10- The Michigan Daily - Friday, January 26, 1996 HOCKEY Continued from Page 9 going against that," Michigan right wing Warren Luhning said. "It's go- ing to be a different style of hockey." The Buckeyes' trap, combined with the smaller ice surface at OSU Ice Rink, will make 13-1 victories, like the Wolverine' last game, almost im- possible. Tomorrow, Michigan takes on Bowling Green (9-7-1, 15-9-1) in a must-win game for the Falcons. Bowl- ing Green has been hovering in fifth- place in the CCHA all season. The Falcons are clearly a better team than sixth-place Alaska-Fairbanks, but haven't proven that they can compete with the conference's top four - Michigan, Michigan State, Lake Su- perior State and Western Michigan. The Falcons are usually in the CCHA title hunt when March rolls around, but this season, they have looked more like a wounded duck. Bowling Green coach Buddy Powers' hopes for an NCAA Tournament berth have almost vanished. The Falcons have been on the brink of tournament play for years but haven't made it to the NCAAs since four straight ap- pearances from 1987-90. "I think Bowling Green really shot themselves in the foot with its non- conference play," Berenson said. "I know where Bowling Green wants to be and they might not be at that level yet. "They're coming off a weekend where they lost twice and they'll be looking to rebound - it ought to be a tight game." The Falcons' defense hasn't been the reason why they haven't joined the CCHA elite. Bowling Green has allowed only 66 goals all year, even with starting goaltender Bob Petrie out for a chunk of the season with a pulled groin muscle, an injury he's not expected to overcome by tomor- row. The Falcons' weakness lies is in their offense: they've mustered just 63 goals this season. To make matters worse, Bowling Green's leading scorer, Mike Johnson, is listed as ques- tionable for the weekend with a bruised foot. Michigan, however, will be happy to see one of its own - veteran defenseman Blake Sloan - return to the lineup this weekend after sit- ting out three games with an injured leg. In SPORTSMonday ... Antoine Pitts makes a final stop with a column in this week's SPORTSMonday. M' cagers still looking, for first Big Ten win By Andy Knudsen Daily Sports Writer Something has to give tonight at Crisler Arena. When the Michigan women's bas- ketball team (0-7 Big Ten, 6-11 over- all)hosts Minnesota (0-7, 4-13)at 7:30 p.m., it's inevitable one of the teams will end its losing streak and finally capture that elusive first conference victory. Michigan coach Trish Roberts knows that both teams will put up a good fight to fill their barren win columns. "Similar to us, their record is not any indication of how good a team they are," Roberts said. "It's not going to be an easy game for us." Alsolike Michigan, the Gophers have a very young and slightly banged-up roster. The matchup to watch tonight will be in the paint between the two centers. Junior center Cheri Stafford has been leading Minnesota this year with 12.5 points per game and 7.7 rebounds per game after missing much of her first two seasons due to injuries. The Wolverines counter with sopho- more Pollyanna Johns, who has been averaging a double-double with 16.5 points and 10.5 rebounds per contest. Her stats are even more impressive against Big Ten foes: 18.9 points and 12.3 rebounds per game. Looking past the post, neither team has another player averaging over 10 points a game, which is a good indica- tion of why both teams have struggled this year. If the Wolverines are going to make a move in the conference, this weekend is their best chance. After facing Min- nesota, with whom they are tied for 10th place, Michigan goes on the road to play ninth-place Indiana (1-6, 10-7) Sunday at 2 p.m. A victory in both games would likely boost the Wolverines out of the confer- ence cellar and give them sole posses- sion of ninth place. "We feel good about these two games. Personally, I think we can win these two games," Roberts said. "But we've got to come ready to play." Still fresh in the Wolverines' minds is last year's meeting with Indiana in Crisler. The Hoosiers were down by one with the ball out of bounds and a mere o seconds left on the clock. The ball was in-bounded to Quacy Barnes who nailed the winning jumper from the middle of the key for the 78-77 victory. "Losing that game was a heart- breaker to us and we just want to make sure that doesn't happen again," Rob- erts said. Indiana was expected to finish in the middle ofthe conference but has not yet lived up to those expectations. It s just a TONYA BROAD/Daily The Michigan hockey team takes on Ohio State and Bowling Green this weekend on the road. Wrestlers travel to llinois for keymeets matter of whether our kids are going to show up to play or not. - Trish Roberts M icHigan basketball coach Even so, the Hoosiers possess four players averaging over 11 points, led by senior forwardLisa Furlin with 15.8 ppg. And Johns will have her hands full again Sunday when she faces off with 6-foot-5 Barnes (13.2 points and 2.8 blocks per game). "We know we can play with