THE UNIVERSITY OF DARY KANSAN
FRIDAY, AUGUST 28. 2009
SPORTS
3B
VOLLEYBALL
Jayhawks keep confidence in mind as season begins with invitational
BY ZACH GETZ
zgetz@kansan.com
Kansas will start the regular season this weekend in the Middle Tennessee Invitational. They will face Middle Tennessee State University Friday and Xavier and Murray State Universities on Saturday.
Middle Tennessee State is coming off a 27-8 record and went to the second round of the NCAA Volleyball Tournament last season. MTSU is also returning five starters, plus their libero. Xavier and Murray State both had winning seasons last year and are both returning most of their starters.
Coach Ray Bechard said he believes that the difficulty of the nonconference schedule is just what
the team needs to get an upper Big 12 Conference finish and ultimately a NCAA tournament berth.
Kansas is coming off a disappointing 13-16 season in 2008 and its third-straight losing season, but it is returning five players and its libero. Many of the players said they felt that this season would be different.
Senior defensive specialist/libero Melissa Grieb said that the team has really come together and is meshing very well so far this season. She said she felt that there is more of a sense of leadership this season from previous seasons.
"I definitely feel way more prepared than last year," Grieb said. "It seems that we are in a better place than we were last year."
Freshman middle blocker Tayler
Tolefree said she was both nervous and excited for her first collegiate matches. Tolefree has been highly touted by her coaches and her teammates and is expected to make an impact this season.
"I expect us to go out and play hard in every game, and no matter what happens in one game, we move on and make improvements and changes," Tolefree said.
Junior outside hitter Karina Garlington also said she thought the team was looking good and ready for the season. She said that it was important for the team to get off to a good start.
"We're going to play three really spectacular teams, probably three teams that are going to be in the NCAA tournament," Garlington said. "It's important to come out
strong and show how hard we've been working because it's going to set the mindset for the next couple of weeks."
According to the players and Coach Bechard, an air of confidence now surrounds the entire team, and they feel right now they can defeat anyone.
"We're just going to push it, and the sky is the limit for us," said Garlingen.
- Edited by Lauren Cunningham
Follow Kansan
writer Zach Getz
at twitter.com/
zgetz.
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Members of the volleyball team gather after a point in the annual alumni game. The team is coming off its third straight losing season and will start its season this Friday at the Middle Tennessee Invitational.
INSPIRATIONAL
High school team presses on after the loss of its coach
ASSOCIATED PRESS
PARKERSBURG, Iowa — As they've done every August for 35 years, the players on Aplington-Parkersburg Highs football team are throwing themselves into the familiar, sweaty grind of Coach Ed Thomas' brutal, two-a-day summer workouts.
The pop of linemen clashing after the snap still fills the thick, muggy air, as do the rhythmic claps and military barks of teenagers willing themselves through endless push-ups, jumping jacks and punishment laps, their faded
red jerseys caked with mud and sweat.
All that's missing is Thomas.
This is the first time in more than three decades that Thomas hasn't graced the sidelines of the field that bears his name, known as "The Sacred Acre." He was gunned down in June in the school's weight room, and one of his former players sits in jail, accused of shooting him. Though his players hit the field as they know Thomas would have wanted — even using his playbook and the preseason workouts he penned — his absence is felt every day.
"The only thing different is not hearing his voice," said the coach's younger son, assistant coach Todd Thomas, who returned to Parkersburg to guide his father's team.
"The only thing we're missing is his booming voice out there on the practice field."
The Aplington-Parkersburg team will open its season Friday night, kicking off with a game against rival Dike-New Hartford. It will be televised nationally on ESPN and followed by just about everyone in the northeast Iowa town of 1,800 people.
The process of moving on start
ed for the team just two days after Thomas' funeral. About a dozen of the older players gathered for a party to check up on each other and play a little pingpong. Of special concern was Scott Becker, a senior lineman and the brother of the man accused of killing their coach, Mark Becker.
"We wanted to let him know we still loved him, even through all this," said 17-year-old senior quarterback Coy Wiegmann. "Coach has always said you pick yourself
Their message to him was simple. He was still a member of their team.
and go. Even through the hard times, we've got to focus on the good stuff."
As Hornbuckle put it, "We made sure to make him feel that we didn't think any different of him or anything like that. He's still our friend."
Coming back to help the team move on are Thomas' sons. Days after the shooting, Aaron Thomas agreed to leave his job at a larger high school 30 miles away to replace his father as athletic director. Another son, Todd Thomas, rejoined the coaching staff after a two-year absence.
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"It's helped me, being up here and around all the kids and also being around football, because football was such an important part of my dad's life," he said. "I can't speak for any of the other coaches and the kids, but it might be helping them too. I don't know. It just seems normal."
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While the players are excited for Friday night's game, they're also looking forward to getting on with the season and competing for the Class-1A title. Once again, the Falcons will be among the favorites to win it. Still, they play in Thomas' shadow.
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FOOTBALL Tigers work to fix things before season opener
COLUMBIA, Mo. — Coach Gary Pinkel saw some things he liked in Missouri's final scrimmage Thursday afternoon, but he also spotted room for improvement.
Now, the Tigers have a little more than a week to "fix things," as Pinkel put it, before they open the season Sept. 5 against Illinois in St. Louis.
Missouri begins the pursuit of its third straight Big 12 North title with a new starting quarterback. Sophomore Blaine Gabbert showed great athleticism Thursday, going 11-for-14 in the air.
But as he replaces former Heisman Trophy finalist Chase Daniel, Gabbert is also inspiring confidence among his receivers. Wide receiver Danario Alexander says Gabbert has improved throughout camp and can be "as good as he wants to be."
CYCLING
CYCLING Armstrong's new team helps local economy
AUSTIN, Texas — Team RadioShack, Lance Armstrong's new cycling team, will debut at the 2010 Tour Down Under in Australia.
Armstrong won the Tour de France a record seven times from 1999-2005 before retiring. He announced his return to the sport in 2009.
The Tour Down Under runs Jan. 17-24 in Adelaide and other communities around South Australia
Armstrong's entry in this year's Tour Down Under helped attract an estimated 750,000 spectators which the government said injected $30 million into the region's economy.
TRACK AND FIELD Locals stand behind hometown medalist
JOHANNESBURG — Former President Nelson Mandela congratulated South African runner Caster Semenya, whose dramatic improvement, deep voice and muscular build have sparked questions about her gender
The International Association of Athletics Federations initiated tests on the 18-year-old athlete after she won gold in the 800 meters at the world championships in Germany last week
South Africans have rallied behind Semenya, who returned home Tuesday.
Semenya and two other medalists met briefly with Mandela in Johannesburg Wednesday.
Associated Press