THE UNIVERSITY OF DARBY KAUSN
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2006
SPORTS
3B
'HORN BORN, 'HAWK BRED
K-State steps up as rival
But is Missouri really Kansas' biggest rival? I don't think so.
After Kansas defeated Kansas State, coach Mark Mangino told reporters, "We are going to play our rival next Saturday"
On Saturday morning I woke up to a mobile home parked outside my window, blasting music and Kansas State cheers. Lawrence was infested with purple, much more so than the small contingent of black and gold in town during Missouri games.
Kansas State fans acted overly self-confident after their school defeated Texas, the Big 12's best football team this year. They probably wondered, "How in the world could the Wildcats possibly lose to the Jayhawks?" First, Kansas State isn't as good as they hoped. Second, Kansas is a lot better than they thought. And third, this is a rivalry, one that's about to take flight and surpass the Kansas vs. Missouri hatred within five years.
BY TRAVIS ROBINETT
KANSAN SPORTS COLUMNIST
TROBINETT@KANSAN.COM
My father, a KU alum, was in town for the game and said Kansas vs. Kansas State was as fierce a rivalry as any in the country in the late 1960s. He said the rivalry was "nearly to the level of Auburn vs. Alabama," and made the Border Showdown "seem
like a love fest."
On the night before Kansas played Kansas State in football in 1970, my dad was drinking at a bar in Aggieville with a friend. A Kansas State fan yelled, "Anyone here for KU?" and his friend said, "Yeah." The Kansas State fan then punched my dad's friend in the face, skipping the trash talk and going straight to violence for no reason other than the fierceness of the rivalry.
But this fierceness took a nosedive in the 1990s because the outcomes were predictable. Kansas State dominated in football and Kansas dominated in basketball. The games were as easy to predict as KU students tearing down the goalposts on Saturday. But now, not so much.
Kansas football has won two out of three against Kansas State, and would've won three straight if its
ortense had performed last season in Manhattan. Kansas State can't take for granted that Kansas will be terrible, because that's just no longer the case.
And now, Kansas State is stepping on the toes of Kansas' basketball supremacy in the state. Not only did it defeat Kansas last season in Allen Fieldhouse, but it hired big-name coach Bob Huggins to turn its program around. Huggins already has recruited the nation's No. 1 recruiting class, according to Rivals.com. It won't be long until a Kansas State victory won't be shocking.
As soon as that happens, the rivalry will intensify to a level unknown by younger KU fans. Why? Because most in-state students and alumni know more Kansas State fans than they do Missouri fans.
Whether it is in football or basketball, the Wildcats will defeat the Jayhawks again and it will be hard to ignore because they live right next door.
Kansan sportswriter Travis Robinett can be contacted at trobinett@kansan.com.
— Edited by Dianne Smith
Kansas welcomes Nebraska challenge
VOLLEYBALL
BY DREW DAVISON
The Kansas volleyball team will play its final home game of the season against Nebraska, the best team in the country, and Jana Correa couldn't be happier.
"You know what?" Correa, senior outside hitter, said. "That's the best way to end out my career, to play the No. 1 team in the country."
Nebraska (25-1, 17-1 Big 12) comes in with reigning Big 12 Player of the Week Sasha Pavah while Kansas (10-17, 3-15) is currently riding an eight-match losing streak. First serve for the senior-night match is set for 7 p.m. tomorrow at the Horeisi Family Athletics Center.
While it seems like everything is working against the Jayhawks, Correa is eager to face the 'Huskers in her last match at the Horeksi Center.
"I don't want to play Baylor or Iowa State," she said. "I want to play Nebraska. I want to play well, it's my senior night."
And Correa thinks the Jayhawks
can beat the 'Huskers with some help.
"If they play well, we can win some games against Nebraska," Correa said. "You never know when the volleyball gods are on your side."
The volleyball gods were last on Kansas' side in 1975. Nebraska has won every match since and have a 76-1 all-time series lead.
Before the match, the five seniors on the roster — Correa, Jamie Mathewson, Megan Hill, Dani Wittman and Linsey Morningstar — will be honored.
Hill, a Lincoln, Neb., native, is looking forward to playing Nebraska.
"I'm so excited for senior night," Hill, outside hitter, said. "I think we'll give them a run for their money. Nebraska is definitely beatable, nobody is perfect."
Nebraska's undefeated season came to a halt two weeks ago when it lost a five-game match at Colorado.
Kansas lost a four-game match against rival Missouri Saturday, and will try to get a victory for the first time since Oct. 14 when it beat Baylor.
Nebraska coming into town, it is not an ideal situation for Kansas coach Ray Beard.
"We're the only one to blame for the second half," he said. "There's three or four matches in there that we thought we could've, should've won, but it is what it is."
With eight straight losses and No.1
Though the Jayhawks will not make the NCAA tournament, the senior class has put the program on the map.
This year's senior class is the only class to make it to three consecutive NCAA tournaments. Before 2004, Kansas had never received an invitation to the NCAA tournament.
Kansas closes out the season against Kansas State (10-18, 2-16) on Nov. 25 in Manhattan. The Jayhawks beat the Wildcats in a four-game match earlier this season at home.
Kansan sportswriter Drew Davison can be contacted at ddavison@kansan.com.
Edited by Aly Barland
Tom Strattman/ASSOCIATED PRESS
Season ends on low note
Despite overall standing, two runners make All-American
The KU cross country team finished in 20th place in the NCAA Division I Men's Cross Country Championships in Terre Haute, Ind., Monday. The team's highest-ranking runner was junior Colby Wissel, who finished 26th overall.
BY EVAN KAFARAKIS
CROSS COUNTRY
On a muddy course, junior Colby Wissel, the 2006 Big 12 champion, led the way for the Jayhawks, finishing 26th overall.
The season came to an end for the Kansas cross country team on Monday at the NCAA Championships in Terre Haute, Ind. Two Jayhawks earned All-American status, but the team as a whole did not finish well.
Times proved to be slower because more than five inches of rain fell on the course in the week leading up to the event.
"It was hard to really set a goal time for the race due to the conditions." Wessel added.
Wissel ran the 10 K race in 31:34.3 and Hefferon finished with
Junior Paul Hefferon also earned All-American status and placed 42nd overall.
Sloan finished in 164th place with a time of 33:12.1 and French ran in 33:35.5 for 188th place.
Roundout out the top five runners for the Jayhawks was junior Patrick McGowan, who ran the 10K race in 34:20.0, placing him in 250th place.
The times of the top five runners for each team were calculated into the final scores to determine its
Also contributing to the team were seniors Erik Sloan and Matt French, whose cross-country careers ended with the Jayhawks this year.
Wissel and Hefferon were the dynamic duo for the cross country program this season finishing in the top two consistently for the jayhawks squad.
Seniors Benson Chesang and Tyler Kelly did not finish the race. Specifics were not given, but injuries seemed to be a factor.
"We definitely owe each other a lot." Wissel said. "We make each other better."
Now that the cross-country season is finished, the team will prepare for the indoor track season.
Kansan sportswriter Evan Kafarakis can be contacted at ekafarakis@kansan.com.
placement
a time of 31:47.7.
the jayhawks finished in 20th place out of 31 teams competing.
"In the end, I am somewhat disappointed with where we finished as a team, but I think our seniors had a good season and a great career at Kansas," Redwine said.
Coach Stanley Redwine was pleased for the most part with the performances by his top finishers
Edited by Nicole Kelley