2B - The Michigan Daily - SPORTSMonday - Monday, February 19, 1996 Snow keeps women s tennis from com peting By Pranay Reddy Daily Sports Writer The Michigan women's tennis team didn't even show up to play this week- end in Virginia. Literally, Due to inclement weather condi- tions in the Richmond area, the Wol- verines were forced to return home to Ann Arbor without even arriving in Virginia. Matches against Maryland and Wil- liam & Mary were canceled. When Michigan left for Richmond Friday morning, a snowstorm was ap- proaching Virginia. As soon as the Wolverines' plane neared the airport, the runways were shut down due to the heavy snowfall. The plane circled the airport for approximately an hour, and then returned to the Detroit Metro Airport. "I was very disappointed for two reasons," senior Tara Graffsaid. "Be- cause I wanted to play, and my family was going to be there." Coaches Bitsy Ritt and Susan Sommerville-Courtright attempted to get reservations on the next available flight, which was insignificant, since the flight left Sunday. The Wolverines will now have to wait until next season to exact re- venge on William and Mary for last year's loss. "Since it was a non-conference match, we don't reschedule it," Sommerville-Courtright said. Michigan will have to wait a week for another match. When the Wolver- ines face Northwestern this Saturday at Liberty Sports Complex, they will be coming off an 11-day break since their last contest, a match against Western Michigan. "The team handled the situation well," Sommerville-Courtright said. "We didn't lament over the fact that we couldn't play William & Mary and Maryland." If any good can come of the weekend's events, it is that freshman Jennifer Boylan can get another week to rest her swollen knee. Boylan, who made the trip with the team, would not have played in either match due to her ailment. "We're anxious to find out her con- dition," Sommerville-Courtright said. "We'll know more (today)." In efforts to keep the team's spirit up, intense practices were held over the weekend in preparation for the Wildcats' arrival in Ann Arbor Satur- day. "Because it's a Big Ten match, we can get psyched up really quick," Graff said. Turnovers doom Michiga aers By James Goldstein Daily Sports Writer Leads are hard to come by for the Michigan women's basketball team. And when the Wolverines grab the lead, it doesn't last for long. A jump start at the opening ofthe'game was not enough in Michigan's 87-81 loss to Michigan State yesterday at Crisler Arena. This followed the Wolverines' 90-79 defeattoNorthwestern Fridaynight at Crisler. The Wolverines (1-13 Big Ten, 7-17 overall) surged to a 16-8 lead in the first four miuntes of the game. Four minutes and 14 seconds - that was the only period Michigan was on the winning side of the scoreboard. Michigan State (8-6, 16-8) took the lead with more than 10 minutes to play in the half and didn't give it up for the remainder of the game. "For the first five or six minutes, we came out and played extremely well," Michigan coach Trish Roberts said. "And then all of a sudden, I looked up at the scoreboard and we were up by only two points. And that has been the story of our team all season. We play well in spurts and then we let up." Jennifer Brzezinski did not let up at all. The senior forward scored a season-high 24 points and pulled down nine rebounds to lead the Wolverines. "I think what helped me was that I wasn't in foul trouble," Brzezinski said. "Just the shots were there. Theball seemed to be falling in my hands either on a pass or off a rebound." Akisha Franklin