Newspapers / Elon University Student Newspaper / March 14, 1956, edition 1 / Page 3
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y..^nesday, March 14. 1956 MAROON AND GOLD PACE TimEB Elon Cagers Gain Berth In NAIA’s National Tournament SCORIISG The Elon basketeers, in winning ■ ' f 31 this season in reg- trlv scheduled and tournament Is posted one of the most Jest'scoring attacks in the coun- !!' They worked out an average !? 908 points per game and held all opponents to an average of 77.2 oints per game in battles prior 10 the Kansas City trip. In posting this great mark, the jlaroon and Gold tossers made on 45.3 per cent of all their siKits from the floor as they drop ped 1.041 field goal- Lanky Dee Atkinson topped the Christians attack for the year with 516 points, but two other Elon -ssers were over the 400-point ark. and two others were over e 300-point figure. Four of the hristians scored on more than half their floor shots for the year, with Earl Stone hitting 52.5 per -at Others over the magic 50 r cent level were Frank EteRita, Juratic and Jimmy Crump. The final individual scoring otals for the Elon cagers, com- iled after Wednesday night’s vic- cry over Presbyterian, are as fGl ows— Ujer Games FG FT TP Ikinson 29 178 160 516 "endall 31 174 89 437 uratic 31 168 87 423 Vhitley 31 150 72 372 -Rita 31 115 105 335 rump 27 103 80 286 tone 30 58 69 185 itty 36 38 39 115 ickover 19 13 4 30 tout 18 10 9 29 ing 15 10 5 25 cDonaid 13 8 7 23 thsr Players 14 15 10 40 MAYBE CROWNS ARE CHEAPER BY THE DOZEN 'on Totals pponents 3i 1041 31 837 723 2814 720 2394 Christians Top Erskine And P.C. Ill Play-Offs The Christian basketeers, add ing to the honors already gained during the regular 1955-56 sea son, swept by Erskin and Presby terian College to claim the cham- pionsliip of the NAIA’s twenty- sixth district, which includes both North and South Carolina. The two victories on enemy courts down in South Carolina gave the Elon cagers their third championship of the year and al so the privilege of competing in the NAIA’s national tournament in Kansas City, a 32-team event wliich got underway on Monday of thi.s week. 'The Christians first eliminated 1he Erskine Seceders by an 81 to 69 margin on the Erskine court on Monday night, March 5th, and two nights later they journeyed down to Presbyterian to turn back the Blue Stockings by an 84 to The North State's championship Ug The team then took “Wings Westward" on Sunday morning, flying to Kansas City for the nat ional NAIA tourney, in which they were scheduled to meet the Pitts burg Teachers College, of Pitts burg, Kansas, on Tuesday night of this week. Results of this game were not knowi. at this writmg, but a victory in this game would place the Christians among the favorites. The Kansas outfit en- Baseball Nine Is Schediilecl For 21 Tilts Twenty-one games, all of them \gainst college opposition, are listed on the 1956 baseball sche dule tor the Elon Christians, which tias just been announced by Coach iJoc Matliis. The Christian diamond battles v\ill include sixteen North State Conference games, and rounding jut the list will be two games .'aeh with Williams and Pfeiffer and a single contest with Witten berg. Eleven of the games will be on the home field. chedule this year goes back to the old plan, under which each earn meets every othr team in I he loop. The split into eastern ,md western divisions, used for the past four years, was discarded at the close of the 1955 campaign. The Christians, who have been strong contenders in North State baseball for the past several years, will iiave only six lettermen back as a nucleus for this 1956 team. The returning veterans are „ Hobgood and Bobby Sharpe, record of 23 wins and one loss If cage crowns come cheaper by the dozen, then the Elon Christians had already hit the quarter of a dozen mark before they left for Kansas City last weekend. They won the Parris Island Marine Invitational tourney, copped the North State Conference tour nament and then added the Carolinas NAIA title last week. The squad, pictured left to right above in a short taken at the North State Conference, meet, includes the following players. FRONT ROW — Ben Kendall, Paige Stout and Jimmy Crump. MIDDLE ROW — Ray Whitley, Bobby Sharpe and Hugh Citty. BACK ROW — Bob Rickover, Frank DeRita. Dee Atkinson, Ed Juratic, Tom my King and Eafl Stone. Walking The Clialk-Lines By BILL WALKER Maroon Quint Outguns North State Opposition In Annual Tournament Elon Sets All-Star Record The Fighting Christians of Elon, 'ked by the best school spirit many years, fought an up-hill ttle to sweep the championships the North State Conference and the District 26 in the NAIA, the tier carrying with it the Nat- nal NAI.