Museum offers place to dream

The University Arkansas, Fayetteville, recently hosted dedication ceremonies for its newly opened Lady Razorback Museum, an on-campus facility dedicated solely to the achievements of the schoolÕs female student-athletes.

Beverly R. Lewis, womenÕs athletics director, said the goal of the unique museum is to provide young people with a chance to see women as role models and heroes.

ÒWhat we created was a special place where young girls can come and see women who are larger than life Ñ women who have dreamed the dream and achieved it,Ó Lewis said.

The museum, believed to be the first of its kind, features all 10 womenÕs sports offered at Arkansas and highlights the individual and team champions at the university in its three decades of womenÕs varsity competition.

More than just trophies, the museum features the academic achievements of female student-athletes, ArkansasÕ numerous statewide NCAA Woman of the Year recipients, and the contributions of student-athletes to their communities.

The major displays of the museum include its Wall of Champions, which celebrates the achievement of ArkansasÕ women on the national and conference level, and its Great Moments Theater, a DVD interactive theater filled with highlights from Arkansas womenÕs athletics. A giant photo mural, titled ÒCelebration,Ó circles the theater.

Located in the north lobby of Barnhill Arena, the 9,000-seat home of Arkansas volleyball and the womenÕs athletics department, the museum is open during the arenaÕs business hours and during ArkansasÕ home volleyball games.

Lewis said visiting volleyball teams that have seen the exhibit have actually interrupted practice to view the museum, and she has found little girls who have holed up in the theater for hours, watching the videos. One former athlete was brought to tears when she saw her photo on the Wall of Champions.

Lewis said the museum has turned into a much more moving experience than anyone could have predicted.

ÒThe initial goal (of the museum) was to enhance our recruiting,Ó she said. ÒBut we soon found that we were tapping into something so obvious for men and so overlooked for women. It is so natural for a boy to walk into the backyard with his bat or ball and imagine himself the hero. ItÕs because he can look on the television, read the paper or go to a museum and see men achieving success.Ó

Now when little Razorbacks Ñ who happen to be girls Ñ want to dream, they know where to go.

100 goals -- and counting

Alicia Vegas, a senior forward for the Simpson College womenÕs soccer team, became the new Division III leader in career goals with 113.

Earlier this season, Vegas became just the 10th female player in all NCAA divisions to score 100 career goals. She went on to tally 27 goals and 20 assists this season. Her total of 113 career goals ranks third among all divisions.

Football team is born again

The Stillman College football team has come back from the dead.

The TigersÕ football program, which hadnÕt fielded a team in nearly 50 years, completed its first season with something no one thought possible Ñ wins. Stillman exceeded expectations by finishing with a 3-6 record.

StillmanÕs new president, Ernest McNealey, relaunched the team last year after a poll of students, alumni and college officials showed support for the idea. Interest in the team ran quite high, as 300 students tried out and 100 made the team.

ÒI feel proud of these kids, and I donÕt think you could ask any more of them,Ó said head coach Theophilus Danzy.

ÒI think what we have done is really a great accomplishment, winning three games, considering that this is a first-year team and we only started practicing in pads two weeks before our first game,Ó said linebacker Melvin Cotton. ÒI think next season will be really great because we now know what each of us can do, and we will get better equipment to train with. That will really help us.Ó

Also on tap for Stillman is a new stadium and the construction of a fitness center.

Watch for falling treys

Three-point shots were falling all over the court when the University of MississippiÕs womenÕs basketball team defeated Bowling Green in November.

The teams combined to make 31 three-point shots in 75 attempts, breaking the NCAA record in each category. Mississippi was 17 of 41 from long range, while Bowling Green was 14 of 34 from behind the arc.

Bowling GreenÕs Angie Farmer had seven of the FalconsÕ 14 treys, tying her own single-game record.

Ñ Compiled by Kay Hawes

Looking back

5 years ago: College football attendance established an all-time high in 1994 as a total of 36,459,896 fans streamed through the turnstiles. The increase of more than 1.5 million was the single largest jump since 1970. Division I-AA recorded the biggest division increase from the previous year with 904,656. Divisions II and III increased by nearly a quarter-million fans each. (The NCAA News, January 4, 1995)

10 years ago: An Advisory Committee to Review Recommendations Regarding Distribution of Revenues is appointed by the Administrative Committee in light of the AssociationÕs newly signed $1 billion television contract with CBS. The committee will conduct hearings involving the membership to enable appropriate constituent groups to submit recommendations and commentary and develop plans for revenue distribution without establishing specific priorities. The committee will also consider the 60 percent of Division I MenÕs Basketball Championship receipts that is earmarked for distribution to the membership (rather than the 40 percent allocated to the Association) and developing new ways of disseminating those revenues to the membership. (The NCAA News, January 3, 1990)

15 years ago: Delegates prepare to vote on a proposal that would change the five-year calendar-year eligibility period in Division I to a 10-semester or 15-quarter period, as in Divisions II and III. The Council-sponsored legislation is one of 16 proposals concerning eligibility. (The NCAA News, January 2, 1985)

© 1998 National Collegiate Athletic Association