NSAN
2009
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
TUESDAY APRIL 28, 2009
TUESDAY, APBIL 28, 2009
SPORTS
3B
BASEBALL (CONTINUED FROM 1B)
BASEBAL KANSAS (29-15) PITCHING
The normal pristine weekend rotation of Shaeffer Hall, T.J.
walz and Lee Ridenhour showed some chinks in their armor over the weekend. Hall gave up 10 hits in only 5 2/3 innings, while Ridenhour
Bollman
struggled to keep runners off base in his six plus innings. But now it's time to turn it over to the midweek rotation. Brett Bollman has pitched great his last two starts but didn't get the victory. Once again, he'll be looking for his fifth victory of the season.
It seems as if everyone in the
lineup has done something. Zac Elgie had three hits in game two on Sunday. Preston Land had two RBIs on Friday. Which Jayhawk will step up for them.
Elgie
doubleheader? With the starters getting plenty of rest, Elgie will probably see more time after that three-hit game on Sunday.
MOMENTUM
The past weekend could have been detrimental to the Jayhawks' entire season. But as Brian Heere said, the team showed a lot of maturity to sweep the double header. The team hasn't lost a midweek game to a team with a losing record all season. Don't expect that to change.
Kansas hopes to continue to build its NCAA tournament resume today as they face Chicago State in a doubleheader starting at 3 p.m. If the season up until now is any indication, the Jayhawks will continue to hoot, holler and shout in the dugout for their teammates on the field and in the batter's box.
It doesn't hurt that Kansas has 10 comeback victories this season, which Price believes are huge contributors to the clubhouse vibe.
"The guys like each other and they're playing for each other," Price said. "I think that some of those rallies are a result."
One of the bigger games in the season exemplified that bond loud and clear. At the Missouri game at Kauffman Stadium last Wednesday, the Jayhawks came back from a 3-1 deficit in the sixth inning. Like Price said, the players made plays for each other.
Senior first baseman Preston Land's three-run home run in that inning turned the game around, and Land has been struggling most of the season. The Jayhawk dugout exploded in yells as many of the Jayhawks jumped out to meet Land as he returned to the dugout.
"Everyone was pumped after that. We knew that we were going to take that game after that," junior shortstop David Narodowski said.
Freshman infielder James Stanfield is one to know about the dugout energy. Stanfield is regulated to a back-up role and only gets to start if one of the starting middle infielders are hurt, like junior second baseman Robby Price was on Sunday. The comeback victories are definitely a boost to team morale Stanfield said.
"These comeback wins definitely help out your team and confidence," Stanfield said. "They help you move onto the midweek games then again to the next weekend series."
Kansas will play a relatively weak Chicago State, a team that already has 33 losses and only three victories. But Price doesn't expect his players to let each other down with the postseason looming.
"You're building your resume every time you play," Price said.
CHICAGO (3-33) PITCHING
— Josh Bowe
It's hard to find a bright spot on a pitching staff that has allowed
- Edited by Susan Melgren
runs in 26 of 36 games. if there is one for Chicago State, it is senior William Lawrence, who went seven shutout innings earlier
Lawrence
this season against Ball State.
Freshman James Tucker gets the lion's share of the work though,
despite his 11.90 ERA. Opponents are hitting .411 against them.
OFFENSE
Senior infielder Patrick Hernandez leads the offense in slugging percentage, triples, doubles and hits. Despite Hernandez's
success at the plate, the team has struggled collectively. The Cougars have combined for only seven home runs all season, and they have yet to score double-digit runs in a game this year.
MOMENTUM
The Cougars started the season ice cold, losing their first fifteen games. They won number 16 on the strength of Lawrence's pitching. Two games later, they lost by two runs. Since then, they've stayed in a major rut, struggling their way to a 3-33 record. After inclement weather prompted an eight-day break, Chicago State played Robert Morris on Thursday. The Cougars lost, 9-8.
Tim Dwyer
Weston White/KANSAN
BY TOM POWERS
tpowers@kansan.com
The Jayhawks travel to Wichita today to compete in their last non-conference series of the year. The doubleheader against the Shockers begins at 5 p.m.
Wichita State currently resides in eighth place in the Missouri Valley Conference and is riding a two-game winning streak, both coming against its conference rival Drake. Wichita State hasn't fared well against the Big 12 Conference this season, going 1-4.
Junior first baseman Amanda Jobe tags a runner in Saturday's game against Baylor. Kansas split the doubleheader and plays another against Wichita State today, but Kansas hasn't won any of its five games against Missouri Valley conference teams this season.
Kansas comes into the double-header following its fifth conference series split against Baylor on Senior Day. On the season, the Jayhawks are 0-5 versus opponents in the Missouri Valley Conference.
The Shocker offense is led by second baseman Kara L'Huillier and catcher Heather Gerritse. KeriSi Rowan leads the Missouri Valley in steals and has yet to be thrown out this season, going a perfect 15-15. It's clear that Wichita State has a potent offense. It has a team average of .272, good for second in the Missouri Valley. However, the same can't be said of its pitching and defense.
The Shocker pitching staff has a dismal ERA of 3.99 and has given up 385 hits in only 328 innings pitched, making Wichita State's staff the worst in the Missouri Valley Conference. Defensively, it doesn't get much better for the Shockers, who have committed 56 errors in 48 games.
Over the last five games the Jayhawks are 2-3, losing to Drake and splitting Tulsa and Baylor. In those games, Kansas played poor defense but had a strong offensive output.
SOFTBALL
Kansas faces tough Shocker offense
year against teams from the Valley and we've struggled," coach Tracy Bunge said of the team's record. "That's one of the biggest differences between this year and last year."
Kansas now sits at eighth in the Big 12, one game behind Oklahoma State. Kansas hopes to use the last three series of the season against Wichita State, Texas A&M and Iowa State, to help bolster its postseason resume.
— Edited by Melissa Johnson
The team racked up 10 errors in the last five games. From the batter's box, however, the Jayhawks have been hot. Over the last five, Kansas has hit a team average of .250 and knocked in an impressive 20 earned runs. Jayhawks combined to hit seven home runs, four of which came in Sunday's losing effort against Baylor.
"We haven't had any success this
Bacheye attended Sandwich High School in Windsor, Ontario.
worker who is not selfish." Bacheyie said on the league's Web site. "I am a team player and I love to win. I have always been on teams that worked its way to the top so I know what it takes. I would love to play for a CFL team and help them win a championship."
FOOTBALL (CONTINUED FROM 1B)
Kansas fans may recall running back Jon Cornish, who was recruited out of New Westminster, British Columbia.
where he was named an All-Canadian and All-Conference player after his senior season.
Cornish led the Jayhawks in rushing his junior and senior seasons and finished his career
leading the Big 12 in rushing in 2006 with 1,457 yards. Cornish and Bacheyie may be reuilted, or pitted against one another, come May 2 as Cornish now plays for the Calgary Stampeders. He rushed for 254 yards and one touchdown last season.
- Edited by Melissa Johnson