July 31 - Griffin Victorious in Hendrick Sectionals

July 31 - Topless Dancers Want Same Plea Bargain: Attorneys for two topless dancers indicted on drug charges with Dallas Cowboys receiver Michael Irvin say their clients would accept a plea agreement similar to one reached by their famous co-defendant.
.....Angela Beck, 22, and Jasmine Nabwangu, 21, appeared in court on Tuesday with their attorneys, but left without reaching an agreement with prosecutors.
....Kristin Ciccarelli, Nabwangu's attorney, said plea discussions have been discontinued until at least Monday, when Beck and Nabwangu are to appear at the trial of a former policeman accused of plotting to have Irvin killed.
.....Irvin also has been subpoenaed to testify at the trial of Johnnie Hernandez.
....Hernandez was charged with criminal solicitation of capital murder after authorities said he paid a purported hitman nearly $3,000 to have Irvin murdered, reportedly in retaliation for threatening Hernandez' girlfriend.
.....Irvin pleaded no contest July 15 to felony cocaine possession and was sentenced to four years' deferred adjudication, a form of probation. He also was fined $10,000 and ordered to perform 800 hours of community service.

July 31 - George Expected Back in Camp: The Houston Oilers expected rookie running back Eddie George back at training camp by Wednesday after he missed two days of practice at Trinity University.
....George, the 1995 Heisman Trophy winner from Ohio State, was excused from training camp Sunday night to tend to an undisclosed family matter.

July 31 - Stars Sign Kennedy: The Dallas Stars have signed forward Mike Kennedy to a one-year contract for the 1996-97 season, the team's general manager announced Tuesday.

....No further terms were available, manager Bob Gainey said.
....Kennedy, 24, played in 61 games with Dallas in 1995-96, scoring nine goals and 17 assists for 26 points with 48 penalty minutes.

July 31 - Report: Cal-Fullerton coach heads UT list: Cal State-Fullerton baseball coach Augie Garrido leads a short list of candidates to replace Cliff Gustafson at the University of Texas, The Daily Texan reports.

....A Los Angeles television station reported Monday night that Garrido had told Cal-State Fullerton officials that if Texas offers him the job he would take it.
....Garrido, 58, has coached at Cal State-Fullerton for 21 years, winning three national championships, including one in 1995. He is third winningest active coach in college baseball.
....A search committee was established after Gustafson's retirement, and a nationwide hunt for the new coach has produced speculation that Florida's Andy Lopez would be a front-runner.

July 31 - Waldmann Hired at Arlington: Matt Waldmann, a 1983 graduate of Abilene High, has been hired as the head baseballl coach at Arlington High School.....Waldmann, 31, will be start his third year at Arlington High where he had served as the junior varsity coach. While a student at Abilene High, Waldmann was a two-sport varsity player for the Eagles, making all-district as a punter and center.

July 30 - PDogs Lose in 9th Inning: The winning run scored on a throwing error in the ninth inning as the Abilene Prairie Dogs fell to the Alexandria Aces, 6-5 Monday night at Bringhurst Field.

....The loss dropped Abilene to 10-7 in the second half of play in the Texas-Louisiana League standings, into a tie for first with Lubbock. It was only the fourth loss in 15 one-run games this season for the Prairie Dogs, who won the first-half title.
....Alexandria, which improved to 7-10 in the second half, will host Abilene tonight and again Wednesday night before the Prairie Dogs return home Thursday.
.....The Prairie Dogs led 1-0 in the first inning when Rod Brewer singled to drive in Eric Gonzalez, who had singled and stole second.

July 30 - Wellhausen Wins Qualifying Tournament: Abilene's Chad Wellhausen won the U.S. Amateur qualifying golf tournament Monday at Thornhill Country Club.
....The win advances Wellhausen to the US Amateur tournament, Aug. 17-25 at Pumpkin Ridge Country Club in Portland, Ore. The top five finishers qualified.
....Wellhausen shot a 141 for the 36 holes, recording rounds of 71 and 70 to win by four strokes on the par 72 course.

July 30 (early) - Chandler Says It's His Job: Even though Steve McNair guided the Houston Oilers to victories in the final two games of the 1995 season, Coach Jeff Fisher returned the starting quarterback job to journeyman Chris Chandler this summer. And Chandler plans to keep it for a long time - or have a short career in Houston.
...."It's my job until I'm no longer on this team," he said. "As long as I'm with this team, he (McNair) is waiting to play."

July 30 (early) - George's Contract Complicated: Heisman Trophy winner Eddie George received a five-year contract from the Oilers with a complicated escalator clause in the fifth season.
....If he plays 60 percent of the offensive plays and rushes for 1,000 yards in any of his first three seasons, his fifth-year base will be $1.4 million.
....If he plays 70 percent of the downs and rushs for 1,000 yards in two of the seasons, he receives $1.7 million. If he plays 70 percent of the time and averages 1,000 yards in his first four seasons, his base salary zooms to $2.2 million.

July 29 - Oilers Hope to Return to Defensive Form

July 29 - Stephenville, Permian Ranked Tops in Poll (Complete poll listed)

July 29 - Abilene North Loses to Waco

July 29 - Defense Actually Won Six-Man International Game

July 29 - ACU Athlete Advances in Olympics: Abilene Christian University's Savieri Ngidhi of Zimbabwe finished third in his qualifying heat in the men's 800 meters Sunday to advance to Monday's semifinals.
....A two-time NCAA Division II 800 champion at ACU, Ngidhi ran a 1:46.46.
The men's 800 semifinals are set to start just before 6 p.m. Also today, Andy Kokhanovsky of Ukraine, the 1996 NCAA Division II champion, will compete in the discus men's qualifying round at 8:30 a.m.
....In Friday results, ACU's Robert Guy and Festus Igbinoghene failed to qualify for the next round in their competitions. Guy,competing for Trinidad, ran a 46.80 in the 400 preliminaries. Igbinoghene, a Nigerian who lives in Abilene and is a volunteer coach at ACU, had a leap of 52-4 in the triple jump.

