SportsMonday
Daily Nebraskan Monday, February 26,2001 Page 10
Barrage of threes can't save NU
BY BRIAN CHR1ST0PHERS0N
On Sunday, Nebraska Coach
Barry Collier and his players were
hit with those usual postgame
questions from media searching
for a reason. Poor defense? Poor
late-game rebounding? Why was
there no sweet-Sunday Nebraska
upset of Kansas?
_ But the rea
Nebraska 74 son for the loss
KU 78 J was easy to find
for the
Comhuskers who sat before the
cameras and notepads - No. 11
Kansas is just dam good. As NU
junior Cary Cochran said with a
cringe: "I hate to say it, but I think
die better team won.”
But KU barely won, as the
Jayhawks (21 -5,10-4) were contin
ually bull-charged by a Nebraska
team that seemed to be riding a
great deal of its season on this
magical chance to take down
Kansas. In the end, KU answered
every question posed by the
Huskers (13-14,6-8 B) and won
die game 78-74 before 12,104 fans
at the Bob Devaney Center.
KU clung to a five-point half
time lead in a second half that say
few missed shots by either team.
Sophomore forward Nick
Collison piled up 22 team-high
points. Sophomore guard Kirk
Hinrich hit 7 of 9 shots, scoring 20
for the Jayhawks. Even senior for
ward Kenny Gregory hit two rare
three-pointers to help him tally 16
points. The second Gregory three
pointer gave the Jayhawks, who
shot 70 percent in the second half,
a 61-51 lead with 8:05 left
“I think our defense was more
sound than not,” Collier said.
"Their big guys especially were
hitting tough shots on the base
line over a hand. I felt like the
shower victim in ‘Psycho.’ They
just kept going down the floor,
another stab, down the floor....”
Kansas’ Coach Roy Williams
undoubtedly felt as helpless
watching Cochran and NU senior
guard Cookie Belcher hit key shots
to keep Nebraska within striking
distance. Belcher piled up a
career-high 29 points, and
Cochran added 14, with three
important three-pointers in the
second half.
The duo combined for 11
I felt like the shower victim in ‘Psycho/ They just
kept going down the floor, another stab, down
the floor.
Barry Collier
NU coach on KU’s second-half offense
three-pointers for the game with
seven belonging to Belcher, who
tied a school record for most
three-pointers in a game.
And yet Belcher still called it a
“frustrating” game.
“You work hard to get open
and hit shots. And you think
everything is going good, and they
come back and hit a good shot,”
Belcher said. “That’s what good
teams do."
Good teams also take advan
tage of opponents’ missed oppor
tunities like when Nebraska sen
ior forward Steffon Bradford
missed a wide-open slam dunk
that would have narrowed the sec
ond-half lead to two. Instead,
Kansas rattled off eight consecu
tive points.
The missed dunk and the lost
momentum seemed to overshad
ow Bradford’s 12 points and nine
rebounds.
“It was one of those times
when we needed him to make that
shot,” Belcher said of the missed
dunk. "We could have got the
crowd going and sky high, but (the
miss) kind of kills it”
There were other downfalls.
Nebraska only hit eight of 17 free
throws for the game and only shot
40 percent from the field, largely
due to a poor first-half shooting
performance.
And still the lead was only 74
71 for Kansas when Kansas’
Collison stepped to the line with
19 seconds remaining. Collison
hit one and missed the second,
but KU claimed the board and
iced the victory.
NateWagner/DN
Nick Collison of Kansas rejects Kimani Ffriend's lay-up attempt.
Track teams conquer Big 12 indoors
BY DIRK CHATELAJN
Lesley Owusu and the Nebraska track
teams were not going to be denied on their
home turf at the Big 12 Indoor Championships
this weekend.
Led by the senior sprinter from England,
NU dominated the second day of the meet -
winning both the men’s and women’s tides.
"We're at home, and no one is going to
invade us,” said Owusu, who sparkled again in
her two individual events, recording 21 Vz over
all points for her team.
Owusu won the 200- and 400-meters on
Saturday afternoon in impressive fashion. Her
blazing 400 time of 52.37 was not only a
Devaney Center record, it was the fastest in the
country this year.
The women’s team won the meet with 143.5
points. Texas was second at 105.5, and Kansas
State was third with 104. The Husker men
scored 124 points to beat Texas A&M with 86
and Texas with 78.5.
Fifteen Big 12 Indoor records were set,
including 13 on the new track.
Nebraska was boosted by the return of All
American thrower Melissa Price. The senior,
who planned to redshirt this season, won the
20-pound weight throw with a marie of 66’ 8” Vz.
Her best throw was accomplished on her first
attempt of the competition.
"All I wanted to do today was win,” Price
said. "The distance wasn't important I’ll try and
build up on that as I go.”
Price’s mark automatically qualified her for
nationals. The other NU event winner on the
women’s side was Krisztina Kovesi in the triple
jump with a personal-best of 41 ’ 2” V4.
