Oregon club teams play
big and small opponents
■ Oregon men’s lacrosse faces
the Huskies, men’s rugby
gets Cal and women’s rugby
expects the Couga rs to bite
By Jesse Thomas
for the Emerald
Washington is looking for its
first league win this weekend
against the Oregon men’s lacrosse
team, but the Ducks are going to
have something to say about that.
The Ducks are currently 3-2
overall and 3-1 in league play,
whereas the
Huskies are
2-2 overall
and 0-2 in
conference
games.
Also, Wash
i n g t o n
inigm oe somewnar angry, consid
ering it lost to Washington State
last weekend in triple overtime.
“It’s going to be a close game,”
coach Josh Barbour said. “It’s not
going to be easy, but I think we
will come out on top.”
Barbour mentioned how strong
the players have been, including
goalie Mike Zienkewics, attackers
Jared Blanchette and Doug Hamil
ton, and mid-fielders Pat O’Donnel
and Josh Waldman. Barbour also
praised defensive player Jeff
Schmid, an All-League defense
last year who will play his first
game this season after recovering
from an injury.
The men came off a tough game
against Whitman last weekend,
where they started slow, trailing 5
1 after the first. Oregon roared back
and trailed 7-6 by the end of three,
but Whitman stayed on top and
defeated the Ducks 9-8.
“We need to watch our penalties
against Washington,” Barbour said.
“It hurt us against Whitman.”
The Ducks and the Huskies will
face off in the anticipated battle at
1 p.m. Saturday outside the Stu
dent Recreation Center on the turf
field.
Men’s rugby
The Oregon men’s rugby team
will be in for a challenge this
weekend as it plays California, one
the best teams in the country, in
Eugene.
The Ducks are coming off a
strong win against Central Wash
ington and are playing well togeth
er, but Cal hasn’t lost a game in the
past few years.
Oregon head coach Bob Snyder
compared the Ducks to being on
the level of Sacramento State. The
last time the Golden Bears and
Sacramento met, Cal won 36-0,
which puts things somewhat in
perspective for the Ducks.
“It will be a respectable game,
but we can’t compare ourselves to
them,” Snyder said.
This matchup will definitely
give the Ducks more experience,
which will help them to ensure a
spot in the national tournament.
The only thing left standing in
their way is Oregon State next
weekend, because the game
against Cal won’t alter their nation
al chances.
“If we can stay in the game for
80 minutes, I don’t care what the
score is,” Snyder said.
Women’s rugby
When one is 2-0, and the com
bined scores of the wins add to
175-0, it would seem that one
shouldn’t have much to worry
about. But the Oregon women’s
rugby team is expecting strength
from Washington State this week
end.
“This is definitely going to be a
lot more challenging,” coordinator
Shelby Frail said. “They have a re
ally solid program.”
The Ducks realize that Washing
ton is a much more experienced
team compared to the other teams
they won against, but the women
feel prepared for whatever comes
their way. The last time these two
teams met was last season, and the
Ducks were victorious.
“If we take them lightly, we
could be in trouble,” coach Greg
Farrell said. “They [Ducks] need to
keep their intensity going and have
another good day.”
In the women’s past few
matchups, they felt as if they had
been playing more of a back game,
according to Frail. Against the
Cougars, she expects to see a lot
more play from the forward side.
The women will go head-to-head
with Washington State Saturday
on Southbank field at 2:30 p.m.
“We expect a very good squad
from Washington State,” Farrell
said. “I need 80 serious minutes
out of my team to win.”
Prescott, Adams convicted of
felony assault in circuit court
CORVALLIS — Two former Ore
gon State football players, includ
ing Robert Prescott, a starting wide
receiver on last season’s Fiesta
Bowl-champion team, were con
victed of felony assault Thursday
for beating an OSU student at an
off-campus party last summer.
“We’re very, very disappointed
with the verdict,” said Prescott’s
lawyer, Stephen Ensor. “We’re
very surprised that a jury could
find these young men guilty of as
sault in the third degree based on
the flimsy evidence they present
ed.”
A third player, James Newson,
was acquitted. Newson, the only
player among the three who is still
on the team, cried after the verdict
was announced Thursday morning
in Benton County Circuit Court.
No date was set for sentencing.
Prescott and Alton “Junior”
Adams could be sent to prison for
up to five years.
Coach Dennis Erickson was in
Hawaii on Thursday and was not
available for comment, the Oregon
State sports information office
said. Athletic Director Mitch Barn
hart did not return a phone mes
sage from The Associated Press.
The charges were brought fol
lowing a fight at a party last July
22.
The student, Victor Becerra, 22,
was beaten and kicked so badly
that he couldn’t walk. He suffered
no pefmhheiit'irvjuries.'
The players, all receivers, were
among five initially charged in the
case. The others — defensive back
Dennis Weathersby and linebacker
Noah Happe — were not indicted.
Prescott, a senior from Seattle,
was the fourth-leading receiver for
the Beavers, who went 11-1 and
completed the best season in
school history with a 41-9 rout of
Notre Dame in the Fiesta Bowl on
New Year’s Day. Prescott caught 26
passes for 602 yards and four
touchdowns during the regular
season, and had two catches for 41
yards in the Fiesta Bowl.
Oregon State finished fourth in
the final Associated Press poll.
Adams, a sophomore last season
from Fremont, Calif., transferred to
Montana State, which plays the
Beavers at Reser Stadium on Sept.
15. Newson was a redshirt fresh
man last season and remains on
the team. The players were sus
pended by Erickson for the first
three games of the season, all
against non-conference opponents.
During closing arguments Tues
day, prosecutor Liz Carle argued
that the players went to the party
looking for a fight, and that they
“jumped” Becerra, referring to sev
eral witnesses’ testimony that the
defendants punched and kicked
Becerra as he lay on the ground.
Carle also dismissed the defense
claim that the players were de
fending themselves against Becer
ra’s threatening behavior.
After the verdict, Carle said:
“The community has spoken
through the jury.”
Defense attorneys portrayed the
brawl as a free-for-all, citing testi
mony of two witnesses who said
they punched the defendants.
Lawyers also questioned Becerra’s
conflicting accounts of how much
he had to drink that night.
Oregon State basketball player
Adam Masten was among the
state’s witnesses, saying he saw
Prescott and Adams kicking Becer
ra.
Prescott testified that Becerra
had bumped chests with him and
appeared ready to fight.
“I thought he was going to hit
me first, so I swung at him,”
Prescott said, adding that he
punched Becerra twice more to try
to get him to back away from the
confrontation. Prescott said he was
hit in the back of the head three
times by a friend of Becerra’s.
Prescott said he fell down, was
confronted by Becerra when he got
up, and punched Becerra a fourth
time.
Adams testified that Becerra
kneed Adams in the face, splitting
his lip. Oregon State kicker Ryan
Cesca, who also was at the party, I
backed up Adams’ account. Cesca
and another witness testified that
they never saw Newson strike Be
cerra.
The Associated Press
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