THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
SPORTS
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2005
WWW.KANSAN.COM
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Senior guard Aquanita Burras lays the ball up during the second half of a home game against Nebraska last season. The basketball team plays their first game its Sunday against Pittsburg State in Allen Fieldhouse
PAGE 11A
Kansas file photo
Spotlight season begins at home
BY MICHAEL PHILLIPS
mphillips@kansan.com
KANSAN SPORTWRITER
The women's basketball season tips off Sunday afternoon with an exhibition game against Pittsburg State. The game begins at 1 p.m. and admission is free for students with a KUID. It will be the first game as a Jayhawk for six of the team's 12 players.
While the new players will be in the spotlight on Sunday, the veteran players will take the court for the opening tipoff.
Kansas women's basketball coach Bonnie Henrickson said the starting line up would not be announced until the weekend, but it was likely that returning players Erica Hallman, Taylor McIntosh, Crystal Kemp and Kaylee Brown would fill the first four starting spots.
tion between freshman Ivana Catic and junior Shaquina Mosley.
At point guard it will be a rota-
"I think we're ready to play someone else and find out what we've worked on and improved on," Henrickson said.
She said the team had a high energy level in practice this week and was ready to begin the season.
The game comes just three weeks after Late Night in the Phog, the official start of the basketball season. This year NCAA rules allowed the players some practice time in the weeks before the season, which the Jayhawks mainly used for conditioning work.
For the Pittsburg State Gorillas, it will also be the first exhibition game of the season.
The team has already had a rough preseason, losing junior Janelle Klein to a season-ending injury. Klein averaged 15.9 points per game for the team last season.
That leaves juniors Maggie Apt and Nikki Pierce and sophomore Tracy Patry as the team's leaders. All three starting guards from last season are no longer with the team.
Gorillas head coach Steve High, entering his 17th season, said it was tough to have the team fully prepared this early in the season.
"I'm like any other coach that's coached a long time," he said. "You never think your team is ready to play."Pittsburg State's rookies will get the opportunity to play their first game in one of college basketball's most storied venues.
For fans of the game, it will be an opportunity to see the future stars of both schools playing their first game of collegiate basketball.
"We have a lot of Kansas high school kids," High said, "and anybody that understands the history of basketball would be excited about the chance to play in Allen Fieldhouse."
— Edited by Patrick Ross
CROSS COUNTRY
Jayhawks join ranks of Academic All Big 12
BY ANTONIO MENDOZA
amendoa@kansan.com
KANSAN SPORTWRITER
The Kansas men's cross country team is making strides on the course and, along with the women's team, is making strides in the classroom as well. The Jayhawks moved up once again in the Men's Mondo Cross Country poll to No.12, claiming the No.1 ranking in the Midwest Region.
"Our ranking is only as good as we run, so we are not going to be overwhelmed because we are ranked a certain position," cross country coach Stanley Redwine said. "We have to go out there and continue to do what we do, and that is to run well."
As long as the team runs well, the rankings will take care of themselves, Redwine said. Kansas is proving itself both in the rankings and academically.
Kansas follows the lead of sophomore Colby Wissel at the Bob Timmons Invitational on Sept. 3 in Lawrence. Fourteen members of the cross country teams received academic honors.
On Oct. 25, 14 members from both the men and women's teams were named to the Academic All Big 12 cross country team. Seven out of the 14 men's team members were named, and seven out of the 15 women's team members were named.
"We're about academics as much as we are about athletics, so that means they are achieving in the classrooms," Redwine said. "Although it was 14 of them, you wish it was all of them."
For a team member to be placed on the Academic All Big 12 team, the athlete must have a cumulative GPA of 3.00 or higher for the previous two semesters. The athlete must also participate in 60 percent of the team's schedule.
"It's a big honor to be recognized as part of this University and part of the KU cross country team
and being recognized not only as a student but also as an athlete" senior Joshy Madathil said.
The Big 12 Conference divides its academic teams into both a first and second team. The men's cross country first team consists of 38 students, while the second team has 11. The women have 51队 members on the first team, and 11 on the second team. To be on the first team, a player must have a 3.20 GPA or higher. The second team requires a 3.00 to a 3.19
The Kansas cross country team will not be racing this weekend, but it will be back in action on Nov. 12, in Iowa City, Iowa at the Midwest Regional Championship.
Women's First Team Academic All Big 12:
BREAKBOX
- Edited by Anne Burgard
- junior Christine Lathrop and sophomore Alicia McGregor.
sophomore Connie Abbott, sophomore Hayley Harbert, junior Laura Major, junior Melissa Moody, junior Dena Seibel.
Second Team:
Men's First Team Academic All Big 12:
sophomore Nick Brennan, sophomore Paul Hofferon, senior Joshy Madathil, junior Brennan Metzler, senior Cameron Schwehr, and junior Erik Sloan.
