Hartford Courant from Hartford, Connecticut • Page 39

THE HARTFORD COURANT: Saturday, April itf 1992 E5 Britsox could profit from Riley's presence Triathletes throw cold water on Connecticut River anxiety Notebook CSSA tryouts in New Britain Tryouts for the Connecticut State Soccer Association men's state team will be Monday at 6 p.m. at Stanley Quarter Park in New Britain. The team is open to state registered players of ally age who are Connecticut residents. University of Hartford men's coach Sasho Ciravski will coach the team, which will be selected after another practicetryout April 27 at Stanley Quarter Park. The team will then participate in a regional tournament at Kean College in Union, N.J., May 22-25 and hopes to solicit games against touring teams.

For additional information, contact Al Bell (747-9202) nights or Art Hennig (673-4371) Monday-Thursday, 9 a.m. -5 p.m. MarkPukalo Around and about East Hartford relay: The East Hartford Coed Relays are today at East Hartford High School, beginning with field events at 10:30 a.m. Track events are at 11. About 12 schools will participate.

Competing schools will have two girls and two boys run on the same team in the 4x110 hurdles, 4 1,600 meters, 4 100, 4 400, distance medley, 4 200, 4 800, 800-meter medley and sprint medley. Wanderers play today: The Hartford Wanderers Rugby Club will play the Amoskeag Club of New Hampshire at Colt Park in Hartford today at 1 p.m. Enfield baseball tournament: The site of today's Enfield baseball tournament has been switched to Fermi High School in Enfield. The schedule: consolation, Norwich Free Academy vs. Simsbury, 10:30 a.m.; championship, Enfield vs.

Berlin, 1:15 p.m. Browns Backers Club dinner: Cleveland Browns running back La-ray Hoard will receive the first Achievement Award from the Southern New England Browns Backers Club at a banquet April 25 at the Quality Inn in Vernon. Tickets are $35 for adults and $15 for children 16 and under, in advance; at the door, tickets will be $40 for adults, $17.50 for kids. There will be a social hour at 5:30 p.m., an autograph session with Hoard at 6, with dinner at 7 and awards at 8. For information, call Mike Brewer (872-3879).

Testimonial for Fahey: A testimonial dinner for retiring Maloney High School athletic director Norb Fahey will be June 4 at the Aqua Turf Club in Southington. Tickets are $25 a person and can be reserved by contacting Ed Zajac or Jay Lushinks at Maloney you're going to get traded Yeah, but I really hate the Yankees. I just hate 'em." It looks as if the Red Sox will be holding on to Riley, anyway. Since signing in 1988, he has progressed steadily, starting at Peoria of the the Arizona Rookie League, then on to; Elmira of the Class A New York-' Penn League. He even got a late season start for New Britain at age 19 in 1989.

The past two years, in full-season Class A at Winter Haven in 1990 and Lynchburg, Va, in 91, Riley had los-; ing records, but eye-opening finish-', es. He was 4-9 with a 3.11 ERA for Winter Haven, a team that finished 40-94. At Lynchburg, he went 8-10 with a 3.53 ERA, helping the team to. the second-half title in the Carolina League and winning his playoff start. 1 "That was great," Riley said.

"I'd never played for a winning profes-t sional team before. People sacrific-2 ing for the team, not caring about their statistics. And 80 percent of that team is here now." Riley's fastball is in the high 80s, but his ball moves well, and he has an excellent changeup. "He throws hard enough, the way his ball moves, and with that change-up, it makes his fastball look a few: miles-per-hour faster," pitching coach Rick Wise said. Riley likes to pitch inside, keeping; right-handed hitters from leaning over the plate to reach his tailing fastball.

"And if I hit one," he says. "Hey, I'm sorry." At least he won't have to worry9 about brawls, not with 10 brothers in the bleachers. "This whole thing is a dream for me," he said. "But it's not done yet. I haven't made it yet.

See, I'll always be modest. I got pounded enough when I was a kid to know never to have a big head." Rice in town Rice, the Red Sox's roving hitting instructor, is in New Britain for the series. Friday's rainout will be made up as part of a doubleheader with London June 2. Gar Finn-void will pitch today at 2 p.m. against London; Derek Livernois Sunday for New Britain.

