Shortstop takes long trip to land at Kansas

Oh, the places you’ll go. Back in high school, David Narodowski probably didn’t think a Dr. Seuss book would describe his baseball career.

And for the Jayhawks, it’d be hard to imagine how the season would be going without Narodowski. After a rough start that saw Narodowski’s batting average below .200, he’s now raised it to .341 in the last week. Price always knew Narodowski was a solid hitter after watching him play during the last fall semester.

















SPRING BREAK SCHEDULE Today at Arizona State, 6:30 p.m. Tomorrow at Arizona State, 6:30 p.m. March 15 at Arizona State, 6:30 p.m. March 17 at San Diego State, 8:30 p.m. March 18 at San Diego State, 8:30 p.m. March 20 vs. Texas, 3:00 p.m. March 21 vs. Texas, 1:00 p.m. March 22 vs. Texas, 1:00 p.m.

“He pulled his average close to .300 and a week ago against Northwestern he was close to .200,” Price said Tuesday after the Missouri Valley game. “But he hit .400 in the fall.”

Narodowski, junior shortstop, traveled great lengths before finding a home at Kansas. He grew up learning and playing the game in Vancouver, British Columbia all the way up in the great white north of Canada.

Looking to continue his impressive high school career — he played on the Canadian junior national team — Narodowski didn’t have too many offers before the last day to sign with a college. Luckily a small junior college in Wichita Falls, Texas, came through.

“It was lucky, it was on the last day one of the Vernon College coaches offered me a scholarship,” Narowdowski said. “So I had to take it.”

So Narodowski travled 2,123 miles to continue his baseball career and he didn’t waste the trip.

For his only season at Vernon, Narowdowski hit .450 with eight home runs and 42 RBIs. But for all his impressive stats, he, again, received few offers, including one from Kansas coach Ritch Price.

“My sophomore season towards the end I still didn’t really anywhere to go,” he said. “I’m glad coach Price kept talking to me, he was talking to me for about a month towards the end of the season.”

Price lured Narodowski to Kansas with the allure of playing against the rest of the Big 12 Conference because Price was short on scholarships. Narowdowski’s other offers were to smaller schools such as St. Edwards, a private school in Austin, Texas.

“He turned down substantial scholarship offers because he wanted to play at a major university in a major conference,” Price said. “He’s here on just a little bit of scholarship money because that’s all we had.”

Narodowski’s bat will be counted on even more over spring break. Kansas faces off against two stellar programs during a west coast trip. First up is national powerhouse No. 4 Arizona State starting this afternoon at 6:30 p.m.

“It’s a great opportunity for us, we’re going to go play one of the finest teams in the country,” Price said. “One of the most storied teams in the country.”

— —Edited by Chris Hickerson

 

Related articles

Kansas baseball won’t overlook Western Illinois

Coach Ritch Price wants to give freshmen players more time on the ...

/news/2009/mar/24/baseball_western/

Shortstop powers offensive barrage

Junior transfer David Narodowski hit 2-for-2 with two home runs in an ...

/news/2009/apr/22/shortstop_powers_offensive_barrage/

Lawrence Originals sponsor fireworks festival

The Fourth of July festival and fireworks will be at Watson Park ...

/news/2009/jul/02/fireworks/

Big 12 baseball season looks bright

Weather can't stop the start of the Jayhawks' new season.

/news/2010/feb/18/future-looks-bright/

Strong-handed players

The wind usually blows into left field at Hoglund Ballpark, giving right-handed ...

/news/2008/feb/22/balance/

Even baseball’s bigger in Texas

Jayhawks prepare to play in Olsen Field this weekend.

/news/2009/mar/27/baseball/

Everyone loves a weekend Valentine’s day

Exhibits, concerts and theater performances among holiday happenings in Lawrence and KC

/news/2009/feb/13/weekend_valentines/

KU alumni find watch sites far away

Bars from Miami to New York find themselves host to Jayhawk sports ...

/news/2009/mar/13/alumni/

Freshmen pick Kansas over pros

Elgie and Ridenhour take extend their amateur status, adding talent in multiple ...

/news/2009/feb/13/freshmen_pick_kansas/

It’s a long way to the top ...

