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12 I Friday, April 29, 2005 | The Red & Black
SPORTS
Lacrosse persists in
efforts for recognition
By MEGAN HARRISON
For The Red and Black
The women’s club lacrosse
team is one of the lesser
known groups on campus,
but it is making a big name
for itself around the
Southeast.
The team finished in sec
ond place in the
Southeastern Women’s
Lacrosse League champi
onship tournament last
weekend.
It also can’t hurt that the
team hosts a day long
“Bargolf” event to raise
money to help the women
compete in regional tourna
ments.
Various teams from
around the southeast came
to Athens to play lacrosse for
a day and at night participate
in a game of “Bargolf.” Each
team visited nine bars down
town — with each establish
ment giving the team $100 for
attending its bar.
After that, the team head
ed to “Hole 10” — the team’s
clubhouse — where the
women continued drinking
and kept a running score of
the drinks each girl con
sumed.
WOMEN’S LACROSSE
2nd place finish in
Southeastern Women’s Lacrosse
League championship tournament
-April 17
“It’s like golf — you want
the lowest score,” said senior
captain Leslie Jones, a native
of Fairfax County, Va. “Teams
love to come to Athens
because it is such a party
town.”
The players also worked at
a merchandise booth at least
one home football game a
year.
All this to provide the
team an opportunity to test
its lacrosse skills in the cham
pionship game.
“We improved our skill
level over the year to get to
the championship game,”
said Claire Kelly, a junior
from Alpharetta. “We main
tained our competitive edge
and played our game mental
ly.”
Along with the financial
troubles, the team still had to
overcome youth and injuries
as well.
This year’s team was rela
tively young, with 15 fresh
men, causing them to have to
get used to playing together.
The team was more seri
ous than in past years, hold
ing tryouts for the first time
and making practice manda
tory due to tougher competi
tion, said senior captain
Christina “O’Doyle” Testa.
Although two of the
teams’ three captains are
graduating, more than half
the team could come back
next year.
“We have a strong under
classman team who are very
dedicated and will help the
team grow,” Testa said.
The team hopes to
become one of the next varsi
ty sports at the University,
Testa said.
One of the reasons keep
ing the team from joining
Varsity play is the lack of
competition in the southeast,
said Testa.
Despite these challenges,
the team managed to place
second in the Southeastern
Women’s Lacrosse League
(SEWLL) for the second year
in a row after losing 8-13 to
Florida in the championship
game on April 17. The four
years before the Dogs held
the title as champions of
SEWLL.
Gym Dogs celebrate NCAA title
SPORTS NOTEBOOK
The Athletic Association will host a
“Celebration of Champions” in honor of the
2005 NCAA National Champion Gym Dogs
on Tuesday beginning at 6:30 p.m. at
Stegeman Coliseum. Admission is free and
open to the public.
The Gym Dogs won their sixth NCAA
title on April 22 in Auburn, Ala., and will
recognize the accomplishment with a
ceremony Tuesday.
Expected to speak are Georgia Athletics
Director Damon Evans, Georgia head
coach Suzanne Yoculan and members of
the 2005 National Championship squad.
In addition, a video presentation will
take place highlighting the 2005 season.
Commemorative posters will be avail
able to all attendees, and the members of
the NCAA Championship squad will be
available for autographs following the cele
bration.
Championship T-shirts are on sale online
at (www.georgiadogs.com).
Parking will be available in the Carlton
Street Parking Deck and the surface lot
outside the Dan Magill Tennis Complex.
— University Sports Communications
press release
NBA bands with MLB, NFL on
steroid policy changes
CHICAGO — The NBA and its players’
union are discussing expanded testing for
performance-enhancing drugs, and com
missioner David Stem said he is optimistic
it will be part of the new labor agreement.
Stem said he didn’t have details on what
the new testing program would cover or
how it would work.
Currently, first-year players are tested
once during training camp and up to three
times during the season, while veterans are
tested only at camp unless there is proba
ble cause for additional testing.
Penalties for positive steroid tests
include a five-game suspension for a first
offense, 10 games for a second and 25 for
subsequent offenses.
The current collective bargaining agree
ment expires June 30.
— The Associated Press
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Uga VI shines as Univ. mascot
By TONEY RAY GRIFFIN
For The Red & Black
Uga VI spends most fall Saturdays strolling
around Sanford Stadium, but the rest of the
time, when he’s back home in Savannah, a golf
cart is his preferred method of transport.
Uga VI, the living embodiment of Georgia’s
mascot, is owned by the Seiler family and lives a
life that would be the envy of most canines.
“It is an honor and a privilege for our family
since 1956 to care for all the Ugas and share him
with Bulldog fans everywhere,” said Swan
Seiler, one of four Seiler children. “We absolute
ly love this job.”
In addition to football games in the fall, Uga
VI attends countless events and fundraisers
throughout the year.
At one of his recent appearances, G-Day on
April 9, Uga VI demonstrated his usual compla
cency as he posed for photos and frequent pet
ting from eager fans.
