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/ SPORTS / MONDAY, MARCH 1, 2010 / THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN / KANSAN.COM
BASEBALL
Jayhawks' bats heat up in Arizona weekend series
BY BEN WARD bward@kansan.com
After the Jayhawks collected only seven hits in two games against Eastern Michigan on Feb. 22, all coach Ritch Price wanted to see from his offense was day by day improvement.
That's just what Kansas (4-1) did in Peoria, Ariz. over the weekend.
"We were better in each game of the weekend," coach Price said. "I was really impressed with the job our hitters did."
The Jayhawks indeed showed steady progress at the plate, en route to winning their three games in the Peoria College Baseball Showdown one against Gonzaga and two more against Sacramento State. After scoring four runs on
six hits in Friday's opener, Kansas racked up nine runs on nine hits and 10 runs on 18 hits in two games on Saturday.
"It felt good," sophomore catcher Chris Manship said of the offensive
"The pressure is off now. Everyone was more relaxed and focused on seeing the ball well."
Manship
The offensive improvement
job to manufacture a run.
didn't start with loud home run blasts, but with Kansas executing the little aspects of the game. It began right from the first inning on Friday against Sacramento State, with each player doing his
After junior outfielder Casey Lytle led off the inning with a double, senior second baseman Robby Price moved him to third with a
sacrifice bunt.
Then junior
outfielder Brian
Heere did his
part,
bringing Lytle home
with a sacrifice
fly.
"We started off pretty slow," senior pitcher
Selik
Cameron Selik said. "Their pitcher did a good job keeping our hitters off balance, but we stuck in there."
The Jayhawks hung tough, carrying over those small-ball elements to Saturday. Adding to the efficient
at-bats were big hits with two outs, which helped Kansas score multiple runs in the fourth and sixth innings against Gonzaga.
"Any time when you can string a couple hits together and manufacture a run, it gets guys up in the dugout, which gets everybody excited," Selik said.
Selik added that the innings gave the team momentum because "hitting is contagious."
"It just piles on, like a snowball effect, and that's what we were able to do the final two games," he said.
Gone were the glaring inefficiencies from a week ago: the inability to advance runners and all the strikeouts with men in scoring position. Kansas took advantage of nine hits, five walks and three hit
Each Jayhawk batter recorded at least one of the 18 hits in their 10-4 victory against Sacramento Sate. Four Kansas players tallied multiple hits in the contest.
By Saturday night, everyone in the Kansas lineup got into the act.
Price
batsmite to score nine runs against Gonzaga.
"Initially we struggled five through nine in the order," Price said. "But on Saturday we were solid production-wise one through nine in the lineup, and you have to have that to compete in our
Coach Price agreed, saying the warm weather in Arizona was the perfect setting for the Jayhawks to see extended action.
"It makes you understand why every team goes to Florida and Arizona for Spring Training," coach Price said. "It completely prepares you to play."
league."
"Everybody's comfortable and getting into the rhythm of things," Manship said.
Because lingering winter weather has severely limited Kansas' outdoor practice time over the past month, Manship said much of the improvement on offense can be attributed to the extensive at-bats against live pitching.
GAME 1: KANSAS 4.
six frames, scattering seven hits, to stifle the Gonzaga batters and even his record at 1-1. Senior first baseman Brett Lisher paced Kansas on offense, going 3-4 with two doubles and three RBI in his first start of the season.
SACRAMENTO STATE 3
WP: Brett Bollman, 6.2 IP, 2 R
(one earned), 7 H, 3 K, 1 BB
SV: Brett Bochy, 2 IP, 1 H, 2 K
Edited by Jesse Rangel
GAME 3: KANSAS 10,
SACRAMENTO STATE 4
WP: Cameron Selik, 7.1 IP, 1 R,
6 H, 4 BB, 5 K
Aided by a quality start from senior Brett Bollman and timely hitting, the Jayhawks won the opening game of the Peoria College Baseball Showdown against the Hornets. Junior outfielders Jimmy Waters and
Brian Heere led the Jayhawks on offense with three hits and three RBI combined.
GAME 2:
KANSAS 9, GONZAGA 5
WP:TJ. Walz. 6 iP. 2 R. H. 7 K. 0 BB
A five run fourth inning and a solid outing from junior T.J. Walz helped the Jayhawks down the Bulldogs in their first game on Saturday. Walz worked the first
The nightcap marked an offensive explosion by the Jayhawks, who jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the first inning. Kansas piled it on from there, supporting a strong effort from senior Cameron Selik with 18 hits, including five doubles. Every batter tallied a hit for the Jayhawks, and four enjoyed a multiple hit game, including sophomore catcher Chris
SERIES NOTES:
The second game against Gonzaga, which was scheduled for 11 am on Sunday, was cancelled because of heavy rain. The two teams will not make up the contest.
Manship - who went 4-4 with a double and three RBI.
Junior outfeilder Casey Lytle did his job with solid production from the leadoff spot. In the three games Lytle went 3-10 with a walk, four runs scored, two RBI, two stolen bases, and got hit three times by opposing pitchers.
Kansas tallied five sacrifice hits in the three games — four sacrifice flies and one bunt.
BIG 12 BASKETBALL
Aggies zoom past Longhorns, 74-58
COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Donald Sloan scored 19 points to lead No. 22 Texas A&M to a 74-58 win over No. 21 Texas on Saturday in a game that saw Longhorns guard J'Covan Brown injured after a hard fall late in the game.
