Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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U ndef ea Bv Tammv Kilpatrick Gamecock Staff Writer A 12-0 record in spring season play has moved the USC women's tennis team closer to national prominence, placing them in the top ten for the first time this season as the number nine team in the nation. Coach Jeff Kefalos said the team is playing as well as he expected, improving consistently as the season progresses. Undefeated in match play so far, the team will face its toughest challenge in the rnminu wppIcs when it travels to Florida to take on three top ten teams, including Miami, Florida and Rollins. Rudolf still th By Mike Chibbaro Gamecock Staff Writer When Rudolf Walter Wanderone Jr. was a young boy, he made a firm decision about what he wanted to do in life. He decided that he would do nothing; absolutely nothing. Despite this carefree attitude, Wanderone still managed to ~ 1 1 T3? J u^uuu; a uvuig icgenu. ror uumg what he refers to as "nothing" he earns anywhere from $5,000 to $100,000 an hour. . In 1959, 20th Century Fox released a movie, The Hustler, in which Jackie Gleason starred in a role patterned after Wanderone. Gleason played a slick poolshooting hustler named Minnesota Fats. After the release of the movie, Wanderone became famous world-wide as Minnesota Fats ? the king of pool. Fats was recently in Columbia to host the finals of the Greater Busch Pool Tournament. The colorful New Yorker reflected on his life as l ? r *W- <: "I did toll those guys that W drink theif brand of beer." Si,, Import ted Lady The Florida strategy will also hinge on the success of Susan Smith and Collete Bennett, number-one and number-two seeds, as well as the strong play of the rest of the team. "I feel like we're going to have to win at the top two or three spots and I'm counting on the bottom," Kefalos said. The bottom three players need to win their matches to relieve some pressure from the top three girls, Kefalos said. But he believes USC's line-up is much stronger is depth in comparison to the other teams. "I think that we have more ? i ii i _ r a 1 11 goou piayers man mosi 01 me omer teams," he said. yh Wande le king oj\ the world's greatest pool hustler. 1 "I'm proud to say that I have i never done a day's work in my life i and I have still lived like a king," he said boastfully. "The heaviest 1 th iriCf T mrnr ir? ?v?*r lif/\ ?n r? / v..l.1?, 1 V V. V?VI 1IIIVU lil llljf lilt 13 d V cuestick." i Fats explained how he has been s able to keep his life free of such i nuisances as hard work and a nine- J to-five routine. 1 "I am the greatest money-player ? in the world. I've never lost a pool < game for cash, not in New York, Siberia, Zanzibar, or Columbia, < SC. I "I've belted out all the best, I Mosconi, Greenleaf ... all of them. When you're playing for the gelt . (money), I'm the best," the always loquacious pool-shooter said. Throughout his years as a pool i champion, Fats' arch-rival has ! been Willie Mosconi. "People see hrta tv?/\ AM nnir J ? ? moBcmn dcot mc un i v ana uicy : think he's better than me, but that i just ain't the way it is. Mosconi is J the best fun player in the world, 1 1 "' : > ' n nff : rvT^^CTRgaMyp^^ i^"n 1 v/ IVS3k1 i Sak' > ' '-:- :^^Sf ' ^BL I ever started drinking, I would ant matches upcoi Gameccx BUT CONTINUED good play and more confidence should help the Lady Gamecocks on the Florida trip. USC has lost only three individual matches in anv w match so far this season. The three losses came when they defeated Georgia 6-3 on the road. "Georgia is a good team, and we've played other teams as good as them," Kefalos said. "We've beaten them 8-1 or 9-0, so I think we've made improvement since then." Hard work has contributed to the successful singles play this season, according to Kefalos. After losing two of her first matches, numberone seed Smith has won seven rone? j pool | 3ut when he plays for money he >hakes like a leaf. Like I said, lobody can beat me for money." As a young man, Fats earned his iving hustling pool in thousands of iifferent pool halls across the lation. He refers to his early life as ;ecluded and unassuming. But ifter the release of "The Hustler" lis life took on a new dimension. us odvious amniiy wun me spoken word made him a favorite among the media. "1 love to talk. One time a couple 3f guys stuck machine guns in my face to try and get me to shut up, but I kept right on talking. I've never been afraid of anybody or anything," he said. One thing Fats has never been famous for is his modesty. When questioned about his pool shooting skills, he tells tales like, "One time [ went six vears without missine a >hot." Then he boasted, "I used to spot guys seven balls in eight ball and then play them with one hand :ied behind my back. I'm the best ;here is and that's all there is to t." While Fats was in Columbia to lost the Busch pool tournament, tie says that he doesn't drink or smoke. But he did admit to having one vice. "My vice is eating. I am