University Daily Kansan / Friday, April 13, 1990
Sports
11
Big man alleviates Kansas recruiting anxiety
By Molly Reid
Kansan sportswriter
The Kansas basketball program ended some of its recruiting worry yesterday by signing a big man.
David Johanning, a 6-foot-10 center from Hutchinson Community College, officially signed a letter of
Recruiting
intent to attend Kansas yesterday, the second day of the spring signing period. The commitment leaves Kansas with two more available scholarships.
"We are extremely happy about David's decision to attend the University of Kansas," said Kansas basketball coach Roy Williams. "He fills a need for us because of our lack of size."
Wichita Heights basketball coach Charles Doughty also announced that 7 small forward Cortex Barnes and 3 forward David Rios from Kansas at 3 p.m. today in Wichita.
However, according to televised news reports last night, Cortez has canceled his scheduled press conference, leaving his intentions unknown.
Doughty said yesterday that Barnes also had been recruited heavily by Kansas State and Oklahoma. He averaged 19 points and 10 rebounds a game last seagon, hitting 58 percent of his shots from beyond the three-point line. Barnes' only drawback is that he has not passed the 18-point required composite score on the ACT exam, but is waiting for his latest scores.
Kansas has been seeking a player to fill the center position that was
vacated when 6-10 center Pekka Markkanen decided to return to Finland.
Johanning, who attended Clemson as a freshman but was redshirted because of an injury, played two years at Hutchinson. Γ-ring his sophomore season, John Ainger averaged 10 points and a tez A-high eight rebounds a game.
The Hutchinson Blue Dragons, coached by David Farrar, finished this season with a record of 29-5 and finished second in Region IV. J. Johanning was selected as a member of the All-Jayhawk Community College Conference team.
After deliberating with his family and coaches about his choices of Kansas, K-State and Wichita State, Johanning decided on the Jayhawks.
"Coach Williams is a great coach, and I'm really comfortable around the players, the coaches and at the school," Johanning said.
Of the Kansas program, he said,
"It's similar to what Coach Ferrar does, and I've had some pretty good success here."
"David is a very bright, articulate player who has gone through recruiting many times," he said. "It was clear to him what he wanted.
Hutchinson basketball coach David Farrar said the Kansas basketball program had what Johanning was looking for -- basketball and a graphic design school.
"The important criteria included the opportunity to play at the highest level, to work with coaches he can adapt to, and the single most important one, to choose a school where the academics were good. And Kansas has all of that."
Farrar said Williams' interest in Johanning stemmed from one of the player's greatest attributes — the ability to make the people around him perform better.
"It is not common in basketball to have a true, good team player that makes people around him play better," Farrar said. "He understands the other players need to do, and he helps them be more being offensive. He is also individually a better athlete than most kids his size."
Johanning was ranked as one of the preseason top 30 junior college sophomores by the Basketball Times.
The rest of the recruiting tornado is
still a blur for the Jayhawks
Butler County Community College basketball coach Randy Smithson said top-recruit Herbert Jones planned to sign with the University of Kentucky, but he was not recruited. He was recruited by Kansas. Alabaster Georgia, Seton Hall and Cincinnati.
Smithson said Val Barnes, a 6-2 guard from Butler, was interested in Kansas. He is being recruited by Kansas, K-State, Oklahoma, Iowa and Minnesota, and will visit K-State, Iowa and Oklahoma in the next two weeks.
Smithson said he expected Val Barnes to make a decision after his campus visit April 28.
"I believe he had a tremendous visit at KU," Smithson said. "I think he was very impressed."
RECRUITING
By Paul Augeri
Kansen sportswriter
The Kansas men's tennis team landed the top-ranked player in the Missouri Valley region yesterday.
Rhain Buth, the top singles player at Wichita Southeast High School, signed with the Jaywhaws
Kansas tennis
because he said he was impressed with Kansas coach Scott Perelman.
"I felt that I had the most opportunities to improve myself academically and athletically at KU." But said.
Perilem said last night that he was pleased Buth signed with the Jayhawks. The Jayhawks are in Stillwater, Okla., for a 10 a.m. match today against Oklahoma State.
