Joey D. Richards

It's funny how things work out. Ramon Sparks and Andrew McDowell were both recruited by the University of Kansas track and field team, and it seemed like the two friends from Kansas City, Mo., were going to be competing as Jayhawks together.

Well, at least until things fell apart when it came time to sign. It seems neither Sparks or McDowell were happy with Kansas' final offer as far as scholarship money.

"If I can't have as much money as I feel like I should get, then I don't want to come at all," said McDowell, an accounting major. "I want to go somewhere else where I could get more money. It's all about graduating for me. Track has paved the way for me to get my diploma, and that's what I was coming here for. I wasn't going to college just to run track and be a track star. I wanted to be a student first and then an athlete. Track was just paying the way."

Of course, "here", at least in terms of Abilene Christian University, wasn't really on McDowell's radar at the time. But Sparks came down for a visit, and ACU made him an offer. He talked Don D. Hood -- ACU's track coach at the time -- into giving his friend McDowell a look, too, and eventually Hood extended an offer -- and McDowell accepted before he ever set foot on the campus.

It turned out to be a pretty good deal for all the parties involved. McDowell won an indoor national title as a junior in the 60-meter hurdles last season, while Sparks won an outdoor national title in the triple jump as a sophomore a few months later.

Both attended Raytown South High School in Kansas City, Mo., where they graduated in 2006, and they both feed off each other's success.

"Even in high school, we kind of worked off each other," Sparks said. "We're both pretty decent athletes. We've been friends since my freshman year in high school. Coming to college, it was like the perfect thing to come to school together. Even now, we still work off each other. Like last year, he won indoors, and it really encouraged me to go out there and win outdoors. I didn't want to go home and feel like he won a national championship and I didn't have nothing to show back home."

But the last piece of the puzzle for the two friends would be winning national titles on the same weekend, and they'll get that chance at the indoor championships this weekend (March 12-13) in Albuquerque, N.M.

"For us to both win, that would be great," McDowell said. "My mom always says Ramon is her surrogate son. She takes care of him just like she does for me."

And McDowell's parents will be making the trip to Albuquerque to see both compete this weekend.

"It would be a great thing just to share that with my family and his parents, because I'm like a son to them," McDowell said. "I pray to God that we can make that happen this weekend."

Sparks aiming for two titles

Ramon Sparks is the defending national outdoor champion in the triple jump, and he's got the best leap going into this weekend's indoor championships. But he'd like to win both the triple and long jumps. Winning the long jump won't be easy. He goes into the event with 13th best qualifying mark out of 13 athletes.

But he knows with ACU only sending six men in nine events, every point is crucial if the Wildcats hope to win their first indoor national title since 2005 when they won their eighth straight title and 11th out of the previous 13. St. Augustine's has won the last four titles.

"We're really down as a team right now, but I still feel like we can pull it off as a team," Sparks said. "If we go there and compete to our ability, we have a chance. But that's a reason I want to go out there and win (both). If I can put 20 points on the board for our team it gives us a better chance of winning as a team."

ACU's Desmond Jackson (60, 200), Amos Sang (mile run and 5,000), Landon Ehlers (pole vault) and James Hardin (heptathlon) also qualified for the indoor nationals.

ACU will be sending four women in seven events -- Wanda Hutson (60, 200), Jessica Withrow (high jump, pentathlon), Jessica Blair (pole vault, triple jump) and Anais Belledant (mile run).

Blair, a senior, goes in the pole vault competition as the No. 2 qualifier (4 meters), while Minnesota State-Mankato's Lauren Stelton is No. 1 (4.07). Hutson, a senior, is seeded No. 6 in the 60 (7.50).
Adams State is the defending women's champs. ACU has won 13 titles, its last in 2000 to culminate a streak of eight in a row.

Hereford beat Cooper 55-34 in the first round of the Region I-4A boys basketball playoffs on Wednesday in Levelland.

Hereford leads 36-24 after three quarters in the Region I-4A boys basketball playoff game in Levelland.

Hereford scored the last 10 points of the second quarter to take a 24-12 lead into the locker at halftime against Cooper in a Region I-4A bidistrict boys basketball playoff game at the Texan Dome on Wednesday in Levelland.

The Cooper boys basketball team has pushed its first-round playoff game against Hereford back a day. The Coogs will play the Whitefaces at 8 p.m. Wednesday at South Plains College's Texan Dome in Levelland. The game was scheduled for 8 p.m. Tuesday, but heavy snow in the Big Country makes travelling a bit dangerous.

