Sweeps week comes early for Ducks hockey
■ Stanford falls victim
in consecutive games to the
new-and-improved Oregon
hockey team
By Inge Scheve
for the Emerald
The Oregon Club Hockey team
skated to two victories in its sea
son opening games, beating Stan
ford on both Friday and Saturday
night.
Friday’s game earned the Ducks
a 6- 2 victory and warned the Car
dinal that more of the bitter medi
cine was to follow. Twenty-four
hours later, Oregon completed the
Stanford sweep with a 7-0 shutout
at the Lane County Ice Arena.
“Defensively, we didn’t let up,
and offensively we put the num
bers on the board,” said freshman
Mike Tornabene, who netted his
first career goal in Friday’s game.
In that game, Oregon had only a
1-0 lead after the first period, but
put it together offensively and
shoved five more past the Cardinal
goalie for the final score of 6-2.
The Ducks put Friday’s experi
ence on the ice the next night and
kept the puck on the right side of
the Stanford goalie: behind him.
The rubber disk stayed out of the
Oregon goal thanks to careful
guarding from senior goalie Josh
Hardin, who barred a whopping 28
shots.
Nailing down the Cardinal’s ma
jor problem — relying on star play
er Bobby Jaros — helped secure
the victory for the Ducks.
“Once we contained him, we
could score,” Tornabene said.
Additionally, having three lines
rather than just one made a huge
difference too, team captain Tyler
Shaffar said.
“It wasn’t just a one-line team or
a bunch of guys playing for the
team,” Tornabene said. “We came
together as a team.”
Oregon had just the right recipe
for a killer weekend: the benefit of
home ice and the skills and prepa
rations of the team.
“The crowd was great, especial
ly the guys sitting in the front,”
Shaffar said.
“It’s great to be recognized for
what we do, and it’s so much more
fun to play in front of a crowd,”
Tornabene said. “They get really
fired up about the fights.
“It was a good start of the season
but the real intensity will pick up.”
Coach Garreth MacDonald, who
has actively assisted in recruiting
new players, has really taken the
team to the next step, Shaffar said.
The Ducks have signed 12 new
players to the team this season,
adding skills and experience to
create a new dimension of depth.
“We’re not a beginner’s team,”
Shaffar said. “It’s a quicker team
this year. We’re faster, more expe
rienced and harder-hitting. And
it’s a new team mentality this year.
It’s more serious, and everyone is
making practices.”
Although the Ducks enjoyed a
winning season-opener, they real
ize the real challenges are lined up
ahead for them. Next weekend fea
tures a three-day, three-game road
trip to Los Angeles where Pac-8
foes USC and UCLA are expecting
them.
“Thursday’s game against USC
could be particularly tough,” Shaf
far said. “We have never beaten
USC.”
Another loss there would mark
the 10th anniversary of losing to
USC, he said.
After this weekend, Oregon re
turns home to face Montana State
Oct. 27-28.
Outdoor program offers free
workshop
The Oregon Outdoor Program
offers a free workshop tonight at
7:30 p.m., featuring its alliance
with the “Leave No Trace” pro
gram.
The LNT program emphasizes
environmental ethics and “light
hand on the land” practices that
help minimize human impact on
the environment while traveling in
the great outdoors. Tonight’s clinic
will teach the essentials of low-im
pact excursions.
The workshop will take place in
the Outdoor Program Lounge, lo
cated downstairs in the EMU.
Halfway to subway series as N.Y. Mets clinch NL pennant
By Josh Dubow
The Associated Press
NEW YORK — Mike Hampton
did what he was brought to New
York to do: pitch the Mets into the
World Series — and perhaps face an
opponent only a subway ride away.
Hampton pitched a three-hitter
and the Mets started their clinching
party early with a three-run first in
ning Monday night as they beat the
St. Louis Cardinals 7-0 and won the
NL championship series 4-1.
“The team needed a big game,”
said Hampton, who won the series
MVP by pitching 16 scoreless in
nings and winning twice. “We’re
close. We’re four wins away from
fulfilling that fantasy.”
The game got testy at the end
when Dave Veres hit Jay Payton in
the helmet with a 1-2 pitch with two
outs in the eighth inning. Payton,
bleeding over his left eye, charged
the mound and the dugouts and
bullpens emptied as police in riot
gear lined the field.
“I got hit and the best of my reac
tions got to me,” Payton said. “I
don’t know if there was any intent
there. I don’t think there was. ”
That was the only thing that
could dampen this night for the
Mets, who ran a victory lap around
a raucous Shea Stadium before
heading to the clubhouse for a cele
bration that spilled back onto the
field when Todd Pratt sprayed fans
with champagne.
New York won its fourth NL pen
nant and first since 1986, joining
the 1997 Florida Marlins as the only
wild card teams to make the World
Series.
The Mets also earned four days
off before beginning the World Se
ries on Saturday night, either a train
ride away at Yankee Stadium for the
first Subway Series since 1956 or
across the country in Seattle.
“It’s what you play for and what
you put all the hard work in for,”
third baseman Robin Ventura said.
“We’re happy to go right now. It
would be nice to stay home
though.”
The three-run first off a rusty Pat
Hentgen turned baseball’s most
dangerous pinch hitter into a non
factor once again. Mighty Mark
McGwire, limited to pinch-hitting
duty because of tendinitis in his
right knee, didn’t bat until the ninth
inning with the Cardinals down by
seven and he grounded out.
Rick Wilkins then flied to center
where Timo Perez jumped three
times, waving his arms, before mak
ing the catch. The Mets poured out
of the dugout and bullpen for the
second time in an inning — this
time for a celebration.
Big Mac finished 0-for-2 with an
intentional walk and could only
blow bubbles as the Cardinals sea
son ended following another wild
outing by rookie Rick Ankiel.
“We had enough weapons to win.
The Mets just played better,” Cardi
nals manager Tony La Russa said.
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