2B
SPORTS
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THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 15,2008
quote of the dav
"Some people are born on third base and go through life thinking they hit a triple."
— Barry Switzer,
former Oklahoma football coach
fact of the day
trivia of the day
Oklahoma, Kansas' opponent on Saturday, holds the NCAA record for most rushing yards in a game. The Sooners ran for 768 yards against Kansas State in 1988.
Q: When was the last time the Kansas football team defeated Oklahoma in Norman, Okla.?
A:1996. Kansas defeated Oklahoma 52-24 on Oct. 25, 1996.
ku sports this week
Today
Volleyball: Missouri, 6:30 p.m.
(Columbia, Mo.)
Thursday
Tennis: ITA Central Regional Tournament (Salt Lake City, Utah)
Swimming & Diving: Arizona State, 3 p.m. (Tempe, Ariz.) Soccer: Texas A&M, 4 p.m. (Lawrence)
Friday
Tennis: ITA Central Regional Tournament (Salt Lake City, Utah)
Saturday
Swimming & Diving: Northern Arizona. 11 a.m. (Flagstaff, Ariz.)
Volleyball: Oklahoma 7 p.m.
(Lawrence)
Football: Oklahoma, 2:30 p.m.
(ABC) (Norman, Okla.)
Tennis: ITA Central Regional Tournament (Salt Lake City, Utah)
Cross Country: NCAA Pre-Nationals Invitational, TBA (Terre Haute, Ind.)
Junior player shows flexibility on soccer field
Sunday
Soccer: Francis Marion, noon (Lawrence)
Tennis: ITA Central Regional Tournament, (Salt Lake City, Utah)
Almost two weeks ago, soccer coach Mark Francis approached junior Kim
Boyer with an unexpected request. Kansas' defense needed a spark, and he wanted to shake things up.
play."
Francis wanted to give Boyer, a forward for her two-plus years in Lawrence, a shot at left defender to broaden his choices defensively. Most of all, he wanted her unique combination of size and athleticism on the field." When coach came up to me it was kind of like, "Whoa!" said Boyer, who, at 5-foot-10, is the tallest Kansas player. "But I can play wherever we need to me
And play she has. Boyer contributed 62 solid minutes in a substitute role against Oklahoma State on Friday
Boyer
before making her first career start as a defender against Oklahoma two days later.
"Kim did well," Francis said. "When she came into the Oklahoma State game, she played well. She just ran out of gas on Sunday."
It's a strange development for someone who made 12 starts and contributed four goals and two assists last season. But Boyer said she had spent some time playing defender a few summers ago.
"It's still new," Boyer said. "I was really nervous before the game against Oklahoma because I was starting, and it's just a lot different
from playing forward."
One of the most challenging aspects of the switch has been the nonstop running required from a marking back in Francis' system. Boyer said being responsible for tracking back defensively while joining in the attack had been physically demanding, but she was adapting.
She also said it took time to adjust to the organization and constant communication required to play on the back line, as opposed to the relative freedom and ability to create she had as an attacking player.
"Being on the opposite side of the ball and seeing the game from another point of view is different," Boyer said. "As a forward your back is toward the goal and you have to combine to get in. But when you are playing defense, you are the one behind the ball and you can see the whole field."
U.S.SHOWCASES YOUNG TALENT
The United States has already qualified for the hexagonal stage of World Cup Qualifying after four consecutive victories in pool play. Tonight at 7 on ESPN, Bob Bradley's team will play the first of two "meaningless" qualifiers against Trinidad and Tobago.
Though the result won't affect the Americans' qualifying campaign, it does give Bradley the opportunity to offer the future of the national team a little face time.
Expectations are U.S. fans will see Jozy Altidore, Freddy Adu, Jose Francisco Torres and Charlie Davies in what should be a sneak preview of the next generation of American talent.
In the tradition of Mark Cuban's short stint at Dairy Queen, check out Clippers guard Baron Davis' time as a fast-food employee. Type in "Baron Davis McDonald's," and let the ridiculousness begin. The only hint I will give you is "Starburst car."
THURSDAY YOUTUBE
SESH IV A DAY EARLY
Edited by Mary Sorrick
Master of Madrid
Rafael Nadal of Spain returns the ball to Ennis Gubis, from Latvia, during the tennis match at the Madrid Masters on Tuesday. Nadan won the match in three sets.
KICK THE KANSAN: WEEK EIGHT
Pick games. Beat the Kansan staff. Get your name in the paper.
This week's games:
1. No. 11 Missouri at No. 1 Texas (score)
2. No. 12 Ohio State at No. 20 Michigan State
3. No. 16 Kansas at No. 4 Oklahoma
4. Kansas State at Colorado
5. No. 22 Vanderbilt at No. 10 Georgia
6. No. 13 LSU at South Carolina
7. No. 10 North Carolina at Virginia
7. No. 18 North Carolina at Virginia
8. No. 21 Wake Forest at Maryland
8. No.21 Wake Forest at Maryland
9. No. 25 California at Arizona
10. Oregon State at Washington
Name:
2) Give your name, e-mail, year in school and hometown.
Hometown:
Year in school:
1) Only KU students are eligible.
3) Beat the Kansan's best prognosticator and get your name in the paper.
4) Beat all your peers and get your picture and picks in the paper next to the Kansan staff.
5) To break ties, pick the score of the designated game.
5) To break ties, pick the score of the designated game.
Submit your picks either to KickTheKansan@kansan.com or to the Kansan business office,
located at the West side of Stauffer-Flint Hall, which is between Wescoe Hall and Watson Library.
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Pre-Halloween Special! 7:30 PM Saturday Oct.18
English Alternative Theatre presents a staged reading of
THE LATE-NITE HORRORSHOW A creepy new thriller by KU student Nick Medved
Directed by Paul Stephen Lim
Featuring Mackenzie Wiglesworth, Casey Brown, Lizzie Hartman, Jeff Welch, Sean Hall
Admission FREE
Lawrence Arts Center (9th & New Hampshire)
)
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