added 20 points, in- cluding 5-of-8 from the 3-point line, and had three steals. Pollyanna Johns chipped in with 15 points. Bella Engen led a balanced attack for the Spartans, scoring 20 points off the bench. Engen was one of six players in double figures. The Spartans shot a siz- zling 60 percent from the field. But Michigan's field goal percentage in the first half wasn't too shabby, either. The Wolverines shot a whopping 62.5 percent, but still were down 11 at the break. The reason - turnovers. The Wolverines totaled 17 turnovers in the first half alone, finishing with 25 for the game. Friday's game against the Wildcats looked the same as the Michigan State game. The Wolverines played Northwestern (6-8,17-9) tight in the first half. But when the Wildcats pushed out its lead to double digits in the opening moments of the second half, it looked as if Michigan was in trouble. Then, down 11 points with under 10 minutes to go in the contest, the Wolver- ines went on a 15-2 run, grabbing a 77-75 lead at 3:43. Molly Murray contributed five of her 12 points off the bench in that stretch. And Amy Johnson tacked in four of her team-high 18 points in bringing Michi- gan back. Two easy lay-ins by Johns gave the Wolverines a 79-77 with 2:24 left in the game. But that was the last time Michigan scored. Northwestern guard Megan Chawansky nailed three consecutive 3- pointers that sealed the win for the Wild- cats and broke the Wolverines' backs. The freshman guard came offthe bench after starting inall25 games this season to score a career-high 25 points, including 6-of-10 from the three point line. "Megan (Chawansky) was just firing away tonight," Northwestern coach Don Perrelli said. "1 don't think there's any question if Megan didn't hit those threes, we would be in deep trouble." Northwestern forward Katrina Hannafordledthe Wildcatswith 27 points and added 13 rebounds. Christina Braden chipped in 14 points and grabbed 13 boards. Johnson went down at the end of the game to an ankle injury and did not play yesterday. She had a cast on the ankle during yesterday's game. X-rays taken showed that the ankle was not broken; but badly sprained. Johnson's status is uncer- tain for the next few games. NORTHWESTERN (90) F FT RED MIN MA M-A 0-T A F Dewall 25 2-5 00 0-1 8 1 Ratay 40 4-18 2-2 2-5 9 2 12 Braden 36 7-13 0-0 4-13 2 4 14 Divjak 22 3-8 0-0 2-3 3 2 8 Hannaford 38 11-20 5-5 6-13 0 1 27 Chawansky 36 8-12 3-4 2-4 4 2 25 Connolly 3 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 Totals 20035.7610-1116-40 2612 90 FG%: .461. FT% .909. Three-point goals: 10-26, .385 (Chawansky 6-10, Divjak 2-3, Ratay 2-11 DeWall 0-2). Blocks: 2 (Braden, Ratay). Turnovers: 10 (Braden 2, Chawansky 2, Divjak 2, Ratay 2, Connolly, Hannaford). Steals: 6 (DeWall 3, Braden 2, Ratay). Technical Fouls: none. MICHIGAN (79) F FTREB MIN M-A M-A OT A F PTS Franklin 22 410 1-2 1-1 0 2 11 Kiefer 40 3-5 0-0 03 3 2 8 Johnson 37 7-13 4-4 00 2 3 18 Johns 24 5-12 00 4-9 0 3 10 Brzezinski 27 4-11 4-4 511 2 2 12 Murray 18 510 0-0 01 0 3 12 Willard 16 1-3 2-2 03 1 0 4 DiGiacinto 13 2-3 0-0 1-5 0 1 4 Shelman 3 0-0 0-0 01 2 0 Totals 00 31.67 11-12 1337 1016 79 FG%: .463. FT%: .917. Three-point goals: 6-14, .429 (Franklin 2-3,kKiefer 2-3, Murray 2-6, Johnson 0-2). Blocks: 1 (Willard) Turnovers: 15 (DiGiac into 3, Johnson 3, Murray 3, Johns 2, Brzezinski, Sheilman, Willard). Steals: 5 (Brzezinski, Johns, Kiefer, Murray, Sheliman). Technical Fouls: none. Northwestern.......44 46 - 90 Michigan----------......40 39- 79 At: Crisler Arena; A: 701 MICHIGAN STATE (87) F FT RED MIN M-A M-A OT A F PTS Matlock 36 