By Rusty Simmons staff reporter The TCU baseball team traveled to Beaumont this weekend in search of its first road win. The Frogs came back to Fort Worth at the end of the weekend sporting their first road win but nothing else. TCU won one game out of a three-game series with the Lamar Cardinals this weekend. The Frogs lost the opener 10-6, won game two 3-2 and lost the finale 9-5 at Vincent-Beck Stadium. Lamar scored the final eight runs of the series opener, rallying back from a four-run deficit Saturday to beat TCU 10-6. The Frogs scored five runs in the first inning, including a two-run triple by senior designated hitter Shaun Wooley. But TCU's offense was silent after the opening inning, adding only a single run in the fourth inning. "When you get a lead, you hope to string together a couple of innings," head coach Lance Brown said. "We gave them confidence, because we couldn't distance ourselves from (Lamar) by continuing to score runs." Lamar used the confidence it gained by battling back with runs in the first and third innings, and then the Cardinals added two in the fourth inning to cut the Frogs' lead to two runs. The decisive inning was the sixth, when Lamar took its first lead of the game, scoring three runs in the inning with two outs. The Cardinals put the game away in the seventh inning, adding three runs. Lamar's Chris Minning allowed only one run in his six innings of relief, while junior pitcher Chris Bradshaw (0-2) took the loss, allowing seven runs in five innings for the Frogs. Brown said the Frogs never adjusted to Minning who threw almost strictly curve balls for his six inning stint. Wooley had two hits and three RBIs, and senior third baseman Levi Groomer and sophomore shortstop Erick Macha added three hits each. But Brown said the hits did not amount into runs. "Lamar got their lead off man on base five times and scored four runs," he said. "We also got our lead off man on five times, but scored him only twice." TCU won game two, the first game of the Sunday doubleheader, 3-2 behind two innings of shutout relief by junior Chad Durham. The Frogs scored the game-winning run in the top of the eighth inning by moving the lead off man to third base, who then scored on a passed ball. Senior pitcher Shawn Thompson kept TCU in the game, pitching six innings while allowing only a pair of runs. Durham (2-1) closed the door, striking out three of the nine batters he faced to wrap up the Frogs' first road win of the season. Brown said the Frogs' first road win of the season was tainted by the series finale. "Anything we gained in the second game, we lost in the third," he said. Lamar bounced back in the series finale, handing TCU a 9-5 loss sparked by a six-run rally in the sixth inning. Junior pitcher Chris Frazier (1-2) allowed only two hits in his five and 2/3 innings, but the six-run sixth inning proved to be insurmountable for the Frogs. "Lamar hadn't gotten a hit since the first inning, but we didn't throw strikes in the sixth," Brown said. "We basically threw the game away." The Cardinals' J.P. Igo retired TCU's offense in order in the seventh inning to shore up the Lamar victory. Senior left fielder Mark Hamilton drove in a pair of runs on three hits, and freshman second baseman Ramon Moses contributed two hits. The Frogs will try to tally their second road win at 2:05 p.m. today at Dallas Baptist.
Rusty Simmons
By Danny Horne staff reporter Before the game against Southern Methodist University Sunday, the Lady Frogs basketball team took time to honor its seniors and parents. In a fairy-tale setting, the emotion from such a ceremony would catapult TCU to an upset over SMU and put to rest an 18-game losing streak to the Lady Mustangs that dates back to 1991. SMU, which came in needing one win to clinch a tie for the Western Athletic Conference regular season title, spoiled the mood. SMU beat the Lady Frogs 84-74 to extend the streak to 19, and has now won 15 of its last 16 games. "We had our chances in this game," said sophomore guard Tricia Payne. "We missed our opportunities, but (SMU) was always able to come up with the big plays." TCU trailed 32-29 at the half but took a 38-36 lead with 15 minutes remaining on a three-pointer by senior guard Diamond Jackson, who led the Lady Frogs in scoring with 18 points in her final appearance at Daniel-Meyer Coliseum. "All of (Diamond's) shots were huge for TCU," SMU head coach Rhonda Rompola said. "She has been great for (TCU) all year and was a big reason why we could not put the game away." SMU (18-6 overall, 11-1 in WAC play) responded after a timeout with a 16-4 run that put the Mustangs up 52-42 with 10 minutes to play. "(SMU) did not panic and did a great job of regrouping," TCU head coach Jeff Mittie said. "They put up five points right