Great Falls Tribune from Great Falls, Montana • Page 9

Spots State Senior scores 2B Baseball, area briefs 3B Sportscope 4B Rose begins prison stay 4B Great Falls Tribune Thursday, August 9, 1990 Martell thrives on hard work Small in stature, Billings West back produces in big way Future now for Fryman By TOM GAGE "I like playing there. I've had some good games there. I'm used to the stadium." East All-Star running back Brad Martell on his career successes playing at Memorial Stadium. ByMIKETOWNE Tribune Sports Writer If Brad Martell runs as well Saturday night at Memorial Stadium as he did the last time he visited that gridiron, the West defense will have its hands full in the 44th annual East-West Shrine football game. Last Oct.

7 in Great Falls, Martell rushed for 197 yards on 43 carries both career highs to spark Billings West to a 21-17 upset of the previously unbeaten Great Falls High Bison. He scored all three of the Golden Bears' touchdowns, on runs of 3, 2 and 4 yards. So it's no wonder the small, lightning-quick running back is looking forward to returning to Memorial Stadium. "I like playing there. I've had some good games there," Martell said following Wednesday morning's workout at East Middle School.

"I'm used to the stadium." Martell would love to have another big game Saturday, of course. But like last fall when West played GFH at Memorial, he's more concerned about help- ing his team to earn a victory. "I never realized what I was doing (in terms of statistics) that night," he said of the Bears' big win over the Bison. "I remember I never got tired because I was so up for the game. All of us were really excited.

We had been pointing to the game all week. "I was amazed when I heard my stats after the game. But I was happier that we won." He credited a strong performance by West's offensive line, and two former teammates will be blocking for the East all-stars Saturday tackle Robb Dundas and center Dennis Jensen. "The line did a great job that night," Martell said. "It's nice to have a couple of our people in front of me in this game." "He's not very big, but he's tough and quick," West coach Paul Klaboe said following the Bears' victory over GFH.

"We gave him some nice holes, though. Our offensive line played its best game." Despite standing only 5-feet-7 and weighing 145 pounds, Martell ran away with the Class AA rushing title last fall. He rushed 231 times for 1,313 yards, almost 400 more than his nearest competitor. He also scored a league-high 90 points and had 235 yards in punt and kickoff returns. How did one of the league's smallest backs emerge as one of its best? "I stay in the weight room a lot.

I don't gain weight I've been at 145 pounds for about two years but I get stronger," explained Martell, a first-team Class AA all-state selection. "It helps to avoid hits, but I still love to go up the middle and take some pops. "Mental toughness also keeps me going." Both Carroll College and Rocky Mountain College expressed interest in Martell's football skills. But wanting to follow in the footsteps of his parents, Gilbert and Linda, he will attend Graceland College in Lamoni, Iowa. "I'm excited to go there.

It's a small school. I'll have a chance to play a lot of football," he said. Looking toward Saturday's game, Martell said the offense is starting to look better, while the defense continues to shine. "The defense is strong and will play well. But the offense needs to put points on the board.

"We looked a lot a lot better (offensively) today. We were a little shaky when we first started, but we're gaining more consistency." Martell will share time at running back Saturday with Matt Krahe of Choteau, Tom Crook of Sidney and Nate Allie of Glasgow. He'll also serve as a punt and kickoff returner. East head coach Pat Petrino saw some improvement in the offense during a scrimmage Wednesday morning. "Our execution is getting better.

The only thing missing is consistency in moving the chains," he said, adding that the pass is still ahead of the run. "The consistency improved today. We're getting better. We still need to polish up and go over some adjustments." To that end, the team will go through a one-hour, no-contact workout Thursday afternoon. "The big thing is consistency on offense.

We have to execute and move the chains," Petrino said. With the exception of Chris Gaub, an offensive lineman from Glendive who has a bad ankle, the Gannett News Service TORONTO Travis Fryman is a vital part of the Detroit Tigers' future. He is the vanguard of the those who will come along in the next few years, the ones who will still be playing after mainstays Alan Trammell and Lou Whitaker retire. He's only 21. He carries himself more like a soldier than a ballplayer, and he has a desire to excel that burns from within.

"He has to leam to have some fun," manager Sparky Anderson said. "His intensity can work against him, so it's my job to take that from him. Some of it, at least. I want him to enjoy his career." So who is Travis Fryman, other than a third-round 1987 draft choice from Lexington, He's become the Tigers' regular third baseman, and a .326 hitter after his first 22 games in the majors. He was interviewed this week.

