to be as big as his belly. Back in the saddle Emie Irvan slipped back into his race car Tuesday for the first time since a horrifying crash left his career and future in doubt. The Winston Cup star was unconscious for two days after a near-fatal practice accident on Aug. 20 at Michigan Speedway. But on Tuesday, Irvan breezed around Darlington (S.C.) Raceway, and he even set an unofficial course record of 30.26 seconds in his Busch Grand National car.

"I was just trying to find out if I can run again. I don't think I forgot anything," said Irvan, who still wears a patch on his left eye. His vision gradually is improving, and Irvan and Winston Cup team owner Robert Yates thought it was time to test it. Irvan quickly found his way on Darlington's quirky 1.366-mile oval, however, and ran a rock solid second four-lap set that produced a record turn of 162.510 miles per hour in his Thunderbird. Irvan, known for his brash style, was the first to put the run in prompting Jayson Stark of the Philadelphia Inquirer to comment: "No truth to the rumor the specialty of the house is Special A slow boat to.

Reflecting on the sinking of oneAustralia, helmsman Rod Davis was told that such a thing never could have happened with Eagle, the sturdy but slow aluminum 12-meter he sailed for the Newport Harbor Yacht Club in the 1986-87 America's Cup in Australia. "I couldn't have been that lucky," Davis said. The oneAustralia vessel was designed by a team called Fluid Thinking, which has an office next to the team's compound on Mission Bay. The sign out front was missing the day after the disaster. Seems somebody had changed it to "Fluid Sinking." Other than that.

The multimillion-dollar technology which went into designing Nigel Mansell's new McClaren car might have overlooked one simple area the cockpit is too small. McLaren might have to redesign the car to accommodate Man-sell's 5-9, 164-pound frame. The car, lavishly launched three weeks ago after costing $80 million to design and build, is too cramped for McLaren's new driver and his teammate, Mika Hak-kinen. Both drivers struggled during tests last week. "Nigel is a bit bigger than I am, he is a bit wider in the shoulders, which means he is definitely suffering more than me," Hakkinen said, adding that driving in the car was like running a marathon with shoes that were too small.

Compiled by sports staff 3-8 1 01 FIRST PERIOD; 1. AH Egeland (Gavey, Nelson), I 0:13. 2. ah nun (ursizxyi. mm, nortnandadit 3.

At Gavey IS (Drulia, Shaw) 14:10, power play PeneMee Crtrlstian, Minn (tripping). Egeland Atl (Interference), Campaau, AH QilpstkinQ) B. Miller, Mmn (hooking), B. Miller. Mini (roughing).

19:58. SECOND PERIOD: 4. AH Ruff 37 (Heroin), fcirj. AH Orutia 38 (Ruff, Shaw), 7:03. 8.

MinnCorn-1 veau 12 (Christian, Currie), 19:29. Penalllee Coed land, AH (holding) Neieon. AH (unsportsrnanlike conduct), B. Millar, Minn (unaportamanllka conduct). 13:09: Atlanta bench (too many; served by Pedersan) 17:14.

Tm.hu ecmuu; 7. Ail Emm! 7 0.33. 8. AH-Oreoky 14 (Boh), 1:31. 0.

AH Ruff 38 (Qavey. I 10:28, pp. PsnaWoe Qagnon, Mlrm (delay I by Currie). Byere, Mmn (htan-sHcfcingV Hawkins, Minn (roughing), B. Miser served B-32: Hnwklni.

Minn (slashing), Nelson, AH (Interference)! 18:08. 1 SUMMARY: Shots on goal AHanta 13-7-1131, 1 Moose 3-16-728. Power-play opportunities At- lama oi Moose u-o. uuanai wiama, wiikln- I son (26 shots-25 saves); Moose, Draper (17-12), Gagnon (7:03 second period. 14-11).

A 8,128. "I don't mind sitting upstairs if we're going to win 8-1," said Knights coach John Paris, who was in the last game of a suspension in games against the i Moose coming from a player leaving I the Atlanta bench for an altercation in December. "I'll take 'em all thisj The loss was the second in a row for the Moose at the Civic Center, where; they had gone 4-0-1 before losing to Houston on Sunday. In that one the 1 Moose trailed 4-1 but rallied to lose 5-4; Tuesday, the Moose fell behind 5-0 at about the same juncture, i scored once to suggest to the crowd of 6,128 that they might stage another third-period rally, and then slipped back into a tangle of mistakes, mis-v. plays and misplaced energy.

