THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN SPORTS
Team goes 1-2 over the weekend in Nashville
Although the Jayhawks beat Memphis 17-7 in the first game, inadequate practice left them unable to beat Vanderbilt or Clemson later in the tournament. The team next travels to Iowa City to take on division rival Iowa Feb.25.
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2011
WWW.KANSAN.COM
PAGE 8A
Turning over a new turf
Added players bring hope for 2011 season
BY MIKE VERNON
mvernon@kansan.edu
The snow has been cleared, revealing the new plush $1.2 million turf. The weather starts to heat back up and the frequent pop of a baseball meeting a bat can be heard now at Hoglund Ballpark. This can only mean one thing: It's baseball season at Kansas.
Coach Ritch Price, now in his ninth season at Kansas, leads the Jayhawk squad, whose roster is full of question marks.
"I think to lose three first-team all-conference players in one season is pretty unique." Price said.
Last season, the Jayhawks came into the year with high expectations and were picked by the league's coaches to finish second in the Big 12. The Jayhawks' season ended up being anything but successful, as the team finished 7th in the conference.
But what the Jayhawks lost in star power, they might gain in talent from top to bottom. First basemen Zac Elgie, right fielder Casey Lytle, and shortstop Brandon Macias could all prove to be big bats for Kansas this year.
runs.
"It's going to be a lot different for me not hitting behind Heere, Robby and Tony," Waters said. "We have to have guys step up and fill those shoes. I think they're very capable of it, and I'm looking forward to seeing how it goes."
New to the lineup this year will be freshman Kaiana Eldredge. Eldredge will open the year starting at second base. The young man from Honolulu has made quite an impression on his team-
It's going to be tough for Kansas to replace their three top hitters: Brian Heere, Robby Price and Tony Thompson. Leading the Jayhawk lineup this year is senior limmy Waters, the top returning hitter from last year's squad, who batted .309 while belting nine home runs and driving in 63 runs.
SEE BASEBALL ON
PAGE 6A
"I don't think we are capable individually of replacing those three guys in our lineup; what I'm hopeful for is that we will be more solid No. 1-9 in the batting order," coach Price said.
Coming off an injury last season, the Poway, Calif., product provides the Jayhawks with range in centerfield. Although he only played in 23 games in 2010, Brunatsky posted a .466 OBP. He batted .280 in his freshman season and provided flashty moments with his glove. Freshman lefty Jordan Brown may platoon with Brunatsky depending on the pitching matchup, according to coach Rich Price.
RIGHT FIELD - Casey Lytle
Lytle, a senior from Phoenix, Ariz., provided gratty play last season and hopes to improve in his third year as a starter. Winner of the 2010 Mike Hill
JohnZecy
mmer 2010
Greece
This past summer of 2010, I studied abroad in Paros, Greece for two months at an institution called Dikemes University. I knew that I wanted to study abroad in Greece ever since I first went in high school in 2006. My family is Greek-American and I've always wanted to improve my Greek in the classroom, but KU doesn't offer any Modern Greek curriculum, only Ancient. Studying abroad turned out to be a great alternative to taking a class that KU doesn't offer. One of the greatest appeals of this study abroad experience for me was that I would go in not knowing anyone. I have amazing friends, but I like stepping out of my comfort zone and meeting new people. Flying 6000 miles by myself definitely took a toll mentally and physically, but it was entirely worth it.
Greece was an incredible experience in that while I was able to relate to some of its customs, I was able to enjoy those that we don't experience in the United States. Life on Paros and many of the islands is much more relaxed than the busy lives that most of us lead. My classmate said it best when she said that in the US, we live to work whereas in Paros, they work to live.
I stayed along the coast for the entirety of my trip, so I ate fresh fish everyday. Needless to say, I now can't look at shrimp and calamari in Kansas the same way. Staying in Greece is like literally living in a postcard. I tried to take pictures of all the views and scenery, but I still never felt like I could capture what I was feeling. I just had to be calm (which is no easy task for me) and enjoy it. I did some island hopping to other islands like los and Santorini, while also staying with a friend in Athens. I did everything I wanted to do from cliff jumping to snorkeling. I'm Greek Orthodox, so one of the things that meant a lot to me was being able to go to services at a church on the island that was first built by St. Constantine over 1600 years ago.
