Softball team defeats Rams
By Jamie Suhr
Staff writer
After playing its first 33 games of
the season on the road, the Nebraska
softball team found out that there was
no place like home.
NU is 5-0 on its seven-game home
stand after defeating Colorado State 3
0 on Wednesday at the NU Softball
Complex. The win stretched the
Comhuskers’ winning streak to 10.
The Huskers (23-15) followed the
dominating pitching of Jenny Voss,
who stunned batters, striking out 10
during her complete-game two-hitter.
NU would get the runs it needed in
the first when Jamie Fuente executed a
perfect squeeze play to score Kim Ogee
from third base, who reached base after
getting hit by a Kyla Kiester pitch.
“I go into every game with the go^l
of getting a shutout,” Voss said. “When
we got the run, I felt like it would be
enough.”
But Voss would run into trouble in
the top of the third inning. Voss would
load the bases with two outs for Jennie
Orozco. The threat would end, however,
after a ground ball by Orozco forced
out Sara Hyzer at second base. •
After dodging the bullet, the
Huskers would tack on another two
runs when Voss helped out her own
cause by singling home Amanda
Buchholtz with a bunt in the bottom of
the fourth inning, and Jenifer Williams
belted her first home run of the season
over the left-field wall in the fifth.
The Huskers were home free. Voss
would strike out the side in both the
fifth and sixth innings and didn’t allow
a runner to reach base in the seventh.
The shutout was Voss’ fourth of the sea
son and dropped the Rams to 8-17.
HUSKERS 3
RAMS0
“Its important to shut people out,”
said NU Coach Rhonda Revelle. “It
builds confidence.”
CSU Coach Teri Klement said the
Huskers ran into a struggling team.
“It’s not so much running into
Nebraska at the wrong time, we’ve
been struggling the past two months,”
Klement said.
But Klement was quick to point out
the strong performance by Voss.
“Voss did a great job out there, she
always does,” Klement said. “She’s.so
smart at finding a batter’s weakness and
going after it. We didn’t do a good job
of adjusting.”
NU next will play at home vs.
Wichita State for a doubleheader on
Thursday starting at 6 p.m.
KU ready to shift to powerplay
■ Defensive Coordinator
Wiegandt readies Jayhawks
for new, more open style.
By David Diehl
Staff writer
The times are a-changin’.
A conference that once had its
trademark in the smashmouth, down
your-throat, power running offenses
of the ’70s and ’80s with the Big
Eight is now shifting directions as
the Big 12.
Kansas Defensive Coordinator
Ardell Wiegandt wants to be ready
for the shift from the conference’s
power running style to its new, moije
open light-it-up style.
“The tone of the Big 12 has
changed into a passing league,”
Wiegandt said. “Defensively, you
have to change your structure in what
you have to defend against in this
league. You have to develop into an
exceptional pass defense.”
The one-back and no-back sets of
Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas
Tech and Missouri (all of which have
recently acquired new coaches or
offensive coordinators), have
replaced the power running games of
Oklahoma’s wishbone or Colorado’s
option attack. Only Nebraska holds
on dearly to its rushing roots.
With four starters returning in
KU’s secondary, the Jayhawks seem
to be ready to handle the new twist in
styles.
I-1
Dailyneb.com
jWK in review__
RflPQ COACH: Italy Allen ]
“ RECORD: 5-7 overall, 3-5 Big 12
OFFENSE: Passing
DEFENSE: 4-3
OUTLOOK: Kansas never got its
head on straight until it started Dylen
Smith at quarterback; he has to be cut
loose for KU to win games. The defense
was bad last year but should improve.
But the offense has been only a few shades
above awful at times. It must be
consistently good.
One the four returning is last
year’s Defensive Newcomer of the
Year, Carl Nesmith, a junior college
transfer to Lawrence.
“As he gets more into our system
and plays, he’s going to keep getting
better for us,” Wiegandt said. “Last
year he hurt us a little for the first
half. But he did a lot of great things
in the last six games. We’re looking
for him to do more big things this
year.”
Whereas the rest of the league
has changed into an air-it-out con
test, KU doesn’t look to be joining
that mold.
