2B - The Michigan Daily - Tuesday, April 23, 1996
Michigan men's
netters look to
'96 postseason
By Richard Shin
Daily Sports Writer
The Michigan men's tennis team is looking forward to
the end of the school year, but not for the obvious reasons.
While it may be true that, like most students, the tennis
players anticipate the end of classes, it is also true that the
team is looking forward to the Big Ten championships
which start April 25 and the NCAA regionals, which run
May 3-19.
Michigan has blown away the Big Ten, taking a 9-1
record into the conference tournament. The Wolverines
are No. 27 in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association's
Rolex Collegiate men's tennis rankings and have defeated
seven ranked opponents this season.
Except Northwestern, no
conference rival has been
able to win more than two
points off of the strong Wol-
verine lineup.
CONFERENCE Michigan seemingly has
owned the doubles point in
Championships Big Ten play, winning nine
April 25-28, out of 10 matches. The top
West Lafayette two doubles teams have been
virtually unbeatable, ac-
counting for eight of the nine
victories.
Against key conference opponents, the Wolverines have
elevated their level of play.
Last year's champion and this season second place
team, Minnesota, fell to the Wolverines, 5-2, in dual
match action in March. It marked the first time the two
teams faced each other since meeting in the finals of the
Big Ten tournament last season. The win gave Michigan
a psychological boost and the edge in the race for the top
seed.
The only team in the conference that defeated the
Wolverines was No. 36 Northwestern.The Wildcats split
the singles matches, taking the bottom three matches and
surprised the usually soild doubles teams to pull out a 4-
3 victory in Evanston.
Since that match, however, the Wolverines have reeled
off eight consecutive victories, including an important
win over perennial regional rival Notre Dame.
If Michigan can capture the Big Ten title, which would
be its first in eight year's, the Wolverines would almost be
,assured of the top seed in the NCAA regional tournament
in early May.
A good showing at the regionals would send Michigan
to its first NCAA championships since the team finished
third there in 1988.
It would also mean a top 10 ranking for the first time in
eight years.
Michigan coach Brian Eisner is looking to add another Big
Ten title to the 17 he has already won. He is still in search of
his first national title, and the first for Michigan in 38 years.
The path will not be easy for the Wolverines, who have
already faced one top 10 team this season in Fresno State.
The Bulldogs defeated Michigan, 4-0, at the Blue Gray
championships in March.
To win the national crown, Michigan will have to
perform better against the top teams in the nation.
Men's track hopes,
to make about face
By Kim Hart
Daily Sports Writer
Long after students have finished their
last exams and cleared out of the resi-
dence halls, a few Wolverines will be
n " hanging around campus working every
afternoon, probing their capabilities to
excel at track and field.
The men's track and field team is about
halfway through its season, and even
though the first half saw them get off to a
shaky start, the Wolverines are optimistic
about closing the season on a high note.
They have three meets to go before Big
Tens and they are looking forward to the
rest of the contests.
Rough weather kept the team practic-
ing indoors at the beginning of the season
and during the first three outdoor meets.
The team will compete in the Penn
. Relays this weekend which is one of the
biggest track meets in the country. The
y3 Wolveines are headed to Philadelphia
coming off of their best outdoor perfor-
N 6 mance of the season at last weekend's
a' r ~Kansas relays.
z.The 4 x 400-meter relay team ran its
: fastest time this season in Kansas (3:08.57)
and is lookingto improve on thatthrough-
out the rest of the outdoor season.
A . The last home meet, scheduled for
.ABRa y May I1, may be canceled because con-
TONYA BROAD/Daily struction on the track has yet to be com-
Michigan hurdler Neil Garner is the only Wolverine to have qualified for the NCAA championships, which pleted. If students want to watch the
will be held June 1-3 in Eugene, Ore. The team's upcoming meets, like the Western collegiate Wolverines in action, their best bet is at
championships in Kalamazoo, will give other Wolverines a shot at qualifying as well, the central collegiate championships,
which will be held in Kalamazoo.