Second-place finishers included Ann
Gaffigan in the mile, Jelena Stanisavljevic in the
600-yards, Na’ Tassia Vice in the high jump and
Leann Boerema in the shot put
Nebraska’s men captured the meet title in
large part because of their performances in the
sprints.
Chris Chandler and company scored 34
points in the 60- and 200-meters alone.
Chandler won the 60-meters for the second
Derek Lippincott/DN
Chris Bums crosses the finish line, claiming the Big 12 title in the 1,000-meter run. Both the men's and women's
track teams won the Big 12 Indoor championships on Saturday.
year in a row and placed second in the200. Both
of his times, 6.63 and 20.91, were season-bests.
In the 60, Chandler recovered from what he
considered a “horrible" start to catch Texas'
Reggie Hill. He was defeated by Texas A&M’s
Brandon Evans in the 200. Evans set a Big 12
record with a time of20.78.
Fellow Huskers Jimmy Pino and Bradley
Perry placed fourth and sixth in both events,
respectively.
Another strong event for the Huskers was
the high jump where three NU jumpers placed
in the top five. Junior Shaun Kologinczak ran
away from the field, leaping a season-best 7’3"
3A. Freshmen Kyle Odvody and Frank Tolen
were fourth and fifth.
Also claiming a gold medal was sophomore
Chris Bums, who set a personal-best time of
1:49.82 in the 800-meters. Eric Eshbach cleared
17’8” V2 in the pole vault, placing second.
Junior Sheldon Hutchinson, who was try
ing to go back-to-back in the long jump and
triple jump, was hampered by a groin injury
suffered on Friday. Hutchinson placed second
in the long jump and sixth in the triple jump.
The NU men and women won the event for
the second year in a row. Nebraska's men have
won the indoor title four of the past five years.
“Going into the meet, we thought it was
going to be real close on both sides,” Husker
Coach Gary Pepin said. “It was a heck of a tough
meet, and we were very fortunate."
Distance runners
help secure titles
BY DIRK CHATELA1N
Emotions were running high
on Saturday at the Big 12 Indoors
as the conference’s best attempt
ed to stake their claim in the
record books.
But nobody was pushing
harder than Chris Bums and Ann
Gaffigan.
Bums and Gaffigan were two
of the many Huskers that per
formed better than they had all
year, putting NU over the top in
the standings.
Burns, a sophomore from
Ontario, Cal., came into the 800
meter with the sixth-best time in
the conference before running
down the favorites in the last 200
meters. On the last lap, with the
Devaney Center crowd behind
him, Bums overtook the leaders
and barely edged Mike Hummel
of Texas A&M.
After crossing the finish line,
Bums raised his arms in the air in
exhilaration and stumbled to the
surface.
“I’ve been waiting the whole
year for this,” said Bums, who fin
ished fourth ayear ago. "I’m just so
excited.”
The time of one minute, 49.82
seconds was a Big 12 meet record.
Gaffigan’s moment to shine
also had to wait until the final lap.
The freshman from
Springfield, 111., who had the 12th
fastest mile time coming into
Saturday, looked like she would
finish in the middle of the pack as
the bell rang for the last 200
meters.
“I’ve been waiting the
whole year for this ,"
said Burns, who
finished fourth a year
ago. “I’m just so
excited."
Chris Burns
NU runner
But, with the help of a boister
ous home crowd, she made her
move on the outside. Gaffigan
moved up three places on the last
lap. Though she didn't win -
Colorado’s Sara Gorton ran away
from the field - Gaffigan gave the
Huskers a huge lift from an unlike
ly source.
“I was just hoping to pass the
girl in front of me,” Gaffigan said.
“But when I got to the second-to
last curve where all the Nebraska
students and athletes were sitting,
they were so loud, and I just got a
shot of adrenaline.”
After finally crossing the line,
Gaffigan stood with her hands on
her knees for several minutes,
panting. She nearly had to be car
ried off of the track.
“I felt like I was going to die for
a few minutes there,” Gaffigan
said.
Her time of4:46.44 was a per
sonal best
“I never in my dreams expect
ed to get second today,” Gaffigan
Please see TRACK on 9
Team sweeps in Lafayette I
BY SAMUEL MCKEWON
Nebraska got a little of its pitching magic
back, and designated hitter Matt Hopper
continued early-season tear as the No. 12
Comhusker baseball team got its first sweep
of the season at the Mardi Gras Ball in
Lafayette, La.
. -5-1 Hopper’s two-out
{Sfyjrrj . 7 sixth inning RBI single
WMlMMme / Sunday provided the
deciding run in an 8-7
win over No. 25 Wichita State, which
closed a weekend that included wins over
host Louisiana-Lafayette 6-3 and Ohio
State 10-5.
In all three games, Nebraska, now 6-3
entering next weekend’s Big 12 Conference
opener against Texas Tech, got timely spot
pitching along with streaky bats.