July 28 - Abilene North in Elimination Round: Trailing 8-3, Abilene North waited through a rain delay of three hours, 35 minutes at the Texas State Junior League Baseball Tournament.

...."We stayed right here," said North coach Dean Goodman. "We are here to play ball."
....When the sun returned to the Texas State Little League fields, North lit up McAllister Park pitcher Pat Sowell for five consecutive two-out hits, scoring twice, to bring the go-ahead run to the plate. The rally fell short, however, and McAllister Park won the opening-round contest, 8-5.
....The loss drops North into the elimination round of the tournament. North will play Waco Lake Air today at 1 p.m. Spring's Northwest 45 beat Lake Air in Saturday's other game, 16-5. Eleven members of Northwest's team played on the squad that lost to Taiwan, 17-3, last year in the final of the Little League World Series.

July 28 - Rangers Beat Chicago: Lee Stevens tripled in the go-ahead run in the 10th inning Saturday and the Texas Rangers rallied from a 4-1 deficit to beat Chicago 6-4, sending the White Sox to their eighth loss in 10 games.

Pinch-hitter Kurt Stillwell drew a leadoff walk from Bill Simas (0-7) in the 10th and Stevens lined his hit off the fence in right field. An out later, Stevens scored on Kevin Elster's 10th sacrifice fly of the season.
Gil Heredia (2-3) pitched a scoreless ninth for the victory, and Ed Vosberg finished for his sixth save.

July 27 - Tennis Junior Sectionals Begin Here Tuesday

July 27 - ACU Athletes Compete in Olympics: Abilene Christian University's Mary Tombiri-Shirey of Nigeria ran 11.50 to finish fourth in her heat of the women's 100 Friday.
She wasn't as fortunate in the quarterfinals, running an 11.56 to finish last in her heat.
....Hermin Joseph of Dominica, also an ACU athlete, finished fifth in the first round in 11.56 and just missed qualifying for the quarterfinals. The top four in each heat advance.
...Savieri Ngidhi of Zimbabwe is the only ACU athlete to compete in track and field Saturday. ....Ngidhi runs in the first round of the men's 800.

July 27 - Rangers Lose: Wilson Alvarez struck out 11 in eight innings, scattering four hits as the Chicago White Sox beat the Texas Rangers 6-2 Friday night and stopped a four-game losing streak.

....Alvarez (13-5) walked none and increased his record at Comiskey Park to 7-1 this season. The strikeouts were one short of his season high.
....Chicago won for just the second time in nine games during an 11-game homestand. Texas has lost six of nine.

July 27 (early) - Abilene North Plays Saturday: WACO - Abilene North Junior League will take on McAllister Park of San Antonio Saturday at 1 p.m. in the opening round of the state Junior League baseball tournament.

....The double elimination all-star tournament for 13-year-olds, to be played on Senior Field at the State Little League Baseball Complex, matches the state's four sectional winners. Teams with a loss in previous all-star tournament play will have a fresh start, with those losses now erased.
....In the other first-round Junior League game Saturday, defending United States champion Northwest 45 Little League from Spring will play Lake Air of Waco at 10 a.m.

July 27 (early) - Mavs and Harper Agree: The Dallas Mavericks and free agent guard Derek Harper have agreed to terms on a contract reportedly worth $3 million over two years. The team called an afternoon news conference to announce the signing.

...."It's expected to be a two-year deal," Mavericks' spokesman Tony Fay said today of the contract that would return Harper to Dallas from the New York Knicks. "We don't disclose the dollar amount."

July 26 - Abilene North Will Go For It All This Weekend

July 26 (early) - Abilene's Aston Wins First: Abilene's Mitch Aston won first place in doubles Wednesday and took third in boys 16 singles on Thursday in the Texas Open, a United States Tennis Association national open tennis tournament played at the Bay Area Racquet Club.

....Aston, who will be a sophomore at Abilene High, teamed with Jarrett Skrobarcek of San Antonio to defeat Kayvon Fatahalian of Round Rock and Jeffrey Lau of Leander 6-4, 6-2 in the championship match in boys 16 doubles.

July 26 (early) - Astros Option Hudek: The Houston Astros optioned the contract of righthanded pitcher John Hudek to Triple A Tucson Thursday and recalled righthanded pitcher Mark Small.

....General manager Gerry Hunsicker said the moves will take effect in time for the homestand against the Dodgers, which begins Friday.

July 25 - PDogs Lose to Crickets Again: The Abilene Prairie Dogs rallied for two runs Wednesday night to tie Lubbock in the eighth inning, only to give up two runs in the bottom of the frame as they dropped their second straight game to the Crickets, 6-4.


....The Prairie Dogs, 8-4 in the second half of play in the Texas-Louisiana League, will meet the Crickets again tonight at 7:05 p.m. in the final game of their three-game series at Dan Law Field.
....Abilene, 8-4 in the second half, knotted the score at 4-4 in the eighth on a two-out, two-run double by Jack Johnson.

July 25 (early) - Yanks Beat Rangers: Andy Pettitte became the American League's first 15-game winner and Tino Martinez hit a three-run double off right fielder Damon Buford's glove Wednesday, giving the New York Yankees a 4-2 victory over the Texas Rangers.

