Red tide
The Red Sox dominated the Royals 7-1 on Wednesday. Pitcher Josh Beckett held Kansas City to two hits in the chilly game.
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THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2007 WWW.KANSAN.COM
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THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
SPORTS
PAGE 1B
Lisa Lipovac/KANSAN
Second baseman Sarria Ramirez unsuccessfully tries to catch a hit during the first inning against Nebraska last night. The Huskers scored two runs during the first inning and shutout the Jawahlers 3-0
SOFTBALL
'Huskers profit from George's slow start
BY EVAN KAFARAKIS
After throwing 44 pitches in the first inning alone, it seemed like it would be a long day for Kansas sophomore pitcher Valerie George.
Behind George (9-3) the Kansas defense struggled early while the offense was nearly non-existent in the Jayhawks 3-0 loss to visiting Nebraska.
"Nebraska did a great job of really battling her offensively," coach Tracy Bunne said.
In the first inning George found herself in a hole with the bases loaded and one out giving up a sacrifice fly to right field to bring in a runner and leave one on first and one on
third.
A double steal caught the layhawk defense off guard as sophomore catcher Elle Potford committed a throwing error to try and catch the runner.
"They put the ball in play and defensively we couldn't shut that down," Bunge said.
Already down 2-0, the stalling Jayhawk offense couldn't secure a hit until the fourth inning.
The bats for the Jayhawks have gone cold in their five-game homestand, which concerns coach Bunge, but she gives the credit to opposing pitching.
"We've struggled against Ashley,
Bunge said of Nebraska senior pitch
er Ashley DeBuhr, who pitched a complete game two-hitter against Kansas. "She has come a long way and I give that kid a lot of credit."
DeBuhr faced 22 Jayhawk batters and struck out 12.
After giving up another run in the second inning, George started to get in her zone allowing two hits the rest of the game.
"I thought Valerie George did a solid job out there," Bunge said.
George pitched a complete game giving up five hits and striking out four.
George said she tried to start the game aggressively but she just didn't have her stuff the first two innings.
"I felt really good the rest of the
game. I don't know what changed, maybe confidence, just knowing I can throw my stuff", George said.
The Jayhawks went 1-4 in their longest homestand in a month putting them at a 26-13-1 record and 2-3 in the Big 12.
When the game ended, the Jayhawks took to left field to listen to what Bunge had to say to them, but had to wait as Bunge had a long conference with her coaching staff on the third base line.
"As a coaching staff we're trying to figure out what the right switches are." Bunge said.
The team was in the same posi
BASEBALL
SEE SOFTBALL ON PAGE 3B
Kansas Wesleyan proves easy target
Jayhawks thump Coyotes 11-4, gives non-starters play time
BY ALISSA BAUER
His faith in the back up guys he started paid off. Already comfortable with a 9-0 lead in the bottom of the fifth, junior outfielder Casey Larson hit a milestone.
The 10 pitching changes in Wednesday's game against Kansas Wesleyan held up as proof for Coach Ritch Price's reasoning in playing NAIA opponents.
The 11-4 Kansas (17-18, 3-6) victory gave the Jayhawks a chance to rest some starters, work in young guys and rack up some runs before kicking off the series against No. 7 Texas this afternoon.
Not yet an everyday player, Larson filled in for junior John Allman.
While Allman took the day off, Larson took the ball out of the park. The two-run homer was his first as a jayhawk and put Kansas ahead 11-0.
"It was exciting—it got up in the wind a little bit," Larson said. "It felt real good to get the opportunity to swing a little bit."
The Coyotes (10-21) would rally in the sixth and seventh, but with an 11-4 lead, giving up a handful runs was of little concern.
Added to the schedule because of three cancellations against North Dakota State and Western Illinois,
coach Price said he was interested in getting some work for his guys.
The Jayhawks took advantage of the extra game from the first pitch. Four straight Jayhawks reached base in the bottom of the first, after senior center fielder Kyle Murphy led off the game with a triple to right.
Robby Price, freshman third-baseman-turned-shortstop for the day followed suit with an infield hit.
The floodgates opened shortly thereafter.
"I think our guys did a nice job of laying off the off-speed stuff," coach Price said. "Sometimes the hardest guys Big 12 hitters have to hit are the guys that are under the radar gun, and their guys were under that radar gun."
Senior first baseman Ross Kelling led off the second with a walk. Senior catcher Dylan Parzey connected on a double off the left field wall.
That wrapped up the majority of the work Kansas had to do in the inning, as Kansas Wesleyan went on to walk another and beamed two more Kansas players.
A Brock Simpson double drove in two more to put the Jayhawks on cruise control. Two sacrifice flies later, Kansas had secured an 8-0 lead.
In the meantime, Kansas' pitching was cruising.
schedule
Due to the cold weather, the starting times for the Friday and Saturday games against No. 7 Texas were pushed to earlier in the day. Both were scheduled to start at 7 p.m. and will now each be played at 3 p.m. The series finale slated for 1 p.m. on Sunday will remain the same.
After nearly a four-hour contest at Kansas State the night before, starting pitcher Wally Marceli sailed through his five-inning start. Allowing no runs and no walks, the freshman seemed unfazed by the surprisingly cold weather that affected his teammates the night before.
The night before the Jayhawks open the series against Texas, that cold may not be a bad thing. Especially when the Longhorns are looking to avenge losing their last three-game series to the Jayhawks.
"It was cold," Marceli said. "I'm not gonna lie."
"We won the series two years ago," coach Price said. "I'm just glad
SEE BASEBALL ON PAGE 4B
Casey Larson is congratulated by teammates after hitting a homerun during the game against Kansas Wesleyan on Wednesday afternoon. Kansas won the game 11-4.
Anna Faltermeier/KANSAN
FOOTBALL
Cornerback prepares for leadership role on offensive and defensive sides of field
Anna Faltermeier/KANSAN
BY MARK DENT
The junior cornerback spent little time looking for tips on footwork or coverage. Instead, he concentrated on the Ravens' intense all-pro linebacker.
Aqib Talib didn't just watch tapes of Kansas games last fall to improve his game, he spent Sundays observing the Baltimore Ravens.
"Ray Lewis has his team fired up for the whole game," Talib said. "He's
The Kansas football team held a practice open to the media Wednesday afternoon. The team will hold their 2007 Spring Scrimmage April 15 at Memorial Stadium.
yelling for all four quarters. That's what I'm trying to do"
The Jayhawk secondary couldn't even stop the Little Giants. Talib was good, but his skill wasn't enough to elevate the rest of the defense. Kansas was the worst team in the
This fall Talib will have more playing experience than anyone else on the roster. He wants to develop into a more active leader, he said at Wednesday's open spring practice.
Leadership and Talib didn't mix last season. He was suspended for the first two games for breaking team rules. After that, he played well enough to lead the Big 12 in interceptions and pass breakups. But something was missing.
conference at stopping the pass. He's taking it on himself to make the team better by leading vocally.
"I did it halfway last year," Talib said. "I didn't let people hear me the whole game. I'd be too quiet sometimes."
His desire to be louder was apparent at the open practice when the team tried goal line situations. The offense had been running the ball against the defense with relative ease for most of the afternoon. Talib had enough.
Sophomore running back Jake Sharp took a carry toward Talib's side. Talib exploded toward the line
SEE FOOTBALL ON PAGE 3B