THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
FRIDAY, APRIL 20, 2012
TENNIS
PAGE 9
The last chance for Jayhawks
CHRIS NEAL/KANSAN FILE PHOTO
Junior Monica Pezzotti serves a ball during her singles match against Bradley on Feb. 15.
CORBIN MIHELIC
cmihelic@kansan.com
It's now or never for the Kansas tennis team, at least in terms of getting a win in conference dual play.
The Jayhawks, who haven't won against any conference teams and have now lost 11 of their last 13 matches, will have one more chance to win a Big 12 match Saturday in Manhattan against No. 71 Kansas State. The match, which is the last for both teams, is set to begin at 1 p.m.
K-State is 7-13 overall this season and had lost six matches in a row before squeaking out victories against Iowa State and Missouri last weekend (both 4-3).
"Any loss is tough regardless of who it is," coach Amy Hall-Holt said. "We want to beat everybody possible, and that's the way we go in. We don't try to have added pressure because it's Missouri or K-State or anything."
The Wildcats currently have two singles players ranked in the nation's Top 125: sophomore Petra Niedermayerova (No. 27) and junior Karla Bonacic (No. 101). As doubles partners, Niedermayerova and Bonacic are currently No. 78 in the country as well.
Paulina Los referring to the rivalry. "It's just one more match before Big 12's, so we just want to do our best in the last match."
Junior Monica Pezzotti said that the Jayhawks' problem is as much mental as anything. It also doesn't help that eight different Big 12 teams were nationally ranked at some point this season — the only two that haven't been are Kansas and Iowa State.
"It's Kansas State, so it's kind of like Missouri, I guess," said sophomore
"With Baylor, we lost 4-3." Pezotti said. "It's matches where they are some of the best in the conference. We were right there, so we need to build our confidence and believe in ourselves that we can beat those teams."
After playing K-State, all Big 12 teams will travel to College Station, Texas, for the Big 12 Championships, which begin April 26. The layhawks, who haven't won a match at the conference tournament since 2008, will likely be the No. 10 seed and could face the Wildcats yet again in the first round of the tournament.
"I think it's our minds," Pezzotti said. "We think, 'Oh, we're playing against Baylor or Texas, since they are top teams. We need to have the belief that we can win and be at the top of the conference."
Edited by Taylor Lewis
MLB
Orioles continue road-game success
ASSOCIATED PRESS
CHICAGO — Jason Hammel struck out 10 and closer Jim Johnson fanned Alex Rios with the bases loaded 'Thursday to preserve the Baltimore Orioles' 5-3 win over the Baltimore White Sox.
Adam lones hit his fifth homer of the season and an RBI double. He's gone deep four times in the first seven games of Baltimore's 10-game road trip. The two-run shot in the fifth inning was his first this year with a runner on base.
Hammel (2-0) matched a career high for strikeouts, doing it in just six innings. He worked out of trouble early, leaving the bases loaded in the first and third.
The game was briefly delayed in the top of the seventh when a young boy who appeared to about 4 or 5 years old slipped through a barricade and went running across the outfield. With the crowd laughing, White Sox left fielder Dayan Viciedo scooped him up and handed him over to a security guard.
Johnson earned his sixth save. He has converted 14 straight chances dating to last season.
Hammel bested Gavin Floyd (1-2), who allowed five runs and six hits in six innings.
SOFTBALL
Adam Dunn had a walk, an RBI double and scored for Chicago. He extended his streak of getting on base to six appearances before striking out his next two times up, increasing his AL-high total to 21.
Dunn singled with two outs in the ninth, moving pinch-runner Brent Morel to third, and Paul Konerko was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Rios struck out looking to end the game.
The Orioles won three of four from Chicago and have won their first two road series of the season, including two of three at Toronto last weekend. Baltimore won just five road series last season.
Jones doubled during a two-run first. In the fifth, after J.J. Hardy's sacrifice fly broke a 2-all tie, hits a full-count fastball from Floyd into the left-field seats.
Endy Chavez reached bases three times and scored two runs for Baltimore.
KANSAN FILE PHOTO
Junior pitcher Morgan Druhan throws a pitch against the Texas Longhorns Saturday afternoon. The Jayhawks lost to the Longhorns 13-6.