"I said nothing," said Moose Frank Serratore, as he emerged from the dressing room. "What can you say? We're just not very good right now. We talked over all the little, things we wanted to do well, and then we went out and didn't do any of them. Nothing seems to be in sync, and we'll just have to simplify the game, and go back to basics." HIMIIMMffitllfc The Hankinson brothers Peter, 27, Ben, 25, and Casey, 16 Where are they now Peter is out of hockey and in the insurance business. Ben was traded Tuesday from the New Jersey Devils to the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Casey is a freshman wing at Minnesota. Looking back Peter played with the Gophers from 1987 through 1990, getting 82 goals and 100 assists in 176 games. Ben played from 1988 to 1991, scoring 49 goals and 51 assists in 155 games. Casey has six goals and one assist In 27 games. Captain Casey? Peter Hankinson was co-captain of the Gophers in 1989-90 and Ben Hankinson was captain in 1990-91.

ed in a section loss to Wayzata. "It was just like last Friday night he tried to win the game," said. "He ran off a couple guys and5 gave everything he had He still had to grow as a player, but you could see he had great heart." Woog's offer came after Hankinson had pondered the unthinkable playing college hockey someplace else. He had scheduled recruiting vis-! its for Colorado College, North Da-C kota, Wisconsin and Northeastern4-' and already had visited Yale. "I think every kid thinks once in while about going to Wisconsin," Casey said.

"I was talking with'? coach Tom Ward of the St Paul I Vulcans my senior year, and I asked 5 him what he thought He said, Think't to yourself about coming out at Mar-' iucci when they play the school song' and you're wearing Wisconsin's colors red and white." Right there it kind of hit me. No way I wanted to come in this building and not play: for the Gophers." Casey Hankinson started fast, scoring three goals in his first eight games as a Gopher. But he went scoreless his next 10 games, netting just one over a 14-game span. But Hankinson appears in the past two weeks to have an extra bounce in his step. "I got away from doing the stuff Yd done before, which was going hard and hitting guys.

I had to go back to 1 the basics." I And in Hankinson's case, the basics appear to be very much genetic. 2,000 tickets remain for 'IT Atlanta Moose 'J "It's 180 yards. Slight dogleg. Uphill. Wind blowing left to right What do you suggest I use: an orange ball, yellow ball or regular white ball." Tom Callahan in Golf Digest on twice-divorced John Daly: Much the way Lee Trevino r- ri fill keePS marrying women named Claudia, it seemed Daly's wives were all Si destined to By John Gilbert Staff Writer The Minnesota Moose often has started out poorly and then roared back in many of its games.

On other occasions it has started off with a surge and then had to hang on. But on Tuesday night, the Moose tried something completely different: It started out horrendously, then got worse. Atlanta scored early and often to breeze to an 8-1 victory that dropped the Moose one game below the .500 mark, with the teams coming back to play at 7 tonight at the St. Paul Civic Center. The Moose had a 6-3 record against the Knights this season, and had passed them briefly on their Tuesday Atlanta 8, Moose 1 Next Moose vs.

Atlanta, 7 tonight, St. Paul Civic Center recent rise through the standings. Atlanta, however, suddenly has jumped to second place and appears to be aligned for a strong stretch run. The Knights got three goals from Jason Ruff, who has 38 for the season, and two from Allan Egeland, who has seven this season, indicating the Moose didn't discriminate about whom they allowed to score. Or how.

The Knights scored at even strength, shorthanded and on the power play to go up 3-0 in the first period, with their goals matching the number of shots mustered by the Moose. Atlanta made it 5-0 in the second period before Dave Gagnon relieved goaltender Tom Draper, who had come into the game with a 5-0-0 season record against the Knights. 'U' hockey Continued from page 1C of really liking the family but he was a little bit of a 'chopper' as a skater he needed to get there a little quicker and he wasn't very physically strong." Happily for the Hankinsons and for Woog the coach took a second, third and fourth look, finally offering Casey a scholarship after his senior season had ended. Casey Hankinson has the distinction of being the last player recruited in what might be one of Minnesota's best-ever freshman classes the others are Mike Crowley, Ryan Kraft, Jason Godbout, Joe Pankratz, Jason Seils and Clint Johnson, who is playing this season with the St. Paul Vulcans.

