SPORTS
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
THURSDAY, APRIL 20, 1995
Wildcats declaw 'Hawks 16-11
Despite high hopes Kansas baseball loses the K-State series 3-2
By Tom Erickson
Kansan sportswriter
Kansas State stole the label of "come back team" from Kansas
Kansas state stole the back team" from Kansas last night, with a 16-11 victory at Frank Myers Field in Manhattan.
The Jayhawks led 8-0 in the second inning and built their lead to 9-4 before K-State scored six in the sixth inning to make the score 10-9.
Kansas scored twice in the seventh inning to take the lead 11-10. Sophomore
first baseman Justin Headley doubled with one out in the seventh to score junior left fielder Brian Turney, who had singled for the tying run. Then with two outs, sophomore stoptop Joe DeMarco singled to drive in Headley and make the score 11-10.
The Wildcats tied the game again in the bottom of the seventh inning with one run, then put the game away with five runs in the eighth.
K-State improved its record to 22-17 overall, and 9-11 in the Big Eight conference. Kansas dropped to 15-28 overall and 6-14 in the Big Eight.
Kansas coach Dave Bingham said he was
very upset following the game.
"It been the same song for 43 days, " Bingham said. "We walked 12 guys."
Kansas senior pitcher Dan Rude lasted five innings, walking eight and striking out only two.
Rude said that last night's game did not go as well as his last start, a 4-2 victory over the Wildcats on Friday.
"I ran out of gas early," he said. "I threw a lot of pitches in this game. If I had had better control I could have gone more innings."
With the victory, K-State won the season series between the two teams 3-2. Kansas won Tuesday night in Lawrence, 6-5.
Bingham was not pleased with the pitching staff.
"Rude was at 135 pitches when I took him out of the game," he said.
Rude was replaced in the sixth inning by freshman Ryan Van Gilder. Van Gilder surrendered six runs in one inning. In that inning, he walked three
Wildcat batters and allowed one hit.
Bingham then went to freshman pitcher Linus Williams (0-1) in the seventh inning. Williams permitted only one run in the seventh, striking out two K-State hitters.
But he ran into trouble in the eighth inning, giving up four more runs on three hits.
Kansas went with sophomore pitcher Tim Lyons with one out in the eighth inning. Lyons finished the game for the Jayhawks, giving up two runs on only one hit, while striking out two.
Rude said losing to the cross-state rival wasn't a big deal.
"It doesn't matter who we play," he said. "When we have the lead and lose it, that hurts a lot."
The Jayhawks will open a three-game series against Missouri at 7 p.m. tomorrow in Columbia, Mo.
Kanane State, 18
Kanane, 11
KANSAS (18-28)
| | ab | r | h | rbl |
| :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- |
| 2b Kilner | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| cf Byrd | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| 1b Headley | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| c Meadows | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| rf Igou | 5 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| lf Turney | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 3b Wilhelm | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| dh English | 5 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| ss DeMarco | 5 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| **40** | **11** | **13** | **10** |
KANSAS STATE (22-17)
| | ab | r | h | rbl |
| :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- |
| 2b Poepard | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| cf Decker | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 1b Harker | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| c Bouchard | 5 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| rf Hess | 5 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| if Green | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| 3b Fereday | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| dh Hendrix | 3 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| ss Schesser | 5 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| Kansas | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO |
| :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- |
| Rude | 5.0 | 5 | 7 | 4 | 8 | 4 |
| Van Gilder | 1.0 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| Kansas State | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO |
| Novak | 1.2 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Lowey | 5.1 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 7 |
Softball loses one to SMSU
Jayhawks win first game, drop second to the Bears
By Jenni Carlson Kansan sportswriter
Six times this season the Kansas softball team has won the opening game of a doubleheader, only to drop the second game.
Yesterday afternoon was one of those instances. Kansas defeated Southwest Missouri State 4-1 in the first game of a doubleheader. Then the Jayhawks turned around and lost 5-1 to the Bears.
