P«c6 rr., r. August 28, im
— The Banner Augt,
Sports
'^HOTS
Dallas
will win it
all^ again
Kyle S. Phipps
Sports Editor^
The Vince Lombardi trophy has
spent the last nine months in Green
Bay, but don’t expect it to stay
around much longer. Once again,
the Cowboys will be the best team
in the world.
Most experts around the country
are expecting Green Bay to repeat.
Some people are even expecting the
Pack to have the first undefeated
season since the 1972 Miami Dol
phins. Sorry kiddies, but Dallas is
going to return to the top of the
National Football League.
The Cowboys are stacked on the
offensive side of the ball, and the
defense and special teams are going
to be good enough to get them by.
The Dallas team is focused and
they should realize that they missed
out on another world champion
ship last year. Without scandal or
injury, there’s no stopping ‘the Boys’
this time around.
Emmitt Smith, the Cowboys’ su
perstar running back, is back to his
old form following off-season sur
gery. Smith was never able to get on
track last year, and he still ran for
over 1,200 yards. Coupled with all-
pro fullback Darryl “Moose”
Johnston and the biggest offfensive
line in football, the Cowboys run
ning game will be saf«*and secure.
Troy Aikman is still at the top of
his game. Last year, Aikman had
the worst year of his career since his
rookie year , but he had been
stripped ofhis favorite targets in Jay
Novecekand Michael Irvin for most
of last season. Aikman is a smart
and savvy quarterback who won’t
throw many interceptions.
Irvin will be around all season,
barring injury, and he is still one of
the top five receivers in the league.
To add depth to ‘the Boys’ receiv
ing corps, Jerry Jones picked up
former Bronco Anthony Miller in
the off-season. Miller will provide
the deep threat that Dallas has been
without since Alvin Harper left af
ter the ‘93 season.
Who are the other contenders
going to be? Green Bay will almost
surely have another outstanding
season, but will not be able to beat
Dallas in the NFC Championship
game. Quarterback Bret Favre will
lead his team once again, but with
out Edgar Bennett in the backfield,
the Pack will be a one-dimensional
team. I don’t expect Dorsey Levens
to be able to carry a Bennett-size
load.
It’s unclear if wide receiver Robert
Brooks is going to be able to return
from his mid-season injury last year
at 100 percent, and Antonio Free
man has a bad habit of dropping
the ball once he makes a reception.
Hopes are high for the Carolina
Panthers, but I don’t expect them
to even make the playoffs this year.
The Panthers released last season’s
NFL sack leader, Kevin Greene,
and the defense looks to be in real
trouble. They’re old, and won’t be
able to stay healthy all season the
way they did last year. Kerry Collins
and Tshimanga Biakabutka aren’t
ready yet to carry the load for an
entire NFL season
As for the AFC. Well, it’s the
AFC and they haven’t won a Super
Bowl since the Reagan administra
tion, and that’s not going to change
this year. Denver will probably be
the sacrificial lamb for the NFC,
but Pittsburgh or New England
could be there. Not that it really
matters.
UNCA hires new basketball coach
By Chris Garner
staff Writer
After much emotional stress within
last year’s women’s basketball pro
gram, UNCA Athletic Director
Tom Hunnicutt announced the
hiring ofDePaul University Assis
tant Coach Kathleen Weber on June
25.
Weber was an assistant coach at
DePaul, and was selected by the
Athletic Department after former
Head Coach Ray Ingram was re
leased from his contract on April
30.
“I love the school, and I love the
area,” said Weber. “The schools
that I’ve worked with in the past
have been private schools, and
within the private setting, there is
more of a common goal, not only in
the athletics, but within the school.
When I interviewed at UNCA, I
got the same kind of feel from a
public setting. The people were very
close and very friendly.”
Upon her arrival at UNCA, We
ber was greeted with a substantial
increase in the recruiting and schol
arship budgets within the women’s
basketball program.
The recruiting budget increased
from $6,400 in the 1996-97 season
to $8,000 this season. The scholar
ship budget rose from $116,000 to
$143,400 since last year.
“Her recruiting budget has been
increased and we have also pro
vided Coach Weber with a car, and
we’re getting another car for one of
her staff members,” said Hunnicutt.
“Overall, we’ve done quite a lot.