\ tournament in Kansas ity. I doubt, no matter how the hristians may fair in Kansas ity. that anything there could mpare with the Elon-Lenoir liyne game in the championship und of the North State Tourna- ent I, personally, have never en a better game, nor two great- t teams, nor half as much school irit. It was the type of game that 3ves one speechless, or, as in a case, with a very sore ™3t. Prom the opening tip-off the final whistle, it was a bat- of champions. Every shot ■ned a decisive one, every re nd could be the turning point, '■fry foul was an almost certain ’*0 points, and as the minutes 2s.sed the pressure, which had let up_trom the start seemed “ mount higher. Midway the' last quarter of the the Bears decided to freeze ball in an attempt to break '““'s tight zone, and the game appeared at that time to be in the However, after about three “inutes of this, the Christians laving had time to cool down and Set organized again, the Elon toss- came out in a press and quick- tied the score. The lead swap- ' '1 hand a couple of times, and ® game ended in a 59-all tie. T^tie Christians came back strong work and coaching strategy that has ever been shown at this school. As for me, I can’t think that this championship could have happen ed to a greater team or a better coach. * * * The Elon Christian football squad will end its spring training season next Saturday by playing host to the Blue Hose of Presby terian College, and the Christians are hoping to throw of the losing blues of last .season. With the re turn of Bob Stauffenberg and Bob Kopko, the Christians should make their 1956 campaign a big one. ♦ * * Congratulations to Coach Doc Mathis on being chosen the Caro linas' outstanding basketball coach. The maroon-jerseyed Elon Christians lived up to the favor ite’s role, which had been given them by concensus vote of the Conference coaches in pre-tour ney balloting, and made an im pressive sweep through the thir teenth annual North State Con ference Tournament at Lexington to claim the loop championship for 1956. Despite the fact that they had finished fourth in the regular-sea- son play, the Christians were just too hot for all opposition in the tournament, which was played the final week in February. They bowled over Appalachian, East Carolina and Lenoir Rhyne in succession to cop the tournament crown. Breaking away for the hottest 1 Coming as a fitting climax to first-half in North State tourney) gjgj, College victory in the Umpire Session Called By Boyd the over-time and won by score. It was, beyond doubt, j pires’ gathering the Sffiatest exhibition o£ All men interested in umpiring baseball games for the Alamance County high school conference during the coming spring season are requested to meet in the Physical Education classroom at the Alumni Memorial Gymnasium at 1-o’clock Thursday afternoon of this week. Dr. Scott Boyd, head of the col lege’s Department of Physical Ed ucation, who made the announce ment of the umpires’ meeting, will have charge of the proposed um piring group as he has directed the basketball officials. He states a I that only those present at the um- will be consid- team' ered. The Elon Christians set a new to 10 in the seven years that North State Conference mark Coach Doc Mathis has directed «hen they placed three men on tiie Christian cage fortunes. High the first All-Tournament team at Point with 6 and Lenoir Rhyne the conclusion of the 1956 North with 5 such honor selections trail. Slate cage meet in Lexington. No Other schools and the number of other team had ever rated more representatives on the All-Touma- than two men on the all-star quin- ment in the seven year period in- tet. elude East Carolina and Atlantic The selection of Ben Kendall, Christian with 4, Western Caro- Dee Atkinson and Ed Juratic on lina with 3, Appalachian with 2 the All-Tourney team also swelled and Guilford with 1 honor post, the Elon total of all-star selections (Continued on Page Four) er Hobgood and catchers: Nick Thompson, short stop: Alton Myers, third base: and Bobby Green and Paul Watts, out fielders. Four of the group, Hob good, Thompson, Green and Myers were All-Counference performers last year. The Elon schedule, as listed to day by Coach Mathis, is as fol lows— March 26 — Williams, home. March 27 — William.s, home. March 29 — Wittenberg, home. April 3 — West Carolina, away. April 4 — West Carolina, away. April 6 — Lenoir Rhyne, away. April 9 — High Point, home. , April 10 — Guilford, away. April 12 — Lenoir Rhyne, home. April 14 — A.C.C., home. April 16 — High Point, away. April 18 — Guilford, home. April 20 — A.C.C., away. April 23 — Appalachian, home. April 26 — Catawba, away. April 28 — East Carolina, away. April 30 — Pfeiffer, home. May 3 — Appalachian, away. May 8 — Catawba, home. May 10 — East Carolina, home May 12 — Pfeiffer, away. this Mathis Chosen Year’s Best Coach history, the Christians romped over Appalachian 97 to 74 in the first round. They used an im pregnable zone defense to tram ple East Carolina 82 to 64 in the semi-finals, and then they mixed never-say die spirit with that same zone defense to turn back Lenoir Rhyne 71 to 67 in an over time final Ivattle. In winning the 1956 champion- _hip, the Chrisians broke out the hottest three-game shooting streak in Conference history—perhaps the hottest three-night shooting .show ever seen in all Tarheelia for the Christian squad dropped 89 field baskets in 172 attempts for a 51.7 floor-shooting percent age. Apps Go Down The Christians hit 35 points while missing only three shots in the first ten minutes and went on to swamp the Appalachian Moun taineers 97 to 74 in the tourna ment opener on Wednesday night, February 22nd. Quite definitely in the groove, the Elon outfit was leading by 22 points by intermis- sion. Appalachian had topped Elon by sixteen barely two weeks before, (Continued On Page Four) Carolinas NAIA basketball finals last Wednesday night. Coach Doc Mathis was named as "Basketball Coach of the Year” in the NAIA’s twenty-sixth district, which in cludes North and South Carolina. The selection of Coach Mathis by ballot of fourteen NAI.\ coach es in the two Carolinas came as fitting recognition to the Elon mentor, who has guided his Chris tian cagers to 25 wins and 6 loss es this season. His squad averaged 90.8 point per game for the en tire year, while holding all oppo nents to an average 77.2 points per game. The Elon mentor piloted his charges to three tournament crowns during the season and chance this week to bid for th€ national crown in the NAIA tour ney at Kansas City. The ChrisUans chalked their first tourney title in the Parris Island Invitation during Christmas holidays, added the North SUte Conference tour-f ney title at Lexington and then copped the Carolinas NAIA hon ors. Mathis, who is an alumnus and former three-sport athletic star at Davidson, has coached basketball (Continued on Page Four) Coach-Of-Year In Action wins and one year. Erskine Defeated Backboard control and deadly shooting in the late stages of the game proved the deciding factors as the Elon Christians trampled the Erskine Seceders by an 81-69 margin -in first-round play of the Carolinas NAIA competition. At the same time the Presby terian College cagers were turn ing back East Carolina 106 to 84 in a game played at Clinton, S. C., setting the stage for the Elon Christians to meet the Presbyter ians at Clinton in the District 26 finals on Wednesday night. With Ed Juratic sweeping both boards clean and with Earl Stone, Ray Whitley and Dee Atkinson joining Juratic on the firing line, the Christians pulled out a 15- point edge at 70-55 midway the second half and coasted down to the finish. The Seceders could sink only two field goals in the final ten minutes against the air tight Elon defense. There were four Elon marks men hitting for double digits dur ing the geme. Ed Juratic paced the winners with 23 points, with Ray Whitley hitting 17, Dee At kinson 16 and Frank DeRita 11 points. Darrell Storm with 26 and Eddie Rice with 24 were the only Seceders to hit double figures. The line-ups— Pos. Elon (81) Erskin (69) F—DeRita (11) Moore 4) K—Juratic (23) Karr (6) C—Atkinson (16) . Grammer (5) G_Whitley (17) Rice (24) G—Kend«ll (61 Storm (26) Half-time — Elon 39, Erskine 33. Elon subs — Stone 5, Crump 3, Citty. Rickover. Erskine subs — Harben 4, Gilliam, Jordan, Hilton, Rice. Presbyterian Victory In turning back the Presbyterian cagers 84 to 79 to clinch the Caro lina’s NAIA title and their berth in the national tournament, the Elon outfit smashed a 10-game win streak for the Blue Stockings, who numbered the high-scoring Furman Paladins among their vic tims. The Christians pulled out a scant 40-39 edge over Presbyter ian at half-time after a nip-and- ’ tuck opisning period,, and they came back to build a 9-point mar gin early in the second half. The I Blup Hose pulled up within one point twice after that, but Elon j held the lead tm the end. It was Dee Atkinson, Elon's .iunior center, who topped tha Christian attack with 16 points, (Contlnuea on Page Four)
Elon University Student Newspaper
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March 14, 1956, edition 1
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