out of the time-out." SMU senior forward Karlin Kennedy said the Mustangs just needed to calm down and keep their composure. "At that point, there was still a lot of time left to play," Kennedy said. "We regrouped in the time-out to make sure there was no panic." Rompola said she was grateful to come away with a win because the game could easily have gone the other way. "Thank God for second halves," Rompola said. "I told our team at half-time that if we end up losing this game, it will be because we have not made our free-throws. Without (junior guard D-dra) Rucker hitting her free-throws, we were not very good." Rucker led all scorers with 22 points, but was just 3 of 14 from the field. She did, however, hit all 14 attempts from the free-throw line and has made 44 in a row overall. Kennedy scored 19 points and pulled down a game-high 13 rebounds including eight on the offensive glass. Kennedy said it was not really one of her more dominating games. "That is why (Kennedy) is one of the best in the conference," Mittie said. "She did not have her best game in terms of playing with her back to the basket, but she is good enough that she can crash the boards and create chances for herself." Three-point shooting has been one of the strong aspects of the Lady Frogs' offense. For the season, they had hit on 35 percent from behind the arc. But, against the Mustangs, TCU shot just 18 percent, hitting just 3 of 16 attempts. The SMU defense also forced the Lady Frogs into 24 turnovers. "We had no answer for their defensive pressure," Mittie said. "We had too many turnovers and did not shoot well from three-point range. We could not get our shooters free for enough open looks." The Lady Frogs made one more run to get within five points with five minutes remaining, but Rucker scored 13 of SMU's final 19 points including eight of eight from the free-throw line to put the game away. With the loss The Lady Frogs' had their three-game winning streak snapped and fell to 15-13 overall and 6-7 in the WAC. "I thought it was a fairly even game, but we are not happy with getting close," Mittie said. "We are going to keep knocking on the door, and one of these days, we are going to knock it down."
Danny Horne
By Chris Ray Skiff staff The No. 15 TCU men's tennis team continued their string of victories over ranked opponents with a 4-3 win over Texas A&M University, ranked No. 18 by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association. The win marks the fourth victory over ranked opponents this spring season for the Frogs. Head coach Michael Center said he was pleased with the effort of his squad. "This was a really hard-fought win for us and the players should enjoy it, because A&M is a strong team," he said. "It was a great college tennis atmosphere out there and I feel the support from the fans was the difference in the match." The Frogs took two of the three doubles matches played en route to winning the doubles point. The Horned Frog doubles team of junior Scott Eddins and freshman Jimmy Haney pulled off an upset of the No. 28 ranked duo of Shoun Madden and Dumitru Caradima. Eddins and Haney were playing at the No. 1 doubles spot for only the second time this season. The two improve to 11-3 on the season and a perfect 2-0 at the No. 1 doubles position for the Frogs. Caradima and Madden were named All-Americans last season and held the No. 1 ranking for the majority of the 1998-99 season. "This win meant a lot for us," Eddins said. "Caradima and Madden are good quality players that fight hard and play tough in every single match. And that's what they did against us today in this match." At the No. 3 doubles spot, freshman Antonio Gordon and junior Sebastian Iannariello defeated A&M's Jarin Skubel and Cody Hubbell, 8-6. The Frogs have won the doubles point six times this year. The Frogs split the singles matches, 3-3. At the No. 1 singles position, No. 23 Esteban Carril upset No. 13 Madden, 6-4, 6-7, 6-1. In defeating Madden, Carril ended Madden's career winning streak at TCU's Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center. Madden was undefeated in Fort Worth for his career after clinching the ITA Region VI titles in 1998 and 99. Carril improves to 15-3 on the season with the win, and will most likely advance in the ITA rankings released this week. TCU earned victories at the No. 4 and No. 6 singles spots to earn the split. At the No. 4 singles position, Eddins defeated Caradima in straight sets, 6-4, 6-4. Haney defeated Juan Aramburo in a see-saw battle, 7-5, 3-6, 6-3 at the No. 6 singles spot. TCU improved to 5-1 on the season, and 2-1 in Region VI action. The Aggies drop to 2-3 on the season with the loss. The Frogs travel to Corpus Christi this weekend to participate in the Corpus Christi Invitational.