Second Team:
♦ juniorTyler Kelly
Source: www.kuathletics.com
SOCCER
Senior forward Jessica Smith tracks Missouri junior midfielder Meggie Malm down the field during the Jayhawks' last home game on Oct. 28. The NCAA will announce Monday whether Kansas qualifies for its tournament.
Kansan file photo
Early exit Jayhawks still look to NCAA Tournament
The Kansas soccer team is still confident about its chances of being selected to the NCAA Tournament despite a round one Big 12 tournament loss.
BY ALISSA BAUER
abauer@kansan.com
KANSAN SPORTWRITER
No. 22 Nebraska (13-6-1 overall, 1-0-0 postseason) sent Kansas (11-7-2 overall, 0-1-0 postseason) home from San Antonio early on Wednesday. But the 3-1 defeat only helped produce an even more determined Jayhawk squad.
"Sometimes things happen for a reason," senior forward Caroline Smith said.
The Jayhawks will have more than a couple days after the Wednesday loss. The NCAA Tournament doesn't begin until next Friday. On Monday, the Jayhawks will gather around a TV at 4 p.m. to watch the bid selection, which will determine whether their post-season will continue.
"This will give us some time to recover, and hopefully we'll be in the bid on Monday. Maybe we just need a couple days to regroup before it really counts."
Kansas soccer coach Mark Francis said, before the Big 12 tournament, that his team would need to produce victories in San Antonio to help its campaign toward the NCAA Tournament. The one-and-done result could now hinder the Jayhawks' chances.
"I think we'll be in the tournament," Francis said. "We have enough good wins and we don't really have any 'bad' losses. We've played a very tough schedule and have won six of our last eight. All of those things help."
loss, the team still won 75 percent of its games in the last month of the season. The NCAA makes selections based on a team's latest form.
The tough schedule comes mainly from being in a winning conference. At the conclusion of regular season play, five Big 12 teams crammed themselves into first and second place, each with six or more conference victories.
But Kansas has put itself in a spot that will make it difficult not to obtain a bid. Despite the first round
"I think our chances are very good," Smith said of her team making it into the tournament. "We've had good showings, too, which is important. There have
SEE EXIT ON PAGE 6A
THE COLUMN
JIMMY CHAVEZ
JCHAVEZ@KANSAN.COM
Or maybe the feelings you had when the football team had landmark victories against Missouri in 2003 and Kansas State in 2004.
Forget Mizzou, defeat Nebraska
Think of how many times during your college years that there is a truly special moment in terms of school camaraderie.
If this is your last year at Kansas, then of course you will talk about the scene in Lawrence following the men's basketball team's flirtation with National Championships in 2002 and 2003.
These are the moments that seem to be recalled when you're around friends or just casually discussing Kansas athletics in the Lawrence community
Saturday's football game against Nebraska could again be one of those moments, considering it's been 37 years since the Jayhawks have defeated the Cornhuskers. Kansas' victory in 1968 was so long ago that it should be reiterated. But at the same time, everyone may still not grasp what is at stake. Think about the alumni that have come and gone, some now well into their 50s. There's actually been talk from some that they will lead the charge to the goal posts if Kansas wins. Can you picture that? Now, don't get me wrong. I also was appalled last week seeing the fair-weather football fans tear down the goal posts after a third-straight victory over a mediocre rival, with an equally mediocre coaching staff.
But Saturday's game is for the people who have dreamed for a long time about Kansas' football program having its time in the sun, which is a place always reserved for its storied basketball tradition. This is for the ones who walked away in disgust last week, knowing that Saturday would be the day for such jubilation.
There have been close calls, but a game with the Cornhuskers has always been viewed as a sure loss. This is for Kansas football coach Mark Mangino, who despite his victories against rivals, seems to always fall victim to criticism.
This is especially for the players who have been here since they were the butt of many jokes, particularly during the time that the basketball team was making its title runs. This is for a defense that deserves far more credit than it gets.
With a victory tomorrow, he can light up that victory cigar on his deck. It would be one of the finest, since the one he must have had after he helped lead Oklahoma to its National Championship in 2000.
This is for senior quarterback Jason Swanson, who has persevered through adversity, waiting for an opportunity to be quarterback.
This is for Clark Green who never could have pictured a victory against Nebraska when Terry Allen recruited him in 2001.
This is for all those who tried, only to come so close but fall short. To former running back June Henley, who always wonders what would have happened if Glen Mason called his number in 1993 when the Jayhawks had an opportunity to score a two-point conversion to defeat the Comhuskers.
But most importantly, it's for anyone who has been, is or will be a Jayhawk. For anyone who is a native of this state that seems to always be overlooked in the National spectrum. Win Saturday, and this is for you.
Chavez is a San Antonio junior in journalism.
---