The Michigan Daily - Friday, April 8, 1994 - 13 .Blue sails for success in Oxford By DOUG STEVENS DAILY SPORTS WRITER While most Michigan students are forced to deal with the cold April weather by remaining indoors, the Michigan sailing club has been able to experience the conditions in a dif- ferent fashion. This weekend, the team travels to Oxford, Ohio, for a regatta against Miami. In Oxford, the Wolverines will sail against 17 of the best teams the Midwest has to offer, including West- ern Michigan, Marquette, Ohio State *-and the host Redskins. "Our goal is to finish in the top five," Michigan club member Bill Sherman said. Although the Wolverines will hold a sail-off today to determine who will compete this weekend, they can look to Nate Weersing, Chris Choate and Alan Krauss, who have performed well all season. Additionally, Michi- gan sports a solid contingent of fresh- man sailors including Sherman, Jeff Kayes and Greg Apotsos. Sailing, like many other outdoor sports, is at the mercy of the weather conditions. Unlike many of the top teams' locations out west, Michigan's practice site, Baseline Lake, just thawed out about two weeks ago. "The wind is the main factor; the faster the wind, the faster we sail," Sherman said. The sailing team has had to over- come a situation very similar to those faced by all club sports - little money for equipment and travel expenses. As a result, team members often pay their own way for a regatta. In addition, the Wolverines face another disadvantage preventing them from competing against var- sity teams. "Our lack of coaching is our main weakpoint," Sherman said. "We've got the ability and potential, but we don't have the coaching to use it." Spikers get ready for season's end By DAN McKENZIE DAILY SPORTS WRITER The Michigan men's volleyball team take the home court for the last time this weekend when two of the top teams in the Big Ten come to Ann Arbor. The Wolverines take on Michigan State tonight, followed by Ohio State tomorrow. Both matches will be at 7 p.m. at Cliff Keen Arena. This competition is the first for all three teams since the conference tour- nament last weekend. Michigan sur- prised the other teams in that tourna- ment, taking second behind Illinois. Both the Spartans and the Buck- eyes also had unexpected finishes. However, they were probably not as pleased with the outcome as the Wol- verines. After a year in which both squads had success against many Big Ten foes, Michigan State finished fifth and Ohio State sixth. But results like that don't change senior outside hitter Bill Seeley's opinion of the competition. "I have the same expectations go- ing into these matches as I would have before," Seeley said. "These matches will both be really competi- tive and hard fought. These are teams that don't like to lose to each other." Team captain Stan Lee agreed. "Neither team did very well last weekend," Lee said. "But I think both teams just had an off weekend." The Wolverines know what both opponents are capable of. Michigan lost to Michigan State in three games at East Lansing earlier this season. The Wolverines thought they would be able to return the favor later in the season at the Collegiate Classic Tournament. However, Michigan, however, dropped thematch 2-1 after taking the first game. Michigan also dropped a decision to Ohio State earlier in the season in Columbus. However, things turned around for all three teams at the conference tour- nament. "We've had minimal success against both of these teams this year," Lee said. "But our recent meetings with them have been very close." The matches this weekend, how- ever, may have more significance than just bragging rights. With the club national tournament around the cor- ner, teams still have to consider the effects this weekend will have on their respective seedings. "I think that beating the teams would help us," Seeley said. "But I don't think that losing would change much. I think that all three teams should be in the top 20 heading into nationals, depending on what happens around the nation this weekend." "For the most part, our thoughts are on nationals," Lee added. "Our confidence is up a lot because of last weekend." -. tea -" JOE WESTRATE/Daily The Michigan men's volleyball squad wraps up its regular season this weekend at Cliff Keen Arena against Michigan State and Ohio State. Women golfers try to escape the clutches of USF's Claw By REBECCA MOATZ DAILY SPORTS WRITER The white board hanging on the wall of their locker room lists 10 goals