friday, april 16, 2004
the university daily kansan 3B
sports
Kansan File Photo
Junior pitcher Steve Zagurski pitched during a game earlier this season. The Jayhawks are gearing up to play Oklahoma State in Stillwater this weekend.
'Hawks begin slew of away games tonight
By Ryan Colaiani
rcolaiani@kansan.com
Kansan sportswriter
The Kansas baseball team will play its next seven games away from the friendly confines of Hoglund Ballpark beginning with a three-game set with the Oklahoma State Cowboys in Stillwater, Okla., tonight at 7.
The Hawks are coming offa 1-2 showing against #15 Texas A&M and are 2-7 in Big 12 play and 24-16-1.
If the 'Hawks are going to be successful this weekend they
Knippschild
will need strong pitching from their starters.
starters. "We need quality efforts from our starting pitchers to get them into the sixth and seventh innings where we have an opportunity to stay in the game," coach Ritch Price said.
Senior Ryan Knippschild will likely get the nod in tonight's series opener. Knippschild is 0-3 in conference play so far with an ERA of 5.68.
The 'Hawks have been at home since spring break and Price wants this road trip to help the team focus
"I believe it's going to be good for us, we'll get a chance to get away from school and get away from the distractions from playing at home," Price said.
The Cowboys come in 21-13 and 4-4 in conference play. Last weekend they split a two-game set with Baylor. The Cowboys' top starting pitcher is Spencer Grogan who is 8-1 with an ERA of 3.04.
The Cowboys are led by catcher Jason Jaramillo who is batting. 366 with four homers and 30 RBIs.
The 'Hawks' blistering offense should be successful this weekend as the Cowboys have the highest ERA in the conference at 4.84. Kansas leads the conference with a .328 batting average.
Kansas will need continued success from senior first baseman Ryan Baty as he is hitting a team-leading .377 in conference play. Junior third baseman Travis Metcalf is also leading the conference in home runs with 13.
Baseball Notebook
The 'Hawks rank 11th in the nation in fielding percentage at .975 up from a school record. .970 set a year ago. The team's batting average of .328 ranks 13th. With the team averaging 8.3 runs per game, they are ranked 23rd in scoring
— Edited by Louise Stauffer
By Michael Phillips
mphillips@kansan.com
Kansas sportswriter
History of Relays tied to Olympics
There was Jim Ryun's pre-Olympic run back in 1972.
Or maybe it was 1945, when Wes Santee ran the second-fastest mile time in American history.
Of course, there was 1983, when a Soviet team came amid Cold War hostilities. The big question at this weekend's Kansas Relays is, "What's your favorite memory?"
The event is rich in history, especially in Olympic years like this one, when the world's best come to test themselves before the Games.
That first happened in 1924, when pole vaulter Tom Poor won at the second annual Relays, then took fourth at the Paris Olympics.
In 2001 it was Kansas City native Maurice Greene taking gold in the 100-meter dash here and then in Sydney. This year, the tournament will have the man who has the fastest 200 in the world. Not only
This man is Leo Bookman, who has also won the last three NCAA Championships (two indoor. one outdoor).
He redshirted this spring to prepare for the Olympic qualifying tournament, which is in July.
that, he's a Kansas Jayhawk.
Keep in mind that while six of the top ten sprinters in the world are American, there will only be room for three on the team.
Fans will not get to see Bookman run his signature event at the Relays, but rather in the 100 and the 400.
Coach Stanley Redwine explains that by running the longer race, Bookman will build stamina and strength for when he runs the 200 in the qualifying tournament. From there he hopes to add his name to the other Relays alumni who have placed at the Olympics.
The inaugural Kansas Relays Hall of Fame will also add history to the event when it introduces its first class on Saturday. The inductees are Santee, Ryan, Glenn Curning-
All seven inductees have connections to the Olympics; five competed and two coached Olympians.
ham, Al Oerter, Billy Mills, Bob Timmons and Bill Easton.
Santee was one of the runners who attempted to break the four minute mile barrier. He ran in the 1952 Olympics.
Ryun became the first high schooler to run the mile in less than four minutes. He competed in three Olympics and broke three world records. He was voted Best Performer at the Relays four times, a record. His performance in 1972 drew more than 35,000 people to Memorial Stadium.
