The Michigan Daily-Saturday, January 6, 1979-Page 7
OVERMATCHED ICERS FALL, 10-1
Awesome
Minnesota
By BILLY NEFF
The cries of S.O.S. and Mayday
echoed throughout Yost Arena last
night as the Minnesota Golden Gophers
thumped Michigan, 10-1. Minnesota,
ranked number one in the nation, left no
doubt why they hold down that spot as
they popped home eight consecutive
second period goals.
Withing a span of 14 minutes and 16
seconds, the Gophers broke open a tight
1-1 game when they singed the net
behind Wolverine goalie Rudy Varvari
for eight unanswered tallies. The
Gophers tied a one period record in
Yost for the number of goals scored by
a team. The onslaught started as both
teams were short handed.
MICHIGAN'S John Blum was out for
a five minute high sticking penalty and
Minnesota's Don Micheletti was off for
slashing. There was some controversy
over Blum's penalty as it looked like
Micheletti had lifted up Blum's stick,
which eventually hit and bloodied
Gopher captain Bill Baker.
Rob McClanahan, enroute to a hat
trick, received a long lead pass from
Mike Ramsay, skated in on the
breakaway, and flipped the puck past
the startled Varvari. The momentum
seemed to be swinging to the high
powered Gophers as they out muscled
the Wolverines to every loose puck.
Just five seconds after the goal, an
eventual game winner, Minnesota
winger Eric Strobel was whistled off for
hooking. Things looked up for the slum-
ping Wolverine icers (7-11, lost last
three in a row) as they now had a four
on three advantage, enabling them to
utilize more of the ice.
BUT McCLANAHAN blunted any
Wolverine momentum by replaying the
second Minnesota goal over a minute
later. He took another long lead pass
from Ramsay and broke away for the
score.
Minnesota kept pouring the pressure
on. Leading scorer Steve Christoff was
the next lamplighter for the Gophers, a
mere 38 seconds after their last tally.
Then, Christ
Michelletti o
one play, v
Wolverines lc
Insult upon
as the gods
recorded his
a loose puck
sensation NE
liner by the
Baker netted
the second p
overpowers
aoff threaded the needle to initial pass from Wheeler, looked to be to
in a picture-perfect two on ofie ntepa.a
vhich made it 5-1. The offsides on the play. a
,vhikhed e ite5Wolverine coach Dan Farrell was Th
soked helpless. livid after the one sided contest, not due Fa
insult was added to injury to his team's "loss of composers," but . ag
kept coming. McClanahan due to the refereeing. th
hat trick, Strobel batted "The five minute penalty was the dif- tr
er Brvan s han ference.iMicheletti lifted Blum's stick P
al Broton slaped anlow up and it hit Baker's eye. The referee
screened netminder, and says I'm sorry; it was a tough penalty pu
ione from the point to cap
eriod scoring. In the third Goal-ten G
call against you (Michigan). He
poligizes to us; can you believe that?
hat was a horseshit call," said
arrell. "You can't play sure handed
;ainst a team like that. You're playing
e best god-damn team in the coun-
y," Farrell said.
Maybe Minnesota coach Herb Brooks
t it best, "When it rains it pours."
op hers
rwilliger (charging) 11:54, M-Richter (holding)
:33, MINN-Pepper (interference) 17:17.
THIRD PERIOD
coring: 11. MINN-Baker (Christoff, McClana-
in) 7:03. Penalties: M-Blum (highsticking)
2MINN-Christoff (highstlcking) :22, M-May
minute fighting, game disqualification) 3:44,
INN-Meredith (5-minute fighting, game disquali-
ation) 3:44, MINN--Greeder (delay of game)
42, MINN-Terwilliger (slashing) 16:42, M-
m (highsticking) 16:42, M-Perry (elbowing)
28.
. 1
0 full court
Blue
Russ
stanza, Baker added his second of the
night as he gathered in a loose puck and
beat Varvari's replacement Bob
Sutton.
Minnesota had opened the scoring in
the evenly fought first period when Phil
Verchota netted a loose puck in front of
the Wolverine net. Verchota was
Michigan's nemesis in Bloomington
earlier this year with five goals in the
Gophers' 8-2, 10-5 pastings of the
Wolverines.
BILL WHEELER had tied the contest
for Michigan as he tipped in a Dan Lerg
rebound. Lerg, upon receiving the
FIRST PERIOD
Scoring: 1. MINN-Verchota (Baker, Broten)
10:13, 2. M-Wheeler (Lerg, Manning) 11:36. Penal-
ties: MINN-Baker (hooking) :51, M-Lerg (trip-
ping) 3:58, M-Richter (slashing) 9:08, MINN-
McClanahan (roughing) 14:57, M-Blum (roughing)
14:57.