that the team is working toward. The eighth one - confidence - is something the Michigan women's golf team has been lacking this spring sea- son. Heading into the University of South Florida's Spring Invitational in Tampa, Fla., the Wolverines hope to increase their confidence to a level which will enable them to compete with consistency. "We need to get our confidence back and do well in one tournament," freshman Wendy Westfall said. "We can probably do it by not putting so much emphasis on it going in to the hole." Westfall will be joining juniors Tiffany and Tegan McCorkel, sopho- more Shannon McDonald and fresh- man Ashley Williams in this weekend's tournament to be held at USF's golf course, The Claw. Last week, McDonald led the Wolverines to a 15th place finish at the Indiana Invitational, grabbing a 12th-place tie herself. But don't ex- pect the same results this week. "Every player is capable of low scores, even those staying at home," Michigan coach Kathy Teichert said. "Our goal is just to have low team scores. If each member has low scores, then the team does well," -an achieve- ment that falls under team goal number one. The Bulls host a big field this weekend, with the 22 schools partici- pating including Iowa, Minnesota and Michigan State. The large field will put the Wol- verines to the test, forcing them to play a strong short game. The chip- ping and putting aspects, as well as the under-50-yard game, have been the trouble spots for the team this season. With a short week due to the turn- around time between tournaments, coupled with two days of qualifying rounds, Michigan has little time to work on its fifth goal - practice. The Wolverines spent Monday and Tuesday qualifying for the tourna- ment, and Wednesday was the team's day off, though a few team members did manage to find time to putt on the practice carpets. To make up for this, the Wolver- ines spent Thursday practicing the Tampa course before meeting up with the competition for today's first day of tournament play. The lack of practice doesn't seem to bother the golfers though. "(It) puts you in a competitive type of setting and keeps you com- petitive," Westfall said. By focusing on goal number four - concentrating on one shot at a time and raising their confidence levels - the team could return from Tampa with a new, condensed list of goals - one that may begin like this: 1. Keep winning... Little changes for men as they prepare for tournament By DARREN EVERSON DAILY SPORTS WRITER At first glance, life seems to be a- changin' around Ann Arbor. Daytime lasts a little longer, night- time is now a little shorter and the coldest winter in recent memory is over. Anyone not on the Michigan men's golf team would notice how things are different. For the Wolverines, though, not much at all has changed. They still haven't played at home, Ohio State is the favorite to win the conference again and they've got another diffi- cult tournament. Michigan will compete in the Marshall Invitational in Huntington, W.Va., this weekend, the team's sec- ond tournament this spring. And while the rest of the field is as tough as the Wolverines will see all year, Michi- gan coach Jim Carras is trying to determine who can lead his team. "At this point, we're trying to find out which five guys are going to play," Carras said. "And I know from expe- rience that we might have a different lineup each week that we play. I guar- antee you that of the five that go, there'll be at least one to three that won't play up to expectations." One golfer that has played up to and beyond expectations is Kyle Dobbs. The Saline native owns the team's best average (75.33 strokes per round) and was Michigan's top individual player in last week's Tanglewood Intercollegiate, finishing 12th. His consistent play means he'll be a pres- ence in the lineup. "I suspect Kyle Dobbs, just from what I've seen so far, will play in every tournament," Carras said. "Chris Brockway I would suspect will play in every tournament. Bill Lyle is kind of struggling right now, but he'll be okay. Now the question is which of the others are going to surface." In addition to that trio of golfers, freshman Justin Hicks and junior Michael Hill will compete for Michi- gan. Hill has played in 12 of the 15 rounds the Wolverines have partici- pated in this year, carding a 79.0 av- erage. Hicks, meanwhile, has seen action in six rounds and has a 77.83 scoring average. Kent State, Miami (Ohio) and Illi- nois finished 1-2-3 in the Tanglewood event, and all three will