March 2,1995
Sports
Men's tennis drops its record
Bob Grimmie
Slajf Reporter
The men’s tennis team record
dipped to 1-2 when USC
Spartanburg defeated the Fightin’
Christians, 6-1, Sunday at the
Jimmy Powell Tennis Center.
Elen’s one point was provided
by number one singles player
Danny Colangelo. Colangelo re
mained undefeated on the season
withhis6-3,6-4 victory over use’s
Kasper Nielsen.
"Danny Colangelo had a good
win at number one singles, but
Spartanburg was much stronger at
the number four, five and six singles
positions than we are,” said Eton
head coach Tom Parham.
The doubles team of
Colangelo and Justin Clark out
dueled their opponents for an 8-6
win.
However, USC Spartanburg
won the other two matches to pick
up the one point awarded for
doubles play.
The men will return to the
courts on Friday at East Carolina
■^4' ¥ fj,
' ■ , , ,
Elon tackles rugby
University at 2:30 p.m.
Brian Corrado/The Pendulum
Danny Colangelo extends to knock the ball over the net against
Spartanburg.
Burnett off to National All-Stars
-- play safety in two and a half weeks
Steve Lucatuorto
Staff Reporter
One of Elon’s football players
has been invited by the National
All-Star Associauon to attend a two-
day event with a professional com
bine and a football game on March
10 and 11.
Robert Burnett, a 5-foot-ll-
inch, 195-pound comerback will
travel to Orlando, Fla., for the
event.
While he's there, Burnett and
several other players will be tested
in the 40-yard dash, 20-yard shuttle
ran, a verticle jump test and a 225-
pound bench press for reps.
Pro scouts from nine profes
sional football leagues will be
present, including the National
[Football League, Canadian Foot
ball League, Arena Football
League, World Football League and
the European Football League.
Burnett has played football
since he was five years old. He
] began in pee-wee league with his
j older brother and has been playing
i
ever since.
“My idol was always Walter
1 Payton. I tried to play like him and
every year I would pick number 34
I ID wear on my uniform, Burnett
tuid.
Burnett admits that his favor
ite pan about playing defense is not
Courtesy of Sports Information
Robert Burnett
only the physical challenge'but the
mental challenge as well.
"I love playing defense," he
said. "You have no idea what the
offense is going to run until the ball
is snapped. Defense is based all on
reaction.”
Many wondered why Burnett s
statistics declined slightly during
the 1994 season and the answer is
simple.
Burnett played comerback all
through high school and his first
three years in college. When he
was asked to move to free-safety
last season, he embarked on the
biggest challenge of his career
"I was used to playing corner
and this was totally different,”
Burnett said. “1 also didn t have a
lot of time to prepare because of
baseball, and basically learned to
Bud Hoopes
Staff Reporter
of training camp.”
Burnett said he wasn't nervous
about competing in Orlando.
"No, I’m not at all (nervous)
I’ll be playing corner, the position
I feel most natural and comfortable
with.”
Elon football coach Leon Hart
didn’t seem suprised at all that
Burnett was getting a shot at the
pro’s.
“He’s a great player who works
hard and takes a lot of pride in his
work ethic,” Hart said “He’s a
gifted athlete who started with raw
athletic skills and has taken them
and developed them to perfection ”
Considering Elon is a small
school. Burnett never expected to
receive the opportunity that he has
been granted.
“No, I never thought I would
be in this position. It always seemed
like even when 1 gave my best,
someone or something was hold
ing me back, not myself, but maybe
by the people who vote or the lack
of exposure by the media,” Burnett
said.
He feels that all the adversity
he has endured is now behind him
and the best thing for him to do is to
take advantage this situation.
"It makes no difference, just
getting there and playing at the
next level would be a dream come
true," Burnett said.
In only its third year of ex
istence, the Elon Rugby Club is
on its way to increasing popular-
ity.
Elon senior Martin Hill of
Raleigh said he got interested in
rugby this year through a friend,
who plays at Eastern Carolina
University.
When Hill, team captain,
saw fliers around school he
thought he’d give it a try.
Elon's club is comprised of
about 20 students from all around
the world, including Ireland and
Bermuda.
"There are about three or
four players who have played
rugby before and they teach us
the basics." Hill said.
Hill said he hopes the club
will expand to play other schools
1 in the area that have more devel-
i oped programs like Chapel Hill,
i Appalachian State and Guilford
College, but that is still in the
process of being organired.
Rugby, a physical combi
nation of football and soccer, in
cludes two 4()-minute halfs with
running time and fifteen players
from each side on the field at
once. Rugby is played on a field
that is slightly bigger than a foot
ball field.
“A lot of people think that
all you do in rugby is go out and
hit people all the time, but rugby
professionals consider rugby a
gentleman's spon," Hill said.
"At the end of the match the
opposing teams throw a party for
each other so that both clubs can
get together and discuss the re
sults. Players leave the agression
on the field.”
However. Hill isn't sure
what the club's future plans are.
"I definitely think that the
more people come out the better
the clubs' chances are for suc
cess." he said "Maybe, if we
continue to get a good turnout,
we can even expand to more than
one team."
Anyone interested in writing sports
stories please contact
April Perkins at
The Pendulum Ext. 6755
This Week
March 2
March 3
March 3-
March 4
March 4-
March 5
March 6
March 6
March 7
March 8
March 9-
Softball vs. Limestone College (away) 2:30 p m
Women's Tennis vs Barton College (away) 2:30 p m.
Men's Tennis vs. East Carolina University (away)
2:30 p m.
Men s and Women s Basketball Food Lion SAC
Tournament at Wingate
Men's Tennis vs Barton College (away) 1 p m.
Baseball vs. Carson-Newman College (HOME) noon
Golf Challenge of The Carolinas.Lockwood Folly Golf
Links, Holden Beach, N.C.
Softball Catawba Kickoff Tournament (away)
Baseball vs Carson-Newman College (HOME) noon
Baseball vs. Carson-Newman College (HOME) 2 p m
Women's Tennis vs Francis Marion College (HOME)
1 p.m
Men's Tennis vs West Virginia University. (HO.ME)
1 p.m.
Softball vs Bethel College (HOME) 2:30 p.m.
Golf Greensboro Invitational. Greensboro, N.C.
Men's Tennis vs Ferns State (HOME) 2 p m
Softball vs Barton College (away) 2:30 p.m
12 Baseball vs High Point University (away) 3 p m
Men's and Women's Tennis Tournament in Savannah. Ga
1-7
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