The Jayhawks return with the
entire backfield and a speedy option
quarterback in Dylen Smith. Along
with the option, fourth-year Coach
Terrry Allen’s offense will utilize the
contrasting running styles of its
backfield.
David Winbush is a shifty, quick,
5-foot-7, 180-pound I-back, and
Moran Norris is a bruising 245
pound fullback.
Allen said he’s glad to have Smith
^ ^ The tone of the
Big 12 has
changed into a
passing league...
You have to
develop into an
exceptional pass
defense.”
Ardell Wiegandt
Kansas defensive coordinator
in a spring camp this year, a luxury
Smith didn’t have last year as a Juco
transfer. ,
“It’s real important for us to get
him work and to get him to develop
even more,” Allen said.
Allen, 14-20 in his three years at
Kansas, has put his team into the
hands of many junior college players
- besides Smith and Nesmith, Allen
inked 11 of them this fall.
With the help of those Juco play
ers, Allen said, he has hopes for put
ting together his first winning record
atKU.
“We’d like to get over the top,”
Allen said. “We have the returning
people and the ability to do that. We’d
love to become a bowl-eligible
team.”
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JUNIOR TENNIS PLAYER Ndali Ijomah won both her singles and doubles
matches March 24 vs. Texas Tech, contributing to the team’s 14-game
winning streak, also a new school record. Nebraska will play Texas A&M
on Sunday at 10:00 a.m. at Woods Tennis Center, 33rd and J streets.
Ijomah has no regrets
in choosing Nebraska
Mike Callahan Jr.
Staff Writer
Sacraficing glamour for a dream
takes a very strong person.
Nebraska junior women’s tennis
star Ndali Ijomah is a perfect example.
Bom in Nigeria, Ijomah moved to
the states at 13. After living in
Philadephia for three years, she
moved again to Seattle for her final
two years in high school.
Following an eye-opening high
school tennis career, her service on the
court was sought after by many big
time college tennis programs, includ
ing top-20 programs Vanderbilt and
Florida State.But Ijomah, who is
sporting a 14-1 singles record at the
No. 2 spot, turned down the tennis tra
dition of Venderbilt and four years of
fun in the sun at Florida State for
Nebraska.
She claims her decision was for all
the right reasons.
“I picked Nebraska over Florida
State so I could focus,” Ijomah said.
“Nebraska was the place because get
ting a degree is very important in my
family, and I knew Nebraska would
give me the least distractions.”
Despite growing to love Lincoln,
Ijomah misses her high school days.
She admits she liked Seattle more.
“It’s much prettier, and I do like
living there more,” Ijomah said. “But
Lincoln is such a college town, and I
love being here. I don’t regret my deci
sion at all.”
NU was very lucky to get Ijomah.
It was very late in the recruiting sea
son, and all signs were pointing
towards Ijomah’s going elsewhere.
Coach Scott Jacobson recalls
recruiting her.
“Most of the higher quality play
ers were gone already, so we were
very lucky to have her come,”
Jacobson said. “Her coaches really
wanted her to go somewhere where
she could focus on her academics, so
they were very instrumental in her
arrival in Lincoln.”
Three years into her career here at
NU, Ijomah is playing her best tennis
yet.She has dropped one singles
match in 15 playing at No. 2, helping
the team to a No. 45 national ranking.
Coach Jacobson is ecstatic over
her progress.
“She is playing at levels I’ve never
dreamed from her,” Jacobson said.
“She is the fastest player I’ve ever
coached and when she is healthy, she’s
just a joy to watch.”
Along with a very focused on
court demeanor, is an off-court per
sonality the coach loves.
“She really clowns around, but it
gives the team good balance and
humor that the program needs,”
Jacobson said.
Ijomah has aspirations of going to
regionals or even nationals before she
departs from Lincoln. With her junior
year close to an end, her GPA is sitting
at 3.545, and her on-court perform
ance is nothing less than “A” quality.
Sure, Florida State would have
been warmer, and Seattle is prettier.
But here in Lincoln, at 14-1 and on
track to graduate, she’s got a future.