KANSAN
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
MONDAY, MARCH 25, 2013
PAGE 9
BASEBALL
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Jayhawks fight inclement weather, several injuries in weekend losses
TREVOR GRAFF
tgraff@kansan.com
Kansas baseball battled frigid weather alongside frigid run production in this weekend's threegame series against Brigham Young University.
The Jayhawks lost Saturday's game 6-3 at Larry Miller Park in Provo, Utah. The Jayhawks left six men on base in the final three innings while Wes Benjamin pitched five innings giving up eight hits and five runs, two of which were earned.
"We got down very early in the game and with the conditions it was a tough day to play and a tough day to hit," Kansas coach Ritch Price said. "I compliment their guys he pitched really good in the elements. We found a way to get behind, had opportunities to score but we left a ton of runners on base."
The jayhawks strung together three runs in the sixth and seventh innings, but couldn't bring runners home to tie the game late.
Kansas continues to fight injury with senior first baseman Alex DeLeon out this weekend with a sore hamstring, junior outfielder Tucker Tharp out with a pulled
hamstring in last Wednesday night's game, and sophomore outfielder Connor McKay playing with a tweaked hamstring.
into games. My ankle is pretty much 100 percent now. I feel fine playing on it which is a good sign."
"We're beat up right now," Price said. "We
"We got down very early in the game, and with the conditions, it was a tough day to play."
have to get some guys healthy and get everybody back on the field to get those impact players back on the field offensively."
Senior shortstop Kevin Kuntz returned to the lineup after sitting two weeks with an ankle injury.
Kunz provides the lajwhaws an anchor in the middle of the infield
"It feels good to be back and get back in the flow," Kuntz said. "Being out for almost two weeks it's pretty tough coming right back
RITCH PRICE Kansas baseball coach
defensively, as he committed only one error while fielding at a 98 percent clip.
"He makes us a lot better defensively when he can get on the field," Price said. "It's
just really good to see his return, but of course now we need to get the other guys healthy too."
The Kansas bullpen showed its strength in Saturday's game when junior right-handed pitcher Jordan Piche' entered the game retiring eight straight batters with two strikeouts.
"He's been good all year," Price said. "He's been one of the best
in the country and was obviously thrilled with his performance once again today."
Piche' entered the game down six runs with the bases loaded, a situation that would cause most relieving pitchers to cringe. Piche' keeps the game simple.
"My goal was to just knock that first guy out, take it inning by inning and put up as many zeroes as possible." Piche' said.
Piche' approach starts long before his first pitch when he watches hitters' tendencies throughout the game.
"I like to watch the hitters and see what they do on different pitches to just see how they work," Piche' said. "Then when I come in I can work them from what I've seen before."
The Jayhawks fall to 14-8 for the season after this weekend's series. They take on Missouri State in Springfield, Mo., at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday.
Edited by Brian Sisk
Sophomore outfielder Conner McKay takes a strong swing during a game against Jackson State University at home on March 13, 2013, where they won 11-0. McKay has a .154 batting average this season.
KELSEY WEAVER/KANSAN
NCAA
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Florida Gulf Coast's Dajuan Graf, from left, Eddie Murray and Brett Comer celebrate after winning a third-round game against San Diego State in the NCAA college basketball tournament, Sunday. Florida Gulf Coast won 81-71.
No.15 seed moves to next round
ASSOCIATED PRESS
PHILADELPHIA  — Florida Gulf Coast went from shocking the college basketball world to downright impressing it. And the Eagles were smiling the whole time.
Playing loose and easy, little-known FCGU beat San Diego State 81-71 on Sunday to ! come the first 10. No seed to reach the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament.
"We don't take ourselves too seriously," said Florida Gulf Coast coach Andy Enfield, whose players missed him in the air and poured water on him in raucous celebration before his postgame interviews. "We try to have fun, get serious when we have to.
"Our goal was to make history and we did it."
The next opponent for the
upstart state school will be the main campus, third-seeded Florida, on Friday night in the South Regional semifinal in Dallas.
