HOT SPOT The Pool Room offers shooters plenty of room to play with more than 28 tables. PAGE 6B
SPORTS
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2004
www.kansan.com
SOCCER
Chris Miller/KANSAN
Sophomore midfielder Nicole Cauzillo leads the team in game-winning goals and overall points. The soccer team's next home game is Friday against Texas Tech.
Transfer midfielder steps up for Kansas
Sophomore midfielder Nicole Cauzillo hasn't even been on campus a full two months, but she has already made an impact on the soccer field.
Cauzillo, a transfer from Wes Virginia, ranks second on the team in shots on goal, with 22; assists, three; and goals scored, three. She leads the team in game-winning goals with two and overall points with nine. She has also been named Big 12 newcomer of the week.
"I'm a little surprised I have played this well," said Cauzillo. "I've been adjusting to a new system."
adjusting to the new system.
Coach Mark Francis hasn't been caught off guard by Cauzillo's success.
He recruited Cauzillo out of high school and said he was excited when he got the release saying she wanted to talk to Kansas.
Cauzillo said she transferred to Kansas from West Virginia because she didn't like the team attitude or chemistry at her old school.
"I'm not surprised at all that Nicole has played so well," said Francis. "We knew she was a good player. I think the fact that we did real well last year and finished ranked in the top 20 helped us get her."
She hasn't experienced those problems at Kansas and has excelled. She has already exceeded her totals from last year at West Virginia, where she scored three goals and recorded two assists all season.
"The overall team attitude is so much better here," said Cauzillo. "At West Virginia it was more about the individuals. I feel like a real part of the team here."
BY KELLI ROBINETT
krobinett@kansan.com
KANSAN SPORTSWRIVER
The team that surrounds her has played a large role in Cauzillo's early success, she said, because they have gone the extra mile to help her adjust.
"The seniors are great leaders and the coaches always make time to sit down and watch video with you and do extra things. It's just that much easier to get used to the system," she said.
This summer, Cazillo helped her club team win a national title.
Roadtrip guide to Big 12
The taste of that performance still lingers in her mouth, and it keeps her motivated to repeat a championship this year with the Jayhawks. Reaching that goal will be difficult, but if Cauzillo continues the pin-point accuracy with a soccer ball she has displayed so far this season maybe she can duplicate her summer.
"I just want to get that feeling back again," said Cauzillo. "I want to do everything I can to get us to the championship."
Edited by Janette Crawford
Lawrence writer visits college towns, provides shopping, bar-hopping information
BY RYAN COLAIANNI
rcolaianni@kansan.com
KANSAN SPORTSWRIETER
This week marks the first road Big 12 Conference game for the Kansas football team, which means many dedicated fans will travel to Lincoln, Neb., and follow the Hawkys in action.
While most fans have already secured their game tickets, they may not have considered what to do before and after the game. Lawrence resident Susan Kraus solved this problem with her book, A Game Day Guide to Towns of the Big 12.
In the 450-page book, Kraus looked at conference town hot spots, from the best shopping spots to the hottest bars.
Kraus began the endeavor about two years ago, and during those two years she traveled to every Big 12 town, some as many as three times. Kraus got the
idea when her husband considered going out of town to see a football game and he couldn't find travel books on Big 12 towns.
"You can use the convention and visitor bureau, and they are fine," Kraus said. "But a lot of it is advertising, and it can be selective."
Kraus thought there had to be a book that would be able to give good information to students and fans who wanted to travel to other towns. She found that not only does the Big 12 not have a book, but no conference in the country does.
Kraus said she couldn't stop thinking about her idea, so she decided to write a book.
When she arrived in the towns she went straight to their convention or visitor bureaus and asked for a town tour.
"I talked to everybody; when I went into restaurants I would talk to the waitresses and the cooks to find out
GAMEDAY BASICS
WHAT: A Gameday Guide to Towns of the Big 12
WHO: Lawrence resident Susan Kraus, author
WHY: Plan those roadtrips by finding the hot spots in Big 12 towns
WHERE: Get the book at www.gamedayguide.com
- COST: $20, plus $5 shipping and handling
where they ate when they were not working," Kraus said.
working. Kraus asked students where they liked to hang out, and she also went to the bar
districts at midnight on Friday nights to get more perspective on the area.
A Game Day Guide to Towns of the Big 12 is available at www.gamedayguide.com. It cost $20 plus $5 for shipping and handling.
Keeping her focus away from chain businesses, Kraus tried to include as many family-owned businesses as possible.
