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KANSAN.COM/SPORTS | THURSDAY, APRIL 27, 2017
After 8 Kansas Relays, Bakers run last races
SHAUN GOODWIN
@ShaunGoodwinUDK
Right: Senior Malika Baker runs in the women's 1,500 meter race at the Kansas Relays on April 22. Left: Senior Nashia Baker runs to the finish line in the women's 5,000 meter race on April 22 at the Kansas Relays.
A after racing in the Kansas Relays for eight consecutive years, twin sisters Nashia and Malika Baker found it difficult to turn their backs on the track for the last time.
Photos by Missy Minear/KANSAN
its 5,000 mile race. April 22.
"It feels very surreal," Malika said, with a sad tone to her voice.
Nashia and Malika, who originally lived in Fort Benning, Georgia, moved to Lansing at a young age and attended Lansing High School for all four years. Living just 45 minutes away from Lawrence gave the Baker twins the opportunity to compete in the Kansas Relays, starting in their freshman year of high school.
Four years after the pair first competed in the Kansas Relays, Nashia and Malika found themselves competing at the meet for the fifthstraight year. The difference this time, though was that the twins swapped out the red and black uniforms of Lansing High School for the pink and blue uniforms of Kansas.
During their time at the relays, Nashia and Malika have had a competitive relationship on the track.
In their first year as Jayhawks, the pair found themselves up against one another in the women's 800-meter. In the third heat of the event, Nashia was set up on the starting blocks in lane five, inches away from her twin sister in lane six. Despite being neck-and-neck after the first 400 meters, Nashia
finished in fourth place, 2.38 seconds ahead of Malika in fifth place.
Their first year at the Kansas Relays as Jayhawks, 2014, also marked the first year the Kansas Relies were held at the newly-built Rock Chalk Park. The venue offers
viewers a much closer and more personal experience with the athletes compared to the Memorial Stadium, where the meet had been held nearly every year since 1923.
"I think Rock Chalk is a little bit smaller than the stadium," Nashia said. "I think it's way more compact, and you can hear the audience so much better. It's really great to be able to hear everyone and have that support and competitive atmosphere."
A year later, the sisters paired up on the same team.
combining in the women's 4x800-meter race to not only claim first, but to record the second-fastest time in school history.
Once again, in their ju-
SEE TWINS PAGE 9
Associated Press
Los Angeles Clippers center DeAndre Jordan and Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert battle for a rebound during the second half in Game 5 of an NBA first-round playoff series, Tuesday, April 25, 2017, in Los Angeles.
Maicke: Don't change the NBA intentional fouling rules
► MIKE MAICKE
@MJ Maicke
But, of course, once that happened, the older kids would change a small rule to either give them a slight advantage or to hinder the play of my overly athletic friends.
I used to play pick-up basketball and football during recesses with my friends. Sometimes, we would play against kids a few grades older than us, which was a real challenge. A couple guys I played with would always get the upper hand on the older kids simply because they were better and more athletic.
I think about my days on the blacktop whenever I hear any analyst or even casual fan gripe about the "Hack-a-Shaq" rule, which more realistically has become "Hack-a-DeAndre" or "Hack-a-Roberson."
Ridiculous, right? Just because the older kids were not as good at something they would change the rules.
Of course this refers to opposing teams intentionally fouling a player away from the play who is unfathomably awful at free throws. It's a really smart numbers move, basically saying that "I dare your 40 percent free-throw shooter to knock down two free throws."
Every time I hear Jeff Van Gundy whine and moan about this "hacking" rule, I cringe. Don't get me wrong, I don't like watching it, it slows down the game like crazy, but in the playoffs when winning is the only thing that matters, I'd love to see my team use it.
It takes the other team out of its offensive rhythm, it mentally annihilates the player who is getting fouled (imagine you're Andre Roberson and you see the Houston Rockets bench laughing at your back-to-back missed free throws in the playoffs, ouch), and it's utilized by fantastic coaches like Gregg Popovich and Terry Stotts.
