The Wichita Eagle from Wichita, Kansas • 25

MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL4 WRANGLERS6 CLASSIFIED MARKEIPLACE7 (D)C Wichita OPHRTQ oruiviu For scores: call CHySne (316) 436-1200 Local: category 9250 Basebal: category 6785 If you have a news tip question or comment about a story Contact Sherry Johnson 2685362 WEDNESDAY July 23 1997 WHAT Eighth annual Nike Wichita Open 18th stop on the 29event 1997 Nike Tour WHERE Willowbend 37th North and Rock Road First time at this course Previous seven tournaments held at Reflection Ridge Golf Club TODAY ProAm at 7:30 am at Willowbend ProAm awards party at 7 pm THURSDAY First round of the Open 7:30 am ADMISSION Admission: Daily passes $5 on weekdays $10 on Saturday $15 on Sunday Advance weekly pass $25 Advance clubhouse pass $60 Tickets available at LawrenceDumont Stadium or Willowbend or by calling 267-3372 Cramer still looking for his finishing touch 18 He sank a 4-inch putt for the victory Since then however Cramer's weekend rounds have been a weakness if he gets to the weekend rounds Last year at Boise Cramer had a three-stroke lead going into the final round He fell out of contention rallied back to the lead then bogeyed the last two holes to lose "Now why do that to yourself?" said the 37-year-old This year has been no different In 15 Nike events Cramer has made the cut seven times earning slightly more than $10000 He has missed the cut in three of the last five events But his best finishes Cramer is complicating his predicament by averaging 7174 at or near par To win on the Nike a player has to shoot in the mid-60s "Not all of us are Tiger Woods and come jump right up and win a couple of big ones I knew it would take some time" he said "I shot some low rounds in SL Louis" said Cramer who finished at lSunder par his best performance of the year ready to put some good rounds Cramer expects to improve "My expectations got greater when I won in Wichita Now just got to meet those he said Defending Nike Wichita Open champion battles latehole struggles By Bob Stratton The Wichita Eagle Rick Cramer wasn't a happy man leaving the green Tuesday evening at Willowbend He had Just threeputted the seventh hole in the shootout and then lost a chip-off with eventual winner Craig Hainllne Cramer could have stayed in the running for $500 if his short second putt hadn't rimmed out have come the last two weeks tying for 19th two weeks ago and tying for 12th in St Louis last week Earlier this year he was tied for the lead in a tournament but Cramer foiled to make a birdie for the final 25 holes he sakL "Fm just so tired of the way Fm playing" Cramer said Tf I knew what was going on I'd have fixed it a long time ago I cant put my finger on it Sometimes it's a drive or an iron or a bad putt It all adds up" Cramer knew a second Nike victory wouldnt come easy Only Nike Wichita winners Tom Lehman David Duval and Davkl Toms have gone on to the PGA Card please: Local players chase spots on PGA Tour Open notes 3C 1 Just gave it away Fm just so sick of drring that" said the defending Nike Wichita Open champion Cramer has struggled with finishing ever since he came through with his come-from-behind victory to collect $000 at Reflection Ridge last summer He remembers his first and only Nike Tour victory vividly Trailing by two strokes going into the final round Cramer fired a 67 carding Undies on Nos 16 and 17 and nearly taking a birdie on Cramer 1996 Wichita Open champ Dodge big man commits to WSU I think some people knew about me but not a Kevin Gwaltney Shockers give final scholarship to 6-foot-8 240pound Gwaltney By Kirk Seminoff The Wichita Eagle Plenty of Division I basketball coaches took notice of Kevin Gwaltney last weekend at a camp for junior-college players But not many knew that he was eligible to play at their schools this winter Wichita State did though and Gwaltney on Tuesday night gave the Shockers an oral commitment to join the team for this season Gwaltney a Hoot-8 240pound Inside player from Dodge City Community College will have three years of eligibility left "As a juco player you can get lost pretty easily in the said Gwaltney who visited WSU on Monday "Coaches look at the sophomore kids because they're ready to come out I think some people knew about me but