6 S APARTMENT GUIDE 4 BY CO cth Maggi reminde The t uniform were als Jayhawl for thei to suppness. But ter rem this on each w "MOM" "I iv how sbw I ever Sop and R Hull, cance mogr sophe Maril three stant what Th end 8-0, there "I the the M entl on est the go ba! sic to da THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN people I know and really tried to put family above everything when she was going through all of that," Maggie said. What their mother overcame makes everything seem like a manageable obstacle, the twins said. With cancer, it's a matter of life or death. But whatever the twins do now has a deeper meaning. Whether it is softball, perseverance. "That was my inspiration to get me through not only this game, but life," she said. "It teaches you not to take life for granted." And they haven't, especially after a hardship the softball team endured last year. Former player Ally Stanton's mother died of breast cancer. the Hull family. I was trying to calm. That could have been their mom. "It could have gone the other way." of the fight that I see in her onto the field." MAGGIE HULL Sophomore outfielder were lucky. Maggie said. "They just so happened to catch my mom's early." Maggiehad one memory in particular that summed up how much her moth- bald," Maggie said. "She was just so proud that she could do that walk. er overcame. Just a couple of weeks after she was cancer-free, "And she was proud of who she was." - Edited by Helen Mubarak Senior infielder Brandon Macias slides across home plate for a run Sunday at Taylor Stadium. Kansas won 6-0 and took the series from Missouri. Young pitchers shine against Missouri BASEBALL MIKE VERNON mvernon@kansan.com CONTRIBUTED PHOTO Three underclassmen pitchers came through for the Jayhawks when they needed it most, shutting out Missouri in the series-deciding third game. The 6-0 victory gave the Jayhawks their first series win at Taylor Stadium in 28 years, and keeps the Jayhawks postseason hopes alive. "We've now put ourselves not only in a position to make the Big 12 Tournament, but we can make the NCAA tournament if we continue to play well," coach Ritch Price said. Freshman pitcher Alex Cox gave up six hits in 5.2 innings on the mound, while striking out three, in what he said was easily one of the biggest starts of his career. Cox, a 6-foot-5 freshman from Corona, Calif., managed to escape the second, third, and fourth innings with two Missouri runners left on base. "With the series split, I obviously knew it was a big game," Cox said. "It was a great overall team win." "He got into trouble, and every time he got into trouble he made a big pitch, rolled up a double play ball, and got out of it," Price said. Sophomore Thomas Taylor, usually a weekday starter, came out of the bullpen to relieve Cox and close out the sixth inning. In the seventh, Taylor gave up a leadoff double but quickly recovered, retiring the next three Missouri batters. Next to pitch wgs freshman, Frank Duncan, who quickly went through the Missouri lineup. He retired the Tigers with 10 pitches in the eighth and 18 pitches in the ninth. "It's really exciting to start a freshman, relieve him with a sophomore, and then close it up again with a freshman." Price said. "Those guys have really emerged" One of Kansas' biggest plays came off the bat of junior catchiner James Stanfield in the sixth inning. Stanfield's first career home run extended the Kansas lead from two runs to three, and opened up the game from there. The Jayhawks' batting lineup gave the pitching staff cushion all game, getting six runs off of nine hits. "It definitely feels good to finally get that monkey off my back." Stanfield said. The pitching staff had a great weekend as a whole against the Tigers. Senior TJ. Walz had an outstanding performance in Friday night's series opener. He gave up five hits for one run in seven innings on the mound in The Jayhawks pulled away in the seventh, scoring two additional runs that gave Kansas a 5-0 lead. Another run in the ninth secured Kansas' first series victory at Missouri since 1983. the Iavhawks' 8-3 victory. In game two on Saturday, the teams were in a 2-2 deadlock headed into the bottom of the ninth. Junior closer Colton Murray blew his first save of the season, when he gave up an RBI single to Missouri outfielder Blake Brown. The split of the first two games made game three crucial to the rest of the Jayhawks' season. The victory puts Kansas at 18-18, with an 8-7 record in conference play — securing the Jayhawks the fifth spot in the big 12 standings. Kansas can now take the momentum of winning three conscuctive Big 12 series into a showdown with Texas from April 21-23. Edited by Tali David "We opened conference play with four series wins out of the first five, and the great thing now is every week can become bigger than the last." Price said. Rumor had it that his most him to be a Missouri Tiger. McLemore, who's from St. Louis, had more secure and historically successful things in mind. He is one of the most athletic incoming freshman in the country and will fit as a shooting guard or small forward. He needs to add more muscle to his boyish frame and continue to work on his outside shot, but this Kansas team needs a scorer. Inside or out, McLemore is just that. Expect him to get fairly heavy minutes for a freshman. Tharpe loves to make the extra pass; he'll give Jayhawk fans plenty of high-light-worthy assists. He is quick and intelligent with the ball, and his past coaches have praised his leadership qualities. Like most point guards, he needs to continue working on his jump shot. His somewhat diminutive stature could pose matchup problems against lengthy Big 12 opponents. But what's the worst that could happen? After all, this kid is from Worcester, Mass., or as locals call it: Wubstahhh! BRAEDEN ANDERSON This kid is as true a point guard as they come, and he's a winner. Tharpe had multiple 30-victory seasons at Brewster Academy in Wolfeboro, N.H., so he should easily transition into Kansas' winning culture. Anderson signed with Kansas seemingly the second after the Morris twins declared for the NBA. That fact alone tells you a good bit about his game. NAADIR THARPE Anderson, a Calgary, Alberta, import can play small forward or power forward, but next season's team will need him more in the paint. He can score anywhere on the floor, but at his position, he needs to improve as a rebounder. Here's hoping Self and company aren't finished. Trevor Lacey, DeAndre Daniels and Jamari Trayler are just a few of the unsigned names floating around. After guys like North Carolina's Harrison Barnes and Kentucky's Brandon Knight and Terrence Jones decide to stay in school or leave for the NBA, we'll know much more. —Edited by Amanda Sorell