Chillicothe Gazette from Chillicothe, Ohio • 6

Sports Saturday, February 14, 2004 Chillicothe Gazette 6A Michael S. Johnson, Sports Editor, 772-9361 or gazsportsnncogannett.com Cobras' comeback sinks Columbus Waltrip defends actions in Daytona qualifier The Columbus Destroyer's CoCo Blalock scores a in the second quarter of play against the Carolina Cobras in Columbus Friday. Robert J. kAYTONA BEACH, onds left in the quarter made it 17-7. Sedrick Robinson kickstart-ed the Destroyers in the second quarter, returning the kickoff 54 yards for the touchdown and closing the Cobras' lead to 17-14.

Robinson fielded the kickoff off the goal nets four yards deep in the end zone and raced untouched down the left sideline for the score. "We really returned the ball tonight," Bruce said. "Sedrick is a real threat returning the balL We made some plays to get back in the ballgame after falling behind 140." See COLUMBUS, Next Page wide Arena "You could say you saw a typical arena football game," said Destroyers head coach Earle Bruce. "There was a lot of action, a lot of scoring, and normally the team that gets the ball last, if it's a close game, gets an opportunity to win the game and that's what happened." Columbus (1-1) had a chance to put away the Cobras (2-0) late in the fourth when it had a first-and-goal from the 3, but a run for no gain, a sack and an incomplete pass forced the Destroyers to kick a 24-yard field goal for a 5348 lead with 56 seconds left Then, Carolina drove 45 yards on seven plays to secure the Destroyers' fate. The Cobras scored the first two touchdowns when Groce hauled in a 16-yard pass from Nagy and Sir Mawn Wilson caught a 32-yard strike.

Destroyers' quarterback Ryan Vena scored the franchise's first touchdown in Columbus, sneaking over from a yard out with 236 left in the first quarter, cutting the Carolina lead to 14-7. Vena's touchdown was set up by Ricky Woods' 14-yard run on the previous play. Carolina's Rob Bironas' 46-yard field goal with four sec Last-second score spoils Destroyers home opener By MICHAEL S. JOHNSON Gazette Sports Editor COLUMBUS Call it professional football on a serious caffeine buzz. Carolina Cobras quarterback Matt Nagy tossed a 6-yard scoring pass to Damien Groce as time expired, handing the Columbus Destroyers a 54-53 loss Friday in front of 17,171 fans in their Arena Football League home debut at Nation FTa The generally calm, clear air Dale Earnhardt Jr.

'and Michael Waltrro Adeea comes of age AFL game a high energy experience 1 1 4- mif rv (Michael 1- Johnson mohnsonnncogannett.com 1 fi maining. Sophomore Nick Milliken went strong to the basket and scored inside with 53 seconds left to break the tie and Vulgamore missed a 3-point try at the other end giving the ball back to Adena. Copley connected on l-of-2 free throws and Grigsby hit 3-of4 sandwiched around a Vulgamore layup to end the game. "Both teams played extremely hard," Piketon coach Brett Coreno said. "We had an opportunity down the stretch and it seemed like we couldnt find a bucket You have to give credit to Adena They made the plays down the stretch and we didnt" Copley led the way for the Warriors by scoring 15 points and grabbing four boards, while Milliken added eight points and eight boards.

"All seven kids that played tonight, everybody can look at themselves in the mirror and know they contributed to this victory," said Patrick. "And that's a great feeling for a coach. We had everybody involved mentally." Patrick was also enthused by the fantastic crowd turnout for the crucial game. "We haven't had a crowd like this ever in my five years," he said. 'This was an exceptional crowd tonight.

We dont play in this kind of environment very oftea" The Warriors final home game with be against Southeastern this Friday. Piketon (15-3, 10-3) will host Westfall the same night The Redstreaks were led by Vulgamore's 13 points and eight rebounds. Miller posted 11 and five. (Contact Cranmer at 772-9304 or via e-mail at Young Warriors topPiketonfor share of SVC By LANCE CRANMER Gazette Sports Writer FRANKFORT Certain wins can define a season. Rare is the win that can define an entire generatioa For an Adena program that's suffered two recent winless seasons and a dismal 417 campaign just one year ago, Friday night's 56-52 win over Scioto Valley Conference-leading Piketon marked an enormous milestone.