not a lot" commitment is nonbinding since this is not a period where recruits can sign letters of intent Instead Gwaltney won't officially be a Shocker until he enrolls next month He will use WSIFS only available scholarship Gwaltney is something of an unknown He averaged eight points and Sl2 rebounds on a sophomoredoml-nated Dodge City team that won the Jayhawk West Gwaltney was the oily freshman to see much time though an injury kept him out of most of the Region VI tournament where many college coaches scout players Jerry Mullen a Midwest recruiting guru who conducted last camp in TUlsa said 20 to 30 coaches inquired about Gwaltney but the camp's informational brochure didn't mention that he was already an NCAA academic predictor and didn't have to spend a second year at Dodge City Besides WSU Idaho Oral Roberts and Southwest Texas State were recruiting Gwaltney The Shockers hope Gwaltney is the final piece in a recruiting puzzle that until Tuesday had not reeled in a tall rebounding presence with some experience "He has made vast improvement (since the juco season)" Mullen said "We had 278 kids there and he was picked in the top 40 which is pretty Mullen said Gwaltney isn't a polished scorer staying dose to the basket on offense "Fm not sure what Randy's got there now but Fm sure that (Gwaltney) can definitely help them" Mullen said because he chases after the ball hard on the boards a quick Asueialifd Prm The Chiefs are Andre fourth team in 14 months best thing is my new teammates have accepted Bison said think everyone can tel if a totafly different Andre back" Stallworth named to inaugural Mo Valley Hall of Fame dass scored 2000 points twice led the nation in rebounding and in 1985 became the first player to lead Division I in scoring and rebounding? And where's Joe Carter? Where's the former WSU outfielder who was the National Player of the Year in 1981 and foe man who ended the 1993 World Series by hitting a Game 6-ending home run for Toronto? Die MVC probably wanted to limit first Inductees to one per school and the basketball-dominant tradition called for an all-hoops class The MVC officially will induct Stall-worth and the others during an Aug 26 dinner and golf tournament in Chesterfield Mo For ticket information can the MVC at (314) 421-0339 By Kirk Seminoff The Wichita Eagle Wichita State basketball legend Dave Stallworth is one of seven men who will be part of the Missouri Valley Conference's first Hall of Fame dass Stallworth who helped put WSU basketball on the national map in the early 1960s joins six other MVC basketball greats in the first induction class: Larry Bird of Indiana State Oscar Robertson of Cincinnati Ed MacAuley of Saint Louis Hersey Hawkins of Bradley Wes Unseld of Louisville and Coach Henry Iba of Oklahoma State But Xavier McDaniel? Where's the former WSU star who Wide receiver Andre Rison hopes to prove the reputation that preceded him to Kansas City is a thing of the past But Deion is a player you want to be around on the field "Same with Andre He might have an outside world that's not to the liking of some people But when he's on the field he's a very good football Sports Illustrated thought otherwise In a recent issue it rated Rison only 239th best among the NFL's offensive skill players and left him out of the top 90 wide receivers ridiculous" Rison said a winner Finally someone has given me the opportunity to be Andre Rison" He got himself dumped by Jacksonville in the middle of last season By Rick Phwnlee The Wichita Eagle RIVER FALLS Wis Wide receiver Andre Rison has so many tattoos covering his body he must have kept his local Parlor hopping with business find Iris statement tattoo on his right biceps "Bad Moon" as in Bad Moon Rison But Rison Is here to tell you that just because Kansas City is his fourth team in 14 months not one of the NFL's bad guys "First of aU" he said Tuesday at foe Chiefs' training camp "1 have not flunked any drug tests I have not raped any people shot any people or videotaped any Wet and wfld: Rain has played havoc with the first days of training camp Chiefs notes 6C But along with his 569 catches for 7747 yards and 66 touchdowns over his eight-year NFL career Rison also brings his share of controversial baggage to foe Chiefs "The best thing is my new