By Matt Welnack staff reporter The Fort Worth Brahmas players begin their third season in the Western Professional Hockey League Thursday evening against the Abilene Aviators, a top-seeded team the Brahmas swept in the second round of last year's playoffs. The opening game features two teams that are comprised of mostly new players. Thanks to an aggressive off-season recruiting effort by coach Terry Menard, this year's team consists of 12 players who have not played with each other. "We are a younger team and a faster team," Menard said. "We're a hungry team. We have a more tenacious team to work with this year. I think we are going to be more exciting to watch this year." Menard said the first part of Thursday's contest will be spent feeling each other out. "They have a lot of new players also," Menard said. "They don't know much about us and we don't know much about them. We'll wait and see." Menard said despite having so many new players, he thinks with time the team will grow to be a cohesive unit. "I think we'll form some chemistry together," Menard said. "I don't think there will be a problem." Some of the key players the Brahmas picked up during the off-season are center Martin Fillion, a rookie from Montreal, Quebec; right-winger Alex Kholomeyev from Bedford, Texas, and defensemen Jason Disher. Center Cosmo Dupaul returns as the leading scorer for the Brahmas. He led the team in goals with 34 and game-winning goals with six. Dupaul scored the game-winner in last season's opener against Central Texas. All-star goalie Steve Plouffe comes back for his second season in the net. Plouffe won 27 games last season and tied his career-high in games played with 52. Also returning are defensemen Murray Hogg and Jon Olofson, and Stephane Larocque, the team's point and assist leader. "The guys that we brought back this year possess the ability to play well here, but also bring leadership to the club," Menard said. "I will be relying on them heavily to help develop our younger guys." Menard said because there are so few veteran's returning, there is going to be more scrutiny on the play of the newcomers. "I think there are some guys on this team that still need to prove themselves to me," Menard said. "Every game they play they have to prove to me they are quality hockey players and that they belong here." Menard said a win Thursday would be a big step for this young team. "Obviously we want to win (Thursday)," Menard said. "I think it would be a big stepping stone, not only for the new players, but for everyone on the team because we are new. We need to get some confidence right away." Although he is excited about this year's team, Menard said he is reserved to predict the team's success. "It's too tough to tell right now," Menard said. "We want to try to excel and do better than last season. There can only be one winner and we want it to be us."
Matt Welnack
By Paul Freelend skiff staff What arrives fresh every year, is loaded with potential and fills people with hope and delight? Here's a hint: It is not the swallows that come back to San Juan Capistrano. Instead, it is the freshman class, coming in fresh from summer vacation and full of energy to tackle the rigors of college life. Like their fellow freshmen, the newcomers on the TCU Volley Frogs have filled head coach Sandy Troudt with excitement. "I am very excited about our program," Troudt said. "Our last couple of recruiting classes have been especially good. In this year's freshmen class we have a number of good players. "Jennifer Cuca is a solid ball control player. It's a lot like playing basketball in that if you have the skills, you're going to play, and she has the skills that will allow her to play. "Steph Watson brings a quick swing and a good vertical jump. She is a very bright player, and I can see her being a mainstay in our program for years to come. "Katie Kieffer is an incredible blocker. In fact, she can be a good player no matter where she is on the court.
The Volley Frogs' 1999 crop of freshmen started making their presence felt right at the beginning of the season with Watson starting TCU's opening match against North Texas. Since then, Watson has started 14 out of the Volley Frogs' 15 matches, with TCU's match at Hawai'i her only entry from the bench. "Having a freshman start almost all of a team's matches is somewhat unusual," Troudt said. "That is partly due to our young program but also partly due to Steph. She is a great athlete and she worked hard all summer to get herself in shape for the upcoming season." Troudt said freshmen usually do not make an immediate impact. "That depends some on the team but it also depends on the freshman," Troudt said. "Typically they will get spot playing time their first year, more their second year and start playing a major role in their junior and senior years. While the quartet of newcomers has each made their own impact, Watson said she feels that the group as a whole has raised the level of play both in and out of game situations. "Most of all, I think that we have affected the level of play in practice," Watson said. "We've let the practices become more difficult, and therefore, we have been able to do more high level things during our practices. "We all just need to be solid and consistent contributors. All we need to do is try to not play like freshmen and just play our positions as well as we can." With TCU volleyball riding the upswing that it currently is, Watson said she sees no reason the Volley Frogs cannot be among the nation's elite by the time this year's freshmen are contemplating graduation. "I definitely think that we will be having winning seasons within four years," Watson said. "We can probably pull one out this year, too. We are striving to become a respected program and I think the switch to Conference USA will help us. We will be seeing some new teams and that will give us a chance to start over. At the rate we are going, I think we could make the NCAA tournament in four years."