"We had a 4-17 year last year and now we're 144," said an elated Warriors' coach Mike Patrick. "We have one more league home game, and if we win it we're" champs. We could be sharing it with Piketon or Huntington, but we could be champs. And that's incredible. "How many senior classes since (Adena's last boys' SVC title in 1976) have had this dream? And this group of kids might get to realize it" A capacity crowd with plenty of Redstreaks' faithful as well packed the gym to see Adena jump out to a 14-13 lead after a quarter behind six quick points from Warriors' senior Justin Metzger.

The Warriors began to extend the lead early in the second quarter and eventually held a 21-15 advantage on a flawless 3-pointer from Andrew Sowers, but Piketon kept pulling close. Redstreaks' junior Eric Farmer scored seven of his team-high 16 points in the second, keeping Piketon within three at the half, 27-24. The teams exchanged baskets to begin the third until Martin S. LermanGazette Kyle Vulgamore shoots a jumpshot over Adena defender Jeremiah Copley during the first half. While Vulgamore scored his 1000th point during the fourth quarter of the game, Adena beat Piketon Friday night.

COLUMBUS There are only two words to describe the Arena Football League: High energy. Once you get past the mixture of loud, hard-rockin', heavy-metal and the Euro-Techno music blaring over the public address system between plays, and the scantily clad cheerleaders being encircled by revving Harley Davidson motorcycles, the Arena Football League specifically the Columbus Destroyers is rather exciting to watch. Aside from the obvious differences (indoor arena and a 50-yard field), arena football isn't much different from the NFL Many of the same rules apply, with slight differences. Kickoffs are generally fielded off the goal nets behind each end zone. Missed field goals can also be fielded by either team and returned.

There's not much emphasis on defense, with plenty of scoring for the football fan who craves touchdown catches, which all adds up to a completely exciting experience. And there's plenty of action off the field. There are endless activities between kickoffs, after scores and during timeouts to get the fans more involved in the Arena Football League experience, ranging from dance competitions and wheelbarrow races to "Celebrity Look-A-Like" features with fans on the scoreboard hovering high above the 25-yard line. By watching the Destroyers' home opener at Nationwide Arena, it's easy to see how St. Louis Rams' quarterback Kurt Warner wowed the NFL and its fans with his passing prowess.

For anyone in Chillicothe planning to attend one of the Destroyers' seven remaining home games this season, I have one piece of advice: Don't get up from your seat for very long, or else you might miss a touchdown or two. If it's scoring you want, it's scoring you will definitely receive. The halftime score of Friday's game was 35-34, much to the delight of the fans that turned out to take their first up-close-and-personal glance at Arena League football. Although Ohio State and Columbus will always be synonymous with football, there's a new game in town, and they plan to "destroy" old notions that football only belongs to the Buckeyes in Central Ohio. First touchdown The first TD scored in the history of Nationwide Arena wasn't by the Destroyers.

Carolina's Damien Groce scored on a 16-yard pass from QB Matt Nagy with 11:05 left in the first quarter Sowers 3 tied it up at 4040. Holding for a chance at the shot, Piketon put the ball into the hands of its Kyle Vulgamore. The senior was sent to the free throw line with 10.2 seconds remaining, where he connected on the first of his two shots recording his career point and giving the Redstreaks a 4140 advantage to end the quarter. For more than seven minutes of the final period, the teams battled to a stand-still, tied 50-50 with a minute re Piketon's Kyle Miller scored on three-straight possessions turning the third into a three-point play with a free throw tying the game at 31-31. Chase Vickers' only basket gave the Redstreaks their first lead and Sowers reclaimed it a moment later with another trey, but back-to-back baskets from Farmer and Miller put Piketon in control by four.

The Redstreaks held the lead until the quarter's final seconds when yet another Friday. The Cobras added another score about 10 minutes later when Sir Mawn Wilson intercepted Columbus QB Ryan Vena and returned it 32 yards for a score. Baseball or Football? Just like baseball, fans are allowed to catch and keep any football that finds its way into the stands. Such was the case on Carolina's kickoff to the Destroyers after its first score at 11:05 in the first quarter. Cobras kicker Rob Bironas launched a high-riser over the field goal nets and a lucky fan seated several rows back was in the right place at the right time.

