University Daily Kansan / Thursday, February 28, 1991
Sports
13
Kansas regains confidence, routs Washburn
Team brings record to 3-3 with 16-4 victory
By Mark Spencer
Kansan sportswriter
The Kansas baseball team clubbed the Washburn Ichabods 16-4 yesterday at Hoglund-Maupin Stadium in front of 900 wind-blown fans.
With the victory, the Jayhawks evened their record to 3-3. More importantly, Kansas rebounded from a four-game losing series last weekend at Arkansas.
"In the Arkansas series, they really hurt us much more mortally than physically," Kansas coach Dave Bingham said. "It was really difficult for us to come out here today."
The Ichabbs roughed up Kansas left-hander Rory Ramsdell for two runs and three doubles in the first inning.
The Jayhawks, however, tied the game 2-2 in the second inning and took the lead in the third inning when Kansas catcher Mark Moore scored off second baseman Jeff Berblinger's ground-ball single to left field.
Baseball
Kansas pitchers Ramsdell, John Wuycheck, Joel Bacon and Jimmy Walker combined efforts to limit the ball movement and two runs after the first inning.
Meanwhile, the Jayhawk batters were running roughshod over the Icahn pitcher by amassing 11 in their final three innings at bats.
On the very next pitch, Kansas first baseman Mike Bard added another run to the Jayhawk rout with a bases-empty home run to left field.
Left fielder Jeff Niemeier began the scoring outburst with a three-run dinger over the left field fence.
Included in the late-game run barrage was a three-home run, eight-run seventh inning.
Singles by center fielder Darryl Monroe and shortstop David South and a walk by pinch hitter Jim Hanna for designated hitter Garry Schmidt.
Schmidt, who usually bats eight in the lineup, had been moved to the fifth position by Bingham. The move brought more confidence at the plate, he said.
"The first pitch was right down the tube and I heard Coach Yell to stop pitches," he said. "The next pitch was curve ball, and I was ready for it."
Schmidt's home run disappeared into the fir trees behind the outfield fence, giving Kansas a 15-4 lead and what Schmidt said was his first grand slam home run since high school.
Berblering was four for five at the plate and Ramsdell picked up his first pitching victory of the season with no losses.
An easy game could not have come at a better time, because the Jayhawks will hit the road for a tough win against Minnesota, Schmidt said.
"Hardin-Simmons gave us confidence and Arkansas took it away," he said. "We needed a game like this to get our confidence back."
Kansas infielder Mike Bard beats the pick-off throw to Washburn first baseman Brian McDanald.
J. Lies/KANSAN
Championship tournament will be at Robinson Center
By Rick C. Honish
Kansan sportswriter
The Women's Big Eight Swimming and Diving Championships will start today at 11 a.m. at Robinson Center.
Iowa State, Missouri, Nebraska and Kansas will be competing for the Big Eight Crown in events lasting through Saturday evening. Preliminaries will begin at 1 a.m. and finals are scheduled for 7 p.m. each day. Tickets are $2 for students and $4 for adults.
In the 15 years since Kansas coach Gary Kempf took over the women's team, it has won 11 conference titles, and it streaked a strike of nine that began in 1976.
The Jayhawks go into the meet riding the crest of this season's success as well as of tradition. The women finished the regular season with a 7-2 dual meet record, including wins against all Big Eight opponents. A final national coaches poll ranked Kansas 17th.
Kempi thinks he has a responsibility to the University to continue the winning tradition.
"The success of our program brings a lot of notoriety to Kansas
Swimming
students and alumni," he said. "I think our program exemplifies the role of the student athlete. These people train four hours a day, and have one of the top grade point indexes in the athletic department."
Kempi said he taught the athletes about reality. If they don't get an education, their accomplishments in swimming are meaningless, he said.
Work ethic and concentration are also a large part of the teams success. Kemnf said
"Attention to detail is the difference between success and failure," he said.
Each athlete has spent years practicing and understanding technique, he said.
Nebraska coach Ray Huppert said Kansas owed much of their success to strong senior leadership.
"You can't win a championship without good seniors, and Kansas has them," he said.
Huppert said that Kansas and Nebraska were the only teams vying for
Ray Huppert Nebraska swim coach
'The only way we are going to beat Kansas is if our team swims well from top to bottom. It will be very close.'
the title this year but that Missour
and Iowa State should not be overlooked.
