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Justin St. Germain
Sports Editor
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Arizona Daily Wildcat
Wednesday May 1, 2002
With the semester drawing to a close ÷ this is the Wildcatās next-to-last issue ÷
Surprisingly, my memorable moment of the year didnāt happen in McKale or at Arizona Stadium. It wasnāt when the unranked basketball team beat two of the top five teams in the nation to open the season, or when Jennie Finch broke the NCAA consecutive wins record at home in Hillenbrand.
The most memorable moment of my sports year was when, during the rugby teamās Dominoās Invitational, a San Diego State player went down in a pile. I heard a snap, then an unintelligible yell. An SDSU assistant coach rushed out, and a throng of teammates carried the player off the field with a broken leg. The crazy thing was, none of the players or coaches seemed to be rattled in the least. It was just another injury in an oft-bloody sport.
What I realized then, and what I saw throughout my time as a club sports writer, was that the broken leg was also a reflection of the kinds of sacrifices club sports athletes make all the time. If a basketball player went down with a broken leg, it would be the top sports story. But this Aztecās snapped bone garnered only a passing mention.
None of the players or coaches were surprised because club sports athletes are used to seeing injuries treated as trivialities: just like theyāre used to the idea of having to pay to participate, just like theyāre used to playing with negligible fan support or recognition.
Maybe the menās volleyball team wonāt ever get to play in McKale, and maybe the rugby team wonāt fill up Arizona Stadium anytime soon. All I know is, Iāll never again say that club sports arenāt ćrealä sports.
Justin St.Germain is a senior majoring in English and creative writing who is not graduating and will not be any time in the near future. He can be reached at sports@wildcat.arizona.edu.
On Sept. 11, sports editor Connor Doyle and I were deciding on the best way to cover the UA sports reaction to the attacks. We knew former Wildcat Michael Wright lived in New York, and he was our first concern. Luckily, a quick phone call to assistant coach Josh Pastner eased our worrying, and we found out he was fine.
We then went to football practice and hung out in front of McKale Center for a couple of hours looking to talk to or console anybody we could find.
Athletes are put into the tough situation that they need to become experts about some things they know little about. However, every student athlete or coach we talked to on this day answered our questions with style and grace that made me see each of them on a different level.
Some of the better answers we received that night were from the football team, especially from head coach John Mackovic and from the teamās starting quarterback, Jason Johnson.
ćCollege athletics, especially, is about more than winning and losing,ä said Mackovic just hours after the attacks. ćI took the time today to discuss these things with (my players) and I think it was important to do. There are brothers and sisters that we donāt even know, and we hurt for them.ä
ćIt almost makes you feel like football is inconsequential,ä Johnson followed that day. ćI prayed a lot today for those people, and Iām really sad.ä
The football team did hold practice on Sept. 11, and the Arizona Daily Wildcat put out a newspaper. At least two things were normal on one of the more abnormal days.
Maxx Wolfson is a junior majoring in journalism and is the future Wildcat sports editor. He can be reached at sports@wildcat.arizona.edu
The score was 9-12 in the fifth and deciding game with a Final Four appearance on the line, and the UA womenās volleyball team was facing elimination at the hands of Pacific 10 Conference rival Southern California.
Playing in front of the hostile fans on USCās home court in Los Angeles, the odds were against the Wildcats.
With the Trojan band and fans taunting each Arizona player, the Wildcats didnāt back down.
The look in the eyes of seniors All-American Dana Burkholder and Jill Talbot was the look of fierce competitors ready to lead the to team to victory, and that is exactly what occurred.
Burkholder set Talbot for two kills, and junior Shannon Torregrosa finished the match with a strong kill right down the middle of the Trojan defense, and then the celebration began.
The crowd once filled with cheers for its beloved Trojans went silent, and the joy in the UA girlsā faces was priceless.
Each member of the Wildcats realized she was headed for San Diego to participate in the schoolās first-ever Final Four.
Many fans experienced the basketball teamās home victory against UCLA, which saw Arizona come back from a halftime deficit of more than 20 points.
That was a great comeback, but UAās comeback on the road with the Final Four on the line may go down as one of the biggest comebacks in Arizona sports history.
Brian Penso is an accounting junior. He can be reached at sports@wildcat.arizona.edu.
