The Pantagraph from Bloomington, Illinois • Page 17

Sports o) Saying she's "not having fun anymore Steffi Graff retires from tennis. See story on Page B2. Saturday, August 14, 1999 The Pantagraph Mac goes deep to Cubs 1 drop 1 ST. LOUIS (AP) Mark McGwire outhome-red Sammy Sosa once again. McGwire hit his 45th and 46th home runs, moving three ahead of White Sox take two from Rangers Page B3 Sosa for the major league CARDINALS 7 A -1 AP lead, and Kent Bottenfield Chicago's six-game losing streak is tl; longest since a seven-game skid last June.

Tl Cubs have lost eight straight in St. Louis, with their Jast win coming Sept. 26, 1997. Bottenfield (16-5), who tied Houston's Mike Hampton for the NL lead in victories, allowed the Cubs one run and five hits in 6 innings. The victory was Bottenfield's second in six starts since the All-Star game.

"McGwire and Bottenfield were pretty much the story of the game," Chicago manager Jim Riggleman said. J.D. Drew and Fernando Tatis also hit solo home runs for the Cardinals off Chicago starter Kyle Farnsworth (2-6). behind McGwire's record-setting 70, went 0-for-2 with two walks and two strikeouts. "That's a media thing," he said.

"I was in a home run derby three or four years with Ken Griffey in the American League and no one said anything about it. What's the big deal?" McGwire's multihomer game was his sixth of the season and 59th career. He went 3-for-4 and had five RBIs, giving him an NL-leading 107. McGwire has 503 career homers, one behind Eddie Murray for 15th place. earned his 16th win in the St.

Louis Cardinals' 7-1 win Friday night. "There's no home run race," McGwire said. "You don't play for a home run race. The only reason a player puts on a uniform is to win a title." The game matched the top two home run hitters in the majors for the first time since the Cardinals visited Wrigley Field on May 28-30. Sosa, whose 66 homers last season were four J.D.

Drew (left) congratulated Mark McGwire after McGwire homered in the third inning Friday in St. Louis do ore nils Mike Weir took a drop on the 17th hole after hitting an errant tee shot near the stands during the second round of the PGA Championship Friday in Medinah. pymp ou up it 1 "i lin CL.j 1 4 Haas finds Medinah to his liking MEDINAH (AP) After 23 years on the PGA Tour, Jay Haas appreciates every opportunity to Iwin his first major championship. Tiger Woods expects it. The ovation grew louder as Haas walked up to the 17th green at Medinah Country Club on his way to a one-stroke lead after two rounds in the PGA Championship.

His 18-year-old son was at his 1 1 BUSINESS A i 4' I t' side, carry ing the bag before he goes off to college. "I just looked at him and said, 'It's pretty neat, isn't And he just had a big grin on his face," Haas said. "That makes it pretty special for me." Haas can AT MEDINAH THROUGH SECOND ROUND Par 72 Jay Haas 68-67135 Mike Weir 68-68136 Tiger Woods 70-67137 Lee Westwood 70-68138 Skip Kendall 74-65139 Sergio Garcia 66-73139 Hale Irwin 70-69139 Stewart Cink 69-70139 Miguel A. Jimenez Gabriel Hjertstedt Brian Watts 69-71140 Xi The PantagraphLLOYD YOUNG Nick Gomez (front) and Adam Waugh (back) were two of approximately 70 ISU football players who stayed on campus over the summer lifting weights and getting ready for the upcoming season. ISU football team finds benefits of staying on campus and working out For an in-depth look at the area's 37 high school and four college football teams, catch Football Fever in your Aug.

27 edition of The Pantagraph. ing off an 8-4 season and is ranked in the top 20 nationally in Division I-AA. The Redbirds are the Gateway Conference preseason favorites and are seeking their second straight I-AA playoff berth. "Obviously, the expectations we have are a driving force," said Berry. "They are a very, very hungry team." "Last year we got a little taste 'of what it's like to be a good team," linebacker Adam Waugh said.

"We want to be better. We don't want to settle for that again." In the summer, the Redbirds lift weights under the supervision of strength and conditioning coach Robert Lindsey or assistant Joe Rodgers at one of three afternoon times. count on one hand the number of times he has contended in a major championship. A 5-under 67 on Friday gave him a one-stroke lead over Mike Weir, the first time he has held the 36-hole lead in a major since the 1995 Masters. "You just don't get that many opportunities, period," Haas said.

