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Wednesday, March 22, 1978
University Daily Kansan
Javhawks a big hit on spring trip
By JIM BLOOM
Sports Writer
A surprising hitting attack has boosted the University of Kansas baseball team to its best start in six years.
The Jayhawks returned late Monday night from a spring trip through Texas and Oklahoma with a 74-1 record. KU defeated Tampa Bay in finals in Dallas on Monday to complete the tour.
Wku was scheduled to play a doubleheader against Wayne State today at Quigley Field, but the game was canceled because of wet grounds. The team's next outing will be at 1:30 p.m. Friday in a doubleheader with Bellevue (Neb). College at Quigley Field.
THE SEVEN victories are the most ever on a spring trip for KU. It is the first time since 1969 that the team has returned from Texas with a winning record. It also is KU's best 12-game start since 1972, when the team went 10-2 record on their way to a 20-10 season.
Coach Floyd Temple said he was pleased by his team's performance.
Sports
"The fact that we hit that well was a little bit of a surprise, but I had a feeling we could have done it."
The Jawhaws hit .311 as a team, more than 40 points higher than the team average last season when KU finished 22-23. Before going to Texas, the players had been unable to practice outside because snow covered Quipley Field.
*average* of 85 students in junior college transfers and a pair of freshmen also have contributed to *75%* of all transfers.
LEADING THE TEAM in batting is leftfielder Vic Harris, Collinsville, OKa, junior, Harris, a transfer from Easton. Junior University, has a blistering 464 average.
Right-fielder John Spottswood, a junior college transfer from L longview Community College, hit .410 and led the team in base hits. Butt Vickers, who transferred from
Ranger, Tex., Juniors College, has a 378 average and leads the team in runs scored. Freshmen Brian Gray and Steve Jetz won starting positions with their fine per-
Gray took over first base with a .375 average, two home runs and 18 RBI's. Jeltz, a second baseman, hit .385 and committed only one error in the first 12 games.
KU BEAT baseball powers Oklahoma State and ORU, and finished second in the Palm Valley Tournament in Edinburgh. The team was beaten by the daybakys by a half a game for the title.
"The players proved to themselves that they could compete with and beat good teams on this trip." Temple said.
Other teams KU played were the
Arkansas team of Dallas, St. Mary's and
Akron teams.
Temple also is pleased with the pitching. Walk-on Galen Worley, Wichita junior, won two games in relief and has an 0.79 ERA. Terry Sutlife, Kansas City, Mo.,
LETTERMEN Dane Rusch, Kevin Kerschen and Clay Christiansen had rocky starts, but Temple looks for them to bounce back.
sophomore, got off to a 2-4 start, and Garden City Junior College transfer Dan St. Clair
"I'm not really concerned right now with
the things I'm going to change. I start worrying
that don't change. I start worrying that
Two statistics—strike-outs and total hits—reflect on the Jayhawks' start. KU batters struck out only 37 times, compared to their opponent's 64 strike outs, and the Jayhawks outscored the other teams 110 runs to 82 runs.
TEMPEL, WHO is in his bish head as head coach, who one reason he had so many new players turning in good performances was that scholarships helped him attract better players. This is the first year that KU baseball has had a full-scholarship budget.
"Those two statistics, especially the strikeouts, show that we have good bat control. We are getting wood on the ball a lot of the time, which is a good sign." Temple
Norwood contacted about WSU position
Kansas assistant basketball coach Lafayette Norwood confirmed yesterday that he will be interviewed this weekend with his position at Wichita State University.
Norwood said Wichita State asked KU head basketball coach Ted Owens for permission to talk to him and said he would be the first selection selection committee would have to say,
"I'm willing to listen to them, but I love it here." Norwood said yesterday. "People have been so congenial here it would be hard to leave. Although I have intentions of being a head coach sometimes, it would take a lot to give them up."
"I MIGHLY interested in keeping my contribution here, but by the same token, we never know what might happen."
Before coming to KU this season, Norwood was a successful high school coach at Wichita Heights High School and he recorded in his 114-86 eight years, there.
But Temple was cautious about predicting how the remainder of the season would go.
Despite the years he's spent in Wichita,
Norwood noted he had no prior affiliation
with the university.
"Any time you have roots somewhere, you don't have to go back," Norwood said. "They have a searching committee; I'll listen to them and decide whether I'd accept an offer if one is presented."
