10A
What was the Pittsburgh baseball team called before it was the Pirates?
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The University Daily Kansan
Sports
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Inside: Kansas baseball coach Bobby Randall announced the signing of five recruits.
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Inside: Grambling coach Doug Williams and New Orleans Saints coach Jim Haslett were inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.
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THURSDAY, APRIL 26, 2001 For comments, contact Shawn Hutchinson or Shawn Linenberger at 864-4858 or sports@kansan.com KANSAN.COM/SPORTS
Former'Hawks will struggle for NFL spots
Ah, the beauty of springtime in Lawrence. The sun is shining, flowers are in full bloom and graduates-to-be are running around trying to find jobs. It's a burden that can make this oh-so-gorgeous time of year dreadful.
But for some students, the job search may be finished.
Four of your fellow seniors recently landed jobs, but there's little time to celebrate. All four are now in a business with little job security. They have every reason to be excited about finding work, but could easily be out on the curb if they don't impress their new bosses right away.
The latest Jayhawks to enter the real world are four former football stars who are now NFL rookies: Moran Norris, Carl Nesmith, Chaz Murphy and Marc Owen.
The NFL Draft took place last weekend in New York, providing 246 former college players with possible jobs in professional football. On day two of the draft, with the 115th pick overall, the New Orleans Saints selected Norris, a 6-foot2 fullback. He was the only Jayhawk picked in the draft.
On Sunday afternoon, several 'Hawks were still waiting anxiously to find their fate. The phones finally rang for Nesmith, Murphy and Owen, who signed free-agent contracts with Buffalo, Washington and Arizona.
All four rookies face uphill battles. Norris has more job security in New Orleans because the Saints spent a draft pick on him, but it's common to see middle-round picks get the ax.
Mini-camps start this weekend for most teams, providing the first chance for the former Jayhawks to attract some attention from their new coaches. They will need to stick out in a major way if they want to avoid being cut.
Norris will join an already crowded backfield in New Orleans, where he'll be blocking for Saints running backs Ricky Williams and Deuce McAllister. New Orleans had six fullbacks on the depth chart before the draft, so there will be plenty of competition. If Norris wants to make an impact, he will have to return to his 1999 form when he averaged more than five yards a carry and rushed for eight touchdowns.
Scouts and coaches already have a bad impression of Nesmith after a horrific performance at the NFL combine. Nesmith was timed as the slowest defensive back and one of the weakest in the draft. His 4.65-second 40-yard dash time dropped the former preseason All-American out of the draft. Now his back is against the wall if he hopes to play in the NFL.
Don't look for Nesmith to play at safety with the Bills — AFC Eight receivers like Indianapolis' Marvin Harrison or New England's Terry Glenn would burn him like a piece of toast. Instead, "The Butcher" could still chop stuff up on special teams if his work ethic and strength improve.
Murphy was one of 27 undrafted free agents signed by the Redskins, seven of whom were linebackers. If Murphy wants to do more than just carry around Lavar Arrington's luggage, he's going to have to improve dramatically. Right now, Murphy's best hope is landing one of five spots on Washington's practice squad.
Finally, Owen should also set his sights on a practice squad spot. He's got a lot of heart and works hard, but is limited athletics to the team. Some coaches think he
on a practice squad spot. He got a lot of heart and works hard, but is limited athletically at guard. Some scouts think he might have a future as a deep snapper, but with Arizona drafting Texas offensive lineman Leonard Davis with the second overall pick and signing former Seattle lineman Pete Kendall to a huge deal, there looks to be little room on the line for Owen.
Hamal is a Topper a junior in Broadcast News.
All four former Kansas players have a shot at making it with their new teams, but just like all you seniors about to walk down the hill, their first jobs will not be easy. If these four pour everything they have into their new gigs, they may last for a while.
If they don't, they may be out job searching with the rest of you.
Softball ends 10-game win streak
By Brent Briggeman
sports@kansan.com
Kansan sportswriter
For the third time in three road doubleheaders against Missouri Valley Conference foes, the Kansas softball team traveled back to Lawrence with a split.
The Jayhawks beat Creighton 5-1 in the opener last night, but couldn't overcome an early four-run deficit in the nightcap and lost to the Bluejays 7-4.
Earlier in the season, the Jayhawks split doubleheaders with Southwest Missouri State and Wichita State.
"I think we tend to get more focused for Big 12 teams and not really everybody else," junior second baseman Amy Hulse said. "It's something we definitely need to change."
Fortunately for the Jayhawks (30-21, 9-4 Big 12 Conference), their five remaining games are against Big 12 opponents.
The victory in the first game was the Jayhawks' 10th in a row, equaling the longest such stretch in Kansas coach Tracy Bunge's five seasons with the
The 'Hawks used a familiar formula in earning the victory — they followed the arm of Kara Pierce and the bat of Leah Tabb.
team.