July 25 (early) - Hartgraves Moved Down: Houston Astros pitcher Dean Hartgraves was assigned Wednesday to the team's Triple A club to make room on the roster for newly acquired Danny Darwin of the Pittsburgh Pirates.

....Hartgraves, 29, has split his season between Houston and the Tucson Toros. With Houston, he is 0-0 with a 5.21 ERA and no saves in 19 games.
....With the Toros he had a 2-1 record with a 1.89 ERA and four saves in 18 games. He was last recalled from Tucson on July 19 when righthanded pitcher Todd Jones was placed on the 15-day disabled list.

July 25 (early) - Hawks Sign Four: Howard College in Big Spring has signed four more players for its women's basketball team.

....Joining the Lady Hawks are 5-7 Carm Petrera from Syracuse, N.Y.; 5-8 Jeanine Horton from Riverside, Calif.; 5-8 Paige Mitchell from Byrdstown, Tenn., who is transferring from Campbellsville University (Ky.); and 5-11 Erin Elasasser from Georgetown, who is transferring from the University of Texas at San Antonio.

July 24 - True Championship Game for College Football Announced

July 24 - Oilers' George Can't Wait to Play the Cowboys

July 24 - Abilene North in State Tourney: Kevin Goodman pitched Abilene North Junior League to a state tournament berth Tuesday at O'Banion Field.
....Goodman had seven strikeouts and limited Lubbock Gray to three hits as Abilene North claimed a 5-3 victory to earn a trip to the state tournament, which begins Thursday in Waco.
....The Abilene North win was preserved in the seventh inning when Chris Brannon made a tough running catch in right-center field with a pair of runners on to end the game.
....Abilene North went through the tournament unbeaten, handing Lubbock Gray both its losses. Abilene North knocked Lubbock Gray into the losers' bracket with a 6-3 decision Saturday.

July 24 (early) - Raptors Get Mavs' Jones: The Toronto Raptors acquired one of the NBA's top reboundersTuesday, acquiring Popeye Jones from the Dallas Mavericks.


....Toronto also got a first-round draft pick from Dallas and sent theMavericks guard Jimmy King and a pair of second-round draft picks.
July 24 (early) - Oilers' Harmon Still Injured: Running back Ronnie Harmon, expected to add depth to the Oilers' backfield, still hasn't worked out in camp because of a hamstring injury.
....Defensive end Kanavis McGhee (ankle), wide receiver Denis Montana (ankle) and cornerback Kevin Rhodes (hamstring) also were held from practice.

July 24 (early) - Darwin Signs with Astros: Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Danny Darwin, a member of the Houston Astros 1986 National League championship team, signed with the Astros Tuesday.
....The Astros acquired Darwin for the stretch drive from the Pirates in exchange for right-handed pitcher Rich Loiselle, now with the Astros' Tucson Toros.
....Darwin, 40, is the only member of Houston's 1986 National League Championship Series team still active in the majors.

July 23 (early) - Prairie Dogs Keep Setting Records

July 23 (early) - New Oilers Receiver Wants more Action

July 23 (early) - Abilene North Still Alive: A 13-year-old team from Abilene North remains the only youth baseball team from Abilene with a shot at advancing to the state tournament, which begins Friday in Waco.
... Abilene North will meet Monday's San Angelo Western-Lubbock Gray winner in the championship game of the Junior League Sectional baseball tournament at 4 p.m. Tuesday at O'Banion Field in Lubbock. A second game, if necessary, will follow an hour after the first game.
....Abilene North secured a berth in Tuesday's title game by beating Lubbock Gray, 6-3, on Saturday behind Christopher Gage's two-hitter.

July 22 - Oilers Tight End Emerges as a Threat

July 22 - Cooper's Cole Victorious: Cooper's Theron Cole rallied to beat Walter Moore of Edmond, Olka., 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 Sunday in the first round of the Super Championship 18s in the Texas Open tennis tournament at Canyon Creek Country Club.

....Cole, who will be a junior at Cooper next year, trailed 4-2 in the second set after losing the first, before turning the tide to pull out the match. He will have a tough task today, facing top-seeded Tony Young.
....Meiling Parks of Abilene High, the only other Abilene player competing in the national tournament, lost to No. 2 seed Chrissy Terrel, 6-2, 4-6, 6-4. She will also be a junior this fall.

July 21 - Oilers' Rodney Thomas to Get a Challenge

July 21 - Red-hot Dogs Sizzle Again: The red-hot Abilene Prairie Dogs jumped out to a quick start en route to an 8-4 victory Saturday night over Rio Grande Valley.
....It was the sixth in a row for the first-half champion Prairie Dogs, who improved to 7-2 in the second half of the league race and now lead the WhiteWings by 11/2 games atop the Texas-Louisiana League standings.
....Abilene scored four runs - all after two were out - in the top of the first inning off losing Rio Grande Valley pitcher Javier DeJesus (5-3).

July 21 - Abilene Lone Star Stays Alive: David Willis hurled a no-hitter as Abilene Lone Star stayed alive in the Little League Sectional baseball tournament with a 6-0 win Saturday over Plano National.
....Willis allowed only one baserunner - a second-inning walk - and struck out eight in recording the no-hitter.
Lone Star scored single runs in the first and second innings and then put the game away with four runs in the fifth innings.
Jeff Walker had two singles and Brian Potts a pair of doubles to pace Lone Star's nine-hit attack.

July 20 - Oilers Give Eddie George a Nice, Big Signing Bonus

July 20 (early) - UT Screening Committee to be Busy: Several top coaches from across the country are expected to be considered by a University of Texas screening committee charged with finding a new baseball coach for the first time in 29 years.

