6B - The Michigan Daily - SPORTSMonday - September 9, 1996 'M' men's harriers slosh through weekend tourney, grab top-four spots By John Friedberg Daily Sports Writer Many sporting events get post- poned due to inclement weather, but the rain could not stop the Michigan men's cross country team from com- peting in the Michigan Open on Saturday. The times were slower than in years' past, with the weather slowing down the pace. "Everyone was pretty happy with their results" Steve Lawrence said. "The rain made the course slower and it was harder to push off the soft- er, wet ground." The freshman from Consecon, Ontario, finished fourth in the intra- squad event. Sophomore John Mortimer won the event, followed by senior co-cap- tain Scott MacDonald and junior Ryan Swan. "We ran together for most of the course on Saturday," Lawrence said. Mortimer and MacDonald are expected to be two of the top runners on the team this season, so their top finishes in the weekend event were not much of a surprise. Mortimer finished 37th at the national championships last season and expectations are high for another successful year. He will have to have an impressive season if the Wolverines are to over- come the loss of their top runner from the past three years, Kevin Sullivan. The six-time All-American "We feel that we are in pretty good shape right now, but Kansas (the Jayha wk Invitational) will be a better test next weekend. Ontario, will be counted on this sea- son for strong times. Cantin finished fifth at the Canadian Olympic Trials this sum- mer, so he is no stranger to big-time races. Lawrence and Cantin are part of a young Wolverine squad that features only five seniors on its 23-man ros- ter. While inexperience would seem to be a factor this season, Warhurst sees the team as extremely developed despite the lack of college experi. ence. The Wolverines will have to be at their best if they are to have a top finish in Kansas. The Jayhawk Invitational will fea- ture No.1 Arkansas. Women cruise, 19-42 "y Dan Stil"man Daily Sports Writer - Steve La Michigan cross c and seven-time Big Ten c will miss the season du achilles tendon injury. "We feel that we are in pre shape right now, but Kan Jayhawk Invitational) will be test next weekend," Lawrenc Lawrence is expected to b er of Michigan's top Michigan coach RonV expects a lot from the seco finisher at the Canadian cro try championships. Another freshman from C expected to contribute gre fall. Jay Cantin from Ca w rence So much for limping into the season. ountry Without its two top runners, the No. 6eMichigan women's cross-country runner team easily defeated Michigan State on Saturday, 19-42, in its first meet of hampion the season. e to an The Wolverines dominated the leaderboard, taking five of the top etty good seven scoring positions. sas (the Redshirt freshman Allison Noe won e a better the competition with a personal best of :e said. 18:09. e anoth- Freshman Elizabeth Kampfe (18:28) runners. grabbed a third-place finish for the Warhurst Wolverines, while sophomore Katie nd-place McGregor (18:49) followed in fourth. ass coun- In fact, four of Michigan's top five finishers were freshmen. anada is "For an opening meet, they were atly this good performances," Michigan coach Mike McGuire said. "I was happy with mlachie, Noe, Kampfe, Shields and Egghart running for their first time. Kamp4 and Shields had a hell of an effort for their first time." The Wolverines are counting on per- formances like this past weekend's by their freshmen, as 12 members of the squad are first-year runners and five are redshirt sophomores. The three Michigan seniors, captain Jennifer Barber, Molly Lori and Tanya Manson, did not run against th Spartans. Another Wolverine who did not par- ticipate in the dual meet, freshman Julie Froud, is waiting for her ;final transcript to come through the NdAA clearinghouse. "There's no problem with (Froid)," McGuire said. "She's academically eligible, the transcript just has to be sent." The Wolverines travel to Kansas for the Jayhawk Invitational next we end. The Michigan men's cross country team grabbed the top four finishes in Saturday's Michigan Open, despite rain and mud. The Wolverines are gearing up for the Jayhawk invitational in Lawrence, Kan., next weekend. 'M' soccer earns a victory the Wright way "O r ex eren e a esa IG difeen e CYCLE CELLAR RACING, CROSS-TERRAIN MOUNTAIN BIKES & SUSPENSION BIKES SALES * SERVICE * REPAIRS *FRAMESETS -SUSPENSION FORKS eCLOTHING & ACCESSORIES -DARTS & SUPPLIES *REPAIRS ON ALL MAKES. *WRITTEN ESTIMATES *WHEEL BUtN i eFREE TEST. RDES- Wolverines regroup from season-opening loss IITANIttMP #Mon i 6; Th10 inseason - C:.:;:nsed ays durng winter 769-1115 220 Felch (1 block W of Main) - Ann Arbor I I =ISA - MILLE By Mark Snyder Daily Sports Writer After the Michigan women's soc- cer team dropped its first game to Butler, the Wolverines saw a need to "learn each other's strengths and weaknesses." It didn't take them too long. The Wolverines (1-1) regrouped and defeating Wright State, 2-0, on Saturday. "This game, we were a lot more relaxed and we had a rhythm," Michigan forward Marie Spaccarotella said. "We just connect- ed better." The unity displayed by the Wolverines was spearheaded by team captain Deb Flaherty. Flaherty was on fire the entire game, taking shots from all over the field and connecting for Michigan's first goal. Her kick from the center of the box at the 34-minute mark of the to Butler, blank Wright first half gave the Wolverines the lead, as it turned out, for good. Flaherty knocked in the rebound of Spaccarotella's shot after it bounced off the goalkeeper. She attempted seven shots throughout the contest -.only two less than the entire Wright State team. Her five attempts in the first half kept the pressure on the Raiders from the outset. While seven shots may appear N >1 T1 SPON S OFTEUOFMBCCELB LL PITCHER * Pitchers N IC H T Bottles Heineken, Amstel $2.00 $2.00 T D.J. John King 9-Close I Sa° Pint fi Mi dh+ I y, 1\1111 u . C OC C $1.50 Domestic $2.50 Premium Pints State, 2-0 extraordinary, it was just anotter da for the Michigan co-captain. "(Seven shots on goal) is normal for Deb," Spaccarotella said. "She's a great player." Flaherty's first-half performance rubbed off on her teammates A the second stanza as the entire teatit got involved. The Wolverines fired off 1I shots in the second half, with freshman forward Amber Berendowsky kIing the victory for the Wolverines in ti 89th minute with her first collegia This game, we were a lot more relaxed and we had a rhythm We just connected better. - Marie Spaccarotella Michigan forward goal. Berendowsky's score was a prod- uct of her own creativity. She emerged from a scramble fb the ball and fired it past the goal- keeper. "(Amber) just took it in and scored, "Spaccarotella said. "She got the ball, dribbled in and shot." With 25 shots on goal, Michigan exceeded its total from its first game, while pitching a shutout on defense. Sophomore Jessica Jones, who d not see action in the game again Butler, stopped all nine Wright State shots while staying in the net the entire contest. "Everyone, as individuals, stepped up their game," Spaccarotella said. "(As a result), we played more as a team." That team effort showed on the field. Twelve of the 15 Wolverines who saw action in the contest agai4 Wright State got a shot off, with six making multiple attempts at the net. After last week's defeat, Michigan coach Debbie Belkin saw the need for a change and altered the game plan. "We worked a lot on having the forwards pressure up (this week)," Spaccarotella said. "They went high instead of being in the middle as much. That changed the whole flo' (of the game) for everyone." With a consistent flow, teamwork and rhythm, the Wolverines are learning how to win. Michigan's next game is tomorrow at Eastern Michigan. I- /2 YAP PAY WOMEoN Lap Do NTIL 11:00 music by