On Sunday, Hopper, who has started the
season with a nine-game hitting streak,
increased his average to .487, going three for
four with four RBI that included a three-run
homer in NU’s four-run third inning. The
Huskers had trailed 3-1 before the inning
began. WSU retook the lead 6-5 when third
baseman Josh Hesse misplayed a sacrifice
bunt, but a three-run Nebraska sixth put it
ahead 8-6.
Pitcher Jamie Rodrigue then stepped up
for NU, retiring the final seven Shocker bat
ters as part of his seven innings of relief
work. On Friday, Rodrigue had been called
out by NU Pitching Coach Rob Childress as
not being “sharp.”
The other pitcher Childress had
reserved mild criticism for was starting ace
Shane Komine, who finally showed his 2000
form Saturday with his 6-3 win over La.
Lafayette, which qualified for the College
World Series last season.
The Honolulu junior got six runs of sup
port from his offense in the first two innings,
then went seven strong sets of his own, giv
ing up only two earned runs after starting
the season with a 10.24 ERA in two outings.
R.D. Spiehs pitched two scoreless innings.
“I’m proud of the way we played today,”
said Komine. “This is a difficult place to play,
and this was a big win for us on the road.”
Said NU Coach Dave Van Horn: “This is
a tough place to play. Our whole goal was to
put pressure on diem early. We didn’t hit the
ball hard, but were able to go the other way
and get some hits up the middle early. We
were able to jump on them and get Shane
some runs early.”
On Friday against Ohio State, Nebraska
busted open a 6-5 contest with four runs in
the top of the ninth inning, while pitcher
Steve Hale held off several Buckeye charges
in a 10-6 win. Thom Ott, who had been pen
ciled in as NU’s closer at the beginning of the
season, started the game and gave up five
runs in four innings.
Hale turned back threats in both in the
fifth and eighth innings in the win.
"Steve really did what we needed, and
that was throw strikes and get ahead of hit
ters,” Van Horn said. “He has been our most
effective pitcher in relief. He has started the
year strong every season, and you can see
him really maturing on the mound.”
Women's gym keeps rolling in home meet
DT JUonUA UAMtN^iriU
The No. 6-ranked Nebraska
women’s gymnastics team has been
surprising people all season long, so it
comes as no surprise the Huskers
brought out a little flair in their most
prestigious home match of the sea
son, the Masters Classic.
NU, again led by its strong fresh
men class and the resurfacing of
injured sophomores A.J. Lamb and
Bree Dority O’Callaghan, breezed to
the team title at Pershing Auditorium
on Saturday, scoring a school-record
197.375 at the meet. It was the ninth
best score in the country so far this
year.
In front of 1,363 fans, No. 21
ranked Denver University finished a
distant second and North Carolina
State, ranked No. 23, took third. No.
12-ranked Louisiana State, scheduled
to be at the event, could not make the
trip because of flight problems.
The Wolfpack’s Kelli Brown took
the all-around title with a score of
39.350, but afterwards, no one
seemed to mind that the all-around
trophy wouldn’t be calling Lincoln
home.
"If we took no hardware home and
just won the team trophy ... that’s
what we’re after,” said NU Coach Dan
Kendig. “That’s what is really neat
about this team - the sacrifices they
made for each other.”
While Nebraska was focused on
udviu lYiiumun
Hukser gymnast
Tami Harris com
petes in the
floor exercise at
the Masters
Classic on
Saturday after
noon.
doing the team thing first, individual
accolades abounded for the 9-1
Huskers. Freshman Tami Harris fin
ished second in the all-around with a
score of 38.950. Harris wasn’t even
entered in the competition until fel
low frosh Alecia Ingram’s Achilles
injury flared up right before the floor
exercise, NU’s final event.
Harris, without any warm-up,
came into the final rotation off a first
place and school-record-tying per
formance in the uneven bars (9.975), a
third-place finish on the balance
beam (9.850) and fourth place on the
vault (9.850). Kendig pulled Ingram,
NU’s only hope for the all-around at
the time, and replaced her with
Harris.
Ingram was less than thrilled with
the decision until a one-on-one ses
sion with Assistant Coach Rhonda
Faehn.
“She was just telling me that I had
been going six meets in a row, and
every other top girl in the country is
taking breaks every now and then,”
said Ingram, who had
grabbed the vault (9.90) and balance
beam (9.90) titles already but slipped
on the uneven bars to score a 9.325.
“It was kind of a bummer at first,
but I realized it was probably the best
thing to do.”
Harris ended up stumbling on her
floor exercise on a routine pass and
scored a disappointing 9.275.
The Huskers swept the top six
spots in the balance beam and the top
three on the floor exercise.
O’Callaghan, competing on the floor
for the first time since 1999, and
Lamb, who also was competing in the
exercise for the first time this season,
combined with Jess Wertz to tie for
first place at 9.925.
Overall, this weekend’s action
gave Husker fans a glimpse of what’s
to come when Kendig’s young team
gains experience and better health.
“We are only going to go up from
,-Jiere,” Ingram said. “That’s how I see
"It. We have a great team with so much
depth.”