Chris Ray
By Chris Ray Skiff staff The TCU women's tennis team lost only a single match during the weekend, defeating North Texas and Sam Houston State, in a doubleheader Saturday at the Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center. The Frogs opened the day against North Texas, defeating the Eagles 8-1, winning five of six singles matches and defaulting one match due to the illness of senior Jessika Kjellgren. Kjellgren battling a respiratory infection, lost the first set of the match 2-6 then could not continue and defaulted the match. Senior Lucie Dvorakova defeated Siayareh Rambally 6-4, 6-2 at the No.1 singles spot. Freshman Dorrit Huppes defeated Catherine Alain 6-1, 6-3, while senior Daria Zoldakova defeated Melissa Hodges 5-7, 6-4, 7-6. The match marked the return of the doubles team of Zoldakova and Dvorakova. The pair, ranked No. 8 in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Polls, easily defeated the North Texas combination of Rambally and Rettenmaier 8-0. Dvorakova and Zoldakova improve to 15-2.
The Frogs took all three doubles matches. The tandem of Kjellgren and Weirich defeated the UNT duo of Melissa Hodges and Kristin Beedy 8-3. Huppes and freshman Debbie Bell defeated the team of Hunyh and Alain 8-3. In the afternoon match, TCU shut out the Sam Houston State Bearkats. The Frogs took six singles matches, as Sam Houston defaulted the sixth match, not having enough players to play at all six seeds. Dvorakova defeated Shari Gamarnik 6-1, 6-1. Huppes also took the win over Ivette Andrade 6-1, 6-1. Weirich defeated Emilie Langlois 6-0, 6-2. Shackelford fought back from being down 0-6 in the first set, then came back to win 0-6, 6-2, 6-2. Senior Stacey Sabala blanked Kristin McElligiot 6-0, 6-0. Sophomore Leoni Weirich defeated Christine Hunyh 6-0, 6-2, while freshman Brenna Shackelford was victorious over Bettina Rettenmaier 6-2, 7-5. The Frogs won both matches against the Bearkats. The team of Dvorakova and Zoldakova defeated the team of Gamarnik and Emilie Langlois 8-4, and the team of Huppes and Bell defeated Ivette Andrade and Robyn Bassett 8-2. TCU returns to action at 2 p.m. Friday at the Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center, against Central Florida. The Frogs will host to Texas A&M at 2 p.m. Saturday.
Chris Ray
By Matt Welnack Sports Editor Some say he's crazy, and he shouldn't do it. Some say he has the talent to make it. Jason Thomas said he just wants to get some sleep. Thomas, a junior psychology major from Roswell, N.M., spends about 30 hours a week training for the Golden Gloves Tournament for amateur boxers. He won the regional tournament Saturday in the John Justin Arena at the Will Rogers Memorial Center against Juan Zambrano, a teammate and sparring partner, in three rounds. "The road to the title is through me, whether I'm the road or I'm the gate," Thomas said. "Somebody is going to have to beat me to get to it." The road to the state championship for Thomas has been a long journey, complete with potholes and exit ramps. His journey started before his freshman year and his destination is winning the state championship, which will be held Wednesday through Saturday at Will Rogers. "The competition is going to get tougher," Thomas said. "I'm starting to get butterflies again." But, Thomas is also a successful student and is very involved outside of the classroom. He is an honor student with a 3.91 GPA, one of nine government scholarship candidates in Texas, a volunteer at Cook Children's Medical Center and a co-author of a research paper for a federally-funded project. Gary Boehm, an assistant professor of psychology, said he would prefer that Thomas not seek a career in boxing.
