The Star Press from Muncie, Indiana • Page 27

McNeese Defense Makes Cardinals Losers Again By RON LEMASTERS Associate Sports Editor LAKE CHARLES, La. McNeese State's Cowboys turned a football game into a rodeo here Saturday night, bursting out of the chute early and riding Ball State to a 24-7 victory before a shirt- sleeve crowd of 19,879. boosted the McNeese record to 4-1 and dropped Ball State to 2-3. It was another game of frustration for the Cardinals, who were never out of the game, but never in it either. A tough, quick, opportunistic Cowboy defense bulldogged the Ball State offense at every turn and did not allow them into the end zone.

The only Ball State score was a 37- yard return of a pass interception by Reid Willen in the second period. Dane Fellmeth kept his extrapoint string intact at seven without a miss, but lost his field goal run at five when he missed from 50 yards in the second period. Other than that, Ball State had little opportunity to score. Beset by turnovers and penalties in the first half and the tenacious McNeese defense in the second half, Ball State could muster only 220 yards total offense. Meanwhile, the Cowboys saddled up a freshman tailback named Ruford Jordan and sent him against the Cardinals 17 times for 111 yards and two touchdowns on runs of 13 and four yards.

The first one came in the third period and the second one with just 11 seconds to play. The other McNeese points came on a 16-yard TD run by sophomore quarterback Stephan Starring in the first period and a 37-yard field goal by Don Stump, his 31st career three-pointer. Stump, the most successful extra-point kicker in Louisiana collegiate history, booted three without a miss to raise his string to 66 straight. The Cardinals' first four possessions of the game went awry for a variety of reasons. The first died at the McNeese 38 on a fumble by quarterback Mark O'Connell, the second bit the dust after a second-down bobble by tailback Ken The Muncie Star's Sunday Sports Page One, Section October 5, 1980 After the Ball Distant DeepThe Great Fishes Following an ancient, unmarked migration course, the hardfighting king mackerel make their way northward and westward each autumn through the blue waters off Florida, up past Clearwater and Tarpon Springs and Cedar Key and around the bend west past Apalachicola and Panama City and Fort Walton Beach and Pensacola.

Fishermen, professional and amateur, are waiting along the way for these fish that average from 10 to 40 pounds and the greatest concentration of fishing boats waits at the village of Destin, six miles east of Fort Walton Beach, 55 miles west of Panama City. Destin is the home port of the largest sport fishing fleet in all Florida and there are "head boats" that take out 30 or more fishermen for a few dollars a head for a half day or full day of bottom fishing for grouper and red snapper. There are also scores of swift, sonar-equipped charter boats designed to find and catch and kill the great blue marlin and white marlin and sailfish and dolphin and tarpon that are the prizes of fishermen willing to pay a charter fee of $385 per day for a group of six or less who take turns in the fishing chairs. These are the "bluewater boats," the craft that venture 50 miles or more offshore as they scan the sonar and radar screens in their relentless pursuit. The kings were being taken by the hundreds off Destin in the early days of September and on Sept.

6 a Destin doctor, fishing from the 23-foot charter craft Eye Tooth, caught a blue marlin 55 miles out that weighed pounds. Huge daily catches of king mackerel were clamoring for the attention of those who believe in moderation and conservation, even in a community in which sport fishing and tourism are among the more important industries. On Sept. 11 Joy Dunlap, wrote in her "Fishing Report" column in the weekly Destin Log newspaper; "Kings are the best for at least eight years and maybe longer. Some boats have reported in with over 100 on an all-day charter and we wonder if that many is really necessary.

