THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
THURSDAY AUGUST 27 2009
THURSDAY, AUGUST 27, 2009
SPORTS
SOCCER
5B
Senior defender Estelle Johnson and senior midfielder Monica Dolinsky (right) answer questions from the media Wednesday at Hadl Auditorium. Dolinsky is expected to lead the midfield, which is starting two freshmen this year
Soccer team relies on young players
FRESHMAN FORWARD OUT FOR SEASON
Freshman forward Amy Grow succumbed to an injury in the preseason that will end her season. Coach Mark Francis declined to comment further on the injury, but admitted it was a definite blow to the team.
Francis said she was starting in the preseason before the injury.
"She will be back," Francis said. "But she is out for the season, which is a great disappointment for our team."
Grow would have, at the least, provided depth for senior Shannon McCabe and sophomore Emily Cressy. At the most, she might have started alongside them using last year's 4-3-3 formation.
Grow is from Edmond, Okla.
She was named a High School
Girls' Soccer Player of the Week by ESPN in May of her senior season.
SENIOR GOALIE
FAILED PRESEASON
FITNESS TEST
Senior goalkeeper Julie Hanley just passed a mandatory fitness test that will allow her to compete in games. She failed two preseason tests.
Francis admitted that her inability to pass the fitness test was a factor in his decision to start freshman Kat Liebetrau.
"She's proven to be the most consistent goalkeeper at this point in the season," Francis said.
Senior defender Estelle Johnson said that the fitness tests entail a lot of different activities, but all have to do with running. One example
is a "beep test," where players must sprint 22 yards before an electronic beep sounds. The time between beeps gets shorter and shorter, and the players must make a certain level to pass.
-Clark Goble
KANSAS RELYING ON DOLINSKY FOR MIDIEFIELD LEADERSHIP
Kansas' young midfield will have to gain confidence quickly to help the team achieve its goal of winning the Big 12 Championship this year. Coach Mark Francis is looking to senior midfielder Monica Dolinsky to provide leadership for the midfield, which is starting two freshmen: Shelby Williamson and Whitney Berry.
"They're a bit inexperienced, so
I think she (Dolinsky) is going to take on the role of organizer on the field," said Francis. "I think she's done a good job of that so far."
Francis would like Dolinsky to concentrate less on organization and more on scoring goals, however. Dolinsky was the team's coleader in goals scored last year with nine.
"In Sunday's game, she wasn't as offensive as we would like her to be," Francis said. "We expect her to get in and around the penalty area, and she didn't do a whole lot of that on Sunday."
"At Drake, I was deeper than I was supposed to and we addressed that in practice," Dolinsky said. "I have confidence in my teammates that I can go up and they'll have my back on defense."
PGA
Tiger gears up for return to The Barclays
BY DOUG FERGUSON
Associated Press
JERSEY CITY, N.J. — No matter what players think of the golf course, Liberty National gets universal praise for its intimate view of the Manhattan skyline and the Statue of Liberty, so close to the shore she looks as if she could tend a flag on the green.
Equally impressive is the view of Tiger Woods suited up for the opening of the PGA Tour Playoffs.
Woods has not played The Barclays in six years, and this will be the first time he competes in all four of the playoff events for the FedEx Cup. At a time when PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem is asking players to do more for sponsors in a tough economy, the world's No. 1 player is pulling his weight.
"Tiger Woods playing is really good," Geoff Ogilvy said. "He's been very good for golf lately, not just because of the TV ratings, but he's playing a lot more. Our tour is always better when he's here. Golf is getting spoiled."
Golf went eight months without Woods as he recovered from knee surgery. Now it can't get rid of him.
The Barclays, which gets under way Thursday, is part of a nine-week stretch in which Woods will be playing seven times. He hasn't played that much in such a short period since the end of the 2006 season, when he missed nine weeks
because of his father's death.
Asked why he was playing this year, Woods replied, "I qualified."
