ACU Today - Winter 2001 Sports

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Men's cross country team steamrolls to first region title, finishes second at NCAA

Young Wildcat basketball teams lean on freshmen in early season action

Volleyball team becomes a force in conference, region

Golf team adds new faces in hopes of returning to NCAA

Williams' coaching era begins in ACU track and field with lofty goals, expectations

1-9 year tough to swallow but Wildcats, Gaines are optimistic

Baseball team eyes NCAA World Series

Softball team mixes experience and youth

Nationally ranked tennis teams aim for even higher ground

Williams' coaching era begins in ACU track and field with lofty goals, expectations

The biggest story about ACU track and field this year could very well be the new leader of the program: former ACU track standout Freddie Williams ('89).

The former eight-time all-America athlete was named the head coach last July and now has the challenge of maintaining a program that has a combined 45 national championships between the men's team (24) and women's team (21).

Don't think, though, that Williams feels any pressure in his new job.

"I sleep pretty well at night," said the former captain of the Canadian Olympic team. "I truly believe that I have the best job of any Division II coach in the country. I feel really good about our program and where we're headed."

One reason Williams can sleep so well is that he takes over a men's program that won both the indoor and outdoor NCAA championships last season and a women's program that won the indoor national title and finished second at the outdoor national championships.

He also inherits a men's program that has on its roster the best sprinter in NCAA Division II and one of the top sprinters in all of collegiate track and field in Nic Alexander. The sophomore from Trinidad won three individual national championships as a freshman (55 meters indoors, 100 and 200 meters outdoors) and ran on ACU's national championship 4x100 relay team at the outdoor championships.

Alexander, who ran in the 2000 Olympic Games, recorded a legal-wind time of 10.19 last May at the Mt. SAC Relays, the second-fastest time in ACU history and the sixth-fastest time in NCAA Division II history.

While Alexander is the top sprinter, the nation's top distance runner is also a Wildcat: Alfred Rugema, the indoor champion in the mile last year and runner-up in the 5000 meters outdoors.

Rugema was the dominant NCAA Division II cross country runner in the fall, and his 41-second victory at the national championships in November could set him up for a huge year on the track. He'll be pushed in the distance races by sophomore John Kemboi, who won both the 800 and 1500 meters at last year's outdoor national championships and was second at the cross country championships in the fall.

The Wildcats have four reigning or former individual national women's titleists returning, led by two-time national titleist Shawntel Newhouse, who won the 55-meter hurdles indoors and the 100-meter hurdles outdoor last year.

Also returning are Hillerie Shelton (triple jump champion outdoors in 1999), Jane McNeil (pole vault champion indoors In 1999), and Meredith Garner, who set the NCAA Division II record in the pole vault in May (13 feet, 1.5 inches) to win the outdoor national championship.

The Wildcats will put their indoor title on the line March 9-10 in Boston, and the men will defend their outdoor championships May 24-26 in Edwardsville, Ill.

1-9 year tough to swallow but Wildcats, Gaines are optimistic

Gary Gaines knew that rebuilding the ACU football program wouldn't be an overnight project. His years of experience were proven correct in 2000 when the Wildcats finished 1-9 in his first season at ACU.

However, if ever a 1-9 record was deceiving, it was the Wildcats' 2000 record.

ACU lost six of its nine games by either one or two points, and lost five of its last six games by a combined seven points.

"We certainly didn't have the record we would have liked, but I'm proud of the way our players continued to play throughout the entire season," said Gaines, who came to ACU from San Angelo Central High School in January 2000. "I thought we made progress throughout the season, but we just couldn't do enough things to win those close games."

The Wildcats lost four games by one point, and in each instance, a missed extra point cost the Wildcats a chance to send the game into overtime.

Two of the most frustrating losses came in back-to-back weeks when ACU lost 27-25 to Angelo State and 15-13 to Tarleton State. ACU led ASU 25-24 late in the game before the Rams drove the field on their final possession and kicked a field goal with less than one minute to play to win the game.

The next week in Stephenville in a driving rainstorm, ACU jumped out to a 13-0 lead only to watch the Texans kick four field goals to pull to within 13-12 with two minutes to play. All ACU needed to do to pick up its second win of the season was run the clock out. But a fumble on its first play from scrimmage after the fourth field goal gave the Texans an opportunity to drive to a game-winning 19-yard field goal with less than 90 seconds to play.

For the Wildcats, linebackers Ryan Boozer and Warring Vital and punter Brad Raphelt were named first team all-Lone Star Conference South Division, and Boozer also was named second team all-West region.