"We tried to scrimmage them early in the season in the pre-season," Enfield said. "Now we get our shot."
Bernard Thompson had 23 points and Sherwood Brown added 17 for FGCU, the 16-year school in just its second season being eligible for postseason play.
In its first-ever NCAA tournament game on Friday, the Atlantic Sun champion busted brackets everywhere with an upset win over No. 2 Georgetown, a game the Eagles took control of with a 21-2 run in the second half.
It went much the same way against San Diego State.
Brown, who was saddled early in the second half with foul trouble, had eight of the first 10 points of it. When it was over the Eagles led 71-52 with 4:19 to play and the only decisions left were how the players and fans were going to celebrate.
This time the run was 17-0 and
Even when the game was tight, he and his teammates looked they were glad to be on the court. The Eagles waved their arms and played along with a lively crowd that came to see an upset. There were big smiles and high-fives.
Brown stuck out his tongue after every big basket, often in the direction of the hundreds of Eagles fans jammed into one section.
In short, they showed a kind of joy that's often missing from high stakes, high drama games in March.
MEN'S GOLF
Disappointing first day finish leads to tournament loss
CHRIS HYBL
chybl@kansan.com
Kansas golf coach Jamie Bermel has made it clear that Kansas goes to every tournament intending to win. But when the team finished in 15th place on the first day of this weekend's Desert Shootout in Goodyear, Ariz., it didn't exactly help the team's chances.
"You can't win the tourna.
ing," Bermel said. "The finishing holes really weren't that hard."
On Saturday, Gautier boyeged his last three holes, Gilbert boyeged one of his last two holes, and Gutesha boyeged his last hole. The team concluded the tournament in a T-8th (+13) finish, 27 strokes behind the leader, Brigham Young University.
ment on the first day," Bermel said. "But you can certainly dig yourself in a huge hole, which we did, and pretty much lose the tournament."
"Those add up in a hurry," Bermel said. "We probably dropped four or five spots in
The Jayhawks were 15th in a
"We need to start setting in on a lineup and see if we can't get some continuity and consistency."
the last two holes."
JAMIE BERMEL Golf coach
field of 16 teams after the first 18 holes of the 54-hole tournament, but unlike their previous two tournaments of the 2013 season, Kansas would move up the leaderboard. Kansas was the biggest mover on the second day of the tournament behind Stan Gautier's career best round of 67 (-4), putting the Jayhawks in eleventh place. Kansas would move up again after the final 18 on Saturday, but poor finishes from Stan Gautier, Chris Gilbert, and Alex Gutesha limited the team's ascension.
"We weren't able to get it finished which is pretty disappoint-
top 30. However, one of those four, Bryce Brown, competed in the tournament as an individual, making Brown's rounds ineligible for the team's tournament score. Bermel has played with multiple lineups throughout the season and is still searching for the right fit.
"We just need to find some consistency at the four and five," Bermel said. "We need to start settling in on a lineup and see if we can get some continuity and consistency."
Though different faces have occupied the fourth and fifth spots in each tournament of the
spring season, Bermel has found a consistent top three in Gautier, Gilbert, and Gutesha, who have solidified their spots on the ever-changing lineup.
"The top three guys are playing pretty solid," Bermel said. "The three lead in different ways. It's three different personalities, but all three are doing a nice job."
Bermel said Gautier leads with work ethic, Gilbert with results, and Gutesha with a combination of the two. The three have been an essential part of a team desperate for consistency, and have carried Kansas throughout 2013. Still, shaving strokes elsewhere is currently the team's priority.
"It's the old cliche: if you can just find one more stroke every round it would be huge," Bermel said. "That's what we are looking for now. How do we do one thing better, and if everyone could us one stroke each round it would be huge for the team score."
The Jayhawks have another two-week break before their next tournament, the Irish Creek Collegiate, on April 6-7 in Charlotte. The team has two events left before the Big 12 Championships on April 22.
Edited by Brian Sisk
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