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/ SPORTS / WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 13, 2010 / THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN / KANSAN.COM
SOCCER
Better offense expected on Friday
BY JACKSON DELAY jdelay@kansan.com
This weekend, the soccer team hopes to put their disappointment from last weekend's losses behind. The team will to Lubbock, Texas on Friday to take on Texas Tech (9-5-1 overall, 2-3-1 conference) and come back home to challenge the Baylor Bears (9-5-1, 2-4) on Sunday.
Kansas is currently sitting at the bottom of the Big 12 conference with a 1-5 record. Coach Mark Francis knows that his team hasn't made things easy with their poor start.
"I told the players today, we have four games left. We can still win all four games and still be in good shape," he said.
This weekend offers an opportunity for the team to get a few wins against teams in the middle of the pack in the Big 12 standings. So far the Jayhaws have been up against some of the best in the Big 12. Out of the six conference games Kansas has played, four have been against teams in the top five of the standings.
Francis said that Friday's game will be an important sign as to how the team finishes out the season.
"We have to go into Friday's game knowing that right now our season is hinging on us getting the result," he said.
Senior forward Kaitlyn Cunningham also said a win on Friday is important in getting the team back on the same page.
"Right now we aren't necessarily
down, just a little out of it having two losses this past weekend," she said. "We need to get back in the swing of things."
Cunningham, a team captain, said that she has responsibility to lead the underclassmen and keep them positive.
Francis said the main factor in whether or not Kansas would have a successful weekend would be scoring when given the opportunity.
"We have got to do a better job with the chances that we create and putting them away" he said.
On Tuesday, the team practiced on a shorter field, with an emphasis on scoring goals and working on finishing around the goal. Cunningham notices the team's need to get better in this facet of the game.
"Ultimately we need to score goals. That has kind of been our plague right now," she said.
Granted, without a good defensive game it won't matter how many goals they score, but Francis feels the defense has been solid overall.
"Defensively we have done a pretty good job for the most part," he said. "When we have made mistakes we have gotten punished for it, and in the Big 12 that's what happens against good teams."
On Sunday the Jayhawks will return to the Jayhawk Soccer Complex to take on Baylor at 1 p.m. This will be the last conference home game of the season.
Mike Gunnoe/KANSAN
Edited by Kelsey Nill
Senior forward Kaitlyn Cuningham dribbles the ball at the Jayhawk Soccer Complex Sunday in a game against Oklahoma.The Jayhawks lost to the Sooners 3-1.
BIG 12 FOOTBALL
ASSOCIATED PRESS
It didn't take long for the Huskers to quiet the crowd and turn the 95th and potentially final meeting between the longtime rivals last week into a rout.
Colorado? The Big 12's other lame duck program is on the verge of going out on a much more silent note.
DES MOINES, Iowa — No. 5 Nebraska got a raucous welcome at Kansas State as they faced the Wildcats for the last time as a Big 12 opponent.
Nebraska is off to a fantastic start in its final Big 12 tour before joining the Big Ten next year. The Huskers (5-0, 1-0 Big 12) blew out Kansas State 48-13 and have things clicking on both sides of the ball heading into a huge date with Texas this weekend.
All the noise in the world didn't bother Nebraska, which easily survived its first of two road games against Big 12 North opponents. The Huskers also visit Iowa State in early November.
"I wear headsets and don't hear the noise, but I'm sure it was — at least, until we finished laying eggs — I think it was probably quite vocal," Kansas State coach Bill Snver said.
The Buffalofoes' final conference trip to Missouri was a dud.
The 21st-ranked Tigers (5-0, 1-0) shut out Colorado 26-0, capping their rivalry with the Buffs with five straight wins by a combined score of 203-40.
Colorado had bounced back from a 52-7 loss at future Pac-12 rival California with wins over Hawaii and Georgia. But the Bucks lost their 13th straight road game against the Tigers on the 20th anniversary of the infamous "fifth down" game at Faurot Field.
Colorado coach Dan Hawkins said he didn't think the atmosphere in Columbia was any crazier than usual. The bigger issue for the Buffers (3-2, 0-1) is Missouri's defense, which handed Colorado just its second shutout in 262 games.
"We're playing good team defense," Missouri coach Gary Pinkel said. "We're getting better each week, and with a lot of the little things, attention to detail things that we needed to do."
Nebraska handled its final Big 12 road opener in impressive fashion, rolling over the Wildcats behind another brilliant performance from freshman quarterback Taylor Martinez.
Martinez, who was named the Big 12' 12' offensive player of the week, ran for 241 yards and threw for 128 more, leading the Huskers on four scoring drives that took five plays or less.
"He's more than just a young guy that can run fast," Snyder said. "We created some opportunities for him to showcase his speed and he took full advantage of it each and every time. I think he's a very talented player."
Next, the Huskers host Texas (3-2, 1-1) in a rematch of last year's memorable league title game.
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