The Daily News Leader from Staunton, Virginia • 8

8 Staunton, Dally News Leader. Saturday, June 4, 1988 Weekend Sports iff mSS jmg cars lose 12-inning heorf breaker, tentionally walked Jordan to load the bases. With Campbell at the plate, Batts tried to steal home, but was out at the plate to end the inning. "We were just so close. Just inches away on Jordan's ball down the line.

By then, we were desper-(See DRAFT, page 9) off third and his throw sailed past his third baseman, allowing Batts to trot home with the Cougars' second run. A two-run lead looked safe as Rau was cruising along with a no-hitter into the sixth inning. However, The Indians' bats came to life as a walk and three singles tied the score. Rau walked Goff to open the inning and Wright followed with a single. After Simmons flied out to right, Mike Hurt and Danny Smith rapped back-to-back singles to tie the score, 2-2.

In the bottom of the seventh, veteran coach Mack Shupe began an escape act that would have made Harry Houdini look like a novice. With one out, Batts tripled over the head of centerfielder Goff, putting Draft on the threshhold of the title. Shupe then intentionally walked Ray and Aleshevich to load the bases, still with just one out. Jeff Jordan then bunted in attempt to score Batts, but Moulse third base line for what appeared to be the game-winning hit Cougar fans had been waiting for. However, the third base umpire called the ball foul, sending Batts back to second and Aleshevich back to third.

The two runners then pulled off a double steal and Coach Shupe in 4 7 -t M1 "iff 1 By STEVE COX Sports Writer CHARLOTTESVILLE "Frustrating." There wasn't much more coach Sam Alexander could say after watching his Stuarts Draft Cougars come so close before losing the state Single-A baseball to J.J. Kelly, 3-2, Friday at the University of Virginia. Johnny Wright belted a double to left-center, scoring Chris Goff with the winning run and ending what is believed to be the longest state-title game in the history of the Virginia High School League. For the second year in a row, Draft advanced to the title game only to lose to the Region champion. Last season the Cougars lost to Chatham by an identical 3-2 score.

On three separate occasions, the Cougars had the winning run standing on third base, only 90 feet away from the state crown. However, each time the Indians squirmed out of the jam. The Cougars rode the strong 7 v-fr-'-r arm of Pete Rau and the fast legs of Terry Batts to within a whisker of the win. Rau went the distance on the mound, giving up just seven hits and two earned runs. Batts drove the Indians crazy with his speed on the basepaths, scoring both Cougar runs, stealing three bases and forcing three J.J.

Kelly errors. It was Batts' speed which helped the Draft manufacture a run in the bottom of the first. The speedster beat out an infield hit and moved into scoring position by swiping second. Ryan Aleshevich moved Batts to third with a sacrifice bunt and Jeff Jordan's sacrifice fly to center scored Batts to give the Draft a 1-0 lead. In the fifth, Batts' mere presence on the bases forced Kelly to virtually give the Cougars a run.

Batts led off the inning with a bunt single and ended up at third when a pickoff attempt by pitcher Lee Moulse got away from first baseman Danis Simmons. Moulse then tried to pick Batts fielded the bunt and made the play at the plate for the second out. Brian Campbell's long fly to center ended the Cougar threat. "Jeff thought we had the squeeze on. We had a communication problem on the play," Alexander said.

Rau held the Indians at bay in the eighth and ninth and Draft had its second golden opportunity in the bottom of the ninth. Again, Batts was the catalyst. He reached first on an infield error, stole second and went to third when the catcher's throw sailed into centerfield. This set the stage for Shupe's second escape act. Again, the Indians intentionally walked Rau and Aleshevich to load the sacks for Jeff Jordan, this time with no outs.

Jordan ripped a liner up the middle which was snagged by Simmons, now pitching in relief of starter Moulse. Simmons then threw to third in time to double up Batts for the second out. Simmons then fanned Campbell to end the inning and keep the Kelly hopes alive. "I've got my No. 4 hitter up.