"My work can be stressful, and I have always really enjoyed writing, so I have always done writing on the side," Kraus said.
Kraus runs her own marriage therapy practice. In addition to consulting, she is also a freelance writer. Kraus wrote for The Kansas City Star, as a travel columnist in its weekend section, and she was an advice columnist in The Topeka Capital Journal's magazine Her's.
Emily Brown, freshman outside hitter, watches a spike by Nebraska go by. The Cornhuskers visited the Jayhawks last night, defeating the home team in three straight games.
John Tran/KANSAN
Nebraska blocks Kansas victory
Coach calls team's play "predictable" as Hawks lose in three games
BY BILL CROSS
bcross@kansan.com
KANSAN SPORTWRITER
The No.24 Kansas volleyball team suffered its second consecutive sweep by a conference opponent last night. But the team is still upbeat about its chances in the Big 12 Conference, which features six teams in the Top 25.
"Some areas got exposed tonight," coach Ray Bechard said. "But this team continues to get better."
No. 7 Nebraska physically dominated the first two games, 50-13 and 30-14, but Kansas played close in game three before fading to a 30-24 defeat.
Bechard said his team's passing was a problem in every set.
"When we're not in system, when we become predictable, then their physicalness and their block really comes into play," Bechard said.
Game one started with a block by Nebraska outside hitter Sarah Paven. Moments later, she scored a kill, giving her team a 2-1 lead that they would not relinquish.
Three Cornhuskers had an attack percentage of .500 or better in the first game, including .833 by Christina Houghtelling.
Big 12 preseason player of the year Melissa Elmer had six kills on eight attempts.
Nebraska had only one attack error in the first set.
"They had a good game plan, and they knew who to get in front of," Bechard said.
In game two, Nebraska hit well again, posting a .343 percentage.
The Jayhawks showed signs of life, albeit briefly, at the beginning of game two.
They led 2-1 and traded blows with the Cornhuskers for several points, trailing just 11-13 after a kill by freshman opposite hitter Emily Brown.
Then service went to Nebraska, and Houghtelling reeled off six consecutive points, including two aces.
"It's always hard when the energy just automatically goes the other team's way and you have to drag it back over to your court," senior middle blocker Ashley Michaels said. "Tonight, for some reason, the team was off and we couldn't pull it back right away."
After a 10-minute break, Kansas pulled it back.
The Jayhawks led as late as 19-18. Junior outside hitter Paula Caten, who had no kills and 11 errors on 14 attempts in the first two games, reeled off five kills in the final game.
But it wasn't enough. With the set tied at 19, an illegal lift call against Kansas killed a long rally, and momentum swung back to Nebraska, who outscored Kansas 7-1 immediately following the call.
Houghtelling finished the night with a career-high 13 kills while Elmer and preseason conference co-freshman of the year Paven added 11 apiece.
SEE VOLLEYBALL ON PAGE 3B
Freshman runner makes big impact
If you saw Colby Wissel on campus with his long hair and laid back appearance, your first thought would be that he is from California, not Elm Creek, Neb., population 900.
GOING DEEP
Iris small town track star is making an immediate impact on Kansas men's cross country team. As a freshman, Wissel started the season with a seventh place finish in the Kansas State Wildcat Invitational and a third place finish at the Bob Timmons Classic. Running two of three five-mile races under 26 minutes is pushing Wissel toward freshman phenom status.
The instant success comes as little surprise if you know Wissel's high school track résumé. He was state champion nine times in his high school career; three times in cross country, twice in the 1600m, twice in the 3200m and twice in the 3200m relay. Wissel also managed to break the Nebraska
SHANE KUCERA
skucera@kansan.com
state records in the 1600 and 3200 meters.
Colby Wissel is a freshman on the men's cross country team. Wissel said the competition is what he enjoys most out of running on the team.
Ginny WeathermanKANSAN
This week, Colby Wissel tells about track and much more:
O: How many miles do you run?
6. How many miles do we have some guys that run over 70 miles a week. I run over 60 a week.
7. How fast can you run one mile?
A: In high school I ran it in 4:10.
Q: Why did you pick Kansas for college?
A: Basically it came down between Oregon, Kansas and Tennessee, and I
just felt like I could relate really well to the coaches here and I got along really well with the guys on the team.
Q: What was it like growing up in Elm Creek, Neb.?
A: Elm Creek is a small town out in the middle of Nebraska, but it was pretty cool because my dad was the football coach there so I got to grow up around athletics.
Q: Are girls in Lawrence better looking than at Elm Creek?
SEE WISSEL ON PAGE 6B
10