Hankinson scored one of the season's biggest goals Friday netting the overtime winner in a 5-4 victory over in the first game of the WCHA playoffs. The 6-1, 190-Dound freshman C. Hankinson has six goals in 27 games, but, most important, has provided muscle to a team lacking in size and strength. Hankinson has become a key part of the Gophers' playoff plans. The reconstructed fourth line of junior Andy Brink centering Hankinson and Dan Hendrickson was one of the bright spots against UMD.

Hankinson and Brink had a pair of two-on-one breaks early in Saturday's 4-3 victory over UMD, and the line applied steady offensive pressure. That same kind of pressure will be needed when the Gophers open the WCHA Final Five against North Dakota at the St. Paul Civic Center on Thursday. Woog jokingly says that Casey Hankinson might be the first player he recruited solely on genes, although that's not entirely true. Woog watched Hankinson a couple times during the wing's senior season, but saw little to change his initial impression.

Woog was in the stands taking a fourth look when Edina's season end- FINAL FIVE taajTflvs 2 ,1 I At St Paul Civic Cantor Thuraday Gophers (21-12-5) vs. North Dakota (18-17-3), 7:05 p.m. Friday Wisconsin (21-14-4) vs. Denver (24-12-2), 2:05 p.m. GophersNorth Dakota winner vs.

Colorado College (29-10-1), 7:05 p.m. Saturday Third-place game, 2:05 p.m. Championship game, 7:05 p.m. Tickets Three-day passes for all games are available for $60. Single-game tickets are priced as follows: $5 for Thursday; $15 for each of Friday's semifinal games; $10 for Saturday's third-place game and $20 for the championship game.

Television All games will be on MSC. Lefn41 s.eal sj isH safrfiiea, lfP" Janet Evans adds to leave. He ran five times for a total of 28 laps. During his last run, team officials had him unofficially clocked at 163.538 mph. But he tagged the Turn 1 wall and spun out.

Irvan was not injured and the car was not seriously damaged. Swinging place Pete Incaviglia, who used to strike out frequently in the big leagues, has a new restaurant in Texas called Inky's Place, streak The United States won four of the five swimming events Tuesday. Other victories were by the women's 400 freestyle relay team; Barbara Bedford of Etna, N.H., in the women's 100 backstroke and Brad Bridgewater of Dallas in the men's 200 backstroke. Jurisprudence Palacio sent to prison Former WBO featherweight champion Ruben Palacio was sentenced in Miami to nearly four years in federal prison after pleading guilty Jan. 5 to charges of importing heroin.

The 32-year-old Colombian was arrested Nov. at Miami International Airport with 5.3 pounds of heroin concealed in the lining of his coat and his undershorts. Welterweight champion Pemell Whitaker was cleared in Norfolk, of an assault charge stemming from an alleged fight with a salesman outside a bar last year. Etc. The NASCAR SuperTruck Series and Winston West Series races scheduled Sunday at Sears Point Raceway in Sonoma, were postponed until Oct.

7 because of the heavy rain. Akebono, a Hawaiian wrestler whose real name is Chad Rowan, improved to 3-0 in the 15-day Spring Grand Sumo Tournament with a victory in Osaka, Japan. American champion Musashi-maru, whose real name is Fia-malu Penitani, improved to 3-0. In English soccer's biggest game-fixing scandal in 30 years, Southampton goalkeeper Bruce Grobbelaar and two other Premier League stars were arrested in Southampton, England. Also arrested were Wimbledon goalkeeper Hans Seger and Aston Villa striker John Fashanu.

No charges were immediately filed against the five, who were being held for questioning. Russia's Larissa Lazhutina became the first woman to win three individual gold medals at the Nordic world championships as she won the 10-kilometer freestyle at Thunder Bay, Ontario. Her first two victories came in classical-technique events. have the same first name: Dave Cowens will activate him during a four-game road trip that begins Thursday in Charlotte, N.C. The NBA on Monday cleared Dumas to resume a career that was interrupted on Sept.