teammates have accepted me" Rison said think everyone can tell it's a totally different Andre He's back" Just so long as he can catch passes like the old Rison "I've been around Deion Sanders" Kansas City quarterback Elvis Grbac said referring to his former 49er teammate in 1994 "and he had his style See RISON Page 6C preseason For Australian Ettles all roads lead to Wichita Three players from foe state's schools Big 12 North fare represented on foe preseason All-Big J- Nebraska p12 Conference team' selected by foe 2 Colorado media Returning Defensive Freshman of 11 foe Year Mark Smoneau of Kansas State 1 fe 'te a preseason alkonference pj'whiie teammate Todd Weiner is an often-: Ipslve line pick Kansas defensive back Tony ftiBtevins is the lone Jayhawk on the list pj: Nebraska the media's pick Jto win Kansas -4 Missouri 6 Iowa State Big 12 South L-Texas Texas Stated y-'i i Big 12 North placed a conferencebest seven players on foe preseasonteam ff 3 Texas Tech: came back" Ettles 30 first played for the Wichita Broncos in 1988 and then for the Wranglers in 1992 He had a short stint with the Wranglers in 1994 It has been a road filled with a lot of work success and pain But a rood he can't imagine not taking After all he's playing jiTexas the South favorite and Colorado Oklahoma picked behind Nebraska each placed 5 Oklahoma State played baseball year round As soon as the season ended in the US Ettles returned to play in Australia He returned to Wichita in 1992 to pitch for the Wranglers which won the Texas League championship That year he had a 277 ERA and a 34 record He finished fourth in the league with 22 saves a Wrangler record he shares with Jamie Bluma vi Australia When: 7:15 tonight Where: Lawrence-Dumont Stadium Tickets: 267-3372 Sorensen out A shoulder injury has (breed Wichita State's Zach Sorensen to withdraw from the US team Sorensen had been playing third base for the national team The type and extent of the shoulder injury were not known Tuesday night 6 Baylor S--0- ds yt POlOnSO ry 1 liiMM Ncbrsskd DUB Grant Wist ram jJ fflfWR Phil Savoy Ettles Australian pitcher has spent plenty of time on the mound at L-D By Joanna Stamman The Wichita Eagle Wichita was the last place Mark Ettles ever thought he would come back to in 1992 Actually It was an even more remote idea that he would return in 1994 And now he's back again Ettles is a pitcher for foe Australian national baseball team which is playing the US national team tonight at 7:15 at Lawrence-Dumont Stadium "I never thought that I would come back when I left that first time" Ettles said "Wichita is OK but then I come hack two more times and now Fm back again? I can't believe iL "When I was on the airplane I recognized the turf of Lawrence-Dumont Then I saw the college field It an DL DL Jason Peter Nebraska DL "Chris Akins DL-LB Aaron Humphrey Texas Colorado Texas Kansas St Colorado i OL OL 1 0L WR QB RB RB PK Alonzo Mayes Eric Anderson Melvin Thomas Aaron Taylor Todd Weiner Mike Morris Ed Williams James Brown Ricky Williams Ahman Green Phil Dawson Offensive player of the Ricky Williams Texas Okla St Nebraska! Colorado Nebraska Kansas St Missouri Iowa St Texas Texas Nebraska Texas "When I was younger I played cricket like everyone said Ettles a native of Perth Australia I've been playing baseball since I was 8 years old I've always loved base-balL 1 always thought I'd play until my arm foil oft" His arm hasn't fallen off yet but not for lack of trying Ever since Ettles came to foe United States in 1986 to play college baseball at South Alabama he has LB Dat Nguyen LB Mark Simoneau DB Ryan Black DB Ralph Brown Nebraska DB RW McQuarters Okla SL DB Tony Blevins Kansas Jesse Kosch Nebraska Defensive player of the Grant Wistrom Nebraska In 1993 Ettles pitched for the Las Vegas Stars before being called up to the San Diego Padres for six weeks While in the majors Ettles pitched in 14 games with a 1-0 record and a 6L50 ERA But then he injured the right shoulder of his pitching arm A year later he blew out his elbow He never returned to foe big leagues "America is different from Australia" Ettles said "When I came here I as aggressive as the rest of the players who hare been playing since they came out of the womb See ETTLES Page 3C 4A4 44 A ilii MiM A Ajfr Tnwr hi.