"I think he is the best player to come out of Kansas since Mike Wolf," Perelman said. "Mike was the winning player to come out of Kansas. Rhain was the focus of our recruiting efforts this year."
career at Wichita Southeast. He said he won all of his dual and doubles matches this season, including a tournament victory.
The 5-foot-8, 155-pound Buth chose Kansas instead of Northwestern, San Diego, Minnesota and Oklahoma. It Southeast to three straight City League tennis titles and a Class 6A state championship in 1988.
On the women's side, Kansas coach Michael Center signed Cherry Creek (Engelwood, Colo.) for senior Chris Bowers on Wednesday
Buth, a Wichita native, has not lost a singles match in his tennis
Bowers, the 65th-ranked women's high school singles player in the nation, also plays on the ranked doubles team in the nation.
She could not be reached for comment last night.
"Chris will be a big addition as far as national experience and the national rankings go." Center officials say that the top recruits ever to sign here."
All six Jayhawk starters on the women's tennis squad this year are on scholarship. Center said one scholarship remains available to recruits.
Kansas signs four recruits in freestyle, breaststroke
Kansan sportswriter
By Paul AugerI
Kansan sportswriter
Kansas swimming
Kansas swim coach Gary Kempf yesterday announced the signings of four high school recruits.
"The four we got are obviously pure blue-chippers," Kempf said. These are impact athletes, with tremendous amounts of ability and versatility.
The four swimmers that signed national letters of intent to attend Kansas had their best times in freestyle or breaststroke events.
Krista Cordsen, who swims with the Leather Stocking team from Rome, N.Y., has a personal best time of 23.8 seconds in the 50-yard freestyle and $3.2 seconds in the 100-yard freestyle. Cordsen is a senior national high school qualifier.
Marsha Trachi, another senior national high school qualifier, swims at the Tusatlan Hills Swim Club in Lake Oswego, Ore. Trachi has a personal best time of 1 minute, 4.6 seconds in the 100-yard
breaststroke and a 2:20 in the 200- yard breaststroke.
Michele Riffel, from Valparaiso, Ind., has a personal best time of 23.9 seconds in the 50-yard free-style and 51.9 in the 100-yard free-style at the national high school qualifier, swims at the Valpo Swim Club.
Curtis Taylor, a junior national high school qualifier from Ashland, Ore., is a two-time Oregon high school champion at Ashland High School. Taylor has a personal best time of 21.1 in the 50-yard freeway and 46.5 in the 100-yard freeway.
The Jayhawk coach said that the freestyle and breaststroke events were areas he wanted to fortify during a period, which began Wednesday.
"This is a great day for Kansas swimming." Kempf said.
"On the women's side, we should have some of the best sprint relays," he said. "And I also would have men in the next couple of weeks."
"But I'm really pleased with the team. We have been working real hard."
Team gets two No.1 golfers
The second day of the signing period yielded prosperous results yesterday for the Kansas women's golf team.
By Brent Maycock
Kansan sportswriter
Women's golf
The Jayhawks received a letter of intent from Anne Huizinga of Lakes High School in Tacoma, Wash., and an oral commitment from Reynolds of People's Academy High School in Morrisville, Vt.
ern Women's Championship, Huizinga was named to the Sigma-Corona All-American Junior Girls team. She is ranked as one of the top 50 players in the country by the American Junior Girls Association.
Huizinga also was the captain and No.1 player on the Washington junior Girla America's Cup team.
Huizinga was the captain and the No.1 player of the Lakes High School men's team. The school doesn't have a women's team.
A semi-finalist in the 1989 West-
Reynolds said she would sign the letter as soon as she received it
Bill Huzinga said that his daughter chose Kansas instead of Iowa, Washington, San Diego State and William and Marv.
Reynolds, like Huizinga, was also the captain and the No. 1 player for her high school men's team. She has won the Vermont high school girl's championship for the past three years and was a state champion in 1899. The school does not have a women's team.
Reynolds chose Kansas instead of Kentucky, Southern Illinois, Auburn and Miami.
"I was really impressed with the coach, and I got along with the players very well," Reynolds said. "I really liked Coach Demo's attitude of wanting to make the team go someplace."
Green reportedly interviewed for job
Special to the Kansan
Kansas assistant men's basketball coach Jerry Green was interviewed Monday for the vacant coaching job at the University of North Carolina at Wellington.
Men's basketball
according to a report published in the Wilmington Morning Star.