"We are a little short-handed with
(Kevin) Sullivan and (Scott) MacDonald
redshirting the outdoor season, but we
still hope to make a good showing in '
Tens," coach Jack Harvey said.
Sullivan and MacDonald are training
hard for the upcoming Canadian Olym-
pic trials, which will take place June 15-
23 in Montreal.
As of now, only Neil Gardner has a
provisional qualification for the NCAA
championships, which will be held June
1-3 in Eugene, Ore. Gardner is having an
outstanding outdoor season and has fin-
ished in first or second place in his hurdle
contests in the past three meets.
Others looking to qualify forthe NCAA
championships are Jon Royce in the high
jump and John Mortimer in the steeple-
chase.
The men have a lot of young runners
who will be gaining a lot of experience
during the remainder ofthe season. Fresh-
men Kevin Bowman and Jared Lewis
competed well in the Spring Sports Festi-
val this past weekend, and they are liy
to be strong competitors for the Wol-
ines in the future. Bowman hadafirst-place
finish in the 100-meter dash with a time of
L1.17 seconds, and Lewis a second-place
finish in the 400 with a time of 49.94.
The month of May will be busy for the
team as Michigan hopes to do well at the
central collegiate, Big Ten and NCAA
meets.
Connecticut's
The Associated Press "i b
STORRS, Conn.-- Ray Allen, one of here a
the best college guards in the country, is move(
entering the NBA draft after leading Con- "W
necticut to the best record in the school's will a
history. univer
The 6-foot-5 All-American said yester- All
day he is giving up his final year of eligi- the be
bility. helped
He is certain to be among the top selec- Last
tions in the June 26 draft. scorinf
Allen, the Big East player of the year, cent)a
said he hasn't yet signed with an agent, but third 1
left little doubt he won't be coming back. points
"I'm definitely pushing on," he said. "Cli
His voice trembling and his eyes moist life,"c
with tears, Allen said he wants to financially done e
care forhis family, who accompanied him to sibly a
theGampel Pavilion newsconference. Allen All
has a 3 1/2-year-old daughter. after h
Alien jumps to
elieve a lot has been learned by me wasn't ready. Thi
t this university and it is time to Still, the decision
on," Allen said. "Every day I wok
herever I end up after this year, I hesaid."Oncethese
iways be an ambassador of this I had my mind mad
sity." Allen propelled
en and Doron Sheffer formed one of East regular-season
est backcourts in Division I and pionship, and tw
d lead Connecticut to a 32-2 record. tournament before
t season, Allen led Connecticut in to Mississippi Stat
g (23.4),3-point shooting(46.6per- Allen hit the wi
ndminutes (34.7). He is theschool's seconds of the Big
leading career scorer with 1,922 game against Geo
,. Under NCAAr
early, he has graduated basketball himself available
coach Jim Calhoun said. "He has retain his eligibilit
everything here a coach could pos- sign with an agent
ask." After the draft,
ensaidhe contemplated coming out whether to sign wi
his sophomore year but knew he Connecticut.
NB4
is year was different.
was a tough call.
keup, I thoughtaboutit,"
eason was over,I thought
de up, but I didn't."
the Huskies to a Big
nandtournamentcham-
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the season-ending loss
te in the round of 4
nning shot in the final
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rgetown.
rules, Allen can make
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he could then decide
th the NBA or return to
1
AP PHOTO
No longer a Husky, Ray Allen will soon be a millionaire.
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............ ..
TENNIS
Continued from Page 1B
indicated)," Michigan coach Bitsy Ritt
said. "Minnesota is a beatable team. We
lost two close singles matches in three-
sets, and that was part of the difference."
Tumeka Harris and Sibyl Smith both
had a chance to put the Wolverines in a
position to oust the Gophers, but neither
prevailed in the third set of their matches.