SECOND PERIOD
Scoring: 3. MINN-McClanahan (Ramsay) 2:39,
4. MINN-McClanahan (Ramsay) 3:55, 5. MINN-
Christoff (Harrer, Bergioff) 4:33, 6. MINN-Miche-
letti (Christoff, Larson) 7:28, 7 MINN-McClanahan,
(Larson) 10:04, 8. MINN-Strobel (Verchota,
Broten) 11:389. MINN-Broten (Strobel, Verchota)
14:28. 10. MINN-Baker (Micheletti) 16:55. Penal-
ties: M-Blum (5-minute highsticking) 1:10, MINN-
Micheletti (slashing) 2:03, MINN-Strobel (hooking)
2:44, MINN-Verchota (interference) 7:49, MINN-
Ter
1;5
SA
han
:22
t5-r
MIr
fica
13:4
Blu
19:2
Ailing Staton...
- . . out but not down
By DAVE RENBARGER
N INE GAMES and one Big Ten triumph into the basketball season,
Wolverines Phil Hubbard and Tommy Staton are leading their team
in several statistical categories.
First there's Hubbard, gimpy knee and all, checking in as Michigan's
undisputed leader in rebounds, standing ovations and headlines in the local
papers. And then there's Staton, who has already racked up a near-record
total of minutes spent on the bench for any returning starter, not to mention
his team-leading stats in lingering illnesses and nagging injuries..
Currently, Michigan's two co-captains are both battling a persistent in-
jury jinx that has left them operating below top efficiency.
Hubbard at least has been able to operate effectively most of the time.
But Staton, first immobilized by a lengthy bout of bronchitis and now hob-
bled by an ankle strain, has been virtually out of operation for nearly five
weeks now. And the starting spot he ably manned for the better part of two
seasons isn't there waiting for him. Staton's spot is gone, and regaining it will
be no small task.
Thursday night the Wolverines began playing ball for keeps, enter-
taining Minnesota in the Big Ten opener. It was a big game, and Tommy
Staton is known for responding well to pressure. But on this night, Staton
never made it out of his sweat pants. He didn't play a single minute. Oh, he
did lead plenty of cheers from the bench, and doled out plenty of pep talks to
his teammates, but Staton, a starter in 53 games over three years, never set
foot on the court.
Granted, he's not quite 100 percent yet. The ankle is coming along, he
says, but it still limits his quickness, jumping ability and overall mobility.
But in practice yesterday he took a regular turn in all the drills, showing no
overwhelming deficiencies. He could have played some Thursday night, had
coach Johnny Orr wished toinsert him.
Clearly, Orr was merely going with his best players at the time-namely
Marty Bodnar, Keith Smith, Johnny Johnson and Mark Lozier. Since
Staton was benched with bronchitis five games ago, Johnson has filled in for
him three times and Smith, more recently, twice. So Staton begins his
comeback as no better than fourth guard.
But he also begins it with an admirable attitude. His is an extraor-
dinarily touchy situation and he is handling it beautifully. "It's just a matter
of us having some very fine players that are all doing the job at this'pr-,
ticular time," said Staton as he worked out on the weight machine after
yesterday's practice. "Hopefully, I will be able to come out and be the cap-
tain and run the show like I'm supposed to."
He realizes that earning his spot back isn't going to be easy, but then
again, he has never been too short on confidence. "I feel like when I get to
full strength, I will be in there. I have a little bit of determination myself, you
know. I'm a fighter, a winner, or whatever you want to call it."
One important element in his corner is his experience. The television
announcers like to say that a guy "has been there before," and Staton cer-
tainly matches that mold. With a fairly young team and an even younger
backcourt, an extra seasoned hand might well come in handy:
The ultimate decision naturally lies in the hands of the coaching staff.
Assistant coach Bill Frieder sympathizes with Staton's situation, but says he
and Orr have committed themselves to the three other guards for the time
being.
"He's had a lot of problems and I think as a process of all this, Bodnar,
Keith and Johnny Johnson have emerged as our three guards who have been
playing the best, and so that's who we'll have to use right now," said
Frieder. "But we think he's going to help us. There's no question about
that."
In the interim, Staton is keeping his chin up. "I've been known to have a
bit of class, and I just say that when things are looking down, that's when the
class shows through."
So save the sour grapes. Tommy Staton doesn't need them.
Scoring by Periods
1 2
*MINN ................... 1 8
M ....................... 1 0
3
1
0
Total
14
HAWKS TEST BLUE, HUBBARD'S KNEE:
Streak
By GARY KICINSKI
They may not be world-beaters, but
the Iowa Hawkeyes are still good
enough to at least throw a tiny scare in-
to the Michigan Wolverines.
The Hawkeyes (8-2) and the
Wolverines (7-2) hook up this afternoon
at Crisler Arena, both having recorded
victories in their Big Ten openers on
Thursday night. After a 2-2 non-
conference start, the Hawkeyes have
reeled off six straight wins, including a
65-57 victory over Northwestern in their
league opener.
The Hawkeye hot streak and the un-
certainty surrounding Phil Hubbard's
status has given the Michigan coaching
staff more than casual concern over
Iowa.
Hubbard looked reasonably strong
Ing Iow(
yesterday in practice and is scheduled
to start today. Trainer Dan Campbell
said that the seriousness of the injury is
a day-to-day thing.
"Right now, he is looking good for the
Iowa game," Campbell said yesterday.
"But that may change if he walks in
here tomorrow (Saturday) swollen. I
doubt that this will happen, but the
possibility is there."
