Sports Briefs: Rebel captain to play in Honolulu

Thursday, Oct. 31, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.

SUN STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS

There hasn't been much to cheer about this year at Rebel Park, but UNLV's 0-9 football team received a piece of good news Wednesday as senior offensive tackle Dennis Whitmore was selected to play in the 1997 Hula Bowl.

The 6-foot-5, 295-pound captain from Eldorado High will play for the North squad in the Jan. 19 contest at Honolulu's Aloha Stadium and will be coached by Notre Dame's Lou Holtz. Whitmore becomes the first Rebel to play in an all-star game since 1994 when Henry Bailey played in the Hula Bowl and Randy Gatewood participated in the East-West Shrine Game.

"It's a well-deserved honor," coach Jeff Horton said of Whitmore's selection. "We're excited for Dennis and for our program. It's a tribute to Dennis' hard work and dedication that he has made and continues to make during a very trying season.

"Even though we've struggled, for one of our players to be rewarded and deserves to be rewarded is exciting for our program and what people think about it on the outside."

Whitmore, who extended his consecutive streak of games started to 32 last week despite a severely sprained ankle, becomes the fifth UNLV player to participate in the Hula Bowl.

Henderson bowler leads

Wendy Macpherson of Henderson, seeking to win Player of the Year honors, moved into the stepladder finals of the $75,000 Lady Ebonite Classic at Canton, Mich., in the top spot. Macpherson posted a 24-8 match record to lead the way with a pinfall of 7,451, three pins more than Anne Marie Duggan of Edmond, Okla. Finishing third was Lisa Wagner of Bradenton, Fla., followed by Dede Davidson of Clearwater, Fla., and Kim Adler of Palm Bay, Fla. Macpherson will face the surviver of the other four qualifiers in the stepladder finals, which will be played tonight.

Coyotes call up 2 LV players

The Las Vegas Thunder lost two of its most talented defensemen Wednesday when the National Hockey League's Phoenix Coyotes recalled Jason Simon and Kevin Dahl to bolster a lineup devastated by injuries. The two were to play in Edmonton Wednesday night, but could return to Las Vegas as early as today, depending on Phoenix's needs. "We might get one or both back by (today) or for the weekend," Thunder general manager Bob Strumm said. "I know that (Coyotes executive vice president of hockey operations) Bobby Smith was impressed with them when he watched them play against Kansas City (Tuesday) night. It's part a reward thing, and part an injury situation." In the meantime, the Thunder will be in limbo in terms of replacements. Not knowing when Simon and Dahl will return leaves the team in a bind. Strumm, however, chooses to be optimistic. "I think it's great for our club," he said. "When you have NHL people in the stands watching you play, it's good for the players. Some have played well and been rewarded, and the Coyotes have even been impressed with a couple guys that don't even belong to them. From a manpower standpoint it might be a negative, but it's always good to give your players an opportunity."

Dodgers want Zeile

Los Angeles Dodges executive vice president Fred Claire said that free agent Todd Zeile is "near the top" of the club's list of players who could replace Mike Blowers at third base. "He's definitely one of the people we are interested in," Claire said. "We had our scouts watching him closely and we liked everything we saw." Zeile, 31, began the season with the Philadelphia Phillies before he was traded Aug. 29 to the Baltimore Orioles. He hit 25 homers with 99 runs batted in overall. A former UCLA standout, Zeile filed for free agency when he was told the Orioles are planning to move Cal Ripken from shortstop to third. The Dodgers on Wednesday signed bullpen stars Todd Worrell and Scott Radinsky, backup catcher Tom Prince and second baseman Chip Hale. The latter was used primarily as a pinch hitter by the Minnesota Twins.

In other baseball news:

* Tony La Russa, who brought his intense style to a new league and led the St. Louis Cardinals to the NL Central championship, won The Associated Press manager of the year award. La Russa also won in 1983 with the Chicago White Sox and in 1992 with Oakland.

* Terry Francona, third-base coach last season for the Detroit Tigers, was named Philadelphia Phillies manager. Francona, 37, was chosen over former Phillies shortstop Larry Bowa, who will not return as third-base coach, and former Kansas City Royals manager Hal McRae, who may become the Phillies' hitting coach.

Sampras loses in Paris

Top-seeded and defending champion Pete Sampras lost to Switzerland's Marc Rosset 6-4, 6-4 in the second round of the Paris Open. Third-seeded Thomas Muster withdrew with a hip injury after losing the first set 6-2 to Stefan Edberg. In other second-round matches, fifth-seeded Goran Ivanisevic lost 6-3, 6-2 to Dutchman Paul Haarhuis; 10th-seeded Marcelo Rios of Chile lost to Czech qualifier Petr Korda 6-3, 6-4; No. 14 Alberto Costa of Spain was beaten 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 by Dutch qualifier Fernon Wibier; 13th-seeded MaliVai Washington eliminated Czech Martin Damm 6-4, 6-2, and fourth-seeded Yevgeny Kafelnikov topped Frenchman Cedric Pioline 6-4, 3-6, 6-4.

In another tennis tournament:

* Top-seeded Monica Seles defeated Elena Likhovtseva 6-2, 6-1 in the second round of the Ameritech Cup at Chicago.

Whitmore