....Cliff Gustafson, the winningest coach in NCAA Division I history, retired after 29 season at UT amid questions about the finances of his summer baseball camp.
....School officials said Gustafson maintained an account for camp revenues outside of school regulations and then used the fund to pay himself and his son, a former voluntary coach at Texas.
....Gustafson denies any wrongdoing.

July 19 - Cory Driskill Wins Todd Moore Tourney in Playoff

July 19 - Haas Pitches Shutout for PDogs: It may have felt like an ugly losing effort to David Haas, but the result was a beauty of a win for the Prairie Dogs.

....Haas hurled a complete-game shutout as Abilene edged Alexandria, 1-0, in front of 1,388 fans Thursday night at Crutcher Scott Field.
....Haas walked four and struck out four while posting his third shutout and fourth complete game of the year. He leads the league in both categories.

July 19 - Rangers Lose in 11: Rafael Bournigal's single with one out in the top of the 11th inning drove in Terry Steinbach from second base to rally the Oakland Athletics past the Texas Rangers 5-4 Thursday night.

July 19 (early) - Austin Looking at Minor Leagues Again: They would play in suburban Cedar Park but be called the Austin Rustlers if an investor can swing a minor league baseball team.

....Bill Pohl, an investor in Williamson County just north of Austin, has been running newspaper and radio advertisements seeking investors for a Double-A team.
....Although the site for Pohl's stadium is just outside of Cedar Park, the Austin name would be simply a matter of identification, he said.
....Pohl's efforts are the latest attempt at bringing professional baseball to the Texas capital.
....Last year, voters in Austin rejected a multimillion-dollar proposal to relocate the Triple-A Phoenix Firebirds. Leaders of that effort had wanted the city to put up $10 million in bond money to build a $22 million stadium.

July 19 (early) - Hart, Fleming Win Awards: Two Reporter-News sports writers have won honors in the Texas Sports Writers Association writing contest.

....Bill Hart won first place in spot news with his story on Norwegian journalists converging on Abilene to report on the banning of track star Aham Okeke. He also won first place in feature writing on how Abilene Christian University football player Shane Freels dealt with his father's death.
....Lance Fleming won second place in the sidebars category with his story on San Francisco beating the Dallas Cowboys in the regular season.

July 18 - Rangers Beat Angels: Juan Gonzalez extended his career-high hitting streak to 19 games with a two-run homer and RBI double as the Texas Rangers beat the California Angels 7-3 Wednesday night.


....Texas starter Ken Hill (10-5) gave up six hits and two walks in the first three innings, but escaped with only two runs, then settled down to notch his third straight decision.

July 18 - PDogs Have Winning Hand: Once again, pitching ruled for the Prairie Dogs.
....Abilene got six strong innings from starting pitcher Lance Schuermann and downed Alexandria 5-1 in front of 997 fans at Crutcher Scott Field Wednesday night. It was their third straight win, and fourth in five games as the Prairie Dogs improved to 4-2 in the second half of play in the Texas-Louisiana League.
....Lance Schuermann upped his season record to 5-0 by limiting the Aces to one run on six hits - all singles - in six innings. He walked only one and struck out three, and had given up just three hits entering the sixth inning, when the Aces notched their lone run.

July 18 (early) - Mavs Add Muscle with Gatling to Revamped Frontcourt

July 18 (early) - UT Baseball Coach Resigns: Texas baseball coach Cliff Gustafson, the winningest coach in NCAA Division I history, retired today after questions were raised about the finances of school's summer baseball camp.
...."I accept coach Gustafson's retirement with deep regret," Texas athletic director DeLoss Dodds said. "He has been a model coach and a mentor to some of the game's greatest players. His winning teams are part of UT's tradition."
....Gustafson, who coached Texas to national championships in 1975 and 1983 while building a record of 1,466-377-2, submitted a letter announcing his retirement to UT officials today.

July 18 (early) - Two Jucos Sign at ACU: Two junior college football players have signed with Ablene Christian University for the upcoming season.
....Wide receiver Craig Cole of Navarro Junior College, who played high school football at Arlington Lamar, and defensive end Matt Shane of Trinity Valley Community College, who played at Richardson Berkner, are the latest additions.
....Cole caught 20 passes for 330 yards and three touchdowns in eight games last season.
....Shane, 6-4, 250 pounds, had signed with Texas Christian University out of high school and again this spring, but chose ACU after not graduating from junior college this summer.

July 18 (early) - Football camp at AHS: The Abilene Eagle Football Camp will be held next week, beginning Monday at the AHS campus.
....Cost of the camp is $10, and it is payable in advance or when campers report Monday morning. The camp is for incoming fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth or ninth graders. Each camp session will start at 9 a.m. and end at 11:30 a.m.
....Each camper will receive a T-shirt and will receive instruction in offense, defense and the kicking game.
....For more information, contact Abilene High head coach Steve Warren at (915) 672-1087.

July 17 - Prairie Dogs Win Again ... plus Prairie Dog notes

July 17 - Rangers Beat Angles: Jim Abbott lost for the 12th time in 13 decisions, and the Texas Rangers beat the California Angels 6-2 Tuesday night behind seven strong innings from Darren Oliver.

.....Abbott (1-12), who hasn't won since May 2, allowed five runs and five hits in seven innings. He walked five and struck out three.
....Oliver (8-3) won for the fifth time in six decisions, giving a boost to a Rangers' rotation that had a 6.67 ERA in its previous 15 games. Oliver allowed two runs and five hits, struck out five and walked two.
....Rusty Greer was 3-for-4 with a a homer, an RBI double and a single.

July 17 (early) - Allen Signs with ACU: Kristian Allen of Cooper has signed a letter-of-intent to play baseball at Abilene Christian University.