The paper reported that Green was the last of six finalists to be interviewed.
Joe Browning, sports information director at UNC-Wilmington, would confirm only that Green was one of 85 applicants for the job, which became available Feb. 20 when Robert McPherson resigned. He said it was a school policy not to offer paid internships but visited or interviewed for jobs.
Green could not be reached for comment, although last month he said that he was not looking to leave Kansas.
"I am very, very happy with the situation at the University of Kansas and my working relationship with my best friend for 17 years,
Roy Williams." he said
Doug Vance, Kansas sports information director, said that Green had not spoken to him about the interview and that he could neither confirm nor deny the report.
Browning said the search committee of three faculty members, one student, one alumnus, three members of the Seahawk Club and two members of the athletic decision in the next week or two.
"It's been a long,very exacting detailed search." he said.
The paper reported that Eddie Biedenbach, assistant coach, Eddie Payne, South Carolina associate coach, Michael Bernard, North Carolina Central coach, Kevin Eastman, Tulsas assistant, and Pat Dennis, Richmond assistant also have been interviewed.
The committee will recommend two candidates to Charles Cahill, of Wilmington provice and vice chancellor, who will make the final choice.
Green is familiar with North Carolina and Wilmington, having
spent nine years as coach and two years as an assistant at UNC-Ashville before coming to Kansas. He owns a beach house near Wilmington and vacations there during the summer.
Green also serves as a guest
lecturer at basketball camps throughout the United States and Europe, and last summer was an assistant to Kansas coach Roy Williams for the Big Eight Conference Select team that toured Australia.
Injury sends Pritchard home
By a Kansan reporter
Kansas basketball guard Kevin Pritchard sustained a hip pointer Monday during the first day of practice at a camp for prospective NBA players. The injury forced him home before the all-star game.
The camp was conducted in Orlando by the Orlando Magic
The injury was described by Kansas assistant trainer Mark Cairns as an extreme bruise. He does not seriously not serious but extremely napful.
"Some can be so painful that you can't move." Cairns said.
"Please be so saddam that you can't get it," Pritchard could be playing in a day or two depending on the severity of the injury, he said.
Pritchard could not be reached for comment yesterday.
"He wanted to go there and show everyone what he had to offer," she said. "Each day he gets less depressed, but this was a really important camp, as I understand it."
Julia Pritchard said that her son had hoped to be well enough to play yesterday. Although the pain was strong, she and flow家 to Nashville, Tenn.
Pritchard said that after talking to her son, she understood the extent of the pain.
"I don't ever recall Kevin being like that," she said. "I could hear it in his voice; he was really hurting."
'Hawks need victory against Cowboys
By Brent Maycock Kansan sportswriter
It also snapped a streak of 26 consecutive losses to Oklahoma State.
Kansas baseball
When the Kansas baseball team defeated Oklahoma State last season, it marked the first time since 1962 that the Jayhawks had beaten the Cowboys.
This season, Kansas needs to repeat last year's performance in order to remain in the thick of the Big Eight Conference race.
The Jayhawks will begin a fourgame series with the Cowboys at 7tonight in Stillwater, Okla. The teams also will play a doubleheader tomorrow before ending the series Sunday.
"They have one of the best teams in the conference," Kansas coach Dave Bingham said. "We anticipate we are as hard of a series as we've played."
Senior center fielder Pat Karlin said the series would be crucial for the Jayhawks' chances of receiving the Big Eight postseason tournament.
"It is very important because of our position in the conference," Karam said, "we lose a lot of games down there, we have to sweep in another series."
Kansas has just nine victories in $3 games against the Cowboys in Stillwater. However, Karlin said that the Jayhawks' victory against the Cowboys in Lawrence last season gave the team some added confidence.
"They have a mystique about them because they've been to the College World Series for the past four or five years," Karlin said. "I think a lot of them are in wae of them, and I think we broke the burden of that spell last year."
Bingham said the offensive power of Oklahoma State would be something the Jayhawks would have to overcome.
The Cowboys lead the conference in runs scored (331), hits (382), team batting average (.322), doubles (83) and home runs (42).
Kansas has the third-lowest team
Sophomore starter Eric Stonecipher leads the conference in strikeouts with 65 and is seventh with a 3.58 ERA.
