BB = THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
SPORTS
FRIDAY,APRIL25,2003
Tennis loses to'Buffs in tourney
By Jonah Ballow
jballow@kansan.com
Kansan sportswinner
At the Big 12 Conference Tournament, the No. 9-seeded Kansas tennis team ended its season yesterday with a 4-3 loss to the No. 8-seeded Colorado Buffaloes.
"We had talked about coming out fired up from the beginning," coach Kilmeny Waterman said. "We wanted to be in a position where we had a chance to win at the end, and we did."
The Jayhawks started the match strong by winning two of the three doubles matches and
securing the crucial doubles point
The No.1 doubles team, juniors Kristen Steinbock and Emily Haylock, beat seniors Lia Diningo and Dominique Lemperle. 8-5.
Junior Courtney Steinbock and sophomore Paige Brown had no trouble defeating junior Morgan Sall and sophomore Kendra Strandemo, 8-1, at the No. 2 doubles position.
Singles play between the two teams would eventually decide the close match.
At No. 1 singles, Courtney
Steinbock in straight sets to
Lemperle, 6-0, 6-4. Haylock also
lost fast with a defeat to Dimingo,
6-3, 6-1 in No.5 singles.
Brown was able to pull off a three-set victory against sophomore Kate Lagert, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, to tie the match at 2-2.
At No. 5 singles, senior Kim Lorenz lost, but freshman Luiza Loureiro would strike back with a 6-4, 6-4, victory over Sull and again tied the match.
The outcome of the match would come down to freshman Christin Skoda battling Strandemo at No. 4 singles, Skoda droppedthefirst set, 6-3, but then fought to win the second in a
tiebreaker, 7-6 (8-6). In the decisive third set, Skoda jumped out to a 5-3 advantage, needing only one more game to seal the victory for the Jayhawks. However, Strandemo won three straight games and forced a tiebreaker. Standemo then won the tiebreaker, 7-4, and the match to send the Buffaloes to the next round of the tournament.
"Christine did a great job." Waterman said. "Ending on this note, where we had a chance to win, will hopefully motivate us for next season."
- Edited by Todd Rapp
Major leaguer drops down to minors
The Associated Press
NEW YORK·Rickey Henderson wants another chance to reach the major leagues — even if it means starting over on the lowest rung of the minors, playing with guys half his age and making only $3,000 a month.
The 44-year-old Henderson signed with the Newark Bears of the independent Atlantic League on Wednesday, hoping it will help him attract interest from the majors sometime during the season.
"Yeah, I was surprised," said his manager, four-time National League batting champion Bill Madlock. "I was trying to figure out his reason for coming. Obviously, he has something he still wants to accomplish in the big leagues."
Henderson is the big league record holder in runs scored, stolen bases and walks. His ascent to stardom took him
"But I'm excited he'll be here," he said. "He brings even more credibility to our team and our league."
through New Jersey a quarter-century ago, when he played for Jersey City in Oakland's farm system in 1978.
Henderson spent last season with the Boston Red Sox, mostly in left field. Widely considered the greatest leadoff man ever, he hit .223 with five home runs and 16 RBIs in 72 games.
At the end of the season, the Red Sox gave him a car to honor him for his career.
"Obviously, he hasn't had enough," New York Yankees manager Joe Torre said. "He obviously doesn't want to say goodbye. But that's his choice, anyway. I don't think anybody else should tell him when to quit."
"He's headed for the Hall of Fame, he's been on winners and he's done all these things," he said. But it's nice to see he still has the enthusiasm to do this stuff. I know one thing — he'll draw some people. I'm happy for the fans."
Unable to find a job in the majors during the offseason, he decided to put on a new jersey in New Jersey and narrowed his
choice to three teams in the Atlantic League: Newark, Camden and Somerset.
"He wants scouts to see that he can still make a contribution," said his agent, jeff Borns.
"He was anxious to start playing as soon as possible and the Atlantic League begins on May 1, earliest among the independent leagues," he said. "He picked Newark because he thought the Bears had the highest visibility."
Newark has had its share of big-name players, including Jose Canseco in 2001. League champions last season, the Bears signed former 20-game winner Jose Limalast week.
At one point in the winter, the Cincinnati Reds showed some interest. With the injury status of center fielder Ken Griffey Jr, still uncertain, perhaps there might be a chance to revisit a possibility with the Reds.
There had been talk Henderson might try to return to Oakland for a fifth stint with the Athletics, but they didn't want him.
"I don't know how long Rickie
will be with us — a month, two
months, who knows?" Madlock said.
Madlock said he expected Henderson would join the team for workouts next week in Newark. The Bears open their season May 1 at home against Bridgeport, and the season runs through Sept. 14.
With Newark, Henderson will earn the league maximum of $3,000 per month. He played for $350,000 last season with the Red Sox.
Henderson has 3,040 hits while playing for eight major league teams. He has scored 2,288 runs, and his eight steals last year increased his total to 1,403.
Henderson also holds records for walks (2,179) and leadoff home runs (80). He needs five more home runs for 500, and that might be a goal motivating him.
A 10-time All-Star who played against Madlock in the 1983 showcase, Henderson was the 1990 American League MVP for Oakland.
He won World Series championships with the As in 1989 and the Toronto Blue Jays in 1993.
Penn State player says he's No.1 pick
Bv Chris Korman
Daily Collegian via U-wire Pannsylvania State University
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.