Jayhawks planning to sweep away Cyclones
ALEC TILSON
atilson@kansan.com
With 11 regular season games remaining, this weekend's three-game series again Iowa State (13-28, 1-11) means crunch time.
"Sometimes if you stress too much or want it too much, it doesn't happen for you," coach Megan Smith said. "We just need to take a deep breath and we need to play our game and whatever happens, happens."
Kansas (26-15, 3-12) will need to win against the last place Cyclones to reach NCAA Regionals next month.
Kansas' offense, now ranked fourth in the Big 12 with a .286 batting average, continues to hit, in large part because of the emergence of two freshmen infielders: Chanin Naudin and Maddie Stein.
Smith said she expects three tough games against a team that is "very similar to us."
Naudin is 18-for-30 (.600) during her current 10-game hitting streak and has taken full advantage of hitting in the third spot in the lineup. In that stretch, she has collected five doubles, two home runs and 12 RBIs.
Stein has also provided consistency in the lineup. Stein has 11 hits in nine games since she got regular playing time on April 1 against Oklahoma.
"It's been really cool to see some freshman step up who maybe were a little nervous at the start of the season, who have completely busted out of their shell," junior outfielder Rosie Hull said.
Junior outfielder Maggie Hull has been a strong presence throughout the season. She's tied for the league lead with 53 hits and 12 doubles and is third in the conference batting .398 on the year. Her twin sister, Rosie, called her "the strongest mental player I think I've ever known."
Added Smith of Stein's approach to the game after waiting her turn to crack the lineup:
"That girl works hard. She studies the game, she asks questions, she wants to know why, and what she should be looking for. She's a student of the game."
Kansas hopes to exploit an Iowa State pitching staff that carries a league-worst 7.07 ERA — a far cry from the sub-2.00 team ERAs of Oklahoma, Missouri and Bavlor.
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"I'm definitely going to make sure I'm hitting my spots a little bit better and not walking as many," Druhan said. "Other than that, keeping the same mentality of going after hitters and taking care of business."
For the Kansas pitching staff,
Junior pitcher Morgan Druhan hopes to improve on a 175-pitch, 10-walk outing against Texas last weekend.
It's not every weekend Kansas faces a sub-.500 club in the Big 12 Conference. In order to reach postseason competition, Smith said Kansas couldn't ease up at this point.
it expects to face a strong ISU offense, one similar to Kansas' lineup. Both teams have 52 doubles on the season, while the Cyclones have 30 home runs to Kansas' 25.
"Sometimes at the end of the season you can coast: we're not doing that," Smith said. "We're pushing them even harder now, trying to lock in. But staying relaxed because, at the end of the day, whatever is going to happen is out of our hands."
MEN'S BOWLING
The series begins Friday night at 5 p.m. It is scheduled to continue Saturday at 2 p.m. and wraps up on Sunday beginning at noon.
Bowling team heading to nationals once again
For the second consecutive season, the Kansas men's bowling team is competing in the national bowling championship tournament.
Kansas, ranked 19th in the nation,
will participate in the 2012 United
States Bowling Congress Intercollegiate
Team Championships, which spans from
April 18 to April 22 in Lincoln, Neb.
Kansas won the national championship in 2004. Last season, it tied for seventh place.
"Our expectations are high going in," said Matt Washford, the team captain. "And our Matt wholly believes that we have a shot to win the title this year as long as we do what we need to do and execute shots."
Edited by Tanvi Nimkar
The top four of 16 teams for men's and women's fields advanced to the tournament. Wichita State joins Kansas as the only other in-state school to compete in the tournament.
"Going into sectionals with five seniors, I felt confident that we would make the cut to qualify for nationals," coach Burton Geftord said. "This year, we will not be going into nationals blind, since we competed in nationals last year. We will use that experience, hard work and determination to make a run at this year's national championship."
The championships are viewable on livestream, YouTube or BowlTV. Updates will be available on the team's Facebook page.
- Max Rothman
Alex Hardman, Lawrence senior in marketing and finance
Jake Feurer, Olathe senior in mechanical engineering
Matt Washtford, Olathe senior in accounting
Chris Flowers, Liberal sophomore in films and media
Nicholas Campfield, Topeka junior in civil engineering
Justin Thompson, Topeka senior in exercise science
Kyle Turner, Topeka junior in supply chain management
Matt Bellus, Eden Prairie, Minn., senior in physics
Members of the bowling team: