The Mail-Journal, Volume 26, Number 25, Milford, Kosciusko County, 5 August 1987 — Page 8
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THE MAIL-JOURNAL — Wed., August 5,1987
Sports
Thornton's priorities save life, career
Winning is the ultimate goal in professional athletics. But for one professional baseball player, baseball took on a different meaning following a 1977 automobile accident. No longer did winning individual records and team championships mean everything to Cleveland Indians’ Andre Thornton. Thornton’s life story has been well documented, especially since the 1977 accident on the Pennsylvania Turnpike that claimed the life of his wife and three-year-old daughter Only Thornton and his four-year-old son survived the crash Indeed, the event changed Thornton’s life, not to mention many others. A 19-year veteran in professional baseball, Thornton has won several prestigious awards in his career. He was named the 1978 Danny Thompson awardwinner for ‘exemplary Christian spirit in baseball,’ and the ninth annual Roberto Clemente awardwinner for ‘sportsmanship, character, community involvement and contributions to his team and baseball.' The Indians slugger also collected the American League's Comeback Player-of-the-Year award in 1978, the same year he was a member of the AL’s AllStarteam. But baseball is Thornton’s lifestyle, not life. The foundation to Thornton is his strong belief and commitment to God — Jesus Christ. He openly talks about his faith, how it embraced him during the tragic auto accident and kept him in baseball. The accident was devastating, but bearable. “There is no doubt that the accident was like tearing the insides right out of me,” says Thornton. “My first wife and I both loved the Lord. I felt God’s presence right there on the highway in Pennsylvania.” At a time when he needed someone, God was there. What a statement at a very crucial time in the player’s life. In a society that teaches individuals to live for themselves, Thornton turned away. He is one of many major leaguers living for the Creator. For Thornton, nicknamed
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‘Thunder’, the only thing outwardly intimidating is his physical size. He looks like a guy who could break a baseball bat in half — with his bare hands. But appearances can be deceiving. They are when talking about Thornton. Cleveland's designated hitter, probably in his season as a player, is a ‘softy’. His voice has been described as ‘tissue-paper soft with extra polite manners’. Quite a contrast for one of the American League's most powerful hitters in the game. On The Mark M \KK U'*' "**> WEINSTEIN * * Still, Thornton has been frustrated, despite earning sl.l million in 1987. What would please Thornton, professionally, is playing on a winning team. Oh, the teams he's played on have won games, but not pennants. When playing in Chicago, the Cubs rarely challenged for the divisional flag. It has never happened in Cleveland. Thornton’s faith has truly been tested in both cities! Still, there are more important aspects to Thornton. Life-eternal is the eventual prize for the slugger. He has endured through hardships, obviously proving his faith in God more valuable than the seven-figure contracts he’s signed. Whatever happens to Thornton, baseball speaking, no individual can say the gentle giant wasn’t a winner. He might have played on losing teams, but the Indians slugger is a winner. □ Four Wawasee Warrior regular season football games will be broadcast on Goshen's WZOWFM — 97.7 — beginning with the Warriors’ game at Northridge September 4. Jerry Hostetler will perform the play-by-play duties with Terry Skaggs serving as color
commentator. Other Warrior games on Goshen radio include Friday, Sept. 11, with Concord; and one week later at North Wood. The Goshen radio station will also cover the Goshen Jamboree Friday, Aug. 21. In addition to the live coverage, Myron Dickerson will be one of the area coaches featured on the station's Saturday morning football wrap-up show. The show intends to showcase Northern Lakes Conference football and other area schools. Former Bremen boys' head basketball coach Dean Foster has accepted the assistant basketball position at Penn High School. Foster will assist Jim Welsh At Bremen, Foster was a successful coach, leading the Lions to the school’s first sectional championship last season. He will teach elementary physical education in the Penn system. □ Wawasee High School is actively looking for someone to fill a freshman football coaching position. The vacancy occurred when Rob Hanson resigned to take the
Dawson's home run tops Pirates