0-0 0-2 0-3 11 0 0 Euler 33 5-8 6-6 0-2 2 1 16 Sanders 26 4-6 2-8 2-10 0 2 1 Wesley 23 49 44 1-1 0 4 ushing 15 57 0-0 33 0 5 1 Gray 26 4-7 3-4 0-2 2 2 11 Engan 21 9-11 2-3 3-3 0 1 20 Overaitis 15 0-4 2-4 0-2 0 1 2 Cunningham 5 2-3 1-2 1-1 0 1 5 Totals 200 33-5 20-33 11-32 157 87 FG%: .600. FT%: .606. Three-pont goals: 1-3, .333 (Wesley 1-2, Engen 01). Blocks: 1 (Gray). Turnovers: 21 (Matlock 7, Euler 6, Wesley 3, Gushing 2, Gray, Overaitis, Sanders). Steals: 10 (Gray 2, Wesley 2, Matlock, Sanders, ushing. Euler, Engen, Overaitis). Technical Fouls: none. MICHIGAN (81) FG FT RE MIN -A U-A0-T A F PTS Franklin 40 7-15 5-8 3-4 4 3 20 Kiefer 38 3-13 0-0 0-2 6 3 Brzezinski 37 10-15 4-7 39 2 4 Johns 27 7-10 1-2 2-6 1 4 1 Murray 17 1-4 0-0 01 3 3 .2 Willard 10 3-7 1-2 5-7 1 5 7 Shelman 15 1-2 0-0 4-5 1 2 2 DiGiacinto 5 1-1 00 1-2 0 1 2 Sikorski 8 01 0-0 1-1 10 0 Ross 2 00 0-0 00 0 0 Poglits 1 0-0 00 0-00 1 0 Totals 200 33-68 11-19 137 1926 81 FG%: .485. Fr%: .579. Three-point goals: 4-18. .222 (Kiefer 3-9, Frankin 14, Murray 02, Brzezinski 0-1, Sikorski 01 Willard 0-1). lcks: 3 (Brzezinski, Sheiman, Murray) Turnovers: 25 (Franklin 6, Murray 5, Willard 4, Shellman 3, Brzezinski 2, Ross 2, Johns, Kiefer, Sikorski). Steals: 9 (Frankin 3, Brzezinsk, Johns, Kiefer, Murray, Shellman, Sikorski). Technical Fouls: none. Michigan State. 47 40-87 Michigan ..............36 45 - 81 At: Crisler Arena; A: 1,257 10nshipS st chance to hie Big Ten meet"* - Kevin Sullivan Michigan men's track team "This is our last chance to sharpen up before the Big Ten meet," Sullivan said. "I think that the team is in the hunt for one of the top three spots." Harvey set a regimen of practice * Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. Gardner felt that Michigan must win the psychological battle as well as the physical. "If our spirits are up, and we don't have any doubts about our ability, we should do well," Gardner said. ioomin best time of 24.85 seconds. Johnson was not the only Wolver- ine to peak at the Classic. The 800-meter contest saw not one, but two, Wolverines notch lifetime best times. Freshmen Angie Stanifer and Sara Hamilton each ran the race faster than they ever had before, with Stanifer winning in 2:12.14, two-hun- dredths of a second before her team- mate. Another Michigan runner to set the pace for her race was Pauline Arnill. Although she had already qualified for the NCAA championships, she ran the mile Friday with a time o 4:52.45. The Wolverines are heading to Madison on their best foot with sev- eral athletes peaking at the right time. KRISTEN SCHAEFER/Daily Michigan's Molly Murray goes up for a shot against Northwestern Friday. Murray scored 12 points in the 90-79 loss. Next week Michigan at Iowa, Friday, 7:30 p.m. Wisconsin at Michigan, Sunday, 2 p.m. AP women's basketball Top 25 M' g ears up for Big Ten Champ 1. Georgia 2. Louisiana Tech 3. Connecticut 4. Stanford 5. Tennessee 6. Texas Tech 7. Iowa 8. Old Dominion 9. Penn State 10. Virginia 11. Wisconsin 12. Alabama 13. Vanderbilt 14. Duke 15. Oregon State 16. North Carolina State 17. Florida 18. Colorado 19. Clemson 20. Auburn 21. Mississippi 22. Purdue 23. Stephen F. Austin 24. Oklahoma State 25. Notre Dame 20-2 21-1 22-3 18-2 12 19-4 19-2 20-2 19-2 19-5 17-5 18-4 18-4 17-5 20-5 16-4 16-6 17-5 20-6 17-4 17-5 15-7 15-9 18-2. 