....Allen, an all-District 4-5A pitcher at Cooper this year, posted an 8-3 record in helping the Cougars reach the Region I-5A finals.

July 17 (early) - Todd Moore Tourney This Week: Tomorrow's stars are in Abilene this week to compete in the Todd Moore Memorial Junior tournament at Abilene Country Club.

....The American Junior Golf Association has held an event in Abilene since 1981.
....In 1991, the Fairway Oaks Junior Classic was renamed the Todd Moore Memorial Junior in honor of former Cooper and University of Texas golfer Todd Moore, who died unexpectedly in 1990.
....Todd had been an active member of the AJGA as a junior golfer.

July 16 - Olajuwon Signs Five-year, $55 Million Contract

July 16 - Prairie Dogs Back to Winning Ways

July 16 - Clark Activated by Rangers: First baseman Will Clark was activated Monday by the Texas Rangers, who also put pitcher Kevin Gross on the disabled list.

....Clark came off the 15-day disabled list before Monday's game against the California Angels and was in the starting lineup. Clark was disabled on July 4 with a badly bruised rib cage on his right side, marking his second trip to the disabled list this season.
....Clark, batting .299 with six homers and 43 RBIs prior to Monday's game, was on the disabled list from June 8-22 with a pulled left quadriceps muscle.

July 16 (early) - AHS' Brooks Selected: Abilene High's Ahmad Brooks was selected to the United States Region III soccer team that will play in an under-17 soccer tournament in Bermuda Saturday through July 25.

....The Region III team is comprised of players from Southern states. Brooks, who will be a junior at AHS, is one of just two Texas players on the squad.
....The team will play four games against teams from Barbados, Trinidad and Bermuda. Brooks is a starting defender for the team.

July 16 (early) - Hawk Earns Point: As a result of qualifying for the Masters satellite tournament last week in Tulsa, Okla., Brandon Hawk of Clyde earned his first point on the Association of Tennis Professionals tour.

....Hawk lost in the first round of the tournament to Donovan September of South Africa, 7-6, 3-6, 6-1 after becoming one of the top 48 players on the satellite tour to qualify for the event. Qualifying for the event ended a highly successful four-week run for Hawk.

July 15 - The Doggies Win Some and Lose Some: The Prairie Dogs won the first game of Sunday's doubleheader with Tyler, 6-3, but dropped the second game, 5-3, in front of 2,896 fans at Scott Field.

...The second-game win for the Wildcatters gives them two wins over Abilene in the first three games of the series, and assures them of no worse than a split of the four-game set which will conclude tonight.
...Sunday's first game was the makeup of Saturday's rainout, and it saw the ejection of Abilene pitcher Kerry Knox and Stephenson with two outs in the seventh. Umpire Vince Price, who ejected both, also tossed Tyler pitcher Chris Rusciano in the second game.
...Tyler's win in the nightcap was just its second of the season against Abilene, but both have come in the first three games of the second half.
..."We might be 11-2 against them on the season," Stephenson said, "but we're 1-2 against them when it counts."

July 14 - They're Good But They Can't Beat the Rain:Saturday night's game between Abilene and Tyler was postponed because of the thunderstorms that hit Abilene Saturday afternoon.


...The game will be made up as part of a doubleheader today starting at 5:05 p.m. at Scott Field.
...Tyler will be trying to put together back-to-back wins against Abilene for the first time all season after winning Friday night, 5-0. The win was the first for the Wildcatters against the Prairie Dogs this season. Abilene had won the previous 10 meetings between the teams.
...The loss snapped Abilene's 12-game winning streak, a string that dated all the way back to June 27. The last time Abilene lost consecutive games came on June 21 and 22 when it lost to Rio Grande Valley, 5-1 and 10-1.

July 13 - Wildcatters Snap Prairie Dogs 12 Game Streak: Tyler put an end to two streaks Friday night at Scott Field.
...The Wildcatters used three runs in the third inning to take a 5-0 win over Abilene in front of 1,769 fans in the opening game of the second half of the Texas-Louisiana League race.
...The win snapped Abilene's 12-game winning streak overall, as well as its 10-game winning streak over Tyler.
..."It gets hard when a team has a streak like that against you," Tyler manager Dave Hilton said. "It becomes a mental block that's hard to overcome. But it was important that we break that streak."

July 12 - Prairie Dogs Unlikely to Relax after Great First Half

July 12 - Lone Star Forces a Game Today for Title

July 12 - Rangers Lose Again: Mark McGwire hit his 29th homer and Geronimo Berroa and Terry Steinbach each had two RBI as the Oakland Athletics continued their torrid hitting in an 8-3 victory Thursday over the sagging Texas Rangers.
....The A's, who have won nine of 12, have scored 162 runs in their last 22 games, or 7.4 runs a game. The Rangers have lost five of seven.

July 12 (early) - Bam Gets Deferred Adjudication: Bam Morris, a high school and college football star in Texas and leading rusher of the Super Bowl, was sentenced Thursday to six years' deferred adjudication and fined $7,000 for a March 22 felony marijuana possession charge.
....Morris was to have gone on trial Thursday on charges that also included a felony count of possession of cocaine. But on June 27, he changed his plea to guilty in exchange for a recommendation of no prison time and dismissal of the cocaine charge.
....He had faced up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.
....State District Judge William B. Lofland also sentenced Morris to 200 hours of community service.

