The Michigan Daily - Sports Monday - April 2, 1990 - Page 5
WolvierneTennisPreview
i ~Indiana - our No. 3 played Indiana's No. 1. But other
aily Spors Wrter than that, we really don't know how we'll do
(individually) head to head."
With a last place finish in the Big Ten last year, the Oiit o f th e Ce lla rAthiponhenlwaMcignanesis
All they can do is improve. At this point, the only way Michigan can test its
ichawomn'staenistemthaBgnlamprovyetindividual matchups in the Big Ten is to look at
Michigan women's tennis team has only improvement previous match results with common opponents of
"There is really no pressure on the team," said No.1 T o p nsh o u ld hthemselves and their future opponents. But even this is
singles player Christine Schmeidel. "We can only
"We have some common opponents (with other Big
improve, which is nice."* aepc1 Ten teams). Wisconsin beat South Florida 6-3. We beat
Improving is just what they have been doing so far vflafeliflae fiVfl South Florida by the same score, but then again, we
this season. With fifteen non-conference matches behind a rr wJ N W Jls oFoiaSae81 icni ette -,
them, the Wolverines head into Big Ten play boasting a hARtt explained. a "Sttto, in looking at coimmn oppnents
12-3 record, already surpassing last year's win total of Riteplmd 'Sinloin tcomnopoet
12-3. Treord, eay surssinglast yer's n to ta oit's very difficult to tell how you'll stack up against one
nine. The early success should work to boost teams, school (individually)."
onidencey do'vkno howwe'*dgaistsMany of the top Michigan players have been very
"I rall dont kow ow w'lldo gaint teseconsistent in their play throughout the first half of the
(conference) teams," said coach Bitsy Ritt. "I think we sg
are very confident going into these matches; we have a season. At No. 1, Schmeidel has achieved a 14-1 dual
good non-conference record, and I think the players are record, and is now ranked 31st nationally.
very con-fident that we can do well in the BigaTenrs ar(Christines record) should give her a lot of
T Wver in s atrwe cankd wellt the Big Ten" sp iconfidence going into the Big Ten season," Ritt said.
The Wolverines are ranked at the number five spot in "But, then again, at No. J she'll face a solid player in
the Big Ten preseason coaches poll. They had the same every single match, so she'll have to be ready."
slot last year, but it obviously had no impact on their eeJry Stacy Ber, oldin dow te No.2sn
play at the Big Ten Tournament, which alone decidesJnirSayBghdngdwthN.2snge
play at t hen BigcTes nd Tourn ament.which alonposition, has also com piled a solid record of 11-4. No.
the conference standings. '3 Beamon is 12-3 on the season, as is Aland at No. 5.
So why should this year's expectations be any Though Beamon has recorded an impressive mark so
different? far, her inexperience in facing the competitive field of
First, Michigan has gained five new players. Three Big Ten teams might begin to show later. Ritt,
of the top five singles spots (Schmeidel at No. 1, frosh however, has confidence in her first-year standout.
Kalei Beamon at No. 3, and Lindsay Aland at No. 5) are lq"I think she'll see quickly the intensity of the Big
handled by newcomers. Each of the three competifg Ten schedule, but I'm confident that she can handle it,"
doubles teams include one of these three. Two more Ritt said. "She is an experienced USTA (United States
first-year players round out the five. Tennis Association) player, she has been nationally
"With the five we've brought in it has completely <r&4 ys2 ranked for years, so pressure and close matches are
changed the team," said Ritt. "The two freshman walk- tnothing new to her. She'll be able to handle it right
ens add a lot of depth.'' N 4 away."
In addition to the new team members, the %' >The strength and the consistency of the singles are
Wolverines keep all but two of their players from last the Wolverines' biggest assets. Their troubles this year
year, losing only one letterwinner. , /have stemmed mainly from the doubles. The No. 1
Also to be taken into consideration is the improve- team of Schmeidel and Jennifer Lev and the No. 3 team
ment of the team's non-conference play over the of Aland and Amy Malik are both at.500 with 5-5 and
previous year. By this point last season, Michigan was Junior Stacy Berg demonstrates her backhand stroke during practice at the Track and Tennis Building. Berg 3-3 records, respectively At No. 2 doubles, Berg and
only 4-7, after losing their first seven matches. will play an important role in Michigan's quest for improvement in the Big Ten this year competing at both No. Beamon have posted a competitive 8-4 record. The
f The squad lost once last year to both Western 2 singles and No. 2 doubles with partner Kalei Beamon. current No. 3 team of Aland and Frederika Adam are 3-
Michigan and Eastern Michigan, 5-4 and 6-3 1.
respectively. This year, the Wolverines defeated the Yet, the task could be surprisingly easier than the "Indiana is picked to come in first and I think that's "It's not so much that we're having problems with
Broncos 7-2 and 6-3, and the Hurons 9-0 and 5-4. rankings would predict. Wisconsin, already five games accurate. I think they're definitely the strongest team in the doubles, it's that the doubles aren't as strong as the
The Wolverines also have two tough road trips under into the conference season, has been plagued with the Big Ten," Ritt said, "although some teams have singles. We're doing so well in singles," said sixth year
their belt, one in Texas and the other in Florida, giving problems, holding down a record of only 1-4. played them close this year, so they may be beatable." coach Ritt.
the squad some experience against national teams Northwestern, too, has had trouble living up to In close matches, it is usually desirable to split the
outside its region. expectations, with a 2-2 Big Ten mark. Though wins and losses are generally viewed from a singles matches, winning three of six, and capture two
The only losses Michigan has suffered this year team standpoint, success in tennis depends entirely on victories in doubles, creating the five individual wins
came from tough Texan squads over spring break. Indiana represents the Wolverines' last opponent individual performances, and how those performances needed for the team victory.