17-5 16-5 By Avi Ebenstein Daily Sports Writer The Michigan men's track team had one last regular season match before indoor track's version of the playoffs: the Big Ten Championships. The Wolverines ran in Ypsilanti against Eastern Michigan, Michigan State, Windsor, and other local schools. Michigan rested their star ath- letes and gave some of the second stringers a chance to prove their mettle. One runner, junior Scott MacDonald, took advantage of that opportunity. MacDonald placed sec- ond in the mile at 4:10.22. Paul McMullen, an EMU graduate, won the mile at 4:03. Coach Jack Harvey was satisfied with the meet. "MacDonald posted our second- best mile but there weren't any real surprises," Harvey said. Harvey said that the meet served its purpose. "We gave our stars a chance to rest, and the others a chance to compete," Harvey said. "But almost no one played wetl enough to go to the Big Ten Championships." Harvey was not insulting the lower tier of Michigan runners, but felt that they had done well within their limi- tations. "Most of the guys are working real hard," Harvey said. "But some of the runners aren't in the same class as guys like junior Keven Sullivan and Neal Gardner." Gardner felt that the break was truly This (was) our Ias sharpen up before t needed. "It was a welcomed break, and we got to rest our muscles," Gardner said. "We have had meets every weekend so the break was good." Michigan also needed the rest to heal their star, Sullivan. "Kevin was hurt and he sure needed the break," Gardner said. The Wolverines now have one week to prepare for the Big Ten Champion- ships. Sullivan seemed loath to boast. Women's track rests with Big Tens] I ATFENTION FACULTY AND Ph.D CANDIDATES By Donald Adamek Daily Sports Writer The schedule said that the Michi- gan women's track team competed on Friday at Ypsilanti. The results will show that the Wolverines were at the Eastern Michigan Classic. But fans familiar with the team would have to claim otherwise. All-American Monica Black took the weekend off. Fellow All-Ameri- can Courtney Babcock was resting up for the Big Ten Championships next week. NCAA provisional quali- fiers Michelle Slater and Tania Longe skipped out on the compet- ition also. Even Michigan coach James Henry was nowhere to be found at the end of because I was sick," Henry said. "I didn't want to get them sick, so I left the team with my assistants in charge." But the Wolverines had more rea- son to show up than to keep contrac- tual obligations. Several athletes needed to fine tune their performances for their champi- onships. Henry had previously indicated that one group that needed to come through this weekend was the throwers. He identified Nicole Keith, Stephanie Wigness and Jayna Greiner as having the talent to qualify for nationals at this meet. While none of them, nor any other Michigan athletes, qualified for na- tionals Friday, they did perform well. Wigness came through on the shot- put with a heave of 45-foot-2 1/4. Greiner's 44-foot-2 1/2 inch shot was good enough for second place. "It was Greiner's best performance and place of the season," said Michi- gan assistant coach Mike McGuire. McGuire was satisfied with the team's performance. In the non-scor- ing meet the main goal was to prime the team for the Big Ten Champion- ships and beyond. "We had some people step it up," McGuire said, "which we needed to do in preparation for next weekend." One runner that lived up to high expectations was senior Tearza Johnson. Henry had looked for her to improve her performance and build confidence. This weekend should give her rea- son to be confident. Her victory in the 200-meter was a result of her season- the meet. "I didn't stay for the whole meet 1 r -- . "-- I I KiCW>A '4"U . ,_ ,4. 4 February 21st Wednesday (10 a.m. - 6 p.m.) 3776 S. State St. Now Hiring: *ExnFriened Food Servers. tli+ M i I', ti