PITTSBURGH - Andre Dawson hit his 32nd home run in the 11th inning to lift the Chicago Cubs past the host Pirates 3-2. The win moved Chicago within 10'/ 2 games of St. Louis, while the Pirates further in the NL East’s basement Dawson’s game-winning homer equaled his career high, set in 1983 with Montreal. The Cubs’ rightfielder hit an 0-1 pitch into the lower right field seats. EXPOS 10, CARDINALSS:Tim Raines singled to spark a fourrun fifth inning and later added a two-run homer as Montreal erased a 5-0 deficit to beat St. Louis 10-5. The loss reduced the Cardinals’ lead to s>/ 2 games over secondplace New York The Expos are third, six games off the pace. METS 5, PHILLIES 3-. Dwight Gooden (9-3) pitched a six-hitter through eight innings as the Mets won in the New York. Gooden ad-
head football job at Hammond Gavit High School. Kerry Murphy will be the coach this season. Anyone interested should contact Myron Dickerson or Hal Traviolia at Wawasee (457-3147). -□ Former University of Michigan and Los Angeles Dodger pitcher Steve Howe is expected to return to the major leagues after a three-year absence. Howe signed with the Texas Rangers organization three weeks ago, and should be in a Texas uniform sometime this week. In his rookie season with the Dodgers, Howe earned the National League’s rookie-of-the-year award. His career has never been the same — because of drug dependency — since his first campaign. □ Steve Conder, former Goshen High School swim standout, was named head coach at Goshen last week. The former Redskin will direct the boys, girls, and AAU programs. •/ Conder, a Grace College graduate, formerly coached at
ded a run-scoring single as New York won for the seventh time in eight games. REDS 10, DODGERS4:BoDiaz drove in four runs with a pair of homers as Cincinnati defeated Los Angeles 10-4. Diaz hit a solo shot in the second, then added a three-run blast in the fifth off Rick Honeycutt. BLUE JAYS 4, WHITE SOX 1: Rookie Fred McGriff hit a pair of tape-measure home runs, and John Cerutti limited Chicago totsix hits as Toronto won at Chicago. INDIANS 15, YANKEES 3:Pat Tabler drove in four runs and Ken Schrom pitched a six-hitter through seven innings as Cleveland routed the AL East leading Yankees 15-3. The loss was the Yankees’ third in their last four games as their lead over second-place Toronto was trimmed to one-half game.
Warsaw, and most recently, the Michiana Marlins. □ Fort Wayne Komets radio announcer Bob Chase will be engineering more than his radio broadcast when the Komets begin their upcoming season. Chase, who has done play-by-play for Komets games since f 953, was named the International Hockey League .club’s general manager earlier this week. Terms of Chase’s contract were not released. □ The Wawasee Warrior football team will be going after an unprecedented second-straight Northern Lakes Conference football championship when the Warriors open the season against Bremen. The home opener is set for Friday, Aug. 28. Other home games on Wawasee schedule include contests with Concord, Plymouth, and Fort Wayne Harding. The Warriors face Northridge, North Wood, Warsaw, and Goshen away from Syracuse. The lidlifter for the Warriors will be the Goshen Jamboree, Friday, Aug. 21.
ROYALS 8, TIGERS 4: Kansas City used home runs from Lonnie Smith and Steve Balboni, plus a five-run fourth inning to defeat Detroit at Tiger Stadium. The loss was the Tigers’ third straight, and fifth in their last six games. Danny Jackson (5-13) pitched his sixth complete game, while Dan Petry took the loss for Detroit. ATHLETICS 9, MARINERS 3:Jose Canseco and Terry Steibach each hit two-run singles in a five-run fifth inning rally as Oakland whipped Seattle. Steve Ontiveros (6-5) gave up only two earned runs in his seven innings of work. Physical exams, practice sessions planned at WHS SYRACUSE - Free athletic physicals will be performed at Wawasee High School Thursday, Aug. 6, from 9-12-noon according to athletic director Hal Traviolia. Dr. Thomas Krizmanich, Warsaw, and Dr. Mike Williams, North Webster, will perform the physicals. v, In other Wawasee athletic news, the Warrior volleyball team will prepare for the upcoming season when they begin practicing Monday, Aug. 10, from 9-11 a m.. Any Wawasee student interested in participating in volleyball should have completed a physical and attend the first practice. In conjunction with practice, coach Karen Albert will hold a one-week volleyball camp at the school. The camp is for students in grades 5-8 and will start Monday, Aug. 17. Camp starts at 12-noon and runs until 2 p.m.. A S2O fee is required for participating in the camp. Girls' golf coach Mark Timpe announced first practice for the golf team will be Monday, Aug. 10, at Maxwelton Golf Club. Practice begins at 9 am. and continues until 12-noon. Boys and girls cross country practice will start Monday, Aug. 10, at 7 p.m. behind the school. All runners will need a health slip and running equipment. Physicals must be completed before practicing in any Wawasee athletic sport.
Notre Dame names A.D.