a famous eater. I have had all the great chefs cook for me," he commented. "One time I ate 14 cornisn nens ... l love to eat. I did tell those guys that if I ever started drinking, I would drink their brand of beer." Despite all of the clowning and boisterousness, there is a serious side to Minnesota Fats. His contributions to the world of sports have earned him such distinguished honors as "Humanitarian of the Year" and 4U? ft n * 1 a. * a* me u.a. inuusiry s "Man 01 ine Year" award. He has become a prominent ambassador for pool, for sports, and for his country. "Pool is a great game. It has provided me with a lot of opportunities for which I am very thankful. I get a great amount of satisfaction out of being a goodwill ambassador for pool. It's a real pleasure watching people get excited about pool," he explained. Fats said he enjoys being around college students and that the feeling is usually mutual. "College students have a tendency to make me out to be a hero. I guess they can relate better to someone tfho resembles Jesse James rather than some guy who claims to be Little Lord Fauntleroy." At a recent press conference in which Fats entertained the local j media, he summed up his philosophy of life. The colorful sportsman left the media with the following message. "Take it easy, but just make sure you take it.;' >v ' '.A- .V v y*s ? .X'V V-V V*-t ming cks aim f< straight. Kefalos attributes Smith's first losses to having taken too long a lay-off between the fall and spring season. But two straight weeks of playing every day have corrected the problems in bmitn s game. "She took too much time off, but she's playing really well now," he said. Kefalos said Smith will play four Ail-Americans during their trip to Florida. He believes she should have been an All-American last year, pointing out she has already beaten two of the four girls she will face. "She was better than at least 'Pt'pjHP *.V* VB| March she to get Hai By Dav< Gamecock If it's raining out, one can be all South Carolina baseball team hz season the Gamecocks have hai because of rain. The latest raint Southern. "The weather has rained them and sleeted them out and we keep coach .June Rainps sniri Out of the 10 games, one has scheduled to be made up. The G* make-up game 11-4. The UNC-Wi later in the season at Wilmington. "1 think seven or eight years a we've already had 10 and most oi the hard part about it. You can't n AS FOK MAKING up game problems for the Gamecocks. "It have a fairly full schedule they're but thftV havp a flamo TKn Ho.,r ... J D?...iv. > HV uajro W "A lot of conference teams don they get into their conference st* early April. It makes it very to Raines said. Most of the rainouts are against would like to play so that later on i at the records for rankings, US< ponents. With a 13-0 record and a se Gamecocks may not be hurt by al "I think it will hurt eventually if I beat by some good people. The I* record." The pitching staff has been af! weather. With the rain, the start five day rotation Raines would lik< miu muuwd yuur ruiauon 0111 01 W< rest." "Right now we're playing well a is nothing we can do about the we games and 18 away games remaii factor the Gamecocks cannot conti mmmrntammmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm i>r the top six of the girls who were AllAmericans last year," he said. The play of second-seed Bennett, who is undefeated in spring play, has been "great," according to Kefalos. He added that playing in luuiiioiiicuio uvci v/iiii suima helped her keep in shape as well as strengthened her serve. Kefalos said the most consistent player on the team has been thirdseed Carol Fullerton. Fullerton is also 10-0 in play, and teams with Bennett to be the number-one doubles team. "She never really had to improve any physical aspect of her game," Kefalos said. \ * u ilfils - > . i m GAMECOCK >wers start nes down E) Roback Staff Writer inost assured that the University of is a game scheduled. So far this i 10 of their 22 games postponed >ut came Monday against Georgia , (the team) out, snowed them out, on coming back and playing well," been made up and two more are imecocks beat Baptist College in a Imington washout will be made up go they had about 16 rainouts, but F them are home games and that's lake thehi up," Raines said. s, conflicting schedules present a vci y nai u oecause mosi scnoois playing. We might be off one day, e're playing, they might be off." i i't want to make them up because tedules starting in late March and ugh to make them up that way," t Division One schools that Raines in the season when the NCAA looks C will have played some top opventh place NCAA ranking, the II the rainouts, but as Raines said, ater on we go into a slump and get JCAA goes back and looks at your fected the most by the inclement KM U ? ? ? * ci a u?ve nui piicnea in tfte four or i to see. "It backs up your starters ack by giving guys too many days nd we want to keep playing. There ather," Haines said. With 24 home ning, the rain might be a negative rol.