When Jimmy Kennedy told reporters at Big Ten Media Day last July that he was working to be the No. 1 pick in the draft, it sounded like idle bluster.
Kennedy is a fun guy, easy with a smile and quick to chuckle. Even at his most serious, the happy gleam never leaves his eyes.
Sure he looked focused that day in Chicago less than a year ago.
Sure he was down to 310 pounds and telling everyone his
quickness would make him unstoppable
Sure he had skipped the draft only months earlier to concentrate on improving his stock and returning Penn State to respectability.
But, see, Kennedy was also taking shots at Lee Corso and the ESPN GameDay crew. He was also sheepishly evading all talk about his fiancée, former Penn State women's basketball player Rashana Barnes, and how they supposedly met on Valentine's Day years ago.
It was tough to tell what to take seriously.
Big Ten Conference, NFL scouts, draft gurus — found out just how serious Kennedy was about becoming the top defensive tackle in the nation.
After what some perceived as a slow start (Kennedy wholeheartedly disagreed), the Yonkers, Pa. native became one of the most dominant tackles in Penn State history.
It wouldn't take long before everyone Penn State fans,the
Kennedy finished second on the team with 87 tackles, including 15 for loss, and 5.5 sacks. That earned him All-Big Ten and All-America honors, and soon enough his name was
The numbers are nice, but they certainly don't tell the whole story.
flowing freely from Mel Kiper's mouth.
But those in the know understand that Kennedy is valuable not because of his tackles and sacks, but for what he does for the people around him, specifically the defensive end next to him and the middle linebacker behind him.
In football speak, Kennedy is a two-gap tackle, meaning he's capable of taking on the hole between the tackle and guard in addition to the lane between the guard and center.
Kennedy will go early, simply because he's 6-foot-5, weighs 330 pounds and runs a 5.1-second 40-yard dash.
Team finishes season, places 11th in Big 12
The women's golf team's season came to an end Wednesday with a disappointing final round of the Big 12 Conference championships at the Country Club of Missouri.
The team was in ninth place after round one,but was unable to make up any ground.The team finished in 11th place with 973 strokes.
Oklahoma State, 909, edged Missouri, 910, by one stroke to capture its third straight conference Texas, 918, Okla-
home, 923, and Nebraska, 926,
rounded out the top five.
Junior Jennifer Bawanan had a strong finish for the Jayhawks, firing a final round 77, to go with a first round 80 and second round 79, for a 236 total. The总计 put Bawanan in a tie for 22nd. Bawanan was the only Jayhawk to break 80 in the tournament, a feat that she accomplished twice.
Freshman Chelsey Prior, 242, and senior Heather Rose, 247, recorded top-50 finishes, while seniors Tiffany Krugel, 254, and Kristy Staub, 255, finished just outside the top 50.
— Paul Kramer
Ballow
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1B
Finally, check out the performance of the most talented Jayhawk in the pros. Paul Pierce last season, Pierce proved to be clutch scorer for the Boston Celtics during their playoff run. This season is no different, Pierce put the Celtics on his shoulders during game one against the Indiana Paceers and carried the team to a victory. Even Larry Bird would have had to notice Pierce's 40 points and 11 boards, which includes hitting 21 for 21 from the free throw line.
Pierce did struggle in game two with a severe head cold but still managed to score 14 points. He is the team's star and the key to upsetting the Indiana Pacers. Pierce could prove himself a league superstar if he scores sufficiently against the physical defense of Ron Artest.
In last night's game, Pierce had 21 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Celtics to a 103-81 victory and a 2-1 lead in the series.
If you need Kansas basketball, grab the remote. The Jayhawks are only a click away.
Bollow is a Littleton, Colo., junior in journalism.
Royals win again improve to 16-3
The Associated Press
KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Too bad the Kansas City Royals have to go on the road. Then again, they're playing great in all ballparks.
Joe Randa hit a go-ahead double in the sixth inning and Kansas City beat the Minnesota Twins 2-1 Thursday to become the first team since 1987 to win its first 10 home games.
"This is awesome. It's really something to be proud of," said Chris George, who beat the Twins' Brad Radke. "I wouldn't say we feel invincible, but certainly confident."
then returns home May 5
The Royals, who overcame a four-hitter by Radke (1-3), improved to 16-3 overall and are 13 games over .500 for the first time since the final day of the 1994 season.
Kansas City was 37-44 at home while losing a franchise-record 100 games last season. The Royals are the ninth team to start 10-0 at home, two shy of the major league record, set by the 1911 Detroit Tigers. Kansas City starts a nine-game road trip Friday at Toronto.
"We have been playing good all the way around," Royals manager Tony Pena said. "The thing about this bulletclub is everybody wants to be a hero. Everybody wants to do something."
Kansas City went ahead for good in the sixth when Carlos Febles singled and scored on a double to center by Randa, who has seven RBI in the last three games.
Jason Grimsey pitched two innings of one-hit relief, and Mike Dougail finished the seven-hitter for his ninth save in nine chances.
Hunters singled leading off the ninth and advanced on a wild pitch, but Doug Mientkiewicz struck out and Michael Cuddyer filed out to left. Hunter was doubled up off second by Raul Ibanez for the final out.
"I was trying too hard, just wanted to get across home plate and tie the game up." Hunter said. "But at the same time I thought he was jammed and it was going to drop in. But it stayed up. I made a big mistake, that's all."
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