Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, July 24, 1995 TAG: 9507240108
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: FROM ASSOCIATED PRESS AND STAFF REPORTS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
The Seminoles, riding a record 24-game league winning streak, received 59 of 60 first-place votes for 539 points Sunday from media members picking the preseason poll in Pinehurst, N.C.
Duke (1960-62), Maryland (1974-76, 1983-85) and Clemson (1986-88) are the only other teams besides Florida State to win three consecutive ACC football crowns.
Florida State, 10-1-1 a season ago, has four first-team all-conference performers back on offense, including quarterback Danny Kanell and running back Warrick Dunn.
``I've said until someone beats them, I don't see how anyone can say the [talent] gap is closing,'' said Clemson coach Tommy West. ``I guess we closed ours from 57-0 to 17-0, but we still didn't score on them.''
Virginia, one of five ACC teams that went to bowl games after the 1994 season, placed second in the poll with the other first-place vote and 433 points. (Complete poll in Scoreboard. B5)
In other sports in the region:
Marshall was picked to win the Southern Conference football championship in a preseason poll of the league's sports information directors. VMI, which will be in its second year under head coach Bill Stewart, was picked last among the Southern's nine Division I-AA football-playing schools.
The Thundering Herd, with 13 starters back from last season's 12-2 team, received six of nine first-place votes and 78 points in the balloting. Appalachian State, which was second in the conference last year behind Marshall and finished 9-4, was a close second with two first-place votes and 73 points. Western Carolina, which was picked fifth, received the other first-place vote.
Georgia Southern (53 points) was third in the voting, followed by The Citadel (48), Western Carolina (45), East Tennessee State (44), Furman (29), Tennessee-Chattanooga (23) and VMI (12).
Lighthouse/Worth of Stone Mountain, Ga., rolled up a 6-0 record and beat Bell/Sunbelt/Easton of Tampa, Fla., 25-17 in the championship final of the Dudley Classic U.S. Slow-pitch Softball Association NIT tournament at Salem's Municipal Field.
In the final, Lighthouse/Worth scored 14 runs and hit seven home runs - all over the baseball wall - in the top of the seventh inning. Earlier, Lighthouse/Worth beat Bell/Sunbelt/Easton 33-23 in the winners' bracket final. Lighthouse hit 13 homers in that game.
Lighthouse/Worth belted 90 home runs in six games, all at Municipal Field. Shen/Valley of Bridgewater hit 98 homers in seven games.
Brian Greer of Bell/Sunbelt/Easton took the home run trophy, with 16.
Ricky Huggins, a 42-year-old grandfather, shared pitching duties with Carver and batted .690 in winning tournament MVP honors.
by CNB