Saturday, August 22, 1992 @ Win or lose, it’s in The News. Jonathan Green 365-7266 JUST SAY NO it was cocaine — not alcohol or steroids — that ~led.to the downfall and death of hockey tough guy John Kordic, a former roommate said Wednesday. Bruce Cashman, a Quebec City gym owner who was living with Kordic as recently as a week befire his Aug.8 death, said cocaine, not alcohol or drugs, had been the real demon in Kordic’s life. SAILING SAILING LoclSPORTS Stolz smokes tennis foes in Okanagan Wl Local tennis star dominates opponents to bring home top spot from Vernon tournament Jonathan Green SPORTS REPORTER If success in tennis could be compared to an elevator ride, then Wayne Stolz looks to headed straight for the penthouse. The 15-year-old Castlegar na- tive has been on a roll of late, reaching the quarter-finals once and the semi-finals twice in the last three tournaments he has en- tered. But the idea of ‘close but no cigar’ obviously didn’t sit too well with him at a tournament in the Okanagan this week, as he cruised to victory in the Vernon Junior Open. Competing in the 16-and-under division \of the A tournament, Stolz started things off Monday morning with a convincing 6-0, 6- 0 win over Greg Carney of Port- land, Ore. ; Saying his first match was in- dicative of how the whole tourna- ment went, Stolz said every aspect of his game was solid. : “I played really good,” he said. tory, 6-3, 6-3. “He was really hard,” Stolz said. “I played good but he was re- ally good.” With Smith out of the way, Stolz got back to action Tuesday, squar- ing off against Rick Sawatsky of Vernon. : In almost a carbon copy of his match against Carney, Stolz swept Sawatsky 6-0,6-0 to earn a spot in the semi-final against Kelowna’s Steve Mulholland. + . Stolz was put to the test in the semis, dropping his only set of the entire tournament before posting a 6-1, 4-6, 6-2 victory. “His serve was just unbeliev- able,” Stolz said of Mulholland, adding that the match featured numerous long rallies. “It was like duelling.” The win put Stolz into the fi- nals, where he faced Vernon’s Ian Davidson — the tournament di- rector’s son and one of the pre- tourney favorites. . That didn’t matter to Stolz, however, as he used powerful ground strokes to dispose of Davidson in straight sets, 6-0, 6-0. “J couldn't believe I was so con- sistent every match,” Stolz said, adding that things went a little + @ Saturday, August 22, 1992 138 Racism exists even when you’re on vacation Contrary to what a lot of people feel when they return from a vacation where they were pretty much spoiled by the folks, I’m glad to be back at work. For those of you who missed me, thanks. And for those who were glad to see J.O.T.S. several thousand kilo- metres away, thanks... at least you re- alized I was gone. Now, I was really hoping I could re- turn from good times galore and write about good times galore. But, unfor- tunately, I can’t. You see, it’s all because of one par- ticular fan who was attending the same Minnesota Twins game my bud- dy and I were at two weeks ago. It’s really not a good idea in my pro- fession to assume things, because that’s when the company lawyers may have to dust off their. law books and save little Jonny’s legal hide. But in this case, I assumed that this fan (we will call him Mr. Bunker) had made several trips to the concession where they don’t serve drinks to you if you are under 21. That’s right, the beer vendor. Mr. Bunker looked to be having a good time, and who am I to deprive anyone of such a thing. As well, how much more national pastime-ish can you get than a cold beer at a baseball game? Well, maybe if mom was there with an apple pie, but the food vendors at the Metrodome aren’t too keen on you bringing in your own food. Anyway, there we were — me, my pal and the some 36,000 others in at- tendance loving their Twins when probably the most loved Twin stepped to the plate, Kirby Puckett. Or as the dome announcer calls him , “Kir-beeeeeeeee Puck-it!!!” Now, I wasn’t 100 per cent sure that Mr. Bunker shared the same love for these Twins as I or all others there did. Oh yeah, he liked them, but in a way that I don’t think I really under- stand. You see, when Puck stepped up to the plate, I thought I heard Mr. Bunker say something about “I like this little nigger.” I'll admit that the Metrodome is a pretty noisy place, so trying to hear yourself think sometimes is trouble enough without worrying too much about what someone you’ve never met before is trying to tell his buddy. So, thinking and hoping that he said something else, I turned my at- tention back to the plate. Soon after, Puckett was standing atop second base, the product of a sweet double into right-center. And then it happened again. Mr. Bunker seemed as happy with Puckett’s double as everybody else in the place, except for maybe Twins — Tom Kelly and Puckett him- self. But rather than say something cliched like “Go Twins Go” or “Nice rap on the Spot JonathanGREEN Puck”, he had his own little analysis of the play. “Did you see him round first,” he asked his seemingly boozed-up buddy. “It was like the cops were chasing him.” 4 At that point I sort of lost track about what Kent Hrbek, or Chili Davis or Brian Harper did when they came to bat for the Twins after Puck- ett. Instead, Mr. Bunker had success- fully diverted my attention to him. I watched him stagger out of his seat soon after, and it didn’t take long to figure out where he was headed af- ter he looked back and inquisitively flashed two fingers at his pal. As a reporter, I like to know what makes people tick and why they do what they do. But, I reminded myself, T’mon vacation and there’s no point in pursuing something that could only turn uglier. So, with Mr. Bunker out looking to raise his blood alcohol count even higher, it was time to get back to what I was there for, my Twins. Well, the game went on without you-know-who, but it wasn’t long be- fore he was back. Now, being a man who had attract- ed my