We want to bring (the budget) up
to somewhere in the range of our
men’s recruiting budget,”
Hunnicutt said.
“We’re trying to make all of our
programs comparable,” said
Hunnicutt.
"Weber seems to look at the budget
increase as a great opportunity for
the Lady Bulldog basketball pro
gram.
“I definitely plan on bringing in
the best talent that we can get. Our
first priority is that we would like to
stay local. Bringing in local talent
helps bring more fans to the game
than it would by bringing in kids
from out of state. But if we have to
go out of state to get the best talent,
then we will,” Weber said.
Weber was an assistant coach at
DePaul for five seasons. While there,
the Blue Demon program won 106
games , two conference champion
ships, and made three appearances
in the NCAA tournament. She
assisted in on-court coaching, pre-
season and post-season workouts,
scouting, marketing, and recruit
ing.
Before her time at DePaul, Weber
spent one season at Notre Dame
where she assisted the Fighting Irish
to a 23-9 record as well as a berth in
the Women's National Invitational
Tournament.
“Kathleen has been an integral
part of the success enjoyed by the
DePaul women’s basketball pro
gram,” said Doug Bruno, DePaul
University Women’s Head Basket
ball Coach.
“Kathleen is totally ready to be
come a head coach. Five years from
now, Kathleen will be one of the
bigger names in women’s coach
ing,” said Bruno.
Weber, a Chicago native, attended
Marillac High School in Glenview,
Illinois. As a senior she was an All-
American and Catholic League se
lection.
She was also a three-time All-Di
vision selection and two-time All-
Conference player.
After graduation, Weber attended
C.W. Post/Long Island University
in Brookville, New York, where she
played from 1984 to 1988. She is
the university’s third all-time lead
ing scorer with 1,296 points and
the all-time leader in assists (503)
and steals (408). As a senior, she
was named East Coast Athletic Con
ference Player of the Year, confer
ence tournament MVP, and led ail
NCAA Division II players in free
throw percentage.
As far as the outlook on the 1997-
98 basketball season, Weber is noth
ing but optimistic.
“The team has been working hard
on their own,” said Weber. “They
have been getting themselves in
shape, and they’re really enthusias
tic about it,”.
“We have a lot of veteran players
coming back. Everybody is very
optimistic about the relationships
of the people involved, which I
think is essential in having a suc
cessful season,” Weber said.
The Lady Bulldogs are coming off
a 14-13 record from last season,
and Weber feels that the upcoming
season brings room for improve
ment.
“We would like to be at the top of
the Big South Conference,” said
Weber. “There are 33 conferences
in Division I basketball, and every
one of them has a bid to the NCAA
tournament. Obviously we would
like to be at the top. We would like
to win the Big South Conference.”
Weber has had a hectic summer
after her appointment as head coach,
but has still managed to squeeze in
time for the Lady Bulldogs in an
effort to start and maintain a per
sonal relationship with the team.
“It’s just been a crazy summer,”
said Weber. “I’ve been recruiting
by myself, and there just hasn’t
been a lot of time to look at game
film, but the girls have been work
ing real hard.”
“ We just had a dinner last night at
my apartment with the team and
the staff. But with them coming
back to school, we’re allowed to
have individual skill workouts now
PHOTO BY ROB HAMMONDS
UNCA Women’s Head Basketball Coach Kathleen Weber.
Weber comes to UNCA from DePaul University. While at
DePaul, the Lady Blue Demons won two conference cham
pionships.
and we’re allowed to start working
out with them,” Weber said.
According to former colleagues,
Weber will eventually prove to be a
tremendous asset to the UNCA
Athletic Department.
“Kathleen Weber is one of the
bright young coaches in women’s
basketball,” said Jeni Lenti
Ponsetto, DePaul University senior
associate athletic director and chair
of the NCAA Women’s Basketball
Tournament Committee.
“I am very excited that she is going
to have this opportunity to prove
her capabilities as a head coach. 1
think she will be an excellent addi
tion to the staff at UNC-Asheville.
It will be a matter of time before
Kathleen has that program chal
lenging for the Big South Confer
ence title,” Ponsetto said.
Volleyball team looks to senior leaders
By Robert Payne
staff Writer
PHOTO BY ROB HAMMONDS
The women’s volleyball team is expecting big things and
big hits out of middle hitter Jenni Reynolds. The Lady
Bulldogs will be in Winston-Salem for a tournament this
weekend.
