SPORTS
6A THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
ATHLETICS CALENDAR
Baseball vs. Austin Peay, 11 a.m., Starkville, Miss.
TOMORROW
- Banbahall vs. Austin Peay, 11 a.m., Starkville, Miss.
FRIDAY, MARCH 4, 2005
◆ Baseball vs. Austin Peay, 3 p.m., Starkville, Miss.
**Softball vs. Ball State, 10 a.m., Carbondale, III.**
- Softball vs. Ball State, 10 a.m., Carbondale, III.
* Softball vs. Southern Illinois, 2 p.m., Carbondale, III.
- SUNDAY
- Baseball vs. Mississippi State, noon, Starkville,
Softball vs. Southern Illinois, 2 p.m., Carbondale, Ill.
+ Truck at Iowa State, all day, Ames, Iowa
Sullivan vs. Valentine
Saalfhoff opponent and time TBA, Carbondale, III.
- Tennis at Iowa State, noon, Ames, Iowa
- Men's basketball at Missouri, 1 p.m., Columbia, Mo.
- Tennis at Iowa, 10 a.m., Iowa City, Iowa
MONDAY
+ Men's golf at Louisiana-Lafayette, all day, Lafayette, Ia.
+ Men's golf at Louisiana-Lafayette, all day, Lafayette,
TUESDAY
- Women's basketball vs. Missouri, noon, Columbia,
Mo.
Gonzaga extends the longest streak in women's history
WOMEN'S BASKETBALI
SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Ashley Burke scored 16 of her 18 points in the second half and No. 24 Gonzaga extended its winning streak to 22 games with a 77-42 victory over Portland in the first round of the West Coast Conference tournament yesterday. The Bulldogs' winning streak is the longest current stretch in Division I women's basketball. Shannon Mathews also had 18 points and seven rebounds for the Bulldogs, who seek their first conference championship after going unbeaten in league play in the regular season.
The Associated Press
Brian Lewis/KANSAN
BIG 12 BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT
SUA to be host of tournament viewing party at Kansas Union
Jayhawk fans can watch the Big 12 tournament in the Kansas Union lobby this year.
Student Union Activities will be showing the first round and the quarterfinal round games of the tournament on Thursday, March 10, and Friday. March 11.
The viewing will begin at 10 a.m. Games on both days will begin at 11:30 a.m. from Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Mo.
Jayhawks fly south
BY MATT WILSON
mwilson@kansan.com
KANSAN SPORTWRITER
BASEBALL
Kansas goes to Starkville, Miss., this weekend in hopes of getting back on a winning track at the NBC Classic.
After jumping out to a hot start, Kansas (12-5) has lost two of its last three games. This weekend will be a test for the jayhawks, who will face Mississippi State and Austin Peay State twice each.
Play Mississippi State, ranked 19th nationally by Collegiate Baseball and 17th by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association, has a 3-0 record this season. The Bulldogs are led by junior outfielder Jeff Butts, who has a .583 batting average through three games. Butts has hit five doubles and seven RBI.
Senior catcher Sean Richardson and assistant coach Steve Abney conveen on the mound with senior pitcher Andrew Rebar during the game Tuesday at Hoglund Ballpark. The Jayhawks used six different pitchers during their loss against Southwest Missouri State. The team will compete in the NBC Classic in Starkville, Miss., this weekend.
Austin Peay (4-2) is the preseason favorite to win the Ohio Valley Conference. Junior catcher Tommy Smith has a team-best .500 batting average, with a home run and four RBI.
On the mound, Rowdy Hardy has shut down opponents with a 0.60 ERA in his two starts, which were both victories.
As for the Jayhawks' recent struggles, junior outfieldier Gus Milner said the they would try to shake off the sloppy play.
said. "We haven't been playing great defense, but I'm sure we'll turn it around. It's early in the season. As long as we get better toward the end of the season, that's all that matters."
"It's the game of baseball, so anything can happen." Milner
"It's only been three or four games," he said. "Let's put it in perspective."
On Sunday, junior Kodiak Quick (4-0, 1.11) will make his first start in nearly two weeks.
Edited by Kendall Dix
— Ryan Colaianni
ON THE MISSISSIPPI MOUNDS
Kansas' NBC Classic Schedule [all times central];
Austin Peay
KANSAS PITCHER
Clint Schambach (2-1, 2.28 ERA)
Sean Land (1-1, 4.43)
Mississippi State
BY DREW DAVISON
ddavison@kansan.com
KANSAN SPORTSWITER
OPPONENT'S PITCHER
Rowdy Hardy (2-0, 0.80)
TBA
TIME DATE
11 a.m. Today
11 a.m. Tomorrow
Kansas coach Tracy Bunge said the Jayhawks could win this tournament. She said beating Southern Illinois and the other teams would be good regional victories. ___
TIME
4:30 p.m
Noon
Todd Doolittle (0-0, 0.00)
Josh Johnson (0-0, 9.00)
OPPONENT'S PITCHER
KANSAS' PITCHER
Mike Zagurski (3-1, 2.8)
"Kodiac Quick (4-0, 1.11)
Team must amend play for tourney
The Jayhawks will take on Ball State and Southern Illinois Saturday. They will take on Valparaiso on Sunday, and will either play in the championship or consolation game later that day.
The Kansas softball team will travel to Carbondale, Ill., this weekend to compete in the Kay Brechtelsbaer Classic.
The Jajawks rebounded last week, winning three of five games in the Palm Springs Classic and moving to 7-7 on the season. Bunge said the team improved every game, but, as always, there was room for improvement.
"We need to be more consistent on offense." Bunge said.
SOFTBALL
While the offense has Bunge improved this season, the
All games at Dudy Nobby Field in Starkville, Miss.
Game can be watched live online at msteaatletics.com
Sources: Mississippi State and Kansas athletics departments
Jayhawks could use more production from the lower half of the batting order.
Pitching is another area that needs improvement. The Jayhawks need to cut down on the number of walks per game. When the KU pitchers get ahead in pitching counts, they are too passive when they need to be aggressive, Bunge said.
The strongest area on the team is fielding. Led by Destiny Frankenstein, junior shortstop and co-captain, the Ivahawks have a .970 fielding percentage.
The four freshmen have also played well this year. Elle Pottorf, freshman catcher, has also been important behind the plate, Bunge said. Jackie Vasquez and Cyndi Duran, freshman outfielders, have also contributed by adding speed around the bases.
Christina Ross, freshman pitcher, continues to develop into a collegiate pitcher. Bunge said adjusting to the mound-to-plate distance — from 40 feet in high school to 43 feet in college — would take some time before it was comfortable for Ross.
After a month of playing, the team is still figuring everything out and making improvements every game. Bunge said.
She said Southern Illinois was a quality team, but she felt Kansas could win the tournament.
Edited by Lori Bettes
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SIDEWAYS
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SAT: (1:45) 9:30
SUN: (1:40) (4:15) 7:05 9:40
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SAT: (4:30) 7:00
SUN: (1:55) 4:30 7:00 9:30
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CONTIN