Pierce, a freshman from Mesa, Ariz. extended her personal winning streak to 12 games. She threw a complete-game three-hitter against the Bluejays (23-25, 11-10 MVC), improving her record to 20-7 this season.
Tabb, a junior, continued her assault on the record book, launching two solo home runs in the first game. She is now in second place on the Kansas career home-run list with 17, trailing only former Jayhawk Shannon Stanwix's 23.
"I don't think Kara was as effective as she's been lately," Bunge said. "But she had her ball moving up and down, side-to-side and all around. She was good enough."
Tabb is already the single-season record holder with 12.
"I pian on hitting a few more," said Tabb, whose home runs yesterday were identical shots that barely lofted above the center-field wall. "I guess I'm just in the zone."
Tabb finished the doubleheader with three hits, two walks and three runs scored.
Senior outfielder Erin Garvey also had a big first game, collecting three hits and driving in one run. She raised her team-leading batting average to .337.
"I thought we continued to swing the bats aggressively tonight," Bunge said. "The offense isn't a concern right now."
Aside from Pierce, pitching is a concern for the 'Hawks.
Sophomore Kirsten Milhoan pitched the second game for Kansas. Milhoan has been used only in spot starts because lately, Pierce has handled the majority of the pitching duties.
The Bluejays hit Milhoan hard early, scoring four runs on four hits in the first inning.
Milhan threw three innings, allowing five earned runs on five hits and two walks.
Junior Kelly Campbell relieved Milhoan in the fourth inning, surrendering two runs on four hits in the final three innings.
"We're asking a lot of Kirsten and Kelly to come in and perform without a
LINESCORES
Game One
Kansas 121 010 0 — 5 6 2
Creighton 000 100 0 — 1 3 2
WP. Pierce, K. (20-7). LP. Melton (6-4)
2B-Urquht, M. (9). HR-Tabb, L. 2(12),
Herbster, S. (10).
Game Two
Game Two
Kansas 030 000 1 — 4 6 0
Creighton 401 011 x — 7 9 3
WP. Mellegaard, S. (10-8). LP. Milhao,
K. (8-11).
RB.Quhrant, M. (10), Tabb, L. (13),
Gieron, M. (6), Kaster, D. 2(8). B3-Kaster
D. (1). HR. Gieron, M. (4).
lot of work," Bunge said. "But we need to get them into a groove because we'll need them down the stretch and in the Big 12 Tournament."
The 'Hawks return to action this weekend as No. 6 Oklahoma travels to Lawrence for a two-game weekend series. The first game begins 1 p.m. Saturday at Jayhawk Field.
- Edited by Jason McKee
Kansas senior pitcher Eric Thompson braces himself as a line drive bullets toward him during last night's game against Newman. The Jayhawks won 8-5. Photo by Laurie Sisk/KANSAN.
Sixth-inning rally seals Kansas win
By Ryan Malashock sports@kansan.com
Kansan writer/scriwriter
Newman University traveled to Lawrence last night hoping to catch Kansas looking ahead toward its Big 12 Conference series with Texas Tech this weekend.
The Jets grabbed a 4-3 lead in the fifth inning, but a rare relief appearance by junior Justin Wilcher sparked a Jayhawk comeback, resulting in Kansas' 8-5 victory last night at Hoglund Ballpark.
After the Jets (31-15) scored four fifth-inning runs off senior Eric Thompson, Wilcher relieved Thompson and allowed just one run on two hits in 3 2/3 innings. Wilcher improved to 2-8 on the season, earning his first victory since his first appearance of the season against Southwest Texas State on Feb. 10.
"Justin really got them off-balance,' Kansas coach Bobby Randall said after his team improved to 19-26. "He was exactly what we needed at that moment. They had a lot of momentum going, and he was able to shut the door."
Wilcher said he was relieved to finally get a victory, even though it came in an unconventional way.
"I felt good coming out of the bullpen, and I felt like I got back into a groove," Wilcher said.
After Newman stole the lead with its four-run fifth, the Jayhawks tied the game in the bottom half on freshman Matt Tribble's RBI single.
Kansas' offense stormed out to a 2-0 lead in the first on RBI doubles by junior Ryan Klocksien and sophomore Kevin Wheeler. Kansas extended the lead to 3-0 on Wheeler's solo home run in the fourth, his first of the season.
Kansas exploded for four more runs in the bottom of the sixth, grabbing an 8-4 advantage. Junior Kevin Farmer
hit his second RBI triple in as many days.
Wheeler ended the game 2-for-3 with a double, home run and two RBI. Going into Tuesday's game against Nebraska-Omaha, Wheeler had recorded just seven RBI the entire season.
