Page 28-Thursday, September 7, 1978-The Michigan Doily 'M' nine thrown into. World Series NW U U E r t WE m - NoW : w y IfU Pitchers propel Wolverines to 3rd league title in four years By JAMIE TURNER The 1978 edition of the Michigan baseball team did not have either outstanding talent at many positions, nor significant depth past the front liners. Nevertheless, the Wolverines were able to mold themselves into a team capable of winning the Big Ten championship (the third in four years), the NCAA regionals and finally competing in the College World Series, finishing with a 30-17 mark. Michigan swept to the Big Ten championship on the hot bats of George Fousiannes and Rick Leach along with an outstanding pitching staff. A sophomore, Fousiannes carried the non-hitting Wolverines through the early part of the season with six home runs and 25 rbi's in the first 22 games. Though "Fous" cooled off in the latter part of the campaign (.257, 6, 28) Michigan never faltered behind the torrid performance of the quarterback-turned-centerfielder, Leach. In his first two seasons at Michigan, the Flint junior would have to bounce back from an early season slump ... eventually ripping the ball near a .400 pace, with his season mark reaching the mid .300's. This season however, there was no early season letdown, and when the lefthander began his late season surge his batting average was already high. As a result, Leach ended the season with a .404 mark, shattering former Wolverine Bill Freehan's record for hits in a season (56) with 61. Of the other members of the Wolverine lineup, only cat- cher Jim Capoferi aided Leach and Fousannes during the regular season (.306, 5, 23). The five seniors in the lineup (Dave Chapman, Mike Parker, Jim Berra, Bob Wasilewski and Scott Anderson), though contributing at times with clutch hits, batted a collective .234. With only three productive hitters during the regular campaign, Michigan pitching had to a yeoman's job of holding down opposition clubs until the Wolverines got hot. And did they ever. Michigan's starting staff of Steve Howe, Craig McGin- nis, Tom'Owens, Steve Perry and Bill Stennett along with reliever Mark Clinton choked off enemy bats day after day. Until the final two games against Southern California (10 earned runs) and North Carolina (7 earned runs) in the NCAA's, the Wolverine hurlers had an ERA of under 3.00. Leading the way in every pitching department was sophomore Steve Howe. Co-Michigan MVP with Leach, the cocky southpaw was 11-3 for the year, receiving a decision in every game he appeared. The Clarkston native finished with a 1.74 ERA in 98.3 innings, striking out 92 while walking only 27. After two years, Howe is 20-6 with an ERA of 1.80 and. nine shutouts. While no one on the staff equalled the efforts of Howe, every member did his part. McGinnis (6-4, 3.51), Stennett (3-3, 3.74), Owens (5-3, 3.88) and Perry (3-1, 3.70) composed the rest of the starters while freshman Clinton (2-0, 2.63) impressed late in the year. McGinnis and Stennett have graduated, and Owens was taken in the free agent draft, so coach Moby Benedict faces a task of putting back together a staff which was so in- strumental in Michigan 1978 success. After the season, the Wolverines advanced to the World Series where they won once before dropping two straight; first to the eventual champion Trojans and then to the Tarheels. Once again, Howe was a focal point, defeating Baylor with a one-hitter and giving up the three-run homer to North Carolina's Greg Robinson that concluded Michigan's season. But a new star arose on the Wolverine horizon in the form of left fielder Vic Ray. Without' a roundtripper during the season, Ray changed his swing before the P4CAA's, and clouted two homers. If Ray can continue into next season with the same im- provement, Michigan could have a hitting attack that would take some of the pressure off the shrunken pitching staff. The Wolverines enter 1979 with two-thirds of an outfield; an inexperienced infield, solid catching and good pitching. What Benedict does to mold Michigan will determine its success. The biggest problem is the infield. Fousiannes is ten- tatively penciled in at short, with reserve John McEldowney at second. Who will man first and third is. anybody's guess. Sophomore Chuck Wagner is liable to see some action at third, with a host of others competing for the openings. Junior Capoferi will handle the majority of the catching duties, with Gerry Hool and Dale Mason in the background. Either