"They are both a hell of a lot better this year," be said, "And in another two years they will be right there with us."
The Cornhuskers won last year's meet, but they were beaten by Kansas this year in an earlier dual meet.
Huppert the earlier meet had no effect on the Big Eight Champion-
"It is old news," he said. "We take everything one meet at a time, one session at a time."
"The only way we are going to beat Kansas is if our team swims well from top to bottom," he said. "It will be very close."
Big Eight Women's Swimming Championships
Year Champion Coach
1976 Kansas Gary Kempf
1977 Kansas Gary Kempf
1978 Kansas Gary Kempf
1979 Kansas Gary Kempf
1980 Kansas Gary Kempf
1981 Kansas Gary Kempf
1982 Kansas Gary Kempf
1983 Kansas Gary Kempf
1984 Kansas Gary Kempf
1985 Nebraska Ray Huppert
1986 Nebraska Ray Huppert
1987 Nebraska Ray Huppert
1988 Kansas Gary Kempf
1989 Kansas Gary Kempf
1990 Nebraska Ray Huppert
Since Gary Kempf began coaching the women's swim team in 1976, it has been a perennial force. In addition to conference titles, the Jayhawks have finished in the national top 20 six times, including a seventh place finish in 1983.
UNLV targeted by NCAA again
The Associated Press
LVAS VEGAS — Jerry Tarkanian
angrily confirmed that the NCAA
was looking at his UNLV basketball
program again.
The NCAA will decide this week whether four UNLV players violated regulations by not paying hotel telephone and room service charges during recruiting visits, notified by letter of inquiry or not notified by letter of inquiry the NCAA legal services committee was looking into the matter.
"This is one more form of harassment from the NCAA against our program," Tarkanian said. "These are nice kids. They don't deserve this. It's very unfortunate."
The investigation concerns $129 in hotel bills charged by several players, including two current starters, during a recruiting visit to UNLV. Four players were identified by KVB-CTV as All-American forward Larry Johnson,
George Ackles, Evric Gray and
Bobby Joyce Johnson and Ackles
are starters.
"The university has handled it and it's not a problem," said Tarkanian, whose program will be barred from appearing on television or playing in postseason tournaments next season after a 13-year legal battle with the NCAA. "The rule says you can't have excessive entertainment, but I don't think room service, a movie and calls home are excessive."
If found to be a violation, the eligibility committee will decide whether the players will sit out one or more games. Tarkanian's defending national champions are 26-0 and seeking to become the first undefeated NCAA titleholders since 1976. The Runnin' Rebels also are trying to be the first repeat champions since 1973.
Women's golf team will play in tournament
Kansan sportswriter
By Lana Smith
Kansas sportswriter
Kansas women's golf coach Sarah Johnson said the team was looking forward to playing in warm weather games.
The golf team will be competing in the Utah Dixie Classic sponsored by Brigham Young University.
"They're looking forward to getting out and getting into their first tournament," Johnson said. "We were outside on and off, and that gets a little bit frustrating for the girls."
Junior Shelley Triplets said that the weather was not only frustrating but that it would have an effect on how she felt.
"It is a great way to prepare for our next tournament," Triplet said, "But we're probably not as sharp as the southern teams because they have been playing in warm weather."
Triplett said that she expected the Jayhawks' play to be inconsistent but that she was looking forward to playing three rounds of competitive golf and one round of practice.
Junior team captain Laura Myers said the tournament would give Kansas an opportunity to see how well other Big Eight Conference competitors, Oklahoma and Missouri, are playing.
Myers said that Oklahoma did well in the fall but that did not necessarily mean they would do well in the spring.
"It changes week to week," Myers said. Oklahoma and Missouri tied for third in the confer-
Coach Johnson said. "Oklahoma is probably going to be our toughest school. They're pretty strong."
"I think we're young, but we're ready to compete," Myers said. "We lost two seniors who were consistent competitors. We still have a lot to learn."
Myers said the Jayhawks would have to adapt to recent changes in the team.
One major change was the hiring of Johnson as the new coach two weeks ago. Johnson came to Kansas after serving as the assistant professional at Brookridge Golf and Country Club in Kansas City. She replaced Brad Demo, who left the job after being hired as the new professional at the Alvamar Public Golf Course.
Myers said she did not know how well Kansas would do at the Utah tournament, which Brigham Young has won the last two years. She said it would be a good idea to send him another game, and he could improve and help the players could work together.
