Baseball vs. Minnesota DH Saturday and Sunday, 1p.m. Fisher Stadium SPORTS Softball at Penn Sta Today, 3 p.n Lady Lion Fi te II. eld Page 10 The Michigan Daily Friday, April 10, 1992 Football springs into play Depth a problem going into spring game 4, by Albert Lin Daily Football Writer Michigan's basketball and hockey teams just completed their Final Four seasons. The boys of spring have begun their quest for the World Series. Flowers have taken bloom, and the temperature is stabi- lizing in the 50's. It must be time for football. Football? That's right, the Wolverine grid- ders have been hard at work tuning up to defend their Big Ten title, and their three weeks of preliminary preparation concludes tomorrow with the (sometimes) annual Spring Game. Last year's intrasquad matchup was canceled when injuries depleted the squad, and although the team faces the same situation this year, coach Gary Moeller plans to go ahead and play. "We're gonna go ahead and have the game and have some fun," coach Gary Moeller said yesterday. "I think the kids have more fun if it's a game. The thing you find out is that if it's a game. and we put it in the stadium, the kid who's a rookie gets really excited. "And as a coach, it's like coach- ing your own kid in soccer. You're out there hollering and screaming at him all the time, because you're ex- cited, too." Moeller divided the team and coaching staff into two units last night, and each side will be ready to go at 1:30 p.m. in Michigan Stad- ium. This is a last chance for people to step up and impress the coaches before the players reconvene in August. The team is still facing se- vere depth problems, and chances are that at least several players who will be regular contributors in the fall will not be in action tomorrow. The receiver spot is of major concern for Moeller. With Derrick Alexander still recovering from his knee injury and Desmond Howard turning pro, the quarterbacks will have only two scholarship receivers to throw to - sophomores-to-be Walter Smith and Felman Malveaux. "I worry about who's going to take (Howard's) position, and the players where the support is going to come from," Moeller admitted. "Some of the others have to pick up the slack, but (if they don't) you can't flank a decoy out there. If you put someone out there, you better be able to throw the ball to him." Todd Richards, a walk-on from Reading, Mich., is currently the third wideout on the depth chart. But Moeller expects to give top recruits Amani Toomer, rated the best prep receiver in the country, and Mercury Hayes chances to contribute. The other position about which Moeller expressed the most concern is offensive tackle. The team has a lot of bodies to play inside at the guard slot, but lacks the bigger bookends. "The offensive line is not where I'd like to have it at this time," Moeller said, discussing the prob- lems caused by personnel being forced to shift along the line. The one player who has shown Moeller something is senior Doug Skene, who played last year mostly at guard. He was tried at tackle dur- ing the team's scrimmage last Sat- urday and performed well, perhaps initiating a move for himself. "Skene has looked as good as anyone at this point," Moeller said. "I'm really pleased with him. I don't know if he really thinks of himself as a first-teamer, although he played s , a' k' i' a' R h a lot last year. It's the mentality." Both quarterback Elvis Grbaca and tailback Ricky Powers have had very good springs, the coach exi pressed. Defensively, the front seven is coming together. Buster Stanleyand 1 Ninef Aghakhan are out with knee_, injuries, but the rest of the line and linebackers have performed well. The secondary has plenty of bod- ies, but has been prone to giving up the big play thus far this spring. The linebackers have apparently settled down, with Steve Morrison, Marcus Walker and Nate Holdren manning the inside, while Martin Davis, Matt Dyson and former full- back Greg McThomas roam the out- side. Michigan quarterback Elvis Grbac, shown in action last season, has had a strong showing in this season's spring practices according to coach Gary Moeller. Grbac and his grid iron teammates take the field tomorrow at 1:30. 'M' tennis duels Minnesota and Iowa Weekend play may determine seedsforwomen's Big Ten tournament by Sharon Lundy Daily Sports Writer The Michigan women's tennis team has a big weekend ahead. Matches against Big Ten opponents Iowa, Friday and Minnesota, Sunday, will be important deter- mining factors in the Wolverines' seed for the Big Ten tournament be- ing held April 24-26. Michigan will attempt to ex- tend its three-match winning streak, but the competition will be tougher than it has been against the past three schools. "The wins were definitely con- fidence-boosting," Wolverine co- captain Amy Malik said. "But they were matches we should have won, and the competition was not at the level we would like to be compet- ing on." Minnesota, Michigan and Iowa are currently ranked in the middle of the conference, respectively, from the match results so far this season. Both Minnesota and Iowa have tal- ented players and deep lineups that are strong through all positions. Iowa is led at the first singles position by Minna Hatakka. Minnesota also has a strong No. 1 player, Jennie Moe, who is highly ranked in the region. The Wolverines have been preparing for these matches with the mindset that these teams will be difficult to beat. "We've been working mostly on playing more aggressive points