8 - The Michigan Daily - Thursday, March 23, 1995 Crisler Arena manager Lisa Panetta tells of rookie year behind the scenes By Steve Townsend For the Daily Crisler Arena stands silent now. The darkened scoreboard may be a depressing sight to some rabid Wol- verine fansbutdon't ask Arena Man- ager Lisa Panetta what she thinks of it. Toher, theendoftheseason means no more problems with the giant tech- nological nightmare. "The problems with the scoreboard. That's what I'll remem- ber about this season," Panetta said. "Everybody kept looking at me even though I didn't know what the hell I was doing." Everyone knows that seniors Jimmy King and Ray Jackson ap- peared in their final home game in a Michigan uniform earlier this month against Penn State. Noticeably less publicized was that the victory was also the last game of the season at Crisler for seven Wolverine rookies: six on the court and one in the arena office as Panetta wrapped up her first basketball season as manager of the 13,562-seat arena. Panetta replaced long-time Crisler manager Peter Alt last September when he moved on to manage the Track and Tennis Building as well as Cliff Keen Arena, Oosterbaan Field House and the Sports Coliseum, after nore than seven years at Crisler. Panetta reflected for a moment ast week on her inaugural season as 'risler manager as she sat at her desk n the office off the arena's main unnel. Mementos of past great Michigan eams adorn two of the office walls, while the other two are covered by ;iant blue boxes of switches and lights hat control the main functions of the Arena.As she leaned back in her chair, Panetta's overwhelming emotion ;eemed to be one of relief. "Your first year of running any- hing is going to be tough, and you end to get burned out as the games -o on," Panetta said between deal- ng with interruptions ranging from aundry problems with the men's >asketball team to where to put the iewly arrived NCAA Tournament >rograms. Panetta's typical workday starts at 7:30 aim. as she arrives at the arena And attempts to address any problems ierassistant, Mark Renfrew, may have zncountered the night before. Then ;he performs a quick inspection of the "The problems with the scoreboard. That' what I'll remember about this season. Everybody kept looking at me even though I didn't know what the hell I was doing." - Lisa Panetta Crisler Arena Manager entire arena to check for any major problems. She then plans the rest of the day. She is likely to have at least one meeting and more than one major maintenance problem to at- tend to. "You are always determining what needs to be done and who to call in to do it, whether it be a plumber, electri- cian, whatever," Panetta said. This is the easy part of the day for Panetta. If there is a game in the evening, she may not leave the arena until after midnight. "My average event day this year has been about 16 hours," Panetta said. Even if the schedule for the evening is clear of games, the arena is still a buzz of activity. "All three teams have to be covered for prac- tice," Panetta said. This includes having the laundry done for the wrestling team as well as the men's and women's basketball teams, having all three lockerooms clean, and preparing Crisler's court and wrestling practice room. Although it goes unnoticed by most, Panetta's work is appreciated by many she deals with on a daily basis. Women's basketball assistant coach Sandy Thomas called Panetta "an extremely hard worker," and noted Panetta's ability to excel even when short-handed or confronted with last- minute changes. Men's basketball trainer Dave Ralston agreed. He called Panetta's performance in her first year "phe- nomenal." Ralston also noted that Panetta "I had been working for the Uni- versity off-and-on since I started col- lege and this just sounded interest- ing," Panetta said. In her time at the arena, Panetta has notonly formed memorable work- ing relationships with many Wolver- ine coaches and players, she has also made friends with many of the stu- dents who have worked for her. Panetta keeps enough students on staff to allow for them to take unexpected days off due to exams and last-minute homework assignments. "She understands what it's all about to be a college student. She knows the rigors we are going through," said Crisler staff member Kevin Caceres, an LSA junior. According to student staff mem- ber Brian Young, however, the teacher's intuition in Panetta is still as strong. "At first she didn't trust us a lot because she was worried about things getting done right, but she has mellowed out a lot," said Young, an Engineering senior. "She still checks upon us occasionally though. It's like she's grading us." When asked to recall her favorite athlete or coach in her time atCrisler, Panetta was unable to single anyone out. However, there was one incident that stood out in her mind. It was a motivational speech given by a coach to the Michigan basketball team. Ironi- cally, it was a football coach and not a basketball coach who gave the speech. "It was in 1989, right after (former Michigan coach Bill) Frieder left and the NCAA tourna- ment was about to start. Bo Schembechler came in to talk to the team. They were all sitting in the North end zone of the arena." Panetta recalls staying out of sight