ACU is still a go for its Lone Star Conference doubleheader with Eastern New Mexico, beginning with the women at 5:30 p.m. today (Tuesday, Feb. 23) at Moody Coliseum. The ACU women are tied with Angelo State for the fourth and final LSC South Division berth in the LSC tournament. Angelo plays Midwestern on Wednesday before finishing with second-place Tarleton State. After the game with Eastern, ACU plays at first-place West Texas A&M -- ranked in the top 10 nationally -- on Saturday in Canyon.

If ACU and Angelo finish tied for fourth, the Wildcats advance since they beat WT in the conference opener at Moody. The top four teams from both the LSC South and LSC North advance to the conference tournament in Bartlesville.

The ACU men won't make the tournament for the second straight year.

The Abilene Christian University women's basketball team has a big week coming up, beginning Tuesday night against Eastern New Mexico. It's the last home game for the Wildcats.

ACU goes into play tied with Angelo State for the fourth and final playoff berth in the Lone Star Conference South Division with two games remaining. The Rambelles play Midwestern State, the team that took down ACU on Saturday, before finishing up with a tough, tough game against second place Tarleton State.

After Tuesday's game with Eastern New Mexico, ACU plays first place West Texas A&M. The Lady Buffs are nationally ranked and tough to beat at home.

If Angelo and ACU finished tied for fourth, the Wildcats get the playoff berth since they beat West Texas in the season opener.

"We hope it comes down to we win (it outright)," ACU coach Shawna Lavender said. "But really, it's do or die right now. Every game is crucial, and we've talked about that before. But it comes down to tomorrow. I've told the girls we have too look at it as one game, and tomorrow's the most important game of our season. We still control our destiny, which is hard to believe right now. but we still do."

Despite a snowy forecast for Tuesday, Lavender expects the game to still be played. She said Eastern New Mexico got into town on Monday in advance of the snow and ice. So if the officials can get to the game, then it should still be played at 6 p.m. Tuesday at Moody.

Coogs waiting for decision

The Cooper boys basketball team is supposed to play Hereford in the first round of the Class 4A playoffs on Tuesday at the Texan Dome in Levelland. Of course, the game could be pushed back to Wednesday because of the anticipated snowfall on Tuesday. Cooper coach Marc Case said a decision will be made Tuesday morning.

 

Just found out that the Cooper boys basketball team will play Hereford at 8:30 p.m. Feb. 22 at South Plains College in Levelland. It's the second game of a double-header. Big Spring plays Canyon at 6 p.m. in the first game.

The Cooper boys basketball team can nail down second place with a victory over San Angelo Lake View in a District 4-4A game at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Cooper gymnasium. It's the district finale for both teams.

Cooper (14-15, 4-3) has already clinched a playoff berth. But a loss, coupled with a Plainview (17-12, 3-4) victory at Big Spring on Tuesday would leave the Coogs in a two-way tie for second with Plainview.

Lake View (14-12, 2-5) must win Tuesday's game just to create a two-team tie with Frenship (12-16, 3-5) for the fourth and final playoff berth. Frenship wrapped up district play on Friday with a 55-50 win over Big Spring (15-12, 6-1), which has already clinched the title.

If Lake View and Plainview both win on Tuesday, then there would be a three-way tie for third with Frenship, creating a three-team playoff for two spots.

 

The Cooper boys basketball team can nail down second place with a victory over San Angelo Lake View in a District 4-4A game at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Cooper gymnasium. It's the district finale for both teams.

Cooper (14-15, 4-3) has already clinched a playoff berth. But a loss, coupled with a Plainview (17-12, 3-4) victory at Big Spring on Tuesday would leave the Coogs in a two-way tie for second with Plainview.

Lake View (14-12, 2-5) must win Tuesday's game just to create a two-team tie with Frenship (12-16, 3-5) for the fourth and final playoff berth. Frenship wrapped up district play on Friday with a 55-50 win over Big Spring (15-12, 6-1), which has already clinched the title.

If Lake View and Plainview both win on Tuesday, then there would be a three-way tie for third with Frenship, creating a three-team playoff for two spots.

 

Yeah, I know some local Colts fans were upset with the Saints winning the Super Bowl. But I thought New Orleans played a great game. They played like a team with nothing to lose, while the Colts were a little too overconfident. But it was a great game, and it was nice to see New Orleans win after what the city went through with Hurricane Katrina.