
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, April 16, 1994                   TAG: 9404160032
SECTION: SPORTS                    PAGE: B-3   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: SCOTT BLANCHARD AND KATHY LOAN STAFF WRITERS
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

HOKIES' LEWIS ARRESTED

Lawrence Lewis, who scored one of the two defensive touchdowns that helped Virginia Tech's football team beat Indiana in the 1993 Poulan/Weed Eater Independence Bowl, was arrested early Thursday and charged with disorderly conduct.

Blacksburg police officers said Lewis and another man appeared to be getting into a fight with a third man as police were trying to disperse a crowd at a fast-food restaurant at about 2 a.m.

There was some shoving, the police report said, and Lewis was arrested for disorderly conduct.

Frank Beamer, the Hokies' coach, could not be reached for comment Friday, but in previous cases when a Tech player has been arrested, Beamer has withheld disciplinary action until the case has gone to court.

Also arrested early Thursday morning and charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest was former Tech basketball player Jay Purcell. Police said Purcell was involved in a fight at a Blacksburg restaurant lounge shortly before the incident that resulted in Lewis' arrest.

Purcell is accused of pushing a police officer who stepped in to break up a skirmish between Purcell and another person.

A second officer arrested Purcell, but alleges the Blacksburg native continued to resist. Disorderly conduct and resisting arrest are misdemeanors.

Blacksburg Police Lt. Walter B. Mosby said that as Purcell was being taken to a police cruiser, a crowd gathered and someone threw a rock that barely missed the officer, hitting the windshield of the patrol car.

Lewis, a Hampton native who will be a junior in the fall, is scheduled to appear in Montgomery County General District Court in Blacksburg on May 26. Purcell, who completed his eligibility this year, has a court date of May 19.

Lewis finished the '93 season as a starting defensive end for Tech, and had 35 tackles and three sacks for the Hokies. In the Independence Bowl, Lewis picked up a fumble by Indiana quarterback John Paci and ran 20 yards for a touchdown that made it 21-13. Safety Antonio Banks returned a blocked field-goal attempt 80 yards for a touchdown on the next series as Tech took a 28-13 halftime lead. The Hokies won 45-20.

by CNB