ther@ we know we have the players to stay with them," Roberts said. "It's just a matter of whether our kids are going to show up to play or not." There has to be some frustration in- volved with being 0-7 going into the halfway weekend of a round-robin con- ference schedule. But Roberts says her team won't throw iti the towel. "I don't think they're down on the selves because they know every ga they've played they've been in the game," Roberts said. "We know we're capable of winning." By Jennifer Hodulik Daily Sports Writer Chicago, Rockford, Skokie, Des Plains, Spring City. What do these places have in com- mon? They are some of the few cities in Illinois that the Michigan wrestling team will not encounter when it travels to the land of Lincoln to face the Fighting Illini and the Wildcats of Northwestern. These will be critical matchups for the No. 17 Wolverines (5-4) because of the solid competition and Big Ten confer- ence standings. Michigan coach Dale Bahr acknowl- edged the importance of the meet in terms of team development in taking on No. 8 Illinois and No. 18 Northwestern. "All 11 schools in the Big Ten are nationally ranked," Bahr said. "Every meet is very competitive." Michigan will look to avenge a 16-19 loss to Illinois at the Virginia Duals ear- lier this season. Bahr will juggle his lineup in hopes of gaining an edge by placing sophomores Bill Lacure and Jeff Catrabone into the 150 and 158-lb. slots as opposed to the heavier positions (158 and 167, respec- tively) where they have been stationed thus far. "The difference this time around will be that Bill and Jeff will move down," Bahrsaid. "We'regonnamove them down and hopefully knock some people out." Lacure and Catrabone will have their work cut out for them as they are being called upon to knock out No. 8 Eric Siebert(150)anddefendingNCAA cham- pion Ernest Benion at 158. Catrabone defeated Benion twice last year before a season-ending injury prevented a matchup at the NCAA Championships. Another intriguing dual will pit No. 8 Airron Richardson against No. 9 Seth Brady of Illmois at heavyweight. Northwestern will also keep the Wol- verines' hands full according to sopho- more Brian Aparo. "Northwestern is a real surprising team," Aparo said. "Nobody expected them to be greatbut theyjust knocked out [No. 7] Minnesota." In facing the Wildcats, senior captain Jesse Rawls Jr. (177) will get a dose of what is yet to come at the National Wres- tling Coaches Association All-Star Clas- sic, Jan. 29. By virtue of his No. 3 ranking, Rawls was invited to the prestigious meet. He will prepare by taking on No. 4 Rohan Gardner of Northwestern on Saturday. Aparo indicated that this would be a pivotal matchup. Rawls and Gardnerhave met twice this season and come away on both sides of the coin. "Our 177 match will be very interest- ing," Aparo said. "Ifit comes down to that at Northwestern, it will be very exciting." The lineup for the lower weight classes has not yet been solidified with the excep- tion ofBrandon Howe at 126. Freshmen Joe Warren and Chris Viola will vie for the 118 position. The 134 slot will also be a toss-up between freshman Corey Grant and Aparo. In addressing the difficulties in the lower classes so far this season, Bahr continues to be uncertain. "There's not much you can do," Bahr said. "We'll take along two guys at 118 and 134 and go with whoever's doing better in practice." WOMEN Continued from Page 9 Kampfe and Talor Bendel. Potter will also compete in the backstroke. So, while timing might hurt Michi- gan by forcing them to swim top-15 teams that are in postseason form, it nevertheless provides them with a stiff challenge. And with the Wolverines' postseason coming up quick, Richardson might just be willing to trade a win for this type of meet. "I'm less concerned about points than I am about stepping up and going no, to nose," Richardson said. "Ifwe can that, then I can walk away from .the score and feel good about our ability to race and step up." f I I Watson Wyatt Worldwide MEN Continued from Page 9 "It's really unique how (Urbanchek) wants to help me," Mull said in an interview with The Detroit News. "He's the kind of coach we need more of. He's not into egos. He just wants to see people improve." While this weekend's competition is crucial to Mull because it is his big chance to show the Wolverines how big a threat he is, the meet is also very important to Urbanchek's squad. "This meet is significant because it is the last preparation for the Big Ten Championships (in three weeks)# Urbanchek said. "Some swimmers neeu to make times (to qualify for the Big Ten Championships) and the relays need to improve their times to get into the final relays." The Wyatt Company Watson Wyatt Worldwide helps clients succeed by increasing their return on investment in people. Watson Wyatt Worldwide is an alliance between R Watson & Sons, headquartered outside of London, and The Wyatt Company, headquartered in Washington, D.C. The two firms operate as a single consulting resource for employers throughout the world. 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