Harris has shown flashes of brilliance
at the No. 3 singles spot, especially near
the end of the season. At times, she has cut
major deficits to get herself back into
matches. After winning the first set Satur-
day against Iowa's Kris McCracken, 6-4,
Harris was down, 5-2, in the second. The
freshman could have counted herself out
of the set. Instead, she made a valiant
comeback, winning the last five games of
her match, and finished off McCracken
and the Hawkeyes in leading Michigan to
a 4-3 victory.
However, Harris hasn't been able to pull
ahead in some of her other close matches.
She could be a major factor in Michigan's
attempt to avenge Sunday's loss. The fresh-
man is 6-6 in the Big Ten and a win would
put her over the.500 mark.
Coupling Harris' potential with the
play of co-captains Sarah Cyganiak and
TaraGraffleaves the dooropen for Michi-
gan. Graffisaseniorandhasbeen playing
as if every match was her last. She wants
to go out with a bang and has been very
focused ever since the Illinois match on
. .... ... ..
OUR
UEST
April 3, even visualizing each indiviaI
match the week before she plays it.
"She's on a mission," Ritt said. "She's
looking to finish strong. You can defi-
nitely see a difference on the court. She's
worked at her game."
The other co-captain, Cyganiak, has
been the Wolverines' best player all sea-
son. She is coming off of a win over No.
75 Dana Peterson and finished the Big
Ten season 9-3. Cyganiak is No.76 irg
nation.
The junior's doubles play has been
even more impressive. Cyganiak and her
doubles partner, Sora Moon, finished the
season undefeated in conference play and
are ranked No. 26 in the nation.
If the Wolverines play up to their po-
tential, anything can happen. They have
been tested this season, playing some
very strong teams in non-conferenceplay.
They also have had some close matches
against Northwestern, Indiana and
nesota. Those teams are seeded No. 2, 3
and 4, respectively. Northwestern edged
Michigan, 4-3, and Indiana and Minne-
sota won close matches by 5-2 counts
over the Wolverines.
Friday could tell a different story for
the Wolverines. It will be a do-or-die day,
as the tournament is single-elimination, a
change from last year's format. Michigan
is scheduled to face Minnesota at L 0
p.m. The pressure is on the Gophers
Wolverines go in with nothing to lose.
"We know we have our work cut out
for us on Friday," Cyganiak said. "It's a
rematch from this weekend. Even though
we lost (to Minnesota), there's a good
feeling among the players. Everyone is
fired up to get revenge.
"I think it's going to be a different story
next week."
cs rarin9
Werm
U..
U.
April 29*June 17
Open Registration: April 25 - 26
On behalf of the Division of Student Affairs
the Student Activities and Leadership Office
would like to Congratulate the following
award recipients for the 1996 Michigan
Leadership Awards.
Outstanding Student Leaders
Johnny Su
Mark Kibby
Julie Lubeck
Suzanne Sarafa
John Schmidt
Jessica Daniels
Outstanding New Members
Veronica Arriola
Sangeeta Bhatia
Michael lngber
Karen Lareau
Ian Lucas
Jill Manske
Kathleen Soo Hoo
Sarah Sosbe
cS umm en
37erm
June 250 August 13
Open Registration: May 20 - June 24
..-.. .u .. u......... . -..... ...u
~1 996
SPRING & SUMMER
FLINT TERM INTEREST CARD
Office of Admissions, University of Michigan-Flint
303 East Kearsley Street, Flint, MI 48502-2186 :
: NAME
. ADDRESS
Coming home for the summer?
Pick up some transferable
credits at the University
of Michigan-Flint by
enrolling in our Spring and
Summer terms.
Just fill out the mailer
and send it in. Or for
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Needed
High volume distribution
center is accepting
applications for dependable
and energetic people, to
perform warehouse duties.g
We offer a starting rate of
$7.00 per hour - overtime is
sometimes necessary. Work
week is Monday thru Friday,
8:00 a m. to 5:00 p.m. A high
school diploma or GED is
required. Position is available
j for entire summer.
Advisor
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Program of the Year
Acting on the Dream
Alternative Spring Break