“I thought (Dante) Culpepper was
(my friend), but now that everything’s
happened, it seems to me I lost a friend. ”
Raiders wide receiver Randy Moss about his former teammate
■ In my opinion
JON ROETMAN
ROUGHING THE PASSER
Cheating to
win: Would
you do it for
your team ?
How important is winning to you?
Would you cheat to get the job done?
Would you do anything it takes to get a W and
the reward it brings?
These questions arose in my mind Thursday
after my teammates and I were eliminated from
the Rec Sports dodgeball playoffs.
After splitting the first four games of a first
round best-of-five series, the deciding game came
down to sudden-death overtime, when after a
long stalemate we were finally eliminated when
our biggest player was clipped on the foot.
While the loss was extremely hard to take, the
fifth game should have never gone to overtime.
Moments before time expired in regulation,
one of our opponents was tagged in the foot with
a thrown ball after it had deflected off the ball he
was holding.
According to dodgeball rule 34976.732, section
A, article two, if a ball hits you before hitting the
floor, YOU’RE OUT.
Our opponent, who happened to be a large
man with one of his team’s best throwing arms,
apparently didn’t understand this rule and stayed
in the game.
Since this is the first year dodgeball was offered
as an intramural sport at Oregon, many of the
game’s rules and nuances were still uncertain.
The game’s biggest shortcoming is the lack of a
true referee. There is an “official” on site who is
only there to settle disputes as the last possible
option. Otherwise, the game is self-officiated.
Ttoo of us who had been knocked out of the
game tried to point out to our opponent that he
had been hit on the foot and should be out of the
game. Our efforts were in vein, however, as he
continued to deny the accusations. We got noth
ing more than a confused shoulder shrug from
the “official.”
If our opponent went out of the game, we
would have finished regulation ahead two play
ers to one and advanced to the second round. But
he stayed in; we couldn’t get the job done in over
time and I proceeded to make an ass of myself by
yelling, swearing and telling the big guy he was
a cheating-ass m— f-— after the game.
I’ve always been a fan of self-officiated games.
If you’re playing with honest people, self-officiat
ing eliminates bad calls from officials who may
not have the best view on a particular play. I’ll
even give the benefit of the doubt to an opponent
during most arguments — unless something is
brutally obvious — just to keep an honest feel to
the contest.
Ultimate Frisbee is a perfect example of suc
cessful self-officiating. Athletes go by a “spirit of
the game” code that would make anybody feel
like a dirtbag for trying to cheat.
But after Thursday, I’m no longer an advo
cate of self-officiating. I’ll take the occasional
blown call from a referee over the temptation of
an individual to help his own team by letting
something go.
Hey, maybe the big guy got caught up in
the moment and actually didn’t feel the ball
hit his foot. But for an uber-competitive per
son like myself, advancing in the playoffs in
ROETMAN, page 12
■ Club Sports
Baseball advances to World Series
An offensive onslaught led the
Ducks past Western Washington
at last weekend's regional tourney
BY LUKE ANDREWS
DAILY EMERALD FREELANCE RETORTER
After a dominating performance in the
Northern Pacific Regional Tournament last
weekend, the Oregon Club baseball team will
be heading to familiar territory — the National
Club Baseball Association’s World Series.
Oregon, which previously qualified for the
World Series in 2004, defeated Weber State
13-4, UCLA 13-6, and Western Washington
7-0 to claim the fifth seed in next week’s
eight-team World Series in Bradenton, Fla.
The Ducks, winners of last year’s regional
tournament, entered last weekend’s tourna
ment as the number three seed after captur
ing their second straight Pacific Mountain
Conference title. The Ducks finished the
season winning eight of their last 11 regular
season games.
“We are playing a great caliber of baseball
right now,” head coach Bradley Ficek said. “It
was just a matter of putting it all together.”
For the second straight year, Ficek’s squad
met Weber State in the opening game of the
regional tournament. The Ducks fell behind
early 2-0, but two monster offensive innings
enabled Oregon to rally and overwhelm
the Wildcats.
After Travis Brown’s solo home run in the
second inning cut the Oregon deficit to 2-1,
the Ducks came alive and poured it on in the
fifth inning.
Brothers Jerry and Gavin Wahl-Stephens led
off with back-to-back singles and Matt Oss de
livered a single to allow Jerry Wahl-Stephens
to score and tie the game at two. Jordan Den
ney then followed with a two-RBI double, and
his brother, Marcus Denney, pushed the lead
to 5-2 with a run-scoring double of his own.
After a Ttavis Chock single and three wild
pitches, the Ducks tacked on two more runs to
make the lead 7-2.
An inning later, the Oregon bats continued
to pound the ball. The Wahl-Stephens broth
ers again led off with consecutive singles, and
Oregon capitalized with a big inning, scoring
four more runs to take an 11-2 advantage.
The Ducks eventually secured the 13-4 vic
tory. Pitcher Scott Sullivan went the distance
for Oregon, improving his record to 6-0. Jerry
Wahl-Stephens led the offensive explosion by
going 3 of 4 with three runs scored.