By DOM AMORE Courant Staff Writer NEW BRITAIN You can't blame New Britain Red Sox management for wanting Ed Riley to make the team. With 10 brothers, five sisters and who knows how many nieces and nephews and cousins and buddies living an hour away in Worcester, Riley is going to be a one-man economic windfall. "I'll have like 100 people here every time I start," said Riley, who has a crewcut, thick Massachusetts accent and expansive hand gestures. "It's going to be a fun year." It's off to a fun start. Riley, a 6-foot-2, 195-pound lefthander, pitched six shutout innings, allowing one hit, as New Britain beat the Albany-Colonie Yankees 6-1 for its first victory Tuesday.

With Friday's home opener against London rained out, Riley's first home start will be pushed to Monday, again against Albany. The youngest of 16 children, Riley, 22, was the fourth to be drafted by a professional baseball team, but the first to sign. "Three of my brothers were drafted, but they never signed," he said, after almost everyone else had left Beehive Field Friday. "They went to college and were never drafted again. But me, I was drafted by the Red Sox and in the sixth round, so they took care of me.

I'm die-hard Red Sox, and I will be until I die no matter what happens with my career. If I pitched against them in the World Series, I'd probably end up rooting for them." As you can imagine, Riley has been in his glory, hobnobbing in training camp with his Red Sox heroes, many of whom are now managers and coaches in the organization. "I saw Butch Hobson play, I saw Jim Rice; I saw all of them," he said. "But my idol was Bob Stanley. I used to hate it when Fenway Park fans booed Bob Stanley.

My first spring training, he was still playing and I told him, 'You were my And he said, 'Nah, I wasn't anybody But he was my idol." And how about beating the Yankees in his first start? Maybe it was the Albany Yankees, but they still wore pinstripes. "I hate the Yankees," Riley said. "With a passion. Well, maybe I shouldn't say that. You never know if city's treatment plant are connected to the pipes that collect storm runoff.

When too much rain falls, the combined overflow goes into the river just north of the Bulkeley Bridge, close to the proposed 1.5-kilometer swim course. Water samples taken over the winter, after continuous rainfall, indicated unacceptable water quality close to the Bulkeley Bridge, Riverfront Recapture programs manager Craig Mergins said. Because of this, Riverfront Recapture, an organization that has worked to revitalize the river and surrounding areas, prevailed upon the Metropolitan District Commission to close the pipe a few days before the race. If it rains, the overflow will be diverted to a retention pond near Riverside Park. Also, the organizers decided to modify the course.

Originally, the plan was to swim south from the Riverfront Park boat launch to the bridge and back. That was switched to a triangular-shaped course north of the boat launch. "I went out two more times with the Department for Environmental Protection's Bureau of Water Management," Mergins said. "We did tests on that new course and we had very, very good readings. All indications from the DEP is that river is acceptable.

We don't want to take any chances." In the past three years, only one water sample collected from close to the Bulkeley Bridge during June, July and August was deemed unacceptable, Mergins said. The water is tested each month. Mergins said weekly testing will begin at the end of June. Smyers, who hasn't set her 1992 schedule yet but would like to compete close to her hometown, said the water quality in the river didn't bother her in the 1985 triathlon. "It wasn't bad," she said.

"I've definitely been in worse water." Gilhuly, who organizes the Mil-ford Triathlon, knows what the Hartford organizers are going through. Until he moved his race date to August, he remembers being ready to cancel the race because of the water quality in Long Island Sound. "We used to have the race in June, after a long sprjng rainfall," he said. "The sewer system would overflow and we would get a high coliform bacteria level. We always sweated it out every year." Gilhuly hasn't decided whether he will participate in the Hartford race.

"As long as you have a bathing cap, goggles and you're not going to swallow any water I wouldn't think it would be a problem." More triathlon news The Greater Hartford Triathlon and Biathlon will be the site of the Tri-FedUSA New England Regional triathlon championship June 28 at Brodie Park in New Hartford. The triathlon will be Olympic distance (1.5K swim, 40K bike, 10K run) and the biathlon will feature a 40K bike between two 3.8-mile runs With Lake Compounce in Bristol closed, the site of the July 12 Miles Homes-Tri-Sports Triathlon has been moved to YMCA Camp Sloper in Southington. The ConnectiCare Triathlon, won last year by Paul Barford of Bolton, has been discontinued. ConnectiCare public relations coordinator Julie Dennis said the company is focusing on sponsoring more broad-based health events. The 5-year-old race, held at Batterson Park in Farmington, drew about 350 triathletes last year.

Footnotes Suffield runner Bob White had plenty of time this winter to plan his next wacky road-racing endeavor while recovering from double bypass heart surgery in November. White organized and ran in the six-and seven-state relay runs with friends over the past two years. The Fourth of July, he and three running pals plan to run in each of the 13 original Colonies in one day, beginning in Georgia and working their way up both driving cars and running to New Hampshire. "I've got the route all planned," said White, 48. White ran in the Hazard-ville 5K in January, less than 90 days after his surgery, and has not missed a day of training since Jan.