Another fan about 15 rows into Section 102 of Nationwide Arena caught an errant Carolina pass, which sailed high and wide over Cobras' QB Matt Nagy's intended target If you catch it, you can keep it. Hottest ticket In town More than 17,000 fans (17,171) celebrated the newest team in Columbus by packing Nationwide Arena for the Destroyers' home opener Friday against Carolina. It was the highest attendance by the Destroyers since their inaugural season in Buffalo, N.Y., on April 30, 1999, which saw 16,100 fans pass through the turnstiles and watched as the New England Sea Wolves defeated Columbus, 59-26. Welcome to the AFL Destroyers rookie quarterback Ryan Vena edged teammate John Rayborn for the starting job and made the most of his AFL debut last week in Indianapolis against the Indiana Firebirds. Vena's first pass attempt in the Arena Football League went for a 13-yard touchdown to wide receiverlinebacker Cornelius White.

Vena went on to complete 19-of-25 passes for 202 yards and four touchdowns and entered Friday's game as the league's highest-rated passer (138.7). Venomous Cobras The Destroyers haven't had much luck against Carolina, even in days its Buffalo, including Friday. The Cobras hold a 4-1 series lead, with the Destroyers lone win coming a little more than a year ago, a 44-16 win. The 16 points was the fewest allowed in Destroyers' history. (Johnson can be reached at 772-9361 or via e-mail at msjohnsonncogannett.com) are accustomed to navigating at Daytona International Speedway has suddenly become turbulent, stirring things up heading into Sunday's Daytona 500.

It all began rather innocently in the first of Thursday's Twin 125 quali- tying Mark wtalw DeCotis trip left teammate and boss Earnhardt hung out in the draft. Junior, in his post-race interview, professed not to mind and thought Waltrip would feel the same about Earnhardt later passing him to take the lead and eventually win. Then came the post-race jab by Earnhardt's crew chief, Tony Eury Sr. "Seems like our teammate dont want to be our teammate no more," Eury said on TNT. Earnhardt tried to blow off the verbal fireworks.

"He's got a team back at the shop, just like I do," Earnhardt said. "He made the decision not to help people, but go for the win -just like I do. Later, I got a run. I went under him and made a good pass. I wasnt happy about him leaving me by myself, but I know he wasn't happy that I went to pass him." But Eury's dig didn't sit well with Waltrip.

"I dont worry about how other people drive their car, I just drive mine and I dont appreciate other folks that aren't even out there on the track critiquing how I go about things," Waltrip told Dave Despain, host of Speed Channel's Wind Tunnel motor sports talk show Thursday. "Nor do I appre ciate anybody talking stuff about me." And if that wasnt bad enough, Waltrip blew a tire in Busch Series practice Friday afternoon, spun out and collected the car of Earnhardt protigi Martin Truex who about an hour earlier had won the pole. Both appear headed to backup cars for Saturday's Busch race. Waltrip said he was surprised to learn about Eury's comments and defended his actions in the race. "In a 125, we're just positioning ourselves, trying to learn about our cars, trying to understand what we've got and what we have to do to win the Daytona 500," Waltrip said.

"If Dale hangs me out early in a race or me him, that means nothing to me. But, evidently, Tony Eury went on some sort of rampage about my loyalty to our team. That really bothered me that he would question what I know is best for DEI after my assistance, my participation and my great finishes for our team." The tiff comes as the days count down to NASCAR's biggest race, a race Waltrip has won two of the last three years, and it is proving to be a distraction. "Now, I have to sit around and answer questions about this deal," Waltrip told Despain. "If Tony had just been quiet and kept his dumb comments to himself, I could sit here and talk to you about winning the last two out of three Daytona 500s and having a fast car going into the Daytona 500.

"Instead, I'm talking about something that does-nt even pertain to what we're doing here in Daytona just wanted to come clean with you and everyone watching that I didnt like what (Eury) said and it's neither here nor there with me. I am going to go on about my business just like I did before today. I know how to help my teammate be successful and my teammate knows how to help me. I love Dale Jr. we are buddies and we'll get our jobs done on Sunday, no matter what anyone says or thinks." (DeCotis is a columnist for Gannett News Service.) Bobb provides drama in PV upset win Hoops roundup Southeastern, Friday's first half wasnt an offensive extravaganza The two teams combined for 29 points in the game's first 16 minutes, then Southeastern caught fire in the second half.

