The Michigan Daily - Sports Monday - November 25, 1991 - Page 7 Women divers impress n double-dual meet by Kimberly DeSempelaere Daily Sports Writer The Michigan women's diving team dominated the boards for its third meet in a row, defeating Iowa and Penn State in a double-dual meet Friday afternoon. All six Michigan divers per- formed well, but senior Lisa Cribari was in top form, capturing first place in both the one- and three-me- ter competitions. Cribari was one of five swimming team members to win more than one event. The competition was fierce in the one-meter platform dive, as Cribari defeated Iowa's Katie Ketoff by only 3.4 points. Cribari had previ- ously competed against Ketoff at last year's NCAA Championship meet. The rest of the Michigan squad was led by sophomore Martha Wenzel (249.6), who snatched third place, followed by seniors Margie Stoll (238.4) who ranked fourth, and Karen Sinclair, (213.9) who rounded out the top eight. The three-meter dive was a Michigan monopoly, aq the Wolver- ines collected four of the top eight spots. Cribari took first, (278.30) followed by a distant Stoll (259.9) in third. Tri-captain senior Julie Greyer (241.4) snagged fifth place, in front of eighth place sophomore Cinnamon Woods (210.75). "Overall, we did all right," Woods said. "There were things we 'Overall, we did all right....We were pretty happy with the results' - Cinnamon Woods Michigan diver could have done better, but I guess we were pretty happy with the re- sults." The Wolverine diving team's main concern this year is to place among the top-five teams at the Big Ten meet. "All the divers would also like to make it to the NCAA Champi- onships," Woods said. But right now the team is fo- cused on its next meet - the Michigan Invitational. Margie Stoll, one of the top-ranked Michigan divers, placed third on the three-meter platform at Friday's meet. r FU L L COOU R T PRESS- Romar baffles Blue with 45-point effort by David Schechter Daily Basketball Writer Romar who? Michigan coach Steve Fisher wondered, "Why isn't this guy in the NBA?" And Wolverine guard Michael Talley felt the same, "That Romar should be in the NBA." The Wolverines narrowly escaped defeat at the hands of one Lorenzo "Long Range" Romar. He plays for Michigan's last opponent, Athletes in Action. Romar electrified a Palace crowd that came to see the Wolverines, but got something extra. Throwing in 45 points, including three-pointers from NBA range, he had a truly magical game. He even completed a four-point play against Jimmy King, as he scraped the bottom of his bag of tricks and hurled a no-look bomb over King's head. But you've got to wonder if this wasn't the best possible thing that could have happened to a young Michigan team. When your picture shows up in every existing sports publication, including this week's Sports Illustrated, your vision can get slightly blurred. So when a creampuff team on your preseason schedule takes you to the brink of defeat, it's time to get back to work. Many Michigan fans only see the game side of Coach Fisher. He seems calm and subdued, sort of like your dad at a picnic. Don't be fooled by the facade. He is one of the best in the game. He is about as tough as coaches come in practice situations. He is not happy right now, and don't think he won't put his team to work thissweek.Hard work. "We're not a good basketball team right now. It was obvious (against Athletes in Action). We've got lots of work to do. But I'm convinced that we'll be a good team. And I'm hoping quickly," Fisher said. This team is going to be great, and the talent is unbelievable. But the players need time. Time to gel. Time to understand each other. Time to get a feeling for the game of college basketball. This near-loss, as Fisher said, "was the best thing for us." It's much better that Michigan take its lumps now. WHEN IN ROMAR: When a basketball player drifts into what's known as a zone of altered conciousness, things can get real exciting, real fast. In a sense, the basketball becomes an extension of the body. Hearing nothing, feeling nothing, and seeing only the rim, it's the kind of game that comes once, maybe twice, in an athlete's career. For Lorenzo Romar it came last Thursday night. Two superhuman games from Isiah Thomas come to mind as prime examples. In the 1984 playoffs against Bernard King and the New York Knicks, Thomas played with the inspiration of Einstein on the brink of relativity, scoring 16 points in the final 94 seconds of the fourth quarter. Four years later in the 1988 NBA Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers, Thomas set a Finals record for most points in a quarter when he poured in a lethal combination of jump shots and daring drives for 25 points in the third. In his frenzied quest for the title, Zeke did all this on a nearly-immobile, swollen ankle. Of course, Lorenzo Romar is no Isiah Thomas. At his best, the 33-year- old