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Show The Thunderbird Monday, October Jl, 1983 Page 9 'Birds defeat Mesa, fall to Western State SUSC right to host RMAC championship tournament in Cedar City Wednesday Victory gives ) Facing a must win situation, the Southern Utah State College Thunderbirds swept three games from the Mesa Mavericks Saturday to earn the right to host the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference championship. The championship match, scheduled for 7 p.m. Wednesday in War Memorial Fieldhouse, will pit the RMACs Western Division winners, SUSC, against Eastern Division champions New Mexico Highlands. SUSC was humbled by the lowly Western State Mountaineers Friday evening in a match that went the full five .v- J j sy, UL The loss gave the Thunderbirds, previously unbeaten in RMAC play, and Mesa identical 1 records. If SUSC had lost the match to Mesa, Mesa would have represented the Western Division of the RMAC in the 6-- playoffs. responded well to the challenge, sweeping the match in three games. SUSC took an early lead in the opening game, and never let play up. Hustle and heads-uwere the keys for the Lady Birds, as good defense and p . 15-1- 2 0 all-o- games. The Thunderbirds ran off consecutive point: Jana Crawford sparked SUSC at the net, as she came up with several spikes that brought the roaring partisan crowd to its feet. The Thunderbirds regained the lead and put a victory to bed moments later. The Mavericks made SUSC earn the victory in the final game. Mesa jumped out to a lead and kept the pressure on at the net. Struggling fiercely for every point, the two clubs waged an war at the net. Diving for errant passes characterized the play of both teams, and the score stayed reasonably close in the opening moments of the game. Mesa appeared determined to get its licks in, and built a lead. Following some Peterson words, however, SUSC sternly stormed back, and gained the momentum with the help of the boisterous home fans. After the Lady Birds crept back to within two points, SUSCs Burrows took matters into her own hands. The junior setter from Florence, Ariz., went to the serving stripe and knocked in four consecutive points, two of them service 4 win aces, to give SUSC a and the Western Division title. 1 1 by Paul Husselbee 14-- 8 n SUSC hitter Paula B urgoyne (left) spikes the ball over the net while Sherry Hardy (center) and an unidentified teammate defend for Western State. The Mountaineers defeated SUSC in a five game match Friday. blocking made the difference. Aided by the sharp sets of Sherry Burrows and Anita Green, the Thunderbirds mercilessly attacked the net. Paula Burgoyne, Lisa Ballantyne and Lisa Stolk used their height and jumping ability to beat the Mavericks to the punch, and SUSC easily won the first game, 15-- Mesa came back fast in the second game. The Mavericks fired themselves up and then took out their anger on SUSC. The Lady Birds, for their own part, could not seem to do anything right, and appeared somewhat lackadaisical. Mesa took advantage of the lull in attitudes and ran up a lead. 9-- 0 Mountaineers halt Thunderbird gridders At After three quarters of lifeless play, the Southern Utah State College Thunderbirds caught fire and played their own brand of football before bowing out to the Western State Mountaineers, at Gunnison, Colo. Saturday. The fourth period appearance of reserve quarterback Kirk Hafen and heads-u- p playcalling from the sidelines rejuvenated the Thunderbirds. The clock, however, was a heavy factor, and the game ended before SUSC could generate the points necessary to win. Thrust back by a parade of first quarter offense was often stifled penalties, the before it got started. SUSC generated just four first downs in the first half and was forced to punt seven times. The Western State squad, however, had problems of its own. Though the Mounties gained more than 200 yards in total offense in the first half, the stingy Thunderbird defense allowed only a touchdown while recovering two fumbles and intercepting a pass. When Mountie quarterback Andy Lowry scored run late in the third quarter, Western on a took a 14-- 0 lead. 21-1- this point, SUSC Coach Don Conrad turned to Hafen, a senior who started earlier in the season but was benched two weeks ago in favor of Jeff Hookano. Hafen responded to the call, completing eight of 10 passes for 135 yards and a touchdown in the fourth quarter. SUSC scored early in the final stanza when Hafen lofted a scoring toss to Rob Edwards. Minutes later, the regained the ball, and Hafen drove his charges down to the line. Faced with a situation, Coach Larry Wilson inserted Hookano back into the game. Hookano lined up behind Hafen in the and- received a pitchout. Rolling to his right, Hookano pulled up short and fired a touchdown strike to Orin Allen. The extra point kick failed and SUSC trailed The Mounties roared back on the first play of their next series. Sam Seale raced 75 ya.ds to a touchdown, making the score The Thunderbirds threatened with four minutes remaining in the game, but a fumble on the goal line halted SUSCs hopes of pulling out a victory. third-aid-1- 0 14-1- 21-1- At this point, SUSC Coach Joy Peterson called for a timeout and made adjustments in the game plan that included a lecture on concentration. Suddenly, the Thunderbirds could do no wrong. As if by magic, a wave of intensity hit the home squad. Ballantyne came up with six straight service points as the 16-1- Gymnasts prepare for good year by Craig Loe The SUSC Thunderbird gymnastics team will tune up for its first meet of the season, a dual competition against Cal State Northridge on Dec. 2, by holding an intrasquad meet Nov. 19 at War Memorial Fieldhouse. If everyone stays healthy, we should do very well in conference competition, said Thunderbird Coach Kathryn Berg. Every gymnast competes with injuries, whether it be blisters, shin splints, pulled muscles, or brused hip bones. What we have to avoid are the major injuries, if we hope to stand up in conference play. Two returning letter winner, seniors Janet Jorgensen and Brenda Shaw, shore up the SUSC squad. Jorgensen won the competition in last years Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference championship meet, and Berg said she is expected to do well again this year. Shaw won the bar competition and took fifth in the competition. The team will look to these two seniors for leadership, Berg said. Two juniors, a sophomore and four freshmen round out the squad. We have some outstanding freshmen that will help the team, Berg said. The new additions to the Thunderbird squad are expected to do exceptionally well, she said. Only two of the the meets will be held in squad's Cedar City, Berg said. The Thunderbirds will host the RMAC championships on Feb. 25, she said. 1 1 |