1, though he has been slowed somewhat to an 8-minute pace while racing Two-time Boston Marathon winner Geoff Smith of England will replace Olympic silver medalist John Treacy as the "celebrity runner" in the inaugural Fidelco 5K run May 16 in Bloom-field. Treacy canceled because he couldn't break from his high-altitude training in Colorado, a Fidelco spokesman said. Turns Classic ByLORI RILEY Courant Staff Writer Ask a triathlete about poor water conditions they have encountered in competitions and you're bound to hear a story: L.J. Briggs of Farmington's Unionville section tells of fighting the swift currents off Coney Island; Karen Smyers, a Wethersfield na- tive who is one of the top women competitors in the world, recalls an "oily feeling" swimming in Long Island Sound; Mark Gilhuly, who organizes a state triathlon series and also com Running, notebook petes, tells of a chilly dip in frigid Lake Champlain. Seven years ago, as part of a New England Triathlon Series race, all three swam in the Connecticut River.

Though some potential competitors are fearful of the water quality for the Bud Light Triathlon (1.5-kilometer swim, 40-kilometer bike, 10K run) Aug. 9, neither Briggs, Smyers nor Gilhuly said they were concerned. "Triathletes are a hardy breed," Smyers said. Though only Briggs is committed to competing in the Hartford triathlon, Briggs and Smyers say that scheduling, not water quality, would prevent them from participating. "We've swam in some pretty gungy things before," said Mike Pigg, a world-class professional triathlete from California who is considering competing in Hartford.

"You just don't want to swim, in anything where you can catch something." According to Perry Levy, the director of operations for the California-based CAT Sports that produces the Bud Light Series, people have expressed concern about the water quality. "We're still getting a little negative reaction," Levy said. "We've done a lot to make sure it's swimma-ble." Normally, the river is off-limits to swimmers because of strong currents and, if it rains heavily, sewage contamination. Raw sewage enters the river at times of downpours because pipes carrying sewage to the Rockets can't get clincher Associated Press The Mavericks kept the Houston Rockets from clinching a playoff berth as Herb Williams scored 24 points and Mike Iuzzolino 19 in a 109-106 victory Friday night in Dallas. Though the Rockets lead over the Los Angeles Lakers dwindled to a half-game, the Lakers must win today in Portland and Sunday at home against the Clippers, then hope Phoenix wins in Houston on Sunday to overtake the Rockets for the final Western Conference spot.

NBA That wasn't much "solace to Hakeem Olajuwon, who led Houston with 33 points and 13 rebounds but saw his team lose a 12-point lead. "We've put big pressure on us now," Olajuwon said. "It's a must-win situation now. This loss was very disappointing, very discouraging." Bulls 121, Hawks 95: Michael Jordan made 9 of 16 shots and scored 21 points and Scottie Pippen 20 to lead Chicago in Atlanta, leaving the Hawks one game from elimination from the playoffs. The Hawks (38-43) dropped into a tie with Miami for the eighth and final Eastern Conference playoff spot.

Both trail New Jersey (39-42), which finishes its season today against Orlando. The Nets would make the playoffs by beating Orlando, or if either Atlanta or Miami lose on Sunday. The Hawks finish at Cleveland and Miami is at Boston. Spurs 108, Nuggets 94: Terry Cummings had 34 points and 11 rebounds as San Antonio won at home. The Spurs are fighting Seattle for fifth place in the Western Conference.

Both are 47-34. Sonics 130, Kings 106: Shawn Kemp had 24 points and 14 rebounds as he returned to Seattle's starting lineup at home against Sacramento. Kemp had come off the bench the previous nine games. The Sonics will be seeded no worse than sixth in the Western Conference playoffs. Jazz 120, Timberwolves 106: Jeff Malone scored a season-high.

35 points and Karl Malone added 25 as Utah finished at home with a league-best 37-4 record. Cavaliers 107, Pacers 102: John Williams scored a season-high 30 points and Steve Kerr added a career-high 24 for Cleveland, which blew a 24-point lead before holding off Indiana in Indianapolis. Williams 1 win away from title Continued from Page El lake finished with 10,105 pins, five more than Thayer. It was the difference between a $5,000 payday and $4,000. The Vespi-Benoit winner plays No.

