FRIDAY,MAY2,2003
SPORTS
THEUNIVERSITYDAILYKANSAN 3B
'Hawks to take on No.5 Longhorns
By Daniel Berk
dberk@kansan.com
Kansan sportswriter
Dan Nelson/Kansan
The Kansas baseball team will host defending national champion Texas this weekend in a three-game series at Hoglund Ballpark starting tonight.
Casey Spanish tries to get past a Baylor third baseman on his way to home plate. Spanish scored 1 of 2 runs in the Jayhawks' 2-1 series defeat to Baylor this weekend. Kansas looks to avenge its Big 12 Conference record when it takes on No. 5 Texas this weekend.
Kansas enters the weekend with a 32-19 record and is seventh in the Big 12 Conference with a a 7-11 record in conference play. Texas, who is ranked fifth in the Sportsweekly/ESPN poll and first in the Big 12, comes into town with a 35-13 record and a 16-5 conference record.
The Longhorns are led by Dustin Majewski, who is batting .387 with 9 home runs and 52 RBI. JP Howell is the Longhorns' top pitcher with a record of 7-1 and an earned run average of 2.40.
Kansas will try to rebound from its last conference series against Baylor when it lost two of three and then went on to drop a 7-2 final to Wichita State. Spanish is looking forward to getting some redemption this weekend.
"This is a huge series for us,"
Spanish said. "We have not played as well as we would have liked to the last week, so this is an opportunity to play well against a great team. We are going to need our pitchers to throw strikes and just let us play good defense behind them."
Kansas coach Ritch Price said the team was going to face unbelievable pitchers this weekend.
"We are going to need to pitch better than we have pitched all year in order to be successful this weekend," he said.
Kansas will try to counter Texas' pitchers with three of its own: senior Kevin Wheeler and juniors Ryan Knippschild and Chris Smart. Knippschild will start the series opener tonight and Smart will follow tomorrow. Wheeler will close the series on Sunday.
Knippschild is 8-3 with an ERA of 4.91. Smart is 1-3 with an ERA of 4.99 in six starts this season. Wheeler is 5-3 overall this season with an ERA of 5.47.
The Jayhawks will also count on the pitching of their bullpen, which has been led this season by junior Brandon Johnson. Johnson is 7-2 and has also tallied
seven saves on the season.
Offensively, Kansas continues to be led by senior left fielder Casey Spanish and junior first baseman Ryan Baty. Spanish is batting .398 this season and has seven triples and 42 RBI. Baty is batting .377 with 9 home runs and 48 RBI.
"Ryan is a really special player who prepares properly every game," Price said. "He is having an All-American type season and now he has a big stage to show off
on and hopefully he will."
Kansas also has five more players batting over .300 this season. Freshman second baseman Matt Baty is behind Spanish and Baty with a .349 batting average. Wheeler is batting .344.
The series will open at 7 p.m. tonight. Tomorrow's game will start at 2 p.m., and the final game of the series will start at 1 p.m. Sunday
— Edited by Michelle Burhenn
Zollars CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1B
had to make the list. The rocket scientist turned journalist got kicked out of Iraq by the United States military for giving away key Allied Forces movements and strategic positions during a broadcast.
After this little slip up, Geraldo has about as much credibility as Iraqi Minister of Information Mohammed Saeed al-Sahhaf, who still maintains, "Saddam has control of the region."
one we could take home to mom. After the profanity-laced tongue lashing he gave Bernstein after Kansas' loss to Syracuse in the national championship game, we thought differently.
Before this little incident, we thought of good ol' Roy as some-
Roy Williams vs. Bonnie Bernstein
The real reason Roy returned to his family in North Carolina? So his family members could wash his mouth out with a bar of soap.
Although the "entertainer"
On April 16, Alabama football coach Mike Price had a crazy night at a Pensacola night club, where he apparently spent $200 dollars on a woman named "Destiny," before offering a woman, yet to be identified, a stay in his hotel room.
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — University of Alabama President Robert Witt released a statement to the media Wednesday night regarding the Internet rumors swirling around Alabama football coach Mike Price.
Strippers and football
Nothing too crazy happened during the women's pro basket-
By Drew Champlin
The Crimson White via U-wire
University of Alabama
claims there was no touching, she did get something from Price. According to The Mobile Register, a young woman calling from Price's room ordered more than $1,000 of food and drinks from room service, in "to go" bags. The paper claimed she ordered one of each item on the menu.
The WNBA
ball league in the past four months. The WNBA made the list simply because of the amazing fact that they are still in existence. I'm sincerely impressed. Bird Death
During the Kansas-Missouri game at Allen Fieldhouse a Kansas student took to the floor with a makeshift black eye, taunting Missouri's Ricky Clemons, whose girlfriend said he hit her. Nothing says "class" he like faking female battery.
Ricky Clemons' girlfriend
Alabama officials aware of rumors
In the statement, Witt said he had been in contact with athletics director Mal Moore, University System Chancellor Malcolm Portera and members of the Board of Trustees' athletics committee. He did not directly comment on the substance of the rumors about Price's conduct at a pro-am golf tournament in Pensacola, Fla., two weeks ago.
A Chicago Cubs minor leaguer has been charged with harming a protected bird when he hit and killed it trying to knock the animal from its perch with a baseball. The bird, named "Ozzy the osprey," was an environmentally protected bird. No word yet on whether Al Bohl is claiming Roy Williams was involved with the crushing death of the bird.
Bird Death
Zollars is a Chicago senior in communications.
"Athletics director Mal Moore and I have been in discussion with head football coach Mike Price concerning information we have received about coach Price's behavior in certain public settings and the appropriateness of that behavior." Witt said.
"We are involved in a very deliberative process of gathering information, discerning what is factual and discussing these findings with coach Price. We hope to bring closure to this situation as soon as possible."
There was no immediate comment from Price after Witt's statement was released.
As expected, Price participated in the pro-am preceding the Bruno's Memorial Classic golf tournament in Hoover on Wednesday morning. Also as planned, Price took part in the SEC spring football teleconference on his cell phone on the golf course.
The leader of the conference, Alabama associate director of media relations Larry White said Price would not be able to address
anything not related to football. But, as expected, football was the last thing on the mind of reporters.
Rumors have abounded since last week regarding Price's actions in Pensacola. He has been "feverishly accused on the Internet and on radio talk shows in his football-crazy state of being a womanizer who allowed an Alabama-issued credit card to be used in an unauthorized manner," according to The Seattle Post-Intelligencer.
The rumors began circulating online late last week on an Auburn University fan site and spread from there to sports radio talk shows and Alabama fan message boards. They have since gained national attention.
Defensive coordinator Joe Kines addressed Alabama players Tuesday afternoon at a team meeting. Price was widely expected to meet with players yesterday regarding the situation, but he has offered no comment on the issue.
During the teleconference, Price stood true to his word when asked about job security.
"I'm not going to comment on that until the University takes an official stance," he said.
To let Price continue his golf tournament, the moderator cut the teleconference short after three questions, two of which were about the allegations surrounding Price.
"I am not going to comment on that until the University takes an official stance and until that time I'll comment," Price said.
Price told The Spokesman Review of Spokane, Wash., on Tuesday that he didn't know the current status of his job.
"Hopefully, the University will release a statement and this will be over," Price said. "Sometimes people make mistakes. I really can't say anything until the University makes a statement."