The games in Springfield, Mo., move the Jayhawks to 17-17 overall. The Bear's record is 14-17.
Kansas was off to a quick start in the first game, though. With one out in the first inning, Kansas freshman catcher Sara Holland tripled and scored on a ground out from junior left fielder Katie Morgan.
The Jayhawks extended their lead in the fourth inning to 2-0. They struck again in the fifth. Holland hit a two-RBI double that scored freshman right fielder Rebecca Fitzmorris and sophomore third baseman Tiffany Blood.
Those four runs were all that Kansas junior pitcher Beth Robinson needed. She allowed only one run and five hits in pitching a complete game. Robinson's record moved to 10-6 as she continues to increase her career-high win mark.
Kansas looked ready to break out of its doubleheader doldrums in the second game. The Jayhawks and Blood, who moved from third base to the pitcher's mound, held Southwest Missouri State scoreless for five innings while scoring one run for Kansas in the fourth inning.
The lone Kansas run came from the bat of freshman shortstop Michelle Hubler. Hubler homered to lead off the fourth inning, her fourth home run of the season.
But the Jayhawks' doubleheader jinx struck hard in the sixth inning. With one out and runners on first and second, the Bears got back-to-back RBI singles and led 2-1. Robinson replaced Blood, but the damage was done. The Bears scored three more runs and won the game 5-1.
Blood's record fell to 6-9 after
rending four runs and nine hits.
Michelle Uher, captain of the Kansas women's golf team, practices lining up her putting shot. She practiced at Alvamar Country Club.
Kathleen Driscoll / KANSAN
HARD WORK pays off
By Jenni Carlson Kansan sportswriter
Michelle Uher seems at home sitting at Alvamar Country Club's snack bar.
Through the glass windows, she can see clearly the challenges of the 18th hole and the difficulty hiding among the pond's gentle ripples. Sand traps lurk, ready to devour any stray shots.
But despite the course's dangers, this is home. On a golf course is where the senior golfer has spent much of her life. She grew up next to one in Omaha, Neb.
and then committed the last 13 years of her life to competing on them.
"In a matter of a week, it's going to be over," Uher said. "Now, I just have to push golf aside for the first time in my entire life, 13 years or however long. It's a really weird feeling because I have been playing for so long."
Uher picked up her first club when she was 8 years old, and by the time she was 14, she played in her first national tournament.
When the Kansas women's golf team participates next week in the Big Eight Conference Championship in Stillwater, Okla., all that will change.
produce "Truman," an HBO movie, which stars Jennifer Jason Leigh and Harry Belafonte. Uher said that the job fell into her lap but that she could not depend on that luck forever.
What she is looking for is a career in the film industry. This summer Uher will work as an intern with a Kansas City production company. The company will
Hard work shouldn't be new for Uher. Kansas women's golf coach Jerry Waugh said Uher worked on her game throughout the summer months. That is the time when major changes and improvements must be made, she said.
"I was an NCAA athlete. That's an accomplishment in itself."
"I'm going to have to work extremely, extremely hard because it's who you know in that business," she said.
"The lifestyle is not what I'm looking for — not at all." she said.
After some consideration, Uher saw that the pressure and travel was not for her.
Catching flights across the country, staying in hotels and competing against the best young golfers in the nation occupied the young Uher's summers for several years after. That included the summer before her senior year in high school when she was home for only three weeks.
She played in a Professional-Amatee event with LPGA golfer Betsy King the summer before her senior year at Millard South High School. While King struggled a bit, Uber played a solid round, and the urge to play professionally crept into her mind.
Soccer, swimming and dance also competed for Uher's attention. Despite her involvement in those other activities, there was a time Uher thought about devoting her life to golf and playing professionally.
"That basically consisted of my summers," she said. "But I don't think I missed out as a child on anything. There were other things besides golf."