July 12 (early) - Wylie wins tennis league: A Wylie High School team has won the six-week, round-robin competition in the National Texas Junior Tennis League.
....A total of 110 kids competed in the league and all were furnished with rackets as a result of the Raise-A-Racket tennis campaign. The team next travels to Arlington Aug. 2-3 for the NJTL state rally.
....Players on the team are Jamie Poorman, Josh Poorman, Greg Six, Kacey Browning, Chase Browning, Jennifer Hathorn, Nathan Hathorn, Michelle Hathorn, Tiffany Baugh, Adam Baugh, Ashlie Patterson, Jordan Patterson, Peyton Harris, Evan Harris, Brady Bounds, Christopher Bounds and Brooke Bounds.

July 11 - Dallas Cowboys Tight Ends Coach Robert Ford Stands Tall

July 11 (early) - Newton Signs Contract Extension: - All-Pro offensive guard Nate Newton has signed a one-year contract extension with the Dallas Cowboys.

....Newton will be under contract with the Cowboys through the 1998 season. Terms of the extension were not released.
....Newton, entering his 11th season with the Cowboys, earned his fourth straight trip to the Pro Bowl in 1995 after helping Dallas win the Super Bowl.
July 11 (early) - Spurs Investors Reject Proposal: San Antonio Spurs investors have rejected a $120 million proposal from a New Mexico family to buy the NBA franchise, a team executive said Wednesday.
....Gavin and Joe Maloof of Albuquerque, N.M., had offered $90 million up front, including debt assumptions and cash, and another $30 million to be put toward building a new arena.
....The Spurs' 22-member investor group met privately for nearly four hours Wednesday to hear and consider the Maloof brothers' proposal.

July 10 - Steelers Release Bam: The Pittsburgh Steelers released running back Bam Morris Tuesday, nearly two weeks after he struck a plea bargain with Texas prosecutors on drug possession charges.


...."We felt releasing Bam Morris was in the best interest of both parties," coach Bill Cowher said. "It gives the Steelers and Morris an opportunity to move forward and focus on the 1996 season."
....Morris, 24 and former Texas Tech standout, pleaded guilty June 26 to a felony marijuana charge. In return, prosecutors will recommend that he not be imprisoned and will not pursue a felony cocaine possession charge.
....Morris and his passenger, Rodney Dwayne Reynolds, were stopped on March 22 on the way to their hometown of Cooper.

July 10 - Hart Honored as Sports Writer of Year: Bill Hart, senior staff writer for the Reporter-News, has been named sports writer of the year by the Texas Girls Coaches Association.

....Pat Mouser, the association's past president, will present Hart with a plaque today at the awards luncheon to be held at 1 p.m. in the Champions Ballroom of the Marriott Hotel. ....Mouser is the new girls basketball coach at Abilene High.

July 10 - Lone Star Battles Back to Advance: Playing with no room for error since dropping its first game of the Area I Little League baseball all-star tournament, Lone Star continued its winning ways Tuesday night with a 7-3 triumph over Key City.

....The win at Eddie St. Pierre Field - the second in as many nights for Lone Star over Key City - eliminates Key City from the double-elimination tournament. It sends Lone Star into the District V semifinal round against Eastland, which bumped off Clyde 12-6 Tuesday.
...."For the kids to take that first loss and fight all the way through the losers' bracket, it's been a lot of work," said Lone Star manager Richard Walker.
....Tonight at 6 p.m. at St. Pierre Field, Lone Star will meet Eastland, and both teams have one loss. Unbeaten Merkel will take on Sweetwater at the same field in a game set for 8 p.m. ....A Sweetwater win would force another game with Merkel, on Thursday, to decide which team will be in the District V championship against the Lone Star-Eastland winner.

July 10 (early) - Five PDogs, Manager in All-Star Game: Five players from the Abilene Prairie Dogs, as well as manager Phil Stephenson, will participate tonight in the Texas-Louisiana League All-Star Game at Bringhurst Field.

....The T-L League all-stars will play the host Alexandria Aces in a game scheduled to begin at 7:05 p.m.
....Abilene, which won the first-half championship by six games, has the most players in the game with five. The position players are first baseman Rod Brewer, catcher Jack Johnson and outfielder Paul Coleman. The two pitchers are starter David Haas and reliever Ken Winkle.

July 10 (early) - Opposition Mounting Against Spurs Sale: A proposed deal to sell the San Antonio Spurs to a New Mexico family may be doomed before it reaches the bargaining table, the San Antonio Express-News reported Tuesday.

....Opposition is mounting against the proposed $120 million sale as well as the leadership of Spurs Chairman Robert McDermott, who is pushing the deal, the Express-News reported in a copyright story.
....The franchise's 21-member owners group is scheduled to meet Wednesday to hear details of the deal with the Albuquerque-based Maloof family. However, key owners contacted by the Express-News said the sale appeared doomed even before the investors meet.

July 9 - Rangers' Fans Fear Another Meltdown from AL West Leaders

July 9 - Abilene Chiropractor Invited to Practice at the Olympics

July 9 - PDogs Complete Sweep: Abilene finished off the best half of baseball in Texas-Louisiana League history Monday night with an 8-1 win over Tyler, their 10th straight over Tyler and 12th consecutive victory.

....The Prairie Dogs, who won the first half title last week, completed the first half with a record of 35-15, one game better than Amarillo's 34-16 mark last year.
....The Dogs are only five wins short of their total for all of last season.

July 9 (early) - Tarleton Inks Four: Tarleton State University baseball coach Jack Allen has announced the signing of four transfer players to letters of intent.

....The players include Brian Freese, a right-handed pitcher from Howe and Eastfield Junior College; Baron Honeycutt, an outfielder from Detroit, Mich. and Paris Junior College; Josh Redd, a first baseman from Waxahachie and Paris Junior College; and Jan Van Winkle, an outfielder from Houston Lamar and St. Mary's University.