"That's 800 to 1,000 pounds of dressed-out seafood for a charter of six people and equates to a good 100 pounds or more of fish per person, which makes for a great many king mackerel dinners during the next year or so. "It also makes for a strong case by the commercial fishermen and Department of Natural Resources people who believe in catch limits." Catch limits There aren't any in Florida saltwater, and sensible people, as the Florida writer points out, are beginning to wonder. "OVER 100" Area newspapers, including the Destin Log, regularly carry reports of catches by charter boats and the larger party or "head" boats. In each listing the Anastasia II was among the most. prominent, with "over 100" appearing after the name of that charter boat time after time to denote the number of king.

fish taken. One fishing column noted that the Anastasia II had caught "over 100" in one trip and had gone out again to catch 63 more the same day. Pressures increased as fishermen began arriving in the Destin area for the Marlborough Billfish Tournament, scheduled for Sept. 12, 13 and 14. The tournament was the last "preliminary" prior to Destin's annual Game Fish Rodeo, which draws sports fisherman each October from Currin that fullback Tim Petty covered for a one-yard loss, the third never got off the ground after O'Connell missed two straight passes on the first two downs, and the fourth was hampered by a dead ball foul call against Jeff Flowers in the secondary.

By that time, the Cardinals were down by a 10-0 score. Willen picked them up at that point by picking a Starring pass off the fingertips of tailback Leron McClendon and zipping 37 yards unmolested for the only points Ball State would score all night. BSU came right back with an onside kick that Fellmeth kicked properly and Curtis Westbrook covered properly 11 yards downfield. The drive never materialized. On fourth down and seven at the 46, Ball State lined up to punt, but Westbrook, the short man in the formation, got the snap and had the first down until he fumbled at the 34.

Late in the period, Ball State had another drive stopped on a fumble at the McNeese 45, but the Cards got it back with 43 seconds to play on a Cowboy fumble that Willen recovered. O'Connell went to the air, but the drive and the half ended for Ball State on an interception. If there ever was a time when the Cardinals needed to come back strong, it was in Cowboy Stadium here Saturday night. The spectre of last Saturday's 42-9 loss to Miami could have been dimmed, if not totally forgotten with a strong comeback, but it just wouldn't come together. Instead, Ball State ran three series in the third period, each one for three plays and a punt, and wound up with 20 yards total offense.

It carried over into the fourth period when Ball State had another threedowns-and-a-punt series. The Cardinals finally got pulled together long enough to drive from their own 3 to the McNeese 31, but it came down to a fourth-and-four situation with O'Connell throwing to Flowers, but the ball was jarred loose by a savage hit by Cowboy safety Robert I Davemport. Ball State had one more opportunity with enough time in which to get back into the game, but nothing seemed to work. O'Connell hit tight end Ray Hinton with a a a a a a a a a pass that Hinton couldn't hold. On second down, O'Connell was dropped for a nine-yard loss and on third down, flanker Tim Clary dropped an O'Connell pass.

For the game, O'Connell put the ball up 28 times, hitting 13 for 84 yards. Hinton caught four for 27 yards and Stevie Nelson and Currin three each. On the ground, Currin led Ball State runners with 57 yards in 13 carries. Terry Lynch went eight times for 25 and fullback Tim Petty, who started in place of Mark Barnholdt, had 19 in six tries. Bornholdt picked up 21 in five carries.

McNeese tailback Leron McClendon, who came into the game with a 112.5- yard rushing average, came away with only 46 yards in 15 carries, his lowest output of the season. Starring threw only 13 times, hitting four for 35 yards. Stump also handled the Cowboy punt-ing chores and hit eight for a 43.5- yard average. Jackson Homer Lifts Yanks to East Title NEW YORK (UPI) Reggie Jackson, who could have reserved the moment for himself, instead chose to dedicate the biggest home run of his season and present the bat with which he hit it to New York manager Dick Howser. "I told Dick in spring training that the first 30 homers were for me," Jackson said Saturday after hitting a three-run homer to enable the Yankees to clinch their fourth American League East title in five years with a 5-2 victory over the Detroit Tigers in the first game of a double-header.

Howser said he knew all along Jackson would produce although he admitted he was surprised when Jackson presented him with the bat after the game. All the manager contributed was some adjustment. "You never have to worry about Reggie trying or being in shape or being ready to play," said Howser. "The only thing that concerned us was his mental attitude in September. We made a point of telling him October was coming and it worked." Jackson's homer, his 41st of the season and a mammonth shot into the upper deck in rightfield, capped: a four-run fifth inning that brought the Yankees from a 2-1 defecit into a playoff date with the Royals beginning Wednesday in Kansas City.

