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THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
SPORTS
Ryan Greene rgreene@kansan.com
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2002
Teams have weekend full of action
From two years of experience here at the University of Kansas, it's easy to summarize Parents' Weekend.
The weekend is three days when your parents can come visit, fill your kitchen with groceries and relieve you from your daily diet of macaroni and cheese and ramen noodles. This is a jam-packed weekend on the Jayhawk sports scene so here's a brief summary to fill in parents on what has been going on this fall with the athletics department here in Lawrence
Football: new coach,new uniforms, same bad team
Everyone was pumping this year up to be a big one for the Jayhawks. Even with a new sheriff in town, the team has been just as bad as previous years, but they are showing signs of improvement. The team is showing signs of life with the new starting backfield tandem of quarterback Bill Whittemore and running back Clark Green.
This weekend, the 2-0 Bowling Green Falcons are rolling into town. Just for a little history, last year's Parents' Weekend game resulted in a 41-17 disaster of a loss to UCLA. Adding insult to injury, UCLA running back DeShaun Foster beat the KU defense like 11 blue dirty rugs to the tune of 178 yards and a late score.
This year could be a repeat of last year, simply because Bowling Green put up 51 points on Missouri last weekend. My suggestion is to go for a little while just to check out the football atmosphere if you haven't been to Memorial Stadium, but don't stay for too long because Lawrence has much better things to offer, trust me.
Volleyball: The Rodney Dangerfield team at KU
Simply put, the volleyball team gets no respect. The team is 8-1 on the season and provides the cheapest form of good sports entertainment here in town. The team is 0-1 in Big 12 competition after a loss Wednesday at Texas A&M, but tomorrow afternoon it will take on Oklahoma at the Horeisi Family Athletic Center (next to Allen Fieldhouse). The Jayhawks have won seven of the last eight meetings with the Sooners, and this match will make for a more enjoyable afternoon than spending your time at Memorial Stadium.
Soccer: Kansas' team on the rise
Since Mark Francis took over as head coach of the team three years ago, it has consistently improved. With a bumper crop of young talent this season, they are looking to improve on last year's bittersweet ending — a firstround loss to Brigham Young in their first trip to the NCAA tournament. The team is not at home this weekend, but it is the small-revenue team on campus that everyone needs to keep in the back of their minds.
Golf: men's and women's teams both on the verge of national spotlight
After a rough season last year, the Kansas women's golf team brought in Megan Menzel from Colorado State to lead the team to the promise land. They have fared well in their first two outings of the season but don't see action again until October 7. If your parents are staying past Sunday, take them out to Alvamar Golf Club to see the men's team host the Kansas Invitational, and you can catch a glimpse of senior Chris Marshall, KU's PGA hopeful.
No matter what you do this weekend, have fun with your parents, and if they're not in Lawrence, stay in their good graces by giving them a call because you never know when you'll need a little cash.
Greene is a Vernon Hills, Ill., junior in journalism.
Aaron Showalter/Kansan
Derek Mills, junior wide receiver, congratulates Clark Green, freshman running back, on his touchdown run against the Southwest Missouri State Bears. The Jayhawks face the Bowling Green State University Falcons for the first time at 6 p.m. tomorrow at Memorial Stadium.
May the best bird win
Falcons quarterback will pose problems for Jayhawk squad
By Doyle Murphy
dmurphy@kansan.com
Kansan sportswriter
Kansas spent last week beating up on Division 1-AA quarterback Ryan Porter of Southwest Missouri State Porter left Memorial Stadium with the aid of crutches.
While no slouch, Porter was the first quarterback the Jayhawks played who wasn't all-everything. Now Kansas will play the type of quarterback that it has had trouble with all season.
Josh Harris, 6-foot-3-inch, 225 pound junior, will lead the Bowling Green Falcons into Lawrence at 6 p.m. tomorrow. Harris — like Seneca Wallace of Iowa State and Jason Thomas of the University of Nevada-Las Vegas —
is a mobile quarterback with a powerful arm. He threw for 311 yards on 16-of-31 passing in a 51-28 pounding of Missouri last weekend. He also rushed for 66 yards and even caught a 34-yard touchdown pass.
"He's outstanding." Kansas coach Mark Mangino said. "They like to run him, and I'm not just talking about scrambling around. I mean on designed run plays he carries the ball, and he looks like a tailback carrying the ball."
When Harris isn't running the ball, he's tossing it to his favorite receiver, senior Robert Redd. Redd is seventh in the nation in receiving yards per game at 137. Against Missouri he caught 10 passes for 209 yards and a touchdown.
If Redd is covered, Harris can always turn to sophomore wide receiver James Hawkins. He also caught a touchdown pass against the Tigers, and his 112 yards receiving on five receptions was a career high.
