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SPORTS EDITOR: JEFF SMITH Smittside@aol.com
All eyes remain on the West for Pac-10 race
It may not be
between Bush
and Gore, but
the race for the
Rose Bowl
between three
Northwest
schools is just
as tight
By Jeff Smith
Oregon Daily Emerald
While most of the nation focused its
attention on the heated Presidential
race Tuesday, the Oregon football team
continued its preparation for its next
“huge” step in the race for the roses.
The race between Al Gore and
George W. Bush for President was de
cided largely on the electoral votes of
the Northwest states, and the battle for
the Pacific-10 Conference title will
also be decided by those in the North
west.
As it stands now, Oregon, Oregon
State and Washington are the candi
dates for the prestigious Rose Bowl,
and there are plenty of scenarios that
could take place.
First off, the sixth-ranked Ducks
clinch the Pac-10 if they beat Califor
nia, and Arizona knocks off Oregon
State Saturday. The interesting part
about those two games is that Oregon’s
game begins at 12:30 p.m. at Autzen
Stadium, while the Beavers don’t take
the field until 7:15 p.m.
So, should Oregon knock off Cal, it
would have to wait about seven hours
after its game to find out if its headed
to Pasadena. It's not the most conven
tional way to win a title, but the Ducks
don’t seem to mind.
“It’d be a little weird to win it on
T.V.,” cornerback Rashad Bauman
said. “But we’ll take it anyway we can
get it. It’s not often that a Pac-10 Cham
pionship comes around so when we
can get it, we’ll take it without a prob
lem.”
But Bauman acknowledges that the
Beavers “are going to play hard,” and
that Oregon shouldn’t bank on wrap
Turn to Football, page 9
'
_____
Dan Brunell Emerald
UP soccer reflects on a tough season, looks to future
Junior midfielder Annie Murphy is one of nine Oregon starters that will return for the Ducks’ 2001
Emerald
season, giving the team much hope for success.
■After stumbling against top-ranked foes, the
Oregon soccer team expects to rebound next season
with a more experienced group
By Peter Hockaday
Oregon Daily Emerald
The Oregon women’s soccer team
started its 2000 season knowing the
road to a first-ever NCAA Tournament
bid was littered with potholes.
No. 1 North Carolina, No. 2 Washing
ton and No. 6 UCLA were the names of
those potholes, among others, and the
Ducks were unable to overcome them.
Oregon ended the season with a 4-15-1
record and without a trip to the NCAA
Tournament. But the record is deceptive
and doesn’t reveal its future importance.
“When we look back on it, I think we
realize what a difficult task we attempt
ed,” Oregon head coach Bill Steffen said.
“The players feel a little better knowing
it’s behind them, knowing they’ve gone
through it. I think the season gave them a
lot of mental conditioning. ”
With a program struggling in the al
ways-tough Pacific-10 Conference, Stef
fen knew he had to make drastic
changes to bring the quality of Oregon
soccer to the level of other Pac-10
schools. So, he had his team run the
gauntlet of nine top-25 teams.
As a result, the Ducks lost nine games
by a combined score of 41-2 to those top
ranked foes.
But the Ducks showed improvement to
wards the middle of the season and at the
beginning of their Pac-10 slate. After play
ing No. 16 Florida State to a close 1-0 loss,
Turn to Soccer, page 12
SOCCER
ipr i
BAYSA