0 Page 8-Saturday, March 27, 1982--The Michigan Daily 7- .w v " ' 73T . *ibWolverine second baseman Jacobst currently carrying a .452 average U ~~nB SA R QAH AlH ER BER ' o~n ty Jn nens~ Jeff Jacobson has always been consistent in his defensive play on the baseball diamond. Last year, the Michigan second baseman ended the season with a .976 fielding average and went 30 straight games without committing an error. OFFENSIVELY, however, Jacobson has had his problems. His batting average of .231 for the 1981 season, which was one of the lowest of the team's starters, earned him the ninth spot in the batting order. Things definitely appear to be on the upswing for the Glen- NS JEFF Jacobson, shown view, Ill, native. iht taking a swing against DURING THEIR spring trip to Texas, where the [ichigan, has gotten off to a Wolverines emerged with an 8-3 record, Jacobson hit his way t the plate this year. After 11 to the second-best average for Michigan by batting .452 (Jim e junior second baseman is Paciorek is first with .528). And his glove work is still on 152, second Among the target, as he now claims a .960 fielding percentage. s. His fielding has remained The Business School student said he is not surprised with low, Jacobson is shown com- his recent success. "It kind of carried over from the sum- doubleplay against New mer;"he explained. last year's Mideast Regional Jacobson played summer ball for the Danville Roosters of ne. the Central Illinois League. It was during this time that his batting started to improve greatly, as he led the collegiate league in hitting. "JAKE DID have a good (spring) trip," said head Michigan baseball coach Bud Middaugh. "But batting averages are misleading after 12 games." Both Jacobson and Middaugh know where his troubles as a baseball player lie. "Hitting has always been my weakness," admitted the in- fielder. His hopes for this year are to hit in the mid 300's. "JACOBSON HAS been working a little more offensively. We know he's a good defensive player but he had to work Dail. Photo by PAUL ENGSTROM more at the offensive," said Middaugh. "Everybody has deficiencies. Jacobson has been working to play better offen- sively." The next step the junior hopes to take is into the professional ranks. "I'd obviously like to play pro ball-maybe to be drafted this year," he said. "It's something I've always dreamed of. I don't think I'm too far off from making it." UNTIL THAT time Jacobson is concentrating on his school work. Majoring in finance and marketing, he insists thatO "school work does come first." Because of the rigors of the Business School, his commit- ment to studies will mean missing the second game of a doubleheader on March 31 against Grand Valley due to an exam scheduled at the same time. Middaugh jokingly commented that if Michigan should lose, "it will all be Jake's fault." IT WAS MIDDAUGH'S decision to accept the job at Michigan that enticed Jacobson to enroll here. "The coach was the main factor. I was supposed to go to Miami of Ohio where he (Middaugh) used to coach,",said Jacobson. "I knew nothing about this school," he continued. "He made his decision and then I came up here." JACOBSON HAS no regrets in following the Wolverine skipper to his new domain. "He's lived up to all my expec- tations and more. Jacobson should have no reason to question his decision to suit up as a Wolverine. In the two years he has been here, Michigan has won the Big Ten title twice and made the trip to the College World Series two times. This year the season looks as promising as the past two. "WE ARE THE best team in the Big Ten on paper," said Jacobson, somewhat confidently. "Everyone's picking us to be the favorites again." Should Jacobson-be able to continue his hitting streak, it is quite possible that he will be drafted into the pros. If not he will have plenty to fall back on. Besides being currently enrolled in .the Business School, Jacobson is also an excellent student, as last year he-was a candidate for the All-Academic team. HIS FUTURE aspirations are not confined to the baseball diamond. "I plan at some point in the future to get.an.MBA," said Jacobson Jacobson has proven that hard work does pay off. His dedication to the game is evident by his ability. Though most comfortable at second base, he is quite capable of taking on the position of shortstop, which he was forced to do when Tony Evans was sidelined last season. "I'm pretty much versatile," added Jacobson. SPORTS OF THE DAILY: Michigan tankers in 16th. Special to the Daily MILWAUKEE, Wisc. - The Michigan men's swim team is in 16th place after eight events in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) swimming and diving championships in Milwaukee. The Wolverine's have ac- cumulated 13 points in the meet which began Thursday., Wolverine diver Ron Merriott, who is currently in second place in the three- meter diving competition, has been the strongest finisher for the team. The Rockford, Ill. native, a two-time NCAA All-American, finsihed fourth Thursday night in the one-meter