A fly ball, anything would have scored the runner. With no outs, I let him swing. I was ready to squeeze the run home with the next hitter," Alexander stated. "The double play just took us right out of the inning." Rau continued to post zeroes on the scoreboard in the 10th and 11th, giving Draft one more opportunity to pull out the victory. Lenny Pompeo led off with a bloop single, but was forced at second on Batts' attempted sacrifice bunt.

Rau fanned for the second out of the inning and Caoch Shupe elected to intentionally walk Aleshevich. Shupe and the Indians once again escaped, but just barely. Jordan pulled a pitch down the 1 iwi'l, RIGHT-HANDER Pete Rau goes the distance from the mound for the Cougars in their bid for the Single A Baseball Championship. The Draft lost the game in 12 innings, 3-2. STUARTS DRAFT'S Terry Batts makes a out the throw hasty retreat back to first base beating Moulse in the Experienced Wilander outlasts charged-up Agassi in semis mm -mm" I 4 1 -r" coaching at Draft piled a 96-46-7 record which includes five district championships, a regional title and a regional runner-up trophy.

Ball has also coached track and his wrestling team at Chilhowie compiled a 19-1 record over two years with two district championships and two individual state champions. "I gave a lot of thought over giving up coaching. I have enjoyed my eight years at Stuarts Draft High School but I felt this was an opportunity I couldn't turn down. "I just want to thank the people in the Stuarts Draft community for their support and especially all the players who have played for me. "And a coach cannot be a winner without the aid of a good group of assistant coaches.

Mine have put in a great deal of effort and time to make my stay at Stuarts Draft a success. "I have a great love for Stuarts Draft High School and the community and I look forward to working in the community in a different capacity," Ball said. He is a graduate of Chilhowie High School and Virginia Tech. Ball succeeds Charles Wymer who has been named assistant principal at Shelburne Junior High School. He is married to Bonnie McDonald of Baltimore and they have two children, Wendy 3 and Brian 18 months.

They reside at 680 Gloria Place in Staunton. .4 4 I I'll PARIS (AP) The clowning, yahooing, crowd-pleasing charge of Andre Agassi ended one set short of the French Open final Friday, as the 18-year-old American's legs gave out to the experience of Mats Wilander. After coming back from a 4-5 deficit to win both the fourth set and a standing ovation from the center court fans, then holding two break points in the opening game of the fifth set, Agassi fell to the two-time champion 4-6, 6-2, 7-5, 5-7, 6-0. Viewed as the latest hope to raise American men's tennis out of the doldrums, Agassi left the crowd in cheers and in stitches. He once pretended to pay off a line judge whose call went in his favor and another time took an open umbrella from a fan and carried it onto court during a shower.

"It's the first time I've seen a tennis player with that attitude," Wilander said. "I think it's great, but I think it's going to be tough for him to keep it up. It's very important for tennis that he makes it." In Sunday's championship match, his fifth in seven years, Wilander will meet llth-seeded Baseball roundup FIGHTING WILANDER Mats Wilander of Sweden backhands a ball to young opponent Andre Agassi, 18, of the United States Friday during their semifinal match of the 1988 French Tennis Open Tournament in Paris. (AP Laserphoto) JCST from J.J. Kelly pitcher Lee pick off play.

(Photos By Dee Boone) Henri Leconte of France, who smashed unseeded Jonas Svensson of Sweden 7-6, 6-2, 6-3. He is the first French finalist in Paris since Yannick Noah won the men's title in 1983. Wilander holds an 8-2 lead in career meetings with Leconte and has not lost since May 1985. "I feel great. I have nothing to lose, so I'm going to play the best I can," said Leconte.

