The Michigan Daily - Thursday, March 18, 1993- Page 9 Skiers finish 13th at nationals Unfamiliar conditions, injuries cause trouble for 'M' women by Brent Mcintosh "Hurry up and wait." The unofficial slogan of the United States government has ap- plied to Michigan's women's ski team for the last week: Hurry up and wait for the plane. Hurry up and wait to ski. Hurry up. and wait for the re- sults. That's right - wait for the re- sults. Though the event ended last Friday, the Wolverines left the na- tional ski finals at Squaw Valley, Calif., with no clue where they placed among the 19 competing teams. It was late Tuesday, four days af- ter the end of Michigan's season, when the team finally received word that they had placed 13th in the na- tion. Nevada-Reno was crowned na- tional champion, with St. Olaf, a team from the Wolverines' region, taking home second-place honors. Michigan placed 11th in the slalom and 16th in the giant slalom. No in- dividual results were available. "It was kind of disappointing," sophomore Amy Portenga said. "Each of us seemed to have our own individual problems." Portenga's problem was that she tore ligaments in her knee in a prac- tice run. While she did try to ski the slalom in the competition, her at- tempt was unsuccessful. "I tried to ski the first race of the slalom, but I just couldn't finish," said Portenga, who had several indi- vidual victories this season. Other Wolverines expressed the sentiment that the loss of their top skier affected more than just their scoring. "Amy had kind of led us this season, and when she hurt her knee, and then (Wolverine skier) Sunny Holmes hurt hers also, that put a damper on the whole meet," sopho- more Kelly Copeland said. "We def- initely didn't ski our best." Holmes' sore knee was not in- jured severely enough to keep her out of competition. The waiting also came into play with regard to the course conditions, which the Wolverines said were new to them after skiing on short, cold- 'The course was reall y different from what we were used to.' - Jennifer Shorter Michigan skier weather courses during the regular season. "The course was really different from what we were used to," said freshman Jennifer Shorter, the only Michigan skier not to fall during the giant slalom. "The (giant slalom) was really long, and the weather af- ,fected us. Being in California, it was really hot. It was tough to hold the hill in the morning because the run was cold and icy, then as the sun heated it, it would become slushy." With each skier taking two shots at the slalom Wednesday and two more at the giant slalom Friday, the wait between runs forced the Wolverines to change their skiing style. "We had to ski completely differ- ently on each run," Shorter said, "and that was tough to get used to. "It was disappointing, but things like this happen. Bad days come along, and unfortunately we had two in a row at the national champi- onships. All we can do is be excited for next year." So after the waiting is finally over and the Wolverines have their 13th-place finish secure in hand, there is only one thing left to do. Wait for next year. Weather main hazard fnr men gnlfers in S.C S U *U F EVAN PETRlE/Daity Even Jalen Rose is in shock atthe unanimity of the people's poll. Everybody, including Jalen, believes that the Wolverines have a date on Bourbon Street in early April. by Elisa Sneed7 Early Tuesday morning, the Michigan men's golf team finally re- turned from its weekend tournament in South Carolina. What was to have been a two-day, 54-hole event was cut short by adverse weather condi- tions. "It was hell, it was horrible," se- nior co-captain James Carson said. "It was a test of survival, not of how good you are." Of the 27 holes played last Friday, only the first 18 were counted. Because half of the field played the front nine and half the back nine on the additional holes, the scores from those holes were thrown out. After the first day of play Michigan's Blue squad - the top Wolverine team - was in sixth place with an 18-hole team total of 328, just 18 shots behind the leader, Ball State (310). Four of the five Wolverines from the Blue team