SBELTON

DOT, which examined what needs to be done to the loop on the section from Interstate 35 to 1st Street, and collected input from the affected businesses and citizens.One major planned change, officials said, would be continuous one-way frontage roads. Currently, sections of the frontage road on both sides of the road are two-way.

Temple College celebrated Thursday the unveiling of the first piece of art dedicated to the new Frazier Sculpture Garden.Many braved the afternoon

WASHINGTON (AP) President Bush dispatched his proposed $1.6 trillion, 10-year tax cut on what should be a tortuous journey through Congress on Thursday, urging action because

WASHINGTON (AP) The Justice Department

For the 23 Temple representatives at the Class 5A Region IV swimming and diving meet, the focus has turned to "me" instead of "we." And it's not something they or their coach deny. "When you get to regionals, if you don't have a chance to win (as a team), you go there with one goal in mind, and that's to qualify someone at the state meet," said Temple coach Terry Jones, whose program has sent swimmers to the state meet the past 11 seasons. "You're competing as a team, but there's a lot more individuality involved as far as trying to get kids into the finals." The regionals, which are being held at the Texas Swimming Center at the University of Texas at Austin, begin with the preliminaries at 4 p.m. today. The finals begin at 4 p.m. Saturday. The top eight swimmers from the preliminaries advance to the finals, but it gets a little tricky after that. Finals winners get an automatic spot at state, but the second through fourth spots go into a pick-up system with runners-up from the other seven regions across the state. Among those, the eight remaining fastest times take the remaining at-large spots. by Greg Rajan

It's no secret that Matt Williams and David President are the catalysts behind the 11th-ranked Temple boys basketball team. Entering today's 7:30 p.m. home game against Killeen Ellison, the exploits of Temple's all-star post and point guard have dominated headlines and their star power garners the utmost attention of Temple's District 13-5A rivals. But behind the hoopla is a group that forms the team's backbone. And the contributions of these unheralded individuals have been critical to the Wildcats' 2001 ascension. Either in support or in place of Williams and President, Temple's role players have repeatedly burned the opposition with crucial individual plays. They've made the difference in several tight victories for the 25-4 Wildcats. Their impact has been particularly felt in district play, where Temple stands alone atop the standings with a 7-1 mark and has already secured a playoff berth for the second straight year. While Williams and President provide the big statistics, it's the likes of Quinton White, Travis Levie, Dominique Steamer and Dustin Pleasant that act out what Coach Bruce Etheridge calls "the rest of the story." "Honestly, we would probably be hovering around .500 and would be in serious trouble right now if weren't for the play of those guys," Etheridge said. "A lot of the things these guys specialize in aren't glamorous stats, but the little things that help us win games." by Tom Day

After Tuesday's games, most area girls basketball teams secured their postseason fates, while others must play another game to determine where they stand in the playoff order. In District 25-2A, co-champions Rogers and Salado will play today at 5 p.m. today at Holland. The winner gets a first-round bye while the loser will represent the league as the second-place team. The squads split their previous meetings. Salado took the first game, 55-42, on Dec. 20. Rogers won the rematch, 44-42, on Jan. 23. While Rogers and Salado have secured playoff spots, Rosebud-Lott must defeat district foe Jewett Leon to advance. Both are tied for third in 21-2A at 9-5, and will play on Saturday at 7 p.m. at Bremond. Rosebud-Lott defeated Leon 57-54 on Feb. 2. by Robert Hollier

KERRVILLE

Every year, Coach Dick King has a fairly good idea about what to expect from his Temple College tennis teams. He knows the men and the women will compete in the NJCAA Region V Tournament; they're already qualified for the event when the season begins. He knows the Leopards and Lady Leopards will have a good chance to advance to the NJCAA National Tournament; the men have made it there in all eight of King's seasons at TC, the women seven times. And he knows challenging for a national championship is never easy; the women's top showing at nationals under King was last spring's fourth-place finish, and the men had seventh-place efforts in 1996 and '97. As the Leopards and Lady Leopards each prepare to begin the 2001 season today and Saturday with four dual matches in Abilene, King expects more of the same from his squads this spring. by Greg Wille

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