“We seem to be a team that, when it rains, it
pours,” outfielder Tory Caputo said. “We put
up big numbers in bunches. ”
The win paired Oregon with UCLA in Satur
day’s nightcap. The Bruins used an offensive
onslaught of their own to defeat Western
Washington earlier in the tournament, setting
the stage for a showdown in the second round.
Tim Bobosky | Photographer
Oregon's Jerry Wahl-Stephens, seen here earlier this season, went 3 for 4 with three runs scored against
Weber State in the opening game of last weekend’s Northern Pacific Regional Tournament. The Oregon Club
baseball team will advance to the World Series in Bradenton, Fla.
But with a large crowd on hand, the lights
went out quickly for UCLA as Oregon cruised
to a 13-0 lead before the fifth inning. Twelve of
the 13 Oregon runs came with two outs.
“That is something we’ve been stressing all
season,” Ficek said. “Two-out hits are going to
win us games.”
The Bruins managed a late comeback by
scoring six runs in the final three innings,
but the Ducks held on for the 13-6 win.
Jordan Denney made his first start on the
mound this season and recorded the win. He
pitched 4 2/3 innings and amassed nine
strikeouts, including seven in a row during
one stretch. Chock continued his stellar
weekend by going 3 of 4 with four RBIs. The
victory earned the Ducks a berth into the
weekend’s championship game against
conference rival Western Washington.
“It was the same situation last year,” Ficek
said. “It was fitting that it came down to the
two best teams from the same conference. ”
Western Washington, because of the earli
er loss to UCLA, had to defeat Oregon twice
in two games to win the tournament and ad
vance to the World Series. The Ducks,
however, needed just one win to continue
their season.
The Vikings wasted no time in the first
game, getting an early 3-0 lead after a two-run
homerun in the first inning. The lead bal
looned to 6-0 by the fourth inning before the
Ducks were able to score.
In the fourth, Jordan Denney led off with a
single and later scored on a single by Adam
Dexter. Jonathan Loomis continued the rally
with an RBI single, and Dexter later scored
on a fielder’s choice, cutting Western
Washington’s lead to 6-3.
The Ducks would get no closer than three
runs as the Vikings picked up the 7-4 win,
forcing a deciding second game.
Oregon took the early 1-0 advantage after
Brown’s single scored Dexter in the second in
ning. The Ducks then scored another run in
the third and four runs in the fourth, upping
the lead to 6-0. Defensively, Oregon pitchers
Nick Hall and Tim Hegdahl took care of busi
ness, shutting down the Viking attack en route
to the 7-0 win. The two combined for a two
hit shutout, sending the Ducks to the National
Club Baseball World Series for the second con
secutive year.
“For our pitchers to only give up two hits i»v
a great accomplishment,” Ficek said. "I can’t
explain it. To win regionals and represent the
University is a joy.”
The victories also brought postseason
awards for the Ducks. Chock and Sullivan
were named to the All-Region Team, and
Dexter, Gavin Wahl-Stephens and Greg Wells
were named to the second team. The Den
ney brothers, Brown and pitcher Jay Tlougan
rounded out the third team. In addition,
Chock was named as the National Player of
the Week and Hegdahl was selected as co
Pitcher of the Week.
Oregon will enter the World Series as the
fifth seed and face last year’s runner-up, North
Carolina State, in the first round May 26.
“We are going to be more prepared this
year,” Ficek said. “We are on a roll right
now and hopefully we can keep that going
into Florida.”
■ Outdoor recreation
FOUND
Newport offers visitors a unique coastal experience, complete with
fine dining, excellent bed and breakfasts and a first-rate aquarium
BY ASHLEY GRIFFIN
OUTDOOR RECREATION REPORTER
On clear mornings, the sunrise in the lit
tle coastal town of Newport is a sight
to behold. Individual rays hit the crash
ing waves and wet sand, brightening the emp
ty beach as the sun creeps toward the town to
wake locals and tourists. Shop owners put
open signs in their windows while bed and
breakfast owners fry eggs and hash browns for
their visitors. Tourists along Bayfront Boule
vard wander into the local coffee shops to grab
a steaming drink and plan their day.
And when visiting Newport, what a day that
will be.
Newport, located about two and half hours
northwest of Eugene, first gained popularity
for its delicious Yaquina Bay oyster and has
since been recognized for its outdoor activi
ties, beaches, aquarium, unique lodging and
world-class seafood restaurants.
“I love Newport because it’s simple, uncom
plicated and easy to get to,” junior Kim Walker
said. “There are a lot of different activities to
do and it’s a great way to spend a day."
The activities in Newport are as unique as
the shells and driftwood tourists find at its
beaches and shops.
Newport’s Oregon Coast Aquarium is a
popular stop for visitors to view seals, otters,
tufted puffins and a giant octopus. It has six
acres of cliffs, rocky caves, tide pools and
trails. The aquarium is open from 10 a.m. to
NEWPORT, page 12