KANSAS HEAD coach Ted Owens said he was not surprised that members of his staff were contacted for head coaching jobs.
"I'm always for what's in the best interests of my staff, and when I have good people I know they have the potential to be sought by others," Owens said. "I'm happy when the opportunity comes for them."
A spokesman at the Wichita State sports information department said the University had 85 applicants for the job, but not all of them would be interviewed.
Wichita State cannot make a decision on a coach until at least March 24, the county's top federal governments' affirmative action ruling. The department spokesman said that a decision on a new coach would probably be made shortly after March 31.
Gymnastic strength thwarts Big 8
"Our young players need to continue their improvement," the coach said. "We can't complacently over our performance so far."
By STEVE HERBERT
Sports Writer
In most conferences, the improvement exhibited by the University of Kansas men's gymnastics team this year would be noticeable. But not in the Big Eight.
Sports Writer
ALTOUGH the conference coaches are proud of the national prominence, a few, especially those of the better teams, have a strong connection to Aloft Athletic Association about the situation.
For example, Iowa State's Ed Gagner has long had top caliber teams. But this year, as last year, his team may not be able to win national championship April 6 in Eugene, Ore.
Although traditionally the weak link in an otherwise strong conference, KU gymnastics has been begun. Couch Bock Lockwood was able to offer seven scholarship this year, which helped secure enough talent to spur the country's top 10 teams for much of the season.
The Jayhawk turnabout, though, will hardly be noticed in the conference's final standings. With perennial power Iowa State and defending national co-champion Oklahoma, the Big Eight is regarded as the country's gymnastics conference in the country.
The reason is that Oklahoma's team is slightly better and is the favorite to defend at home. The Raptors are also in a good position.
The conference champion earns the conference's only berth in the national meet.
THE CONFERENCE meet promises to be as close this year as it was last year, when OU beat the Cyclones by half a point. Oklahoma then tied them in the final, and Nebraska last year finished third to ISU in the conference meet by less than two points.
"If we could have sent three teams, instead of just one to the NCAA's," Nebraska coach Lewis Allen said, "we probably would have had three of the top four teams."
"They're talking about splitting the country into two regionals and sending the top four teams from each region," Gagner said. "In this year, but hopefully they will next year."
AND SO BIG Eight gymnastics coaches apparently have tangible proof to support their claim that theirs is the toughest gymnastics conference in the country. Gagnier hopes the NCAA will proceed with plans to change the NCAA qualifying process.
OKLAHOMA coach Paul Ziert, although hardly unhappy about the tremendous strength of his team—the Sooners boast the top two scorers in the all-around in the nation with Bart Conner and Mike Wilson—has a situation in the conference unfortunate.
teams, Iowa State and ourselves, who are both strong and who both deserve to go to the NCAAs. What happened last year was sad."
"What's unfolding is a disaster for the conference," Zert said. "We have two
THE BIG EIGHT'S gymnasies strength, the coaches agree, results from its tradition for excellence and financial commitment to recruiting.
"High school students are attracted to the conference's strength," KU coach Bob Lockwood said. "Most teams have to go a long way to compete against strong teams, but we have the national powers right here in our own conference."
"The conference is very solidly organized," Gagnier said, "and very well financed. We've been given all the financial help we've needed. Recruiting in gymnastics is just as active as in any other sport."
ALLEN SAID he thinks the academic reputations of the Big Eight schools is also a contributing factor, since, he said, students had the "hoos" in the Big Ten Conference.
"The attractiveness of the Midwest is important," Allen said. "Students go to the Big Ten schools, they see Michigan and Illinois and the tremendous size of the universities and they are discouraged. We don't have to recruit at all."
Sports Digest From the Associated Press, United Press International
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
The coaches see no reason for the conference to decline, particularly since the perennially weak members of the conference. KU and CU, are getting better.
Longhorns win NIT
Rutgers won the third-place consolation game earlier, beating Georgetown 85-72.
NEW YORK (AP)—The high-powered trio of Jim Kivricas, Ron Baxter and John Moore led Texas into an early lead, and the fast-breaking Longhorns went on to beat North Carolina State 101-93 Tuesday night to win the National Invitation Tournament.
The 17th-ranked Longhorns from the Southwest Conference made sure of their first NIT championship with a first-half blitz behind their three high scorers that mounted to a 17-point lead shortly before the end of the first half.