Rudy May, one of several offseason acquisitions who enabled the Yankees to regain the title they relinquished to the Baltimore Orioles last season, raised his record to 15-5 and maintained his league-leading ERA at 2.46. New York, nailing done the triumph with a vengeance, used relief ace Goose Gossage in the final two innings and he responded with his 33rd save of the season. Roger Weaver fell to 3-4. The victory climaxed a stretch drive in which the Yankees went 24-7 to hold off the Orioles. It was a strange division title for the Yankees, who led by games on July 19, only to see the lead shrink to one-half game for a week in late August.

MOST POWERFUL Phillies Mike Schmidt set a major league mark Saturday hitting his 48th home run, more than any other third baseman in history. Schmidt hit the run off expos Stan Bahnsen in the 11th inning driving in Pete Rose to win the game 6-4 and the National League East Championship. (UPI Photo) Defensively, linebacker Phil Debes and tackle Wally Jordan led the Cardinals with 10 stops each. All of Scheller's were solo stops and Debes had seven unassisted. McNeese linebacker Darryl Burckel had seven solos and five assists for 12 total stops.

"McNeese has a good ballclub," Ball State coach Dwight Wallace said. "Their offense and defense keep the pressure on you. We just made too many mistakes. The effort was there. The kids took the game to McNeese.

"In the second half, McNeese made some defensive adjustments and we were trying to throw ball. We had established the run in the first half and were trying to establish some other things in the second half. We made some key mistakes early in the third quarter against a good defensive club." Wallace said he felt Willen's pass interception for a touchdown was a potential turning point "but we weren't able to capitalize on the opportunities we had on momentum changes." Cowboy coach Ernie Duplechin was understandably elated with his team's victory after losing a string of 14 straight regular season wins last week. "I thought we were ready to play," Duplechin said. "We sputtered at times, but they (Ball State) played very well.

"It felt great to win. It beats the hell of whatever else you can STATISTICS McNEESE STATEBALL STATE First Downs 16 12 Yards Rushing 232 136 Yards Passing 35 84 Passes (A-C-I) 14-4-1 29-13-1 Fumbles Fumbles Lost 2-1 5-3 Yards Penalized 64 Punts Avg. SCORING SUMMARY Ball ...7 0 McNeese State 10 0 ON 7-4 M- 37 field goal Starring, 16 run (Stump kick) BS Willen, 37 pass interception (Fellmeth kick) Jordan, 13 run Jordan, 2 (Stump kick) Garvey Gives Crowd Credit for LA Win Bob Barnet many parts of the country. Biggest billfish in the Marlborough tourney was worth $25,000 if caught the first of day, $15,000 if taken the second day of and $10,000 the third day. On Sunday, Sept.

14, final day of the tourney, a radio newscast reported that the 46-foot Anastasia 1I had struck what was believed to have been a huge fish, was taking water, and was in danger of sinking. A Coast Guard helicopter sped to the scene and dropped extra pumps. A Coast Guard cutter was sent out to meet the endangered charter boat. When it arrived additional pumps were provided and the Anastasia II began a slow and laborious voyage homeward. When it arrived at its home berth in Destin the stern was nearly under water, but the boat was home.

Tony Davis, 29-year-old captain of the Anastasia II, told a radio interviewer: "We were just loafing around out there, waiting for the Marlborough tournament to end. There was nobody aboard but a few of my friends and me. They were passing the time by shooting flying fish with shotguns when we felt the boat hit something hard. I didn't see anything but a couple of my friends said they saw a big fish. The boat started taking water right away and we called for help.

We took in more water every time we had to stop to hook up new pumps. We were lucky to get back." Killing flying fish with shotguns? Trapshooting with live targets a practice forbidden by law in every state in the union? What wonderful fun waiting for these merry little fish to leap from the water, glistening in the sun, then tearing them apart with shotgun pellets! It was assumed that the charter boat had struck or been struck by a whale-shark, largest member of the shark family and a fish 30 to 40 feet long that could have weighed tons, Not surprisingly, there was considerable damage to the hull. A fish believed to have been a whale-shark was harpooned from a big party boat carrying more than 50 fishermen and a full crew a few years ago in a trip from John's Pass Marina near St. Petersburg. The fish towed the big boat more than four and one-half hours while observers on a flotilla of other boats and scores of aircraft watched.

