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SPORTS
KANSAN.COM/SPORTS | THURSDAY. OCT. 15.2015
Tayler Soucie cheers after a score on Sept. 23.
MISSY MINEAR/KANSAN
AMIE JUST
@Amie Just
It wasn't easy, it wasn't pretty,
but No. 9 Kansas defeated Baylor in four sets (25-21, 13-25,
25-20, 25-17) to extend its un-
defeated streak to 18-0.
Kansas (18-0, 6-0 Big 12) dropped just its fifth set of the season in the win over Baylor (13-6, 1-4). Kansas dropped one set each against Arkansas, Northern Colorado, Gonzaga
and Kansas State.
["We] didn't serve well, didn't pass well, and a lot of that has to do with your opponent," coach Ray Bechard said in a postgame interview. "Baylor played a high level match tonight."
Sophomore right side hitter Kelsie Payne and sophomore outside hitter Madison Rigdon hammered out 13 kills apiece to lead the Kansas offense.
Sophomore setter and reigning AVCA Player of the Week
Ainise Havili notched 34 assists and 13 digs, marking her sixth double-double of the season.
The first set was one for the ages. The score was deadlocked 13 times and the lead alternated seven times. Kansas won the set off a long attack attempt from Baylor.
The second set was a completely different story. The Jayhawks and the Bears were tied at five at one point, but the Bears took it and never looked back. Baylor ran away with the set, giving Kansas its worst set
loss of the season, 13-25.
At the break, Bechard said he told the team that Baylor outworked them in the first two sets.
"Our team takes that personal when we talk about other people outworking us," Bechard said. "We are committed to having a culture of hard work. They were on our heels the entire time that second set. That's a good wake-up call for our team."
The third set was slightly reminiscent of the first set, as it
was tied seven times throughout, but Kansas powered through to take the two-set lead. Senior outside hitter Tiana Dockery was a main factor in closing out the final points, as she and Janae Hall went up for a block to give Kansas the match point serve. A kill from Dockery sealed the deal, giving the Jayhawks the 2-1 set lead.
The fourth set was tighter, but not as close as the first and third. Kansas and Baylor were tied early at nine points apiece.
but Kansas charged ahead, winning five of the next six points. Baylor couldn't recover and Kansas ended the set, winning 25-17.
Next up for the Jayhawks is a home match against the Oklahoma Sooners on Wednesday, Oct. 21 at 6:30 p.m. Kansas will shoot for 19-0 in the game against the Sooners.
- Edited by Leah Sitz
Women's basketball picked to finish 10th in the Big 12 Conference
DYLAN SHERWOOD
@dmantheman2011
After finishing ninth in the Big 12 Conference last year, the Kansas Jayhawks were picked to finish 10th in the Big 12's preseason poll released by the conference on Wednesday.
The layhawks have not finished higher than sixth, which they did during the 2011-12 season. Kansas finished ninth in the Big 12 last season with a 6-12 conference record, finishing one game ahead of Texas Tech and one game behind both Kansas State and West Virginia.
Baylor is picked to win the conference, receiving eight first-place votes, followed by Texas and Oklahoma, each receiving one first-place vote. Iowa State comes in at number four, followed by TCU, West Virginia, Kansas State, Oklahoma State and Kansas.
Coach Brandon Schneider enters his first season at the helm of the Jayhawks and looks to rebuild the women's basketball program after a successful five-year stint at Stephen F. Austin, leading the Ladyjacks to back-to-back Southland Conference regular season championships. Schneider knows how tough the Big 12 Conference is — one of the toughest women's basketball conferences in the nation.
One thing Schneider mentioned at women's basketball media day last Wednesday was that a sophomore is basically a veteran on his young team.
"We have some veteran players that have really stepped up and tried to demonstrate a work ethic and an approach to the process that we really like," Schneider said.
When Schneider was hired back in April, he knew he had some work to do. He also brought two Division-I transfers into the program in sophomore guard McKenzie Calvert and junior guard Jessica Washington. With those two having to sit out a year due to transfer rules, Schneider believes Calvert and Washington can help out his very young team.