July 8 - Rangers Finally Beat Mariners: Ken Hill allowed one unearned run in 7 2/3 innings and Warren Newson hit a two-run homer as the Texas Rangers salvaged the finale of a four-game series with the Seattle Mariners, 8-3 Sunday night.

....Hill (9-5) had won only once since May 31, but he threw his fourth complete game of the season against a lineup that leads the AL in runs, total bases and slugging percentage. Hill struck out seven and walked five, yielding five hits while helping the Rangers beat the Mariners for only the third time in nine meetings this season.

July 8 - PDogs Keep Streak Alive: Even Ken Patterson couldn't stop the suddenly hot bats of the Abilene Prairie Dogs.
....Patterson, who hadn't given up an earned run all season, allowed two insurance scores as the Prairie Dogs extended their winning streak to 11 games with a 7-3 victory over Tyler Sunday.

July 7 - Rangers of 1977 Were One for the Books

July 7 - Haddox Rallies for Title in Highway 80 Tourney

July 7 - PDogs Win 10th Straight: The Prairie Dogs knocked out Tyler starter Chris Hancock after just 3-1/3 innings and claimed their largest margin of victory this season with a 12-2 win.
....The win also marked the 10th straight for the Texas-Louisiana League first-half champions, who have won the last three after clinching the first-half title.

July 7 - Rangers Lose: Edgar Martinez hit three home runs and Alex Rodriquez hit his third grand slam of the season, leading the Seattle Mariners past the Texas Rangers, 9-5, Saturday night.

July 7 - Winston Cup in Texas? The Texas Motor Speedway's inaugural weekend might be a real winner - a NASCAR Winston Cup race next spring.
....Speedway developer Bruton Smith has scheduled "a monumental announcement" for Thursday. It is expected to be that a race next March or April for the sport's elite, the Winston Cup.
....Some 10,000 invitations were mailed, promising "a monumental announcement that will change the motorsports world forever."
....Based on the 150,000-plus seating capacity of the $110 million track, the race would be the biggest one-day sporting event ever held in North Texas.
....Construction on the speedway is expected to be completed later this year near Alliance Airport. The site in southern Denton County is being annexed by Fort Worth.
....Speedway general manager Eddie Gossage declined to say whether a Winston Cup race date will be announced, saying only it would be a "major, major day for Fort Worth."

July 6 - ACU Signs Two: Pitcher Misty Berry of Grand Prairie and catcher Stacey Walsh of Fort Worth, two players selected for Tuesday's high school girls softball all-star game in Arlington, have signed agreements to attend Abilene Christian University.

....The signings were announced by Carol Tabor, head softball coach at ACU.

July 5 - Gagliano Leads PDogs to Win in Extra Innings

July 5 - Rangers Lose: Paul Sorrento's grand slam highlighted a five-run ninth inning Thursday as the Seattle Mariners rallied for a 9-5 victory over the Texas Rangers.

....Dean Palmer's three-run homer in the seventh rallied Texas from a three-run deficit to lead 5-4. It came moments after Rangers manager Johnny Oates protested the game because of an umpire's ruling on an overthrow.

July 5 - Former ACU Coach Heading Rough Riders: The Ottawa Rough Riders, off to an 0-4 start in the Canadian Football League, have fired head coach Jim Gilstrap and replaced him with assistant and former Abilene Christian University head football coach John Payne.

....Payne was ACU's head coach from 1985-1990, compiling a 26-34-2 record during his tenure. Payne's best season was in 1986 when he led the Wildcats to a 7-3 record.
....He was replaced by Ronnie Peacock after a 1-9 record in 1990.

July 5 - Clark put on DL: Texas Rangers first baseman Will Clark is on the disabled list for the second time in a month.

....Clark was placed on the 15-day disabled Thursday, retroactive to June 30, with a badly bruised right rib cage area. Clark was hit by a pitch on June 29 against the Seattle Mariners.
....Clark, who is hitting .299 with six homers and 43 RBIs, was on the disabled list from June 8-22 with a pulled left quadriceps muscle. He is eligible to return July 15.
....The Rangers recalled right-hander Matt Whiteside from their Triple-A farm team in Oklahoma City. Whiteside started the season with Texas and had a 12.47 ERA in three games before he was sent to the minors.

July 5 - Highway 80 Tourney Begins Today: More than 200 players will be vying for titles when the Highway 80 tennis tournament begins play today and continues through Sunday at Abilene High, Cooper and the Rose Park Tennis Center.

....Male and female tennis players will be competing in divisions ranging from age 12 to adult beginning at 8 a.m. each day.

July 4 - Prairie Dogs Clinch First Half Title

July 4 - Tourney Sunday at Maxwell: The Tournament Golf Association will hold an individual stroke play tournament Sunday at Maxwell Municipal Golf Course. Entry fee is $90 per player, which includes green fee and cart.

....There is a $1,000 cash prize for first place, and the tournament will pay 25 percent of the field. There will also be a $10,000 hole-in-one contest.
There will be a shotgun start at 1:30 p.m. Sunday. For more information, call the Maxwell pro shop at 692-2737.

July 4 (early) - Stars Sign Two: Bob Gainey's rebuilding of the Dallas Stars this offseason got another boost Wednesday with the signing of free agent forwards Pat Verbeek and Dave Reid.

....Verbeek is a 14-year veteran who was among the most sought free agents this offseason after scoring 82 points for the New York Rangers last season. He had 41 goals and 41 assists.
....Reid, 32, last season posted career-highs with 23 goals and 21 assists while playing for Boston. He was second in the league with six shorthanded goals.

July 4 (early) - Oilers Coach Gets New Contract: Houston Oilers coach Jeff Fisher, who turned around the club from the NFL's worst in 1994 to a respectable 7-9 mark last season, is getting a two-year contract extension unprecedented in club history.

