Kansas City Krunch ready to kick things up a notch
By DEREK PRATER
The Kansas City Star
Posted on Fri, Jul. 11, 2003

When Cheryl Fields bought the rights last November to start the Kansas City Krunch women's football team, she was virtually flying by the seat of her pants.

At the time, Fields had no staff and wound up running her own tryouts without any other coaches."I had a clipboard and three pens, and that's how it started," Fields said.

Looking back, she can hardly believe that the Krunch was ready to go when the National Women's Football Association season kicked off in April. Imagine her satisfaction 10 weeks later when the Krunch finished the season 5-3.

The team didn't qualify for the playoffs -- which will conclude with the 2003 SupHer Bowl on Aug. 2 in Nashville, Tenn., -- but the Krunch smashed expectations for its first season.

"We were told as a first-year team not to get our hopes up, that if we won one or two games that would be good," Fields said. "So we surprised everyone."

Now the job is to build on that first-year success, and the Krunch figures to kick things up a notch. With a staff in place and a core group of players working together to prepare for next season, the Krunch should be more prepared for the rigors of a football season.

Krunch head coach Jesse Mack has been working twice weekly with players on conditioning their bodies for the demands of football. Missy Larrick-Caskey, a defensive end, said the physical toll endured by the players was the biggest learning experience of the first season.

"I think the injuries were an eyeopening experience," Larrick-Caskey said. "I think I was the fourth out of seven girls who tore their ACL."

Larrick-Caskey hasn't been able to attend off-season workouts because she had surgery about a month ago. Nonetheless, she's looking forward to next season and said she expects the team will enjoy even more success. Kansas City finished second in the three-team Midwest Division this season, and it could have more company in the division next year.

Overall, the league had 29 teams this season and originally expected to have 30. A team from Junction City, Kan., which would have been in the Midwest, had to postpone its entrance into the league when its ranks -- largely filled by troops from Fort Riley -- were depleted by the war in Iraq.

Debby Lening, vice president of marketing and media for the league, said Junction City should be ready to go next season along with as many as seven other new teams.

The league, she said, has attracted a lot of interest and could continue to swell before reaching a stable number of franchises.
"It's such a new sport, and there's so many people that want to play," Lening said. "We're building our league in divisions that are clustered together (geographically).... Down the road what we think will happen is that smaller teams will merge and form larger teams."

Speaking of getting larger, the Krunch plans on expanding its roster next year. Fields said the team had about 50 active players last season and will push that number to 60.

Tryouts probably will be in August or September, and Fields expects a mix of new and experienced players. As the team grows, Fields also hopes to expand the fan base. She said about 700 loyal fans rooted for the Krunch during its home games this season at J.C. Harmon High School stadium.

Fields said she was considering other stadium options for next season, but the Krunch may be back at Harmon next year before moving on to bigger and better things.

"Hopefully, we'll fill up the stadium at Harmon next year and then move to a bigger stadium in 2005," Fields said.