3-seeded Keeth today and so on up the ladder. First prize is $31,000, with $16,000 going to the runner-up. Pete Couture of Windsor Locks, in sixth place heading into the final eight-game match play block, fell to 11th and will take home $2,650.. Couture, a tour member from 1977-1988, was in one of the night's most competitive matches when he went against Purvis Granger of Columbus, Ohio. Both started with nine strikes before faltering in the 10th.

Couture finished with 277 but lost when Granger followed a spare with a strike for a 279. While Williams has been the hottest bowler all week at Bradley, Ferraro has been the most consistent all season. No. 2 on the money list Ferraro once again has put himself in position to make big money. "I finished No.

2 here last year, but there was no comparison," Ferraro said. "Last year it was my first (televised show of the season. This year it's my seventh. I also had to fight to finish No. 2.

This year I had a nice cushion heading into the last game. I feel that the hard part is over." Williams, never really threatened all week, knows that all he has accomplished could go awry today if he fails to win. "In a way, you feel like you've already won the tournament, but you have to go and do it again tomorrow," he said. "I know anybody can beat me, but on the other hand, I have the confidence of bowling better than anybody else all week. I'm just going to do the best I can and hope I win one game." Keeth's biggest asset may be that he finished second at Bradley in 1987 when he lost to Bob Handley.

Vespi, No. 4 on the money list this season will be in his fourth TV final. In his first three, he was the top seed, losing each time in the final game. The other two state competitors in the final round of 24 were never in contention. Brian Boghosian of Newing-ton finished 16th and won $2,100 and Marcel Lessard of Enfield was 21st, earning $1,650.

What: Pro Bowlers Association tour stop Where: Bradley Bowl, Windsor Locks Defending champion: Billy Young At $1 60,000 purse, $31 ,000 first prize, winner gets spot in Firestone Tournament of Champions in Akron, Ohio, next week. Television: Finals today, 3 p.m., Chs. 8, 40. Directions to Bradley Bowl: Take Exit 40 (Bradley International Airport) off 1-91 onto Route 20. Take Route 75 exit and turn right (Ella Grasso Turnpike).

Go about three-fourths of a mile and Bradley Bowl is on the right. Schedule Today: Top five roll off for championship, beginning at 3 p.m. Tickets Today: $10. Friday's results Standings after the sixth round of the $160,000 PBA Turns Classic with 42-game pinfall totals and match-play records (Top five advance to TV finals): 1, Walter Ray Williams Stockton, 18-6, 10,728. 2, Dave Ferraro, Kingston, N.Y., 17-7, 10,315.

3, Jimmy Keeth, West Palm Beach, 14-10, 1 0,234. 4, Bob Vespi, Plantation, 1 8-6, 1 0,1 79. 5, Bob Benoit, Topeka, 1 3-1 0-1 1 0,1 21 6, Tony Westlake, Edmond, 14-9-1, 10,105, $5,000. 7, Mark Thayer, Lafayette, 12-12, 10,100, $4,000. 8, David Ozio, Vidor, Texas, 15-8-1, 10,089, $3,500.

9, Dave Husted, Milwaukie, 12-11-1, 10,038, $3,000. 10, David Traber, Woodstock, III 1 1 -1 3, 1 0,01 8, $2,800. 1 1 Pete Couture, Windsor Locks, 1 3-1 1 1 0,001 $2,650. 12, Mike Edwards, Tulsa, 13-11, 9,978. $2,500.

13, Steve Wishner, Port Chester, N.Y., 9-14-1, 9,944, $2,400. 14, Jim Johnson, Wilmington, Del. 13-11, 9,930, $2,300. 15, Steve Wunderlich, St. Charles, 1 0-1 3-1 9,885, $2,200.

1 6, Brian Boghosian, Newington, 11-12-1, 9,884, $2,100. 17, Tom Crites, Tampa, 11-11-2, 9,870, $2,000. 1 8, Mike Scroggins, Amarillo, Texas, 11-13, 9,855, $1,900. 19, Pete Weber, Florissant, 9-14-1, 9,785, $1,800. 20, Purvis Granger, Columbus, Ohio, 8-16, 9,773, $1,700.

21, Marcel Lessard, Enfield, 11-12-1, 9,597, $1,650. 22, Ray Edwards, Centereach, N.Y., 7-17, 9,327, $1,600. 23, Parker Bohn III, Freehold, N.J., 8-1 6, 9,246, $1 ,550. 24, Mark Williams, Beaumont, Texas, 4-19-1, 9,052, $1,500. Today's schedule Match 1: Bob Vespi vs.

Bob Benoit. Match 2: Jimmy Keeth vs. winner of match 1. Match 3: Dave Ferraro vs. winner of match 2.

