WOLVERINES PSYCHED OUT?
leers-a seven
ByERROL SHIFMAN
A Daily Sports analysis
After watching the Michigan icers drop their
sixth straight game, 5-2, Sunday afternoon to the
Minnesota Gophers, it appeared that things were as
bad as they could get. The Wolverines looked inept
and nothing was going right for them.
Then, the team bus broke down on the way home
from Willow Run Airport to Ann Arbor..
The team was stranded for an hour on I-94, one
half mile from the State Street exit. What kind of ef-
fects can a day like this have on a player's mind,
especially on the heels of a long losing streak?
THE WOLVERINES showed signs of snapping
their streak in Sunday's first period. Michigan for-
ced the play throughout the period and John Olver
scored a power play goal at 11:38 and there was
hope.
Olver's goal was of the fluke variety as it bounced
in off his body into the net but when your down
anything will do. Cheap goals seem a big part of
long winning streaks. When the first period ended
Michigan 1, Minnesota 0, the team had to be in-
spired.
If they were inspired it did not last long. The
Gophers picked up the tying goal at 4:30 of the
second stanza as center Steve Christoff (who com-
piled three goals and three assists in the series)
picked up a rebound and beat 'M' goalie Frank
Zimmerman.
From then on, except for some outstanding saves
by Zimmerman, it was all Gophers. Minnesota.
would get three or four shots at a time while the
Wolverines had to struggle to get their sticks on the
puck. In fact, Minnesota had two goals called back
in the third period or the score would have been
higher.
The reason the two goals were nullified was the
Gophers' overzealousness. One goal was ruled null
because it was kicked in by Christoff. Their
aggressiveness gained them numerous scoring
chances. In fact after Rob McClanahan's goal gave
the Gophers a 5-1 lead, two Minnesota players ended
up in the Michigan net.
MICHIGAN could manage to put only one other
thing into the Minnesota net, Dan Lerg's shot
through the legs of Gopher goalie Paul Joswiak at
15:02 of the last period.
Coach Dan Farrell attributed a big part of the loss
and the streak to the players' personalities.
"It's a lack of a lot of things," explained Farrell.
"We've got a lot of followers and not a lot of leaders,
not a lot of kids with drive."
FARRELL SAYS that when the pressurejis on you
find out who your players are. Farrell believes, as I
do, that a player's mental state determines how he
plays.
Certainly Michigan's problem cannot be a lack of
talent. The same team won 11 of its first 14 games
this year. But if they're not careful, certain factors
enter the players' minds and poof ! A losing streak.
Then the problems compound themselves.
This losing streak started possibly with a touch of
over confidence. After routing Wisconsin at home,
the icers had to be mentally high for the series up at
Michigan Tech. Maybe too high. Tech swept the
series.
NOW THE players started doubting themselves,
they began changing little parts of their game and
that little bit of aggressiveness needed to win was
gone. The players started being too careful.
Then the media starts criticizing the team, the
coach starts blaming certain individuals and the
snowball grows. Excuses start popping up.
Sure Michigan was only at home once in the mon-
th of December and have played eight of its last ten
games on the road. Granted it is tougher to win on
the road but it has been done. The coach starts
ame itch
giving these excuses to the press and the players
start believing they cannot win on the road. A win-
ning team cannot have these things in their heads.
Soon the benchings and the line-up changes start.
Someone has to take the blame, maybe the changes
will shake something up. But how do these changes
offset the players' confidence?
FOR INSTANCE Michigan's defense was shoddy.
Forward Ben Kawa who had limited experience on
defense, was moved back to help out. In the process
Dave Brennan was benched. Can this help the con-
fidence of the defense as a unit?
The coaches are not dealing with professionals
and the all out goal of winning to earn a living.
They're dealing with kids and for them, more than
for the professional, it's what's in the head that
counts.,
The Michigan icers will have to get their heads
together and stop letting the criticisms and excuses
get them down-all of that crap is involved in the
game. A game we know they can play.