competition. Today Merriott heads into the final- round of the three-meter bout with 263;75 points. Other Wolverine finishers include: Bruce Gemmell, who finished 17th in the 400-yard individual medley: Fer- nando Canales, who finished 13th in the 200-meter freestyle: and the 800-meter freestyle relay team of Christian Van- dersluis,! Gemmell Canales and' Thomas Dudley, which finished 23rd. in both the official coaches balloting and in media balloting conducted by the South Bend, Ind., Tribune. In the 1982 season, McPhee had 28 goals and 52 assists for a total of 80 points in 38 games. He scored 11 power plays,, five game-winning goals, a hat trick and three short-handed goals. Bowling Green Coach Jerry York= said, "George is a complete player. He combines offense and defense to be an outstanding two-way player. He is a great forechecker, plays the body well, handles the puck extremely well and knows what to do around the net." McPhee will be honored at the Hobey Baker memorial award dinner next Wedensday at the Decathlon Club. Hauks 100, Pacers 87 INDIANAPOLIS (AP)- Dan Roun- dfield scored 17 of his game-high 25 points in the first half and grabbed 15 rebounds, leading the Atlanta Hawks to a 100-87 victory over the Indiana Pacers in the National Basketball Association last night. John Drew, who scored eight of Atlanta's first 10 points, sparked the Hawks to an early 10-2 advantage, and Indiana never drew closer than seven points. BILLY KNIGHT led Indiana with 22 points, helped by a pair of three-point goals. Jolhnny Davis added 20 for the, Pacers. The Hawks, who opened a 3/2-game lead over Indiana in their battle for the Eastern Division's last playoff berth with the victory, jumped to a 57-37 half- time advantage. - Indiana, which shot only 30 percent in the first half, fell behind by as many as 24 points, 75-51, with 3:04 left in the third quarter, and managed to cut its deficit to nine late in the game. Drew contributed 17 points to Atlanta's fifth victory in its last six games and the 10th in 13. Pirates 4, Royals 4 BRADENTON, Fla. (AP) - John Wathan's triple brought home the tying run for Kansas City in the ninth inning, as the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Royals battled to a 4-4 tie in an exhibition baseball game called after 12 innings yesterday. The game was called by mutual con- sent due to a lack of available pitchers. THE PIRATES took a 2-0 lead in the first inning on Dave Parker's first home run of spring training. Omar Moreno, who walked and stole second, also scored on the home ruh. The Pirates, 12-6-1, doubled their lead to 4-0 in the third inning. Johnny Ray singled and Jimmy Smith' doubled him to third. Pitcher Rick Rhoden ,singled Ray home and Moreno singeed Smith home. KANSAS CITY, 7-9-2, narrowed the margin to 4-1 in the sixth inning on a solo home run by Amos Otis. The Royals added two more runs in eighth inning. Wathan singled, stole second and scored on a single by George Brett. Later in the inning, James Quirk singled to drive in Brett. In the ninth inning, Kansas City tied the score when Buddy Biancalana singled and Wathan tripled, driving Biancalana home. Phillies 8, White Sox 7 CLEARWATELR, Fla. (AP)- George Vukovich raced home on a one- out chopper in the, bottom of the ninth iniing to give the Philadelphia Phillies an 8-7 exhibition victory over the Chicago White Sox yesterday. Vukovich reached base with an in- field single and advanced to third on Bob Dernier's fourth hit of the game. Julio Franco then hit a high bouncer and Vukovich beat third baseman Jose Castro's throw home. CARLTON FISK, with a single and sacrifice fly, had staked Chicago to a 3- 0 lead in the third inning. The Phillies came back with three runs in the third and four more in the fifth. Gary Matthews' three-run homer was the big blow of the fifth inning. Matthews now is hitting .435 this spring and has knocked in 16 runs in 16 games: Philadelphia left-handed reliever Tug McGraw made his first pitching ap- pearance of the spring. McGraw, who underwent surgery on his left elbow in the off season, pitched one inning and allowed only a walk. Phillies All-Star first baseman Pete 4 Rose, who has been recovering from a back muscle problem, is expected to play in his first spring game Saturday against the Los Angeles Dodgers. SCORES NBA Boston 125. Detroit 104 M(>rriott ...currently in second IG 's McPIhee awarded BLOOMINGTON, Minn. (AP) - George McPhee, a senior wing at Bowling Green University, was named the 1982 winner of the Hobey Baker Award, the Decathlon Athletic Club an- nounced yesterday. The award is given for leadership and excellence in college hockey. McPhee, a native of Gwelph, Ontario, is the highest hockey scorer in the Ohio school's history. He also holds the Cen- tral Collegiate Hockey Association record for career points and is a co- captain of the Falcons. HE WAS A first-team All-CCHA pick How many Foreign SMedicalSchools have requested N.Y. State approval for Clerkship Training Am Programs? .Is Rou ndfield ... 25 points, 15 rebounds G~REKWEEK