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sports Track visits Capitol
● wednesday,
On Monday afternoon members of the Texas A&M track and field national championship teams visited the Senate and the House of Representatives at the State Capitol as resolutions and speakers congratulated the Aggies on their historic accomplishments. Footage from the visit can be found at www. senate.state.tx.us/ avarchive.
june 22, 2011
● serving
texas a&m since 1893
● first paper free – additional copies $1 ● © 2011 student media
end
Aggies finish strong after 47-22 season
Aggie Athletics
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$3.51 1900 Texas Ave S & Holleman Drive www.texasgasprices.com
texas Perry revives bill Rick Perry may be picking a fight with the U.S. Justice Department by reviving a state bill to ban “intrusive” searches by airport security personnel. At Perry’s behest, state lawmakers will take up the so-called “antigroping” measure targeting airport security screeners. The federal government has threatened to cancel flights if the bill passes.
nation &world Oldest person dies A Brazilian woman listed by Guinness World Records as the world’s oldest person died Tuesday — just weeks shy of her 115th birthday. Maria Gomes Valentim died of multiple organ failure, said Helerson Lima, a spokesman for the nursing home where she lived. Valentim was born on July 9, 1896, in the city of Carangola. She lived there her entire life.
Violin sells for millions A Japanese music foundation has sold a renowned Stradivarius violin for $16 million at a London auction to raise money for tsunami disaster relief.The nonprofit Nippon Foundation said Tuesday the proceeds from selling the nearly 300-year-old violin known as the Lady Blunt will go to relief projects in northern Japan. The new owner was not identified. Associated Press
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Photos by Associated Press
Texas A&M baseball head coach Rob Childress addresses his players in the rain after losing to California 7-3 Tuesday in Omaha, Neb. Texas A&M’s Troy Stein tosses a baseball to fans as the team leaves the dugout following Tuesday’s loss against California in Omaha, Neb.
Jared Baxter: Thanks for the memories
T
here was no dramatic comeback, no rebound in the face of elimination. At least, not this time around.
California eliminates A&M from College World Series Sean Lester The Battalion OMAHA, Neb. —Sophomore right fielder Tyler Naquin stepped out of the Texas A&M dugout and looked around following Tuesday’s 7-3 loss to California that eliminated the team from the College World Series. TD Ameritrade Park had been emptied in preparation for the next game and the majority of his teammates were loading a bus to leave the ballpark. He took it all in one last time, snapped two quick pictures with his phone, turned around, and left the building. “It’s a great opportunity for our young
guys,” Texas A&M head coach Rob Childress said. “I told them, ‘Take a look around here. We’re expected to be back. I’m sorry that you didn’t play better. Not for me, not for other coaches, but for you guys that you don’t get to stay longer and experience this.’” The Aggies started sophomore Michael Wacha on the hill against California, who had lost to Virginia on Sunday go to the losers bracket game against A&M. Wacha picked up where he had left off in his last two starts, which were both elimination games, by putting zeroes on the board See World Series on page 2
The Aggies—or “Cardiac kids” —fell to perhaps an even more resilient bunch of California Bears, ending a season fans will not soon forget. Though a slight aura of disappointment lingers now, head coach Rob Childress and his fightin’ Aggies return home from Omaha knowing that not only was this season a triumphant success, but one in which the program turned a significant corner. “They weren’t given anything,” Childress said. “Getting to the World Series is a great tribute to those guys. I told the young guys to take a look around here, we expect to be back. We’ve got a great team; this team has overcome a lot.” Not since 1999 had an A&M squad reached the heights of baseball’s College World Series, and when the team took to the grand stage, it refused to go quietly into the night. The Aggies went toe-to-toe against an unfamiliar opponent in South Carolina—never played them—and after falling behind 3-1 to California, there just wasn’t enough left in the tank. See Baseball on page 4
Gonzales goes down swinging ◗ Senior catcher Kevin Gonzalez tied a career high with three hits in his last outing as an Aggie, capping off a five-year career.
grimes county
Wildfires continue to ravage Grimes County Natalee Blanchat The Battalion STONEHAM, TEXAS — The struggle to contain the Grimes County fire continues as firefighters work tirelessly to put out a fire that has destroyed 5,280 acres. At least 30 percent of the fire was contained as of 10 p.m. Tuesday. The fire started Sunday after an incident with a smoking barbecue pit in Stoneham, Texas. It has burned 30 homes as well as caused additional damage to businesses. Lexi Maxwell, wild land urban interface specialist 1 for Texas Forest Service,
said 700,000 gallons of water and fire retardant were dropped on flames in the past two days. “Right now our priority is to protect lives and structures through our proactive structure protection,” Maxwell said. Mandatory evacuations for residents of the Grimes County area were enacted Monday, causing evacuees to turn to the Red Cross Volunteer Shelter at Navasota High School for food, support and a place to rest while they wait on the status of their homes. Red Cross volunteer and shelter See Fires on page 3
ASSOCIATED PRESS
A partially melted bird house sits in the yard beside the smoldering remains of a home in Stoneham, Texas.
6/21/11 11:56 PM