UN I V E R S I T Y D A I L Y K A N S A N
Monday, February 19, 1996
3B
Disappointment overflows as swimmers fail to win titles
Coach's quest to secure Big Eight crowns ends; divers meet expectations
By Dan Gelston
Kansan sportswriter
For the past 15 years, Kansas swimming coach Gary Kempf has longed to bring the Big Eight Conference men's championship back to Lawrence.
He will never have the chance again.
The No. 21 Jayhawks finished second for the 10th consecutive year, as Nebraska won the final championship Saturday in Oklahoma City. 621.50 to 534.50.
Nebraska swept the championships, as the Cornhuskers out-distanced the No. 16 Kansas women 663 to 636.50.
For Kempf, another disappointing finish was tough to accept.
"We're real disappointed right now," he said. "We felt like we had a legitimate shot at the championship, but we just came up a little bit short. This is as tough as it gets."
Just two Kansas men's swimmers won in the final sessions on Saturday.
Senior Dan Philips won the 200-meter butterfly with a time of 1:50.03.
Junior Eric Jorgensen set a new pool record in the 1,650-meter freestyle in 15:13.07, just more than a second off the Big Eight record set by former Jayhawk Ron Neugent in 1983.
Jorgensen was named the Big Eight's out-standing men's performer of the year.
"I'd have to say this weekend was a little disheartening." Jorgensen said. "We gave it a good fight and did the best we could."
Jorgensen pinpointed the point where the men went wrong.
"The second day," he said. "It wasn't there for us. We had it handed to us."
Rounding out the men's side, Iowa State finished third and Missouri fourth.
The women were hurt Friday when they were disqualified because of a false start in the 200-meter medley relay which cost the team 26 points.
On Saturday's final session, no Kansas woman won an event. The women haven't won the conference championship since
1993.
"We had opportunities, and we just couldn't get over the hump," Kempf said of the women.
Freshman Adrienne Turner, who finished second in the women's 200 butterfly on Saturday, she was named the Big Eight women's newcomer of the year.
Iowa State finished third and Missouri fourth.
Kempf said he was upset with the results but proud of his team.
"What I told them was that I was extremely proud of what they've done," he said. "The bottom line is that I wouldn't trade any one of them for any other kid in the conference."
The Kansas men's and women's diving teams met the expectations they had going
into the championships.
Kansas senior diver Michelle Roijon won the women's one- and three-meter board with scores of 452.65 and 584.90 respectively.
Kansas diving coach Don Fearon was pleased with the diving team's performance.
Kansas senior Kris Hoffman placed second on both the men's one- and three-meter board.
"I'm about as happy as I could be with the way they dove," he said. "We did about as good as you can do."
Fearon was named the Big Eight women's diving coach of the year. Rojohn was the named the Big Eight's women's diver of the year, while Hoffman shared men's co-diver of the year.
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