"Honest to God, we couldn't make a bucket," Panthers coach Larry Jordan said of the first half. "At halftime, I couldn't even get mad. We were taking good shots, but we couldn't make anything." From the field, Southeastern was 3-for-17 in the first quarter and 2-f br-7 in the second. To make things worse, every shot the Panthers attempted in the second quarter was in the paint After shaking off their problems, Southeastern's Drew Prater finished with 16 points and Tony Young added 13 points and 11 rebounds. Cory Helford led Zane Trace with 11.

See HOOPS, Page 8A gles added 15 points and eight rebounds. Mike Robinson chipped in with 12 and Josh Beard scored 10 more for Westfall. The key to the game came from the free-throw line, where the Mustangs managed to an otherwise close game into a big 14-point win. "We made the foul shots at the end," Westfall coach Jeff Holbert said. "It was a tough game, up and down for the majority of it.

But we got the lead and they had to fouL" Westfall was up by only three points after three quarters, then went 14-for-19 from the line in the fourth to seal the win. Westfall improves to 11-8 overall and 7-6 in the SVC. The Mustangs will travel to Piketon Friday. Unioto (8-10, 5-8) will play Lucasville Valley Tuesday. Southeastern 45, Zane Trace 31 With Southeastern's offense plaguing Zane Trace and bad shooting plaguing The Gazette Staff Chad Bethel and Clay Knis-ley kept Paint Valley in the game, but a dramatic overtime performance by Drew Bobb gave the Bearcats a long-awaited upset win over Huntington, 61-55 in overtime.

After suffering a gash on his face, Bobb left the game in the fourth quarter, which allowed Huntington to open a lead of as much as five points. But Bethel and Knisley kept Paint Valley's offense moving, and eventually rallied the Bearcats to a 50-50 tie at the end of regulation, thanks to a 3-pointer by Jamie Hughes. In the break between the fourth quarter and overtime, Paint Valley coach Shayne Combs got a surprise on the sideline. "When I watched him walk off and when I saw all the blood on the floor of the tunnel, I assumed he was done," Combs said. "Then, on the sideline, there he was hitting me on the shoulder going 'I can go, coach.

I can Bobb re-entered the game with his head wrapped in an Ace Bandage and scored each of the 11 points Paint Valley produced in overtime. "Drew absolutely took over. No doubt," said Huntington coach Randy Hauswirth, whose team missed a chance to move into a three-way tie atop the Scioto Valley Conference with Piketon and Adena "We didnt have an answer for him." Bobb finished with 25 points, which moved him into second place on the school's all-time scoring list with 1,068 points. He also pulled in 15 rebounds. Westfall 80, Unioto 66 Four Westfall players cracked double digits as the Mustangs galloped past Unioto Friday.

Drew Shaw led all scorers with 24 points while Mike An Earnhardt Jr. looking strong at Daytona again Drivers Tony Stewart, left, and Dale Earnhardt right, smile during a light moment in the garage area Friday at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach. AP most famous track. Then again, the Intim-idator didnt win the 500 until his 20th try. His son wants one now.

"I dont want to have to keep on coming close, coming close and losing it," Earnhardt said after his victory Thursday. "It was hard on my dad. It was even hard on us kids, wanting him to win and not knowing when it would happen. "I dont want be here 20 years later and coming so close to winning that I cant stand it." He's clearly the driver By PAUL NEWBERRY AP Sports Writer DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. Dale Earnhardt Jr.

can't celebrate just yet If anyone should know how little it means to win a qualifying race at Daytona International Speedway, it's Junior. Thursday, Earnhardt won his second straight 125-miler for the Daytona 500. Impressive, yes, but still io fewer qualifying wins than his father had on NASCAR's to beat in Sunday's Great American Race a label his late father often carried. The elder Earnhardt finally won in 1998. Junior was just oozing with confidence after beating two-time 500 winner Michael Waltrip in the first of the twin 125-mile qualifying races.

The teammates didnt even work together, sparking some spirited good ol' boys-style debate between Waltrip and Earnhardt's crew chief. Not that it mattered. "When I put my car out front, it's a beast," Earnhardt said. Elliott Sadler won the second 125, showing the strength of the redesigned Ford that already had claimed the front row for Sundas race. Sadler, who will start alongside pole winner Greg Biffle, knows all eyes will be on Earnhardt's No.

8 Chevrolet when the green flag waves. "Everyone is picking him," Sadler said. "That's OK. I dont mind being the underdog." A I 4 a -i. j-u 3.