University Daily Kansan / Tuesday, March 1, 1988
Sports
7
Injured athlete Martin focusing on the future
By Keith Stroker
Kansan sports writer
For three seasons, Jackie Martin's basketball skills have helped bring success to the Kansas women's team.
During most of this season, ever, Martin's injury problems have made her cheerleader on the bench.
On Jan. 20, Martin's playing career ended when she ruptured the Achilles' tendon in her right leg against the Colorado Buffaloes. She said that at first, she was frustrated but that she was trying to keep things in perspective.
"It was hard to believe my basketball career was over," Martin said. "Now, I do all that I can to help the team win. When I am screaming on the bench, it is coming straight from the heart. I wish I could be out there playing."
Martin, a 5-foot-11 senior from Dublin, Ga., said that the injury occurred when she caught a pass from Kansas guard Lisa Braddy and attempted to drive to the basket against Colorado. She took one step and fell to the floor in pain.
"I have been blessed with a high tolerance level for pain, but this injury hurt," Martin said. "It felt like someone had kicked me real hard in the back of the leg. The trainer took one look at it and said I was out for the season."
Jayhawks coach Marian Washington said Martin's injury hurt the team's morale.
"Jackie is an inspiration to this team, a player we really miss on the court," Washington said. "But it really helps to have her on the bench, shouting encouraging words to her teammates. She is a special person, one who is a good example for the rest of the team."
Martin came to KU in the fall of 1984, after being recruited by Kansas assistant coach Kevin Cook and former Jayhawk player Lynette Woodard. She was also recruited by Florida State, Auburn, Georgia, Virginia, and Arizona.
Martin visited Arizona first and said she almost went there.
"Some of my friends knew the Arizona coach and told me I should go there." Martin said. "I really liked it there, but I wanted to visit some of the other schools before I made a decision. After I came to Kansas, I knew it was the school for me."
Martin said another factor in her decision was that Lawrence was
much like Dublin, her hometown. Dublin is in southeast Georgia, not too far from Savanna.
Washington has been a big influence on Martin's life. Martin said Washington is both a friend and a teacher.
"I learned patience from Coach because she displayed it all the time in dealing with me." Martin said. "I really like to compete, and my attitude could get testy at times. She is a good friend and a winner."
Martin misses playing the most when Kansas wins, she said. She said it would be difficult to watch the team play in the Big Eight Conference tournament this weekend in Salina.
Last season, Martin was named second-team all-Big Eight during the regular season and was named to the conference all-tournament team in the post season tournament. In the Jayhawks 85-51 victory over Kansas State in the championship game, Martin scored 23 points. She made 8 of 10 field goal attempts and all seven of her free throws. She also led the team with 13 rebounds.
"There were a lot of fans at the game, and it made the game exciting." Martin said. "I think there were more K-State fans, but I used the energy the crowd noise produced to help me to get motivated to play."
Martin is majoring in crime and delinquency studies, and she plans on graduating with a BGS degree in May of 1989. She wants to work with juvenile delinquents someday.
"I want to work at a correction home and help teenagers that are less fortunate." Martin said. "I want to help give them a chance in life. I don't care what part of the country I work in. I'll just go where I'm needed the most."
Martin said decision-making was an important thing for her to learn before graduation.
"When I first came to KU, I had a hard time making decisions," she said. "I think being so far from home, I had to learn a lot on my own. I try to get the most out of everything I attempt. I have been surrounded by good people at Kansas, and the most important thing I have learned here is that there is more to life than basketball and books."
Martin said that next year she would continue to work with the women's basketball team as a manager.
Ianine Swiatkowski/KANSAN
'Cap Day' to open KU baseball season
Associate sports editor
Bv David Bovce
The first 200 people entering Hogland-Maupin Stadium for the Jayhawk baseball team's home-opener against the Washburn Ichabods will receive a free KU baseball cap.
This is the first ever Cap Day for Kansas baseball and is sponsored by the Kansas Union Bookstores.
the ranch. Coach Dave Bingham said he expected a large crowd at today's game, which starts at 2 p.m., partly because of the free caps and the warm weather.
Admission is free for KU students and $1 for all others.