SOUTH BEND - The University of Notre Dame announced Tuesday that Richard A. Rosenthal, a former bank president and Notre Dame All-American basketball player, will succeed Gene Corigan as the school’s athletic director. Corrigan resigned last month to become commissioner of the Atlantic Coast Conference. For the last 25 years, Rosenthal, 54, was chairman of the board and chief executive officer of the St. Joseph Bancorporation and St. Joseph Bank and Trust company. He resigned his bank duties in June. Rosenthal, between 1951 and 1954, was a center on the Irish basketball team. He was an AllAmerican his junior and senior seasons and eventually played -with the Fort Wayne Pistons of
CHAMPION SWIM — Andy Kryder (11-12) swims the 50-yard breaststroke during the league swimming championships in Fort Wayne two weeks ago. Kryder won the event for Wawasee. (Photo by Dave Marty)
Wawasee second at championship
FINAL STANDINGS Ist — Pocohontas 544 points; 2nd — Wawasee 509 points; 3rd — Blackhawk 365 points; 4th — Orchard Ridge274points; andsth — Pine Valley 228 points. Ist Place Finishes: 8 and under girls — 100 yd. medley relay — 1:28.58 (Team Jerri Yoder, Chandra Mathew, Cassidy Mathew, Jenny Marty); 25 yd. breast stroke — Chandra Mathew — 17.36; 25 yd. back stroke — Chandra Mathew — 19.82; 25 yd. butterfly - Chandra Mathew — 19.34 9 & 10 boys — 100 yd. medley relay (Team: Scott Metcalf, Aaron Kryder, Eric Sorensen, Tom Sorensen) Time — 1:12.73; 25 yd. back stroke — Scott Met-
' .. * WK'” • ’ STRONG EFFORT — Brandee Carlson (11-12) swims the breaststroke leg of the 100-yard medley relay during action at the league swimming championships in Fort Wayne. Wawasee placed second in the event. (Photo by Dave Marty) ",
Cubs bring up Baller, Mason, from lowa farm CHICAGO — Chicago Cubs pitcher Greg Maddux was to the minors, a day after giving up ' five runs in four innings in ’ Chicago’s 6-4 to Pittsburgh. In other changes, pitcher Ron Davis was placed on waivers, and pitchers Jay Baller and Mike Mason have been recalled from lowa.
the National Basketball Association. The Pistons have since moved to Detroit. Six candidates were interviewed for the position, with present assistant athletic director and sports information director Roger Valdiserri considered as Rosenthal’s runner-up. School officials denied the report, concerning Valdiserri, which was reported in a Chicago newspaper. Rosenthal will begin his duties immediately. Colts release Hicks INDIANAPOLIS - Four-time NFL Pro-Bowl safety Dwight Hicks was released by the Indianapolis Colts. Hicks, 31, is a nine-year veteran from the University of Michigan.
calf - 16.91; 25 yd. butterfly - Scott Metcalf (tie) — 16.12; 100 yd. individual medley — Scott Metcalf — 1:20.44; 100 yd. freestyle relay (Team: Scott Metcalf, Aaron Kryder, Eric Sorensen, Tom Sorensen) Time — 1:02.81 11 &'l2 boys — 50 yd. freestyle — Eric Schaekel — 27.16; 50 yd. breast stroke — Andy Kryder — 36.38; 50 yd. back stroke — Eric Schaekel — 32.80; 50 yd. butterfly — Andy Kryder — 30.42; 100 yd. individual medley — Andy Kryer — 1:08.62 11 & 12 girls —2OO yd. medley relay (Team: Danielle Laub, Brandee Carlson, Staci Neterer, Christy Rozow) Time — 2:22.05; 50 yd. butterfly — Brandee Carlson —32.14 13 & 14 boys — 50 yd. freestyle
I I Lt ’ L ar wl BO wl Bf /I Fl ft T1 YOUNG CHAMPIONS — Pictured above are award winners from the Wawasee Swim Club. Standing in the front are Chandra Mathew, girls' high point; Kile Metcalf, boys’ high point; and Jeri Yoder, second high-point. All swim in the eight-year-old and under group. Standing in the second row are swimmers in the 9-10 age group Pictured are Scott Metcalf, boys’ high point: Leslie Garner, girls’ high i point; Jaime Farber, girls’ second high point: and Aaron Krider boys’ second high point. Josh Lee. eight-and-undeFs second high point.
— Casey Kline — 24.80 ; 50 yd. back stroke — Casey Kline — 32.27 15 and over boys —2OO yd. medley relay (Team: Matt Fryback, Paul Morrell, Scott Rozow, Mark Rich) Time — 1:48.03; 50 yd. butterfly - Matt Fryback — 25.77 (Scott Rozow 2nd; Eric Hood 3rd all Wawasee); 200 yd. freestyle relay — (Team: Brian Neff, Scott Rozow, Mark Rich, Matt Fryback) Time — 1:34.75 15 and over girls —2OO yd. medley relay (Team: Jennifer Titus, Danielle Iwankowitsch, Staci Boles, Sherry Payne) Time — 2:09.08; 50 yd. breast stroke — Danielle Iwankowitsch — 35.82; 200 yd. freestyle relay —'(Team: Same as medley relay) Time — 1:56.78