1995_03 Insight March 1995

              Sports
MARCH 15,1995
Athletes go for gold at NCAA finals
♦ Track and field, swimming and wrestling jump
into NCAA spotlight
By Robbie Miner
Sports Editor
For years. March Madness has
mcanl lhc ultimate battle of 64 teams
for Ihe claim of national champion in
men's college basketball.
At Fresno Stale. March Madness has
generally had a different meaning.
While the men's basketball team
hasn't been to ihe Big Dance since
1°K4. two other sports programs have
consistently nourished under Ihe national spotlight in March. The first
made ils mark last weekend.
Track and Field coach Boh Fraley's
has led his mens teams to seven top-
30 finishes since 1981 and women's
indoor coach Tom Pagani has coached
22 All-Americans in 15 years at
Fresno Slate. Last year al indoor nationals. Robert Foster brought home
the first national championship for ihe
Bulldogs since 1987.
Fresno Stale seni only two athletes
lasi weekend, bul another national
championship was still a realistic
goal. Senior David Cox. who had broken the schixil record in Ihe pole vault
Feb. 4 and then broke his own standard 11 days later with a jump of IS
feel 6 inches, had a legitimate shot at
ihe crown. Cox finished in third and
earned his fifth All-American honor.
Senior pole vaulter. Heath Fulk. also
earned a spot in lhc NCAAs with a
huge personal best jump of 17 feet 8
inches in the WAC finals Feb. 25. With
a leap of 17 feel 4 inches in Indianapolis, Indiana. Fulk captured his first All-
American honor, placing sixth.
"I knew I had it in me." Fulk said.
"It was just a matter of doing it."
Another Fresno State sports program that's enjoyed success in March
is the wrestling team. Coach Dennis
DeLiddo's squad has finished in the
top-25 thc last three years. Last season, the 'Dogs finished I lth and in
1993 they sent a seven wrestlers to
Ihe NCAA meet, a school record.
That mark was shattered w hen eight
wrestlers qualified for this year's nationals to be held Thursday through
Saturday in Ames. Iowa.
"It's a hostile environment in Iowa."
DeLiddo said. "But the desire for All-
American status is so great lhat it's
hard lo predict what ihey will do.
Some guys might rise lo the occasion;
others might have a hard.time with
the pressure."
The pressure has been intense for
senior Gerry Abas since lhc day after
last years NCAA finals. CSUF's
winningesi all-time wrestler finished
See NCAAs, page 8
Senior Yvette Tristan anchors a young Fresno State swimming team into the senior nationals this week.
Photo by Todd Warshaw/lnsighl
Former Bulldog track stars
close in on Olympic dreams
Robert Foster, Tanya Dooley, Todd Riech
and Terry Bowen are enjoying success after
collegiate track and field
Photo by Aaron Rlgga/Sports Information
Tanya Dooley ran last weekend In Barcelona, Spain, at the World
Indoor Track and Field Championships.
By Robbie Miner
Sports Editor
For many college athletes, the end
of eligibility means one of two things:
the beginning of a pro career or a long,
exhausting struggle for a goal that
never becomes reality.
For 99 percent of these athletes, the
latter is the case.
And more and more today, those
who don't make it are unprepared for
a life after sports.
Four former Fresno Slate track and
field athletes are hoping to become part
of the very elite — those who reach
the upper echelon in their respective
sports, and then have a degree and a
plan to fall back on when their athletic
achievements are fulfilled.
The upper echelon for these athletes
is the Olympics, and in each case,
their chances arc strong.
"It's so hard to say at this point how
many of them can make thc Olympics," Fresno State coach Bob Fralcy
said. "But even if they don't make it
in 1996, 2000 is not too late for any
of them."
The most likely of the four to com
pete in ihe '96 games, according lo
Fralcy, is high hurdler Robert Foster.
Foster ended his two-year career at
Fresno Slale the way every runner
dreams of going out — with a national
championship. Wilh a school-record
time of 13.53 in ihe 110-meter high
hurdles June 3, Foster joined Renaldo
Nehemiah and Glenn Terry as the
only male athletes ever to win both
indoor and outdoor NCAA titles.
"Robert's the most talented athlete
I've ever seen at Fresno State." hurdle
coach Hugh Adams said after Foster
won his indoor championship lasi
March.
Twenty-seven All-Americans have
passed through Fresno State in
Adams' 16 years here. Still. Foster's
former coach backs his claim without hesitation.
