THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN SPORTS
FOOTBALL|7A
Spikes will be ready this season
TUESDAY, APRIL 19, 2011
Jeff Spikes will play his first season with Turner Gill this fall. He will have to compete with younger linemen for his position.The offensive line has seen a couple position changes already, but it has plans to redefine itself and lead the team to a bowl game.
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NO REGRETS
Jamaican runner thrives at Kansas
BY GEOFFREY CALVERT
gcalvert@kansan.com
Jerry Wang/KANSAN
Denesha Morris, a sophomore sprinter from Manchester Jamaica, committed to Kansas a year and a half ago without even coming to the campus for a recruiting visit. Morris had to make several adjustments since coming to the University, including getting acclimated to the snow and running on a shorter indoor track.
Denesha Morris, Manchester, Jamaica, sophomore, is at Kansas continuing a family tradition. Morris' family boasts a deep trap heritage. Both of her parents ran track, as did her older sister, who now lives in England. She also has two brothers, one of whom runs distance for the Louisiana Tech track team.
Louisiana Tech had tried to recruit Morris to join her brother in 2009, but Kansas coach Stanley Redwine beat them to it. Morris said she and Redwine spoke mainly on the phone during her recruiting process. She met him for the first time when he attended one of her meets in Jamaica.
"I've been doing track ever since I was a little girl," Morris said. "It's just like a family thing."
Morris committed to Kansas without even coming on a recruiting visit. When she arrived in December of 2009, she was greeted by an unfamiliar sight - snow.
"It was the first time I'd seen snow," Morris said. "It was exciting to see at first, but after awhile I was like 'This is too cold'"
Morris has been in Kansas for nearly a year and a half now, but she said she still hasn't completely acclimated to the weather.
"Around Christmas is when it's coldest in Jamaica. It's maybe 40, 50 degrees. During the day it's still hot sometimes. It doesn't get that cold," Morris said.
The weather wasn't the only thing Morris had to get used to. She had never seen an indoor track before she came to the University. In Jamaica she ran on outdoor tracks, which are larger than indoor tracks. Because of this, Morris experienced an embarrassing moment during her first indoor season.
In the 2011 indoor season, Morris was part of the 4x400 team that earned All-American honors for placing seventh at the NCAA Indoor Championships.
In addition to the 4x400 meter relay, Morris also runs the 4x100 meter relay and the 100-meter dash. "Running on a relay team is exciting because it's a team effort, it takes four people," Morris said. "The relay puts more pressure on you because if you mess up then the whole team is going to mess up."
"Having my family around is the most important thing." Morris said. "famaica has a lot of fun people, fun vibes. It's awesome. But I'm here at KU and I have no regrets."
"We've been successful because of the help of God. There's nothing we can do without him," Morris said. "Secondly, we have really good coaches, Coach Redwine and Coach Brewer. They see to it that we work our butts off in practice."
— Edited by Jacque Weber
KANSASRELAYS
After graduating, Morris plans to stay in Kansas and work, but she ultimately wants to go back home to Jamaica. She has been home only since arriving at Kansas, once for summer break and once for winter break.
Wednesday, April 20, through Saturday, April 23. Events run all day at Memorial Stadium beginning at 8 a.m. each day.
KEY EVENTS:
Wed. Apr. 20: 6 p.m. Downtown Shotput
Includes the world's top three shotputters, among others, competing on Eighth and Vermont streets
Thurs. Apr. 21: 6 p.m. Downtown Longjump
Eight of the best long jumpers on the planet, some of which can soar distances of 26ft.
Jayhawks to give young players experience
BASEBALL
mvernon@kansan.com
BY MIKE VERNON
The Jayhawks hope to stay in rhythm and give their young players added experience in tonight's 6 p.m. game against their NAIA opponent, Saint Mary.
"It gives our players a possibility to continue to play at game speed and get at-bats," coach Ritch Price said. "Hopefully we'll get an opportunity to play some of our back-up guys and pitch our young guys."
The game with Saint Mary was scheduled to replace a Division I game that was rained out earlier in the year. Coach Price said that the program rescheduled a game
against a lower division opponent to get the team at-bats and keep them in rhythm
Starting for Kansas (18-18) is senior pitcher Wally Marciel. Marciel had a 3.76 ERA in six starts and six relief appearances. Marciel's start
them in rhythm.
Marciel
may not last too long though, because coach Price is looking to give some of his younger pitchers a chance to show their stuff in a game situation.
