THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Sports Brief
Sports
Basketball transfer undergoes surgery
Kansan staff report
Kansas basketball guard Jelani Janisse underwent successful surgery yesterday to repair a ligament tear in his left ankle.
College Basketball
Janisse, who transferred to Kansas from Los Angeles City College during the summer, is expected to sit out 12 weeks.
The Maui Invitational announces pairings that may lead to a secondround Kentucky, Arizona match.
Thursday
September 4,1997
Section:
A
Page 7
SEE PAGE 8A
"Jelani had chronic ankle instability — an injury he aggravated in preseason conditioning," said Ken Wertzberger, the surgeon who performed the surgery yesterday morning at Lawrence Memorial Hospital.
Pro Football
49ers' quarterback Steve Young considers retirement following his third concussion in 11 months.
SEE PAGE 10A
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Less becomes more for team
Fewer errors give coach high hopes
By Matt Gardner
By Matt Gardner
sports@kansas.com
Kansas sportswriter
Kansas volleyball coach Karen Schonewise has most of the same players on the floor as last season, but to her, it is a totally different team.
After a 1-2 showing last weekend at the Taco Bell Invitational in Reno, Nev., Schonewise said she saw many differences from last year.
"We played at a higher level, and we're taking care of the mental errors," Schonewise said. "We did have four service errors against Oregon, but we took care of that the next day."
"I think our consistency level, our intensity level is different," Schonewish said. "We also have more of a hunger, a desire, to play and compete. We're executing our plays much better."
Schonewise said she noticed a different motivation in her team this season, mostly because of a hunger to succeed in B12 Conference play.
This may be in part to a more developed team and a strong group of team leadership composing this year's squad.
Sophomore Amanda Reves posted a .379 attack percentage during the tournament and earned a spot on the All-Tournament team in Reno.
The attack percentage is the number of kills (hits that lead to a point) minus hitting errors divided by
attempts.
"It's a good feeling," Reves said about the recognition. "It's a goal that I had that I hadn't attained. The team played real well regardless of the record at the tournament."
Reves said the team's attitude has chaned from last season.
"Regardless of the score, we were ready to play strong and consistent volleball." she said.
Junior setter Laura Rodhe had 150 setting assists in the three matches played in Reno and has developed as one of the team leaders on the court.
"Laura has really stepped up her game," Schonewise said. "She has taken some more responsibility of the court and is running the offense really well."
Junior Moira Donovan has a .295 attack percentage from the outside hitting position after having a strong tournament.
"Moira has consistently been a leader with her play. She's not as vocal as some of the other players, but she plays at a consistent level and the other players are very responsive to the information she is giving during timeouts," Schonewise said.
Mary Beth Albrecht played probably the most important role in the Jayhawks' match against Oregon on Friday, Schonewise said. The sophomore woke up that morning only able to see out of one eve.
Earlier, Albrecht had gotten a scratch on her eye, so she played the entire match against Oregon with one eye.
"Mary Beth had a very guty performance considering what she was up against," Schonewise said.
Kansas used this week to adjust its defensive positioning and to become more effective attackers before its next tournament. The team will play in the Wildcat Classic tomorrow and Saturday in Evanston, Ill.
Maggie Mochfeld, Kansas senior middle blocker, prepares to hit a set from Laura Rohde, junior settter. The Kansas volleyball team has spent the week adjusting its defensive positioning and practicing for the Wildcat Classic, which will be played tomorrow and Saturday in Evanston, Ill.
The team will play its first home game Sept. 12 against Buffalo. Photo by GR Gordon-Ross/KANSAN
Mistakes still plague football team
Secondary coach Dick Mauel reviews instructions with defensive end Ben Coleman, St. Paul, Minn., freshman. The team was practicing yesterday at the field behind Anschutz Sports Pavilion. The Jayhawks are preparing for the game against Texas Christian University at 1 p.m. Saturday at Memorial Stadium. The Jayhawks defeated the Horned Frogs 52-17 last year at Fort Worth, Texas. Photo by Geo Koffrieger/KANSAN
A day after a disappointing Tuesday practice, Kansas football coach Terry Allen is still moving players around and getting the team situated to face Texas Christian University on Saturday.
By Kelly Cannon
kcannon@kansan.com
Kansas sportswriter
But Allen said it was important to remain focused on the positives, starting with junior linebacker Patrick Brown.
"The one nemesis that was really a thorn in our side was the penalty," Allen said. "We had trivial penalties, ones that were drive stoppers. You can always have excuses as you sit here, and we tried to brush them off as inexperience. That was one of the frustrations of (Tuesday's) practice — we were continuing to make the same mistakes."
"We are extremely proud of the performance of Pat Brown and being singled out as conference defensive player of the week," Allen said. "We'd like to keep that award each and every week, but when they come, we'd like to take advantage of it."
He said that mistakes continued to be a point of concern.
Mistakes during the season opener and at Tuesday's practice are something to which the senior players are paying close attention
"A leader doesn't have to scream, chant and jump up and down, but a leader would do just about anything for his team." senior defensive back Jason Harris said.
Allen said he was confident in the play of starting quarterback senior Matt Johner and sohomore backup Zac Weger.
"That makes for a great practice situation because the kids stay mentally alert on second and third teams because potentially, they could get called upon to perform." Allen said.