....The deal, according to reports Wednesday in the Houston Chronicle and by television station KRIV, will keep Fisher, 38, as coach of the team through 1999.

July 3 - Prairie Dogs Close in on First-half Championship

July 3 - Bill Mercer and Texas Sports Go Hand in Hand

July 3 - Rangers Lose: Despite Juan Gonzalez' 19th home run, the Texas Rangers fell to the California Angels Tuesday night, 6-5.

July 3 (early) - Payton, Barkley to Rockets? If you believe what Gary Payton and Charles Barkley are saying, both could be playing for the Houston Rockets next season.

...."They made their bid. They done came in with a bid and they're trying to do something," Payton said Tuesday of the Rockets, practically alleging tampering for a second straight day. On Monday, he said four teams "are coming at me pretty hard," even though offers to free agents are prohibited until July 9.
...."That'll be a good lineup, Barkley, the Dream (Hakeem Olajuwon), Clyde (Drexler) and myself. That's be a nice little lineup and we'd win a few ballgames," Payton said.
....Barkley has been mentioned in a rumored three-way deal that would send Robert Horry and Sam Cassell from Houston to Denver, with the Nuggets signing free agent center Dikembe Mutombo and shipping him to the Phoenix Suns.
...."I hear the deal's done," Barkley told the Houston Chronicle and Arizona Republic.

July 2 - Prairie Dogs Have Been Unbelievable on the Road This Year

July 2 - Rangers Beat Angels: Juan Gonzalez drove in four runs and Mickey Tettleton and Dean Palmer hit consecutive homers in the sixth inning as the Texas Rangers beat the California Angels 8-6 Monday night.
....Gonzalez, whose 11 home runs last month tied his own club record for June, homered his first time up in July. He also singled in a run in the third inning and drove in two more with a seventh-inning double, giving him 16 RBIs in his last 10 games and 61 in 56 games.

July 2 - Aces sign Satre: Jason Satre signed a contract Monday with the Alexandria Aces of the Texas-Louisiana League.
....The former Cooper pitcher was 1-1 with a 3.29 earned run average for the Rio Grande Valley WhiteWings this season before suffering tenditis in his shoulder. He missed several starts and was released by the WhiteWings on June 17.
....Satre, who pitched Cooper to back-to-back state titles in 1987 and '88, signed with the Cincinnati Reds out of high school. He also played in the Baltimore Orioles and Boston Red Sox organizations, reaching AAA Pawtucket in 1995 before being released. He joined the ....WhiteWings in midseason last year.

July 2 - Lady 'Cats second in attendance: Abilene Christian University finished second in NCAA Division II in attendance for women's basketball for the 1995-96 season, according to figures released by the NCAA.
....NCAA women's basketball increased in overall attendance for the 15th consecutive year and topped five million for the first time in 1995-96. A total of 5.2 million fans watched women's basketball at the 874 NCAA institutions in 1995-96.
....ACU averaged 1,422 for its 15 home games, trailing only the 3,707 average of national champion North Dakota State, which led for the fifth straight year. ACU and Lone Star Conference rival West Texas A&M (1,167) were two of only six Division II members to average more than 1,000 in women's basketball.
....The Lady Wildcats were LSC co-cahmpions, NCAA regional champions and third at the national tournament with a 31-2 record last season.

July 2 (early) - SMU Asst. SID Named: Jeff Darby, who served as interim assistant sports information director at Southern Methodist for the past year, has been named to fill the position.
....Darby will be the school's media contact for men's and women's swimming and diving, tennis, track and field and women's volleyball.

July 2 (early) - Padres' tryout camp in Snyder: The San Diego Padres will hold an open tryout camp Saturday at Snyder High School. Players must register at 8 a.m., and the workout will follow immediately.
....American Legion players must have permission from their post commander for coach to work out. Players for furnish their own glove and shoes.
....For more information, contact Roland Hererra at (915) 573-1355 or Joe Ray Halsey at (915) 523-5235.

July 2 (early) - Cutting Spectacular Starts Tuesday: Cutting Gully-style continues in Abilene starting Tuesday with Pat and Carolyn Gully's Abilene Summer Spectacular Cutting at the Taylor County Coliseum.
....The Gullys, along with Junior and Carolyn Gray of Graham, Sunday finished another chapter of the Summer Cutting series that has been held in Abilene since the early 1980s.
....Competition begins at 8 a.m. each day, and admission is free.

July 1 - PDogs Keep On Winning: Manny Gagliano atoned for an earlier mistake with the game-winning RBI in the 12th as Abilene beat Alexandria, 6-3, in 12 innings Sunday night.


....The Prairie Dogs improved to 28-15 on the season with the sweep of the Aces and reduced their magic number for clinching the Texas-Louisiana League first-half championship to four games. The second-place Lubbock Crickets fell to 31/2 games behind Abilene with a 14-10 loss to Rio Grande Valley.

July 1 - Mariners Beat Rangers Again: Sterling Hitchcock was staked to an early four-run lead and Edgar Martinez hit two more doubles Sunday, leading the Seattle Mariners to a 4-3 win over the Texas Rangers.

.....By winning two out of three games in the weekend series, the Mariners cut first-place Texas' lead to five games in the AL West.

July 1 - Wylie football camp coming soon: Wylie Bulldog Football Camp will be July 22-25. from 8:30 a.m.-11:30 a.m. at Wylie High School for incoming 7-8-9-grade boys.
....Cost is $45 and players can send registration to Bulldog Football Camp, 3966 Bay Hill Drive, Abilene, 79606. Players need to register by July 15.
....Players need to include an adult T-shirt size.
....For more information, call 695-1993.

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