Krivacs scored 33 points. Baxter had 26 and Moore had 22 for the Longhorns.
YUMA. Ariz. (AP) - The San Diego Padres fired alvin Dark as manager yesterday, telling him the teams players felt he couldn't communicate with them.
OU'S CHANCES of repeating as national champions, provided they win the conference meet, appear fairly good. Although the Sooners lost a recent dual meet to Indiana State, 215-4,123.85, they hold the best and second best scores in four events.
Padres fire Dark
Dark said he was shocked by the move, disclosed by Ballard Smith, vice president of the company.
"Oklahoma has a hell of a recruiting program, Iowa State has a long tradition and Kansas and Colorado are getting much harder." I doubt "I could the Big Eight will slip any."
The radres won 48 games and lost 62 under Dark and finished fifth in the National Leagues' West Division with an overall mark of 69-93. In spring exhibition games, they went 5-8 before Dark was told he was out,
"It was such a quick thing," the 56-year Dark said. Dark had 2 years left on the contract he signed when he took over last May 30, succeeding John McNamara.
Players have complained openly that he called pitches from the bench, changed the lineup frequently and was distant, unlike manager for 3 years before being dismissed.
"IF YOU HAVE the scholarships and a good school to promote," Lockwood said, "I'll send them. I'll try to do that."
Lockwood, though, realizes it’s a long路 to supremacy in the Big Eight, since there is little room for innovation.
"I definitely expect the conference to improve," he said. "Once you can promote it, we know what that means."
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Contact us on your campus.
March 22, 2014, 19,78
9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Student Union
The Few. The Proud. The Marines.
Basketball coach, players receive honors
Kansas head basketball coach Ted Owens will receive Basketball Weekly's national coach of the year award at this year's KU basketball award's dinner.
The dinner will be held in the Kansas Union Ballroom on Saturday, April 6 at 8:30 p.m. Owens will be featured speaker at the dinner. Tickets will be sold on an advance basis only and are not available to the KU students and the Lawrence Chamber of Commerce. The cost is $65.
"I'm delighted of course," Owens said about receiving the award, "although I recognize we're involved in a sport where success or failure depends on a group of people. The award is honoring all those who participated in our season.
"I think that all of us together did a good job in coaches and players worked hard together."
OWENS WILL SERVE as a commentator for the nationally televienced Pizza Hut Basketball Classic; Saturday April 1 in Las Vegas.
The all-star game will be televised by CBS and marks the fourth time that Owens has been part of the national telecast. He also has served as a coach in the game.
KEN KOENIGS, KU forward, and freshman Lynette Woodard have been selected to play in postseason basketball games.
Koenigs was selected to play in the All-Star game held that Sunday in Kiel at all-star Game be held that Sunday in Kiel
Woodard was selected one of among 24 players selected for the West squad in the All-America Classic. Women's Collegiate Basketball will begin a contest will be April 11 in Greenbelt, N.C.
Auditorium in St. Louis. Koenigs will play on the West team coached by former Marquette's Al McGuire. The East team plays by South Carolina's Frank McGuire.
Convention will speak.
Partially funded by Student Senate.
Diane Wakoski, Poet-in-Residence Author of "Inside the Blood Factory" and Dancing on the Grave of a Son of a Bitch."
She dedicated another volume, *The Motorcycle Betrayal Poems* "to all those men who betrayed me at one time or another, in hopes they fall off their bridges."
A discussion: "What's Going on in Contemporary Poetry?"
Commission on the Status of Women
Delegates from the
of Women Students
in International Room of the Union
will meet
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 22,8 P.M., JAYHAWK ROOM. KANSAS UNION
Intercollegiate Association
TUESDAY, MARCH, 21, 3 P.M., 4023 WESCOE:
Poetry reading from her works, including
Wednesday, March 22,7 p.m.
the soon-to-be published "The Man Who
Shook Hands."
7:30 p.m.
ROCK CHALK REVUE '78
Thursday, March 23
For more information contact KU-Y office. 864-3761
Evaluation and Pairing for '79.
--and
WOMEN & HEALTH CARING
Thursday March 23, 7:30 p.m.
Jayhawk Room of the Union
View two films, Self-Health and Health Caring—from our end of the speculum and join in discussion facilitated by non-professional women.
COMMISSION on the STATUS of WOMEN
Co-sponsored by
WOMEN'S COALITION
Partially funded by Student Senate