The Optimist (Abilene, Tex.), Vol. 82, No. 43, Ed. 1, Sunday, February 20, 1994 Page: 7 of 15
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Passing inside
Texas A&M University-KlngRvlllo's Veronica Trovlno left passes the ball around Jennlfor
Havard freshman from Huntington to teammate Claudia Castillo No. 25 during ACU's 84-
57 victory Monday. Mellnda Armstrong senior from Ssn Antonio is In the center.
Four former athletes in Sports Hall of Fame
Iv Brian Shaw
Spirts Editor
Four former Wildcats were
inducted into the ACU Sports
Hall of Fame Saturday.
Chip Bennett rancher in Plains
hrtd an outstanding senior season In
1969. He was named first team ail
Southland Conference for the sec-
ond straight season won the college
division Player of the Year and had
a 4.0 grade point average.
' Bennett played two years for the
National Football League's Cincin-
nati Bengals before knee injuries
ended his career. His father Gene
Bennett also played football and
basketball at ACU.
Another honoree is Dr. Paul
Faulkner who retired as professor
;
of Bible and director of the Mar-
riage and Family Institute at ACU
after the 1991-92 school year.
In 1952 he won the NAIA nat-
ional championship in the pole
vault and led the Wildcats to their
first team national championship in
track and Field The Wildcats won
the conference championship every
year he was a member of the team.
Another honoree with experience
at winning championships is An-
drew Prince assistant men's bas-
ketball coach at Stephen F. Austin
State University in Nacogdoches.
He holds the school record for most
points in a season 642 in 1973-74
and the most rebounds in a season
445 in 1974-75 Prince also ranks
third on ACU's career scoring list
with 1624 points and second on the
career rebounding list with 1000
rebounds.
He was an assistant coach at
ACU from 1983-88. During that
time the Wildcats won three con-
secutive LSC championships from
1985-87 and recorded a 44-gamc
winning streak in Moody.
The fourth inductee is Wayne
Walton businessman from Fort
Worth whose son Andy cuirently
plays for the ACU basketball team.
Walton became the highest football
draft choice in ACU history when
the New York Giants chose him in
the second round of the 1971 draft.
Walton won four letters in both
football and track and field for the
Wildcats. He won two Southland
Conference championships in the
discus throw.-.; 'jOU5' ' '
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The award'winning Optimist
will keep you up'todate with
all the news about ACU.
The subscription package from
March to the end of April isnow only $7.--
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Urn
Mail check to the Optimist ACU Box 7892 Abilene TX 79699
Nome.
Address.
City State Zip.
Phone.
Uarch through April 30- $7
.
The Lone Star Conference's new
format for its post-season bas-
ketball tournaments is worse than
the previous one.
For the last two seasons the
entire tournament has been played
in Moody Coliseum. However
according to ACU men's basketball
coach Tony Mauldin the LSC did
not renew its agreement with Home
Sports Entertainment to televise
both finals so ACU gave the LSC
the option of choosing a different
format for the tournament.
The new format is not as good as
the previous one. Instead of only six
teams all seven men's teams and
all eight women's teams will partic-
ipate in the tournament. The men's
champions will receive a bye in the
quarterfinals which will occur
March 1 at the home gyms of the
higher-ranked teams. The semifi-
nals will occur March 4 and the
finals will be March 5.
However they will play at the
highest-ranked school to survive the
quarterfinals which means the
men's and women's tournaments
could be played in different places.
That plan will not help the confer-
ence and probably will upset many
people.
If the tournaments are played at
separate campuses what will fans
of a school with both teams in the
semifinals do? They will have to
decide which team to support. I do
not want to have to choose which
ACU team to waich if both make it
to the semi finals.
This format probably will hurt
the women's tournament just when
it appeared to gain more support.
Having both teams play at the same
location encouraged support for the
women's programs because fans
could come earlier and watch the
women play before the men. I sus-
pect attendance was better for the
women's tournament games than
the average ACU women's game
during the season.
P 1 'Icanaafely
pndlciour
women'
tsam will play
a first-round
& Brian
WLS t Shaw
Free Spirit
Having HSE televise the finals
brought wcll-dcscrvcd recognition.
If the women's final features the
current top two teams television
viewers will not sec at least three
different players who could play in
Division I.
Sophomores Jennifer Clarkson
and Sandic Kyllo of ACU have
burned the nets since the middle of
last season and Angclo State guard
Nicole Collins transferred from a
Division I school Louisiana Tech
University which advanced to the
national quarterfinals last season.
She has been the biggest reason for
ASU's improvement this season.
In truth conference tournaments
are a bad idea. They take athletes
away from classes and don't decide
anything except who is playing
the best at the end of the season.
Our women's team played better
than any other in the conference at
the end of last season without the
tournament title it won.
But if we must have conference
tournaments let's at least do them
right. The Southwest Conference
has the right idea both its tourna-
ments occur in Reunion Arena in
Dallas with the women starting and
ending one day before the men.
The LSC used a similar format in
1992 and 1993 but both tourna-
ments started and ended on the
same day. The LSC should return to
that format.
Because Angclo State University
currently leads both LSC divisions
both tournaments could be played at
the same place. But the ASU men
had only a one-game lead after Feb.
14. If the ASU women will be so
kind as to lose just once before our
game with them Saturday we can
tic them for the title which might
throw the conference standings into
a tailspin.
Coach Suzanne Fox might think
my confidence premature but circle
your calendar and plan to watch our
women's team play a quarterfinal
game in Moody March 1. Doubtless
she will wunt her team to remain
motivated until the home game is
secured that's her job.
She does it so well that I can pre-
dict safely our women's team will
play a first-round game in Moody.
Our men's team also might play
one more time in Moody. The
Wildcats certainly con win their last
two LSC games against the Univer-
sity of Central Oklahoma and ASU
they beat the Bronchos in
Moody Coliseum and lost to the
Rams by only one point. They alsq
must win twice on the road which
will be much more difficult.
However they received a boost'
from West Texas A&M University
which defeated the Bronchos Mon-J
day in Canyon.
Now the Wildcats can move into
a tie for fourth place with a win!
over UCO Saturday.
If they can play a quarterfinal;
game in Moody they probably will
advance to the semifinals as they
have done the last two seasons.;
However if they have to play on;
the road their chances of making it
to the semifinals are slim. ACU had!
not won an LSC game on the road!
before Saturday's game at UCO. )
If you are confused about ourj
teams chances of playing tourna-i
ment games in Moody you under-!
stand why I despise conference!
tournaments. j
I hope I soon have to decide)
which of ACU 's teams to watch. 5
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The Optimist (Abilene, Tex.), Vol. 82, No. 43, Ed. 1, Sunday, February 20, 1994, newspaper, February 20, 1994; Abilene, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth92227/m1/7/: accessed November 11, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Abilene Christian University Library.