Page 12 Sporting View The National League MVP? Give it to Barby by John Musser Collegian Sports Editor Here are just some of my sportly thoughts that I just happened to write down this past weekend: ■ I don't care how often he acts like a child or gets into profane screaming matches with line judges, I still think that John McEnroe is good for tennis. He gives tennis some personality, and brings an artistry to the game that may never be seen again. Only after his retirement will people start to appreciate his playing brilliance. • While Andre Agassi certainly adds personality to the tennis circuit, his play is not as exciting to watch as McEnroe's. Of course, not many people on this planet can match Mac's brilliance on the court. If last week's U.S. Open is any indication, 19-year old Peter Sampras might have some of the creativity that McEnroe has. Plus, having a booming 120-mph serve doesn’t hurt either. • Get this: I received my NBA preview issue from Inside Sports magazine in the mail last week. This is akin to a department store advertising Christmas sales in April. In other words, it gets kind of sickening when you see these previews months in advance. I’m the kind of guy that doesn't give a damn until the season starts. • If they send me a Baseball '9l issue next month, I'll probably heave my Ho-Ho's. • I'm sure most of you saw Detroit slugger Cecil Fielder's recent stadium-clearing home run. As you read this, the ball he hit is currently passing Saturn. Really. • Speaking of Fielder, it looks as though he may keep Oakland A's outfielder Rickey Henderson from winning the AL MVP award. That's too bad, because Henderson is having one of his best seasons ever of his illustrious career. However, Fielder is having a monster year, an even bigger monster than the one Kevin Mitchell had last year for San Francisco when he won the National League MVP. • As for the NL MVP award, it's a little more difficult. This one's going to take some tools. Just cut the sucker in half and give one piece to Pirate leftfielder Barry Bonds and the other to his teammate, rightfielder Bobby Bonilla. The killer B's have been stinging all year long, and when one doesn't come through, the other usually does. Unfortunately, giving the MVP to two players on the same team may be too radical for the award's voters. • I think I have a solution to the problem in giving the NL MVP award. Let's combine Bonds and Bonilla into one person so they can both win the award. The name on the trophy: Barby Bondilla. * 1 couldn't help but laugh last week when Zane Smith blanked the New York Mets on one-hit pitching last Wednesday for the Pittsburgh Pirates. When the Bucs acquired Smith from Montreal, Mets rightfielder Darryl Strawberry referred to the lefty hurlcr as "nothing." That's exactly what the Mets hit against Smith. • By the way, Smith is 4-0 with a 1.3 S ERA (as of Sunday) since joining die Buccos. Pretty good numbers for a "nothing" pitcher. • Allow me to digress and talk about football for a moment. I assume that most everyone here saw Penn State's home opener against Texas on Saturday. For those who didn't, I'll briefly describe what the game was like: It wasn't pretty. The final score was Longhorns 17, Nittany Lions 13. • Someone better tell Mr. Jackson's agent that Bo also knows overexposure. • Remember when Sports Illustrated picked the Cleveland Indians to win the American League East a few years ago? Then they said how they would go on to be a force to be reckoned with in the '9o's? Well folks, this force has yet to be heard from in this decade. As of Tuesday, the Tribe trails the division-leading Boston Red Sox by 16 and a half games. • Say, could Chicago White Sox reliever Bobby Thigpen save a few more games for his team? Well, he has blown a few chances, but he has saved over 60 percent of Chicago's wins. • Do you know why there are so many riots by fans at European soccer games? Its not that the fans are swept up by the • competition, they're just bored. Either that, or somebody has this annoying habit of spilling his beer on the wrong person. • By the way, I have nothing against soccer. I think it's a fine sport and I even enjoy watching it occasionally, especially when the Lions have a home game. I was just joking with ya. The Collegian Lady netters lose two of three Only win comes on home coutrts by Robert Kitchen Collegian Staff Writer The Lady Lions lost their second match in a row Tuesday with their loss to local rival Gannon University. The Lady Golden Knights swept the singles competition, the five matches in straight sets. The only match win came in doubles, with Melissa Clark and Steffani Rase he in two sets. The Lady Lions dropped to 1- 2 for the season. Gannon is 1-0. The women's tennis team defeated SUNY-Fiedonia in their home opener 5-4 on September 6th. First year coach Dan Gallegos said he was pleased with the opening victory. You Make The Call: Have an opinion about Behrend sports, or competition on the collegiate or professional levels? Any comments about The Collegian's sports coverage? Speak your peace through the "Sports Mail Bag." Correspondence may be dropped off in The Collegian office. Penn State-Behrend Speaker Series "How TO GET AN IVY LEAGUE EDUCATION "LIVE" tonight at 8:06 P.M, AND REBROADCAST SUNDAY AT 6:06 P.M. Exclusively on the "TALK of Erie!" "I'm proud of them. They’ve been really working hard and there has been a lot of improvement” Sophomore Linda Marquardt saw the win as a good way to begin for the year. "We are a new team. Winning our first match was a positive way to start off the season. We are willing to play our best at every match." Singles winners for Behrend were Clark, Rasche, and Kathy Rozumny. Clark, the team's top seed, came from behind to earn her victory. Clark lost the first set, 7-5, but came back and won the next two sets, 6-2 and 6-1. Rasche (6-1, 6-4) and Rozumny (6-1,6-4) defeated their HEAR THE AWARD WINNING featuring: DR.MARTIN NEMKO AS HE ADDRESSES at a State University." wpse -*• am 1450 Thursday, September 13,1990 opponents in straight sets. In doubles, Behrend won two of the three matches. Clark- Rasche won in two sets by a score of 6-3,6-2. Linda Marquardt and Kathy Nicolls won in three sets. They lost the first 7-5 but came back to win 6-4,6-2. Behrend next traveled to Westminster College, where they suffered a 7-0 loss. None of the lady netters managed to last longer than two sets. Despite the decisiveness of die loss, Gallegos said he was not disappointed in the play of his‘ team. "As long as the ladies give it their best, there isn’t any more you can ask for."