"He could unquestionably be ihe
best in the high hurdles if he devoted
his time entirely lo that event." said
Adams a few weeks before Foster's
first national title. "But he's so unselfish. He'll do the long jump, triple
jump, 400 intermediate hurdles and
both relays (400m. 1600m); whatever
Photo by Aaron Rlggs/Sports Information
Robert Foster won both the indoor and outdoor NCAA titles last
year in the high hurdles.
il takes to get ihe team poinis."
At last year's outdoor WAC championships. Foster earned 24 points for
the Bulldogs, placing in four different events. Now the native of Jamaica
must think about whal's besi for him
and thai means concentrating solely
on thc high hurdles.
Foster's first run at international
competition ended in disaster. In only
his second post-collegiate invitational, a common cold medicine he
took, cphidrine, came up positive on
thc drug test, and Foster was sus
pended from competition for ihree
months Since Ins return In chgibil-
iiy. ihe former New Yorkei lias been
hampered by several nagging injuries
thai have slowed his comeback. Bul
he final!) feels .is though he's back
in prime sluipe and ready Iti show the
world what he's got.
"I'm using ihe Cal Poly Invite (Saturday) as a stepping stone." Foster
said.'"If I can run in the low 13s,
which I know I can. I'll put myself
back on the inap_"
See OLYMPICS, page 7
Abas, Zinkin bring
Fresno State into
national spotlight
♦ Seniors Gerry Abas
and DeWayne Zinkin
have high expectations
for this week's NCAA
wrestling championships
By Casey Angle
Staff Wilier
DeWayne Zinkin joined a Fresno
State wrestling program thai appeared to be .i long way off from
ihe national spotlight.
Today, as Abas and Zinkin close
i ihcir
icliai
Slate has one of ihe rmv
lul programs in the natii
The "VtK have been gi
said ihe schools winnineesi w resiling coach ev er. Dennis DeLiddo.
The> sure have Since Abas and
Zinkin'* redshin year in 1991.
Fresno Stale wrestling has jumped
from a No 4 1 ranking In a perennial lop III power
■I never ever thought ih.n this
team would be ranked lop 10. lop
5 like wc have been. Ii'sjusi incredible ihe level ol change lhai has
plcnt) nf unfinished business for die
two as they head into this weekend's
championships in Ames. Iowa.
I,.i Abas [here is ihe elusive national title. Alter iwo straight losses
in Ihe imals. this is his lasi shot.
Throughoul this season. Abas said
he has had many dilferem mind sets
in anticipation lo this last run al the
title. One week he's filled w ilh nervousness, the ncxl he's focused and
relaxed.
Now thai it's finally lime. Abas said
he feels good. "I'm focused in on
knowing lhai I've done well so far in
college. I've never had a bad tournament (here | NCAA championships].
l ihe
I I'm
Zinkin
Abas
nd.
ed by ihe
"I have this little
saying that I always
tell DeWayne;
'DeWayne, all my
workout partners
have been All-
Americans and now
it's your turn.'"
Gerry Abas
•When I was geiung recruited
here I think we were in lhc early
MU rank-wise We iiisi continued
logethettei andii fell great: it was
unexpected.'' he said
When looking for Ihe answer lo
ihe change, look no further than
these two seniors
Abas, who heads into this
weekend's NCAA championships
the No I ranked 142-pounder mihc
nation, became the school's all-
.  lit
Hinges
n Jan
The Oakland native is also a three
lime All-American. placing second
at the last iwo championships.
Zinkin. Ihe No. " 134-pounder in
ihc nation, is tied for fifth on the
all-lime win hsi with 102. Win No
KM) for the Bullard High School
product marked the first lime
Fresno Stale has ever had two 100-
win wrestlers in ihe same lineup.
I'm noi afraid of going there and
so-called choking. I'm going to go
there and do as good as I can do
and. a lol of people think that's gotxl
enough low nut.'Abas said.
He may not feel the pressure righi
now. but he admits anything less
than first would be unite a letdown.
"It would be a major disappointment il I don't win it." Abas said.
Lasi year Zinkin ran off a school-
record 2S straight w ins lo enter ihe
championships a perfect 2S-0.
Alter two overtime wins, he was
closing in on ihe coveted All-
American honors. Bul his dream
season suddenly went awry.
Overtime losses in his next two
matches abruptly ended his season.
This weekend is his only shoi al redemption.
See WRESTLERS, page 7
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