"They've been putting up a lot of high points every game," senior linebacker Greg Cole said. "We're going to try to get in their face,try to slow them down a little."
Cole and defense may try to slow the game down, but the Jayhawk offense wants to keep on rolling after scoring 44 points Saturday.
Kansas offensive player of the week Clark Green, freshman running back, ran for 131 yards and two touchdowns on 24 carries. He was also the Jayhawks' leading receiver. He caught four passes for 54 yards in his second career start, after replacing senior Reggie Duncan.
That kind of start is bound to draw attention. Still, the self-described quiet guy said he wasn't interested in making a big splash.
"They always told me it's the quiet ones that are going to kill you," he said.
Edited by Chris Wintering
Women's soccer deals loss to Aces
Not even lightning could stop the Kansas soccer team last night. Despite a one-hour delay because of an electrical storm, Kansas defeated the Purple Aces of the University of Evansville 2-0.
Coach Mark Francis was pleased with his team's performance.
"We played really well on Sunday, but played even better today," he said.
Kim Karponta, freshman forward, scored the team's first goal right before the end of the first half. The goal was Karfonta's first as a Jayhawk.
Caroline Smith, freshman forward and Big 12 New-
Mark Francis
corner of the week, continued her scoring streak in last night's game. She scored the team's second goal, her seventh of the season.
The goal came in the 83rd minute of the game off an assist from Rachel Gilfillan, sophomore forward.
Meghan Miller, sophomore goalkeeper, also recorded her second consecutive shut out in last night's game.
Kansas improved its record to 5-1-1. Kansas will face Oakland University at 2 p.m. tomorrow in its second game of the Evansville tournament.
The Golden Grizzlies of Oakland lost 1-0 to New Mexico last night in their first game of the tournament. This game was the team's fourth straight loss, dropping its record to 2-5. Debbie Carmel, senior forward, leads the team with four goals and one assist.
Tomorrow's game will be the first meeting between these two teams.
Nikki Overfelt
Freshman forward undergoes surgery
Alicia Rhymes will undergo surgery on her right leg because of anterior compartment syndrome.
Kansas women's basketball coach Marian Washington announced Thursday that surgeon Ken Wertzberger would perform the outpatient fasciotomy on the freshman forward today at 2 p.m. at the Lawrence Surgery Center.
Without complications, she is expected to recover in two weeks.
"It's unfortunate anytime a student-athlete is forced to undergo surgery." Washington said in a statement. "However, for it to happen now, puts Allicia in an excellent position to make a full recovery before the season begins."
Rhymes was named Louisiana 2A Player of the Year, all-city MVP and Street & Smith All-American honorable mention at Loyola Prep in Shreveport, La. She was the only player in Loyola Prep history to score more than 1,000 career points and rebounds.
Kansan staff report
Volleyball team ready for match against Sooners
By Jason Hwang
jhwang@kansan.com
Kansan sportswriter
Like a bull, the Kansas volleyball team will be ready to attack when it sees red.
Kansas (8-1, 0-1 Big 12) will try to even up its conference record in its conference home opener when they face the Sooners of Oklahoma (3-6. 0-1 Big 12) at 2 p.m. at the Horejsi Family Athletics Center.
Family Athletics Center In more than four seasons under coach Ray Bechard, the Jayhawks have won seven of the last eight meetings versus Oklahoma, including a 4-0 record in Lawrence.
Oklahoma, including a 4-2 record.
Texas A&M (No. 17) swept Kansas in three games in the Jayhawks' conference opener in College Station, Texas, in which the Jayhawks were held to a. 191 team hitting percentage. The loss makes it 0-14 all time versus A & M.
"Our motto this year is 'Two percent here and there can impact match.' We failed to get to some of our statistical goals by a short margin," coach Ray Bechard said. "Those short margins made all the difference of the world."
made all the difference of the war.
Oklahoma finished last year 3-30, 2-18 in the Big 12. One of those conference wins came at the Jayhawks' expense. Last Sept. 22, the Sooners broke a six-game losing streak to Kansas by winning three games to one at the OU Field House.
"We try not to think of the past. In that match we did come in too confident," senior outside hitter Molly Scavuzzo said. "We will give as much respect to Oklahoma as if we were playing other teams, like Nebraska."
The Jayhawks got their revenge on Oct. 24, sweeping the Sooners in three games in Lawrence.
botters in three games in the game. Beachard said the team is excited for any home match, but
Eric BreenyKansan
Sarah Rome, junior outside hitter, spikes the ball in a game against Marquette. The 'Hawks will face the Oklahoma Sooners at 2 p.m. tomorrow in the Horeksi Family Athletics Center.
playing in a conference home match gives them an extra boost.
"Obviously, it's new in the conference, beginning at home." Bechard said. "There's a little extra incentive and energy we hope that does not get in the way of us executing like we need to."
— Edited by Matt Gehrke