CWS Is Family Affair for Select Few

By PHIL ROONEY
Associated Press Writer

OMAHA, Neb. – Texas reliever Huston Street got some fatherly advice
from a knowledgeable source before heading off to his first College
World Series.

And the freshman had good reason to listen. James Street pitched for the
Longhorns in the NCAA championships in 1968 and 1970.

“He told me I was going to want to go out and do more than I had done
before because it was the College World Series,” Huston Street said. “He
said go out there and have fun because you’re going to be on TV and in
front of a bunch of people so have as much fun as possible.”

Following his father’s advice, Street earned his 11th save of the year
with 1 2-3 innings of hitless relief Saturday night against Rice.

The Streets are the seventh known father/son combination to play in the
CWS.

“Just having him being my dad is a great thing because I gain a lot of
knowledge from him. He shares his experiences with me,” Huston Street
said.

POWER SURGE: The latest power surge at Rosenblatt Stadium had nothing to
do with home runs.

Late in Sunday night’s game between Clemson and Georgia Tech a power
surge knocked out electricity at the ballpark for a few seconds.

“Just a momentary thing and all the power kicked back on,” said Jesse
Cuevas, the stadium superintendent. “If it wasn’t for the tower lights,
you probably wouldn’t have noticed it.”

It happened just after the sixth inning, but luckily the sun was still
out when the blackout occurred. The lights and scoreboard were
functioning by the end of the seventh inning.

Cuevas said the Omaha Public Power District said the power surge
originated at a substation, but the cause was not exactly known. The
stadium experienced another one about 7 a.m. Friday when nobody but the
grounds crew was around, Cuevas said.

Sunday’s surge didn’t seem to have much of an impact, according to the
NCAA’s Jim Wright.

Some equipment had to be moved in the press box until a fuse could be
tripped, but it did have ESPN’s camera mounted behind home plate
spinning madly for about five minutes.

STADIUM VETERAN: Douglas County Sheriff’s Capt. Dan McGovern is
directing inside security at Rosenblatt Stadium for the third year.

Because of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, personnel have been increased
60 percent on his detail, but the problems have not, he said.

“People are more patient than I’ve ever seen them,” said McGovern, a
23-year veteran of the sheriff’s office. “This is absolutely all about
having a good time and watching baseball.”

Random searches with hand-held metal detectors are the biggest change.

BIG CROWD: The College World Series saw its 5 millionth fan in Omaha a
bit sooner than expected.

Three consecutive session-record crowds put the 5 millionth fan through
the gates at Rosenblatt Stadium a day earlier than expected.

The CWS topped the 5 million fan mark Saturday instead of Sunday.

The first million fans to attend the NCAA championship tournament in
Omaha took 23 years, 1950 to 1972. The 2 millionth fan arrived in 1983.
The 3 million mark fell in 1991, and 4 million went in 1997.

The total for this year’s first four sessions was 96,278, an average of
24,070 per session. That includes Sunday’s single-session record 25,581,
which had included the local favorite Nebraska-South Carolina game.