The huge fish finally broke the harpoon line and disappeared and the party boat came home. Sober-faced, nonsmiling, fishermen and crewmen walked down the gangplank, and said little. And it came to pass that on Sunday, Sept. 14, 1980, a great fish, barely seen or perhaps not seen at all, struck a boat off Destin, Fla. It was the charter boat Anastasia II, that champion craft whose trademark was huge catches and whose passengers, for the sport of it, gunned down harmless, non- edible flying fish with shotguns as they waited to return to port.

Can we doubt that He who marks the fall of a sparrow is aware also of the fall of a golden, joyous flying fish no longer than a man's arm? LOS ANGELES (UPI) Steve Garvey, the heart and soul of the Los Angeles Dodgers for many years, was in a perfect position to steal much of the credit for his team's victory. His home run in the fourth inning, one of three hits he had in the game and first of the season against Houston, lifted the Dodgers to a 2-1 victory over the Astros and within a game of Houston entering Sunday's regularseason finale. But true to his form, Garvey refused to accept credit for the Dodgers win. Instead, he credited the 46,085 roaring fans. "I've never seen two consecutive crowds like this," said.

Garvey, wearing a 'Brooklyn Dodgers' tee-shirt, in reference to the Friday and Saturday games. They showed us how much they appreciated us and that's important. They keep our adrenalin flowing. "This is the ultimate challenge, to beat the team that's in front of you without any help from anyone Jerry Reuss gave up seven hits in shutting down the Astros to notch his fourth straight win this year over Houston and up his record to 18-6. Reuus, traded to the Dodgers from Pittsburgh two years ago, said he was excited as the crowd.

"It's been about five years since I've had an experience like this, the left-hander said. I had almost forgotten what it was like. I sure do love it, especially when I feel I'm sharing it with 46,000 others." Houston held a three-game lead over the Dodgers entering the threegame series but now must win Sunday or face a one game playoff Monday afternoon in Los Angeles. "When they came in, they had to win just one of three games, said Los Angels manager Tom Lasorda. "Now they have to win -one." Houston manager Bill Virdon, who'll send Vern Ruhle, 12-4, against Burt Hooton, 14-8, in Sunday's game, emphasized that his Astros still need just one victory.

"Sunday can't be any tougher than facing Reuss," Virdon said. "We're not worried about numbers or statistics. We just need one more Garvey singled in the second, took second on Pedro Guerrero's, single, and scored on Derrel Thomas' single to left field. In his next at-bat, Garvey led off the fourth with his 26th homer. The Dodgers used three double plays in a pitching duel between winner Jerry Reuss, 18-6 and loser Nolan Ryan, 11-10.

Reuss held the Astros to seven hits and struck out seven for his fourth straight victory over Houston this season. Ryan fell to 1-8 lifetime against the Dodgers. Schmidt Says Homer Biggest of Career MONTREAL (UPI) Without hesitation Mike Schmidt christened his division-clinching blast as the greatest in his incredible parade of home runs. Schmidt clubbed a two-run blast with one out in the 11th Saturday to give the Philadelphia Phillies a 6-4 victory over the Expos and their fourth division title in the last five years. "I don't even have to think about it.

This is number one," said Schmidt, whose major league leading 48th homer of the year strengthened his bid to win the National League's Most Valuable Player award. "This was such a great ballgame. I think the worst thing that could have happened to us would have been to Schmidt said amid flying champagne corks in the Phillies' dressing room. "The championship could have still been decided tomorrow (Sunday) but there were so many highs, so many emotional peaks in that game, I think we would have been absolutely drained." The All-Star third baseman paid a tribute to the Expos, who were nudged out of the pennant race on the final weekend of the season for the second straight year. "They are a great ballclub but I don't think they've had enough adversity yet," he said.