Question: You are considered to be extremely intense. How are you coping with this? Answer: "I'm trying to channel it the right way. I'm learning how. I've had a tendency in the past to let it defeat me because I would dwell so much on the negative that I would carry it on the field with me or home with me. You don't learn how to relax that way.

There are so many ups and down in baseball that if you concentrate on the negative, it just escalates. Things can get pretty bad, so I'm trying to learn to leave it at the ballpark." Have you always been so intense about the sport? "I've always been way too serious. My father is a high school basketball coach, and he's an intense coach who always said, 'Travis, if you want to be in the big leagues, you have to work for What was it like -laying baseball as a kid? "My dad and I used to play pepper in the back yard and I couldn't go in and eat dinner until I caught 10 in a row. I was only five years old at the time. How much time have you invested in baseball? "It's the only sport I've ever played.

I was set on going to college. I had signed a letter of intent to Georgia Tech. I was going to college until I found out I was to be drafted in the early rounds." Did you expect to be selected high in the draft? "I didn't think I had the ability with the bat to be an early draft choice. I wasn't a solid hitter at all. I could hit for average but I wasn't the type about whom people said 'This kid will hit some day." You don't seem to be awed by the fact you're in the majors.

"When I got called up, my girlfriend got mad at me because I wasn't all that excited and jumping up and down or acting like she thought I should act. I was happy, but I said I don't want to get up there, with my head in the clouds, and not play the type of game I'm capable of playing. I tried to keep a level head about it, and not get caught up that I'm playing with Alan Trammell and for Sparky Anderson. I want to go out and play my game so that I can stay here, play here and make a career out of it." What about switching from shortstop to third? "I can take the move to third in stride. Sparky and the coaching staff feel it's going to be in my best interest to play third if I want to stay in the big leagues, and that's where I want to be.

I have to learn how to play it or not see much playing time. I have to approach third with the same intensity with which I played short." team is in good health, Petrino reported. Tribune Photo by Mike Towne Brad Martell, a former star at Billings West, gains yardage in a recent scrimmage. SBBgBrgag: Dodgers add another win in marathon Long time coming GREAT FALLS ab bl IDAHO FALLS Ob bl Burton cl 6 0 0 0 Webb 2b Maurer ss Ingram dh Busch lb 5 0 10 5 1 1 0 6 0 2 1 4 2 10 3 0 0 0 Mevers 3b Frauenhofer 3bl 6 6 6 Mondesi rf 5 0 0 0 It I I Andrews If Blackwell If 3 0 0 0 10 11 2 0 0 0 Orr 3b 5 110 Briltoin 2b 4 110 Karcherlb 3 0 2 1 Chumblev pr 0 0 0 0 Markulikelb 0 0 0 0 Zeller lb 10 10 Gress dh 4 0 11 McMillan If 5 0 0 0 Drabinski 4 0 10 Fisterrf 5 0 0 0 Luckev ss 3 0 0 0 Surane 2b 2 0 0 0 Totals 42 2 7 2 Idaho Falls Great Falls Grave Perez 10 11 Griffin ph 10 0 0 Farrish cf 5 0 10 Totals 42 3 3 100 100 100 000-2 strong winds in Butte blew down the right-field fence in the second inning. Busch opened Great Falls' half of the 12th with a single to left field.

He took second on Mike Frauenhoffer's sacrifice bunt and moved to third when a pitch got past catcher Marek Drabinski. Idaho Falls then elected to intentionally walk both Raul Mondesi and Eric Blackwell, loading the bases for Perez. The reserve catcher, who had taken over for Dan Gray at the start of the 12th inning, came through with his 16th run batted in of the season. Perez's game-winning single capped the longest and probably the best game played at Legion Park this season. The pitching was particularly outstanding.

Seven hurlers four for Idaho Falls and three for Great Falls combined for 29 strikeouts. The Braves gave up eight hits, the Dodgers seven. Idaho Falls stroked three consecutive singles in the first inning, but only one runner No. 2 hitter Geoff Orr managed to cross the plate. Great Falls right-hander Ken Hamilton got out of the jam when he got Loren Gress to hit into a 3-6-1 double play.

The Braves stretched their lead to 2-0 in the fourth inning. Grant Brit-tain reached on a throwing error by shortstop Ron Maurer and scooted home on Gress' triple to right See DODGERS, 2B ByMIKETOWNE Tribune Sports Writer Junior Perez had just one at-bat against the Idaho Falls Braves Wednesday night, but the Great Falls Dodger catcher certainly made the most of it. Perez drilled a Bill Kooiman pitch into right-center field with one out in the bottom of the 12th inning, scoring Mike Busch from third base to lift the streaking Dodgers to a 3-2 Pioneer League victory before 2,852 fans at Legion Park. The win, Great Falls' fifth straight and its 11th in its last 12 games, boosted the Northern Division-leading Dodgers to 31-17 four games ahead of the second-place Billings Mustangs. The Mustangs' scheduled game with the Butte Copper Kings was suspended when 000 010 020 001-3 Winning run scored with one out in the 12th.