Thomas said he does not seek a career in boxing, but he enjoys the challenge of doing something new. "I do it because I'm not very good at it," Thomas said. "I have to examine myself because it is a challenge. I have to search and find out who I am. You have to discipline yourself when you get in the ring. I love the physical challenge." Brad Wolfe, Thomas' cousin and a sophomore business major, said Thomas enjoys the challenge, and it is a good example of his character. "He's determined and he always wants to challenge himself," Wolfe said. "All of our family doesn't know why he does it, he is (just being) Jason." Thomas' boxing career started during his senior year in high school when he received an appointment to attend the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. Thomas started to train for boxing because all West Point cadets are required to box. However, Thomas' appointment was revoked due to asthma, so he came to TCU to study psychology and to pursue a career in the FBI. But Thomas stuck with boxing. He met Jay Strickland, a Golden Gloves boxing legend and coach. Strickland coached Thomas in Fort Worth for three years. A friendship developed over time and Thomas won the Golden Gloves regional tournament last year in the novice light-heavyweight division. Under Golden Gloves rules, however, Thomas could not compete in the state tournament because he was not fighting in the open class. "When you go out and win a title, it says a lot about that person," Strickland said. "It takes a lot for a TCU student to come up here and fight." Strickland had to move his boxing club to Arlington, which made it difficult for Thomas to continue training with him. Thomas started to work out at the Golden Gloves Youth Center in Fort Worth. The time came for Thomas to make a decision on where and with whom he was going to train. In an emotional decision for both Thomas and Strickland, he chose to train with Joe Guzman and Alvin Pryor at the Golden Gloves Youth Center. "I'm a little disappointed that he changed teams," Strickland said. "Jason's dedicated, and he works hard. He has a lot of ability. My goal for him was to be my first champion. He's my friend, and I care about him" Thomas has been training at the Golden Gloves Youth Center for about three months under the tutelage of Guzman and Pryor. Both coaches said Thomas has the ability to be the state champion. "Jason's a great guy, and you can't ask for anything more from a boxer," Guzman said. "He has got the potential, and it all comes from the heart." Guzman said Thomas has had to adjust to different training styles. He said Thomas is physically ready, and it is their job to make him mentally ready. In Thomas' first fight in this year's regional tournament, he had to face Michael Johnson, one of Strickland's fighters. Thomas defeated Johnson in three rounds to move on. In the championship fight, Thomas had to go against Zambrano, his sparring partner at the youth center. "I really didn't like fighting my teammate," Thomas said. "I could tell he was getting frustrated. I just did what I had to do to go home."
Thomas is one of nine finalists for the Truman scholarship, a $30,000 post-graduate, government-funded award given to a person that seeks a career in the public service area. Thomas said if he is awarded the scholarship, he will apply it toward a law degree. He said he wants to have a career in the FBI and be a part of the Hostage Rescue Team. During Spring Break, a time when many students head to the beaches or take time to relax and forget about school, Thomas and three other students will go to Honduras on a mission trip that he helped plan. They will backpack through roads made impassible because of hurricane damage, and they will stay with people in a village. During their time in Honduras, the group of four will work on churches and schools for the village. "That's the way I spend all of my spring breaks," Thomas said. "This one is more intense, it raises the odds. It combines adventure and service all in one." Thomas is also part of a research group that includes TCU professor Donald Dansereau and researcher Tiffany Sais. The group is writing a paper on a study they conducted in the fall semester. The project, which is funded by the National Institute for Drug Abuse, examines the link among cognition, self-efficacy and self-esteem. The activities don't seem to quit for Thomas. His schedule for the upcoming week is already filled. The state finals are on March 4, a Neiman Marcus Fashion Show, put on by the Alpha Chi sorority, is on March 5 and then on March 6 Thomas will fly to Phoenix, Ariz., for his Truman scholarship interview. Thomas' plans for the summer will take him to Russia where he will study Russian history and United States history from a world perspective at the Moscow State University. "It's been a struggle and a juggling act," Thomas said. "It's just one more piece of fruit for the plate, and it's all coming to a head." Throughout all of his activities, Thomas said his faith and spirituality keep him focused. Before fights, while other boxers listen to heavy metal and rap music, Thomas said he listens to Christian music to prepare himself. "The spiritual aspect is very key," he said. "That's how I start to get focused and prepared." Wolfe said Thomas does a good job of staying on track with everything. "I think that he does a good job of balancing all his activities and keeping his priorities straight," he said. "I think the West Point thing is the best thing that could have happened to Jason. He has taken full advantage of his time at TCU." Thomas' coaches said they also see the dedication in their boxer. "He's a pretty dedicated kid who knows what he wants," Pryor said. "He has his sights set high." Thomas said he has one goal set for himself and those around him. "I want to make everybody around me ask 'What's next?'" he said. What's next for Thomas is a journey with an unknown destination.
Matt Welnack |
"The return of Daria (Zoldakova) and Lucie (Dvorakova)
couldn't have come at a better time," head coach Roland Ingram said.
"They dominated their matches today and we're glad to have them back
as a team." 
"I told him, in reality, unless he can earn a lot of
money, he may want to reconsider his involvement in this sport," said
Boehm, who taught Thomas in a neuroscience class. "I'll support him,
but if he were my son, I would prefer that he do something else."
All of this comes on top of schoolwork and extracurricular
activities, which Thomas said is his top priority. The number of activities
that Thomas is involved with reads like a shopping list for a family of
five. It's long.| The TCU Daily Skiff © 1998, 1999 Credits |