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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (April 7, 1999)
Wednesday April 7,1999 ©regonSKCmeraUj Sports Best Bet Major League Baseball Chicage vs. Seattle 7:30 p.m., FoxSports Northwest Ducks drive way to fourth-place finish Oregon shot a 298 on Tuesday in the Western Intercollegiate to move up one spot in the 13-team tournament By Brett Williams lor the Emerald There truly is no "I” in “team.” As much was discovered by the Oregon men’s golf team on Tuesday, when despite Adrian Burtner’s fall from fifth place Mon day to 13th in individual scores, Oregon moved up a notch to earn fourth place in the 53rd-annual Western Intercollegiate at the Pasatiempo Golf Course in Santa Cruz, Calif. The two-day tournament got off to a rocky start Monday, when rainfall flooded the course and caused a five-hour delay. When play resumed, teams appeared flus tered by the array of obstacles nature pro vided. Regardless, play resumed Tuesday in fair conditions, and Oregon squandered its lead over Pacific-10 Conference foe Oregon State. The Beavers score of 601 surpassed the Ducks and gave them third place over all. Washington led the first day with a score of 299, a lead it never relinquished, shooting a 285 the second day to take first place honors. Despite not winning the tournament, Oregon head coach Steve Nosier is optimistic about the Ducks postseason aspira tions. “I was real pleased with our effort,” Nosier said in a released statement. “The guys played hard in very difficult condi tions the first day and in wet but better con ditions today. We’ve put ourselves in a real good position for regionals with our play so far this year.” Burtner’s 13th-place finish tied him with teammate Ben Crane. Oregon golfer Ryan Lavoie finished three shots back from Crane and Burtner with a final score of 152. The Pac-10 represented itself impres sively in the tournament. Stanford's Joe Kribel finished in first place with a score of 139,propelling the Cardinal to a fifth-place finish. California tied for seventh place in the tournament. Oregon’s pursuit for the postseason con tinues next week, when the Ducks will par ticipate in the Arizona State Thunderbird at Tempe, Ariz. TheLeader Board Teams 1. Wash. 584 2. Pepp. 599 3.0SU 601 4. U0 602 5. Stan. 604 Individuals 1. J. Kribel 139 2. R. Rasheli 144 T13 Ban Crane 149 T13 A. Buitner149 Baseball, Yanks eye repeat of '98 Just five months removed from homer hysteria and Yankees’ dominance in the best major league baseball season of my lifetime, the boys of summer are back at it. And fueled by manager Tony LaRussa’s prediction that he will hit 75 home runs this time and the nation’s awe-struck atten tion — not to mention that sometimes ille gal substance — St. Louis Cardinals’ slug ger Mark McGwire is back at it, too. —^— Big Mac left the yard for Opinion Tim Pyle the first time this season on opening day Monday, and so the countdown to 70 taters, perhaps the most fa mous number in sports these days, officially began. But besides McGwire’s saga and all the other interesting in dividual subplots in baseball this season—including Tony Gwynn, Wade Boggs and Cal Ripken, Jr., closing in on the hallowed 3,000-hits mark— there is a pennant race to be run. So, without further ado, I give you my predictions. American League West Seattle would love nothing more than to celebrate the opening of Safeco Field, which will occur in July, with the Mariners in the thick of the A.L. West race. But Seattle will face its usual problem: the porous pitching staff lags behind the staggering offense. However, even if the Mariners cannot lo cate consistent pitching, Ken Griffey, Jr., and Alex Rodriguez ensure that Safeco Field’s first summer will at least be enter taining, if nothing else. Anaheim expects big things from big first baseman Mo Vaughn, a free-agent who for merly powered Boston. Couple Vaughn with other offensive dynamos such as Dar rin Erstad and Tim Salmon and the Angels should be tough, something new for a Dis ney product. Texas boasts Juan Gonzalez, Ivan Ro driguez and new-addition Rafael Palmeiro in its formidable lineup. The division title should come down to the Rangers and Angels, with pitching be ing the deciding factor. A.L. Central Defending division-champ Cleveland looks even tougher with All-Star Roberto Alomar joining brother Sandy on the Indi ans. The Alomar-Omar Vizquel double-play combination promises to be scintillating, and Cleveland’s offense should be as prolif ic as always. Turn to PREDICTIONS, Page 9 Outspoken senior aims to outplay UW mm Scott liamett/Kmemld Andrea Petrovic brings a 10-11 overall record into today’s showdown with Washington at noon. For the second time this season, Petrovic and her teammates will try to beat the Huskies By Mirjam Swanson Oregon Daily Emerald Andrea Petrovic is a very straight-for ward type of person. She’s a fifth-year senior who’s going to tell it like it is. What are her feelings about her stature on the No. 31 Oregon women’s tennis team? “The team is reaily young,” Petrovic said. “I’m 24 and [the three freshmen] are 18, so there’s a six year difference. I feel like a grandma.” What does she think about the line judges who have offi ciated the Ducks’ matches? “They suck,” she said, before softening her stance a bit. “I What: Women's tennis Who: Washing ton (9-7,0-4) vs. Oregon (10 7,0-5) Where: 15th Street Courts or Eugene Swim & Tennis Club When: Today at noon aon i want 10 say in general, but it’s really hard for them to watch three courts. I really wish we had six judges because there would be far less trouble. But it’s a tough job, so I don’t blame them.” What do the Ducks need to do today when they face No. 22 Washington? “It’s time to raise the level again,” Petrovic said. “We beat Washington once, so they’re definitely going to be ready to play us. We’ve got to prove it again.” That victory over the Huskies a month ago in Seattle marked the Ducks’ first win in 44 attempts against Wash ington, and it helped vault Oregon to its highest-ever ranking. The rematch to day is at noon on either the outdoor 15th Street Courts on campus or the Eu gene Swim & Tennis Club, depending on the weather. 1 hat was the best win I ve had with this school,” said Petrovic, a native of Croatia. “It was so emotional. Everyone was just very, very happy. “The ranking is great. I’m really hap py for [head coach] Jack [Griffin]. He re ally puts a lot of time into this, so I want to do this for him.” While Oregon appreciated having at tained the recognition, the Ducks’ oppo nents have also taken heed. After they earned the top-30 ranking, Oregon lost four in a row before beating Boise State last weekend. Turn to TENNIS, Page 12