Match 4: Walter Ray Williams vs. winner of match 3. Rockets forward Larry Smith (13) and Mavericks center Donald Hodge keep their eyes on the ball in Friday's game. Playoff races The top tight turns in each conference edvance to the playoffe (division champion! in the top two eaede): Associated Press Western Conference Games GB toft x-Portland 57 24 .704 y-Utah 54 27 .667 3 x-Golden State 54 27 .667 3 x-Phoenix 52 29 .642 5 x-San Antonio 47 34 .580 10 x-Seattle 47 34 .580 10 x-LA Clippers 45 36 .556 12 Houston 42 39 .519 15 LA Lakers 41 39 .513 15V2 PORTLAND Today vs. LA Lakers.

UTAH Sunday at San Antonio. GOLDEN STATE Sunday vs. Seattle. PHOENIX Sunday at Houston. SAN ANTONIO Sunday vs.

Utah. SEATTLE Sunday at Golden State. LA CLIPPERS Sunday at LA Lakers. HOUSTON Sunday vs. Phoenix.

LA LAKERS Today at Portland; Sunday vs. LA Clippers. x-clinched playoff berth; y-clinched division title; -clinched conference title refused to play in the final minute of Thursday's 119-113 home loss to Indiana that prevented New Jersey from clinching a playoff berth. Morris' rebellion was the second by a Nets player in two games, coming two days after Derrick Coleman refused to re-enter late in a victory over Miami. Fitch downplayed the incidents and neither Coleman nor Morris was fined or suspended.

Anderson has surgery: San Antonio Spurs guard Willie Anderson will be fitted with "moon boots" after having surgery on both shinbones to repair stress fractures. Eastern Conference Game GB toft z-Chicago 66 15 .815 x-Boston 50 31 .617 16 x-Cleveland 56 25 .691 10 x-NewYork 50 31 .613 16 x-Detroit 48 33 .593 18 x-lndiana 1 40 42 .488 26V4 New Jersey 39 42 .481 27 Miami 38 43 .469 28 Atlanta 38 43 .469 28 Final rvfutw-SMSon gamMi CELTICS Sunday vs. Miami at Boston Garden. KNICKS Today at Milwaukee. NEW JERSEY Today vs.

Orlando. CHICAGO Sunday vs. Detroit. CLEVELAND Sunday vs. Atlanta.

DETROIT Sunday at Chicago. ATLANTA Sunday at Cleveland. MIAMI Sunday at Celtics. 76ers 122, Hornets 112: Ar- mon Gilliam scored 30 as Philadelphia ended a five-game losing streak in Charlotte, N.C. The Hornets had beaten the 76ers in three previous games this season and were looking for their first sweep of an Eastern Conference opponent Nets must survive themselves: Now that the Nets are one victory from making the playoffs for the first time since 1986, problems between coach Bill Fitch and his players no longer can be ignored.

The Nets (39-42) are as close to civil war as they are to success. The latest blowup: Chris Morris Canfield Continued from Page El from my parents." Baker has affirmed a number of times that he intends to use his final year of eligibility at Hartford. The rumor also concerned Baker because of the timing. Hartford is in the process of selecting a replacement for coach Jack Phelan, who recently resigned. "At a time like this, the university doesn't need this kind of story," Baker said.

"No matter who the new coach is, I feel we can win next year because of the players we have coming back. I really think we've got the personnel and I want to be part of that." tal combination of catastrophic illness to children and economic hard times. The FHCF is a 1990s neighbor-helping-neighbor concept and one that bears reporting. The organization will benefit from a basketball game at Torrington High April 29 at 7:30 p.m., with a team known as UConn Alumni playing the Connecticut All-Stars. Turina says Chris Smith, Rod Sellers, John Gwynn, Murray Williams and other former Huskies will play against the All-Stars, who include the University of Bridgeport's Lambert Shell, Hawaii's Phil Lott of Waterbury, Ru-fus Freeman of Oral Roberts and others.

Tickets are available at the Torrington Park and Rec office. A group called Friends Helping Children Foundation was formed in June 1991 in Torrington. Its purpose is to assist in meeting the needs, financial and otherwise, of children with life-threatening or life-altering ailments. "By encompassing the strengths of many individuals and organizations, we hope to make available a resource pool which these unfortunate individuals, while maintaining dignity and confidentiality, can utilize in their time of need," writes Tony Turina of the FHCF, an all-volunteer group. Turina's message contains a number of distressing examples of ordinary families victimized by the bru- 1.