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THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 2002
Cross country
Runners ready for Rim Rock
By Justin Schmidt Kansan sportwriter
The Kansas cross country teams are ready to race.
The Jawhawks' season begins tomor-
The Jayhawks' seas row at Rim Rock Farm northwest of Lawrence. Both the men and women are anxious to begin the competition.
"We will use this meet to determine our top seven." coach Stanley Redwine said. "The teams have been training well and they're going to give it their all."
Eve Lamborn
Kansas will host three teams at the Bob Timmons Invitational Oral Roberts, Pittsburg State University and Park University.
The Kansas men are returning three letterwinners and the women four. For senior Eve Lamborn, this will be the final race at Rim Rock.
"There are some mean little hills at Rim Rock," Lamborn said. "But I think our team has the advantage over the competition this weekend because we are used to the course. We know what to expect."
The men's 8K race will begin at 9 a.m. The women will follow with the 5K race at 10 a.m.
In other cross country news, coach Stanley Redwine has been nominated to coach the men's endurance events at the Pan American games in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. If selected, Redwine would serve under men's track and field coach Fred Harvey of Arizona.
"It's an honor that my peers believe in what we're doing here at Kansas," Redwine said. "I look forward to the opportunity."
Contact Schmidt at jschmidt@kansan.com. This story was edited by Melissa Shuman.
The Kansas football team runs a drill during practice. The teamtravels to Las Vegas this weekend to face UNLV and its quarterback, Jason Thomas.
'Hawks to roll dice
UNLV QB Thomas to pose dual threat for Kansas defense
By Doyle Murphy
Kansan sportswriter
First Seneca Wallace and now Jason Thomas.
The Kansas football team will face one of the top quarterbacks in the country for the second week straight when they meet the University of Nevada-Las Vegas at 9 p.m. Saturday in Las Vegas.
Thomas isn't the only Rebel who can carry the ball. Senior running
Thomas, a senior, became the first quarterback in UNLV history to rush for more than 1,000 yards in his career when he ran for 481 yards as a junior. He also passed for 1,353 yards in 2001.
"Our offensive line had the most missed assignments of any group on the
All aspects of Kansas's defense need improvement, but the offensive line needs the work. Mangino said.
The Jayhawk defense will try to avoid a repeat of last week's 45-3 loss to Iowa State. Kansas gave up 234 yards on the ground and 511 overall.
back Joe Haro rushed for 1,107 yards last year, after spending the 2000 season on special teams and as a defensive back. He was one of the 42 finalists for the Doak Walker Award, which recognizes college football's top running back, and figures to be in the running again this season.
"UNLV has some players now, Kansas coach Mark Mangino said. 'They proved last draft that they've got guys that can play on Sunday, and their team right now has a bunch of guys that can play on Sunday."
team," Mangino said. "Some of our most basic run and pass protections were flawed. We can't have that."
Shoring up the run defense will be the Jayhawks' first priority, senior linebacker Leo Entienne said.
"If we can force a team to pass we'll be in a good position," Entienne said.
The defense is not Kansas's only concern. The Jayhawks managed only 150 yards and three points on offense against ISU. Starting junior Bill Whittemore at quarterback may be part of the solution, but the UNLV defense caught Mangino's attention in their opening game against Wisconsin.
"I would say that when you look at raw talent, they're as talented and maybe even more talented than Iowa State's defense," Mangino said.
Contact Murphy at dmurphy@kansan.com. This story was edited by Matt Norton.
Squad ready to take on Morehead
Volleyball team plays in Hofstra Tournament
The Kansas volleyball squad will take on the Morehead State Eagles at 7 p.m. tonight in Hempstead, N.Y. in its first game of the Hofstra Tournament.
Tomorrow the team faces the St. Peter's Peahens at 1 p.m. and the tournament host, the Hofstra Flying Dutchwomen, at 3:30 p.m.
The Jayhawks are 0-2 all-time versus Hofstra, but the team has not previously played St. Peter's or Morehead. Despite the absence of all-time wins against these teams, Kansas has been successful in non-conference play under coach Ray Bechard, 39-5 in five seasons.
No off-season for Collison
Kansas hopes to ride the success from the season opening win against Creighton last Saturday. Sophomore middle blocker Ashley Michaels executed 11 kills of 12 attempts, setting a single game record with a hitting percentage of .912.
Michael and the two junior outside hitters, Abbie Jacobson and Sarah Rome, earned double-digit kills and aided Kansas to earn a .384 team hitting percentage.
— Jason Hwang
Don't blame Nick Collison if his "What I Did on my Summer Vacation" essay sounds a little outrageous for a 21-year-old college student.
A busy summer for one Hawk includes Playboy photo shoot and chance to represent USA
Kansan file photo
Senior forward Nick Collison takes a shot against Missouri last season. This summer, Collison was one of two college players selected to the United States world championship basketball team.
