PAGE 12
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 2014
THE UNIVERSITY·DAILY KANSAN
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Kansas falls to Iowa State in last seconds
KYLE PAPPAS sports@kansan.com
It was a familiar feeling for the women's basketball team following their 72-69 loss to Iowa State. After appearing to take a step forward in their home defeat of TCU earlier in the week, the Jayhawks regressed during a lackluster second half in Ames, Iowa.
It was the inconsistency that's plagued the Jayhawks (12-14, 5-9 Big 12) throughout the season that again hurt them — they were clearly outplayed after a stellar first half performance. The Cyclones (17-7, 6-7 Big 12) hit 18 of their 21 free throw attempts in the second half on the way to securing their comeback victory.
In likely one of their most impressive single-half showings of the season, the Jayhawks shot nearly 57 percent on their way to 40 points prior to the halftime buzzer. Senior guard CeCe Harper led the way, notching 10 points and four assists to move into 10th all-time among the Jayhawks single season assists leaders.
But the Cyclones were able to remain close behind the the play of senior forward
Hallie Christofferson. Kansas' junior forward Chelsea Gardner was unable to contain Christofferson in the post as the Naismith Award candidate scored 18 points on 7-11 shooting. She was a threat from everywhere on the floor, adding two 3-pointers as lowa State ended the half down by only seven.
As has been the case much of the season, the Jayhawks struggled to maintain their lead through the second half. The Cyclones pulled even with 13:00 remaining, their first lead in over 18 minutes, before the two teams began trading blows. There would be nine ties and four lead changes in the second half alone.
The superb shooting that carried the Jayhawks through the first half was nowhere to be found after intermission; they shot only 35.5 percent. The Jayhawks couldn't create open looks and Gardner was once again limited due to foul trouble. She was forced to the bench following her fourth personal foul with just over seven minutes remaining.
In Gardner's absence, junior guard Natalie Knight was big for Kansas, registering her first and only points of
the night on a 3-pointer that tied the game at 62 with just over four minutes remaining. Just as the Cyclones appeared to be putting a run together, Knight's 3-pointer stole the lead and momentum for them.
But the Jayhawks were unable to do much with that momentum. Down by one with only 15 seconds left, Harper committed a costly turnover that led to two Christofferson free throws. She converted both and Kansas' last second 3-point attempt came up short to seal its defeat.
With the Jayhawks in desperate need of a strong run to receive an invite to the NCAA tournament, Saturday's loss was one they simply couldn't afford. It more-orless cements their place in the bottom third of the Big 12 and likely makes a conference tournament win the only means by which Kansas can advance to the big dance.
The Jayhawks have a weeklong break before their next game against Oklahoma in Norman, Okla.
Edited by Amber Kasselman
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Distance runner records personal best in Iowa meet
TRACK AND FIELD
BEN BURCH sports@kansan.com
FILE PHOTO/KANSAN
Senior middle distance runner Dalen Fink passes the baton to his teammate, senior distance runner Brendan Soucie, to compete in the third leg of the Men's Distance Medley on April 20, 2012. Soucie recorded a personal best of 1:51.31 during his 800-meter race at the ISU Classic on Saturday.
Stiff competition can have differing effects on athletes. For some, being on the same field, court, or track with the best of the best may be intimidating.The amount of pressure that comes with taking on the elite can sometimes disrupt an athlete's focus or break their confidence. But, for athletes like runner Brendan Soucie, this kind of pressure can elevate performance.
"With competition like that, you have to run up to their level [become] there are not a whole lot of them running down to yours," Soucie said.
Soucie, a senior from Osawatomie, felt that pressure during his 800-meter race in Ames, Iowa, at the ISU Classic last Saturday. Soucie ran against a field that produced six of the current top-20 times in the nation.To say he faced a tough competition would be an understatement. But, instead of letting this intimidate him, Soucie let the pressure fuel him. He recorded a personal best of 1:51.31 in the 800 meters, which not only gave him 16th place overall in the stacked field, but it was the fastest indoor 800-meter time ran by a Jayhawk in seven years.
Soucie's time also puts him in third place in the Big 12 with the conference championships
just two weeks away. According to Soucie, this will provide a good mental lift entering the conference meet.
"Being able to get into a race like that before conference [championships] is a great confidence booster because I was racing some of the fastest guys out there," Soucie said.
While Soucie and a portion of the Jayhawk track team were racing in Ames, other Kansas athletes were making their marks in Fayetteville, Ark., for the Tyson Invitational. Among these athletes was Rhavee King, a sophomore from Memphis, Tenn., who much like Soucie, also posted a personal best in the 800 meters.
King finished the race with a mark of 2:10.85, giving her 14th place and etching her into the Jayhawk record books as the seventh fastest woman in indoor 800 meters history. But King was not done following her 800-meter race on Friday, as she was back in action the next day anchoring the 4x400-meter relay team. The quartet of King, freshman Whitney Adams from St. Charles, Mo., senior Diamond Dixon from Houston, and freshman Adriana Newell from Sparks, Nev., recorded a 3:41.18, the team's fastest time of the season, which led to a 15th place finish.
Besides helping the 4x400-meter relay team to a
season mark, Dixon also had a good weekend individually, setting a season best mark in the 400 meters and a career best mark in the 200 meters. Her times of 53.25 in the 400 meters and 23.61 in the 200 meters gave her ninth-place and seventh-place finishes respectively, putting her in the top-15 nationally for both events.
Caleb Cowling, a freshman from Lincoln,Neb., was among the 13 Kansas athletes who recorded personal records at the two-day meet in Fayetteville, leaping a career-long 7.39 meters （24'3"）in the long jump.The mark, which gave him third place at the meet, sets the freshman up well for his first conference championship as it moved him up to fifth place in the Big 12 long jump standings.
The Jayhawks will now prepare for the Big 12 Indoor Championships, which kick off in Ames on Friday, Feb. 28, and wrap up on Saturday, March 1. There will be a lot on the line for the Jayhawks as the women's team will enter as the defending team champion. Two individual athletes will be defending Big 12 indoor titles as well, with junior Lindsay Vollmer, from Hamilton, Mo., and Dixon defending champions in the pentathlon and 400 meters respectively.
- Edited by Jessica Mitchell
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