"Maybe one more year of frustration will put them on top." Tug McGraw in recording his fifth victory against four defeats pitched three innings of scoreless relief, giving him a string of 26 consecutive innings without an earned run over 15 games. "Today's ballgame was incredible. I don't know when I've seen two teams stage such an incredible show of just how badly they wanted to win," said McGraw. Pete Rose opened the top of the 11th inning by drilling a 2-0 pitch for a single to right off Stan Bahnsen, who was beginning his second inning of relief. Bake McBride then popped out to catcher Gary Carter before Schmdit walloped his game-winning homer to break Eddie Matthews' single season mark for a third baseman.

Tug McGraw increased his record to 5-4 with three innings of scoreless relief. He record his 20th save in the Phillies 2-1 victory Friday by striking out five of the six batters he faced. McGraw has not yielded an earned run in 26 innings, covering a stretch of 15 games. Schmidt, the major leagues leading home run hitter, keyed the Phillies' stretch drive to the half-pennant with four home runs in the past four games and five in the last eight. The Phillies tied the score in the ninth inning on a walk to Rose, a forceout, an infield out and Bob Boone's clutch single up the middle.

Pinch-hitter Ramon Aviles struck out to end the inning. Temperence Hill Wins Gold Cup Spectacular Bid Retired With Ankle Injury NEW YORK (UPI) This should have been Spectacular Bid's greatest moment, the last obstacle to overcome before the most successful horse in thoroughbred racing history retired to stud duties. It was to have been Bid's third and final attempt to do something he had never done before win a race at a mile-and-a-half. But this Saturday afternoon belonged to Temperence Hill, a length victor in the $549,000 Jockey Club Gold Cup over John Henry. Late in the afternoon, just over an hour before post time, trainer Bud Delp who turned Belmont Park's fall championship series into a depressing, second-rate show scratched Bid 1 from the race.

"I knew we had a said Delp, who also I scratched Bid from the Marlboro Cup last month. "These thoroughbreds are very fragile. There was no way I was going to risk it." X-rays of Bid's front left ankle showed minor deterioration, and at the urging of Dr. Alex Harthill, Delp made his decision to withdraw. That left the race wide open for Temperence Hill, who seized upon a slow early pace and the distance he loves to grab the Gold Cup victory.

Bid's absence certainly didn't hurt matters. "I don't know it would have been any different," said Joe Cantey, Temperence Hill's trainer. "That's a question I just can't answer. I do know one thing I'm glad Bid wasn't in there." Temperence Hill remained uncharacteristically close to the lead and took over the front position at the mile-pole. "I didn't want to discourage him," said jockey Eddie Maple, whose horse ran the mile and a half in 2:30 1-5.

"He was all horse today. He broke real well. I figured those horses would go for the lead so I was happy to lay back. I finally got a chance 1 to hit him left-handed. Coming to the wire, I didn't want to take any chances that he'd start fumbling or fooling around, so I kept after him." The victory, worth $329,400 to the Loblolly Stables, boosted Temperence Hill's career earnings to $831,352 and rewarded backers with a $6.60, $2.60 and $2.20 payoff.

Second place went to John Henry, the 3-5 favorite, who returned $2.20 and $2.10. Two lengths back in third was Ivory Hunter, a 25-1 shot, who showed at $3.40. With victories in the Belmont and Travers Stakes and the Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn this year, Temperence Hill, despite a reputation for inconsistency, has to be considered for 3-year-old honors and is one of the most promising horses in the nation. John Henry, a late entry who was scratched from Friday night's Man O' War Stakes when word of Bid's condition began circulating, was second out of the gate and remained that way throughout. Instrument Landing took the early lead, setting an unusually slow pace and maintaining first place until Maple urged Temperence Hill to the front at the mile-pole.

Always regarded a long-distance horse, this race suited Temperence Hill beautifully. The slow pace and absence of Spectacular Bid enabled the 3-year-old colt to move leisurely before making his move and romping home to an easy victory. Rounding out the order of finish was Novel Notion in fourth, followed by Instrument Landing, Stiff Sentence and Silver Eagle..