attention, Mr. Bunker sure seemed like he wanted more than that, and he got it when he gave some lady a beer shampoo I don’t think she asked for. After making it look like the lady had something to do with it, my new friend sat back down to find some new body cavity that hadn’t yet been intro- duced to American brew that evening. And since he could have passed for John Candy’s stunt double, that prob- ably wasn’t too tough. Anyway, Shane Mack came up for the Twins and grounded out. Well that didn’t sit too well with Mr. B., who suggested to Mack that maybe he should look-for a job picking cotton. Well, the game ended shortly after, and for me and most of the people around me, it was a night of two wins. The first one was when the Twins dumped the Texas Rangers 7-4. The second one was when two ush- ers gave the boot, the bum’s rush, the heave-ho to Bunker and friend in the bottom of the 6th inning... too bad. The annual Gray Creek Regatta will take place over the Labor Day weekend at the Gray Creek Auto Camp on the east shore of Kootenay Lake. Novice to expert sailors are welcome. For more info, call Kim Deane at easier than expected. “I thought it would be really tough, but I went in positive and I played really good.” “I played consistent throughout the tournament.” A few hours later Stolz —— off against local product Mar! l Smith, who proved to be a tad Stolz said he will take a . : photo by Jonathan Green rthan Carney. After afew breather for a few weeks before jews ¢ Se ences, Stolz walked heading tothe season’s final tour- Wayne Stolz proudly displays the medal he picked up a tennis away with his second two-set vic- nament in Kelowna next month. __ tournament in Vernon this week, losing only one set in the process. Local swim clubs head to Abbotsford for payday at Provincials Dynamos future unknown as WKMSL resumes play NEWS STAFF The West Kootenay Men's Soccer League resumes play tomorrow, and one question Meanwhile, the Devils tuned up for the second half Wednesday with a hard fought 2-1 exhibition loss to league- 227-9242 or 362- 5648. NEWS STAFF Castlegar and Robson’s respec- tive swim clubs will be looking to do the area proud in Abbotsford this weekend. Twenty-six members of the Castlegar Aquanauts and 10 members of the Robson River Ot- ters will be in the Lower Main- land competing against the best from the rest of the province. Aquanaut coach Tom Carew doesn’t think the magnitude of the event will affect his squad. “Most of them have been to Provincials before so they know what they'll be up against,” he said. Since the regionals two weeks ago in Colville, Wash. both teams have been setting their sights on the task at hand, and Carew said some of the senior members have shown that in practice lately. “We've had some best times done so we're looking very good heading into the Provincials,” he said. And as good as things look now, Carew they could get better once the Aquanauts start swimming. “There’s no telling what can happen,” he said. “Some kids re- ally shock us and it usually hap- pens every year.” But as optimistic or positive as he would like to be, Carew said neither he nor the team are as pumped up as in years past. “My expectations aren't as high this year,” he said. “I’m ex- pecting them to do well, but ’'m putting things ina little more per- spective.” Carew said some team mem- bers who stood a good chance of winning in Abbotsford have cho- sen to skip the Provincials. “Some of them just don’t want to do it this year,” he said. He said factors like other com- mitments and decisions to end a long swim season early have left spots open for swimmers who wouldn’t normally have made it. “It’s a little tough to expect the same kind of performances out of those_kids,” he said. “The kids who are going are really excited, and I don’t want to take anything away from them, but I’m not go- ing to be disappointed if we don’t get the same results as in past years.” Like Carew, Otters assistant coach Tara Paulhus said there won't be disappointment if the club comes home empty-handed. She said her squad has per- formed admirably to date, so any- thing above time improvements and qualifying for finals is great. “The club has come so far this year,” she said. “That would be like a bonus.” Paulhus said the competition over the weekend will be fierce, especially from clubs in and around Vancouver. “The Lower Mainland is very powerful just because of the sheer number of kids there,” she said. But even with that in mind, Paulhus likes how the Otters will look in Abbotsford. “We've prepared them for it and we think they'll do really well.” Need acar loan? Kootenay Savings namos will return. team’s future. ent. said. forfeit games. still remaining to be answered is whether the Dexter’s Dy- Coach Ed Chaves said Thursday that he has a prac- tice scheduled for Friday, at which time he will know his He said that if enough guys show up, the team will play on. If too few show up, then things could be a little differ- “We'll probably fold,” he The Dynamos have been plagued by manpower short- ages ever since they dropped their season opener to the Hi Arrow Devils. Since then, they have yet to register a win and have even had'to postpone and And though all that took place in the first half of the season, Chaves said he doesn’t know if things will be any dif- ferent in the second half. “It’s hard to say,” he said. “Some of the guys really want to keep it going, but some are leading Nelson Savoy. ATHLETE OF THE WEEK Kevin Sutherland and the rest of the provincial fastball bronze medal winning Valley Royals By CASTLEGAR SPORTS CENTRE Sporting Goods & Fishing Tackle + Fly tying * Rod building + Local fishing info. + Athletic wear ; ; ‘ We'll make ithappen. edie “I really don’t know what’s going to happen.” 5 : 3 News file photo The Dexter's Dynamos and the Hi Arrow Devils squared off in the first game of the WKMSL season. There is a chance that that will be the only time they meet this seson 365-8288 2177 Columbia Ave., Castlegar