Weak Wolverines
FIRST PERIOD
Scoring-1-M Olver (Hamp~on, Miller) 11:38. Penalties-Minn-
Lind (charging) 9:55; Minn-Meredith (roughing) 13:21; M-Turner
(hooking) 17:15
SECOND PERIOD
Scoring-2-Minn-Christoff (Verchota, Harrer) 4:30; 3-Minn-
Boo (Lambert, Lind) 12:47; 4-Minn-Christoff (Verchota, Boo)
17:46. Penalties-Minn-Doshan (holding) 15:24; M-Thayer (hook-
ing) 16:01; Minn-Baker (crosschecking) 19:16
THIRD PERIOD
Scoring-5-Minn-Pepper (Christoff, Verchota) 5:03; 6-Minn-
McClanahan (Doshan, J. Baker) 6:43; 7-M-Lerg (Coffman,
Mars) 15:02. Penalties-Minn-Christoff (hooking) 1:31; M-Thayer
(tripping) 3:05; M-Turner (hooking) 7:27
SAVES
The Michigan Daily-Tuesday, January 17, 1978-Page 9
Recreational
w~ ~o;L~SPOTS
For information 'on~Recreational Sports at the University, watch this
weekly column and refer to the posters in the CCRB, NCRB and the IM
Building.
" Men's Intramural Sports-Turn entries to IM Building, 606 E. Hoover,
763-3562.
Bowling (singles) and Handball (doubles) entries are due January 18.
Entries for all-campus table tennis (singles) and independent, gradu-
ate, residence hall and fraternity paddleball are due January 23. Faculty/
staff entries in paddleball are welcome on a doubles only basis.
" Special Interest Recreation-A clinic on Family fitness will be held
in the North Campus Recreation Building exercise room on January 22
from 3-5 p.m. For further information, contact Ellen Gold at 763-4560.
Registration for children's and adolescent programs are underway
at the North Campus Recreation Building. For fee and schedule infor-
mation, call 763-4560. Registration Session I, for 3-6 year olds still has a
few openings, but Session II, 7-10 year olds, is filled.
There are a few openings available for anyone interested in Physical
Activity Instruction for Faculty and Staff. The registration deadline is
January 23. For more information, call Rochelle Bast at 763-3084.
I
RACKHAM GRAD SCHOOL
Grad fellowship financial aid brown bag sessio
Wed. Jan. 18, 12-2 p.m., 4th floor. Assembly Ha
Rackham Bldg. Representatives of Graduate Fe
lowships Office and the Office of Financial Aid wi
discuss current and 1978-79 fellowship and financ
aid opportunities. Bring your lunch and a friend.
. I
Zimmerman (M)
Joswiak (Minn)
8 11 8-27
6 12 11-29
WOMEN CA GErS DROP TWOa
Blue, trips on'road
Patrick J. Gregoary,
AFROTC 2-yr. CADET, Meteorology Major
UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN
"Meteorology is not a career field open to only the
Atmospheric Science majors. Any student majoring in
math, the natural sciences, or engineering can get into
the Air Force meteorology program. Being the largest
employer of meteorologists in the country, the Air Force
can provide the student with good opportunities for
professional growth. Likewise, the AFROTC on the U of M
campus has on excellent program in developing profes-
sionalism through its managerial and leadership classes.
The Air Force ROTC is a good start in building a
career.
Sophomores and students with two years of school
remaining, call 764-2405 for additional information.
By BILLY NEFF
There's nothing like home sweet,
home! The women's basketball
team is rapidly finding that out this
winter; in Michigan's first ten
games, it has eight losses, 'all of
them coming on the road. The
rebuilding quintet has won both of its
home games. .
This"weekend in Indiana, the
women suffered a fate similar to
past road trips. In West Lafayette,
Gloria Soluk's girls came back from
a 47-27 halftime deficit against Pur-
due, staging a furious rally before
succumbing 79-69.
With two and a half minutes
remaining in the contest and the
cagers trailing by a mere four poin-
ts, sophomore guard Jean Otto
drove inside and was fouled (accor-
ding to coach Soluk) but there was
no call, thus ending her team's
comeback hopes.P
Freshperson center Abby Currier,
the team's leading scorer this
season, stood out once again with 26
points on 11 of 23 field goal shooting
wile ga'nering 14 rebounds. Karen
Gilhooley and Brenda Venhuizen
split 20 points evenly.
Sasturday the women traveled to
Assembly Hall in Bloomington,
Bobby Knight's haven, and came
away wishing they hadn't made the
trip. Soluk's squad ran into a "buz-
zsaw" in a 79-51 defeat.
Currier, once again, was the
shining light for the Wolverines as
she notched 14 points on 7-12
shooting. Unfortunately, none of her
teammates posted more than seven
points and the rest of the team shot a
mere 21 per cent from the field.
The women's basketball mentor
spoke frankly of her team's
problems, "Ourkids have to learn to
play good, strong defense. We have
to really work on our fundamentals
like dribbling."
And what will be the ultimate
solution to the women's basketball
problems? "We have to have a good
recruiting year." Yes, they do.
#<
;".
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