...-- u 4n.rb n .u,- . N , , u -- +N NU i NN Nn w v i r' Butle'r disruptsh 'M' soccer's balancin act . Freshmen and veterans out of sync, fall 2-0 ., By Mark Snyder Daily Sports Writer Experience may be important, but as the Michigan women's soccer team found out, practice makes perfect. With four of their top five scorers returning, the Wolverines have the firepower to win games. But the upperclassmen and the team's newest additions are still adapting to each other. Against Butler Saturday, the Wolverines could not seem to find a comfortable rhythm. Their 2-0 loss to the Bulldogs largely came at the hands of a single player. Butler senior Beth Crauder knocked in both scores to put away the Wolverines. Michigan sent 23 shots in the direction of Butler goalkeeper E.B. Larson but were repeatedly turned away. The Wolverines missed on their best scoring opportunity soon after Crauder's second goal, when freshman Marie Spaccarotella headed a Ruth Poulin pass off the goalpost. Despite the defeat, Michigan has rea- son to remain optimistic. The Wolverines return 18 members of last season's squad, led by second-year co-captains Deb Flaherty and Michele Brach. Michigan coach Debbie Belkin thinks their experience will help them be successful team leaders. 66All of our recruits are going to make an Impact as division I players" - Debbie Belkin Michigan soccer coach "Being second-year captains, it becomes a little easier" Belkin said. "(Flaherty and Brach) know exactly what their role is" And that role increases with the addi- tion of nine newcomers. Heading the list of upstarts are two Parade All- Americans, Amber Berendowsky and Mari Hoff. Both are in-state recruits, an important factor according to Belkin. "This was one of the best years in the state of Michigan (for local talent)," Belkin said. "All of our recruits are going to make an impact as Division I players." Michigan's recruiting class is consid- ered one of the top in the nation accord- ing to Soccer America. The potential of the nine newcomers is significant, with many vying for playing time. But the standard was set last season by the returning players. Flaherty, a junior midfielder, returns this season after leading the squad in assists. Most of her passes went to junior forward Ruth Poulin, last season's top goal scorer, and junior Ashley Marks, who tied Poulin last season with three game-winning goals. Another year of experience should aid the Wolverines in close games. Last sea- son, the Wolverines were defeated four times by only one goal. The Wolverines have close to a week to regroup before they face Wright State in Dayton, Ohio, on Saturday. FILE PHOTO/Dail Co-captain Deb Flaherty and her Michigan teammates look to jump into the soccer season, despite losing to Butler, 2-0, Saturday. The Wolverines return 18 players from last season's squad and add nine newcomers. The team hasn't come togeth- er yet, but it has nearly a week to prepare for its next opponent. The Wolverines play Wright State in Dayton, Ohio, on Saturday. Big Ten beast best prepared for by tough non-conference schedule, Giovanazzi says No. 1 Hawaii, No. 6 UCLA expected to tune up Blue for several tough conference foes By Ryan White Daily Sports Writer Nonconference schedules are played to prepare for when the games really count. In the case of the Michigan volleyball team, that would mean getting ready for the rig- ors of a Big Ten campaign. The problem is, at least as far as Michigan coach Greg Giovanazzi sees it, the conference is going to be extremely good this year. "The conference is an absolute beast," Giovanazzi said before the Wolverines left for last weekend's Wahine Classic in Honolulu. "I don't think there will be a tougher league this year. "There are just a lot of really good teams in this conference." Michigan State advanced all the way to the NCAA championship game last season. They'll be challenged by Penn State, Illinois and Ohio State - all of which will not only be conference powers, but national ones as well. Which brings us back to the pre- season, and the question of how you prepare for what could be a beast of a season. Well, you apparently travel across the country and a good piece of the Pacific Ocean. And when you get there, you play three top-25 teams, including No. I Hawaii in its own backyard. Giovanazzi had hoped to play tough in Hawaii. He wanted to see where his team stood after losing two of his top play- I'm not sure you'll be able to gauge how good this team might be by the record because of how tough we open up. I'm looking to see how we've matured in playing teams at that level." - Greg