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Wanted: Sports writers and photogra- phers Call x8600 Volume XXI, Number 2 Western Maryland College Thursday, February 24, 2000 Wrestling wins league championship, sends 4 to NCAA Conaway won both the out- Spar/sUi/or standing wrestler award as well as The Terror wrestling team con- the first ever Chris Clifford Memo- tinued their trend of dominance, rial Award. that has been so prevalent this sea- The Clifford Award was made son, this past Saturday at the Cen- to honor the memory of Chris tennial Conference Champion- Clifford, a Gettysburg wrestler who ships, held at Johns Hopkins Uni- was killed in an automobile acci- versity, by walking away with 10 dent. place, winners and 9 medalists. The award is given to the senior This is the first time since the who was amassed the most points school joined the Centennial Con- in the Centennial Conference Tour- ference and only the second time nament over their career. in school history that the Terror has Conaway will be competing in had 10 place winners. the NCAA D-II1 championships at The Terror won the tournament Wartburg College in Waverly, Iowa title with 102.5 points, which set a on March 3rd and 4th. conference record for margin of He will be joined by teammates victory. and fellow gold medalists Vinny Their closest opponent was Get- Pedalino(l25Ibs.), Rob Johns (157 tysburg, who finished with 68 Ibs.), and Chris McNally (197Ibs.). points. Conaway .said that he is "real "This was supposed to be a re- proud of the team. They did an ex- building year for us," said recent cellent job." Centennial Conference coach ofthe He's also very happy that the year award winner John Lowe. school is sending four people to the "We are very young and things national tournament. just weren't clicking at the begin- Having four NCAA qualifiers is ning of the season, so we just went a Western Maryland College back co basics. record. • The freshmen and sophomores Johns, a sophomore transfer just went on a tear after that." from Wagner College, also com- Pedalino lost last years final on ior Brian Jones (275 lbs.) both fin- The Terror defeated Kings 23- Senior Charlie Conaway won pletely dominated his weight class a controversial call in overtime. ished third, along with senior Jon IS, but lost to Messiah 27-18. the gold medal at 184 Ibs. for the by pinning his first two opponents McNally, who spent his fresh- Pitonzo (133 lbs.) and freshman Despite the loss to Messiah, the second year ina row, flattening his in 2: 10 and 45 seconds. man season backing up junior Scott Eric Bartczak (174Ibs.). Freshman Terror finished with their best first two opponents in 57 seconds He scored a 15-6 major decision Taylor, made the most of his start- Billy Bobbitt (149 Ibs.) finished record in thirty years and their third and I :06, respectively. in the finals. ing opportunity by winning an 8-6 fourth. best record ever. Conaway won the final with a Sophomore standout Vinny decision in the finals. The Terror finished the dual The Terror also finished the dual 14-4 major decision, bringing his Pedalino made his second career Sophomore Mike Macey (141 meet season 12-3. meet season with a share of the dual school record totals for pins and trip to the conference finals and Ibs.) came up just short in the fi- The final two bouts came in a meet Centennial Conference Title. victories to 58 and liD, respec- came away a winner this season nals, losing a heartbreaker 4-3. tri-meet against Kings College and In the words of Lowe, "[the team tively. with an 8-5 decision. Taylor(l65Ibs.) and fellow jun- Messiah. is] rebuilt now." Former linebacker Selecky faces long journey to pro's DAN GADI) AND GREG LEDERER game day intensity," WMC Head "His dream is to play outside of reason and either found himself or Dean Horneff doesn't buy into' SwJfWrilers Coach Tim Keating said. this place, and I believe the man herself and went on to do some- what the prognosticators might say. For Selecky, who has had a life- needs to follow his dream," Barb thing different," Dean Homeff said. however. Former Western Maryland long love affair with the game of Horneff, Associate Dean of the "He came here to do what he She believes that the kind ofte- standout linebacker Tommy Se- football, the decision to pursue a First- Year Program, and Selecky's did and he did it and I think that naciousness with which Selecky lecky has elected nOI to return to career in pro football was a natural Faculty Advisor said. was the closure that he reached goes after things puts him in a po- school this semester in hopes of one. "It means everything that I'm From Keating's perspective, when he made that decision," she sition to beat the odds. She points fulfilling his dream of playing pro alive for, it's something I know I however, by leaving school early continued. For Selecky, there is no to the spring semester of '99, when football. can do," he said. Selecky has given up something debate, his decision has been made Selecky set the goal of acquiring The Delaware native has thus But despite all of the things that special, something he will never be and it is in the past. 3.0 GPA. returned home to train full time in he has done on the football field, able to regain. what Tom's done by He is now focused on making "If he had something to prove order to realize this dream. and the passion that he feels for the leaving early is he's not going to it at the nextlevel, and as with any- he put ISO percent into it, and I The-former Green Terror was a game, his decision is questioned by graduate with his class. thing else that he sets his sights on, think that the semester he got a 3.0 three lime All-American, and be- some who feel that finishing an That might not mean so much he has tunnel vision on accomplish- he put 150 percent into it, and I be- came only the second linebacker in education should come first. right now, I have a feeling that the ing that goal. lleve that is exactly the way that he Centennial Conference history to "I guess that I was a little bit importance of it could increase in Despite this, however, the odds lives his life," she said. be named 1st team all conference disappointed in it, but I can't tell later years," he said. seemed stacked against him. Mike Wood('OI),a WMCfoot- three times. Selecky was also you that I didn't see it coming. My For Dean Homeff, however, re- "If you look at the statistics, ball player, and teammate of named the CentenniaJ Conference's desire has been ...I want everybody alizing your individuality is every even if you went to Maryland, or Selecky's at Brandywine High Defensive Player of the Year this to come here and have a great ex- bit as important as finishing a col- Penn State or something like that, School in Delaware agrees. past season. It was not the awards, perience and graduate," Keating lege education. the odds are against you," Keating "I've never met anybody who's however, that will remain in the said. "I'm not into slandering him, said. that intense, and that determined to memories of those who saw him Selecky's situation, however, I'm not into telling him that he But in Selecky's case, Keating reach goals. He picks what he's play in a Green Terror uniform. presents a special case for some made a bad decision anymore than is quick to point out "It's impos- going to get accomplished and it "My memOries will always be, because of his open and long-stand- I would any other student who had sible to measure what's in a guy's always gets done," he said. when a lot of other things fade, the ing desire to play pro football. come to Western Maryland for one heart:" continued on page J 3