Baseball team must improve its record on the road if it wants ...

/news/2009/may/01/baseball/

Baseball team faces Baylor at home

The Jayhawks play their third Big 12 series this weekend.

/news/2009/apr/03/team_faces_baylor/

The week ahead

Kansan sports writer Andrew Hammond takes a look at the week to ...

/news/2010/apr/21/week-ahead/

Jayhawks hope to regain swagger

Baseball team hopes a victory over Northern Colorado will get them back ...

/news/2009/mar/31/jayhawks_hope/

Week’s events give insight to Israel

Hatikvah, a Jewish student organization, is celebrating two holidays Israeli this week ...

/news/2009/apr/24/israel_insight/

Coach starts small to dream big

Coach Ritch Price reflects on his experiences throughout the years that led ...

/news/2008/apr/29/coach_starts_small_dream_big/

Tennis team’s competition strengthens

Jayhawks are prepared to face a stronger Iowa State and Nebraska in ...

/news/2009/mar/13/tennis/

Five Kansas players offered MLB contracts

Three of the players have already signed with the teams.

/news/2009/jun/16/baseball/

Baseball opens today against Air Force

Today’s game will set the tone of what to expect for the ...

/news/2009/feb/20/baseball/

Heere brings versatile batting to plate

Sophomore outfielder with second-highest batting average excels at third position in the ...

/news/2009/apr/10/batting/

Dine and donate with Cultural India Club

Proceeds from a dinner featuring Indian foods will benefit impoverished in India.

/news/2009/mar/30/india/

Infield strength bolstered by transfer

Second baseman Narodowski is settling in and looking forward to baseball season.

/news/2009/feb/18/infield_strength/

Around the Big 12: The week ahead

Check out to see who were the top players and top team ...

/news/2010/feb/10/around-big-12/

Jayplay Calendar: March 15, 2007

tease

/news/2007/mar/15/calendar/

Mangino to sign highly touted recruits

Top fullback, safety among 24 new players to join Jayhawks on signing ...

/news/2009/feb/04/recruits/

Baseball notebook: March 12, 2008

Notes about Kansas baseball after their victory against Tabor College.

/news/2008/mar/12/baseball_notebook_31208/

Defense will make or break Big 12 ...

Both the team and its defense are ranked 4th in the conference.

/news/2009/apr/17/defense/

Land’s home run sends Hawks past Tigers

Baseball comes back from early deficit to defeat Missouri 7-3 at Kauffman ...

/news/2009/apr/22/lands_home_run_sends_hawks_past_tigers/

Don’t dump, donate instead

Local charities and Web site recycle old goods within the community.

/news/2009/jul/16/donate/

Softball looks to continue upset victories

Jayhawks are starting the season 2-2, and hope to improve their ranking ...

/news/2009/feb/13/softball_victories/

Sports Calendar: March 1, 2007

Check out this week’s sporting events.

/news/2007/mar/01/calendar/

The week ahead

Kansan sports writer Andrew Hammond takes a look at the week to ...

/news/2010/apr/28/week-ahead/

Middle infield sparks Kansas victory

Jayhawks use double plays to squash Leathernecks’ rallies.

/news/2009/mar/26/middle_infield/

The week ahead

Check out what games and players to watch for this coming week ...

/news/2010/jan/25/week-ahead/

The week ahead

Sports writer Tim Dwyer gives his lists of players, teams and games ...

/news/2010/mar/03/week-ahead/

Sports Calendar: March 13, 2007

Check out what’s coming up in KU sports this week.

/news/2007/mar/13/calendar/

Mangino lays out his plans for the ...

Some players shuffle positions, fill holes left by graduation.

/news/2009/mar/09/football/

Basketball Schedule Released

All of the Jayhawks' 31 regular season games will be televised.

/news/2008/jul/25/basketball/

MLB drafts four KU players

KU baseball players may sign with MLB

/news/2009/jun/11/mlb/

The week ahead

Sports writer Tim Dwyer gives his picks for the next week of ...

/news/2010/feb/01/week-ahead/

Sports Calendar: March 30, 2007

Check out some of this week's sporting events.

/news/2007/mar/30/calendar/

Comments

Use the comment form below to begin a discussion about this content.

Sign in to comment