Sports THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
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Soccer rebounds after loss The Jayhawks recovered from a 3-0 defeat to defeat BYU. SOCCER | 8B
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 2009
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COMMENTARY
PAGE 1B
DEFENSIVE LOCKDOWN
Forgive, but don't forget,the conflicts
STEPHEN MONTEMAYOR
smontemayor@kansan.com
At least publicly, the Kansas Athletics Department is putting last week's altercations between the men's basketball and football teams to bed.
For now, we can do the same.
Just keep a nightlight on. Make a deal with athletics that we'll let it clean up its mess unimpeded but demand full disclosure if another incident occurs on campus.
It would be foolish to think that chatter on campus, in neighboring cities and on rival teams' message boards regarding the quarrels will cease. It's also foolish to assume all is suddenly and completely well between the two programs. There will be a fringe few lacking the wherewithal and maturity to mend those fences.
It's easy to take those statements for granted. Don't.
"I've been doing college athletic administration for over 40 years," Perkins said. "I've never experienced anything like this"
Perkins, football coach Mark Mangino, men's basketball coach Bill Self and all those affiliated with the department are dealing with a situation of greater magnitude than anything they've faced in all their experiences.
What is clear is the frustration and bewilderdment Perkins exhib-
Perkins said the fights were much more serious and complicated than "boys will be boys." He even called it "the most complicated thing I've ever dealt with my whole life"
SEE COLUMN ON PAGE 7B
Follow Kansan writer Stephen Montemayor at twitter.com/smontemayor
Weston White/KANSAN
Junior linebacker Justin Springer dives on a fumble forced by senior safety Darrell Stuckey Saturday against Southern Mississippi. Kansas won 35-28 after a tough defensive stand.
On the ball, in the clutch
Defense steps up its performance late in the game to seal the victory
BY JAYSON JENKS
jjenks@kansan.com
The defense gathered once more before taking the field late in the fourth quarter — a simple, but decisive message bouncing around the huddle.
We have to make a stop. We have to win this game for us. It's on us now, D.
With 1:53 left in the game — and with Kansas clinging to a 35-28 lead — Southern Mississippi took control of the ball at its own 33-yard line. The Golden Eagles had moved with relative ease throughout the first three quarters.
They had picked apart the secondary, completely limited the pass rush and, most importantly, stirred images of Kansas' defense from a year ago — a unit that simply struggled to coerce stops against high-scoring offenses.
On Saturday, in need of such a stop, the lahawks rallied to sack quarterback Austin Davis for a 10-yard loss on third down, effectively sealing the victory.
It was Kansas' only sack of the game.
"That's a big gut check," junior corner back Chris Harris said. "It's going to tell the tale of what's going to happen the rest of the season. That was big to show that we had the mental toughness to get that stop."
Sure, Kansas' late stop to preserve the victory was a critical moment in the game. But it also buildup the war.
bucked the form of the 2008 defense.
Statistically, the Jayhawks weren't a good defensive team last season. Compounding the problem was that the unit
Last season, Kansas couldn't generate stops in losses at Nebraska or South Florida, and the defense surely offered little resistance to Oklahoma and Texas Tech.
quarter defensive performance for that matter, signaled progress.
tended to buckle when facing upper-level teams.
The defense didn't play well root three quarters, but in the most crucial moments, the Jayhawks made enough plays to hang on.
"Last year, it seems like we didn't make those plays." Harris said, "But we're very tough this year."
Added junior linebacker Drew Dudley: "It shows that this defense has character. When we really need
That's why Saturday's final stand, and the entire fourth-
"When we really need a stop, this defense can get it done."
DREW DUDLEY
Junior linebacker
a stop, this defense can get it done."
After senior quarterback Todd Reesing gave Kansas the lead by completing a 12-yard touchdown pass to senior wide receiver Kerry Meier less than a minute into the fourth quarter.
Southern Miss moved the ball near midfield in an attempt to re-tie the game. But sophomore Steven Foster's pressure forced Davis to release the ball early, resulting in an interception by sophomore defensive back Ryan Murphy.
ter, the defense responded.
Follow Kansan writer Jayson Jenks at twitter. com/jaysonjenks
"The whole defense, we took it upon our shoulders that we had to stop them," junior defensive end Jake Laptad said. "Stop them: That was really the only choice we had."
