WEDNESDAY, JUNE 14, 2006
SPORTS
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN 13
CAMPUS
KU All-Americans
After competing at the NCAA outdoor championships, the track team returned with 6 All-Americans
BY JACK WEINSTEIN
jweinstein@kansan.com
KANSAN STAFF WRITER
Six Kansas Track and Field athletes became All-Americans at last weekend's NCAA outdoor championships at Sacramento State University. To become an All-American, one must finish in the top eight or among the top eight American competitors in their respective events. Seniors Sheldon Battle, Charisse Bacchus, Cameron Schwehr and Denita Young and sophomores Egor Agafonov and Paul Hefferon did exactly that.
"Overall, we did very well," Bacchus said. "People did things they weren't expected to do. It shows that hard work pays off."
Battle became an All-American for the sixth time by qualifying in shot put, hammer throw and weight throw at different points through out his two-year career at KU. His throw of 64 feet 9 1/4 inches in the shot put placed him fifth in this year's outdoor championships. Battle became an All-American in both the shot put and the weight throw at last springs NCAA indoor championships in Fayetteville, Ark.
Bacchus became a twotime All-American last weekend when she finished
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seventh in the women's long jump finals with a jump of 20 feet 8 inches. Her preliminary jump of 21 feet 6 1/4 inches was a personal best.
"I felt that there were bigger things to come, but then I got injured," Bacchus said referring to an injury she suffered on her third jump in the finals. She could not complete her last three jumps.
Schwehr missed qualifying for the finals in the 1,500 meter run, but became an All-America by finishing among the top eight Americans. His time of 3:45.16 placed him in 13th place, .08 seconds from qualifying for the finals. He is an All-American for the first time.
Bacchus earned All-America status this past spring at the indoor championships.
honesty, it's not quite the thrill I thought it would be, maybe it hasn't sunk in yet," Hefferon said. "I hold myself to a really high standard, I thought of a million things I could have done better after the race."
Young concluded her career at KU as an All-American with a throw of 158 feet 7 inches in the javelin. This honor was the second for Young, her first coming at the 2001 outdoor championships as a member of the University of Tennessee Track and Field Team.
Agafonov became a two-time All-American in only his first season on the KU track team when he finished fifth in the hammer throw with a toss of 219 feet 3 inches. Agafonov earned All-America honors after finishing second in the weight throw at the indoor championships this past spring.
Hefferon became an All-American for the fist time. He placed 14th in the finals of the 5,000 meter with a time of 14:28.37. Hefferon qualified as one of the top eight Americans in that field.
The KU men's team finished tied for 30th place while the women's team finished in a tie for 64th. Florida State captured the men's team title while Auburn finished first for the women's team title.
"It's an honor, but in all
Juniors Josh Kirk, Abby Emsick and Cody Roberts and Freshman Zlata Tarasova competed at the outdoor championships, but did not qualify for All-America status. Kirk was forced to pull out of the men's decathlon after reaggravating a foot injury. Emsick and Roberts both finished out of contention in the discus. Tarasova did not qualify for the finals in the women's hammer throw.
- Edited by Janiece Gatson
Kansan file photo
Sheldon Battle, Jamestown, N.Y., senior, throws the hammer during practice on March 29 in the field by Memorial Stadium. Battle, along with five other teammates, was named an All-American during last weekend's NCAA Track and Field championships in Sacramento, Calif.
Fun with field crumpets
John Hunenezuk, Overland Park graduate, at left, smacks the ball during a game of field crumpats Monday evening in the field east of Robinson Gymnasium. The game, created by Rob Overton, Leawood graduate, has been a KU Club sport for three years
Joshua Bickel/KANSAN
CAMPUS
HOME, SWEET HOME
After taking a respite from Kansas City, Mo., the Big 12 Conference basketball tournaments will return in 2008.
BY JACK WEINSTEIN
jweinstein@kansan.com
KANSAN STAFF WRITER
The Big 12 Conference basketball tournaments will return to Kansas City, Mo., in 2008 after a two-year layoff. Last year's tournament was in Dallas and this season's tournament will be in Oklahoma City.
Kansas City was the permanent home for the Big 8 Conference tournaments before it expanded to the Big 12 after the 1996 season. It was the host for the six Big 12 tournaments.
Many in Kansas City and Lawrence are pleased to see the tournament return to the area. Kansas City Mayor Kay Barnes is among the supporters.
"I'm very excited about the Big 12 tournament returning to Kansas City in 2008." Barnes said by phone from her office in Kansas City. "It's going to be great to have the women and men playing at wonderful arenas within easy walking distance from one another with a great entertainment district in between. It's going to be a terrific Big 12 festival."
Jim Marchiony, Kansas associate athletics director, said the athletics department is delighted the tournaments are returning to Kansas City. He also said the department thought that Kansas City should be the permanent home for the conference tournament.
"I think if you polled the coaches in the league, they would tell you the same," Marchiony said. "Kansas City is a terrific site for the Big 12. The fan support is great, the city really gets behind the tournament. Dallas was a good host city, but there wasn't as much fan support."
Bob Burda, associate Big 12 conference commissioner, echoed similar sentiments to Marchiony's.
It's going to be great to have the women and men playing at wonderful arenas within easy walking distance from one another with a great entertainment district in between. It's going to be a terrific Big 12 festival.
KAY BARNES Kansas City Mayor
"Dallas is a pro-sports market," Burda said. "There's no rich history of hosting collegiate athletic events. Kansas City has a rich tradition of hosting big time college events."
Burda said making Kansas City the permanent home for the Big 12 tournament was a possibility. The conference will take a wait-and-see attitude until after the tournament to gauge how the new Sprint Center holds the event. Conference athletics directors and university presidents would then vote on whether to make Kansas City the permanent location.
The tournament can economically benefit the city in which it's held, because of revenue produced in hotels and restaurants by people from areas outside of Kansas City. A spokesperson from the mayor's office said he thought that the tournament made a $15 million impact on the local economy.
The men's tournament will be held at the Spir Center, scheduled to open in October 2007. The women will play at Municipal Auditorium.
— Edited by Adrienne Bommarito