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University Daily Kansan / Thursday, April 23, 1992
SPORTS
Jayhawks fall to Creighton, 7-2
Pitcher dominates Kansas hitters
By Jerry Schmidt
Kansan sportswriter
If yesterday's performance is any indication, Creighton pitcher Alan Benes has more than his name going for him.
Benes, brother of the San Diego Padres star hurler Andy Benes, pitched his second complete-game victory against Kansas. Creighton beat the Jayhawks 7-2 last night at Hoglund-Maupin Stadium. Kansas' record dropped to 22-21
Benes allowed only seven hits, struck out seven Jayhawk hitters and picked up his seventh victory of the season.
"The story of the game was Alan Benes, "Kansas coach Dave Bingham said. "He is a fierce competitor and has an outstanding breaking ball that has a lot of bite and he can throw it for a strike."
It wasn't the first time Benes had stymied the Jayhawks. In the team's previous meeting March 25, Benes shut out Kansas and struck out six hitters in the Bluejays' 5- victory.
Bingham said Alan Benes was unlike Andy Benes in that he was a pitcher that could dominate a game with his off-speed pitches rather than his fastball.
Instead it was the Bluejays who put the pressure on the Kansas pitching staff. Creighton jumped in front early with a three-run home run in the top of the first inning by left fielder Chad
"I'm more impressed with him tonight than at any other time," Bingham said. "He is not a hard thrower, but we thought we might break him if we put some pressure on him."
"The story of the game was Alan Benes... He put our backs against the wall. He is an outstanding player and he hurt us."
Dave Bingham Kansas baseball coach
McConnell. After McConnell's blast over the left center field wall off Kansas junior Jimmy Walker, the Blueiacs never looked back.
"He put our backs against the wall," Bingham said of McConnell. "He is an outstanding player and he hurt us."
McConnell was 3-for-4 with threeRBIs and scored two runs. SeniorsRick Freehling and Brian Davidsonand freshman Tyson Kimm each had twowhits.
Bingham said Tuesday that he had planned to pitch a bundle of pitchers against Creighton. He lived up to his word as six different pitchers took the mound for the Jayhawks. Sophomore Chris Corn had the longest stay on the mound, pitching 2/1 innings.
game of the season. His record fell to 5-4.
Walker, Kansas' starter, lasted only 1/2 innings, allowing three runs and four hits while losing his fourth
After Creighton scored a run in the fourth inning, the Jayhawks bounced back behind the bat of freshman left fielder Josh Igou. Igou slammed a two-run home run over the right-center field fence and pulled the Jayhawks within two, 4.2. Igou seemed to be the only Jayhawk who could handle Benes' curveball and 85-mile-per-hour fastball. No other Kansas hitter had more than one hit.
"He left some pitches out over the plate for me, and he didn't on some of the other guys." Igou said.
Igou was 3-for-4 on the night and had both of the Javahawks' RBIs.
"Josh had a real nice game," Bingham said. "Our freshmen are acting like something other than freshmen."
Kansas will attempt to get back on track as it gears up for a crucial Big Eight Conference series this weekend against Iowa State in Ames, Iowa. The four-game series could make the conference race interesting. The Jayhawks can slowly climb in the conference standings with a good showin-
"Our focus has to be on Iowa State," Bingham said.
The Cyclones are 6-10 in the conference and are tied for fifth place with Kansas State. Kansas, 5-11 in the conference and in last place, needs a fourth place or better finish to play in the conference post-season tournament.
Igou said every game was crucial for the Jayhawks post-season hopes.
"Every game counts from now on," he said. "With every win we come closer and every loss puts us farther away."
Dan Rude gets back to first base safely during a pick-off attempt to Creighton first baseman J.J. Gottsch.
Bingham uses six pitchers to help rotation get ready for Iowa State
By Jerry Schmidt
Kansan sportswriter
Kansas pitcher Jimmy Walker pitches to Creighton's Brian Davidson early in the game. Walker gave up a three-run home run in the first inning.
There are 10 pitchers on the Kansas roster, not including freshman Dan Rude and junior David Soult who see sparse action on the mound. In last night's 7-2 defeat against Creighton, Kansas coach Bingham used six pitches, and one lasted more than 2 1/2 innings.
But it was part of Bingham's game-plan to use that many pitchers. He wanted to set up his pitching rotation for the four-game series with Iowa State starting tomorrow.
"Our focus has to be Iowa State," Bingham said. "And we had to pitch accordingly. I thought our pitching staff did well."
A welcome sight for Kansas was the effectiveness of sophomore right-hander Chris Corn. Corn had started the
season by winning his first three decisions, but has faltered of late causing Bingham to question Corn's competitiveness.
Last night Corn entered the game with two outs in the fifth innning and pitched 2 1/2 innings, allowing two hits and one run. He struck out three hitters and walked none.
"He had a stretch in the game that was nice," Bingham said. "His breaking pitch was slow in his first innings but after that I thought he pitched well."
Corn said in recent weeks he had been trying to eliminate mental lapses on the mound. He said recently he had been attempting to be too perfect when he pitches.
"I was having trouble with concentration breaks lately." Corn said. "I have been just trying to relax and have fun. That's the big thing."
Kansas softball player pitches a perfect game
By Chris Jenson
Kansan sportswriter
Kansas softball pitcher Stephani Williams has been dominating all season.
Yesterday she was perfect
In the first game of a doubleheader against Southwest Missouri State yesterday at Johnson County Fields, the sophomore pitcher pitched a perfect game allowing no hits, no errors and no runners to reach base.