"There's just a handful of who threaten every major." I One of those guys is Woods, in the hunt for a major for the third straight time. "The key is to keep giving yourself chances," Woods said. "And I've done that this year." He finished third in the U.S. Open. He tied for seventh, four strokes out of the playoff, in the British Open.

Already a four-time winner this year, he is playing like his 0-for-10 streak since winning the Masters is about to end. "Tiger Woods emasculated the golf course," Watson said. Medinah rejuvenated 54-year-old Hale Irwin 19-year-old Sergio Garcia. Above all, it rewarded Haas. Despite a bogey on the 18th, his first in 24 boles, he finished before the rain and was at 9-') under 135.

One stroke behind was Weir, the left-, handed Canadian who had a share of the lead i until making bogeys on two of the last three I holes for a 68. By RANDY REINHARDT Pantagraph staff The blazing sun on this late July day was nothing short of merciless. The Illinois State weight room, tucked away on the lower level of Redbird Arena, provided a respite from the sun. Also missing, however, was any hint of air conditioning. The stagnant air practically dripped with humidity It was here that Devon Finn, a hulking defensive lineman on the ISU football team, stood opposite a bar that supported a startling number of large weights.

Already soaked in perspiration, Finn stepped forward, placed 540 pounds on his massive shoulders and bent at the knees to perform a maneuver known as a squat with nearby teammate TeJuan Hartley spotting his effort. Finn did not make a tackle that day Nor did he recover a fumble. But Finn and ISU coach Todd Berry believe such work will help the Redbirds win football games this fall when the temperature falls and the intensity rises. "We're going to be in great shape when the season starts mentally and physically," Finn said. "It's going to have a great impact on us in the fall." Approximately 70 Redbirds spent most of the summer on campus, lifting weights and running four days a week in preparation for what the 85-man team believes will be a highly successful season.

"It's just been dramatic," Berry said. "Our first year we had about 15 kids stay on campus and the year before I got here I'm told there was like seven or eight" Berry, of course, encourages all of his players to stay in town over the summer and work on their conditioning. He can't, however, require it. And, some players need to make money over the summer to help support their families, like Berry did in his days as a quarterback at Tulsa. "Peer pressure is a wonderful thing.

It's a lot easier to push yourself harder when you're around the rest of the team," he said. "That's one of the reasons why kids came back. The other reason is there is so much competition at each position across the board. They know if they get behind it's going to be tougher on them." It also doesn't hurt that ISU is corn- Then, they head outside to run. Two days a week are designed to increase speed.

The other two consist of longer running for conditioning purposes. "We're just trying to get better really," said linebacker Galen Scott. "We See REDBIRDS, Page B5 Instant replay comes in handy for Steelers Preseason Steelers quarterback Kordell Stewart (left) was hauled down in the first quarter by Chicago's Warrick Holdman (65) and Terry Cousins Friday night in Pittsburgh. "Kordell's looked comfortable all through camp and he looked comfortable tonight," director of football operations Tom Donahoe said. Ward also recovered a punt blocked by Chris Fuamatu-Ma'afala for a touchdown on a play originally ruled a safety Cowher challenged, arguing Ward was in possession before crossing the end line, and referee Johnny Grier reversed the call after reviewing it on a TV monitor near the Steelers bench.

Instant replay returned to the NFL in PITTSBURGH (AP) The Pittsburgh Steelers scored only four touchdowns while losing their last five games last season. So coach Bill Cowher was more than eager to use a new route to the end zone: instant replay. Hines Ward scored twice in a first quarter marked by special teams mistakes, once after Cowher challenged under the new instant replay system, and the Steelers beat the Chicago Bears 30-23 in an exhibition game Friday night Kordell Stewart, looking comfortable in new coordinator Kevin Gilbride's offense Bears 1 went out of bounds, and the momentum took me out." The reversal helped the Steelers overcome James Allen's 102-yard touchdown return of the opening kickoff and Shane Matthews' 71-yard touchdown pass to Curtis Conway before Matthews gave way to rookie Cade McNown. McNown made some nice throws in his first extended playing time, and his statistics 10-of-21 for 123 yards and an interception would have been better if his receivers hadn't dropped four passes. "I wouldn't say it was much of a performance, but it was a good chance to get some extended playing time," said McNown, the Bears' first-round draft choice and almost certain starter.

"I was able to get some rhythm and get my timing down. The ball started coming out better after a while." -V Steelers March with a system that allows coaches to challenge two calls per game. "I thought I had control, I thought I had a touchdown," Ward said. "I thought I saved the ball before it after floundering during the losing streak, hit Ward on a 45-yard scoring pass while going 5-for-5 for 76 yards in the first quarter. AP.