Kansas is coming off a disappointing weekend, which produced three losses against the seventh-ranked Arkansas Razorbacks.
"We didn't pitch as well as we could." he said. "If you are going to be a quality team you need quality pitching."
Bingham said the games had showed that the team had some shortmings — primarily pitching.
pitching. The weekend games basically were used as a point of reference, Bingham said. Bingham took nine pitchers and used them all.
Jackie Martin
ers and used them. He said he used the games to look at what the pitchers could do so he could begin setting up a starting rotation and giving pitchers their roles.
He also said that he was embarrassed by the 19-4 score in the second game on Saturday.
secon gm, gave
One year Bingham wanted
this year was improved effort. He said he
saw a lot of effort from the offense
and defense but the pitching did not
perform as well as he would have liked.
"Washburn is probably one of the top two teams in their NAIA division," he said.
Bingham said he would start senior Mike McLead against the Ichabods.
Washburn's top hitters last year were junior J.P. Wright, who hit 26 home runs and drove in 83 runs, and senior Terry Middendorf, who had a 404 batting average.
"They are a good hitting club, but their pitching is a little suspect," Bingham said.
Raiders coach named
Last year, the Jayhawks won one of two games against the Ichabods and both games were decided by a run. The last game was a 13-12 victory by Kansas.
The Associated Press
LOS ANGELES — Mike Shanahan, the assistant coach credited with simplifying the Denver Broncos' offense in 1984 to fit the talents of John Elway, will now try his hand with the Los Angeles Raiders.
The Raiders scheduled a press conference yesterday, and the Associated Press learned Sunday that it was to introduce Shanahan as the club's new head coach.
club's new manager, Shanahan, a Broncos' assistant for four seasons, will succeed Tom Flores, who announced his retirement Jan. 20 after nine years as the Raiders' head coach.
Shanahan's hiring was confirmed by a high-ranking Raiders official who asked not to be identified.
who asked.
The news conference was set for the Forum Room of the Airport Hilton, said Irv Kaze, another top Raiders official. That's the same room where Flores announced his retirement following the Raiders' 5-10 season, their worst in 25 years.
Shanahan, who had been the Broncos' offensive coordinator and quarterback coach, is 35 and world
become the youngest head coach in the NFL. He is the youngest coach hired in the NFL since the Broncos hired Dan Reeves at 37 in 1981.
Reeves indicated to Denver reporters Sunday that Shanahan was Davis' pick.
"They're having a press conference tomorrow," Reeves said. "It would surprise me very much if they didn't name my coach. I talked to him this morning, and he's going out there tomorrow. That would make sense.
"I hate to lose him, but I'm happy for him." Reeves said. "It's not easy, but that's life. You always know when you hire good people there will be an opportunity for them to move on. We'll just go on from here."
It has been reported that Shanahan would recruit Denver offensive line coach Alex Gibbs to join him in Los Angeles.
Shanahau could not be reached for comment during the weekend.
he is credited with much of the success experienced by Denver's offense.
Big Eight teams looking to NCAA but not forgetting conference play
The Associated Press
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — With the Big Eight race in the final stretch, it's hard not to think of the NCAA Tournament looming a few weeks away.
"Hoppeley," Danny Manning said of Kansas' 82-74 victory over No. 15 Missouri, "it helps our chances out a lot."
Every win from here on is important," said Kansas State Coach Lon Kruger, whose Wildcats defeated Oklahoma State 59-58 Saturday in Manhattan.
Missouri Coach Oach Stewart, though, has other works on his mind.
"I don't think about the NCAA," Stewart said after the 15th-ranked Tigers' loss in Columbia. "I'm thinking about Oklahoma. If a team plays hard all year and does the best it can, it will be selected."
One Big Eight team that doesn't need to think about the NCAA tournament is Oklahoma, ranked fourth in the nation and fresh from a record-setting 134-84 rout of Colorado at Norman.
"If they don't have Final Four written all over them, then I don't
know who does," Colorado Coach Tom Miller said. "Oklahoma is the most explosive team I have ever seen."
seen.
