'M' softball postponed The No. 10 Michigan softball team's doubleheader with intrastate rival Michigan State, originally slated for yesterday afternoon in East Lansing, was postponed because of inclement weather. The games have been rescheduled for 2 p.m. today at'the Spartans' home field. Michigan is currently second in the Big Ten; Michigan State is tied for eighth. Wednesday April 10, 1996 9 Zahn to tinker with lineup vs. Chargers By Will McCahill Daily Sports Writer In a team game, one of the keys to success is chemistry. And for the Michigan baseball team to find that elusive element, it needs to play some non-conference games that give coach Geoff Zahn the opportunity to experiment. Txhe extended winter has played havoc with the Wolverines' schedule, forcing the cancellation of three of the five scheduled non-conference matchups so far. With this in mind, Michigan (9-3 Big Ten, 12-16 overall) hopes - if indeed Mother Nature chooses to smile upon them - to face Hillsdale at 4 p.m. today on the frozen tundra of Ray Fisher Stadium. Not that the Wolverines need to recover from the tough conference schedule they've been play- ing - Michigan is in the Big Ten driver's seat - but Zahn wants to try out different combinations in the field, at the plate and on the mound against the Chargers (12-8-1 overall). As it is, the defensive situation has been fairly stable for the Wolverines, without much variation in the infield and little platooning in the outfield and behind the plate. Although hitting hasn't been a problem for the Wolverines of late, the leadoff spot has not exactly been a source of runs. A handful of hitters have filled that slot, with only minimal success. "We've been trying to get somebody to produce in that spot," Michigan assistant coach Chris Harrison said. The meat of the order - shortstop Kelly Dransfeldt, third baseman Mike Cervenak and rightfielder Derek Besco -has kept the wheels of the Michigan offense greased. Harrison said the lack of output from the first spot in the order has put extra pressure on the middle of the order to perform at the plate. "They've handled the pressure well." the first- year assistant said. "What's been nice, though, is having Cervenak swinging the bat well. It gets (Dransfeldt) better pitches." The top of the pitching rotation is firmly estab- lished, with senior Mark Temple and freshman J.J. Putz leading the way. Each has three wins in confei- ence, with overall marks of4-3 and 3-2,respectively. Putz is second on the team in ERA at 3.58, with that mark narrowing to 0.98 in Big Ten games. However, the team is still looking for a stro' performerto step up behind the top starters. Sopho- more Mike Hribernik fared poorly last weekenI against Minnesota, while freshman southpaw Pets Martay came out flat against Michigan State 4 week ago. Redshirt freshman Bryan Besco put up a good showing in relief of Hribernik against the Gd phers, and the closing spot is firmly occupied by senior John Arvai. - Today's encounter with Hillsdale should be pitched by committee, as different pitchers will shuttle in and out after an inning or two of work. Senior Aaron Peterson leads the Charger attack, hitting .319 with 12 RBI. Junior outfielder Ryan Soldan is also a threat, batting .279 while playing in all 21 of Hillsdale's games. The junior pitching tandem of Andy Adams ani Erich Mullin has been solid for Hillsdale. The two have combined for seven of the team's 12 wins, and both have individual ERAs considerably lower than the team's 3.95 average. The Wolverines and the Chargers have faced only one common opponent this season, Oaklan University. Hillsdale won two of the four meeq, ings, while Michigan charged to a 7-0 home vic tory over the Pioneers. KRISTEN SCHAEFER /alay The Michigan baseball team, seen here celebrating a victory over Oakland University, is currently in first place in the Big Ten. The Wolverines hold half-game lead over illinois. Michigan takes a break from conference play today when it hosts Hillsdale College at 4 p.m. Remaining 'M' regular-season baseball schedule April 10 11 1314 17 20-21 28 Home games in bold Hillsdale Detroit Mercy Northwestern (DH) Central Michigan Penn State (DH) Siena Heights (OH) 4 pam. 3 p.m. 1 p.m. 1 p.m' 1p.m* May 2 4-5 7 11 12 Notre Dame Ohio State (OH) Eastern Michigan Cincinnati Michigan State (DH) Michigan State (DH) 7 1 1 1 p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. 'M' netters look to ace Spartans syy' I Wolverines and Michigan State heading in opposite directions By Richard Shin Daily Sports Writer When the Michigan men's tennis #am faces off against intrastate rival Michigan State today, it will be a match between two teams going in opposite directions. The Wolverines, winners of three in a row and five of their last six matches, face a Spartan team that has dropped two straight. Most recently, Michigan State lost a close 4-3 match to an Illinois squad that Michigan blanked last Sun- ay. Led by No. 90 Alberto Brause at first singles, the Spartans have posted a 2-4 record in the Big Ten and are 10-10 overall. Even though Michigan State hasn't been on fire lately, Michigan's No. 1 singles player Peter Pusztai isn't looking past today's match. "One thing we emphasize is not un- derestimating our opponents," Pusztai said. "This has always been an impor- tant rivalry for us, for bragging rights ed recruiting, so we keep that in mind." Michigan's performance on the sea- son, however, is enough to leave the Spartans green with envy. Leading the way for the Wolverines is Pusztai, who