15, 1993, when the league issued its suspension. To make room for Dumas on the roster, the Suns placed Wayman Tisdale on the injured list because of a strained left rib. Hall of Fame center Dave Cowens might make another comeback from retirement and join the San Antonio Spurs' roster for the playoffs, coach Bob Hill says. Cowens, 46, is an assistant coach for the Spurs and if activated would assume the role the Spurs had hoped veteran Moses Malone would fill. Forward Lloyd Daniels has signed a contract with the Los Angeles Lakers for the rest of the season.

The Lakers also signed forward Randolph Keys for the rest of the season. Pan Am Games Bennett swims to gold Brooke Bennett, a 14-year-old from Plant City, won the gold meda! in the 400 freestyle at the competition in Mar Del Plata, Argentina. Bennett's 400 time of 4 minutes, 11.78 seconds was 8 seconds off Janet Evans' record in the event. -imp If 6 will seek NAIAtitle Minnesota-Morris (20-8) will play Geneva (Pa.) College (25-5) at 9 a.m. today in the first round of the NAIA Division I men's basketball tournament in Kansas City, Mo.

The Cougars' all-Minnesota roster includes three all-NSIC selections: Guard Jason Cordes, a senior from Shako-pee who averaged 10.9 points per game; sophomore guard-forward Todd Hanson from Duluth Central, and junior guard Jeff Timonen from Robbinsdale Armstrong. The University of St. Thomas has hired former Minnesota Vikings linebacker David Howard and Apple Valley high school coach Paul Miller as football assistants. Howard, who retired last year, will coach linebackers for the Tommies. Miller, who will work with offensive backs, has taken a two-year leave of absence from Apple Valley.

Champps of Bumsvlle, the Minnesota Sports Federation Class champion, ran its winning streak to 22 games by beating Headhunters of Minneapolis 27-0 last weekend to win the Metrodome touch football tournament. Champps was 5-0 in the tournament. Bethel (2-3) will play a non-conference baseball game at Northwestern of Roseville at 3:30 p.m. today. Bethel leaves Saturday for its spring trip to Florida, where the Royals will play eight games.

The North Metro Owls will play the South St. Paul Steers at 5:30 p.m. today and the West Suburban Kodiaks will face the White Bear Lake Lakers at 8:30 p.m. in the first round of the MJHA state tournament at East Bethel Ice Arena. The championship game is at 1 p.m.

Sunday. Triple Olympic gold medalist and world-record holder Janet Evans of Placentia, kept her winning streak alive Tuesday by claiming the 800-meter freestyle national title at the National Swimming Championships at the University of Minnesota Aquatic Center. Evans has not lost at that distance since 1987 and earned her 43rd national title with a time of 8:40.66. Only Tracy Caulkins has won more national titles (48). "It would be a great honor for me to get more titles than Tracy Caulkins," said Evans.

"That is part of my motivation right now, but I am really focused on the 1996 Olympics." Evans held off a late-surge by 14-year-old Jessica Foschi of Long Island, N.Y., who finished only five-tenths of a second behind JEvans. i Andy Potts of Princeton, N.J., won the men's 800-meter freestyle in 8:10.00 for his first national title. Potts defeated Mark War-kentin of Santa Barbara, by more than a second. the meet continues through Saturday. Hockey Hankinson is traded The New Jersey Devils acquired former North Stars defenseman Chambers and forward Danton Cole from Tampa Bay for center Alexander Semak and fight wing Ben Hankinson, a for-jmer Gopher.

Chambers, 28, is the key player in the deal for New Jersey because he will fill a hole on defense created by Ken Daneyko's knee injury. Hankinson, 25, has a lot of potential and a very hard shot. But the right wing has not been able to break into the lineup much and he was scoreless in eight games. NBA Dumas rejoins Suns Forward Richard Dumas, suspended twice for drug use, was activated by the Phoenix Suns, and coach Paul Westphal said he hockey game The Gophers sold more than 2,500 tickets Tuesday "one of the busiest days of the year," assistant athletic director Pat Forceia said for Thursday's WCHA Final Five game between Minnesota and North Dakota (7:05 p.m., St Paul Civic Center). About 2,000 tickets remain, and Forceia said he expects a sellout by late today or early Thursday morning.

Tickets, priced at $5, are available by calling the university ticket office at 624-8080 or going to the Civic Center box office between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. ej elj aftiaH tAi0 1 ijn.