Johnson will take five team members to next week's tournament; Myers, Triplett, junior Laura Martin, freshman Anne Huizinga and freshman Holly Reynolds.
Josecobonko/KANSAN
Pam Wineinger practices at Alvamar.
Former KU assistant coach finds success leading Pacers
The Associated Press
His dismissal when New York's management replaced him with
INDIANAPOLIS For the second time in his career, former Kansas assistant basketball coach Bob Hill has taken over an NBA team after his
He's anticipating his stay will be
than when he was dumped after 66 games by the New York Knicks.
Rick Pitino was unpopular with his players, and he's gained the same loyalty from the Indiana Pacers after taking over for Dick Versace.
Bob Hill
More important, Indiana is winning and the players credit Hill.
"Bob treats us like men, and it's much easier to perform when you're not being hollered at," veteran Mike Sanders said. "Everyone was disgusted. The team was frustrated, and it felt like we were going nowhere."
Now the Pacers own a six-game winning streak and can match the franchise's marks for consecutive victories and consecutive road triumphs by defeating the New Jersey Nets tonight.
"We still get out of synch at times,
but Coach Hill is able to remind us what we should be doing and get us going," Sanders said. "We're really feeling good now, confident and believe we can improve our playoff situation before the season ends."
Hill served as an assistant coach for seven years to Ted Owens and for one year to Larry Brown during his time in Kansas, which ran from 1977 to 1985.
Hill is 16-12 since replacing Versace, and he has compiled his success without the housecleaning some necessary when he took over as coach.
Perhaps one of the biggest victories came when the Pacers fought back from a 17-point fourth-quarter deficit to win 159-109 on national television.
"A game like that carries over," Sanders said. "It gives your experience a boost. You don't like to get down, but it helps that you know you can rally back. In the past, that's what other clubs have done to us."
Sanders made only his second start of the season against Boston and scored 11 points. All five starters reached double figures.
"We don't have a true superstar, and Coach has convinced us that we can win with the players we have," said Sanders, who is averaging 5.8 points per game. "But things are going. I'm getting longer minutes. That was a problem before."
Hill insists the credit for the team's success belongs to the players.
There were a lot of us getting short
and playing to play your best
when that's happening.
"Everyone should have to coach in New York: the pressure from the fans, the media. It makes you thick-skinned," he said. "And one thing I learned there is how important the bench can be. That's carried over to what I'm trying to do here. I want everyone to feel they are a vital part of this team as long as they work hard."
Indiana was 9-16 when Hill took over Dec.20.
Hill has overcome having guard Vinn Fleming miss 12 games with a nerve injury in his arm and the loss of a thumb for five games with elbow surgery.
Michael Williams moved in to replace Fleming and former Kansas center Greg Dreiling has played the best basketball of his career since filling in for Smit. Dreiling played at the three seasons from 1984 to 1987. Hill's senior was assistant coach during Dreiling's first season at Kansas.
In 15 games with Dreiling start at center, the Pacers are 10-5. He has averaged 5.4 points and 6.1 rebounds in those contests.
A Kansan staff member contributed information to this story.
Sports briefs
Future Kansas players to play in all-star game
Two Kansas basketball signee have been selected to compete in this year's McDonald's All-American game April 14 in Springfield, Mass.
Ben Davis, a 6-foot-9 forward from Oak Hill Academy in Mouth of Wilson, Va., and Calvin Rayford, a 5-finger from Washington High School in Milwaukee. Wis., will be among the country's top 20 prep players in the McDonald's 14th annual talent showcase.
Kansas joins DePaul, Georgia Tech and Michigan with two signees involved with the game.
The game will be televised live on CBS from the Springfield Civic Airn at 1:30 p.m. April 6.
Davis, who will play on the East squad, led Oak HILL Academy to a 7-2 record this season. He a 7-1 formidable third in the nation by USA Today.
Rayford will play for the West team, and is considered to be one of the quickest prep players in the nation. He averaged 15 points and 10 assists for Washington High School last season.
Missouri beats K-State sends 'Cats to cellar
MANHATTAN — Doug *Smith* scored 16 points and became the third Big Eight player to earn 2,000 points and 1,000 rebounds in a career last season. He played play with 1:57 remaining to lift Missouri past Kansas State, 84-75.
Kansas State, 12-14 overall and 2-11 in the conference, lost for the sixth straight time.
From staff and wire reports
More Big Eight Page 14