E-Maurer 2, Mevers, Orr 2. DP Great Falls 2. LOB-idaho Falls 8, Great Falls 16. 2B-Maurer. 3B-lngram 2, Gress.

SB-Mondesi, Karcher. 5 Mevers, weoD, i-rauennotter. IP ER BB SO 4 1-3 3 1-3 3 1-3 1-3 Idaho Falls Dease Hodges Rohrwild Kooiman L.0-1 Great Falls Hamilton DeJarld Tipton W.4-1 PB-Grav, Drabinski. Balk-Hodges. Tribune Pnoto by Tnomas Bauer 6 4 2 HBP Gray bv Dease.

Dodgers' pitcher Ken Hamilton fires to the plate Tuesday. Great Falls and Idaho Falls went into extra innings. www" 3 HiiiitSiliiii'l ffrfflttiffiatl Gene cooks at MLCC Great Falls standout takes 6-stroke lead green. Cook also missed two birdie putts inside 5 feet. But the 56-year-old star also sank several putts in the 10- to 15-foot range in a round of 37-33.

Spindler, also 56, had a solid round, hitting 17 greens in regulation. He birdied two par-5s, the third and the 13th, narrowly missing an eagle-3 on the 537-yard 13th when he reached the green with two wood shots. Cook, playing several groups behind Spindler, needed just a 4-iron to reach the fringe on the 13th after blasting a 320-yard drive. He chipped close for a tap-in birdie, one of five in his round. Even though Meadow Lark generally plays three or four strokes tougher than Speck, the top senior players had lower scores at MLCC.

The greens were soft in the morning round and there wasn't much wind. Voorhees took advantage of those conditions to fire a 74, and Skeets Ferguson shot a 75. In the unofficial senior women's tournament being played at Speck, Helen McMeel of Great Falls shot a 40 Wednesday to tie first-round leader Eleanor Hagler of Helena at 86 after 18 holes. Sheila Penaluna of Butte is third at 90. By GEORGE GEISE Tribune Sports Editor Over the past 30 years, Ray Spin-dler has probably played more golf with Gene Cook than anybody else in Montana.

For many years, Cook and Spin-dler were partners in best-ball tournaments, and the men still frequently play with and against each other in friendly matches. So Spindler knows, probably better than anyone, how difficult it will be Thursday afternoon to overcome Cook's fi-stroke lead in the final round of the 34th annual Montana State Seniors tournament. "I can't shoot that low," Spindler replied when asked what score he would have to shoot to catch Cook Thursday. "And I don't think anybody else can, either." Cook, who encountered putting problems Tuesday at the R.O. Speck municipal course on his way to a 75, putted much better Wednesday at his home Meadow Lark Country Club course as he fired a 2-under-par70.

Spindler had the next low round a par-72 to finish 36 holes at 151, tied with Tom Vorhees of Big-fork for second place behind Cook. Dr. George LeTellier of Billings is fourth at 153. "I figured if I shot around 70, I would be leading by five or six," said Cook. "I'll probably have to shoot even-par or so Thursday to beat Ray.

He's playing well." Spindler said he could remember only one tournament in his career when he was able to came from behind to beat Cook. "There was a Fall Classic quite a few years ago when I shot 69 and sneaked in to beat Gene. I wasn't even playing in his group, and his jaw dropped when, he came in and found out I had beaten him," Spindler said with a laugh. This afternoon, the longtime partners will be playing in the same foursome along with Vorhees and LeTellier. They will tee off at about 1 p.m.

on the first hole at Meadow Lark. Cook, who shot a record 5-under-par total in Bozeman last year in his first State Seniors appearance, easily could have shot in the mid-60s Wednesday. He lost a ball and had to take a two-stroke penalty on the par-4 second hole when his approach shot soared over the trees and never was seen again. "I thought I hit a good wedge over the trees, but we never found it," said Cook. "I went back and hit it again and hit the same shot on the i Tribune Photo by Waynt Arnst Phyllis Elliott of Lewistown putts Wednesday on the 18th green at R.O.

Speck in the women's division of the State Seniors golf tournament. Watching are, from left: Helen Schaffer of Deer Lodge, Doris Connolly of Great Falls and Mary Cordingley of Monarch..