National Collegiate Athletic Association |
The NCAA News - News and FeaturesJune 29, 1998 Streak STOPPERS
Texas and Southern California among teams to end opponents' skeins in '97-98
BY GARY T. BROWN
Six times this year at least a two-time champion stepped up to the championship platform and went home without the trophy it had been used to receiving. Perhaps the most remarkable -- at least the most prolific -- dynastic crash may have occurred when Texas' women stopped LSU's outdoor track and field championship skein at 11. For more than a decade, LSU owned the Division I Women's Outdoor Track and Field Championships, often winning the title by 30 points or more. The Tigers won championships in eight different states during that span -- from Louisiana to Oregon to North Carolina. No other school had won more than twice in the 16-year history of the event. But Texas had placed second in four of the last seven years -- by just a scant point lastyear -- and believed 1998 was its year. The Longhorns had to score 50 points on the final day, however, including 10 in the meet's final event, to knock LSU from the throne. The scoring outburst was keyed by Suziann Reid, Angie Vaughn and Erin Aldrich, each of whom won individual titles on the final day. Longhorns head coach Bev Kearney let out a Texas-sized sigh of relief when it was over. "For the last 11 years I've been battling for this championship, and to finally come through, I can't tell you what a joy it is," she said. Ironically, it was the second time in three months that the Longhorns had gored the Tigers. Texas stopped LSU's streak of five consecutive indoor track titles in March with a 30-point victory, the largest margin in the event's history.
The power-hitting Tigers beat eventual champion Southern California in the third game of the series, but lost twice to the Trojans later on. They were relegated to watching the Trojans win a homer-filled 21-14 final over Arizona State. LSU, known for its ability to hit home runs (three players entered the Series with 20 or more), looked to be in the right venue in a slugfest-type championship, but the power surge was more than even the Tigers could anticipate. LSU rapped a record eight homers against the Trojans in game three, but Southern California airmailed just as many balls during the Series as the Tigers -- 17 for each team, also a record. In fact, 62 moonshots were launched by the eight teams, one of 68 College World Series records that were either broken or tied. Pitching, not hitting It was pitching, on the other hand, that factored into Fresno State's ability to stop Arizona's two-year streak in the Women's College World Series. Scoring just one run, on a Nina Lindenberg homer in the sixth inning, the Bulldogs edged past the Wildcats and the pitching prowess of Nancy Evans. Lindenberg's homer was the first given up by Evans in a month, and it also snapped Evans' streak of scoreless innings at 38. The run, in fact, was the lone tally Arizona had allowed the entire Series. After shutting out Oklahoma State twice and Washington once on their way to the championship game, the Wildcats were on cruise control until Lindenberg put a U-turn on an Evans pitch. "Pretty much all year she has thrown me the same pitch -- the inside fastball," the Fresno State second baseman said afterward. "It was time for me to take one out." Fresno State was becoming used to finishing behind Arizona. The Bulldogs had lost two regular-season games to the Wildcats during the year and had been ousted by the Wildcats in last year's Series. Fresno State also had been familiar with the role of national runner-up, finishing second to UCLA four times from 1982 to 1990. Three in Division III There were three streak stoppers in Division III, including UC San Diego in women's volleyball. The Tritons put an end to the most dominant string in the championship's history by ending the six-year reign of Washington (Missouri). Though it was Juniata that took care of beating Washington in the semifinals, UC San Diego rallied from two games down to beat the Eagles in a five-game final. The Tritons had been familiar with streaks, having won three straight titles from 1986 to 1988, and were the last team to win a crown before Washington's dynasty began in 1991. Juniata, a three-time runner-up, had been seeking its first championship.