I developed long-lasting friendships with both my classmates and the natives of Paros. Once I got a little more confident with my Greek, I had numerous conversations with many of the natives. The friendliness and welcoming of everyone on the island made me feel at home. If you are able to, I would whole-heartedly recommend studying abroad. It has proved to be a valuable part of my education that I wouldn't trade for anything.
GOLF
Women's golf places second in tournament
BY LAUREN DRUMMOND
ldrummond@kansan.com
The Jayhawk women's golf team placed second in the Claude Jacobs Intercollegiate in Victoria, Texas this past weekend. With a total team round score of 920 for the weekend, they only trailed Texas State for first place by eight strokes. The Jayhawks entered the final round in fourth place and moved
overall.
Hegna Bal,
a senior from
New Delhi,
India, tied for
third place
overall in the
tournament.
up two spots in the final round to take second overall.
Bal
Her final stroke count of 227 for the entire tournament was the second best score of her career. Five other jayhawks placed in the top sixty this weekend. Meghan Potee, a freshman from Noblesville, Ind.,
SEE GOLF ON PAGE 6A
Jayhawks not lost, but a long way from title contention
Twins and others showed weaknesses that could cost victory
A few weeks ago — I don't remember the exact date, but it was while Kansas State was bearing straight for the NIT — freshman guard Will Spradling offered up his thoughts on why the Wildcats were struggling so much. There is a leadership void, he said, with senior point guard Jacob Pullen sitting next to him. No one on the team was stepping up to right the ship.
"I'm leaving out of here not really recognizing the team that played tonight," coach Bill Self said. "We've got to get some things straight."
Monday night, that problem wasn't the Wildcats' It was the Jayhawks'.
in actually support Markieff Morris are both brilliant talents. No one will argue that. Marcus could be an All-American, Markieff has a shot at league. But both have critical mental lapses that wind up in technicals (Marcus against Texas, for example) or inten-
Starting with figuring out who, among the trio of juniors that the team calls its leaders, will actually step up and lead.
BY TIM DWYER
tdwyer@kansan.com
tionals (Markieff against Kansas State). Now they have a reputation, fair or not, for being dirty players.
being dirty players,
no coincidence that in
both of Kansas' losses, the
twins have been off their game,
whether because of foul trouble
or suffocate defense. As the
twigs go, so goes Kansas.
twins go, so goes Tyshawn Taylor has been off in both losses as well, particularly on the defensive side of the ball. Texas backup point J'Covan Brown scored 23 and Jacob Pullen put up a careerhigh 38. Taylor spent time on both of them.
both of them.
Monday night was filled with mental errors for Taylor as well. He let one turnover snowball into six and let his frustration snow on the court.
He's kept his cool off the court
Here's the good news: It's a fool who counts Kansas out of the national title race this early on. The Jayhawks have arguably the best offense in the country and, statistically, they have the defense to match. The talent is there to win a national championship, and four of Kansas' title-winning teams have lost to Kansas State.
this year, which is a big step in the right direction, but he still lets the outcome of the play before dictate what happens next when he's out there. Point guards, like pitchers and quarterbacks, need short memories. Taylor needed to forget that he turned the ball over and stopped Jacob Pullen. He didn't do that.
It cost Kansas Monday, and it could continue to do so down the road.
But it's a greater fool who doesn't acknowledge the fact that Kansas, especially the team that played Monday night, has a long road to walk before that discussion becomes reality.
Edited by Caroline Bledowski
TWEETING WITH THE KANSAN
"How will the Jayhawks fare in the NCAA Tournament this year?"
"At least Sweet Sixteen. Anything after is up in the air. Depends on T-Rob's health and if our defense can step up."
@UDKbasketball
KyleScottRoss
"The team will at least make the Final Four. When we won in '08 we had a close group but no standout leader. This team is like that."
@MelanieRR
"I like to think that they'll pull together and do well, but I could also see it being a Bradley or Bucknell year."
@Jays_Fan2
"if healthy, I don't see why they can't make a strong push for a National Championship"
@tomfehr
*@tomorrow*
*Can't tell yet, if I had to bet? Elite Eight. But I can easily see a second round flop or a title run (if Selby and Tyshawn play well).*
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O