And some say Kansas State, Kansas and Missouri are probables, with Iowa State a possible entry if it can keep up the steam that gave it an 85-4 victory over Nebraska at Lincoln.
But that's a couple of weeks away. Right now, the Big Eight is looking at its final games of regular-season action before heading into the conference tournament, which rewards the winner with an automatic berth.
Kansas star Danny Manning scored 37 points against Missouri, including nine in a 20-0 spurt in the first half that nearly buried the Tigers. Manning scored 23 points in the first half, hitting 9 of 11 field goals, as Kansas opened up a 38-28 halftime lead. The Jayhawks are 7-5 in the Big Eight and 18-10 overall.
Scott Wilke led Colorado, 3-9 and 7-18, with 23 points and set a school record with his 45th consecutive double-figure game.
Derrick Chievous led Missouri, 6-6 and 17-8, with 20 points. Gary Leonard, who paced a 15-5 Missouri surge that brought the Tigers within two points with 11:56 to go, had a career-high 17 points.
The Top Twenty
Bv the Associated Press
1. Temple 25-1
2. Purdue 24-2
3. Arizona 26-2
4. Oklahoma 26-2
5. Nev. - Las Vegas 25-3
6. North Carolina 21-4
7. Pittsburgh 20-4
8. Kentucky 20-5
9. Duke 20-5
10. Michigan 22-5
11. Iowa 20-7
12. Syracuse 21-7
13. Georgia Tech 21-6
14. Bradley 22-4
15. Brigham Young 23-3
16. N.C. State 20-6
17. Wyoming 22-5
18. Loyola, Calif. 24-3
19. Vanderbilt 18-7
20. Xavier, Ohio 22-3
Bo Jackson in training early wants fans to put past to rest
The Associated Press
HAINES CITY, Fla. — Boos no longer greet Bo Jackson when he heads onto the playing field, and he likes the silence.
"II'm trying to forget all about last year. It's over with. It's finished. All I'm concerned about is 1988," said Jackson, who was scorned by Kansas City fans on July 11 when he announced his intentions to play pro football. "I wish everyone else would do the same."
to the same Jackson even arrived in camp six days early, paying his own expenses to work out with the Royals.
to work but with the
"We all know he doesn't need this,
"outfielder Thad Bosley said. "With his talent and ability in football, he could say, 'See y'all later, I'm gone.' But he's here."
Jackson, entering the final year of his three-year, $1.066 million contract, doesn't need baseball for the money. He made a reported $1.684 million last season as a running back for the Los Angeles Raiders. If he fulfills his five-year football contract, he will get $7.4 million.
him this year," first baseman George Brett said, "because the Royals basically have come out and said, "you have to make our team this year". Last year, it was a total surprise.
There'll be a lot more pressure on
"but he knows what he has to do, and as good an athlete as he is, he's willing to accept the challenge. I know what Be can do, and I wouldn't bet against him."
Jackson has played in just 194 professional games and is battling Gary Thurman for the starting job in left field. Thurman, who has been with the Royals since 1983 and has 598 professional games behind him, is being touted as a rookie-of-the-year candidate.
candidate. The Royals insist that Jackson will get a fair chance. But his agent, Richard Woods, isn't so sure.
"I think the biggest issue is 'What will the coaching staff's and front office staff's attitude be toward Bo?' Woops said. "The comments in the off-season indicate there may be negative feelings toward Bo. When you have the front office, the owners, the manager making negative comments about Bo, it does not endure yourself to the organization"
Jackson's teammates seem ready to welcome him back to baseball.
"There was plenty said this winter about me," Jackson said, "so I'll just keep quiet and let those same people talk."
to welcome Centerfielder Willie Wilson, one of Jackson's harshest critics last season, said. "We pretty much have put it all behind us now. We're not going to dwell on it. Right now, he's a baseball player, and he's here to help us win baseball games.
us with bacon on the plate. "This is a new season, with a new attitude, and he has another chance."
charter.
Brett said: "What really hurt Bo more than anything was when he announced he was going to play football. The fans of Kansas City, for some ungody reason, turned on him. For what reason, I don't understand, and I'll never understand it until I die.