One factor that could deter the Wolverines is the before the Big Ten Championship tournament, and will match up with others. A team must win five individual "Actually, I think our doubles are improving, and I
opponents they must face over the next few weeks. definitely pose the biggest challenge of the season. Last events, out of a combined six singles and three doubles would expect them to be competitive," concluded Ritt.
Michigan will go up against Wisconsin and Northwest- year, the Hoosiers were the conference champions, matches, in order to capture a team victory. "I would think in many matches in the Big Ten we
ern, seeded number two and four respectively in the claiming both the Big Ten Player of the Year (Kelly would be able to win two out of three matches and
preseason poll. Mulvihill) and Big Ten Freshman of the Year "We have had some of our players play Big Ten that's what you want to do."
"In terms of the schedule we really play the strongest (Stephanie Reece). This season, they remain undefeated opponents in tournaments," Ritt said. "For example, Right now, the Big Ten race is wide open. Armed
teams first, with the exception of Indiana," Ritt said. in play so far. Despite their strengths, Indiana may still Stacy Berg at No. 2 has beaten the No. 2 player from with their consistency and improvement, the Wolverine
"So we're going to have to play our best tennis early." be fallible. Iowa. Kalei (Beamon) has played the No. 1 player from squad is looking for a place to jump in.
.{COU Big Ten race not based
i on non-league success
Remaining 1989-90 Schedule
Current Record: 12-3 (0-0 Big Ten)
(excluding this weekend's matches)
I f - Ia
I
DATE
OPPONENT
w V Y " y
by Douglas Donaldson
Daily Sports Writer
t Remember those giant chocolate
bunnies you used to get for Easter?
Wasn't it always a disappoint-
ment to bite into one, only to dis-
cover that it was hollow? It was
frustrating, because there was no
way to tell, from just looking at it,
what was on the inside.
Believe it or not, this is the same
feeling many coaches experience
every season. If the inside of the
* bunny is compared to a team's per-
formance within its own conference,
the outer shell would most certainly
be its non-conference record. There's
just no easy way to project a team's
conference play, which usually are
the games that matter most, from
merely looking at its non-conference
results.
Although the Michigan women's
tennis team has compiled an impres-
*live 12-3 record this year against
non-conference opponents, it does
hot guarantee a stellar season for
coach Bitsy Ritt's team. What then,
can we predict about the rest of the
season? As you may have guessed,
not a "hole" lot.
According to Ritt, "the most
important numbers for us now are 0-
0. Some of-the other schools are two
and three games into the Big Ten
season, but we're just getting
.underway. It's like starting over."
Ritt is pleased with the way the
team is playing, but sees two areas
as focal points for improvement.
4"We're still trying to improve our
doubles play. We'll play well for a
while, but then at times we look
very mediocre. We'd like to perform
consistently each time out.
"We also want to -be more
aggressive in singles, so we can go
Michigan defeated the Illini last
season 6-3, and should have little
trouble duplicating that feat this year
against one of the lower-division
teams in the conference.
5. Purdue
1989 Big Ten finish: 6th
The Wolverines and Boilermakers
split a pair of matches last season,
with Michigan winning 7-2 in the
regular season, but losing 8-1 at the
Big Ten Championships.
6. Michigan State
1989 Big Ten finish: 5th
All the numbers and all the
rankings go out the window
whenever the Blue and Green square
off, so there's no telling what will
happen when these two friendly
rivals meet in East Lansing on April
18. But for the record, the
Wolverines did narrowly defeat the
Spartans last year, by the score of 5-
4.
7. Ohio State
1989 Big Ten finish: 9th
Although the Buckeyes are one of
the weaker teams in the conference,
Michigan split the two matches
between them last season. It was a
loss to OSU in last year's Big Tens
that led to the Wolverines' 10th
place finish. Michigan will certainly
be aiming to make up for that
disappointment this time around.
8. Indiana
1989 Big Ten finish: 1st
Arguably the best tennis program
in the conference, the Indiana squad
claimed four out of the six spots on
the 1989 All-Big Ten first team-
singles. Hypothetically, this means
that Indiana's No. 4 seed could defeat
tt~ AT 1-4--o.n---"
April
April
April
April
April
April
April
April
April
May
7
8
12
14
15
18
21
22
27-29
9-17
WISCONSIN, 11:00 am
NORTHWESTERN, 10:00 am
NOTRE DAME, 2:00 pm
Illinois
Purdue
Michigan State
OHIO STATE, 11:00 am
INDIANA, 9:00 am
Big Ten Championships
NCAA Championships
CAPS = Home Matches
O A ki- -s1t-';a nlfI!4fna
m l ;N1v
JOSE JUAREZ/Daily
No. 4 singles player Amy Malik prepares to return a serve at practice in
the Track and Tennis Building. Malik currently holds a non-conference
record of 8-6.
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from last year's dual matches are
given, as well as each school's
finish after the 1989 Big Ten
Championships. Schools are listed
in the order in which the Wolverines
will face them.
1. Wisconsin
1989 Big Ten finish: 2nd
One of the strongest teams in the
2. Northwestern
1989 Big Ten finish: 3rd
Also among the conference elite,
the Wildcats are similar to
Wisconsin, in that they also handed
Michigan a 9-0 loss last season.
What's so special about these teams
with animal mascots?
3. Notre Dame
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