News-Journal from Mansfield, Ohio • 11

SPORTSTWay The American League Central is no longer an easy win for the Indians. Page 3B Scoreboard Browns need back 3 Hostage situation 4 NEWS JOURNAL Tuesday, April 24, 2001 PAGE 1 MS 4 4 Spring season for turkeys is under way By Rob McCurdy News Journal I Ohio State offensive coordinator Jim Bollman watches his players work out during spring practice at the Woody Hayes facility in Columbus recently. (Daniel MelogranaNews Journal) Bollman mm- studyin offense New offensive coordinator eyes Buckeye holdovers SHELBY Last year's champ was this year's spectator. Ashland High School student Eric Trukovich, who won the youth division of the first North Central Ohio Spring Turkey Contest, watched as Nate Young got a trophy-sized bird. "I'm the lucky guy this morning," Young said.

Young plucked a good-sized bird during the opening day of spring turkey season Monday morning. The torn weighed 18.7 pounds with a 10-inch beard andVinch spurs. Trukovich was happy for his hunting buddy. "Hopefully, he'll win something for this," Trukovich said. The two had their doubts it would happen Monday.

"I'd say, 15 minutes before he came in five deer ran by me about 20 feet away, so I never thought I'd get him," Young said. Fortunately for him, the deer stampede didn't scare off the bird, which had other things on its mind. "He was 150 yards away and he looked right at me and the next thing I knew he came up beside, me and I got him," the 18-year old Pioneer JVC student said. It's the third turkey Young's gotten. He made kills in 1996 and 1997.

As for Trukovich, he's in no hurry. He plans to enjoy the three-week season. A "They're all henned up and you're not going to out-call the real thing," he said. And he has no illusions of topping last year's bird, which had a beard nearly 10 inches long. "As long as it's over a jake, I'll probably shoot one," Trukovich said.

"I can't wait for another big one like See TURKEY, page 4B By Jon Spencer News Journal COLUMBUS Ohio State offensive coordinator Jim Bollman is tackling his new job with an open mind and closed eyes at least when it comes to putting much stock in what he sees of his veteran football players on film. "You can look at a lot of film from last year, but I don't want to know anything someone can or can't do on film," said Bollman, who spent the last two years coaching tight ends with the Chicago Bears. "When I look at some of the good things that happened last year, you can see a level some people have accomplished and it's up to us to get them to step up to another level." Film wasn't going to help Bollman much anyway. Gone from last year's offense are the starting tailback, the "We want to end every series with a kick whether it be an extra point, a field goal or a punt." Jim Bollman osu offensive coordinator Lynn Moll of Sportsman's Den weighs a turkey for Benny Spears of Crestline on Monday. Spears took the 22-pound, 4-ounce gobbler near Tyro.

(Dave PolcynNews Journal) Big gobblers mean bog prizes SHELBY The North Central Ohio Spring Turkey Hunting Contest sponsored by the News Journal and the Sportsman's Den is under way. Any hunters in Rich land, Ashland, Crawford, Morrow, Knox, season through May 13. Turkeys will be judged by the length of their beards with the length of the spurs being the tiebreaker. Hunters can check their birds at any station, but to enter the contest they must also take them to the Sportsman's Den at 48 Mansfield Ave. in Shelby.

All hunters will have their picture taken with their birds to be run throughout the season in the News Journal sports section. There are two age groups: 15 and younger and 16 and older. The top three finishers in groups will split $1,500 in prizes. four most productive wide receivers and three-fifths of the starting offensive line. Further hampering the evaluation process up front this spring has been injuries to tackle Ivan Douglas (blood clot in his lung) and center LeCharles Bentley (dislocated kneecap).

Both will be sidelined for Saturday's annual Scarlet and Gray scrimmage at Crew Stadium. Bentley is one of five offensive starters back on a team that averaged 27.6 points last season, but one that benefited from All-Big Ten kicker Dan Stultz and seven touchdowns via returns. See OSU, page 4B Huron and Seneca counties are eligible ON viST" which runs the length of Ohio (J spring wild turkey Eoyals reign NCC Serendipity hits Eagles softball I "X-i-. ,4 4 tf31 1 if -1 1 Slam in the sixth drops the Warriors By Gary Ogle Gannett News Service earned, Corona refused to turn the game over to someone else. "He kept wanting to throw," Schreck said.

"He didn't want us to take the ball away from him." Pitching with the lead just once, in the top of the seventh after Josh Hens-ley knocked in Mike Hurles with the go-ahead run, Corona promptly loaded the bases with no outs. Benji Hall led off the inning by battling his way on with a free pass. Todd Perry followed with a BUCYRUS In the howling winds at Wynford, you couldn't blame the Ontario Warriors if they felt like they were in the Land of Oz. Shane Wilburn's grand slam in the sixth had to seem like a house dropping on them from out of the sky. Wilburn's blast powered a six-run Wynford rally that led to an improbable 14-13 win and gave the Royals sole possession of the lead in the North Cen 6 smgle to the hole at short and Tony Finley dumped a perfect bunt in front of the plate for another base hit.

Corona fanned the next three batters, the last one on a full count with Hall representing the tying run just a few steps from the plate. "(Marc Corona) kept wanting to throw. He didn't want us to take the ball away from him." Tom Schreck Wynford coach Unrecruited pitcher leads way for AU By Craig Hicks Special to the News Journal ASHLAND Letters, videos and faxes from high school athletes consistently land on the desk of Ashland University softball coach Sheilah Gulas. But rarely do these inquiries result in the athlete playing for the Eagles let alone participating at a high level. Every now and then, however, there is an athlete who falls into a coach's lap.

In this instance, the gift arrived from a state better known for its snowfall than softball. Freshman pitcher Josie Nelson of Prior Lake, has thrived after making the 800-mile, 15-hour journey. "Originally, I was looking for a private school in Minnesota," Nelson said. "I was looking at one school but they had already recruited another pitcher and there are not many Division II schools in Wynford pitcher Marc Corona fires a pitch toward the plate against Ontario on Monday. (Dan ClutterGannett News Service) Softball and baseball roundups, page 4B.

riors up 5-3. "We chipped away at it and in the third inning we were tied," said Schreck about rebounding from a 5-0 hole. Chris Hulsmeyer's two-out, two-run single tied the game at 6-6 in the second frame. But Ontario came back with three in the top half of the third to reclaim the lead. See ROYALS, page 4B tral Conference.

"Great game. Unbelievable! Unbeliev- able!" said Wynford mmmmmmmm coach Tom Schreck, who saw his team come back twice from five-run deficits. "Win or lose, these kids weren't going to give up." The Royals are the only undefeated baseball team in the NCC at 4-0 and 8-4. Ontario goes to 2-2 and 7-5. Perhaps no one represented the Royals' refusal to quit more than Wynford pitcher Marc Corona.

In spite of throw Josie Nelson has been a pleasant surprise for the Ashland University softball program. (Submitted photo) Minnesota, so I figured I better find somewhere else to go." Rather than following the standard practice and letting the coach recruit the athlete, Nelson decided to recruit herself to the coaches. "I just started writing letters to a lot of places that I had See EAGLES, page 4B mm "They kept hitting the hell out of the ball with Corona pitching," Ontario coach Dan Kreisher said. "He's been a great pitcher throughout his career here at Wynford. They are just a well-coached team and keep coming at you." The starting pitchers, Corona for Wynford and Ontario's Tony Finley, quickly discovered they were going to be in for a long night.

Both faced their opponent's entire batting order in the ing 147 pitches and giving up 16 hits along with 13 runs, 10 of which were first that ended with the War".