Southern Miss entered the game 3-0, and plenty of national pundits selected the Golden Eagles as a trendy team to pull off an early-season upset.
For three quarters, Southern Miss went yard-for-yard with a Kansas team that never appeared to develop a rhythm during the game. The Jayhawks committed 10 penalties, including two intentional groundings and an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on Reeing.
"We knew coming in that that was a very good team," Reesing said. "But looking back, we're kind of surprised at how good they were."
Reeing, who threw for 331 yards and three touchdowns, led a
Kansas offense that played well in the first half and sporadically after halftime.
The layhawks failed to score on their final three drives, something that would have put the game out of reach.
Instead, the game fell into the hands of Kansas' defense, a group maligned for their inability to come through in similar situations last season.
After the game, Mangino talked about the development of the defense and how the unit was expected to be a work-in-progress throughout the early portion of the season.
He said the defense took a big step forward with a lockdown performance that allowed Kansas to avoid being upset by a feisty Southern Miss team.
And then he returned to the clichè used countless times during Mangino's tenure.
"They kept sawing wood. They really did," Mangino said. "They got beat on plays, they never got discouraged and never got down. Turned out, they played a phenomenal fourth quarter."
TENNIS
Edited by Amanda Thompson
Hard work helps underclassmen finish tournament undefeated
BY ANDREW POSCH
aposch@kansan.com
Three underclassmen — freshman Sara Lazarevic and sophomores Kate Morozova and Erin Wilbert — did not lose any of their singles or doubles matches this weekend in the jayhawk's tournament at First Serve in Lawrence. Together, the three posted a 9-0 singles record in the tournament that included opponents from UMKC, Saint Louis University and Illinois State University.
Three days and three undefeated players later, Kansas tennis coach Amy Hall-Holt said she is still excited about her team's will to win.
"It's a great feeling," Hall-Holt said, speaking about the early-season wins by the young players.
top singles bracket with victories against Illinois State's Ariane Maack and Saint Louis' Sarah Septen and Casey Miller.
Morozova also defeated opponents from Illinois State and Saint Louis in the first two rounds,
Lazarevic started out in the
but in the semifinal round, she was matched up against her teammate, junior Maria Martinez. Morozova prevailed in the Jay hawk - vs. Jayhawk matchup, winning 6-1, 7-5. Martinez's only
"We're hoping to continue building a lot of self-esteem. We have a lot of good things ahead of us."
Lazarevic and Morozova said they were not disappointed with the unresolved outcome.
Holt decided that the two would not play in order to avoid potential injuries.
AMY HALL-HOLT Kansas tennis coach
"It really doesn't matter," said
singles loss came from the match against Morozova
Teammates Lazarevic and Morozova were scheduled against each other in the finals, but Hall-
In the second bracket, Wilbert began with a bye and faced only Illinois State players after that. She defeated Hannah Esker and Carmen Peters without too much trouble, but then needed three sets to win Sunday's final match against Illinois State's Franzi Steinhardt. After losing the first set 4-6.
Morozova, who said she was happy to share the top spot with her teammate.
Sophomore Ekaterina Morozova returns a serve from an opponent Friday afternoon during the Jayhawk Invitational tournament. Morozova recorded a perfect 4-0 singles record. Kansas was 19-9 overall in singles.
Wilbert came back to win 6-3, 6-2 in the last two sets.
Freshman Vika Khaneskkaya, sophomore Alie Dzuba and junior Kate Goff also competed in the same bracket. Khaneskkaya and Dzuba picked up three victories apiece.
The Jayhawks were also successful in doubles competition and finished with a 7-2 team record. The duos of Lazarevic and Morozova and Wilbert and Khanevskaya went undefeated in the three days.
"This really showed us that our hard work will pay off," Lazarevic said.
Lazarevic and Morozova said they were proud of their performance together and said they hope to qualify for the ITA Regional Oct. 22 in Norman, Okla.
Hall-Holt said she is also optimistic about the coming matches.
"We're hoping to continue building a lot of self-esteem," Hall-Holt said. "We have a lot of good
things ahead of us."
Edited by Nick Gerik