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Last Update: Feb. 9, 2001
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		.. Men's cross country team steamrolls to first region title, finishes second at NCAA Young Wildcat basketball teams lean on freshmen in early season action Volleyball team becomes a force in conference, region Golf team adds new faces in hopes of returning to NCAA Williams' coaching era begins in ACU track and field with lofty goals, expectations 1-9 year tough to swallow but Wildcats, Gaines are optimistic Baseball team eyes NCAA World Series Softball team mixes experience and youth Nationally ranked tennis teams aim for even higher ground Williams' coaching era begins in ACU track and field with lofty goals, expectations The biggest story about ACU track and field this year could very well be the new leader of the program: former ACU track standout Freddie Williams ('89). The former eight-time all-America athlete was named the head coach last July and now has the challenge of maintaining a program that has a combined 45 national championships between the men's team (24) and women's team (21). Don't think, though, that Williams feels any pressure in his new job. "I sleep pretty well at night," said the former captain of the Canadian Olympic team. "I truly believe that I have the best job of any Division II coach in the country. I feel really good about our program and where we're headed." One reason Williams can sleep so well is that he takes over a men's program that won both the indoor and outdoor NCAA championships last season and a women's program that won the indoor national title and finished second at the outdoor national championships. He also inherits a men's program that has on its roster the best sprinter in NCAA Division II and one of the top sprinters in all of collegiate track and field in Nic Alexander. The sophomore from Trinidad won three individual national championships as a freshman (55 meters indoors, 100 and 200 meters outdoors) and ran on ACU's national championship 4x100 relay team at the outdoor championships. Alexander, who ran in the 2000 Olympic Games, recorded a legal-wind time of 10.19 last May at the Mt. SAC Relays, the second-fastest time in ACU history and the sixth-fastest time in NCAA Division II history. While Alexander is the top sprinter, the nation's top distance runner is also a Wildcat: Alfred Rugema, the indoor champion in the mile last year and runner-up in the 5000 meters outdoors. Rugema was the dominant NCAA Division II cross country runner in the fall, and his 41-second victory at the national championships in November could set him up for a huge year on the track. He'll be pushed in the distance races by sophomore John Kemboi, who won both the 800 and 1500 meters at last year's outdoor national championships and was second at the cross country championships in the fall. The Wildcats have four reigning or former individual national women's titleists returning, led by two-time national titleist Shawntel Newhouse, who won the 55-meter hurdles indoors and the 100-meter hurdles outdoor last year. Also returning are Hillerie Shelton (triple jump champion outdoors in 1999), Jane McNeil (pole vault champion indoors In 1999), and Meredith Garner, who set the NCAA Division II record in the pole vault in May (13 feet, 1.5 inches) to win the outdoor national championship. The Wildcats will put their indoor title on the line March 9-10 in Boston, and the men will defend their outdoor championships May 24-26 in Edwardsville, Ill. 1-9 year tough to swallow but Wildcats, Gaines are optimistic Gary Gaines knew that rebuilding the ACU football program wouldn't be an overnight project. His years of experience were proven correct in 2000 when the Wildcats finished 1-9 in his first season at ACU. However, if ever a 1-9 record was deceiving, it was the Wildcats' 2000 record. ACU lost six of its nine games by either one or two points, and lost five of its last six games by a combined seven points. "We certainly didn't have the record we would have liked, but I'm proud of the way our players continued to play throughout the entire season," said Gaines, who came to ACU from San Angelo Central High School in January 2000. "I thought we made progress throughout the season, but we just couldn't do enough things to win those close games." The Wildcats lost four games by one point, and in each instance, a missed extra point cost the Wildcats a chance to send the game into overtime. Two of the most frustrating losses came in back-to-back weeks when ACU lost 27-25 to Angelo State and 15-13 to Tarleton State. ACU led ASU 25-24 late in the game before the Rams drove the field on their final possession and kicked a field goal with less than one minute to play to win the game. The next week in Stephenville in a driving rainstorm, ACU jumped out to a 13-0 lead only to watch the Texans kick four field goals to pull to within 13-12 with two minutes to play. All ACU needed to do to pick up its second win of the season was run the clock out. But a fumble on its first play from scrimmage after the fourth field goal gave the Texans an opportunity to drive to a game-winning 19-yard field goal with less than 90 seconds to play. For the Wildcats, linebackers Ryan Boozer and Warring Vital and punter Brad Raphelt were named first team all-Lone Star Conference South Division, and Boozer also was named second team all-West region. Page 1 \| Page 2 \| Page 3 \| Page 4

		News \| Sports \| Hilltop View \| Second Glance Back Issues \| Feedback \| Alumni Bookcase \| Tipsheet \| Our Staff .
		Last Update: Feb. 9, 2001 Page maintained by Jeremy Parish, parishj@acu.edu Questions to Ron Hadfield, hadfieldr@acu.edu http://www.acu.edu/alumni/inside-acu/winter2001/sports01.html