Dressed in a red jersey with a large black ‘G’
emblazoned on the front and adorned with a
red studded leather collar, Uga VI appeared
with members of the Seiler family for photo
opportunities with Thomas Brown, Kregg
Lumpkin, Danny Ware and countless fans.
Swan Seiler credits her parents with a “spe
cial knack” for selecting all potential Ugas from
a litter. All Ugas come from the same bloodline.
“This Uga is probably the most complacent,
even tempered, yet most energetic Uga in
recent memory,” Sara Seiler said.
Swan and Sara Seiler share the responsibili
ty of caring for Uga VI with their father, Sonny,
and siblings.
Although Uga Vi’s homebase is near
Savannah, when he visits other family mem
bers, he is provided with his own guestroom.
During games early in the season, Uga either
rests on a bag of ice or returns to his air-condi
tioned doghouse, which is located in front of the
Redcoat Band.
“Except for keeping Uga cool, the only other
thing we have to worry about is putting him in
his doghouse when television camera crews are
nearby. Unlike former bulldogs, Uga VI loves to
chew the camera cables,” warned Swan Seiler.
While posing for pictures with the running
backs at G-Day, Uga VI was distracted by a golf
cart passing on the practice field near the
Butts-Mehre Sports Complex.
“Uga will sit, stand or do whatever is neces
sary for a picture. However, he does these things
when, where and how he wants to,” Swan Seiler
laughed.
A few moments later, she whistles, snaps her
DYLAN WILSON | The Red* Black
A Uga VI relaxes on a pile of ice
during this year’s G-Day game.
fingers and affectionately says “Uggie, look
here” and Uga VI restores himself to his trade
mark stance.
And Uga VI demonstrates that same obedi
ence when it’s time to head to a game or pub
licity event.
“As soon as he sees the red bag with UGA
embroidered on the side, he is ready to climb in
the red Suburban and take a trip,” said Sara
Seiler.
He occasionally flies to school sponsored
events.
Some people think Uga is a mascot whose
only responsibility is attending games.
“Anytime the school calls us, we are happy to
oblige the Alumni Association, Dr. Michael
Adams or any other patron of the University
with an appearance of Uga,” Swan Seiler said.
BCS changes don’t benefit game
Matthew Borenstein
mborenste@randb.com
▲
Some things never
change.
Example: the big shots
that run college football
almost always change the
BCS without fail each and
every off-season.
With spring practice now
complete around the country,
those that oversee college
football met this past week
in Phoenix, Ariz. to make the
annual changes to the col
lege bowl system.
The changes made:
► Starting in 2007, a
“national championship”
game will be played the week
after the four BCS bowls. In
2007, it will be played at the
site of the Fiesta bowl a week
later. This means that 10
teams will make BCS bowls.
>- All Division I-A confer
ences will have the chance to
earn an automatic birth into
a BCS game and conferences
will be evaluated on strength.
► Notre Dame will receive
BCS money even if it doesn’t
play in a BCS game.
► The BCS is looking to
create a new poll to replace
the Associated Press media
poll, which pulled itself out of
the BCS formula after last
season.
All the changes — except
for giving Notre Dame money
for doing nothing — look
great on the surface. The
changes might even show
that college football is head
ing in the right direction.
That’s not the case.
The so-called No. 1 versus
No. 2 national championship
game, although it is being
played a week later, will be
the same thing it always is —
a complete sham.
Computers, crooked
coaches and writers scared of
upsetting local fans have not
had much luck setting up a
national championship game
thus far, and that won’t
change by moving the game
back a week.
The polls still will be able
to disagree, split national
championships can still be
awarded (not a bad thing)
and college football is in the
same place it was before
these changes were made.
The new automatic quali
fying standards just make
the BCS more complicated
and less fan-friendly.
After reading an AP arti
cle on the changes multiple
times, I still could not tell
you how the conferences will
be evaluated and which ones
will end up with the auto
matic slots in BCS bowls.
The new poll: a step in the
right direction.
Those running the BCS
have suggested the new
poll’s voters will be people
who have retired from col
lege football — former
coaches and players — and
pledge to watch as many
games as possible and make
their final votes public.
This is an improvement.
This past year, writers
who voted in the AP poll
had to deal with crazed fans
(especially Texas fans)
badgering them to vote for
their team.
When the final polls were
released, they showed that
some did move the
Longhorns up and the unde
serving Longhorns made it
into a BCS game over the
more worthy team from Cal.
And an Alabama writer
who did not have Auburn
high enough in his poll had
his bosses at his paper chas
tise him — in print.
Getting rid of the writers
takes care of all those prob
lems and allows a more inde
pendent group to be voting.
As for Notre Dame, the
idea of just giving them
money without them making
a BCS bowl is so absurd,
there is no need for me to
even explain further. Have
the Irish even been a factor
in college football in the
past 10 years?
— Matthew Borenstein is
a Sports writer for The Red
& Black.