The NCAA News - Briefly in the News

April 7, 1997

Wrestlers for the College of New Jersey finished a strong third at the recent Division III championships, but for them, the 1997 meet may be remembered more for what happened away from the arena.

On March 7, during a break in the tournament in Ada, Ohio, the team boarded a van and headed back toward its motel. Along the way, the priority changed from wrestling to life and death.

On Route 31, the team happened upon a catastrophic automobile accident moments after it occurred. Two of three teenagers in a car were critically injured when their vehicle was rear-ended.

The wrestlers immediately took charge, as reported by Marc O'Reilly of The Trentonian newspaper:

"A trained Emergency Responder who is just shy of achieving EMT certification, (Adam) Angelozzi took control of the accident scene and shouted orders, witnesses said.

" 'I just got the scene under control,' said Angelozzi. 'When I first arrived there, I didn't realize I was the only person there with advanced training.'

"In those first minutes, Angelozzi was faced with a critical decision -- whether to move a patient who was having breathing difficulty and who may have had spinal damage.

"He didn't move him.

"It was the right choice, he learned later.

"One of the boys, who was getting out of the car at the time it was hit, was thrown across the roadway and suffered injuries that left his spine exposed, a source close to the team said.

"Paul Eliya, a 167-pounder in his sophomore year, tore his shirt off in the freezing weather to bandage the wounds.

"Other team members took off their jackets to warm the teens who lay injured and shivering on the road, miles from the nearest ambulance crew....

"Meanwhile, 126-pound sophomore Brian Citro and his teammate Mike Blanchard ran along the street trying to get help.

"When a man emerged from a nearby house to find his own son bleeding on the roadside, Mike DiPiano, a 167-pound freshman, consoled the frantic father."

In another case, the team worked together to console a brother who encountered the scene after stepping off a school bus.

One of the three victims, 15-year-old Jamie Stoner, died March 19. Jimmy Pauff was in critical condition but is now recovering. The third teenager, Jason Wilkin, was not as seriously injured.

Harold W. Eickhoff, president of the College of New Jersey, said he had attended the national championships for 18 years and always had felt pride upon winning a national championship (the school has won five of them). This year, however, was the ultimate.

"I have never been more proud of the school or the athletes than I am right now," he said.

Generous alum

Former Pennsylvania State University quarterback Kerry Collins has gone on to become a star in the National Football League, but he hasn't forgotten where he came from.

Collins recently presented a $250,000 check to the university to fund the Kerry Collins Endowed Scholarship for Quarterbacks. The university said that on an annual basis, a player at the quarterback position will receive the Collins scholarship.

Collins led the 1994 Nittany Lions to a 12-0 season, which resulted in their first Big Ten and Rose Bowl championships. He also won the Maxwell and Davey O'Brien Awards in 1994.

"My years at Penn State were meaningful to me, not only for the impact on my future as an athlete but also on preparation for a productive life when my football career is over," Collins said. "Penn State always will be very much a part of anything I do and this gift is a demonstration of my respect for the university and its athletics program."

Good net results

The Northeast Louisiana University women's tennis team didn't start fast this year, but it has been in good form lately.

After a 2-6 start (with four of the losses to ranked teams), the Indians have won seven straight matches -- all by shutout. The streak set a school record for consecutive shutouts.

-- Compiled by David Pickle

Looking back

5 years ago: The NCAA Presidents Commission and NCAA Council receive the final report of the NCAA Special Committee on Certification during meetings in April 1992. Among the special committee's conclusions: Special effort should be made to assure that the purpose of the certification process is clear; administrative burdens should be kept to a minimum; institutions should be given sufficient opportunity to correct problems, but consequences for failure to take such actions should be severe; participation by conferences should be "substantive, substantial and facilitative"; and the program should be sensitive to minority and gender-equity concerns. The Council will consider whether to propose legislation at the 1993 Convention to implement a certification program. (The NCAA News, April 15, 1992)

10 years ago: The NCAA Presidents Commission decides April 1-2, 1987, to expand the scope of the June 1987 special Convention and initiate a "national debate or dialogue" on the compatibility of intercollegiate athletics with the aims and values of colleges and universities. The Commission also agrees to sponsor a resolution at the special meeting to authorize a series of studies on the effects of athletics participation on student-athletes and on college and universities. The Commission earlier called the special Convention to consider proposals addressing the costs of intercollegiate athletics and maintenance of a proper balance between athletics programs and other institutional programs. (The NCAA News, April 8, 1987)

25 years ago: The NCAA Council agrees April 7-9, 1972, to sponsor a proposal at the 1973 Convention designed to improve the Association's enforcement operation and relieve the Council of some of its workload in this area. The Council will propose that the NCAA Committee on Infractions, currently a fact-finding body, be made a judicial body with the power to try infractions cases and impose penalties. The size of the committee would expand from three to five members. Under the proposal, the NCAA enforcement staff would assume the role of fact-finder and present alleged violations to the committee. Any institution found in violation could appeal the finding to the Council. (NCAA News, April 27, 1972)