Hool or Mason could conceivably move to first. Howe and Perry will probably be joined by Clinton in the starting rotation, leaving a wide open battle for the other two starting spots and relief. Sophomore Mike Bryant has the inside track for one opening and freshman Mike Thomas will be given a long look. the 1979 version of the Wolverines will be a talented, albeit untested group. Improvements need to be made in power, consistent hitting and speed. Lost is a sound defen- se, particularly on the left side. Prognosis: another race for first, and depending on the youngsters, with an opportunity to contend again for national honors. WOMEN HAVE 'SOAP OPERA' SEASON Noff rv win vfnfo i tle v %01 E OENy yWW1 1 V1 % By BOB WARREN If there was ever an on-going soap opera on the Michigan campus, it would definitely be "As the Women Netters Turn." Even before the women's tennis team set foot on the courts for their first match this year, they were enveloped in a team dividing controversy. Barb Selden, one of the best players in the midwest, wanted to play tennis for Michgan this year as she had the past two years. However, there was a hitch: Selden had only practiced with the team a few times due to her heavy academic load. The women were in a dilemma. Should they vote to allow their poten- tially best player on the team to play, or should they consider the sacrifices and hard work they had contributed throughout the year and deny Selden a place on the squad. The women chose the latter course of action. However, coach John Atwood was not worried. "Barb's loss isn't going to hurt us that much," Atwood said back in March. "Her great ability in doubles will be sorely missed, as will her singles' play, but the girls we have here are very good. We're deep all the way through." Atwood was defitnitely correct in his analysis of the team's strength. Michigan had its best recruiting year ever, as it signed widely sought-after Sue Weber, Kathy Krickstein and Whit Stodghill. Two other freshpersons, Leticia Diaz-Perez and Lisa Wood were walk-ons and played at the number four and five singles spots respectively, throughout the season. Together with sophomores Kathy Karzen, Ann Kercher and Elaine Crosby, the team had its best talent on paper of any Michigan squad since women's tennis became a competitive sport here several years ago. * The women raced to an impressive start as they won their first five dual matches prior to the Buckeye Open at Columbus. Once again the plot un- wound. The women did not fare too well at Columbus as they finished sixth out of eight teams. Coach Atwood fared even, worse as he broke a University rule that cost him his job. "John told us two stories," said freshperson star Krickstein. "The first story was about the beer he ordered en- ding up on the team tab. The second story says the waitress at the same restaurant wrote a letter to the Michigan athletic department con,. plaining that the team didn't leave a tip after it had dinner." Atwood was forced to resign for thes infractions, although most observers U EVE R 1IXMG [or your coLO Party IReerz w1ue Ice F' kegs miXe RzS SrzCiIC trzays beao SbOp rli I I rln Karzen felt there were extenuating circum- stances surrounding his dismissal. The women on the team .had been, unhappy with Atwood's conduct and were appalled at the way he handledl the seeding at the Big Ten champion- ships. Many members expressed how difficult it would have been to play for, Atwood if he hadn't quit. - Assistant coach Bill Flood became in- terim coach and the women resumed their winning ways as they won six of. their next eight dual matches to finish. the year with an 11-2 record. Nevertheless, with Krickstein out with an ankle injury during Michigan's victory in the state AIAW tournament, the women suffered their swan song at the Midwest AIAW competition where they had been favored to win, losing to Northwestern in the second round. Although they performed under the adversity of the Selden crisis, Atwood's resignation and Krickstein's injury, the women had an excellent year. Karzen finished with a 19-7 record and won an at-large bid to the national tourney along with her doubles partner, Kir- cher, as well as respect as one of the best performers in the midwest. All of the freshpersons generally played well during the season and the prospects for a goal-fulfilling season next year look brighter with Selden considering a return to practice and play along with Debbie Rentschler, a starter in the 1977 sesn 0 I