"I know I have the public behind me and I hope they'll be there for the match against Mats." The women's title will be decided today between defending champion Steffi Graf of West Germany and 13th-seeded Natalia Zvereva of the Soviet Union. Graf, who became the youngest French Open women's champ last year at 17, is almost two years older than Zvereva. Wilander, who reached the men's final for the second year in a row and the fifth time in the last seven, allowed the punk-haired Agassi just eight points in the last set, four of them in the first game. Agassi's loss meant that for the fifth consecutive year the men's final in Paris will be played without an American contestant. It also meant that the U.S.

title third complete game of his career. Moyer is 3-0 lifetime against the Mets. He allowed a single to Mookie Wilson leading off the fourth and singles to Wilson and Keith Miller in the sixth. It was the fifth shutout by Chicago pitchers this season, equaling their 1987 total. It was only the second time this season the Mets were shut out.

AMERICAN LEAGUE Blue Jays 6, Red Sox 3 In Boston, Fred McGriff had a single, double and a triple, scoring three runs and driving in one, as the Toronto Blue Jays won their fourth straight game, a 6-3 victory over the Boston Red Sox. Kelly Gruber hit a pair of RBI doubles and Ernie Whitt drove in two runs with a sacrifice fly and a single as the Blue Jays extended Dennis "Oil Can" Boyd's pitching slump. Despite a 5-4 record, Boyd has allowed 36 runs, one unearned, in seven starts since May 3. Pitching just 33 1-3 innings in that span, he has allowed 49 hits and 17 walks with a 9.45 ERA. Royals 3, Mariners 1 In Kansas City, Bret Saber-hagen pitched a six-hitter and Kurt Stillwell hit his sixth home run as the Kansas City Royals defeated the Seattle Mariners 3-1.

Saberhagen, 7-5, struck out two and walked two Loser Mike Campbell, 3-7, went seven innings, allowing nine hits and all the Kansas City runs. Pistons earn berth finals in PONTIAC, Mich. (AP) -The Detroit Pistons, with reserve guard Vinnie Johnson scoring 24 points, earned their first trip to the NBA finals with a 95-90 victory over the Boston Celtics on Friday night. Detroit's 4-2 victory in the Eastern Conference finals marked the end of the Boston coaching career of K.C. Jones, who in April announced his retirement effective at the end of the season.

Detroit's depth overwhelmed the Celtics in the final game and in the series, and the Celtics chances dimmed considerably when center Robert Parish missed all but six minutes with a knee injury. The Pistons bench out-scored the Celtics' 46-20 in the game and 190-58 in the series. With all the Boston starters except Kevin McHale, who had 33 points, in a shooting slump, the Celtics couldn't overcome the difference. Larry Bird had 16 points and stayed under 40 percent shooting for the series. Adrian Dantley had 22 points and reserve center James Edwards 15 for the Pistons.

The Fort Wayne Pistons lost in the championship series in 1955 and 1956, and they spent only one more season in Indiana before moving to Detroit in 1957. Since then, the Pistons hadn't won a division title until this season. The Pistons will face the winner of the Western Conference finals between Dallas and the Los Angeles Lakers, who play their seventh game Saturday. The Celtics, winners of 16 NBA titles, were trying for their fifth consecutive trip to the championship round. But despite winning Game 2 in double overtime and Game 4 by one point, they couldn't overcome the shooting woes that plagued them throughout the series.

Boston, trailing by two points at halftime despite shooting 37.5 percent from the field, made only five of 19 shots in the third quarter and was outscored 27-17 in the period. Johnson had eight points in the third quarter, helping the Pistons take a 75-63 lead that was never threatened. Johnson's basket with three minutes left gave the Pistons a 93-78 lead. Boston finished the game with a 12-2 run, but the Celtics couldn't catch up and when the game was over the floor was crowded with fans celebrating the victory. Pirates' Smiley 1 -hits Expos drought in the men's field that goes back to 1955 will continue.

Wilander said that, from what he saw from the llth-ranked native of Las Vegas, the odds against U.S. success may be about to change. "He's better than what he is, he's better than No. 11," Wilander said. "On clay, he's third or fourth in the world.

