Inside Sports
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Sports
The Kansas City Royals home opener is today at Kauffman Stadium. The Royals will play host to the Baltimore Orioles.
SEE PAGE 3B
Golf
Tiger Woods looks to duplicate last year's performance this week at Augusta.
SEE PAGE 6B
Tuesday
April 7, 1998
Section:
B
Page 1
Pro Baseball
St. Louis Cardinal slugger Mark McGwire has jumped off to a blazing start in 1998.
SEE PAGE 4B
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Commentary
Biker sore from road less traveled
A friend played a cruel prank on me the other day
He played a crier prank on me the other day.
"Hey man," he said, "I'm going biking along some trails by the river tomorrow morning. Wanna go?"
The last bicycle I had ridden was the el cheapo imitation dirtbike I used to ride in seventh grade, it sounded like a good idea. I borrowed a mountain bike, got up early the next morning, did a few jumping jacks and did my best to look sporty.
We rode across the Kansas River and turned right onto the levee.
The path was straight and wide, and I knew it was time to turn up the intensity. I put my head down and pumped my legs like a mad man. My feet were spinning like a wild Tarantella dancer, and I was beginning to feel the burn.
Eric Weslander
sports@kansan.com
"You might want to shift up a gear," my friend said as he circled around me.
Thus, I came to understand the concept of the gear switch. I unwittingly had been trying to cruise in the lowest gear on the bike, which (as I would find out later) is best suited for large hills.
I flipped a switch, and suddenly, the work my legs was doing actually started producing results. The wind whipped my hair. I smiled at the feeling of speed and freedom.
Then I fell down.
Thinking back, I am convinced that falling down is a good thing because it teaches us humility — it reminds us that there's a bit of a clumsy slob in all of us.
At the time, though, it hurt. A lot.
I was wrong.
But I got back up, determined to actually make it to these wooded trails. They sounded nice and scenic.
When we got there, I found it to be more like the scene in the Wizard of Oz when they get lost in the forest and those trees start throwing things at them. The trail was winding and narrow, and branches snaked out into the path.
Then, the dips started — the dips go straight down for about 15 feet, then straight back up again. It's kind of like the first big hill on the Timberwool rollercoaster, except imagine a more narrow track that is muddy and slippery and has thorny branches hanging across it.
And when you get to the top of the first big hill of the Timberwolf, there's a huge loot waiting for you.
That leads me to the second thing that gave me problems. There are these woodpiles in the middle of the path, strategically placed at the most inopportune places.
"Oh." I said the first time I saw one. "Looks like we have to go back. There's a big pile of logs in the way."
"You're supposed to jump them."
"On the bike?"
"Yen."
Weslander is a Louisville, Ky., junior in journalism.
"Ok. Here goes."
I gained enough speed, but when I reached that heaping mound of lumber, I didn't raise myself quite far enough out of the seat.
Let's just say I went through a lot of ice that night.
I rolled smoothly through the trail's twists and turns, stopping only when I lost my concentration or confidence and panicked.
Finally, after about two hours of torture and terror, three cuts on my right shin, a bruise in the shape of West Virginia on my left shin, a lot of hopping off and on the bike and some more unwelcome contact between the seat and my groin. I started to get it.
As I am writing this, my feet are caked in mud and my hands are aching from gripping bicycle handles.
I realized that mountain biking was about meeting challenges, finding balance and overcoming the basic human fear of being decapitated by a tree limb.
And it felt good.
Someday, with a little determination and with a little luck, I will ride the trails without falling down, without doing any major damage to my lower tailbone and without jumping off the bike and screaming "Yow! My calves!" at the top of a hill.
And someday, I'll talk some unsuspecting fool into going on a leisurely bike ride along the river.
Team searching for comeback
Jayhawks to battle Fort Hays Tigers
By John Blakely Wilson Kansan sportswriter
The Kansas baseball team enterts its fourth non-NCAA Division I opponent in three weeks at 7 tonight as the Fort Hays State Tigers come to Hoglund-Maupin Stadium.
NCAA Division II and NAIA colleges have smaller enrollments and athletic budgets which usually means record-padding victories for giant universities.