Cunningham is the third miler going into the Hall. This Kansan competed in the 1932 and 1936 Olympics and is considered to be the Relays' first true star.
Oerter won four straight gold medals in discuss between 1956 and 1968, becoming the first athlete to win four consecutive
meduats. He won three consecutive triple crown titles as a Jayhawk, and the Relays' Mens' Discuss Throw is named after him.
Mills began his career at the Haskell Institute, came to Kansas and continued on to win the Olympic gold medal in the 10.000.
Easton coached eight Olympians and was the Jayhawks' coach from 1947 to 1965. The University won three NCAA titles under his leadership. The Men's Four Mile Relay is named after him.
Timmons, Relays Meet Director from 1965 to 1988, oversaw the two most attended Relays, 1972 and 1983, and helped orchestrate a visit from a Russian team during the cold war.
torn a string. The favorite Relays moment for Timmons was Ryun's run in 1972, but he can battle off more, too.
"I've got way too many favorites," he said.
Kansas Relays to kick off this morning
Edited by Michelle Rodick
By Michael Phillips mphillips@kansan.com Kansan sportswriter
When it's all added up, there will be more than 15 hours of track and field today at the Kansas Relays. Even people who don't follow the sport will be able to find something they like at Memorial Stadium.
they like a Memphis. The action starts at 8 a.m. with the boy's javelin. Other field action includes the men's shot put at 3 p.m., when Kansas freshman Gavin Ball will look to continue his remarkable first season. His strongest competition will come from Canadian Brad Johnson, whose best throw is a full half-meter farther than Ball's.
The men's javelin will start at 5:30 p.m. Two throwers have Olympic dreams. Scott Russell, a Kansas graduate, will go up against Wichita State coach John Hetzendorf, who was a two-time All-American.
On the track, the distance medleys will start at 2 p.m. The event consists of four teammates running 1,200 meters, 400, 800 and 1,600 meters. The Jayhawks will have the favored team in both the men's and women's medles. The women's team includes runner Kim Clark, a junior who has had success the last two years. The high schoolers take over at 6 p.m. for the 800-meter run.
On the girl's side, Trisa Nickoley of Shawnee Heights is the Kansas state champion and finished second at the 2003 junior nationals.
An atlas to follow the action on the women's side. The top
The boy's race should be close, with two runners from Nebraska entering as the favorites. Jack Lemke is a two-time state champion. Close behind him is senior Greg Peterson.
Greg Fosterton
The evening's last event, the four-mile relays, start at 8:30 p.m. Each team will have four runners run a mile before passing the baton.
schools are from LaCrosse, Wisc., Cedar Rapids, Iowa and Charleston, Ill. The winning time will likely be less than 20 minutes.
Saturday begins early with the 5.000-meterracewalk at 7:15 a.m.
The runners will take center stage late in the day. The invitational events will showcase Olympic hopefuls. First is the invitational 200-meter dash at 2:05 p.m. Five of the top seven athletes are from the small island nations of St. Kitts and Nevis. The tourists islands are located in the Caribbean.
Caribbean.
The men's 100-meter dash is at 2:55 p.m. Rae Edwards will run with the Nike team. The 20-year-old has been in high demand this season after posting a time of 10.10 seconds in the event.
He may be challenged by Leo Bookman, if the Kansas senior decides to enter. As of yesterday an official decision had not been made on his participation. Bookman
might decide to concentrate on the 400-meter invitation, which will start at 5 p.m. The race will feature accomplished runners.
Colorado graduate James Davis is looking for a big showing. He won the 2000 and 2001 indoor championships, but suffered a hamstring injury soon after. He is healthy, and finished fourth at last year's indoor championships. Leonard Byrd was a three-time All-American in college. He is training with the Nike team. His best time is a 45.08.
team. His best time is the high school action will heat up at 5:25 p.m. with the boys 1,600-meter run. Nebraska star Colby Wissel will go up against Colm Cornell of Missouri. Wissel qualified with a time four seconds faster than the rest of the pack.
The final event of the Relays will be at 6:30 p.m. with the men's invitational relay.
Edited by Danielle Hilli