But, to say that they should change the rule is
completely absurd.
It is your job as an NBA basketball player, and it's the second easiest shot behind the layup. I don't want to hear the "my hands are too big" excuse or the "he's great in practice, but it's different in a game."
It's not different; it's one repetitive motion that you have all day every single day to work on. Don't change the rule, get better.
It cracks me up, really. It's like they don't know that teams are going to do this to them. Hey, Jordan and Roberson, don't like this happening to you? Get better at free throws.
In this case, absolutely hate the player (the one that's garbage at free throws that is, not the smart one fouling them), not the game.
Just because a few players are really, really bad at something, does not mean that the entire league needs a rule change. It means they need to do their damn job better.
Karre paces Kansas baseball in win over Grand Canyon
▶ MITCH GEORGE
@MitchLGeorge
With four Jayhawks making their return to their home state of Arizona, many of them were motivated to perform well in front of their friends and families when Kansas played the Grand Canyon Antelopes late on Tuesday night.
One Arizona native, sophomore center fielder Rudy Karre, accounted for enough runs to match Grand Canyon's total of four, as Kansas took the win, 9-4, on a comfortable night in Phoenix.
Missy Minear/KANSAN
Missy Minnear/KANSAN Sophomore center fielder Rudy Karre gets hit by a pitch against Oklahoma State on April 15.
The 6-foot-7 hurler pitched five strong innings while allowing one earned run, although two additional runs crossed the plate as a result of Kansas errors. Rackoski was credited with the win, his fourth of the year.
Karre's first two plate appearances ended in a way that many of them have this season - with hit-by-pitches.
Karre, who hails from Peoria, Arizona, entered the ballgame tied for third in the NCAA with 18 hit-by-pitches. After being plunked twice, he moved into a tie for second place with 20 and solidified his reputation as a functioning ball magnet.
Another player who made the trip home was right-handed starting pitcher Sean Rackoski,who claims Chandler, Arizona, as his hometown.
In each occurrence, the bases were loaded, which rewarded the leadoff hitter with two runs-batted-in.
Other than the two free bases he was awarded, Karre also laced a single to center field that plated two additional runs, giving him a total of four RBIs in the game.
"Rackoski gave us five great innings," Kansas coach Ritch Price said in a Kansas Athletics news release. "That was a huge step forward for him after missing the time he did, and how about Goldsberry. He saved our bullpen with his four-inning outing. It was a good team win."
He saved our bullpen with his four-inning outing. It was a good team win."
Ritch Price Kansas coach
Sophomore right-hander Blake Goldsberry entered in relief to begin the sixth inning, and he locked down the Antelopes for the remainder of the game. He allowed just one run on two hits, but, perhaps more importantly, he saved Price from having to dig deep into his bullpen for a midweek matchup.
Sophomore left fielder Devin Foyle and senior first baseman Marcus Wheeler were the other Kansas players with hometown fans in the bleachers. Foyle, from Fountain Hills, and Wheeler, from Phoenix, combined for
two hits and four runs scored in the game.
Junior shortstop Matt McLaughlin saw his cold streak continue, as he only reached base once in his six at-bats. Even though he has hit the ball hard consistently, his first-inning double was his first hit since the series finale against Oklahoma State on April 15.
Despite scoring nine runs, the team left 14 baserunners on base and committed three errors, which led to a disorderly box score.
"I thought it was a grinded-out win," Price said in the release. "We had a chance to blow the game wide open and just left too many guys on base."
As of late, Kansas has been on a tear, as it has taken down both Big 12 and non-conference opponents with ease in the month of April. The Jayhawks began the month with a series win over the Texas Longhorns, and have been hot ever since. Currently, Kansas has won 10 of its last 15 games, including two consecutive Big 12 series wins.
The Jayhawks continue their two-game midweek series against Grand Canyon on Wednesday at 3 p.m.
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