The Jayhawks (16-16) racked up seven wins against these smaller schools earlier this season, winning by scores like 14-2 and 14-4.
But Kansas struggled Wednesday, squeaking out a 6-5 win in the first game of a doubleheader against Baker before losing 9-8.
Fort Hays State (30-8) should provide the Jayhawks with stiffer opposition. The Tigers are coming off a 1997 NCAA Division II Tournament berth.
sion II team.
Kansas coach Bobby Randall said the team had trouble against Baker and it had to be better prepared for its game against Fort Hays, a nationally ranked Divi-
The loss to Baker is just one of five for the Jayhawks in their last seven games. After being swept last week end by Baylor in Waco, Randall said the team learned what pitching can do to a good hitting team.
"Yogi Berra said, 'Good pitching will shut down good hitting.' Randall said. "We've hit the ball and scores run all year long, but they surprised us—we didn't hit the ball at all."
Randall said Baylor's pitching staff was the best he had seen in 17 years of coaching college baseball.
"I've never even seen three different starting pitchers throw that well in a three-game series," Randall said. "They hurt our confidence, but it's now a time to reestablish that belief in ourselves."
After today's game, the team plays rival Kansas State tomorrow and three games against nationally ranked Texas Tech this weekend, all in Lawrence. The Jayhawks will play a pair against traditional power Wichita State next week.
"We are going to fight our tails off in this stretch, and it will really define our team," Randall said. "It's a way to grow—winning several games will make a wonderful statement about Kansas baseball."
Kansas shortstop, John Nelson, the throw to first base. Nelson has earned the respect of his teammates for his quiet demeanor and tough work ethic. Photo by Geoff Krieger/KANSAN
Softball players to meet national champions
Third baseman Sara McCann, Kansas City, Mo., senior, takes a swing. The softball team will play the defending national champions, the Oklahoma City Chiefs, at 2 and 4 p.m. today. Photo by Geoff Krieger/KANSAN
Kansan sportswriter
By Laura Bokenkroger
The Kansas softball team takes on the NAIA defending national champions at 2 and 4 p.m. today at Jayhawk Field.
Oklahoma City has won the NAIA national championship for the last four years and comes into the game with a 26-game winning streak. This season, the Chiefs are 37-6 with five of their losses coming from Oklahoma and Oklahoma State.
The Jayhawks lead the all-time series against the Chiefs 20-2. Kansas has collected six splits in 10 double headers this season, sweeping only McNeese State and Baylor. Arizona and Stanford took both games against the Jayhawks, whose record is 20-23 overall and 5-3 in the conference.
Even with an overall record below .500, the Jayhawks have battled their way into third place in the Big 12 conference. Nebraska and Oklahoma stand in first and second in the league.
Pitcher Jessi Kissel has been a consistent force for Kansas in conference play, posting a 0.62 ERA with 11 strikeouts and only three earned runs in eight appearances against Big 12 opponents.
Kowal was nominated for Big 12 Pitcher of the Week for March 30-April 5, during which she had a 0.93 ERA in six appearances and picked up her first save of the season.
Left fielder Sara Holland leads the team in conference play with a .346 batting average and 21 stolen bases. Holland has 14 home runs in her career, just one shy of the record held by her coach, Tracy Bunge.
Shortstop Michelle Hubler is just one home run behind Holland on the career home run list with 13. After hitting two homers last week, catcher Kristina Johnson has three this season and 12 in her career.
In all 43 games, Johnson leads the team in batting average (.323), hits (41) and slugging percentage (.465). In Big 12 play, Johnson's batting average remains high at .320.
Johnson also was nominated for Big 12 Player of the Week for March 30- April 5, hitting .389 in three double headers against Wichita State, Texas A&M and Texas.
The Jayhawks stay home this weekend to play Oklahoma State and Oklahoma in double headers Saturday and Sunday.
Stand up and cheer
Kansas cheerleaders pose with Baby Jay in Allen Field House. The group returned yesterday from Daytona Beach, Fl., after placing third in the National Cheerleaders Association National Championship. Photo by Geoff Krieger/KANSAN
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