Hubbard, meanwhile, maintains that
much of the problem is mental. Coach
Johnny Orr and assistant coach Bill
Frieder, fingers crossed, say they are
confident of a quick recovery. "I think
Phil's gonna be alright," Frieder said.
"He's just gotta go out and play hard.
and not think about it."
Hubbard will need good mobility if
Michigan hopes to control the boards
this afternoon. The Hawkeyes sport a
x invades Crisler
fine rebounding threesome on their
front line.
Sophomore centers Steve Krafcisin
and Steve Waite, both 6-10, share the
playing time in the pivot and are tough
rebounders. Krafcisin came off the
bench against Northwestern and
sparked the Hawkeyes, scoring 16 poin-
ts and grabbing 10 rebounds in just 18
minutes of action.
Waite, however, is expected to start
against the Maize and Blue. He will be
flanked at the forward positions by 6-6
freshman Kevin Boyle and 6-7 senior
William Mayfield, a native Detroiter
who was all-state at Cass Tech.
Mayfield and Boyle sport 14.9 and 13.8
scoring averages respectively.
But the key to the Hawkeye hopes
rest mainly on its outstanding junior
guard Ronnie Lester. Last year Lester,
was named to the UPI's All-Big Ten
team on the basis of his 19.8 scoring
average and 6.0 assists per game, both
of which ranked third in the league.
"The number one thing we've got to
do to win is contain Lester," Frieder
said.
At the other guard will be senior Dick
Peth, an aggressive player who is an
excellent free throw shooter.
For Michigan's part, the Wolverines
will come back with the starters used
against Minnesota: Alan Hardy and
Mike McGee at the forwards and Marty
Bodnar and Keith Smith in the back-
court.
"Iowa is better all-around than Min-
nesota," said Frieder. "We've got to
come back and play good in all areas."
DIETZ, McNAMARA PACE BLUE
ho
br
ho
re
Revived women Cag erS host NMUINALL
By ELISA FRYE The Wolverines got off to a sloppy 0-2 complishments (averaging almost 50SA R
The women's basketball team is on a start before bouncing back against In- points a game between them), Soluk . GA E
)t streak. They improved their pre- dionState. From there, they went on was quick to point out that other team
ttreak1 ed mpro-2 -ved the re-to beat Western Michigan, Adrian and members contribute as well. -. " -
lidays and the young team appears Grand Valley. Sophomore forward Abby Currier, who T..cke
ady for the Northern Michigan team THE MOTOR City Tournament saw had some trouble at the beginning of the
it will be facing this afternoon in Crisler
Arena.
Coach Gloria Soluk had cause to
worry at the beginning of the season.
BILLBOARD
Locker sales at the Central Campus
Recreation Building (CCRB) will be
held Saturday, Jan. 13, beginning at 9
a.m. During the sale there will be 200
women's and 100 men's renewable
lockers available.
The cost is $9 per term for the lockers
with a $2 refundable lock deposit. Only
one person per locker.
The sale is on a first come, first serve
basis.
Michigan lose its first game in five star-
ts, against Eastern Michigan, 75-74.
The cagers came to their senses against
Wayne State, squeaking by the Tartars
65-62. Most recently, the women troun-
ced Bowling Green 85-78.
Soluk attributes the cagers' im-
provement to the teams depth. "All the
freshmen are doing well," she said.
"They're not scoring a lot of points
because of our outstanding shooters
(Diane Dietz and Katie McNamara),
but they work hard."
While Dietz and McNamara are most
noticeable because of their scoring ac-
season, has gained a starting position,
and, Soluk says, "is now playing up to
her capabilities."
SOLUK SAID she has an "outstan-
ding bench" and went on to cite forward
Yvette Harris ("She adds a dimension
to our inside game") and sophomore
Brenda Venhuizen ("She's our spark-
plug") as standouts.
While Soluk admits that Northern
Michigan will "be high to beat us", she
feels that the Wolverines are equally
prepared for the Wildcats. The game
will start at 4 p.m., following the men's
duel with Iowa.
T WO G RE AT SE ATS !
Game Feb. 4th in Pontiac
Enter by Feb.1 st at . .. .
211
SOUT H
OPEN
7 Days
typing - copying -printing
SCORES
College Basketball
Duke 79, Long Beach St. 78
NHL
New York Rangers 6, vancouver 4
NBA
Indiana 123, Philadelphia 96
STARTS TODAY at 9 AM
+i
.rl . .
0
OUR
ANNUAL SALE
r y.
+4
t
Have you ever thought about
joining a Greek Fraternity?
EICECIEI
FRflTERN ITY
is forming a new chapter at the "U".
CRCACI is seeking men who are determined to succeed, men of
character who can aid in founding a new chapter of this great na-
tional fraternity.
Take advantage of the unique opportunity offered
by charter membership.
Featuring
a large selection
of
The Pendleton Collection . . .
pure virgin wool separates su-
perbly tailored in elegant plaids,
flannels, and warm coatings ...
For more information stop in and
talk to national reps. Monday, Jan. 8
or Tuesday, Jan. 9. 7:00 p.m.
i