But, even a spot on the USA basketball team, working Michael Jordan's basketball camp, and a photo shoot for Playboy were not enough to make him regret the decision to return to KU for his senior season.
"I didn't have second thoughts at all," he said after the end of his whirlwind summer."I never got to that point where I really wished that I would have left because now I can come back to college and have some of that experience."
After earning an alternate spot on the United States world championships basketball team Collison said that he quickly felt like he belonged on the roster despite being the only non-NBA player on the team.
"I've got a ways to go before I can, you know, play at that level, just in terms of strength," he said. "But it wasn't where I felt like I was totally overmatched."
In four minutes of action during an exhibition game
against China, Collison faced 7-5 center Yao Ming, the NBA's Number 1 draft pick this year.
The Jayhawk forward earned the respect of his older teammates, including former Kansas All-Americans Raef LaFrentz and Paul Pierce.
"I took him outside, drove him and as I was going up I lost control of the ball," Collison said. "He hit it away and they called it a block. Statistically, I was 0-for-2."
"All the guys were really cool. They treated me just like a teammate, tried to kind of look-out for me because they knew I was new," he said. "I talked to Paul and Raef a little more just because I had met them before. It was neat to play with those guys."
Inevitably, Collison played the 'new-guy' role to some degree.
"I just had to go get them lunch one day and carry some bags," he said. "It wasn't too bad."
Earlier in the summer, Collison and teammate Kirk Hinrich traveled to Chicago for the Playboy All-America photo shoot, but Collison said his expectations
were perhaps a little too high.
"There was nobody there. We just went and took the picture at the studio," he said. "We had fun, but the picture was kind of a disappointment. There were no bunnies walking around."
"I had 11 eight and nine year-olds all to myself, and they were some of the mouthiest kids who would not listen. It was not an easy experience but it was a good experience I guess to be in charge of all those kids."
Collison said he learned a lesson in patience while working at the Michael Jordan basketball camp in August.
Jessica Scott
SPORTS
Ryan Malashock
rmalashock@kansan.com
Something about a sleeper just grasps the human spirit. Human nature tells you to root for David, not Goliath.
A Sleeper — an unnoticed team that suddenly becomes prominent — is perhaps the greatest sports term around. It's about proving skeptics wrong and achieving status that, at one time, others deemed unattainable.
Volleyball to surprise this season
Everybody loves a sleeper. It's so hard not to.
We didn't creep closer to the edge of our seats during "Hoosiers" to watch South Bend Central cream small-town Hickory. We didn't pray for Adam Vinatieri's Super Bowl-winning kick to drift wide — well, at least those of us outside St. Louis.
It's sexy to cheer the money-strapped Oakland Athletics. It's trite to support the all-powerful New York Yankees.
The sleeper role, for the most part, has evaded Jayhawk teams.
Saying this, the uncommon chance to observe a sleeper in progress exists this fall.
Before this year, the recent trend at Kansas has been you're either expected to succeed — men's basketball — or you're not — all other sports.
The Kansas volleyball team — coming off three consecutive winning seasons has aimed to break into the upper-echelon of the talent-laden Big 12 Conference this season.
The Jayhawks should. And no one in the Big 12 wants to award them any respect.
The Jayhawks return all but one player from a year ago. Granted, that player was setter Molly LaMere — the school's all-time leader in assists — but two new setters, freshman Andi Rozum and sophomore Ashley Bechard, performed with poise in Kansas' season-opening victory at Creighton, according to coach Ray Bechard.
Kansas returners account for more than 80 percent of last season's kills, and the Jayhawks are supplied with endless hittingweapons, including juniors Abbie Jacobson and Sarah Rome and sophomore Ashley Michaels.
Considering the Jayhawks play in a conference in which the top teams concern themselves more with each other than a team such as Kansas, coach Bechard welcomed the coaches' proclamation.
So, what did that earn the Jayhawks in the preseason coaches poll? Not much. In fact, the coaches agreed that Kansas would continue to be mediocre, placing it ninth in the poll.
And Rozum was the only Jayhawk missing from offseason workouts, which allowed the team to enhance its unity, chemistry and camaraderie. The team has all the makings of a historic year.
In addition, 11 of Kansas' 13 returning players appeared in at least 19 matches a year ago.
"I would definitely call us a sleeper in the conference," Bechard said. "No one is talking about Kansas too much. That's the way I like it. We should beat a lot teams this year if they take us lightly."
So be careful. Don't snooze. Help the Jayhawks create a home-court advantage at Horeksi Family Athletic Center. Because this sleeper should make some noise. And when they do—as with all sleepers — you won't want to miss it.
Malashock is an Omaha, Neb., senior in journalism.