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SPORTS / TUESDAY, MARCH 23, 2010 / THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN / KANSAN.COM
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Post play key to Kansas' postseason hopes
Jayhawks are relying on play in the paint to duplicate last season's NIT success.
BY MAX ROTHMAN
mrothman@kansan.com
www.twitter.com/mrothman
The Sweet Sixteen of the Women's NIT is no foreign territory for Kansas.
After suffering six straight losses, the jayhawks strung together two victories last week by triumphing in the paint. Now, they sit three more victories away from their second consecutive year in the Women's NIT final.
"We made the most of the opportunity of the stage that we played on," coach Bonnie Henrickson said of last year's team. "They can share those stories and what that felt like."
Without injured senior guard Danielle McCray, the Jayhawks plan on getting to the final a little differently this time around.
In an 82-70 victory against Prairie View A&M on Wednesday, junior center Krysten Boogaard
posted 37
points and eight
rebounds. She
converted all
of her free-
throw attempts
and took a team-
leading 19 shots.
Back from a concussion, it was freshman forward Carolyn Davis'
injury, Kansas is 4-1 when guards Engelman and Sade Morris take no more than 11 shots. In the lone loss, Davis sat on the sideline with a concussion.
turn to shine in a 71-68 victory against Creighton on Sunday. The Houston, Texas, native scored 25 points, grabbed 12 rebounds and missed just one of her 10 shots.
"I don't see a lot of teams that can challenge Carolyn and Boogaard," freshman guard Monica Engelman said. "It's good to have well rounded perimeter play, but it's a great advantage to have them."
"I don't see a lot of teams that can challenge Carolyn and Boogaard."
"That puts us in a better flow," Morris said of a post-centered offense. "We know that coming into some games, our bigs are our advantage. When they're putting up numbers like that, why not go to them?"
No matter whether Davis or Boogaard gets the most minutes in Thursday's game against Illinois State. Kansas will likely aim to structure the offense around its post players.
"She's tough to cover," Creighton coach Jim Flanery said of Davis. "If Booagaard can score 37 and still not get the minutes a few days later, it tells you how good that kid is."
Kansas is at its best when relying on one of these two for the bulk of the scoring load. Since McCray's
Last season, Kansas narrowly missed out on a bid to the NCAA tournament. But rather than suk ing with hypothetical thoughts,
MONICA ENGELMAN Freshman guard
the lajhways
won four postseason games and got to play in the Women's NIT final a g a i n s t S o u t h Florida in front of 16,113 fans the large
est home crowd in Kansas women's basketball history.
Henrickson said that her team handled last season's WNIT appearance with maturity and pride for the program and that the approach does not change this season.
Some of the seniors are glad that it isn't over just yet.
"Id rather play than just be sitting around," Morris said.
- Edited by Cory Bunting
Freshman forward Carolyn Davis is fouled as she attempts a shot. Behind Davis' team-high 25 points, Kansas defeated Creighton 71-68 in the second round of the WNIT on Sunday.
MLB
Ryan Waggoner/KANSAN
Phillies win World Series rematch
ASSOCIATED PRESS
CLEARWATER, Fla. — Wilson Valdez homered off Phil Hughes with two outs in the ninth inning and the Philadelphia Phillies beat the New York Yankees 9-7 Monday.
Starters Cole Hamels of the Phillies and A.J. Burnett of the Yankees combined to allow 11 runs and 16 hits in eight innings.
Mark Teixeira went 4-for-4 with a home run and double for the Yankees. Dane Sardinia homered, doubled and drove in four runs for the Phillies.
Sardinha, Valdez and Ben Francisco homered off Huches.
"He was up," manager Charlie Manuel said of Hamels, who had been sharp this spring. "He threw a lot of fastballs and when you get stretched out, you go through that period in spring training. He was up in the strike zone, with his off-speed stuff, too."
Hamels, who entered the day with a 1.69 ERA in three spring starts, allowed seven runs (six earned) and nine hits in four innings. His spring ERA jumped to 4.91.
MLB
Hamels said he was unconcerned with his stats since he was using the outing to work almost exclusively on fine-tuning his fastball.
"Now is the time I want to get the fastball going and hit my spots," said Hamels, who is scheduled to follow ace Roy Halladay in the team's rotation. "I thought I was doing a pretty good job, but then in the fourth inning, I was cutting it off unintentionally and I definitely wasn't releasing the ball where I wanted to, and it wasn't going where I needed it to. A lot of the pitches missed over the heart of the plate."
The two teams combined for 24 hits.
Pujols pulled from lineup as Cardinals beat Red Sox
ASSOCIATED PRESS
JUPITER, Fla. — While Matt Holliday returned for the St. Louis Cardinals, their biggest slugger is still dealing with some back problems.
Albert Pujols was scratched from St. Louis' 13-8 split-squad victory over the Boston Red Sox with back tightness. The two-time defending NL MVP also missed a week this spring because of lower back pain he described as more like spasms.
Cardinals manager Tony La
Russia says Puilols should be fine.
Holliday hit an RBI double in his first game since March 9. He was nursing a strained muscle in his rib cage.
Brad Penny gave up seven runs and 10 hits in five innings for St. Louis.
J er e m y
Hermida went
2 for 2 and
scored two runs
for Boston.
league experience, shortstop Bill Hall and outfielder Jeremy Hermilda, and the Red Sox still
"You come out against a team you really don't know anything about and they're all swinging first
mer teammate Brad Penny for seven runs and 10 hits in five innings.
Boston's lineup included two players with significant major
"Once the season comes your adrenaline gets going. It's easier to focus, more meaningful."
pitch," Penny said. "It's kind of hard to work on setting a hitter up. In a regular-season game I'll be moving people's feet a lot more
BRAD PENNY Cardinals pitcher
going, it's easier to focus, it's more meaningful?
"I probably could have played one day earlier but they wanted a couple of days of batting practice."
Holliday hit an RBI double in
the right hander said. "Once the season comes your adrenaline gets
MATT HOLLIDAY
Cardinals outfielder
if they're going to be swinging first pitch."
Penny, slated to start the third game of the season, has a 7.97 ERA in 14.2 3 innings.
"I've had some really bad springs before."
"I probably could have played one day earlier but they wanted a couple of days of batting prac-
nis first game since March 9. He was nursing a strained muscle in his rib cage.
Holliday was slated to play left field before being switched to designated hitter because of the wet conditions. He should play the field Wednesday.
tice, clear a couple of hurdles" he said.
"As long as we're both in there on April 5," Holliday said. "We don't need to be in the same line-up, it's not like we're the quarterback and wide receiver."
Holliday and Puiols have played one game together this spring.
Jeremy Hermida went 2 for 2 and scored two runs for Boston. Tug Hulett had two hits and three RBIs.
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