The Jayhawks swept the doubleheader, winning the first game 1-0 and the second 6-1. Williams was credited with both victories after she relieved junior Jill Bailey after 1' innings in the second game. Her record now stands at 23-2. The Jayhawks improved to 38-6.
"It felt really good," Williams
said. "Mymotion was really smooth.
The only thing I was worrying about
was the pressure."
Williams said that during the game she tried not to think about the no-hitter or the perfect game.
Senior first baseman Shelly Jack led off the inning with a double. Junior catcher Erin Wahaws’ sacrifice bunt advanced Sack to third and senior outfielder Jennifer Frost sinister Core Sack for the game’s only run.
"As soon as you think about it you lose it," she said. "I never think about them. They are nice honors to them. They are not the most important thing."
Kansas scored its only run of the first game in the second inning.
"On offense we were terrible." Coach Kalum Haack said. "We should have done better offensively.
We had a good talk about it after the game."
"All our pitchers are going to have to hit their targets early in the game," he said. "It's the end of the season and we have got to be playing our best ball."
Haack said the talk seemed to do some good because the team came alive and scored six runs in the second game.
Senior third baseman Camille Illievent3 vent for 4 in the game with a homerun, a double and two RBIs. The third baseman Maeva Cole was for 2 for 3 on two singles.
Haack said that despite the perfect game, the team's pitching needed to be more consistent.
Williams said, "In the second game we just busted the ball. The important thing is that we finished good."
Kansas tennis teams capture Big Eight regular season titles
By Lyle Niedens Kansan sportswriter
The Kansas men's and women's tennis teams finished their big Eight Conference seasons short of perfect Tuesday evening at Missouri.
The men's team beat the Tigers 9-0 while the women's team won 7-2. Both teams finished the regular season as undefeated conference champions, both head into this weekend's conference tournament as No. 1 seeds.
Perelman said seniors Rafael Rangel, Paul Garvin and Patrick Han had provided the Jayhawks with excellent leadership this season.
"It's definitely been a group of overachievers, 'Kansas man's' coach Scott Perelman said of the No. 25-ranked men's team, which finished the regular season 19-8 overall and 6-0 in the conference." This has been the most enjoyable year I've had in the last five years."
"The camaraderie of this group has
"This has been the most enjoyable year I've had in the last five years."
Scott Perelman Kansas men's tennis coach
made it fun to work with them, travel with them and coach them," he said.
Garvin and Carlos Fleming earned All-Big Eight honors at No.1 doubles, and sophomore Rhain Buth also earned All-Big Eight honors at No.5 singles. In addition, Rangel completed the conference season with a 5-1 mark at No.1 singles.
But although Perelman said the season had been a success thus far, the Jayhawks' ultimate goal was a conference tournament championship and a berth in the NCAA championships in May.
Women's coach Michael Center echoed that sentiment. The women's team, ranked No.19 in the country, ended the regular season with a 16-4 mark overall and 7-0 in the conference.
"We won the regular season, and that feels good," Center said, "but I think we'll better if we win it (the conference tournament) Sunday."
The women's team will begin the tournament at 9 a.m. tomorrow against Missouri at Homestead Country Club in Prairie Village.
Because Kansas State does not have a men's tennis team, the Jayhawks men's team has a first-round bye. Kansas will play the Colorado-Nebraska winner at 3 p.m. Saturday at Leawood Country Club in Leawood.
Golfteam signs Kansas prep
The Kansas men's golf team announced the signing of Bryce Southern yesterday. Southern played for Hutchinson High School in Hutchinson.
"We're delighted to have Bryce join our program," Kansas men's golf coach Ross Randall said. "He's a fine player and excellent student, and we're looking forward to having him become an important part of our team in the future."
SPORTS BRIEFS
Jordan returns after injury
Michael.Jordan returned to a Chicago Bulls practice yesterday after treatment for a back injury.
The injury had sideline the star guard Tuesday when the Bulls began preparation for tomorrow night's playoff opener against Miami.
"I was a little concerned. It bothered me. My mobility was limited," Jordan said of the back spines Sunday during the 2015 season-ending victory over Detroit.
Jordan said he hurt his back on his first shot of the game, but played to the end. He scored 32 points to clinch his sixth-strong NBA scoring title. After the game, he went immediately to the trainer's room for treatment.
"Two days of treatments and mages have helped loosen it up," said Jordan. "Hopefully, it doesn't stiffen the muscles so I go through double treatments again."
Orioles defeat Royals, 2-1
Jordan said he expected to be at full strength tomorrow.
Billy Ripken drove in two runs, then collided with teammate Randy Milligan the same inning, and both were taken off the field in an ambulance last night in Baltimore's 2-1 victory against Kansas City.
The Orioles matched their best start in 19 years as Rick Sutcliffe pitched a six-hitter against the Royals' radically revamped lineup.
From staff and wire reports
Milligan, the first baseman, and Ripen,
the second baseman, ran into each
other going after a ground ball in the fifth inning. The game was delayed 20 minutes while attendants immobilized Milligan's head and put him on a stretcher. Milligan was lifted into an ambulance, and Rikken put in unaided.
Milligan was knocked unconscious, but was alert by the time he was put in the ambulance, a Royals representative said. Both players were taken to a hospital for X-rays, and reports on their conditions were not immediately available.
Today in sports history
1950 The Detroit Red Wings edge the New York Rangers 4-3 in the seventh game to capture the Stanley Cup.
1954 The NBA adopts the 24-second shot clock.
1969 Jerry West of Los Angeles scores 53 points to lead the Lakers in a 120-118 victory against the Boston Celtics in the opening game of the NBA finals.
From the Associated Press.