THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
FRIDAY, MARCH 16, 2007
SPORTS
3B
TENNIS (CONTINUED FROM 1B)
"She's the type the of person who wants perfection," Hall Holt said. "She's got a tremendous GPA. The same thing with tennis. She is out here working on individual workouts."
Smith's 2007 season has been marked by injuries and illness. She impressed last fall with a 9-2 singles, but an ankle injury kept her out of the first six dual matches of the spring season. Smith struggled to regain her fall form after her return, suffering two straight losses. She has since rebounded to win three out her last five to bring her record to
3-4 on the season.
Approach shot
"I think they [other players] understand how neat it is to play for KU," Smith said, "but I do feel like I have more of a sense of pride for playing here because I've always grown up admiring KU athletes."
Three hours before Smith climbed the victory for Kansas with her singles win against Utah, a young girl walked into the First Serve Tennis Center with her father. The girl was no older than 10 years old.
"Go talk to her," the father said.
So, with pigtails in her hair and a media guide in her hand, the young girl approached Stephanie Smith.
"Can I have your autograph?" the young girl asked.
"I got it," she said.
Kansan sportswriter Rustin Dodd can be contacted at rddd@kansan.com.
After Smith signed her media guide, the girl ran back to her to her father with a toothy grin.
Edited by Ashley Thompson
BASEBALL (CONTINUED FROM 1B)
in a Big 12 Championship and ended in the NCAA tournament.
Several of the key factors that brought on the Aggie sweep have graduated or signed professionally, but not all of them.
Junior outfielder John Allman has remained the man of consistency in the Kansas lineup. His .408 average leads the team, as well as his .517 on-base percentage. Morrison provides power as he leads the Jayhawks in doubles (8) and RBI (23). While hitting a solid .329, his four home runs tie junior second baseman Ryne Price for the most on the team.
Regardless of who does the scoring, Kansas just wants to be sure it
does. The 18-5 victory over Penn State on Tuesday night was refreshing, but the 18-3 defeat to Wichita State was unsettling. Either way, the Jayhawks have shifted mentality.
"That happens," Morrison said. "We've blown a couple teams out here in the past couple weeks. It's going to happen. You've got to go out there and play every play like youre up by one. You don't stop diving for balls, you don't stop running hard, just because you're losing doesn't mean you give up. You keep playing."
Kansan senior sportswriter Alissa Bauer can be contacted at abauer@kansan.com.
series pitchers
GAME 1
KU: Nick Czvz (2-2, 2.60)
A&M: David Newmann -
Junior - LUP (3-0, 2.01)
GAME 2
KU: Zach Ashwood, (2-2, 5.47)
A&M: Kyle Thebeau
Sophomore - RHPH (2-0, 4.30)
GAME 3
KU: Andy Marks, (3-2, 4.68)
A&M: TBD
Edited by Kelly Lanigan
>> VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH 79, DUKE 77
Duke loses in first round of tourney
BY JOHN WAROW ASSOCIATED PRESS
BUFFALO, N.Y. — Duke's done.
Eric Maynor hit a 15-foot jumper with 1.8 seconds left to give Virginia Commonwealth a 79-77 upset victory over the Blue Devils in the first round of the NCAA tournament Thursday night. Maynor finished with 22 points, six in the final 1:24.
Duke lost a first-round game for the first time since 1996. The loss also ended the sixth-seeded Blue
Devils' string of Sweet 16 appearances at nine. It was the longest active streak and second-longest behind North Carolina's 13-year run.
Fittingly, it was VCU (28-6) that knocked off George Mason — the tournament's surprise team last year — in the Colonial Athletic Association championship game. Maynor sealed that 65-59 win by scoring nine of his 20 points in the final 2 minutes.
Jesse Pellot-Rosas 16-foot jumper gave VCU a 72-71 lead with 2-03 remaining. The Blue Devils (22-11)
tied it three times, the last time at 77 when DeMarcus Nelson went coast-to-coast to hit a layup with 10.3 seconds left.
Maynor took the ensuing inbound pass and carried the ball across center. Driving to the paint, he pulled up and hit a perfect jumper from just above the foul line and over Duke's Jon Scheyer.
The Blue Devils' chance to pull off a last-second victory failed when Greg Paulus' wild attempt from mid-court hit wide of the basket and off the backboard.
Regardless of whether or not the casual fan notices the new formations and routes, Kansas hopes the changes pay dividends in the win column come Fall 2007.
simplification could lead to fewer turnovers and mental mistakes.
The rushing offense. Kansas' strongest suit last season, will not see much of a makeover.
"There are some things we liked that we are going to stay with," Mangino said. "But we've also added some wrinkles that we're excited about."
KANSAN FILE PHOTO
Kansas kicked off a month of spring practices Wednesday. The practice this afternoon is one of two open to fans and media. The second is slated for April 3. The spring game is 3:30 p.m. April 15 at Memorial Stadium.
FOOTBALL (CONTINUED FROM 1B)
happening in the playbook and the huddle.
The coaching staff authored and implemented a numerical play calling system to replace the standard system during the winter. The switch was made so that players could focus more on execution and less on play memorization.
COME FOR THE BRUNCH -
STAY FOR CELEBRATION
IRISH BUFFET for
lunch and Irish food
specials for dinner
St. Patty's Day IN STYLE
Kansan sportswriter Asher Fusco can be contacted at afusco@kansan.com.
One such wrinkle could be the emergence of senior fullback Brandon McAnderson as a threat out of the backfield. McAnderson rushed only 31 times last season but could receive some of the carries made available by the departure of Jon Cornish.
"We think it helps us in terms of learning," Mangino said. "The kids are able to grasp the concepts."
Mangino said the redesigned playbook took some pressure off of the quarterback because it simplified the reads at the line of scrimmage. On a team short on experienced quarterbacks, some
Edited by Trevan McGee
Attended to today's first open practice should expect a few surprises from the Jayhawk offense. Coach Mark Mangino and spent the winter tailoring the offense to focus on execution and simplification.
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