Giovanazzi Michigan volleyball coach ers - and leaders - from last year, Shannon Brownlee and Suzy O'Donnell. He wanted to observe. "I'm not sure you'll be able to gauge how good this team might be by the record because of how tough we open up," Giovanazzi said. "I'm looking to see how we've matured in playing teams at that level, to see the first glimmer of play at that level." And, before last night's game against No. 25 Louisville, Michigan was still looking for its first win. The match finished after the Daily went to press. The two losses, however, were against two of the best teams in the country, No. I Hawaii and No. 6 UCLA. As Giovanazzi had hoped, the Wolverines played both teams tough until the end. The Wolverines will not get a break in the remainder of the presea- son schedule either. Next up is the Volleyball Challenge this weekend at home in Cliff Keen Arena. The Wolverines will get their first look at Big Ten opponent Illinois, who will be at the event, and Michigan will go head-to-head with Florida and Georgia. The Wolverines will also face what should be a tough Notre Dame squad Sept. 20 before finally opening the conference season Sept. 27 in Iowa City. At that point, Giovanazzi hopes the non-conference rigors will pro- duce Big Ten results, and an invita- tion to the NCAA tournament. A chance the Wolverines feel they deserved and should have gotten last year. But that's in the future. For now, it's one tough opponent after another. FILE PHOTO/Daily Michigan lost last year's co-captain Shannon Brownlee to graduation. Michigan missed the regularity of Brownlee's digs and kills this weekend, falling to No.1 . Hawaii and No. 6 UCLA in the Wahine Classic in Honolulu, Hawaii. Arthur Andersen Business Consulting HAWAII Continued from Page 13A finished the match with double-digit kills. Jackson led the Wolverines with 17. Mendoza finished the match with 56 assists. The Wolverines had six more kills than the Bruins, but UCLA out- -blocked (35-9) and out-hit (.202- ::<:::: Volleyball schedule .109) Michigan. The Wolverines faced the Cardinals last night in their third and final tournament game. The match ended after the Daily went to press. Michigan opens its home season next weekend when it hosts the Volleyball Challenge beginning Friday night at Cliff Keen Arena. A Powerful Choice Arthur Andersen Business Consulting is a business consulting practice within Arthur Andersen committed to helping our clients achieve measurable performance improvement and implement positive and lasting change in their business operations. AA BC assists mid- and large-sized companies in improving their business processes and technologies through specialization in operational and organizational improvement, performance measurement and middle market technology implementation services. 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With our unique focus on serving mid and large-sized The University of Michigan is now registering for Fall Term: September 9 - December 6, 1996 Pick up a schedule and register for our classes 3050 CCRB Aquatics Dance Exercise ' Tennis Swim Conditioning Workout Class Ballroom Dance Super Circuit Beginning Intermediate Swimming Lessons Dance Weight Training Intermediate Beginning/Advanced Beginning Hip-Hop Butts and Guts Advanced Swimming Lessons - Step WSI Aerobics LGI Step Circuits LGT Tae Kwon Do Home games in bold Date Opponent Sept. 6..... .............. .Volleyball Challenge Georgia vs. Louisville, 5 p.m. Michigan vs. Florida, 7:30 p.m. Sept. 7o..................................................V lleyball Challenge Iflinois vs. Florida, 5 p.m. Michigan vs. Georgia, 7:30 p.m. Sept. 10 ........................ ... ..... ..... Toledo, 7:30 p.m. Sept. 13....................Spikeoff Spokane Tournament Michigan vs. Gonzaga, 7 p.m. Sept. 14-.. ..................... ..Spikeoff Spokane Tournament Michigan vs. George Mason, 10 a.m. Michigan vs. Wyoming, 4:30 p.m. Sept. 20...................................... ............Notre Dame, 7 p.m. Sept. 21...................................................Eastern Michigan, 7 p.m. Sept. 2i.. .. .. . .. .. ... .. ... ..owa, 7 p.m. Sept. 28 ...................................................Illinois, 7:30 p.m. Oct. 4.....................................................Michigan State, 7 p.m . Oct. 5 .. .......Northwestern, 7 p.m. Oct. 11 ..............................................Wisconsin, 7 p.m. Oct. 12..........................Minnesota, 7 p.m. Oct.18.................Ohio State, 7:30 p.m. Scuba Volleyball Yoga Also available: Personal Training .L. ..." Zj ommoommmommmm" 3=."= . smszc s aa. 4A i I I