Michelle Uher Kansas golfer
"You can't do the things necessary to make the changes during the school year," Waugh said. "They don't have time. Michelle has used her summer for self-improvement as well as anyone we've had."
Nonetheless, Waugh and Uher agreed that she had experienced an up-and-down season. She has managed to record Kansas' lowest tournament round average, 80.87. But Uher's scores have run the gamut from a 90 at the Marilyn Smith/Sunflower Invitational in mid-October to a 75 at the Susie Maxwell Berning Classic last week.
That latest tournament performance has boosted Uher's confidence as she prepares for what is likely her final collegiate tournament.
"The emotional stability comes with maturity and the years you're around," Waugh said. "I see a stronger focus in the last several weeks by Michelle."
That kind of focus escaped Uher during the 1993 spring semester. It is mandatory for student athletes to take 12 credit hours each semester, and Uher took only 11. She attempted to gain the last credit by taking a summer school class but did not do well enough for the class to be counted toward the mandatory minimum.
"It was kind of an embarrassing situation," Uher admitted. "It was just a semester that got away from me. It was a lesson, but I learned it the hard way."
Now Uher is on track to earn her communications degree in December. Waugh said.
Even before that time comes around, Uher will leave the women's golf team and a game that has been home to her. But she will not leave Kansas without the memory of her greatest achievement.
"I don't think it's one's round, and I don't think it's one shot or one putt," Uher said. "I was an NCAA athlete. That's an accomplishment in itself."
Health conglomerate becomes sponsor for Kansas Relays
By Robert Moczydlowsky Kansan sportswriter
Kansan sportswrite
Kansas Director of Athletics Bob Frederick and Kansas track coach Gary Schwartz held a press conference yesterday to announce the signing of a new recruit.
This new player doesn't jump high or run fast, nor will it help the team win a Big Eight Conference championship.
Columbia/HCA, the largest health care corporation in the United States, has signed a contract which will make them the official banner sponsor of next year's Relays. The Columbia/HCA sponsorship will provide a widely-expanded Relays budget, which will allow Schwartz to recruit world-class athletes
What this new player will do is sell out next year's Kansas Relays.
"The involvement of Columbia/HCA is a meaningful step in helping ensure a bright and stable future for the Kansas Relays," Frederick said.
for the annual meet's open and invitational events.
unged on the level of special guest athletes invited to compete in exhibition events. Until now, the Relays have not been able to compete with other high-budget, corporate sponsored meets.
In recent years, attendance at track meets has become
Consequently, the attendance at the 70-year old event has declined steadily. But that will change next year, said Kevin Gross, Columbia/HCA Missouri Division President.
siasm surrounding track and field will be at a very high level," he said. "Next year will be a great time for us to begin bringing world-class
"With 1996 being an Olympic year, the enthu-
athletes to the Columbia/HCA Relays annually."
The deep pockets of the Relays new sponsor appeared to be a load off Schwartz' mind. In recent interviews he
itited budget that controlled his meet. At yesterday's press conference, he praised the medical conglomerate's contribution.
"Getting Columbia/HCA on board is a very positive step," he said. "We're really pleased and appreciative of Columbia/HCA's interest and willingness to support the Relays. I feel that it's the one key element that can help us take the Relays to the next level."
That next level means competition with two meets that were on the Jayhawks' spring schedule.
The Texas and the Drake Relays have become the two biggest meets in collegiate track, and the Relays will go head to head with them in the battle for Olympic and world-class competition.
The 70th Annual Kansas Relays started yesterday with the opening events in the heptathlon and the decathlon. Both events will conclude today.
"We'll have some very good races and relays on both the collegiate and the high school level," Schwartz said. "We have some fifth year seniors who really want to do well in front of the home crowd."
The RELays will run through Sunday at Memorial Stadium.
KANSAS
RELAYS
The Relays will continue today in Memorial Stadium. Both the heptathlon and the dacathlon events will conclude today. The Kansas Relays will run through Sunday.
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