ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, March 28, 1997 TAG: 9703280095
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: FROM ASSOCIATED PRESS REPORTS
Kris Tschetter and Kathryn Marshall, each looking for a second career LPGA victory, each shot 6-under-par 66s Thursday to share the opening-round lead in the Nabisco Dinah Shore in Rancho Mirage, Calif.
Tschetter, whose only win came five years ago, sank two long putts, including a 20-footer on her second hole, en route to a bogey-free round in the LPGA's first major championship of the year.
Marshall, whose lone title came in the 1995 Toledo Classic, began her day at Mission Hills Country Club by missing the first green and carding a bogey. But she quickly settled down, birdied the next two holes, and went on to make five more birdie putts before she was through.
A group of four players - Sherri Steinhauer, Dale Eggeling, Deb Richard and Jane Geddes - were two shots behind the co-leaders at 68.
Coming in at 69 were Karrie Webb, the tour's 1996 rookie of the year; Hall of Famer Pat Bradley, the 1986 Dinah Shore champion; Dottie Pepper and Amy Fruhwirth. (Scores in Scoreboard.)
In other golf:
Sullivan 1-under: Chip Sullivan of Roanoke shot a 1-under par 71 in the first round of the Louisiana Open tournament in Lafayette, La.
Sullivan, playing this week on the Nike Tour, is nine shots behind the leader, Joe Daley, who fired a 10-under 62 at the Le Triomphe Country Club.
HOCKEY
Howe's comeback iced
Gordie Howe's comeback is on hold.
He had hoped to become the first professional hockey player to play in six consecutive decades, taking a turn on the ice for a minor league team one day after his 69th birthday.
The Syracuse Crunch of the American Hockey League, who had planned to use Howe in Tuesday's game, canceled his return. The team said it could not afford to have him make a cameo appearance because it is vying for a playoff spot.
FOOTBALL
WAC not happy
College football's Bowl Alliance reportedly has decided not to include a Western Athletic Conference champion ranked lower than No.6 in the nation.
The Daily Herald of Provo, Utah, reported Thursday that the WAC received a letter Tuesday from the Alliance explaining its decision. The WAC had proposed that its champion be included in the Alliance if ranked in the top 12.
The letter ``fell short of what we were hoping,'' said Brigham Young president Merrill Bateman, chair of the WAC President's Council. ``What they gave us was not a proposal, but a counter-offer. This is unacceptable to schools in the WAC.''
WAC champion BYU, which finished the 1996 season ranked No. 5, was snubbed by the Alliance and accepted an invitation to the Cotton Bowl.
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