DIVING The Kansas swimming and diving team had a record-setting weekend in Springfield, Mo., defeating SMS PAGE 68
SPORTS
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 1, 2004
www.kansan.com
Chesang takes home Big 12 title
Staff Photo/KANSAN
Benson Chesang, Ravine, Kenya sophomore, races toward the finish at Saturday's Big 12 Cross Country meet in Topeka. Chesang placed first among the Jayhawks with a time of 24:07.43 while the team placed fourth overall.
BY FRANK TANKARD
ftankard@kansan.com
KANSAN SPORTWRITER
TOPEKA — Kansas' Benson Chesang was all that stood between Colorado runner Brent Vaughn and the Buffaloes' eighth straight individual men's title at the Big 12 Championships on Saturday.
After leading for half the race, Chesang held off a late charge from Vaughn to win the eight-kilometer race in 24:07.43, one second ahead of Vaughn.
"I really feel that I did something good just to break the tradition of Colorado winning the event every year," Chesang, a Ravine, Kenya, sophomore, said.
Chesang said he hardly slept in the three nights leading up to the meet because of a bad cold.
He coughed repeatedly during the race and complained of not feeling
KANSAS' TOP FINISHERS
MEN
Winner: Benson Chesang
24:07.43
19th Colby Wissel 25:11.54
27th Matt French 25:27.07
34th Tyler Kelly 25:42.24
40th Chris Jones 25:45.1
WOMEN
Winner; Renee Metivier
(Colorado) 20:28.05
47th Megan Manthe 23:20.61
48th Connie Abbott 23:21.76
69th Dena Seibel 23:58.2
75th Mallory
Richardson 24:06.73
83rd Christine
Lathrop 24:43.21
"I'm glad that he did gut it out at the end, because it wasn't easy," coach
well afterward.
Stanley Redwine said. "To win the Big 12 is just great, especially not feeling well."
Chesang's brother Mathew, a senior at Kansas State, stayed about 10 meters behind Chesang in second for much of the race before Vaughn passed him with 100 meters to go.
Kansas freshman Colby Wissel also had an impressive race, placing 19th in 25:11.54 as the men's team finished fourth for the second straight year, Wissel, an Elm Creek, Neb., native, was the fifth freshman finisher overall.
"Actually, I was thinking he was going to run with me," Chesang said of his brother. "But I don't know what happened, I guess."
"Up until this point I didn't think that I ran the greatest so far this year," he said. "But this is the conference meet, you got to come ready to run. I came in focused and I was ready to compete today."
SEE CHESANG ON PAGE 6B
Rvlan Howe/KANSAN
Emily Strinden (left), Meghan Miller, Rachel Gillifan, Monica Brothers and the rest of the women's soccer team proclaim their number-one status to the crowd on Friday at the Jayhawk Soccer Complex. The game sealed the team's Big 12 Championship title and was the last home game for the seven seniors.
Soccer captures Big 12 title
BY KELIS ROBINETT
krobinett@kansan.com
KANSAN SPORTSWRIVER
With 40 seconds remaining in Friday's Kansas women's soccer game, the chant of "Big 12 champs" filled the air. The team's coaches and players patiently watched as the final seconds of the 4-0 victory over Iowa State ticked away on the game clock and proceeded to pour
onto the field in a wild celebration.
Coach Mark Francis was mugged by his wife and kids before he could make it ten yards onto the field. Shortly after, he was greeted with a bear hug from Kansas athletics director Lew Perkins.
The players ran circles around the field, some holding up a banner proclaiming "2004 Big 12 Champions," while others sprinted alongside the bleachers, giving high fives to every fan
RELATED NEWS
For more on the soccer team's seven seniors, see page 2B
titles you win, the better it looks for the whole athletic department, not just the soccer team."
who wanted one.
"This is so exciting," Francis said. "It's great for the school and the whole athletic program. The more conference
Regardless of how the team celebrated, the Jayhawks deserved it. They earned the first Big 12 soccer championship in school history, the first in any women's sport since 1997, and the first in a sport other than men's basketball since 1999.
Cyclones upset Jayhawks, 13-7
SEE SOCCER ON PAGE 2B
BY JOHANTH KEALING
jkealeng@kansan.com
KANSAN SPORTSWRIVER
BY JONATHAN KEALING
On a day when Florida, Florida State and Miami all lost on the same day for the first time since 1978, Kansas got more of the same. There would be no Big 12 road victory for coach Mark Mangino.
AMES, Iowa —The college football world turned on its head this weekend.
"Every loss is tough, but this one definitely hurts a little more," junior line backer Kevin Kane said.
Over a weekend that saw the worst teams beat the best teams, Kansas did its best to beat itself.
Saturday's 13-7 loss to Iowa State not only continued Kansas road woes, it also beat down Kansas' ever-diminishing chances to play football in December.
After suffering several injuries against Oklahoma, Kansas looked to its reserves to fill in and find a victory. Instead, they came away with more injuries and another mark in the "L" column. Starting center senior Joe Vaughn, sophomore quarterback Adam Barmann and junior running back Clark Green all missed parts of the game with injuries.
With a depleted secondary, Iowa State probably could have succeeded in throwing the ball down field. Instead, they attempted to run the ball. Iowa State ran the ball 54 times for 179 yards, an average of just 2.6 yards per carry.
Part of that can be chalked up to Iowa State's offensive struggles, but most of the credit should go to a Kansas defense which had another strong showing.
SEE UPSET ON PAGE 3B
Adam Barmann, sophomore quarterback, rushes for four yards against Iowa State on Saturday. Barmann was injured on this play, which occurred midway through the second quarter. He did not return to the game.
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WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Women's roster reduced
Women's basketball coach Bonnie Henrickson announced Friday that senior guard Larisha Graves had left the team citing personal reasons.
Graves' decision to leave the team reduces an already small Kansas roster to only nine players.
After two years at Southwest Tennessee Community College, Graves transferred to Kansas and started 26 games at point guard. In the 2004-2004 season, she averaged 7.2 points, 3.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 29.6 minutes.
Paul Brand
Kansas coach Ray Bechard said the jayhawks' (13-8 overall, 4-8 Big 12 Conference) inability to end rallies was a definite weakness.
BY BILL CROSS
bcross@kansan.com
KANSAN SPORTSWRIVER
"On the road, if you don't keep siding out, that rhythm starts to snowball for them," he said.
Road weary: Volleyball swept at K-State. 3-0
"Every once in a while we get into slumps," senior middle blocker Ashley Michaels said. "When we can't pass the ball, we get very predictable."
No.16 Kansas State had 10 service aces in the match, allowing the Wildcats to string together long stretches of points.
MANHATTAN — Kansas State swept the Kansas volleyball team in Ahearn Field House for the fifth straight time Saturday.
Michaels and junior middle blocker Josi Lima led the team with seven kills each.
Kansas State got some early momentum in the first match.
The Jayhawks trailed 18-19 after a kill by freshman opposite hitter Emily Brown.
When Brown hit the ensuing serve far out of bounds, the Kansas State rout was on.
The Wildcats went on a 10-2 spurt that included four kills, three blocks and two aces, sealing the 30-20 victory.
Kansas State middle blocker Vali Hejias scored seven kills in the set.
That surge carried over to game two.
SEE VOLLEYBALL ON PAGE GB