The thing about him is, he doesn't mind winning matches and he doesn't mind losing matches. He has a good attitude. He's definitely going to be top 10 for years." The crowd has made Agassi its favorite visitor. After becoming the youngest U.S. man to make a Grand Slam semifinal, he gave them a farewell to savor, both in tennis and showmanship.

"I appreciate the crowd," he said. "They've been pulling for me. The crowd brings out the best in me by far." When Agassi makes a mistake, he yips in a high-pitched, cowboy-style "Yee-haw-haw." When his opponent makes a good shot, he often shouts "Yes!" and taps his racket in admiration. Indians 6, Tigers 3 In Detroit, Joe Carter became the first player in Cleveland history to hit 100 home runs and steal 100 bases, leading the Indians to a 6-3 victory over the Detroit Tigers. Carter's two-out homer started a four-run first inning against Walt Terrell, 2-3, who was knocked out in the first inning.

Carter doubled and scored the first of two second-inning runs. Cleveland exploded for seven hits and four runs in the opening inning, driving Tigers starter Walt Terrell, 2-3, from the mound. The loss ended Terrell's 11-game winning streak at Tiger Stadium, where he hadn't lost since May 11, 1987. Yankees 4, Orioles 0 In Baltimore, Tommy John, New York's 45-year-old sinkerball-er, scattered six singles in 7 2-3 innings and Claudell Washington hit a two-run homer as the Yankees beat the Baltimore Orioles 4-0. John, 4-1, walked two, struck out one and didn't allow more than one hit in an inning.

He was relieved by Cecilio Guante with two out and the bases empty in the eighth. Guante retired all four batters he faced. Rickey Henderson stole three bases, giving him 39 for the season and setting up New York's first two runs against rookie Jose Bautista, 2-4. Henderson walked to lead off the game, stole second and third and scored on a groundout by Ball leaves for ad job By HUBERT F. GRIM JR.

Sports Editor Stuarts Draft High School head football coach Ron Ball was appointed athletic director and assistant principal of the school at an Augusta County School Board Meeting Thursday night. Ball, who has been head football coach at the Draft for eight years, compiled a 53-27-3 record and has won the Skyline District title for the last three years. Prior to coming to coach the Cougars, Ball was head foot BALL ball coach at Natural Bridge High School for two years and prior to that spent four years as head football coach at Chilhowie High School in southwestern Virginia. Ball's teams have produced 14 all-state players with five going on to play on the collegiate level. His record at Natural Bridge was 13-6-1 as he guided the Rockets to a share of the district title with Parry McCluer which went on to win the state title in 1979.

At Chilhowie, Ball posted a 30-11-1 record, including two district championships and a regional championship which was played in the memorable "Freeze Bowl" at Staunton's Memorial Stadium. Overall, in 14 years as head, coach in football, Ball has com- PITTSBURGH John Smiley pitched a one-hitter and pinch-hitter Mike Diaz drove in the winning run with one out in the bottom of the ninth as the Pittsburgh Pirates defeated the Montreal Expos 2-1 Friday night. Smiley, 5-4, struck out a career-high eight and walked two in pitching the Pirates' first one-hitter since Jose DeLeon lost to Cincinnati 2-0 on Aug. 24, 1984. The only Montreal hit was a two-out triple by Tim Wallach in the fourth.

Wallach scored on Smiley's balk. With one out in the ninth, Mike LaValliere doubled against John Dopson, 1-3. John Cangelosi ran for Lavalliere and Diaz lined a single down the left-field line as the Pirates ended a three-game losing streak. It was the first time in 18 games this season the Expos had lost when leading after the seventh inning. Jose Lind tied the game in the eighth with his first major-league homer in 367 at-bats.

Dopson allowed nine hits, walked one and struck out one. Cubs 5, Mets 0 In New York, Jamie Moyer pitched a three-hitter, Ryne Sand-berg hit a three-run homer and Vance Law had four hits as the Chicago Cubs defeated the New York Mets 5-0. Moyer, 3-6, who ended a personal four-game losing streak, struck out four, walked none and retired the last 10 batters in a row. It was the second shutout and.