"My goal is to get all my guys in the game and be able to pitch some of our young guys like Conner Murray and Tyler Smith,"
Price said, "It's an important game for those guns. They're trying to
The Spires (17-28) have struggled with both their hitting and pitching throughout the season. Saint Mary has posted a batting average of .279 this year.
of those guys. They're trying to build off of practicing and then summer ball to come back and compete for more playing time next year."
The Spires are led at the plate by junior infielder Devin Hupp. Hupp is hitting 431, with a slugging percentage of .642.
The Jayhawks bring a .251 batting average into the action. While a .251 may not sound like much, that number was only at .234 just 19 days ago. $ \gamma $
Coach Price has attributed the improved batting numbers to the team maturing and growing up. Senior outfielders Jimmy Waters and Casey Lyle both struggled in their new role as the team's leaders early in non-conference play, but since Big 12 play has started, both have been on a tear. Waters is batting .345, and Lyle is batting .340 in Big 12 play.
It didn't take long for the younger jayhawks to follow suit once their leaders got hot at the plate. Freshman Kaiana Eldredge came into April with a batting average of 172 — He has pulled his average up to 214 in the 12 games Kansas has played this month.
"It usually takes around 25 games for your freshman to make
the adjustment it takes to be successful in the Big 12 conference," Price said. "He's really taken his game to the next level."
In tonight's battle against the Spires, Kansas hopes to continue their maturation process while not looking too far ahead to a looming matchup with the Longhorns this weekend. If the Jayhawks stay focused, a special opportunity against a top five opponent team lies ahead this weekend.
BASKETBALL
For now though, the Jayhawks hope to improve while giving their young players a chance to strut their stuff.
Edited by Erin Wilbert
There's still hope for Jayhawks
BY COREY THIBODEAUX cthibodeaux@kansan.com
Some Jayhawks still have a shot for a championship this year. Albeit, they are former
About, they are former Kansas players playing in the NBA, but it could be a nice consolation for losing to Virginia Commonwealth in the NCAA tournament.
Out of the 16 playoff teams in the NBA this season, six contain Jayhawks on their rosters. There are eight players in total, but only six of them play relevant minutes.
Unfortunately for KU fans, top teams such as the Bulls, Spurs and Lakers are void of any Kansas players. Only a handful of these players stands a reasonable chance of even reaching the finals.
teaching the finals.
Brandon Rusk
Indiana Pacers
Chance to make finals: Not going to happen.
The Pacers played a memorable game against the Bulls, leading for most of the contest until Derrick Rose took over. Rush played 18 minutes and scored seven points, but the Bulls were just too good.
Atlanta Hawks
Chance to make finals: Nope.
Hinrich is only one of two Jayhawks on this list who starts. He scored 13 points with five rebounds in the victory against Orlando, which is the second-best performance on this list. If Hinrich does advance, he will most likely go up against his former Bulls, and there isn't any way he's getting past them.
Kirk Hinrich,
Memphis Grizzlies
Chance to make finals: Try again
and Xavier Henry
They beat the top-seeded Spurs in Game 1, but San Antonio was without Manu Ginobili. Arthur scored five points and had five fouls in 15 minutes, and it will be hard for him to see the floor with Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol playing so well. Henry is out for the playoffs because of a knee injury.
Darrell Arthur
Nick Collison and Cole Aldrich Oklahoma City Thunder
Chance to make finals: Getting warmer.
The Thunder has its hands full with a sprightly Nuggets team in the first round. They might win the series, but that may be all they can do. The Thunder are a popular team for many Kansas residents, but they are still too young to deal with the Spurs, Lakers and Mavericks. They have loads of talent, though, and maybe this is their breakout playoff season. Collison contributed little in 26 minutes Sunday night, whereas Aldrich didn't even play. The team called him back up from his third D-League stint after Aldrich took the Tulsa 66ers to the semifinals of the D-League Finals.
1
Mario Chalmers
Miami Heat
Chance to make finals: Very possible.
This team is the biggest wild card in the playoffs. It should easily bypass the 76ers, but how it will fare against the Celtics, Magic or Bulls is the key to the Eastern Conference. Chalmers was limited to six points in 21 minutes Saturday against the 76ers. But his team has a solid shot at a championship run.
Paul Pierce
Boston Celtics
Chance to make finals: Favorite to win the East.
He's the best former Kansas player and he plays on the best team out of all of them. The Celtics squeaked past the Knicks in Game 1, while Pierce had his steady 18-point contribution. Pierce could get another ring before Boston's window of opportunity is shut.
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Edited by Jacque Weber