"They are ultra-confident, and I don't think it hurts to have that in your facility every day because those are the caliber of players that we're playing against," Schneider said.
Schneider's team welcomes nine newcomers along with six returners including sophomore guard Lauren Aldridge, who was named to the All-Big 12 Freshman Team. Also returning are sophomore guard Chayla Cheadle and sophomore forward Lorraine Enabulele, as well as junior guard Timeka O'Neal and junior forwards Jada Brown and Caelynn Manning-Allen.
Schneider wanted his team to play hard when he was introduced as coach in April. The team's mantra all over the women's basketball facilities is "Tough and Together," which is what the team worked on in September with strength and conditioning coaches Andrea Hudy and Glenn Cain.
"For you to build that toughness and that togetherness, then you've got to have some built-in adversity," Schneider said.
With the beginning of the season right around the corner in 17 days and Late Night behind them, the team is gearing up for a long stretch of practices before its first exhibition game against Pittsburg State at 2 p.m. on Nov. 1 at Allen Fieldhouse.
Edited by Rebecca Dowd
The team also had training camp for a three-week period, and Schneider said he thinks they really came together during that time.
Freshman quarterback Ryan Willis runs the ball against Baylor on Saturday, Oct. 10.
MISSY MINEAR/KANSAN
Freshmen Willis, Booker and Sims give David Beaty glimpses of what Kansas football could be someday
CHRISTIAN HARDY
@ByHardy
Kansas had already driven 23 yards down the field on its opening drive against Baylor. The Jayhawks were almost to midfield — not a bad start against the No. 3 team in the nation.
This is where drives had often stalled for coach David Beaty's offense in past games, and it did on this drive too
Willis completed a 22-yard pass on the sideline to freshman wide receiver leremiah Booker, then floated a pass over the shoulder of freshman wide receiver Steven Sims Jr., which hit him in stride.
— for two downs, at least. It was 3rd-and-17 when freshman quarterback Ryan Willis showed exactly what Beaty has raved about since camp: his arm.
Booker made his career first
"They're very confident, those young guys, and I love it," said offensive coordinator Rob Likens. "They watch film and they go. 'Oh, I can beat that guy. I can beat that guy.' It's very refreshing to watch those guys.
catch, Sims caught his first career touchdown and Willis became the first true freshman quarterback to throw a touchdown pass since Todd Reesing did it in 2006. Call it the freshman trio, if you will.
Ultimately, that's the goal with the host of young guys Kansas is putting on the field right now — get them playing time and, hopefully, confidence. Whether it's by choice or purely out of necessity. Beaty is getting plenty of those guys face time early in his tenure.
"If they can keep that, we can build on that."
The team started six freshmen last week — two were redshirt freshmen. In all, eight more non-starter freshmen got playing time for Kansas.
One of those freshmen was Booker — a 6-foot-2 receiver out of College Station, Texas. In the minds of Likens and Beaty, it was only a matter of time before Booker got some field action, and they knew that would come early in his career. In fact, it came in his first game as a starter. Booker led the team with three catches for 39 yards.
"You look out there at one time," Likens said. "I think we had five true freshman out there playing offense at one point."
"We always thought after a couple of days of practice, 'Man, this guy is going to play for us early,'" Likens said, referring to fall camp. "He was able to do that this Saturday.
When he was ready to return to the field, the big-bodied, strong-handed wide receiver stood out as part of the offense.
and he looked good."
The number of days it took Booker to break through and start getting snaps with the starters in camp could be counted on a single hand. Soon after, with the help of what Beaty called a "tireless" work ethic that dated back to the weight room of Booker's high school, he was an integral piece of the starting 11 before he was injured.
"He kind of has it all," Likens said. "Sometimes freshmen are a little squirrelly — you don't know exactly if they are going to do the right things all the time, but he does, because he cares a lot.
"One of the things we just
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