Wheeler has driven in five runs in the last two games and said he enjoyed hitting with runners in scoring position the past two games.
"At the beginning of the year, I was only getting a few opportunities a week to drive guys in, and I wasn't taking advantage of them," he said. "Now it seems like I'm getting more opportunities, and I actually like hitting with guys on base."
Sophomore Jason Appuhn and seniors John Nelson and Brent Del Chiaro did not play in last night's game. Randall said resting some of his starters and winning the game in the process had been the main goal.
"We won the game, and we rested the guys who needed rest," Randall said. "Resting those guys will pay off this weekend."
weekend.
Junior Jeff Davis retired all three batters he faced in the ninth and earned his first save of the season. Trible, Klocksien, Farmer and sophomore Casey Spanish all joined Wheeler with two hits apiece last night.
Kansas travels to Lubbock, Texas, for a three-game series this weekend with the Texas Tech Red Raiders, beginning with a 7 p.m. game tomorrow.
— Edited by Jacob Roddy
LINESCORE
Newman 000 040 010 — 5 10 0
Kansas 200 114 00x — 8 11 1
WP-Wilcher, J. 2-8. L-P. Woydziak, F. 2-3. S-Buws
J. (1), B2-KU: Tribble,
M. (9), Klocksian, R. (13), Wheeler, K. (6); NU
Gerstein, R. 3R-KU; Farmer, K.
(2) : NU: Carnal, M; HR-KU: Wheeler, K. (1).
Women's golf places last in Big 12 tourney
The final round of the women's Big 12 Conference golf championship produced many of the same results as the first two rounds for Kansas
Yesterday, the Jayhawks left the Harvester Golf Course in Rhodes, Iowa, unable to climb out of the 12th place spot.
Kansas finished in last place for the second-straight year, shooting a 143-over-par 1007 through the tournament's three rounds.
rounds for Kansas.
Seniors Ashely Bishop and Sarah Mahoney both wrapped up their careers at Kansas. Bishop finished 41st with a 33-over 249, and Mahoney put together a 37-over 253, which placed her in a tie for
45th.
Sophomore Heather Rose fell from 18th-place to a tie for 29th with a three round score of 28-over 244. The sophomore was the highest finisher for the Jayhawks.
Also competing for the Jayhawks were freshman Jennifer Bawanan, who finished in a tie for 55th with a 45-over 261, and sophomore Tiffany Krugel, who placed 59th with a 59-over 275.
Despite the effort of Missouri in the tournament's first two rounds, Oklahoma State was crowned Big 12 champions. The Cowgirls finished the championship with a combined 61-over 925.
Oklahoma State's performance was good enough to hold off second-place Texas by six strokes. The Longhorns fired a 67-over 931 during the tournament's three rounds.
Defending Big 12 champion Oklahoma struggled to a disappointing seventh-place finish with a 101-over 965.
Oklahoma State was bolstered by first-place finisher Maria Boden, who shot an 11-over 27 and won the tournament after defeating Missouri's Amelia Moses and Oklahoma's Lisa Meldrum in a playoff.
The Kansas men's team finished its season by taking seventh place in the Big 12
The Jayhawks began the season with a fourth-place finish at the Islander Invitational in Corpus Christi, Texas, in February. Kansas finished in 10th-place at the Verizon "Mo"moral Invitational, in 10th-place at the Indiana Invitational and in ninth-place at the Hawkeye Invitational.
The Big 12 Championship was the final tournament of the year for the Kansas women's team.
Championship at Prarie Dunes Country Club in Hutchinson on Monday.
— John Donovan
BIG 12 CHAMPIONSHIP
Team Tournament 1. Oklahoma State 325-305-295-925; 2. Texas A&M 325-305-296-947; 3. Baylor 325-305-296-947; 4. Oklahoma State 319-309-291-949; 5. Nebraska 341-306-918; 6. Iowa State 346-310-906-964; 7. Oklahoma State 351-307-307-965; 8. Texas Tech 344-312-916; 9. Kansas State 349-308-918; 10. Iowa State 351-308-317-976; 11. Colorado 346-312-330-984; 12. Kansas State 368-324-350-1007.
ement results
Individual Results: 1. Maria Boden Oklahoma State 77-78-22/27; 2. Amelia Moses Missouri 79-73-52/27; 3. Liza Meldrum Oklahoma 86-79-61/27; 4. Sarah Meldrum Oklahoma 80-75-72/28; 5. Kurt Delfin Kansas 80-75-72/28
Kanese Resume: T28. Heather Rose 82-79-83-244; 14. Ashley Habby 90-79-89-249; 74. Mars Mahoney 90-82-81-253; 75. Jennifer Bawaran 96-84-81-261; 59. Tiffany Kruglik 89-84-90-275.
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