The 1997 Lady Bulldog volleyball
team is coming off a strong pre
season and looking to improve on
last year’s 21-16 record. With six
new players joining the team, the
Lady Bulldogs will have some ad
justments to make for the upcom
ing season.
“It’s the most positive group of
girls that I’ve worked with since
I’ve been coaching,” said Julie
Torbett, Head Coach of the Lady
Bulldogs. They’re very positive, very
hard working, and they really want
to be successful. It’s been a really
good preseason.”
The Lady Bulldogs are coming off
a third place finish in the final stand
ings of the Big South Conference.
Coastal Carolina took top honors,
with University of Maryland-Balti-
more County finishing second. Last
year the Big South Conference was
ranked 19th out of 30 Division I
volleyball conferences.
“It’s a strong conference and we
have several teams that are always
real good. UMBC is always strong
and Coastal Carolina should be
equally as strong as they were last
year,” said Coach Torbett.
“I hope we have a really good
learning season. I hate to call it a
rebuilding year, because every year
is a rebuilding year. It’s definitely a
younger, inexperienced team,” said
Coach Torbett.
Three seniors, Jenni Reynolds,
Sabrina Harrison, and Lorelee
Smith, return this year as starters to
help lead the Lady Bulldogs. UNCA
will be relying on their experience
and leadership to have a successful
season this year.
“With losing Kim Osborne last
year, that is a big loss for us,” said
Coach Torbett. “I’m hoping Cally
Geiger will step in and fill that role
offensively.”
Geiger, a returning starter, has the
potential to be a key player at the
midhitter position. Geiger, at 6’2”,
can be a very strong presence at the
net for UNCA.
Lorelee Smith, a returning senior,
has been named First Team All-
Conference for the past two years.
She also led the. conference in as
sists those two years.
“We have .the best setter in the
conference and in the southeast.
She’s just phenomenal. The setter
is the quarterback of the team, ev
erything revolves around her. She
touches the ball on every single
play,” said Coach Torbett.
Other players expected to make
key contributions to the team this
year are sophomores Jennifer Baker,
Kelly Danielson, Beth Brown, and
Chandra Hicks.
The Lady B ulldogs have their work
cut out in order to fill the missing
holes left by last year’s seniors. Six
new freshmen join the Lady Bull
dogs this season to help fill in those
holes.
“The freshmen have all been do
ing very well. I would be delighted
if one of them worked into a start
ing position,” said Coach Torbett.
“At this point we are going to rely
on our juniors, seniors, and sopho
mores to carry us and the freshmen
to fill in depth players before they
are asked to be impact players.”
“This is a whole new level because
the game is a lot quicker and reac
tion time is a lot less,” said Khristine
Ambrose, an incoming freshmen to
the team.
“The girls hit harder and the serves
are harder and tougher to pass as
well. The coaching staff here is very
helpful and knowledgeable about
the game. We all push each other to
improve and we have set many goals
which we are striving to reach as
one,” said Ambrose.
This season, the Lady Bulldogs;
have a new addition to their coach
ing staff CourtneyTucker, astarter
from last year’s team, will join Keith
Murrless as an assistant coach for
the Lady Bulldogs.
She will have to adapt to the new
position off the court, but she brings
knowledge and experience to the
team.
“I miss playing a lot and standing
on the sidelines is very hard, but 1'
love to coach,” said Tucker. “I love
being on the other side and helping'
the new people that are here and do j
whatever I can for those that have;
been here.”
The Lady Bulldogs begin theit(
regular season this Friday as theyfj
take on the Catamounts from West
ern Carolina at the Wake Forest
Invitational Tournament in Win-i
ston-Salem.
The Lady Bulldogs will also facej;
Appalachian State and Wake For
est at the weekend tournament on i
Saturday afternoon.
The first home game for the Lady
Bulldogs will be on September 9
against High Point. ,
The Lady Bulldogs will be hosting
the Blocksport Bulldog Challenge
on Sept. 19 and 20. UNCA will
face Providence, Samford, and
Belmont in the tournament.
The Big South Conference Cham
pionships will also be held this year
at UNCA’s Justice Center on No-|
vember 13-15. This will be the first
time that UNCA has hosted the
tournament in five years.
-i