University of Oklahoma - Sooner Yearbook (Norman, OK)

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SWIMMING Oklahomais water-soaked Big Eight mermcn took pool-side seats and watched the south-end of the Big Ten's north-bound splashers as the Western confer- ence stroked to a run-away with NCAA swim-fest honors. jeff Farrell, swimming his last race under the Sooner banner, drew a fourth place finish in the 100- yard freestyle, as no other Oklahoman reached the championship finals. Matt Mannis swimmers dropped to an eighth place tie with Northwestern's finely-stroked Wildcats, one notch below their seventh place windup in the 1957 NCAA meet. Bolstered by six returning lettermen from the 1957 conference championship swim unit, the Sooner splash- ers drowned seven dual meet opponents enroute to a repeat win in the conference tourney at Ames, Iowa. Four league rivals-Colorado, Kansas, Kansas State and Iowa State-fell in the wake of the Sooner dash to the loop title, while the Air Force academy, and Southern Methodist unsuccessfully tested the Sooner strength in extracurricular meets. Coloradois Golden BuHs wandered throught the Rockies to the CU pool to meet the Oklahomans in the first dual meet of the season, following an OU warmup in the East-West duel at Fort Lauderdale, Fla. The Buffs, stiff Sooner nemesis throughout the Big Red sports schedule, took one huge belly whopper in the opener, the Oklahomans outstroking the Buffs, 70-16. Taking on the water-laden Sooner guests at the Racing the clock, two Sooner splashers churn to the finish line as a timer checks the stop watch. The Sooner swimmers were Big Eight titlists. CU pool in the second half of a double-bill, the Air Force Falcons took the short end of a 73-13 count. Kansas, winners of the conference all-sports title in 1957, failed to include swimming on their winning ledger, dropping a 69-11 decision to the hawk-hunting Sooners in the Lawrence watershed. Next splash unit on the Big Red agenda was the ever-powerful SMU Mustang. The wild horses from Big D staged the most powerful offensive to confront the Sooners in the yet-young season, dropping a 55-31 decision, most of their points garnered on the diving boards. Kansas Stateis web-footed Wildcats watched the Sooners totally from the rear view as the Oklahomans took firsts in every event, drowning the Cats, 75-11. Southern Methodist was unable to down the Sooners in Dallas, so the Mustangs decided for a change in swim scenery. The Norman pool proved slightly less friendly, if possible, as the Oklahomans churned to a 60-26 win. Iowa State's Cyclones twisted themselves into a self-destruction whirlpool as the I-Staters blew up just enough of a breeze to puff the Mannmen over the final line with a 68-18 triumph. There are 16 events in the Big Eight title meet. lowa State won but three. The other 16 first place honors went to the OU bench, the Sooners more than doubling the Cyclone's next best score, 1792-SSM. The conference record book got a good working over by the Sooner mermen as the Oklahomans stroked to 10 new league marks. Team captain Dick Thatcher joined Carlyn Shoving off to a flying start, a Sooner splash duet dives into the field house pool in a conference swim meet. The Big Red of the water tool! first place honors in the Big Eight tourney.

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BASKETBALL the Cyclones came hack in overtime to grah a 50-56 decision. Why was the hedlam series called that? For the lourlh time in the history ol' Gallagher hall, the Sooners dumped the Ags in Stillwater. The score was 52-48, and the story lay in the laet that the Pokes were allowed only 34 shots from the field. toe King hit 18 points in his last appearance on an Qklahoma court. And then the roof fell in. Boozer and Parr joined forces for 40 points and dropped anchor on the Sooners. 68-51, in Manhattan, with Denny Priee's ll points leading the attack on Kansas State. Bedlam series number two reopened in Lawrence, Kan.. as the Sooners held Kansas to a 49-49 tie in regular time. A Kansas spurt. including the tail end of Wilt Chamberlin's 32-point spree, pulled out a 60-59 overtime victory. King led the Sooners with 23 points. The season ended on a sour note in Ames, Iowa, as Iohn Crawford and Lyle Frahm smashed OU's third place hopes with a 66-55 win, after the Big Red had maintained a 30-30 deadlock at the halt. The Sooners led the Cyclones in rebounding and shooting. Roy DeWitz, Kansas State guard, tries to break away, but Joe King gains a tie ball. K-State overcame the Sooner lead to nab a 64-60 win as Okla- homa made a bid to upset the nation's top cage team. Sooner torward Joe King loolrs like he is ready to punch the first Who closed the door? Bill Hammond tinds the gate to the Kan- TU player to move in on Larry Ivan f34l, who has iust hauled sas State basket blocked as the scrappy Sooners bowed, 64-60, down a rebound. The Sooners won, 46-38, in a Christmas tourney. to the top-ranked Wildcats 'From Manhattan. L lr -'C'w ' .fy- , tbl

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OU'S CONFERENCE SWIM TITLISTS get together in the tield house for a team picture. The mermen are, FIRST ROW, left to right: Johnnie Williams, Jim Gritifis, Harry Klug. SECOND ROW: Don Jobson, Jeff Farrell, Dick Thatcher, Bob Leonardt, SWIMMING Cruzan and Larry Lermo in a course called Record Rewriting 2U as the three teamed up to chop down six existing standards. Thatcher splashed to new marks in the 100 and 200-yard butterHy races. Cruzan set the leaguets first record in two new events, the 100 and 200-yard breast- stroke. Freestyler Lermo outdistanced existing marks in the 400-yard and the 1500-meter events. Jeff Farrell set a new mark in the 220-yard free- style, Iohn Ianovy cracked the 160-yard individual medley barrier, and two relay marks fell to the Red and White-trunked Oklahoma waterbuoys. Chuck Lechner, Bob Leonardt, Thatcher and Cruzan teamed up to break the 440-yard medley mark. The 400-yard freestyle record was blasted out of exist- ence shortly after the Big Red unit entered the water. Busting the old standard were Farrell, Leonardt, Don Iobson and Iohn Phillips. Farrell, Cruzan, Lechner, Lermo and Thatcher took first place in two conference championship races. Freshman breaststroker Gordon Collett and Don Dill, frosh freestyler, reinforced the Big Red yearling unit. Collett captured both the 100 and 200-yard breaststroke events in the Southwest conference AAU meet at Dallas. Farrell, Leonardt, 'Thatcher and diver lim Griffis concluded their swim tenure for the Sooners, while Ianovy and Allan Wilcox added additional returnee strength to the Sooner lineup. For the Sooners, who have not dropped a dual meet in three years, it was another conference title- birthday present to Matt Mann-73 years old, and looking not a day over 40. For Mann it was his third title in three years since coming to Soonerland from swim-mad Nliehigan. John Phillips, Matt Mann, coach. THIRD ROW: John Janovy, Bob Connor, Larry Lermo, Ernie Drowatzlcy, Al Wilcox. FOURTH ROW: Bob Atherton, Chuck Lechner, Carlyn Cruzan. WATERPROOF Oklahoma . . 70 Colorado . . 16 Oklahoma . . 73 Air Force . . . 13 Oklahoma . . 69 Kansas .... 1 1 Oklahoma . . 55 SMU .... 31 Oklahoma . . 75 Kansas State . . 11 Oklahoma . . 60 SMU .... 26 Oklahoma . . 68 Iowa State . . . 18 Oklahoma finished first in the Big Eight. Oklahoma finished eighth in the NCAA tourney. Swim team captain Dicli Thatcher set new conference records in the I00- and 200-yard butterfly.