was a journeyman player in the NBA. But that can't take away from the fact that for one night in Auburn Hills there was no one better. -rianHarpe :::::: 6th-Ph i .:T.. ........:. SeanBorme~t 58 .:.::.3::d Spikers continue slide, fall twice on road by Ryan Herrington Daily Sports Writer During a Cinderella season in which the Michigan women's vol- leyball team has risen high above everyone's expectations, the clock might have struck midnight for the Wolverines this weekend. Michigan dropped both of its matches, losing to Purdue in five games Friday and getting swept by Illinois the following night. The losses extended the Wolverines' losing streak to three straight, and six of its last seven contests. Michigan (8-10 in the Big Ten, 17-12 overall) entered its final road weekend of the season hoping to at least come away with a split in or- der to maintain its .500 conference record. Playing in front of a crowd of 2,509 in Champaign Saturday was not easy for Michigan. Illinois (13- 5, 18-7) had something to prove to the Wolverines following its four- game loss earlier in the year at Keen Arena. Michigan was met by a de- termined Illini squad, which took the first game, 15-13, and never looked back, finishing the match with scores of 15-8 and 15-13 in the final two games. "It was a tough weekend at Illi- nois," first-year middle blocker Aimee Smith said. "The crowd was very loud and close to the court. They were saying things and were causing some distractions. We just weren't focused on the match." Illinois was led by outside hitter Lorna Henderson. Henderson, who is second in Big Ten hitting effi- ciency behind Michigan's Michelle Horrigan, had 18 kills for the Illini. Against Purdue (8-9, 11-15) Fri- day, the Wolverines played game one as if in a trance. They were quickly defeated, 15-5, thanks in part to the net play of Boilermaker Carey Burvis - who led the Boil- ermakers with 20 kills on the night - and in part to their own sloppy performance. The Wolverines hit .026 in the first game. "We started slow against Pur- due," Smith said. "We weren't able to get any momentum until games three, four and five, and that hurt us," Indeed, Michigan did start to get into the flow of the match, but it proved to be too little, too late. Ju- nior setter Tarnisha Thompson, who paced the Wolverines with 56 as- sists - a career high - could not help lead Michigan back. After tak- ing games two and four, Michigan ran out of steam, losing a tough fifth game by the score of 19-17. While Michigan did finish with 85 kills to Purdue's 76, the Wolverines hitting efficiency was only .186. Men spikers tire at MSU tourney by Dan Linna Daily Sports Writer After more than 14 hours of competition, the Michigan men's volleyball club had to settle for second place in the MSU Comeback Classic Saturday. It was 10:30 p.m. when the Wolverines, who began playing at 8 a.m., fell to Notre Dame. ' "We were exhausted," coach Tom Johengen said. "There was def- initely a fatigue factor. Notre Dame is a much improved team from last year, but we didn't underestimate them." The Wolverines started the day by going 6-0 in their four-team pool to advance to the next round of the 24-team tournament. The Wolver- ines then disposed of Purdue, two games to none, to advance to the semifinals, where they met Wiscon- sin. The Badgers proved a more stub- born opponent, as the Wolverines dropped their first game of the day, but still advanced with a 2-1 vic- tory. Michigan came storming out to take the first game of the champi- onship match against Notre Dame. However, the Irish came back to win the final two games and the title. "In the first game against Notre Dame, we served well and they didn't pass well," junior Steve Arellano said. "Then in the next two games, they started passing well, and that's the key. It killed us not to win. It wasn't so much that they out-talented us, but that we were emotionally down. We were fatigued. It is tough to get up for every game on a long day like that." "When you play all day people are bound to get tired," senior Jack Behar said. "I think there is no ques- tion that we are better than Notre Dame." The preseason tournament al- lowed the Wolverines to begin the day with a 4-2 lineup, which in- cludes two setters. This lineup worked well in pool play, but the team changed to a standard 5-1 set, featuring Arellano as the setter, for the rest of the tournament. LSA Student Government Presents: The Sports and Academics Forum: "Pros and Cons" An evening to ask prominent personalities anything and everything about the world of sports and academics. Columnist Mitch Albom Channel 4 Sports Anchor Bernie Smilovitz Hockey Coach Red Berenson Academic Affairs V.P. Dr. Mary Swain NIVERSITY 000 0 ROE BOW TICKIETS! ROSE BOWL SH EAD0UARTERS Sand sl n up for 00 .L .l L/%1 t1 Viia V 1.i-s - -- Y +. Michigan Basketball Star Sam Mitchell DECEMBER 4, 1991 RACKHAM AUDITORIUM