FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 8,2002
SPORTS
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN = 3P
Fencing faces first competition this weekend in round-robin
By Steve Vockrodt
svockrodt@kansan.com
Kansan sportswriter
The KU fencing club team will face its first competition of the season this weekend.
Squads from Johnson County Community College and club teams from Wichita, Salina and Kansas City will compete tomorrow from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in Robinson Gym at room 215. This year's KU squad will compete as the first organized fencing club team under the tutelage of first year coach Brian McDow. West Des Moines, Iowa, senior.
"We are doing a good job, we've got a lot of strong fencers," McDow said.
Brothers Chris and Craig Anderson, Lake Bea, Ill., freshmen, are expected to lead the team to a top finish after the team's intrasquad competition.
The tournament format begins with several pools of five to seven competitors in round-robin play. Top finishers in the pools advance to a single-elimination bracket to determine a champion.
"This is a novice tournament, we want to make sure everyone gets experience,"
McDow said.
The sport of fencing has seen sizable growth in the last ten years. The United States Fencing Association, the nation's governing fencing body, saw its membership expand from approximately 1,000 a decade ago to more than 15,000 currently. McDowd said.
Although the sport's popularity has increased in the United States, the International Olympic Committee will consider dropping two of fencing's three classifications for the upcoming Olympics.
McDow begins his fifth year of fencing and fourth year of coaching. Some members of KU's squad come as Johnson County Community College transfers where a fencing class is available, but most get involved by curiosity.
"They tend to just kind of show up," McDow said. "There are some clubs in the Kansas City and Salina area, but it is word of mouth more than anything else."
The team may schedule other upcoming tournaments depending on the results of this weekend's meet.
- Edited by Christina Neff
Players file for free agency
The Associated Press
NEW YORK — Roger Clemens filed for free agency yesterday, testing the market while still hoping to re-sign with the New York Yankees.
Clemens, a 40-year-old right-hander, needs seven wins to reach 300 for his career. He was 13-6 with a 4.5 ERA and 192 strikeouts this year, limited to 29 starts because of injuries, and the Yankees don't think any team will offer $10 million or more for a one-year deal.
San Francisco outfielder Tom Goodwin also filed yesterday, raising the free-agent total to 152, with 18 more players potentially eligible to file by Monday's deadline.
Free agents can start talking contract with all teams starting Tuesday.
Seattle designated hitter Edgar Martinez and pitcher Shigetoshi Hasegawa took themselves off the market, agreeing to one-year contracts with the Mariners.
Jim Thome, the best hitter on the free-agent market, toured Philadelphia on yesterday. Thome, who has spent his entire career with Cleveland, walked into Philadelphia's clubhouse and saw a Phillies jersey with his name and No. 25 hanging in one of the lockers.
Phillies general manager Ed Wade said he would offer a contract on Tuesday to Thome.
Boschee's book will sell many copies but Laffy Taffy wrappers are more interesting
This one might work, though it really shouldn't.
Apparently, Jeff Boschee was desperate to find a get-rich-quick scheme.
The former KU hoopster, along with high school economics teacher Mark Horvath, shoves a new book down our throat titled Long Shot: Beating the Odds to Live a Jayhawk Dream. Its format is a bit different than Horvath and Jerod Haase's Floor Burns from about five years ago, but the target is the same: get all those KU basketball-obsessed freaks to buy it as stocking stuffers.
The truth is, I've read more interesting Laffy Taffy wrappers.
Not only are typos scattered throughout, but the book, quite simply, is poorly written.On one page, English 101 Boschee says, "Missouri has the most immature fans." On the next, English 998 Boschee says, "I released the ball and watched it as it softly landed in the net, causing the twine to jump
For those of you who don't want to waste $15 on 187 pages of Jeff Boschee, I can gladly sum this book up for you in one paragraph.
up as if it were cheering."
Huh?
Boschee always wanted to be a Jayhawk. Boschee is a good shooter. Boschee becomes a Jayhawk. Boschee shaves his head. Boschee likes hitting treys. Boschee doesn't want to play in the NBA. Boschee likes being popular. Boschee hates being popular. Boschee farts. Boschee is burnt out. Boschee still always wanted to be a Jayhawk. Chicks dig Boschee. Boschee released the ball and watched it as it softly landed in the net, causing the twine to jump as if it were cheering.