"I thought both quarterbacks did a relatively good job," Allen said. "We did not have any turnovers, and that is usually accredited to, at least initially, the quarterback. We had some good things, and we had some bad things. But on the whole, I was pleased with both their play, and I think they can demonstrate that they have a handle on what we're attempting to get done."
"We have Jerome Parks, and we've moved Shawn Vang over from backup at the left-guard position," Allen said. "If we were to start today, I think we'd still go with Jerome, but I think you'll see some interchange."
Allen said that about 65 of the players actually had playing time against Alabama-Birmingham.
Because so many players were able to play, there could be some shake-ups in several positions, including the offensive line, Allen said.
Another position that may see change is wide receiver. Sophomore Michael Chandler, freshmen Harrison Hill and Termaine Fulton and redshirt freshmen Eric Patterson and Tanner Hancock all handle the duty for the Jayhawks.
Kansas kicks off against TCU at 1 p.m. Saturday at Memorial Stadium. The Jayhawks defeated the Horned Frogs 52-17 last year at Fort Worth, Texas.
Sophomore wide receiver John Gordon, who was declared medically ineligible, had an another doctor's appointment, Allen said. He had not heard the results but expected to know more today.
Short attention spans put nation's pastime well past its prime
By Harley V. Ratliff
Kansan sportswriter
What's wrong with baseball?
"It's too slow," said Ben, my friend.
"The games are too long. dude." Ben added.
"Boooooooorrrrlinnnng," said Mike, my other friend. I listened intently as they proceeded to hammer away at our national pastime.
The games are too long, twice. Be rated.
They continued for about five minutes. Finally, Mike
summed up the conversation.
"Dude, I don't even like the highlights." And there it was.
And there it was.
Too slow. Too boring. Too long
Still, it was not as if I hadn't heard those words before.
And on top of all that, the highlighter is suck.
"Tough. I thought to myself. 'That's not hard.'
'It's not hard.'
For many people, the thought of sitting through an entire baseball game is somewhere on par with being pounded on the head with a large, blunt object.
Harley
Ratliff
sports@kansan.com
In the ongoing war for sports supremacy, baseball is losing the race — badly. Children want to play basketball. Children want to play football. Children want to play soccer?
*why? Why is once-mighty baseball floundering?*
Why is the use of basketball coaching. There are lots of different answers - greedy owners, greedy players, the strike, the growing popularity of basketball or the lack of a "real" commissioner.
But these all are just manifestations of the bigger problem — the games are too long.
Deep down, the problem is not with baseball — it is with us.
We have been consumed by sound bite, megabytes and highlights.
We want instant information, instant results and instant data. And then we wash it down with terrible instant coffee.
data. And then we wash it down with terrible instant coffee Baseball simply cannot compete.
Scratch that. Our attention spans are too short.
People simply do not have the time for baseball anymore. Too much thinking. Too much strategy. Not enough dunks. Baseball just does not have the wheels to catch up.
It cannot compete with basketball or football. It lacks the scoring, the speed and the violence. Nobody dunks the ball or does touchdown dances in baseball. The Internet age demands speed. And as Ben pointed out, the games are too slow.
I am not trying to let baseball off the hook. It has shot itself in the foot more times than I can count. But its blunders have only contributed to baseball's demise. Our growing inability to concentrate on any one thing for more than five minutes is the real cancer destroying baseball.
And all the realigning and wild cards in the world are not going to change that.
I hate to sound like such a pessimist, but I would not be surprised if "baseball" has a bit of an anachronistic ring to it in the new millennium.
I wish I had the solution. Baseball is a great sport, but I fear for its longevity. I just don't think it is made for today's audience. And just when I think that things are turning around, I always hear that little voice in my head.
"Dude, I don't even like the highlights."
Ratliff is a Norman, Okla., junior in journalism.
Soccer kicks at home
By Harley V. Ratliff
Kansas sportswriter
Kansan sportswriter
After spending their first weekend on the road, the Kansas women's soccer team is glad to be home.
Unfortunately, the team is not going to be playing host to the friendliest of guests.
Fresh off the heels of two 1-0 victories against Illinois State and Eastern Illinois, the Jayhawks will spend this weekend battle with Big 12 Conference foes Texas A&M and Texas at Super-Target Field.
The Jayhawks play Texas A&M at 5 p.m. tomorrow and conclude the weekend with a 1 p.m. start Sunday against the Long-horns.
The Aggies arrive in Lawrence boasting a 2-0 record and ranked eighth nationally. They have already topped Oklahoma and Stanford and will be looking to add another conference opponent to their win list.
"Texas A&M is ranked No. 8 in the country for a reason," Jayhawk head coach Dan Magner said. "They are a very well polished team. They have tremendous athletes. And for that reason it is very much to our advantage that they are coming into 'our house.'"
Magner said that he hoped the home crowd and a friendly atmosphere would help his squad overcome possible talent mismatches.
"We hope to have a big crowd and plenty of support," Magner said. "That should help carry us well into the game. We are going to try and use their aggressiveness and their speed against them. If we are able to control the ball it will help us tremendously."
Magner also will be counting on the consistency of his defense to keep the score close. Last weekend, the Jayhawk defense posted two shutouts.
"The defense played great last weekend," said Kansas co-captain Lindsey Loeffler. "We're really starting to get our zone defense down. As a defense, we have really started to come together."