Newspaper Page Text
8A I Thursday, November 9, 2006 | The Red & Black
SPORTS
Divers attempt to make names for themselves
By ADAM LIPPER
alipper@randb.com
When head diving coach
Dan Laak asked Webb
Worthington to finish his last
dive for the day, Worthington
couldn’t comply, as he had
already gone to the locker
room.
Georgia’s other top diver,
Genya Gouzeev, looked down
from atop the 3-meter high
springboard with a grin that
conveyed Laak’s mistake.
The other divers jokingly
recalled other instances
where Laak had misidentified
them.
The coach, who even
admits to messing up his own
kids’ names, didn’t seem to
mind the brief pause in
UP NEXT
Men’s Swimming and Diving
(6-0) at Purdue Duals
Where: West Lafayette, Ind.
When: 6 p.m. Friday and
12 p.m. Saturday
training.
When the jovial conversa
tion ended, Gouzeev’s face
suddenly became stern.
He took a deep
breath, focused and then cat
apulted off the board
spinning and twisting as he
plunged toward the blue
abyss below.
For Gouzeev, a senior, and
Worthington, a sophomore —
both among the top divers in
the SEC — the 2006 season
has gone well so far.
After hearing that
senior Chris Colwill — the
2006 National Diver of the
Year — would be red
shirted this season, Gouzeev
and Worthington were
shocked and a little disap
pointed.
But the pair knew that
since the team could no
longer depend on Colwill for
points during meets, they
would have to step up.
So far they’ve delivered.
Against No. 11 Michigan,
head coach Jack Bauerle
called the divers the “unsung
heroes” of the meet, as
Worthington finished first
overall and Gouzeev came in
n
0
GOUZEEV WORTHINGTON
second.
Their successes may be
one of the few things the two
have in common, as they have
extremely different back
grounds.
Born in Voronezh, Russia,
Gouzeev worked in the circus
as a tumbler for much of his
life.
In 2001, Gouzeev’s family
moved to Athens, and during
his junior year of high school,
he began competing on the
diving team.
Although Gouzeev is fairly
new to the sport, he claims
that his experience as a tum
bler gave him a good basis for
flipping and spinning. Yet he
still feels that he has a lot to
learn.
Worthington, on the other
hand, was introduced to
diving at a young age.
He was recruited by the
Atlanta Diving Association
and trained under Georgia
Tech coach John Ames.
At Wesleyan High School,
he was a four-time state
champion and four-time All
American.
The abilities of Gouzeev
and Worthington to fill in for
Colwill have helped the
Bulldogs to a 6-0 start.
So now the question that
everyone’s asking this
season is whether the Swim
and Dive team can go
undefeated.
“Yeah, absolutely,”
responded Worthington with
out hesitation.
Rest assured, Worthington
and Gouzeev will do their
best to make sure that
happens ... even if they have a
little fun on the way.
A few seconds later, after
that final dive, Gouzeev sur
faced, glanced at Laak and
gave an Austin Powers-like
“Yeah, baby” cry.
Laak nodded with
approval.
Lady Dogs to face
challenging opener
By TYLER ESTEP
testep@randb.com
TOM O’CONNOR | The Red & Black
A Freshman guard Ashley Houts (1) dribbles the ball past
her opponent during the exhibition against Western
Alabama on Nov. 2 in Athens.
Goodman in good
spirits despite injury
The Georgia women’s bas
ketball team will open its
2006-07 campaign with a chal
lenge this Sunday, meeting
No. 11 Rutgers in Norman,
Okla., at the State Farm Tip-
Off Classic.
Coming off a 23-9 season,
the Lady Dogs begin this year
ranked No. 9 in the nation.
The team has been less
than dominating this presea
son in two exhibition wins,
but certainly has improved
week by week as five players
work their way back from
injuries and a class of fresh
men continues to get their
feet wet.
“We’re not ready to start,”
head coach Andy Landers
said. “We’re not ready
because we have players who
aren’t in playing condition
because of injuries. But that’s
the hand we were dealt, and
we will start it.”
Freshman guard Ashley
Houts has shown marked
improvement this preseason,
and redshirt freshman
forward Angel Robinson
has been impressive on
both sides of the ball since
returning from a knee injury.
“We’re ready in the sense
that the effort and intensity
will be there,” said junior
guard/forward Megan Darrah,
who likely will return to play
ing the perimeter with the
Dogs’ new additions. “But we
have a long way to go as far as
reaching our potential.”
In addition to the injuries
and inexperience, the Lady
LADY DOGS
No. 9 Lady Bulldogs Basketball
VS No. 11 Rutgers at the State
Farm Tip-Off Classic
Where: Norman, Okla.
When: 1 p.m. Sunday
TV: ESPN2
Radio: WGMG FM (102.1)
Dogs will have to play the first
six games of the season with
out the benefit of
their top scorer and
rebounder from the past two
seasons.
Junior forward and All-
American Tasha Humphrey
was suspended by Landers for
that span after being arrested
for underage
possession of alcohol in
September.
The six-game stretch
minus Humphrey includes
two Top-25 foes — Sunday
against No. 11 Rutgers and
Nov. 26 against No. 4
Stanford.