in the arena tunnel to hear the legend- ary coach and athletic director speak. "He really went after them and I guess he got them pretty fired up," Panetta added. Pretty fired up might be an under- statement. Six games later, the Wol- verines were champions of the col- lege basketball world. Panetta was optimistic about the long-term future of her fellow Wol- verine rookies as they headed into their first NCAA tournament last week. "This group has the potential to go far," Panetta said. "By their junior year I think they will have a legiti- mate shot to win it all." 0 Criser Arena scoreboard Panetta "hasn't missed a beat," in succeeding the highly respected Alt. Alt also expressed admiration for the job Panetta has done. "She knew most of what was expected before she took over," he said. "What she had to learn on her own was the planning strategies and how to handle the stress factor." Despite the stress inherent in the job, the promotion from assistant has been a fulfilling one for Panetta, who has been involved with the Univer- sity since arriving as a first-year stu- dent in the fall of 1981 after graduat- ing from Lakeview High School in St. Clair Shores. A three-sport athlete in high school, Panetta went on to play four years of softball forthe Wolverines as an undergraduate while working her way toward a degree from the School of Education. Panetta noted her odd academic background for an arena manager. In fact, she was looking for a full-time teaching job when she saw the post- ing for an open position at Crisler Arena in 1988. STEPHANIE GRACE LIM/ Daily Just hanging around Business senior Jeff Grant's uniformed monkey greets visitors yesterday from the front porch of the Theta Xi Fraternity on Washtenaw Avenue. Measure would wipe out state affirmative action S LANSING (AP) - Affirmative action would be wiped out in Michi- gan under a proposed constitutional amendment introduced yesterday by a Macomb County lawmaker. Rep. David Jaye (R-Utica) said affirmative action programs cost the state money and are unfair. The con- servative said he has 3 f co-sponsors - including one Democrat - and another 12 lawmakers backing his effort. He said many of them do not want their names tied to the effort yet and declined to name most of them. Jaye introduced a similar measure three years-ago. He said he got 10 votes then, and is gaining support. Jaye's resolution would apply to state and local governments, state colleges and universities and private employers working on government contracts or getting tax subsidies. It would bar them from consider- ing race, religion, sex, color, ethnicity or national origin while filling jobs or contracts, The resolution is modeled after a California effort to end affirmative action programs in state and local governments there. Jaye also said he is courting mi- nority lawmakers who have tenta- tively pledged their support if stron- ger anti-discrimination laws are passed. Join the excitement! Confer%mich-daily Eureka! Heaig Home summer? Heres a great idea. While you're having fun, working a summer job and catching up with your home- town pals, take a class at Oakland University. You'll be ahead of the game this fall. Catch our spit Of spiration. Need a general education cout-se? A course in your major? Oakland University's School of Education and Human Services offers a wide array of courses for both spring and summer sessions. How about "Teaching of Reading" or "Literature for Children," Consumer groups fight Ticketmaster WASHINGTON (AP) - Con- sumer groups urged legislation yes- terday to cap ticket service fees or force ticket agencies to disclose sur- charges. Consumers Against Unfair Tick- eting, U.S. Public Interest Research Groups and the Consumer Federation of America called for federal and state laws to fight what they called unfair ticketing practices in the entertain- ment industry. The federal legislation, sponsored by Reps. John Dingell (D-Mich.) and Carlos Moorhead (R-Calif.), would require agencies to disclose service charges and order the Federal Trade Commission to study the relationship among ticketing agencies, promot- ers, performers and arena owners. The drive grew out of a protracted dispute between the Seattle-based rock group Pearl Jam *and Ticketmaster. Ticketmaster and similar agencies sell tickets on behalf of theaters and arenas for a wide range of events. The agencies add a fee to the ticket price, sometimes sharing part of the fee with the arena. The consumer groups complain the fees often are exorbitant and hid- den from ticket buyers. Their chief target is Ticketmaster, which they say holds a monopoly on ticket sales through exclusive long-term contracts with arenas and halls across the coun- try. From in the classroom to around the world 'A or maybe even "Teaching the Lawiguage Arts?" At Oakland University, you can choose from more than 9(0) spring or summer courses offered at our beautiful, convenient campus. You can then transfer the credits back to your home institution in the fall. Get smart and jumpto the head of the class.O For a complete schedule of classes and application information, contact the Office of Admissions today: by phone 1-800-OAK-UNV, 1by fax 1-810-370-4462, by Email miinfo@akhand.edi Think Success. Think Oakland University. I > (!