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David Stevenson
staff writer
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My most memorable moment was a crushing 5-4 Arizona loss to No. 2 Stanford that took almost 5 1/2 hours and 18 innings on April 15, but had an electric atmosphere.
UA traded shots all night with the nationās perennial powerhouse as Stanford tied the score at two in the sixth inning.
The teams held each other scoreless until Cardinal third baseman Andy Topham led off the 12th with a homer to left. He finished the night 5-for-8 and was a double shy of hitting for the cycle.
Arizona answered in the bottom of the inning on a fielderās choice.
Stanford pushed across another run in the 15th on a bases-loaded fielderās choice.
Again UA came back in the bottom of the inning when second baseman Moises Duran, who was running all the way from second, scored on a Texas leaguer into shallow right field by right fielder Justyn St. Clair.
But Stanfordās Carter scored in the 18th on a passed ball with two outs in the inning. Catcher Chris Cunningham caught the entire game.
Kaiser singled with two outs in the 18th. First baseman Pat Reilly grounded up the middle to shortstop Tobin Swope, flipped high to second in shallow right, and ambiguously beat a sliding Kaiser to the bag on a bang-bang play.
Kaiser protested the call, and head coach Andy Lopez ran to his assistance as Stanford quickly congratulated and exited the field.
Reilly set a NCAA record with 29 put outs. He told me later in the week ćit was cool.ä
After the game, I couldnāt pull any quotes because the UA dugout was a graveyard. Stanford blew out Arizona 19-1 the next day.
David Stevenson is a journalism major and a washed-up high school athlete. He can be reached at sports@wildcat.arizona.edu.
My favorite moment was also one of my most hated moments, but it is one of those things when you are the menās basketball beat writer.
When I was a freshman, my older friends kept telling me how cool it is to rush the court at McKale and how their experience at the UA would be complete because they had. I told them that maybe I would rush the court while I was here.
I was told it only happens during very special occasions.
A special occasion came along at the expense of Stanford that year, and I found myself waiting in a mob of students waiting for the final seconds to tick off the clock. The next thing I knew, I was at center court being grabbed, hit and pushed by red-shirt-bearing fans.
This season, after advocating students to stand and be as loud as possible during the games, I was forced to sit and watch.
With this preamble in mind, here is my favorite sport moment:
Down big to UCLA at the half, I walked up to see my brother was in the stands visiting from Washington, D.C. He shook his head and said, ćI thought this was your house.ä I shook my head and said I didnāt know what was going on.
ćDonāt worry bro, I know how it feels to be down like this at home. Twenty minutes is a long time.ä
With 10 minutes and change on the clock, UA was still down 20. Then 15, then 5, then it was tied, and finally Arizona led.
As the students again gathered at courtside, I sat in my seat to watch while other journalists headed for the locker room.
I sat and watched the court come alive with people, and smiled. Then as I was about to pack up my pad and pen, I was attacked by one of my best friends, who reached across the bench and whaled on me while screaming.
The game, the court rushing and my near-death experience. College basketball at its best.
Jeff Lund is a journalism junior. He can be reached at sports@wildcat.arizona.edu.
The Feb. 28 menās basketball game against Stanford was a particularly exhilarating time for me. Even though we lost 76-71, our boys wouldnāt give up. They pressed on, not losing hope. I could see their frustrations spelled out upon their faces, the hurt dripping off their chins and splashing onto the floor.
It has always been a dream of mine to photograph college sporting events. There is just something about being so close to the action. A photographer gets to be on the sidelines, dodging flyaway balls, hearing cuss words said out of anger, feeling the pain a defensemen must feel when his opponentās helmet hits him. Photographers are protected by a camera ÷ intensely watching the action but never quite involved in it.
In this particular basketball game, I truly appreciated being a Wildcat. While the other team dramatized their increasing point lead by shouting insulting comments at our boys, players such as Luke Walton and Jason Gardner showed class and held their tongues.
While the other team tried to rub in the 3-point shot just made, our boys held their heads high and kept their cool. Much as a photographer sees it all, we also hear it all and itās usually not pretty. I am proud of our players for acting professional and keeping it real.
Amy Winkler is a graduating senior majoring in liberal arts and can be reached at photo@wildcat.arizona.edu.