Paul Freelend
By Gibbs Colgin staff reporter The sounds in the Rickel Building's pool were consistent all evening Wednesday. A horn buzzed before all 11 races, and the TCU faithful cheered the Horned Frog victor in all but two races. The Horned Frog women defeated the University of North Texas with an overall score of 137-86 in their first swim meet of the season. Head coach Richard Sybesma said this is early to be starting the season, which usually starts at the beginning of November, but because North Texas is so close it was convenient to schedule a meet. Sophomore Jamie MacCurdy led the Horned Frogs with a win in two out of the three events she swam. MacCurdy placed first in the 1000-yard freestyle and the 200-yard breaststroke.
"I am really pleased with how the team swam overall," Sybesma said. "This year's team is better than it has been over the past few years." Sybesma also said many of the swimmers had the opportunity to swim different events because he did not use his "top program" against North Texas. Other women who placed first in events were: freshman Cory Lukens, 200-yard freestyle; sophomore Marisa Schenke, 50-yard freestyle; freshman Melissa Powell, 200-yard individual medley; freshmen Andrea Stevens, 100-yard freestyle and Kate Swearingen, 200-yard backstroke. The TCU swim team will have to wait about three weeks before they hear the ambient sounds of the cheering crowd and the splash of the water. The Frogs' first men and women's first meet is Nov. 4 in Chicago, Ill., against the University of Illinois and the University of Evansville.
Gibbs Colgin
By Chris Harrison staff reporter The TCU men's golf team moved up three spots to finish in fifth place Tuesday in the final round of the Red River Classic in Dallas. The Frogs shot an 11-under par in the final round to give them a team total of 840 (-24), with three players finishing in the top 25. The Frogs, who entered the final day of the tournament 15 shots behind leader South Carolina, finished the tournament 27 strokes off the lead. TCU juniors Scott Volpitto and Aaron Hickman each shooting 70s in their first two rounds of the tournament. They mirrored each other again Tuesday when they each posted 68s, and they finished the tournament in a five-way tie for 17th place, with an eight-under (208). Volpitto said he liked the course and the conditions at the Dallas Athletic Club. "The course was really nice with great greens," said Volpitto. "The weather was absolutely ideal for playing golf. There was little to no wind and it wasn't too hot. "The course was fairly easy. If you hit the ball well, you can score really low. All of the par fours are very short and all of the par fives are reachable." The men's team has six days off before it resumes practice and begins qualifications for the next tournament.
Chris Harrison
The intramural sports program staged the table tennis tournament Oct. 4 in the Rickel Building. In the men's singles competition, first-place honors went to sophomore
Michael Watkins, of Pi Kappa Phi; second place to sophomore Hernan Bermudez
of the International Students Association; and third In the men's doubles competition, first-place honors were awarded to freshman Kendall Hartung (left) and freshman Jason Deffenbaugh of Brachman Hall. Second-place finishers were seniors Kelly Taylor and Carew Rhode of EMT and grabbing third-place honors were junior Jeff Woodward and senior Peter England of Pi Kappa Phi.
In the women's doubles competition, first-place winners were juniors Christina Thompson and Denise Santos, of Delta Gamma. Second-place finishers were sophomores Jill Archibald and Heidi Ohl, also of Delta Gamma.