posted a career-high 32nd victory earlier this week. The Wolverines have been strong all year at singles with 20-match winner Arvid Swan at third singles, and freshman sensations William Farah and Jake Raiton splitting time at No. 6. Senior singles players John Costanzo and Geoff Prentice provide important leadership as well as victories from the second and fifth positions, respectively. Sophomore David Paradzik provides steady play at No. 4 to round out the Michigan singles corps. Since the loss to Northwestern March 30, the Wolverines have been on a roll, especially at the top two doubles posi- tions. Since the Wildcats swept all three doubles matches, the teams of Pusztai and Costanzo, and Prentice and Swan, have gone undefeated, posting identi- cal 3-0 marks. "Right now, I'm playing stronger at doubles than at singles," Pusztai said. "I've been returning serve really well lately and once that gets going, every- thing else starts working, also." And for opponents, that spells trouble, especially since Pusztai is 22nd in the nationat singles. le and Costanzo are ranked at doubles as well, coming into today's match as the No. 24 tandem. "I've been floating along at singles," Pusztai said. "But (Costanzo) and I have been working well together lately." Doubles has not been a strong posi- tion for the Spartans this season. None of Michigan State's doubles teams have more than one win in the Big Ten, and the three teams are a combined 3-12 in the conference. Without the doubles point, winning the match may prove to be difficult for the Spartans. Michigan is approaching the rest of the schedule with confidence and, af- ter a surprise in Evanston, the team doesn't want to let anyone else spoil its season. "After Northwestern, it was impor- tant for us to get going to show the (Big Ten) that we could bounce back," Pusztai. "A win tomorrow would be a huge for us. Bullets' Wallace arrested on misdemeanor assault charges The Associated Press DURHAM, N.C. - Washingtoti Bullets rookie Rasheed Wallace, who is sidelined with a broken left thumb, was arrested over the weekend iin North Carolina and charged with mix- demeanor assault. The team's top draft pick was ar+ rested Sunday and charged after al legedly failing to obey a restrainirig order filed against him by Chiquio Bryant, police said. Bryant i-s Wallace's ex-girlfriend and mothtr of his son Ishmiel, according to po- lice. The 6-foot-10 Wallace, who playet his college basketball at nearby North Carolina, is scheduled to make a court appearance May 7. Wallace, who had started 51 game, broke the thumb two weeks ago it Washington's 111-108 overtime loss to Orlando. He was averaging 10 points and 4.6 rebounds a game. The Michigan men's tennis team, winner of five of its last six contests, will take on a significantly weaker Michgan State team which is looking to raise its record above the .500 mark. FILE PHOTO/Daily Fielder slam keys Tiger win TO DAY VISIONS OF WOMEN'S The Associated Press DETROIT - Cecil Fielder's grand slam yed a six-run Detroit fourth, and the Tigers eld on for a 10-9 victory over the Seattle Mariners in their home opener yesterday. Alan Trammell, starting his 20th season with the Tigers, and Travis Fryman also homered for Detroit. Ricky Jordan and Alex Rodriguez homered for Seattle, which also hit six doubles and two triples. Greg Keagle (2-0) earned the victory with 3 2/3 innings of five-hit relief. Brian Will- iams pitched the ninth for the save. Paul Menhart (0-1), who walked the only *ree batters he faced, took the loss. The Tigers scored six runs in the fourth on one hit, Fielder's grand slam off reliever Bob Wells for a 10-7 lead. Seattle pitchers walked six and hit a batter in the inning. It was the ninth grand slam for Fielder and his first since May 22, 1995, which also came off Wells. The Mariners took a 3-0 lead off Detroit starter Scott Aldred in the first inning. Luis Sojo doubled and scored on Ken Griffey's triple. Edgar Martinez walked, then Jay Buhner doubled home Griffey and Martinez, who held up momentarily at third before scoring on an error by left fielder Melvin Nieves. . In the bottom of the inning, Seattle starter Bob Wolcott walked the first two Detroit batters. Fryman then hit a 2-1 pitch off the facing of the second deck in left for his third homer, pulling the Tigers into a 3-3 tie. Trammell hit a solo home run in the second. The Mariners took a 7-5 lead in the fourth on two-run homers by Jordan and Rodriguez. Russ Davis singled home Alex Diaz, who had doubled, in the Seattle seventh. Outfielders Melvin Nieves, Chad Curtis and Bobby Higginson congratulate Tigers' first baseman Cecil Fielder after hitting a fourth-inning grand slam in Detroit's 10-9 win over Seattle, yesterday. AP PHOTO HEALTH. CHALLENGES FORTHE MILLENNIUM CONVERSATION WITH: *Dean Noreen Clark School of Public Health *Dean Ada Sue Hinshaw School of Nursing *Dr. Kristine Ann Siefert Assistant Dean of Research School of Social Work MODERATED BY: National champs honored The national champion Michigan hockey team will be honored during the first intermission of tonight's Detroit Red Wings-Winnipeg Jets game at Joe Louis Arena. The game, which wasn't originally going to be televised, will be picked up by Channel 50. Coincidentally, the Red Wings will be gunning for their 60th win, which would match the 1977-78 Montreal Canadiens' NHL record. CLASSIFIED ADVE'RTIS ERS! Beginning April 10, 1996 The Michigan Daily Dr. Abigail J. Stewart, Director Institute for Research on Women and Gender WEDNESDAY, APRIL 10, 1996 3:00 - 5:00 P.M.