ERA in the conference behind Kansas State and Nebraska. The Jayhawks have also allowed just 232 hits, second fewest in the Big Eight.
Karlin said the performance of the Kansas starters, Stonecipher, Steve Renko, Mike Tasseley and Steve Becker. He added importance to the team's success in Stillwater.
"If they have a good series, then we can hold Oklahoma State in charge."
“It's a tough matchup,” he said.
“The pressure will be on our pitchers. If it's a low-scoring contest, we have a good chance at winning.”
CREW TO DEFEND TITLES: After taking first place in five of 11 events in the Sunflower State Collegeleg Rowing Championships last weekend in Lawrence, Kansas crew will compete against 15 other teams at the President's Regatta tomorrow in Topeka.
The regatta will be held on Lake Shawnee.
The team also had five second place finishes.
Sports briefs
KANSAS RUGBY: The Kansas University
Rugby football club's collegiate
The varsity women and varsity lightweight men each took first place in the last year's President's Regatta. In 1987, women won their respective divisions in 1988.
ate team has qualified for the Western Collegiate Regional Championships this weekend in College Station, Texas.
The tournament, which involves the top eight teams in the west region, will be at Texas &M. Kansas will face Texas &M in the first round of the tournament. The winner of the regional championships will advance to the National Collegiate Championships on May 5 and 6.
Both tournaments will start tomorrow.
**MOMEN'S GOLF:** Ending a two-week layoff, the Kansas women's
The club team will be competing in the Easterfeest Tournament this week.
golf team will be back in action this weekend.
The Jayhawks will travel to Hampstead, N.C., to compete in the Azalea Festival Tournament. The Jayhawks will attend Sunday and continue through Sunday.
Kansas is coming off its best performance of the season. The Jayhawks finished in second place at the NBA's longest Classic April 1-2 in Norma, OKn.
This is the last tournament for Kobe Bryant the Big Eight Conference Championship.
The championships will be April 23-24 at Alvamar Golf Course.
KU TENNIS IN OKLAHOMA: The Kansas men's and women's tennis
teams will play in Oklahoma today and tomorrow.
The men's tennis team will play Oklahoma State at 10 a.m. today in Stillwater. The women's match will be at 2 p.m. Both Oklahoma State teams were picked as preseason favorites to win Big Eight Conference titles.
The teams then will travel southwest to Norman for Saturday matches against Oklahoma. The men will play at 10 a.m. The women will play the Sooners at 2 p.m.
The men's team is 10-8 overall and 3-0 in the Big Eight. The women's team is 7-11 overall and has a record of 4-0, leading the conference.
Track teams will compete under Florida sun
By Molly Reid
Kansan sportswriter
The Kansas men's and women's track teams are heading to sunny Florida for the weekend, but the trip will not be a vacation.
Kansas track
The Jayhawks will face some of their toughest competition of the season in a game of Florida — Gatorade Four-Way Meet, this weekend in Galveston.
"They have their work cut out for them," said assistant track coach Gary England. "Our goal is
England said Florida, Florida State and North Carolina had the ability to score well in the men's and women's meets.
for a good showing and good marks."
For the men's team, England said success would lie in the performances of the distance runners because Kansas would not have the arsenal to compete for points in the sprinting events.
England said Johnny Brackins
"The sprinting cores are in the South," he said. "We don't have any sprinters except for Johnny, so we're giving up points."
Labosky was the only Kansas athlete to qualify for the NCAA Outdoor Championships with a throw of 229-8. He improved the
was especially important as a Jayhawk scorer because he would compete in three events.
Last week Brackins, who competes in the long jump, triple jump and sprints, attended the Texas Relays in Austin instead of traveling with the team to the SEMotion Relays. Track coach Gary Schwartz said he sent Brackins and javelin thrower Vince Laboky to Texas to compete against tougher competition.
mark to 240-10 in Texas.
England said he expected the women's scoring situation to be similar to the men's.
"Angie Melland needs to win the javelin throw, and we need to get a good performance out of the hurriers." he said.
Hurdler Amy Hadley won the 100-meter hurdles at the SEmoitions with a time of 11 minutes. 52.2 seconds. England said Kim Hutheofer-Busch and Hadley pushed each other enough to be able to finish in first and second
See TRACK, p. 12