End-of-season sand volleyball tournament in progress The intramural sand volleyball competition is coming to an end this week with a three-day tournament. The final rounds of the two-week competition are underway with 29 men's teams, 14 women's teams and 15 co-ed teams, which advanced to the end-of-season play. The championship games will be held Sunday at the Rickel Building's sand volleyball courts. The women's championship game will be held at 7 p.m., the co-ed championship at 8 p.m. and the men's championship at 9 p.m.
Registration underway for homecoming volleyball competition As an event in the week-long spirit activities for the homecoming game versus the University of North Texas, the intramural sports program will host a two-day volleyball tournament open to all students. The single-elimination volleyball tournament will be take place Nov. 9 and Nov. 11 and will make use of both of the Rickel Building gymnasiums. Competition will be held in women's, men's and co-ed divisions. The registration deadline is Nov. 3.
Applications for intramural sports program available The intramural sports program is always accepting applications for intramural sports officials for the current season. Anyone interested in a job with flexible hours, competitive wages in a sports-associated environment may fill out an application in the Rickel Building, Room 229. All current officials who are interested in field crew and equipment crew positions can also fill out an application.
Lack of lights a constant problem for intramural program The intramural program is still working to gain lighting for the outdoor fields used for nightly flag football competitions in the fall. When the football team and the track squad changed venues this summer, intramurals was left without a place to play night games.
Registration in progress for third annual 5K run/walk The third annual Kappa Alpha Theta "Fall Breakaway" 5K run/walk will be held Saturday. Individuals may register for the event through Kappa Alpha Theta or the intramural sports office in Rickel Building, Room 229. The registration fee is $12 before Oct. 24 and after the fee will be increased to $15 until the day of the race. The top three men's and women's finishers will receive awards.
Mandatory meeting for flag football captains set for Monday All flag football team captains are required to attend a preseason meeting at 4:30 p.m. Monday in the Rickel Building, Room 105. League format, rules that will be enforced and concentrated on and regulation modifications will be discussed. Captains will also receive team schedules at the meeting. Flag football competition begins Tuesday. Nine registered co-ed teams will participate in a pre-season tournament Thursday. The finals of the tournament will be held Sunday.
Massage therapy program to begin in November The recreational sports program is currently in the process of transforming Rickel Building, room 106, into a place where students, staff and faculty can make daily appointments for a professional massage or therapy. Licensed massage therapist Karen Parker will run the massage therapy program. Appointments for massages will be available from 2 to 8 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays. The student rate for massages is $25 an hour. The faculty rate is $35 an hour.
Registration for the dominoes and spades tournament begins Registration is underway for the dominoes and spades tournaments Oct. 25 in the Rickel Building. The tournament will be conducted in a single-elimination format. Champions in the spades competition will be invited to the Collegiate Championship in March of 2000 at the Walt Disney World Contemporary Resort. Participants will have all airfare and lodging paid for by the United States Playing Card Company, which is sponsoring the tournament. Championship participants will have complimentary access to the theme parks when not in competition. The champion will be awarded a $25,000 donation to his or her school scholarship fund.
Intramural swim meet results combined with "AnchorSplash" scores In conjunction with Delta Gamma's "AnchorSplash" water activities, the intramural swimming competition took place Sept. 23 in the Rickel Building. Scores from the events were combined to award the winning teams points for both the intramural competition and "Anchor Splash" activities. The first-place team was Pi Kappa Phi, consisting of freshman Matthew Hendricks, sophomore Christopher Kirkpatrick, freshman Bradley Douglass, senior Carl Long and sophomore Kevin Long. The second-place honor for the event was grabbed by Lambda Chi Alpha, and the Delta Tau Delta squad took third place. |
"Shannon Eurich is a small but powerful player with
who we could have jump serving very soon. She is a good float server right
now, and we are looking for her to be our defensive specialist of the future."
While Sybesma said he was pleased with MacCurdy's performance,
he was also happy with the team's performance as a whole.
place
to sophomore Ashish Bansal, an independent participant.
In the women's singles competition, the
first-place winner was Colby Hall Director Kara Steffen (right), and the
second-place finisher was freshman Laura Schade of Sigma Kappa.| The TCU Daily Skiff © 1998, 1999 Credits |