Page 10-Friday, March 2, 1979-The Michigan Daily
DISMAL SEASON COMES TO CLOSE
Blue icers looking to check State
BY BRIAN MILLER
The last weekend of regularly
scheduled games in the WCHA has
arrived, and although last place
Michigan (6-23-1) isn't going anywhere,
it does have some unfinished business
to attend to = like keeping ninth place
Michigan State (10-20), the Wolverines'
weekend opponent, out of the playoffs.
Two years ago, the Wolverines swept
the Spartans in the final series of the
year allowing the Colorado College
Tigers to back into the conference tour-
nament ahead of State, but last year,
State returned the favor. Even though
Michigan won and tied against State in
its last two games of the season, the tie
kept the Blue out of the playoffs - by one
point. So now Michigan hopes it can go
one up on the Spartans again.
Such a task won't be easy, as State
has been playing well lately. Last
weekend, it traveled to Grand Forks
where it split with the league-leading
North Dakota Fighting Sioux. Two
weeks ago it split with third place
Duluth and the weekend before that, the
Spartans swept sixth place Michigan
Tech. In fact, State has played .500
hockey (7-7) after getting off to a less
than auspicious 5-13 start.
One major reason for the turnabout
can be attributed to the Spartans' in-
creased goal production since the
return of centerman Leo Lynett.
Lynett, one of their players declared
academically ineligible last term, has
11 goals and 12 assists in the last 14
games, the only games he's played this
season.
Currently MSU has 20 points in the
conference, two less than eighth place
Colorado College and the Tigers will be
facing a tough battle from Denver this
weekend. The seventh place Pioneers
have 28 points, one behind sixth place
Michigan Tech. CC needs at least a split
in this home and home series to ensure
a playoff position, while Denver seeks
to sweep the Tigers and move up in the
standings..
Things are as unsettled at the top of
the standings as they are at the bottom.
First place North Dakota (42 pts.)
meets second place Minnesota (39 pts.)
at Minneapolis and the Sioux need at
least one point in this series' to claim
WCHA s
North Dakota .........................
Minnesota ..................... ....
Duluth .........................
Wisconsin ...........................
Notre Dame .........................
Michigan 'Tech....... ...........
Denver ..............................
Colorado College ....................
Michigan State ...... ...............
MICHIGAN .........................
their first league title since 1967-68. The
Gophers, on the other hand, need a
sweep to take home the title.
The Duluth Bulldogs, tied with
Wisconsin for third place with 36 pts.,
will host sixth place Tech this weekend,
while the Badgers travel to fifth, place
Notre Dame.
..i.:'..::: :::::::.::O$:::}Y "y ."a e.
Contending gymnasts
host Big Ten foes
By PETE BARBOUR
Spring break is undoubtedly a welcome relief from studying, papers
and midterms. However, those people who aren't thinking about coming
back to Ann Arbor until Sunday, March 11, should reconsider.
Next Friday through Sunday (March 9-11), the University of
Michigan men's gymnastics team will host the Big Ten championships
at Crisler Arena.
"I hope that many students will come back a little early to see the
championship," said Michigan Coach Newt Loken. "We're going to
need fan support since it's going to be a tight meet," he said.
Loken mentioned four teams which, along with Michigan, would
fight for the championship. "There's defending champion Minnesota
which scored 217.55 points last weekend. Ohio State, having beaten Min-
nesota, beat us in compulsories. Michigan State is coming on strong and
Illinois is always a perennial contender," said Loken.
With the season nearing a close, Loken said he is pleased with the
progress the Wolverines have made. "It's very encouraging tosee im-
provement from our meager beginning. It has lkeen an uphill climb from
the 194 compulsories in Chicago to the 213.95 at Indiana State," he said.
"All twelve men have volunteered the information that they'll have
to improve their individual scores to give us the chance to win. It's going
to be a cliffhanger down to the end," he said.
itandings
Conference
WL TPt
. 21 9 0 42
. 19 10 1 39
. 16 10 4 36
. 17 11 2 36
. 17 12 1 35
.13 14 3 29
. 13 15 2 28 '
. 10 18 2 22
. 10 20 0 20
. 6 23 1 13
Overall
w I t pt
25 10 0 50
24 10 1 49
19 11 4 42
21 12 2 44
18 15 1 37
17 14 3 37
18 18 3 39
11 21 2 24
13 21 0 24
8 25 1 17
INDIANA TOP MEN'S FOE
Blue thinclads set for Big Ten's
By JOHN LIBBE
On the eve of the 69th annual Big
Ten Track Championships this
weekend, Michigan track coach Jack
Harvey reflected on the chances of his
team repeating as champions. He was
noticeably worried about the strength
of the Indiana squad favored to
dethrone the Wolverines.
"Just figuring the thing out on paper,
they'll win," commented Harvey. "We
need everybody doing their best on two
days."
Harvey has good reason to be
worried. The Hoosiers are bringing
three defending individual champions
to Champaign, Illinois in their quest for
the title, plus a field events contingent
so impressive that Illinois coach Gary
Wieneke said, "Their field events are
Why would you
want to bowl
anywhere else;
Mchigan Union
lpnes
open til 1 am tonight
the strongest they have been in the
Midwest in a long time."
In the view of several coaches, In-
diana looks to be in the driver's seat.
"Indiana has to be favored for the title
on the basis of its strong field events,"
said Wieneke. The Hoosiers' Sam Bell,
a little more tempered in his opinion,
says "I think it'll be between Indiana
and Michigan, with Illinois, Michigan
State, Wisconsin, Ohio State, and
perhaps Purdue battling it out in the
next group.''
Indiana's field events are what con-
cerns Harvey the most. "They could
come out of the field events with over
fifty points if they're hot, which could
be half of the winning total," commen-
ted Harvey.
Compounding the Wolverines'
problems are injuries to several key
performers. Distance ace Steve Elliott
has had a virus, and hurdler Don
Wheeler and sprinter Andrew Bruce
both have sore groins. "We pulled
Bruce out of the final in the CCC meet,
and didn't run any of the three last
week," said Harvey. All three are ex-
pected to run this weekend.
Women aim high
The women's indoor track team
heads down to Columbus this weekend
for the Big Ten Championships, looking
to improve on last year's eighth-place
finish. Blue coach Ken Simmons is
cautiously optimistic about the squad's
chances for moving up in the standing:
"We're better this year, but tli
quality of competition is better," said
Simmons recently. "We ought to move
up one or two places. My guess would
be sixth or seventh, depending on hof
lucky we are."
Simmons foresees sp-rinterv
Catherine Sharpe, Pam Moore and
sprinter-hurdler Renee Turner to score
the bulk of the Wolverines' points, along
with Marianne Dickerson in the distarn
ce events. "I look for Dickerson to placo
somewhere in the 1500 and 3000," comf
mented Simmons.
Wisconsin, the defending Big Tell
titlist, appears to have the inside track
on the top spot again, according to
Simmons. "I've got to say Wisconsin is
the strongest team," he commented. :
Mamie Rallins, coach of the host Ohib
State squad, even went so far as to say,
"I'm just afraid Wisconsin's going tp
walk away with the title again."
The Buckeyes were expected to
challenge the Badgers for the title, bu
a rash of injuries have severely hur
their chances.
"We're not good enough to win
anything, but we'll knock out a few
fourth, fifth, and sixth places," saiA
Simmons, summing up thesituation.