After fielding what may have been better regular-season teams that hadn't won a championship trophy, this year's Shoremen team struggled just to make the tournament, then bested three teams that had beaten them earlier in the year. In Division III field hockey, William Smith beat two-time defending champion College of New Jersey in regional play, then went on to down Cortland State in the final. The title was the second overall for the Herons, who also beat College of New Jersey in 1992 for their first. Senior goalkeeper Bianca Dupuis notched her school-record 42nd shutout in the Herons' 3-0 victory. Streak keepers Not every defending champion went home unhappy. In fact, there are several championships in which things seemingly never change. Kenyon's men's and women's swimming and diving teams, for instance, retained the longest college streaks anywhere by winning their 19th and 15th consecutive titles, respectively. The Lords won 11 events and set records in three relays to glide past runner-up UC San Diego by more than 330 points. Pedro Monteiro, one of several Kenyon stars, won an unprecedented fourth 200-yard butterfly. The Ladies, meanwhile, rode the performances of freestylers Marisha Stawiski and Ameila Armstrong to beat second-place Denison by some 170 points. Stawiski won a third straight 50-yard freestyle and added two other individual titles, while Armstrong won the 500-yard freestyle and the 400-yard individual medley. The next longest active streak was maintained by Arkansas' men's outdoor track team, which won a seventh straight title to join Southern California as the only teams to win at least that many titles consecutively. Robert Howard ended his collegiate career by soaring 16.97 meters (55 feet, 8 1/4 inches) to win his third straight triple jump. The victory, coupled with his triumph in the long jump, enabled him to join Arkansas' Mike Conley (1984-85) as the only individuals to sweep the events in consecutive years. Other streaks of note:
How 'bout that? And finally, this year's championships also provided some unusual occurrences:
Streak STOPPERS Championship/New Champion -- Former Champion -- (Streak) I baseball -- Southern California -- LSU (2) III men's lacrosse -- Washington (Maryland) -- Nazareth (2) III field hockey -- William Smith -- College of New Jersey (2) I women's softball -- Fresno State -- Arizona (2) I women's indoor track -- Texas -- LSU (5) I women's outdoor track -- Texas -- LSU (11) III women's volleyball -- UC San Diego -- Washington (Missouri) (6) First-Time CHAMPIONS Championship -- Winner II men's basketball -- UC Davis II men's cross country -- South Dakota I men's golf -- UNLV III men's lacrosse -- Washington (Maryland) II men's soccer -- Cal State Bakersfield Nat. Col. men's water polo -- Pepperdine III women's basketball -- Washington (Missouri) I women's cross country -- Brigham Young I women's softball -- Fresno State III softball -- Wisconsin-Stevens Point III women's tennis -- Skidmore Streaks ALIVE MEN'S SPORTS Championship/ -- Consecutive -- School -- Titles I cross country -- Stanford -- 2 III golf -- Methodist -- 5 III ice hockey -- Middlebury -- 4 I lacrosse -- Princeton -- 3 III swimming and diving -- Kenyon -- 19 I tennis -- Stanford -- 4 II tennis -- Lander -- 6 II football -- Northern Colorado -- 2 III football -- Mount Union -- 2 Nat. Col. gymnastics -- California -- 2 I swimming and diving -- Stanford -- 4 I indoor track -- Arkansas -- 2 II indoor track -- Abilene Christian -- 3 I outdoor track -- Arkansas -- 7 II outdoor track -- Abilene Christian -- 3 I wrestling -- Iowa -- 4 III wrestling -- Augsburg -- 2 WOMEN'S SPORTS Championship/ -- Consecutive -- School -- Titles I basketball -- Tennessee -- 3 II basketball -- North Dakota -- 2 II cross country -- Adams State -- 6 I field hockey -- North Carolina -- 3 II field hockey -- Bloomsburg -- 2 I golf -- Arizona State -- 2 Nat. Col. lacrosse -- Maryland -- 4 Nat. Col. rowing -- Washington -- 2 I soccer -- North Carolina -- 2 II soccer -- Franklin Pierce -- 4 III soccer -- UC San Diego -- 3 II softball -- California (Pennsylvania) -- 2 II swimming and diving -- Drury -- 2 III swimming and diving -- Kenyon -- 15 II tennis -- Lynn -- 2 II indoor track -- Abilene Christian -- 6 III indoor track -- Christopher Newport -- 2 I volleyball -- Stanford -- 2 MEN'S AND WOMEN'S SPORTS Championship/ -- Consecutive -- School -- Titles Nat. Col. fencing -- Penn State -- 4 Nat. Col. rifle -- West Virginia -- 4 1997-98 National Team ChampionsMen's sports Sport/Winner -- Total Titles Baseball Division I -- Southern California -- 12 Division II -- Tampa -- 3 Division III -- Eastern Connecticut St. -- 3 Basketball Division I -- Kentucky -- 7 Division II -- UC Davis -- 1 Division III -- Wisconsin-Platteville -- 3 Cross Country Division I -- Stanford -- 2 Division II -- South Dakota -- 1 Division III -- North Central -- 10 Football Division I-AA -- Youngstown State -- 4 Division II -- Northern Colorado -- 2 Division III -- Mount Union -- 3 Golf Division I -- UNLV -- 1 Division II -- Florida Southern -- 9 Division III -- Methodist -- 8 Gymnastics National Collegiate -- California -- 4 Ice Hockey Division I -- Michigan -- 9 Division II -- Alabama-Huntsville -- 2 Division III -- Middlebury -- 4 Lacrosse Division I -- Princeton -- 5 Division II -- Adelphi -- 5 Division III -- Washington (Maryland) -- 1 Soccer Division I -- UCLA -- 3 Division II -- Cal State Bakersfield -- 1 Division III -- Wheaton (Illinois) -- 2 Swimming and Diving Division I -- Stanford -- 8 Division II -- Cal State Bakersfield -- 9 Division III -- Kenyon -- 19 Tennis Division I -- Stanford -- 16 Division II -- Lander -- 6 Division III -- UC Santa Cruz -- 4 Track (Indoor) Division I -- Arkansas -- 14 Division II -- Abilene Christian -- 6 Division III -- Lincoln (Pennsylvania) -- 4 Track (Outdoor) Division I -- Arkansas -- 8 Division II -- St. Augustine's -- 8 Division III -- North Central -- 3 Volleyball National Collegiate -- UCLA -- 17 Water Polo National Collegiate -- Pepperdine -- 1 Wrestling Division I -- Iowa -- 18 Division II -- North Dakota State -- 2 Division III -- Augsburg -- 5 Women's sports Sport/Winner -- Total Titles Basketball Division I -- Tennessee -- 6 Division II -- North Dakota -- 2 Division III -- Washington (Missouri) -- 1 Cross Country Division I -- Brigham Young -- 1 Division II -- Adams State -- 6 Division III -- Cortland State -- 7 Field Hockey Division I -- North Carolina -- 4 Division II -- Bloomsburg -- 4 Division III -- William Smith -- 2 Golf Division I -- Arizona State -- 6 Divisions II/III -- Methodist -- 2 Gymnastics National Collegiate -- Georgia -- 4 Lacrosse Division I -- Maryland -- 6 Division III -- College of New Jersey -- 9 Rowing National Collegiate -- Washington -- 2 Soccer Division I -- North Carolina -- 14 Division II -- Franklin Pierce -- 4 Division III -- UC San Diego -- 4 Softball Division I -- Fresno State -- 1 Division II -- California (Pennsylvania) -- 2 Division III -- Wisconsin-Stevens Point -- 1 Swimming and Diving Division I -- Stanford -- 8 Division II -- Drury -- 2 Division III -- Kenyon -- 15 Tennis Division I -- Florida -- 3 Division II -- Lynn -- 2 Division III -- Skidmore -- 1 Track (Indoor) Division I -- Texas -- 4 Division II -- Abilene Christian -- 10 Division III -- Christopher Newport -- 6 Track (Outdoor) Division I -- Texas -- 2 Division II -- Abilene Christian -- 8 Division III -- Christopher Newport -- 6 Volleyball Division I -- Stanford -- 4 Division II -- West Texas A&M -- 3 Division III -- UC San Diego -- 7 Men's/women's sports Sport/Winner -- Total Titles Fencing National Collegiate -- Penn State -- 6 Rifle National Collegiate -- West Virginia -- 13 Skiing National Collegiate -- Colorado -- 14 |
A look back at the 81 NCAA championships this year reveals a few teams that may have been caught looking ahead.
In fact, this was a tough year for LSU streaks in general. The Tigers' baseball team, favored by many to walk away with a third straight College World Series title, was one of the first teams to make it to Omaha but wasn't the last to leave.
A different Washington -- Washington (Maryland) -- provided a new face at the top of Division III men's lacrosse. The Shoremen, seven times a bridesmaid, beat Nazareth after losing the last two title games in sudden-death overtime to the Golden Flyers.