had tallied scores in the 80's - Carson (82), sophomore Bill Lyle (83) and seniors Anthony Dietz (84) and Bob Henighan (85), but Michigan coach Jim Carras did not express disap- pointment. "All things considered, I can't say I'm unhappy," Carras said. "Conditions were not normal, we probably shouldn't have played at all." .i 'fm P-U iii m .m ! .! With the conditions as poor as they were on Friday - 30 mph winds with gusts of up to 50 mph - only 15 of the 128 competitors broke 80 strokes for 18 holes, two of them Wolverines. Senior David Hall, of the Michigan Blue team, and soph- omore Chris Brockway, playing on the Michigan Maize (the second Michigan team) both chalked up 79's for the Wolverines. Although he did play a competitive round, Brockway indicated that he wasn't completely happy with it. "I was doing really well until the second-to-last hole," he said. "With the weather, it was inevitable that I'd have a high hole, it was just sort of disappointing that it happened so late." On Saturday, the island was evacuated and due to the persistent weather, the tournament was called off after only one day. Due to the fact that the tournament was not completed and the weather didn't al- low the Wolverines to get any extra practice in, Carras still doesn't have a definite first team. "I haven't learned anything from this tournament," he said. "It's a real 'non-counter.' We can't really eval- uate things." The Wolverines will be off until the Kentucky Invitational later this month. 0 PICKS Continued from page 8 workers in supporting the Wol- verines. Moreover, Michigan Gov. John Engler's spokesman John Truscott stated that the Governor would indeed go with the Wolverines, although Engler, a Michigan State alumnus, wished his Spartans could be in the big dance, as well. Even other athletes tended to think the Wolverines could go all the way to New Orleans and take the prize they fell one game short of last season. The four top seeds seem destined for the Final Four according to Michigan hockey player David Harlock and profes- sional tennis player Aaron '* Krickstein, a native of Grosse Pointe, Mich. "I think that U of M has so much depth," Harlock said. "The guys that don't start - (James) Voskuil and (Rob) Pelinka - will make the difference." Only when the survey veered away from those committed to ei- ther the university or the state did respondents dare to go against the Wolverines. Eleanor Clift, Newsweek correspondent and pan- S &Eu~rdJaiy elist on "The McLaughlin Group," figured on a North Carolina- Michigan championship game, with the Tar Heels prevailing. "In fairness, on questions like this, I do consult with the highest authority," Clift said. "And when John McLaughlin isn't available, I go to my husband ... The coach (Dean Smith of North Carolina), he's just too smart a coach for the rest of the coaching league. And Michigan, while you guys are re- ally talented, you have a tendency to kind of blow the big lead and not be disciplined enough." Perhaps the most interesting surveyee was Christine Montross, an LSA Sophomore. Montross' brother Eric starts at center for North Carolina. Montross ex- pressed her love for both the Wolverines and Tar Heels, but when push came to shove, she decided that blood was thicker than tuition. "I will sincerely cheer for U of M in every one of their games un- less they meet Carolina in the fi- nals," she wrote, "and if the Tar Heels lose, there's no team I would rather see win than Michigan ... So my prediction? I'll go with my heart and say Carolina." Ni ght LIV E - +- - - - - - - - - - - - - -s MICHIGAN MARCH MADNESS Begins this Friday against Coastal Carolina! Catch all the games on our 2 BIG SCREENS! Open Mon -Sat 11:30am to 2 am e21 & over after8pm 310 S. Maynard " Ann Arbor, MI 48103 " (313) 995-0100 1 - ICHIGAN RECRDS SmII~NoNe REESEmoke! - 1140 South Ulniversilyj (Above Good-Time Cbarley 'sI Dm , h, M d Ann Arbor, M1 X48104 . Ph: 003-5800' Nouns: Mon.-ThuIs. 9 a.m.-10 p.m. , ,. t FrSat. 9 a.m.-11 p.m. FREE PiZZA & ICED TEA! Sun. 11 a.m.- 8 p.m n AE A a D gt k TICKET CENTfER lutsi MAKE PLANS- MNA IHMRH2..FIILYTEDYMRIG DRIVIN*" CRYINSMOKE ... $9. o;ca:e/