and making smarter decisions on the tennis court," Malik said. "We're trying to improve our fight out there so we'll be tougher on the court, and it seems to be going well. I think people are playing better than we were playing a month ago." Although these schools are tra- ditionally not the top of the confer- ence, Michigan will approach the matches with the same attitude, because they are just as important. from injuries Men netters' lineup still stinging, WRITE FOR TIlE DAILY WRITE FOR SPORTS WRITE FOR NEWS WRITE FOR ARTS WRITE FOR()PIONON W R FTE FOR TI I1: MICHIGAN DAILY 764-0552 U U by Adam Miller Daily Sports Writer This year, everyone is calling Minnesota "the State of Champions" in reference to the numerous cham- pionship contests held in Min- nepolis. Major League Baseball's Minnesota Twins stand alone on the list of recent champions from Minn- esota, but it may be time to add another. TheUniversity of Minnesota's men's tennis team (4-0 Big Ten, 11- 4 overall) is rolling toward the Big Ten title. The Golden Gophers are ranked No. 14 in the nation and have won 10 of their last 12 matches, by a combined score of 85-20. They will put their streak on the line tomorrow against Michigan (3-3, 3-11) in a 1 p.m. match at the Liberty Sports Complex. After their match with the Golden Gophers, the Wolverines wrap-up the weekend Sunday at Liberty against Iowa (1-3, 7-4), also at 1 p.m. Without its No. 1 singles player, Brian Uihlein (3-0, 16-9), Minnesota cruised passed Penn State last week- end, 8-1. Uihlein will be back tomor- row, and he'll be rejoining partner Adam Krafft at No. 1 doubles. The duo is 1-0, 16-2. Another Golden Gopher to watch is No. 2 singles player Mehdi won its last six matches, and their last loss was to Minnesota, 5-3, in a match that featured three-set matches at No. 1-4 singles (a 2-2 split) and tiebrakers in each of the two sets at No. 6 singles (won 7-6, 7-6 by Minnesota). The Hawkeyes are led by No. 1 singles player Klax Bergstrom (11-5 overall). Despite the success of his team coach Steve Houghton is the real story in Iowa tennis. A member of the Iowa Tennis Hall of Fame, Houghton is the winningest coach in Iowa tennis history and, when he played for the Hawkeyes, posted the best winning percentage (.727) ever in singles - a record that stands to- day. Despite his team's streak, Houghton predicted a tight contest Sunday. "We'll have to play better this week than we did (in the past)," Houghton said. "Michigan is always tough." The Wolverines once again bring a severely-depleted lineup to its matches. Injuries will hamper the play of No. 1 David Kass (forearm tendinitis), and keep No. 2 Dan Brakus (shoulder), John Lingon (knee) and Eric Grand (fractured toe) out of the lineup entirely. Wolverine gymanst Ruben Ceballos takes a twirl on the pommel horse. Michigan competes inthe NCAA East Regional this weekend. Gymnasts vault to Iowa for regional competition Kass by Todd Schoenhaus Daily Sports Writer The Michigan men's gymnastics team began its season on a mission. The team's goal was to generate three scores high enough to qualify for the Eastern Regionals. An aver- age score of 279.92 has elevated the eleventh-ranked Wolverines, plac- ing them in distinct company. They are one of only ten teams to qualify for the regionals tomorrow at. Iowa. Michigan will also try to achieve another goal - a bid to the NCAA Championships held in Nebraska. It will not be easy for the Wolverines, who will need to finish in the top four at Iowa to qualify. The nine opponents are sure to provide stiff competition. Six will be Big Ten universities, all of whom currently rank ahead of Michigan. Temple, Syracuse, and Kent State will complete the field. The tournament will run slightly different than regular meets, in that each team will only be allowed to field nine gymnasts, instead of the usual twelve. "I am still deciding between four different lineup scenarios," Michigan Bob Darden said. "Each lineup will most likely give us a new school record, based on season performances." The Wolverines will probably need that new school record if a trip to Nebraska is to be a reality. At the Big Ten Tournament held two weeks ago, the top five teams scored at least 281. The current school record is 281.65, set three weeks ago against Michigan State. Fortunately for Michigan, sprains and bruises should no longer pose a roadblock to the goal. Ruben Ceballos has recovered from a sore shoulder and will be ready to compete. Ben Verall's sprained ankle has healed and will allow him to participate as well. "This is a big boost for us con- sidering Ruben is a senior who keeps the team's spirit alive and Ben is No. 4 in the nation on the floor exercise," Darden said. Heading into the regionals Michigan ranked first in the floor exercises and second in the Pommel Horse. 4- . ' ;q' . Benyebka (1-0, 3-1). A transfer-stu- dent from perennial tennis power Southern California, Benyebka suc- cessfully filled in for Uihlein last week, defeating his Nittany Lion op- ponent in straight sets. Michigan will run into another hot team in the Hawkeyes. Iowa has F I BBQ Ribs All You Can Eat served with Fries & Slaw "4 $5.75 Money. Experience. College Students Just Don't Get A Summer Job Like This. Join America's Fastest Growing College Marketing Firm. - Earn $3,000 to $5,000 this summer. - Gain Sales, Advertising, & Marketing experience. Fridays 5:00 p.m. - Midnight Beef Back Ribs, slow cooked with a spicy red sauce. Meat so tender, it just falls off the bone. HALF OFFS'