Emerald
FRIDAY
November 13,1996
Ducks should
make a run
for Pac-10 titles
With any luck, Oregon is head
ed to post-season play.
No, I’m not talking about the
football team. What I am
talking about is the basketball team — actu
ally both basketball teams.
Sure the women have only played one
game, and it was against a bunch of 30
year-old Slovakian women who ended up
forfeiting the game. And sure the men
haven’t even played a single minute yet.
But there is more than one reason to be op
timistic.
The women have gone to the NCAA
Tournament for the last three years.
There’s no coincidence
that the span began
when Jody Runge be
came head coach. And
she seems to be building
the program stronger
every year.
DeYoung
It began with players
such as Jennifer Schutt,
Sally Crowe, Sara Wil
son and Debbie Sporci
ch, and now has Ari
anne Boyer, Betty Ann Boeving, Jenny
Mowe and a quartet of Australians, includ
ing Renae Fegent.
These strong players not only provide
success for the present, but also ensure that
the program will continue to thrive. After
all, Oregon just signed Brianne Meharry of
Oregon City High School, a team that has
been ranked No. 1 in the country for two
seasons and a team that hasn’t seen any of
its players choose to come to Oregon in re
cent years because out-of-state schools’
programs have more to offer.
And then there’s the men’s team.
Not only are the Ducks returning all of
their starters from last year, but they get
back the services of Henry Madden, who
had been sidelined with a knee injury and
academic problems. The Ducks also signed
two of Oregon’s top prep players in Mike
McShane and Tyrone Manlove.
So what’s going to stop these two poten
tially explosive teams? Perhaps the rest of
the Pacific-10 Conference. There are some
strong teams, but there are no unbeatable
teams.
On the women’s side, Stanford was
picked by the coaches to finish first in the
Turn to DEYOUNG, Paqe 8
Volleyball
Oregon middle blocker Alii White has become one of the volleyball team’s true emotional leaders this season.
MARK McTYR E/Emerald
k ' o •- ... ; ,
Grabbing the .Spotlight
Since her arrival at Oregon a year ago, Alii White has produced above all expectations
By Ryan Halvorsen
Sports Reporter
The Ducks’ volleyball team 1995 rook
ie of the year has already made her mark
on the team and the league in only her
second year of collegiate competition.
Sophomore Allison White (who turns
20-years-old today) has proven herself to
be one of the Ducks’ most consistent per
formers and has already elevated her lev
el of play to the top of the Pacific-10 Con
ference.
Last season as a true freshman, White
was thrust into the spotlight early in her
collegiate career as she earned a starting
role three weeks into the conference sea
son. In that game, she proved to everyone
that she came to Oregon to make an im
pact. In her first start, against then 23rd
ranked Washington, White came away
with seven kills, 10 digs, three blocks and
a pair of service aces to help secure a vic
tory. Following that start, White’s im
provement continued the rest of the sea
son, securing her spot as a starter and a
team leader.
“I didn’t know really what to expect,”
White said. “There are six juniors ahead
of me on this team and they’re all really
good, really experienced players, so it
was a definite fight to compete for posi
tions. In every position you have to fight
for your spot.”
White handled her sudden jump from
high school to Division I college volley
ball with surprising ease. It was her suc
cess at Los Gatos High School that helped
Turn to PLAYER, Page 8
Oregon Club crew
has strong showing
■ MEET: Despite a
coaching change,
the men sand
women’s teams
were happy with
performances
By Rob Moseley
Freelance Sports Reporter
Racing against varsity-level crews from
around the Northwest, the Oregon Club
crew teams showed promise for the spring
season at this weekend’s Head of the Lake
meet in Seattle.
“The rowers are very pleased with them
selves, and I am, too,” head coach Phil
Holmes said. “They started from scratch af
terbeing abandoned last year.”
Because of an abrupt coaching change,
the team was forced to scramble to assem
ble boats for this season.
“I figured we’d be lucky to get four good
rowers [in each division],” Holmes said.
For a smaller program such as the one at
Oregon, it’s easier to form boats of four ex
ANDREW BRACKENSICK/Emerald
Oregon’s Arianne Boyer scored 27 points in
the Ducks’ first exhibition game.
Oregon women seek
second exhibition win
■ PREVIEW: The women’s basketball
team competes for the last time before
hosting the Pepsi Shootout
By Ryan Frank
Sports Reporter
The Oregon women’s basketball team will
play its final exhibition game tonight against
the Portland Saints at McArthur Court at 7
p.m.
The Ducks are coming off a forfeit win
against Slovan Slovakia last Saturday night.
The Slovan Slovakia team walked off the
court late in the second half with the Ducks
ahead 73-59.
Before the game was called, forward Ari
anne Boyer scored a game-high 27 points, in
cluding 23 free-throw attempts, and center
Renae Fegent poured in 15.
Women’s
■ OPPONENT:
Portland Saints
■ TIP-OFF:
7 o'clock
■ WHERE:
McArthur Court
■ RADIO: None
■ TV: None