be a part of the Marshall Invitational. Also, two other Big Ten teams will be in attendance - Michigan State and perennial con- ference powerhouse Ohio State. Carras has seen these teams before and knows what to expect from them. "Ohio State has got to probably be the preseason favorite to win theBig Ten again," Carras said. "They've won it so many times. I can guarantee you that Ohio State, Kent State, Mi- ami and Marshall will be in the top six." The tournament site is the Guyan Golf and Country Club, a par-72 course spanning 6,446 yards. The Marshall- hosted event features three rounds of golf- two Friday and one Saturday - with tee times at 7:30 a.m. each day. Blue up against more than opponents BY WILL McCAH ILL DAILY SPORTS WRITER Uncertainty. That's the name of the game for the Michigan men's lacrosse club this weekend as it prepares to host the Michigan Invitational Tournament. After months of playing inside, the team will have to deal with the uncertain bounces of natural turf, as well as the uncertain feel of the field on the players' limbs. Another uncertainty is old Mother Nature, whose craftiness has foiled many a game this spring, and for many a team. Snow forced the cancel- lation of the Wolverines' game at Bowling Green Wednesday. Add to this the unknowns that are the Illinois and Notre Dame lacrosse clubs, and you have a thoroughly un- predictable weekend. However, Michigan coach Robert DiGiovanni is fairly certain of his strategy for Saturday's 3 p.m. game against the Fighting Illini - play his subs early and often. "When I saw Illinois (at the recent Big Ten regionals), they did not ap- pear to be very strong," DiGiovanni said. With two games in two days, DiGiovanni wants to rest his starters as much as possible against Illinois so the Wolverines will be fresh for Sunday's 1 p.m. matchup with the much stronger Fighting Irish. Notre Dame is one of a handful of Midwestern schools with a varsity squad, which means the club team will be made up of players who quit the varsity or who didn't quite make the cut. "Any club team at a university with a varsity team is going to be doggone strong," DiGiovanni said. The coach admitted he was some- what worried about the prospect of playing in the great outdoors, but said the conditions should not affect the team's play once the Wolverines be- come accustomed to the terrain. "We're going to try to practice on the ground (today), to work on ground balls," he said. Despite the presence of a non- conference opponent on the week- end's menu, DiGiovanni hopes the team can maintain its focus on the matches at hand, rather than looking ahead to next weekend's Big Ten Championship. Team co-captain John Kolakowski speculated that the team might indeed be doing just that. But its curiosity about the Fighting Irish is keeping the Wolverines' minds on the task at hand. The fact that Michigan State is in the tournament keeps the squad on its toes, because the Wolverines will. face the Spartans Wednesday. I. ' I Engaging 5-inch Bumper Plaque or 1-inch Lapel Pins, Just $6 Send Check To: Evolutionarles 315 N. Tejon Colorado Springs, CO 80903 HAIR & NAIL weave SALON relaxers spiral perms wave nouveau 312 Thompson St. (near corner ofI braid haircutse full nail service custom hairstyling Liberty) 995-5733 ETA KAPPA NU ASSOCIATION Eta Kappa Nu Association, the National Electric and Computer Engineering honor society, was created to bring into closer union those in the profession of Electrical or Computer Engineering who by their attainments in college or in practice have manifested a deep interest and marked ability in their chosen life work, so as to foster a spirit of liberal culture in the Engineering colleges, and to mark in an outstanding manner those students in Electrical or Computer Engineering who, through distinguished scholarship, activities, leadership and exemplary character have conferred honor on their Alma Mater. We, the officers of the Beta Epsilon chapter of Eta Kappa Nu at the University of Michigan, would like to congratulate the following students for meeting the membership Next semester, broaden your horizons with Beaver College., You can intern in London, pursue Peace Studies in Austria, cycle to class in Oxford or study Spanish in Mexico. You can even sample Sacher Torte in Vienna or explore a Greek isle. We also have a wide variety of university programs in the U.K. and Ireland. For over 30 years, Beaver College has been sending students abroad for the experience of their lives. This is yours. il I i