"I'm proud to be playing next to this guy. I'm proud to have Bo Jackson as a friend. I'm proud to be a Bo Jackson fan," Brett said.
Brewers mourn Kuenn, the head 'Wallbanger'
CHANDLER, Ariz. — Harvey Kuenn, the former batting champion who managed the 1982 Milwaukee Brewers to the club's only World Series appearance, is remembered as a man who played baseball hard and loved the game dearly.
The Associated Press
Kuenn, 57, the 1953 American League Rookie of the Year and AL batting champion in 1959, was found Sunday by his wife after collapsing in the shower at his home in Peoria, Ariz., police said. The cause of death was not immediately determined.
what they always remember Harvey with one foot up on that dugout step, with that chuck of tobacco, looking out over the field on the way to the World Series," said Larry Haney, a coach with the team since 1977. "Those are some great memories."
Jim Gantner, one of three players
He underwent open heart surgery in 1976. Then, in March 1980, he had his right leg amputated just below the knee after a blood clot cut circulation. He returned to coaching only six months after the surgery.
from 1982 still on the Brewer roster, said Kuenn set an example of courage while battling a series of major medical ailments since the mid-1970s.
"Everybody said he was out of baseball," Gantner said. "Harvey kept fighting and coming back. . . There was a lot of courage in this man."
Kuenn's Brewer team became known as "Harvey's Wallbangers" when it won the pennant in 1982. Replaced as manager a year later, Kuenn stayed with the organization as a scouting consultant, splitting time between his Arizona home and
his native Milwaukee area. He was born in the Milwaukee suburb of West Allis.
"Harvey was not only one of the most genuinely liked people I've ever known, but he also was a solid baseball man in any assignment you gave him, whether he was a player or a coach or a manager or a scout."
a Coach of M-Manager Brewers Manager Tom Trebelhorn called Kuenn's death a "tremendous loss" for the Brewers.
"I told the ballcub that the key way to remember Harvey Kuenn is to play the game the way Harvey played — and that's hard," Treebel-horn said at the Brewers' training camp. "Harvey played hard, he managed hard. He always had time for the ballclub and loved baseball dearly.
"There's not much you can say, except we've lost a very, very good friend and a very good baseball man." Brewers General Manager Harry Dalton said.
Sports Briefs
"I think if the ballelb could have a season the way Harvey was — that's with toughness, integrity and hard work — that's the best way to memorialize Harvey there is."
Kuenn was named the Associated Press AL Manager of the Year in 1982 and taking over when Buck Rodgers was fired and leading the team to the World Series. The team was 23-24 when he took over and finished with a 95-67 record and the Eastern Division crown.
The Brewers won the league pennant by rallying from a 2-0 deficit and beating the California Angels in the best-of-five AL championship series. They lost the World Series to the St. Louis Cardinals in seven games.
The Jayhawks lost all the doubles matches, and only sophomore Chris Walker and junior Jim Secrest won singles matches.
TENNIS TEAM FALTERS: The Kansas men's tennis team lost 7-2 to Wisconsin Sunday in Madison.
singles Coach Scott Perelman said that the Jayhawks were in a position to win all seven of the matches they lost but that they did not fare well in three set matches and in tie-breakers.
"It was one of the most disappointing losses since I've been here," Perelman said. "It's taken us six years to get into the top 25, and I don't know what it was this weekend."
The Jayhawks are 6-3 and are ranked 24th in the country.
YROUT CAMP SUCCESSFUL: For 17 University of Kansas men, the first step to becoming a Jayhawks football player is complete.
The 17 walk-on players were selected from 63 hopefuls who participated in an open football tryout Friday at Inzunach Sports Pavilion.
PRIory to Kansas offensive coordinator Pat Ruel said the men selected would begin an off-season workout program tomorrow from 4 to 7 p.m. at the pavilion.
pavilion.
"These men will go through a Monday, Wednesday and Friday program, which includes of running and agility drills." Ruel said. "The nature of the program is both physically and mentally demanding, so they won't lift weights. We want to ease them into our system, but not too much. We want to see how each individual develops, leading up to the spring practices."
Ruel said spring football practice would begin March 22. If the men can make it through the workout program, they will have a chance to make the squad.