THE MICHIGAN DAILY RAISED BY RENFREW: Defense Leads Icemen to Victory A___________________ __________________________ By JIM STOMMEN Impressive as the scoring of the Wolverine front lines has been in the first four games of the season, the Michigan skaters owe much of their success to the much-im- proved play of the defensemen. Don Rodgers, John Palenstein, and Butch Nielson form the core of the defensemen, and are backed up capably by Tom Wilson and Denny Rhode. Rodgers and Palen- stein combine to form the number Grid Pictures Members of the freshman football squad who want squad pictures are requested to place their orders immediately at, the information desk in the Athletic Administration Building. All or- ders must be in before Christ- mas vacation begin. one pair of defensemen, and Niel- son and Wilson form the number two defensive alignment. As Coach Al Renfrew said, "The defense looked very good Friday night and looked outstanding in the last thirty minutes of Satur- day's game. We went with Nielson, Palenstein, and Rodgers 'in the last thirty minutes of Saturday's game, and they came through with a fine performnance to put away our victory." As was indicated by Renfrew, Nielson, Palenstein, and Rodgers bore the brunt of the attack in much of Friday's game as well as shouldering the entire load on Saturday's last 30 minutes of play. Renfrew pointed out that the play of all three has improved greatly. "Their passing, checking, and puck-clearing has improved to the point where we can count on them for a steady performance whenever they are on the ice" Close-Working Duo The hard-skating Rodgers, a sophomore, was paired with the steady Palenstein at the beginning of the season, and they have since proven to be a close-working duo on the ice. Palenstein, a junior, returns after a highly successful sophomore year at a defensive post for Coach Renfrew's Wolverines. Nielson returns from a letter- winning season last year to team with Wilson, who lettered two years ago, on the second Michigan defensive team. Rhode saw his first action of the season, though somewhat limited, in the North Dakota series. The passing and hard-checking Patterson TOP Boxer of Year NEW YORK M) - Floyd Patter- son, the first man to regain the world heavyweight boxing cham- pionship, today was named winner of the Edward J. Neil memorial plaque as "Fighter Of The Year" for 1980. The award was made by the Boxing Writers' Association. It was the second time that Patterson, 25-year-old New Yorker, has been voted the Neil award. Patterson was the youngest to win the, heavyweight crown when he knocked out Archie Moore in the fifth round, Nov. 30, 1956. That made him the Neil winner for that year. -Dethroned by Ingemar Johans- son, June 26, 1959, in a shocking upset, Patterson bounced back from that third round knockout and flattened the previously un- beaten Swede in the fifth round of their rematch last June 20. I-M Volleyball 1ST PLACE PLAYOFFS Psychology 'A' 4, social Psych 'B' 9 Zoology 'A' 4, Psychology 'C' 0 2ND PLACE PLAYOFFS Bio-Ciem. 4, Natural Resources 0 Cooley 'A' 4, Psychology 'B' 0 3RD PLACE PLAYOFFS Social Psych. 'A' 4, Bus. Ad. 3 of Nielson, Rodgers, and Palenstein has kept the pressure off of the Michigan goalies and enabled the Wolverine forwards to keep press- ing the attack into the opponent's end of the ice. This ability to keep the puck out of their own zone has given the forwards the scoring chances they have received. Looking ahead to the six-game road trip, Renfrew noted that "the defense is going to have to come through with the same fine per- formances in each game to enable us to go to the front of the league race. If the defense keeps up as it has, and our lines continue their good scoring, we have a good chance for a good road trip. "As the season progresses, as Rodgers gains more experience, anal as Wilson regains his form of two years ago, the defense should continue to produce these fine games, and will perhaps give an even better performance than they did in the last two games." Praises Forwards Renfrew continued, "Up ahead of the goalie and defensemen, the forchecking of the forwards has improved and is one of the im- portant factors in the success of the defense." In the first four games of the year, four games which have pro- duced a three won-one lost record, the defense has provided the im- petus for the victories, Just as they caused the opening-game loss. The upcoming series at North Dakota will show if the Michigan defense can continue to lead the way to an improvement over last year's fifth-place finish in the WCHA. SCRAPPING DEFENSEMAN-Don Rodgers (2) Michigan de- fenseman, scrambles for the puck with an unidentified Toronto player. Rodgers, along with his defensive running-mate, John Palenstein, and Butch Nielson, forms the nucleus of the Michigan defensive corps that has been the key to the three Michigan victories this season. INTRASQUAD MEET TOMORROW: State Trackmen Bolster Frosh Squad By DAVE GOOD In recent years Coach Don Canham's Wolverine track teams have depended heavily on talent drawn largely from other parts of the country, as well as from Canada and the Caribbean. This season, however, Canham has found home-grown prospects more appealing and has stripped clean Michigan and the Detroit area to get material for his fresh- man squad. Intrasquad Meet Tomorrow night at 7:30 these former prep stars will get a chance to show their stuff when they team up with the sophomores against the juniors and seniors in the annual intrasquad meet. Big Ten outdoor mile champ, Ergas Leps, could have his hands full when he takes on Detroit Denby's Frank Carissimi and Con- necticut ace Dave Hayes. Last year Carissimi's winning time in the Detroit city champion- ships at 4:17.7, was the fastest mile ever recorded by a Michigan high school runner and won him a place on the national high school All-American team. Hayes, whom Assistant Coach Elmer Swanson considers "on a level with Carissimi," ran a 4:23 mile in high school and has im- proved considerably since joining the freshman squad. Dearborn's Al Ammerman, the squad's "outstanding field man," cracked former Michigan star Milt Mead's state high jump record last season with a leap of 6'4" in the state championships. Ammerman, who also cleared 6'5" in the Monroe Relays, should give handyman Dick Cephas, a hard time in that event. Michi- gan's Big Ten champ, Steve Wil- liams, will not compete in the meet. Hunter Good In Sprints Mac Hunter, of Muskegon Heights turned in the fastest sprint times in the state last season (:09.8 for the 100 and 21.5 for the 220) before being hurt. Swanson thinks Hunter was the best sprinter in the state last year despite the fact that he could not run in the state meet. After the season ended last spring, Hunter won a dash from Olympian Les Carney, a silver medalist in the 200-meter event. Bill Radcliff from Pontiac Cen- tral, who finished third and fourth in the state meet sprints last season, will join Hunter in trying to upset veterans John Gregg and Cephas. Tom Robinson, the in- door and outdoor champ, will not Join the team until next semester. Dorr Casto, an out-of-stater from Barrington, R. I., has done :51.0 in a 440 relay leg and should stay close to varsity men Bryan Gibson, Hilton Nicholson and sophomore Carter Reese. In the mile relay, the three var- sity units should really have trouble from the foursome of Hun- ter, Hayes, Casto and John Davis, a dashman from Manhatten who, during an Army hitch, was nosed out by the 1956 Olympic double. sprint champ, Bobby Morrow. George Wade of Union, N. J., Jerry Wright of Flint Northern, and Trinidad's Ed Hinkson, the lone Caribbean representative, should make their presence felt when they team with sophomore Steve Overton in the pole vault. Wright finished third in the pole vault at the state meet and Hinkson holds the Caribbean re- cord at 12'6". Among the other top prospects are Mac Poll from Lansing Sex- ton, Joe Mason from Saginaw Arthur Hill and Ken Burnley from Detroit Mumford. Poll won the mile in the state meet last season and Mason topped the field in the state low hurdle competition. 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