National Collegiate Athletic Association

The NCAA News - Briefly in the News

March 17, 1997

Ref overcomes tornado's fury

Basketball official Keith Maxwell got more than he bargained for when he worked the recent Sun Belt Conference men's tournament.

Maxwell, an orthopedic surgeon from Asheville, North Carolina, was in his hotel room March 1, waiting to call a tournament semifinal game between the University of South Alabama and the University of Southwestern Louisiana.

The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette described what happened next:

"I was lying on my bed in underwear watching television," Maxwell told the Democrat-Gazette. "A warning ran across the set for the following counties. I don't know what county I'm in. Then I heard some people screaming in the atrium of the Holiday Inn.

"I cracked open our door and saw the ceiling tiles being ripped off the top of our hotel. I could see the edge of the thing going by, and I dived back into the room and got in the bathroom. It scared the soup out of me."

The "thing" was one of the tornadoes that left more than 20 dead across Arkansas on March 1.

"For four or five minutes," he told the Democrat-Gazette, "it was just 'Are we all OK? Are we all OK?' Then we walked out in the parking lot. You could just see the path this thing had made. I could see people gathered in the street and finally it dawned on me that, good Lord, there must be people hurt. So I went and helped."

He treated several severe cuts and helped set a compound fracture of a woman's shin.

"I've never been overwhelmed in my life," he said. "It was a poor neighborhood as it was, and then to have this kind of disaster. I just felt like crying."

Once he was satisfied he had done all he could, Maxwell drove to the coliseum and called that night's game.


Wrestling success story

A number of articles recently have focused on the sponsorship decline in men's wrestling.

However, this year there was happy news from Happy Valley, where the Pennsylvania State University wrestling team attracted the second-largest number of fans in the history of the program.

Penn State, ranked in the top five all season and posting its best dual record (16-4) since 1993, drew 26,141 fans as the Nittany Lions built a 5-1 home mark.

Penn State posted an average home attendance mark of 4,356, just 177 shy of the Penn State record of 4,533 set in the 1986-87 season -- thanks in large part to a Penn State record crowd of 11,245 that turned out to watch the then-No. 4 ranked Nittany Lions take on the then-No. 1 ranked University of Iowa Hawkeyes.

The December 6 dual meet, which Iowa won, 22-15, was the first collegiate wrestling action to be held at the 15,261-seat Jordan Center, the new $55 million facility that will be the site of the 1998 Big Ten Championships and 1999 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships.

The record crowd was the largest NCAA dual-meet crowd of the 1996-97 season and the largest crowd ever to witness a dual meet east of the Mississippi River.


BCA Convention

The Black Coaches Association will conduct its 10th annual convention May 22-24 at the Doral Golf Resort and Spa in Miami.

BCA Executive Director Rudy Washington noted that the association has provided coaches with a forum to discuss relevant issues within their respective sports and that it also has served as a means for those individuals to participate in career-development activities, educational seminars, networking and personal-growth workshops.

While the BCA is for coaches, Washington emphasized that it also is for "administrators and others involved in scholastic, intercollegiate and professional athletics who work together to improve opportunities for minorities in athletics."

Those interested in becoming BCA members or in attending the BCA convention may call Stephannie Harvey at 310/342-8253.


Record falls

Joanna Bernabei of West Liberty State University of Pennsylvania became the all-time leader in assists for women's Division II basketball February 22 in a game against Fairmont State College. The 5-foot-4 guard finished the game with 1,078 assists, surpassing the record of 1,067 set by Lisa Rice of Norfolk State University in 1995.

-- Compiled by David Pickle


Milestones

Tom Davis, head men's basketball coach at the University of Iowa, won his 500th game as a head coach March 1 with an 84-62 win over Purdue University. The win gave Davis a 500-268 mark in 26 years of coaching, including 11 at Iowa.

Florida International University's Cindy Russo became the 29th Division I women's basketball coach to win 400 games as the Golden Panthers defeated Stetson University, 63-60. Russo, who began coaching at Florida International in 1977, has compiled a 400-160 record.

Yeshiva University's Jon Halpert was honored recently by the Yeshiva athletics department for his 25 years as the most victorious men's basketball coach in school history. With 306 wins, he surpassed the record held by Red Sarachek.

Wilkes University men's basketball coach Jerry Rickrode notched his 100th career win recently with an 84-58 victory over Delaware Valley College.

Wittenberg University women's basketball coach Pam Evans earned her 200th career victory when the Tigers defeated Oberlin College, 77-49. The win brought Evans' career mark to 200-88 in her 11th season at Wittenberg.

Both Moravian College head basketball coaches recently picked up milestone victories. Women's coach Mary Beth Spirk tallied her 200th career victory when the Lady Greyhounds won in the first round of the Goombay Shootout in Nassau, Bahamas. Men's coach Jim Walker earned his 250th win in a victory over Drew University, where Walker began his head coaching career. Walker's 18-year career record stands at 256-189.

Bill Peterson, men's basketball coach at the University of Alabama, Huntsville, won his 100th career game in a 60-58 defeat of Lincoln Memorial University.

Washington University (Missouri) men's basketball coach Mark Edwards earned his 250th career victory with a win over Case Western Reserve University. Edwards, who has guided Washington to 13 consecutive winning seasons, has a 250-158 career mark in 16 years at the school.

Chaminade University men's basketball coach Al Walker reached his 100th career victory. Walker has compiled the wins at three levels of competition and in all three NCAA divisions.

Eastern New Mexico University men's basketball coach Earl Diddle recorded his 200th career win against Southwestern Assemblies of God College. Diddle is in his ninth season as the coach of the Greyhounds and his 12th as a collegiate head coach.