That he did, winning five times in 13 starts to be the top seed among 125 players who qualified for this $65 million bonanza at the end of the year — a $7.5 million purse at each of the four events, with $35 million in bonus money for the FedEx Cup.
The points system has been tweaked to put more emphasis on the eight months that comprise the regular season, with quintuple the value of points during the playoff events, then a reset of the points that allows for a shootout at the Tour Championship for the $10 million prize.
Woods could have skipped The Barclays and won the FedEx Cup, as he did in 2007. He learned Wednesday that it was possible for him to win the next three tournaments, finish second at the Tour Championship and not capture the FedEx Cup. Or that someone could win the big prize without having won a single tournament this year.
Whether the system works to everyone's satisfaction this year, the playoffs is off to a solid start, mainly because Woods is playing.
"It is different, there's no doubt," he said. "But then again, this is what we're playing for. This is our opportunity to play well. You play well at the right time, you should be all right."
Tiger Woods puts on the second green during a practice round for The Barclays golf tournament on Wednesday in Jersey City, N.J.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
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NFL
ASSOCIATED PRESS
In this Sunday, Aug. 16, 2009, file photo, Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Michael Vick throws during NFL football practice at team's practice facility in Philadelphia. Vick will make his presenade debut for the Philadelphia Eagles tonight.
Vick to return to the football field tonight
BY ROB MAADDI
Associated Press
All day, all eyes will be on No. 7.
PHILADELPHIA — Michael Vick will start his day in bankruptcy court and end it on a football field.
Vick is scheduled to play his first NFL game since his release from prison when the Philadelphia Eagles host the Jacksonville Jaguars in a preseason matchup tonight.
It'll be Vick's first official appearance in a game since Dec. 31, 2006, with the Atlanta Falcons. He also played that one at Lincoln Financial Field against the Eagles.
This time, there likely will be protesters outside the stadium. Inside, there probably will be plenty of boos.
Donovan McNabb, Brian Westbrook, the rest of the Eagles and all the Jaguars are merely a subplot in an otherwise meaningless game. Vick's much-anticipated return is the talk of the town.
Vick has dominated headlines since the Eagles signed the threetime Pro Bowl quarterback two weeks ago, giving him a one-year, $1.6 million contract with a team option for $5.2 million in 2010.
Just last month, Vick's future
was uncertain. He was released from federal custody July 20 after serving 18 months of a 23-month sentence for his role in financing and participating in a major dogfighting operation.
Many NFL teams said they weren't interested in Vick, and it appeared he might have to settle for playing in the fledgling United Football League.
Coach Andy Reid has kept his plans secret, but said he won't be reluctant to use Vick in a wildcat formation against the Jaguars.
McNabb is the clear-cut starter, but the Eagles didn't bring in Vick to carry a clipboard. His skills are perfectly suited to run the wildcat offense, and it's likely he'll fill that role.
But the Eagles, with McNabb's blessing, gave Vick a chance, hoping he can be the final piece to help them win that elusive first Super Bowl. Exactly what Vick's role will be is the biggest question, however.
McNabb and the first-team offense are slated to play three quarters against the Jags, and backup QB Kevin Kolb is penciled in for the fourth quarter. So Vick could share reps with McNabb and the two may even be on the field together in certain situations.
TENNIS
Serena gets second seed for upcoming U.S. Open
TENNIS
Defending champion Serena Williams was seeded No.2 for the U.S. Open, behind Dinara Safna, because the tournament stuck to its policy of strictly following the rankings.
Roger Federer was seeded No 1 for the fifth time at the year's last Grand Slam tournament. He is ranked No. 1 and has won the U.S. Open five years in a row.
Safina is No.1 in the WTA com
puter, which calculates rankings based on performances across tournaments over the preceding 52 weeks. The younger sister of former men's No.1 Marat Safin is still seeking her first Grand Slam title. She is 0-3 in major finals, including a loss to Williams at the Australian Open in January.
Williams has won three of the past four Grand Slam singles championships and 11 overall, the most among active women. She will be seeking her fourth U.S. Open title.
Associated Press