The Lady Dogs are 6-2 all-
time, including 3-2 at neutral
sites, against the Scarlet
Knights but have not played
them since 2003.
“The hard part of this
game will probably be playing
in a gym that may be sparsely
attended,” Landers said. “If it
is anything like last year, the
home team (Oklahoma) plays
the second game and that’s
when everyone shows up. I
want people in there either
pulling for us or pulling
against us.”
“It’s exciting,” Darrah said.
“It will be good for us to see
how we match up and to play
with those type of teams ... to
play on TV and in a big tour
nament like the State Farm. I
look forward to the
challenge.”
The Dogs lost to No. 6
Baylor at last year’s State
Farm Tip-Off Classic.
By ALEX BYINGTON
abyington@randb.com
With his ACL surgery
coming up, sophomore
receiver Demiko Goodman
was walking around Butts-
Mehre Hall during
Wednesday’s practice, but
with a limp.
Goodman injured his
ACL in the first quarter of
the Kentucky game after a
collision with senior tight
end Martrez Milner.
Despite the injury, he
played the rest of the game,
even making a 29-yard first-
down reception at the end
of the second quarter.
Goodman didn’t learn of
the seriousness of his injury
until Sunday.
“I didn’t know what it
was,” Goodman said. “I
knew that my calf hurt, but
I really didn’t think about it.
I just wanted to help my
team out.”
Georgia head coach
Mark Richt praised
Goodman for his play, even
after the injury.
“He played with a lot of
energy he was blocking
extremely well, he was run
ning good routes, he was
making nice plays,” Richt
said.
Goodman, who also runs
track, expects to miss the
spring season in order to be
ready for next fall.
“I think I’ll be 100 per
cent, I think I’ll even get
faster by working harder,”
Goodman said nonchalant
ly. “That ain’t no thing for
me. I know what I can do, so
it’s all good.”
FOOTBALL NOTEBOOK
Coutu returns to
field, not as player
After kicker Andy
Bailey’s poor performance
last weekend, the kicking
game got back into full
swing this week with the
return of Brandon Coutu.
However, it was only as a
holder and tutor to senior
punter Gordon Ely-Kelso,
who is taking over kicking
duties for the Auburn game.
“I kid around with him,
saying that he has four
years of kicking to learn in a
week,” Coutu said. “It
sounds funny, but he’s got
ten a lot better in just a few
days (of practice).”
Coutu, who tore his ACL
before the Tennessee game,
has recovered quicker than
even he expected — he was
off crutches three weeks
after surgery.
“I feel good. They have to
hold me back sometimes,”
Coutu said. “I’d be out
there kicking right now if it
wasn’t for (the training
staff).”
Ely-Kelso, who last han
dled field goal duties in high
school, is looking forward to
the opportunity to kick his
first college field goal this
weekend.
“I’m comfortable. I’m
ready to go. It’s kind of an
exciting challenge for me, so
I’m ready to see how it’s
going to play out,”
Ely-Kelso said.
Downtown Athens
706-369-7^18
Why not SELL your used,
clothes for cash so you can
buy A NEW OUTFIT?
You can do ALL of that @ Cillies!
Hottest If.A. Trends
Arriving Today !!
UGA Major in J
c4gri-‘BiL(siiie<ScS
NOW ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS
GO DAWGS!
BEAT THOSE
TIGERS!
• 2 S 4 bedroom floorplans
• Furnished or unfurnished
• 12 month individual leases
• Roommate matching service
• Full size washer & dryer
• Deadbolt loch on bedrooms
• Hi-speed internet
• Swimming pool w/fountain
• Fitness center
• Sand volleyball, tennis
& basketball courts
• Computer lab & study rooms
• Game room
• Spacious storage dosels
2 Athens 5 ga 30606^ wvw.abbeyapartmeiits.com 877.389.8536
uiiiiiijj LumiiiuiD
Cash Price IncluJmf} Tax -I$13.25
jMeal Plan PartTcipants - Free
NATIONAL AWARDS
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
University of Georgia Food Services
Serving Georgia for 200 Years
NORTHEAST GEORGIA
ENT
f
3ohn TR,. ^impson M.D., D.D.S., F.A.C.S.
iB^atherine 21. ^tear P.A.-C
• Ear, Nose, & Throat
• Head & Neck Surgery
• Laser & Endoscopic Sinus Surgery
•Facial Plastic Surgery
• Tooth Whitening (Zoom 2)
• Gentle Ear Cleaning
• Vestibular Therapy (For Vertigo/Dizziness)
•Allergy Testing
• Hearing Tests
• Hearing Aids & Minor Repairs
We have two offices for your convenience:
700 Sunset Drive 314 N. Broad Street
Suite #103
Suite #210
Athens, Georgia 30606
706-546-0144 office
706-543-9203 fax
Winder, Georgia 30680
770-867-1131 office
770-307-3609 fax
Students, Faculty and Staff of the
University of Georgia
are Invited to Experience the
Credit Union Difference.
Bring this ad to either
of our Athens branch locations
and receive your first
order of checks FREE!
GEORGIA Two Great Athens Locations,
FEDERAL one Great Credit Union!
fRFDIT
UNION www.gfcuonline.org
a Unkrsity Emcees
Federal Credit Union
a&vismtfikorgiaFetkrdO'eiiiiUnm