Of course, as I went through the book, I found passages that were just too good to keep from the broke college kid with better things to buy, such as beer. Observe:
That's about it.
Ryan Wood
rwood@kansan.com
My grades sunk to the worst
I have ever had in my life. I had a 1.6 average that semester."
Geez, Bosch, that's worse than the football team's 2.58 in Spring 2002.
"Dogs are also a great way of meeting girls. Taking the dog with me around campus ... it's a cinch that women will walk up and make some comment."
Trust me, Boschee, you didn't need your dog. With all the dumb groupies who swarm this campus, all you needed was your presence.
"I quickly got to the point. 'Coach, I wanted you to know that I've decided to play at Kansas.' 'Hold on a second, Jeff.'
Coach (Roy Williams) said. I heard the phone being put on something, then in the background there was a loud yell. "WHOOOO YESSSS!" ... it was hilarious."
Classic. How can you not love Roy Williams?
Much of the 187 pages try to take up space. He has a terrible page on what makes a good coach. He wastes ink writing a letter to all of the fans he never got to respond to. Pretty lame.
What really irks me about this book, though, is that it's going to sell copies, as long as alumni and locals stay obsessed with KU basketball and as long as the jersey chasers dilute Mt. Oread. It's really too bad.
I guess you have to give Boschee credit for making a buck off his name. Most of us would've done it, too.
Wood is a Lee's Summit, Mo., senior in journalism.
But why did it have to be so bad?
Royals coach Tom Gamboa accepts 15-year-old's apology
The Associated Press
CHICAGO — Kansas City Royals coach Tom Gamboa said he accepts the apology of a 15-year-old fan who attacked him on the field during a game.
Gamboa said yesterday he would like to see the boy receive probation and community service because he was already held for a month in juvenile detention after the September attack at Comiskey Park.
"I can't see a 15- or 16-year-old kid being thrown down the drain for making a tragic mistake," Gamboa said while testifying at the teen's sentencing hearing.
The boy apologized to Gamboa during the start of the hearing in juvenile court. The hearing is scheduled to resume today.
The boy was released to his
family last month after pleading guilty Oct. 21 to one count of aggravated battery and two counts of mob action in the Sept. 19 attack during a game against the Chicago White Sox. Gamboa was coaching at first base when it occurred.
Ligue has been in custody at Cook County Jail since the attack and on Thursday a judge agreed to reduce his bail to $10,000 from $200,000, said Jerry Lawrence, a spokesman with the Cook County State's Attorney's office.
The boy's father, William Ligue Jr., 35, also was charged. He has pleaded innocent to three felony counts of aggravated battery and one felony count of mob action.
A spokesman for the Cook County Sheriff's Office said Ligue had not posted bond by late afternoon.
Swim team meets Wyoming, SMS
By JeremyKrashin
jkrashin@kansan.com
Kansan Sportswriter
The Kansas swimming and diving team will host its first meet of the year with a triangular versus Wyoming and Southwest Missouri State at 1:30 p.m. Saturday at Robinson Natatorium.
"It's good in the sport of swimming to swim against tough competitors in tough situations," he said. "You cannot get in any more challenging of a situation than when we swim Missouri, at Missouri."
The team lost to Missouri last Friday, 170-126, but, coach Clark Campbell said, the team learned from the loss.
Junior Kristen Johnson agreed.
tough Mizzou was," she said.
Johnson won the 200 breaststroke and placed second in the 100 breaststroke in the dual at Missouri.
Coach Tom Johnson was rebuilding the Wyoming program and was always in the thick of the Mountain West Conference race. Campbell said.
The Bears' swimming program, coached by John Steck, is less than a decade old. Campbell said since it became a team, the Bears contend for a conference title every year. Both teams will challenge KU, Campbell said.
"They are real solid teams, and we are going to have to put together races like we've talked about this week," he said. "They do have potential to knock us off."
Edited by Matt Gehrke
kansan.com News Now
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