Texas A&M (20-8, 9-5 Big 12)
never trailed and went up 10
points before scoring six in a row
to push the lead to 66-50 with
about three minutes remaining.
Texas (22-7, 8-6) finished with
their lowest scoring output of the season. Leading scorer Damion James, who entered the game averaging 17.7 points and 10.7 rebounds, finished with 12 points and one rebound.
the game.
Brown was taken off the court on a board with his neck stabilized after falling hard on a drive to the basket late in the game. Texas officials said he had a neck injury, likely a stinger, and was being taken to a local hospital for evaluation.
He was conscious as he was wheeled out of the arena on a stretcher out 20 minutes after
Texas A&M led 72-58 when Brown collided with Texas A&M's B.J. Holmes as he went to the basket. Both players were injured in the collision, but Brown remained on the court after Holmes was carried off with an apparent ankle injury.
Play was stopped for about 10 minutes while Brown was looked at. Medical personnel were called to the court after a couple of minutes.
Associated Press
KU & Haskell Students!
Interested in attending productions at the University Theatre at no cost? You can take advantage of this FREE offer by applying for tickets through the Jack B. Wright Student Ticket Fund.
The University Theatre, through gracious donations from Dave and Mary Kate Ambler and Friends of the Theatre, has a limited number of free tickets available.
If you are interested in seeing University Theatre productions, contact Katherine Pryor at kpryor@ku.edu for information on your eligibility.
Next up at the University Theatre:
by George Bernard Shaw
February 26 28 & March 4 6
Crafton-Prever Theatre
Arms and the Man
Music and Lyrics by Cole Porter, book by Guy Bolton,
P.G. Wodehouse, Howard Lindsay & Russel Crouse
Featuring the KU Symphony Orchestra
April 23 - 25 & 29 - May 1
Crafton-Prever Theatre
Anything Goes
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Orange hold off Wildcats, clinch share of Big East title
ASSOCIATED PRESS
SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Rick Jackson scored 19 points and Arinze Onuaku had 17 as Syracuse's two big men dominated the second half, helping the No. 4 Orange rout No. 7 Villanova 95-77 on Saturday night before an NCAA on-campus record crowd of 34,616.
Syracuse (27-2, 14-2 Big East) improved to 7-0 against ranked teams and clinched at least a tie for the Big East title. The Orange also own the tiebreaker because of the victory over the Wildcats (23-5, 12-4), who have lost three of their past four.
On a day when the top two teams in the nation — Kansas and Kentucky — both lost, the Syracuse win could move the Orange to No. 1 for the first time since 1989-90. They were 11th in the final AP poll of the 2002-03 season when they won the national championship.
With Syracuse stars from the past back for a reunion — Derrick Coleman, John Wallace, Billy Owens and Rafael Addison among them — and the fans waving orange towels donated by the Jim and Juli Boeheim Foundation, the Orange took charge in the second half.
Syracuse increased its 10-point halftime lead to a bulging 72-56 as the 6-foot-9, 260-pound Onauku converted consecutive follows and the 6-9 Jackson slammed home a feed from Andy Rautins.
If anybody didn't think it was Syracuse's night, they had to be convinced when Onuaku converted a bank shot off the glass after getting knocked to the floor and completed the three-point play for a 16-point lead with 8:54 left.
Kris Joseph and Scoop Jardine each scored 16 points off the bench for Syracuse, Wes Johnson had 14 and Andy Rautins finished with 12 points and eight assists.
Scottie Reynolds led Villanova with 16 points, Corey Fisher had 14, Antonio Pena 13 and freshman Mounttaaen
Yarou a season high 13.
T h e Wildcats had won six of the previous eight games against Syracuse, including 92-82 in March 2006.
Because Kansas and Kentucky both lost Saturday, the victory could move Syracuse to No.1 for the first time since 1989-90.
when the previous attendance record of 33,633 was set in the final home game of former star Gerry McNamara.
3, this one from the top of the key, and after Reynolds missed a wide-open 3 from the left corner; Onuaku converted two follows off missed 3s by Rautins to boost the lead to 65-52 with 12:03 left.
The Orange's big men then put the game away.
Rautins, who missed his first three 3-point attempts, opened the second half with a 3 from the wing and Johnson followed with another that countered a three-point play by Corey Fisher.
The Wildcats didn't seem fazed by the raucous crowd. Reynolds hit a pair of open 3s and a three-point-play by Fisher helped stake 'Nova to an early lead. A 3 from the top of the key by Corey Stokes gave Villanova a 23-14 edge mid-
Jackson hit a hook in the lane and converted a layup off the glass off a feed from Rautins to give Syracuse a 56-48 edge at 16:38.
Five straight points by Jardine and a pair of free throws by Johnson gave Syracuse a 46-36 halftime lead.
in a span of nearly 6 minutes.
But the Syracuse zone gradually became more aggressive and the openings disappeared. 'Nova missed six straight 3-pointers and scored only one basket'
in a span of nearly 6 minutes. Villanova entered the game averaging 25 points a game from its bench, but Syracuse reserves Scoop Jardine and Kris Joseph combined for 21 points and keyed the comeback.
way through the first half.
Villanova shot 31.4 percent in the opening half and 27.8 percent from beyond the arc.