G~b £d Emwnua I1 Scoreboard AMERICAN LEAGUE NATIONAL LEAGUE MILWAUKEE 2, Toronto 1 ATLANTA 6, Houston 2 Boston 4, DETROIT 0 COLORADO 6, Los Angeles 4 NEW YORK 3, Balitmore 2 San Diego 8, San Francisco 5 Cleveland at CHICAGO, inc. MONTREAL 4, New York 3 Minnesota at KANSAS CITY, inc. PITTSBURGH 5, Cincinnati 3 Oakland at CALIFORNIA, inc.. Florida at PHILADELPHIA, inc. Texas at SEATTLE, inc. Cticago at ST. LOUIS, inc. Home games in CAPS 11A Thursday September 19, 1996 4 ro V R ~ ', Confident Michigan spikers race into weekend matches Big Ten tourney if the works By JJ. SerapIgla For the Daily The Michigan women's volleyball team will continue its quest for respect and redemption when it takes on Notre Dame and Eastern Michigan this weekend at Cliff Keen Arena. The Wolverines grabbed two of *ree matches at the Spikeoff Spokane Tournament and hope that their up-tempo play of late will con- tinue. Sparked by Shareen Luze's defense, Karen Chase's power hitting and Linnea Mendoza's assists, the Wolverines look to reach the .500 mark. "This team is a pleasure to coach," Michigan coach Greg Giovanazzi "aid. "The players have been sponding to what has been asked of them." But things were not so enjoyable a couple of weeks ago. The Wolverines dropped their first four games of " the season and it' bb looked more Ever like the Detroit Red Wings in George I e playoffs than team that expected itself to legitimately- upwai d 1 compete for the Big Ten title. The problem was ineffective performances teppi as the Wolverines tat n slayed up to but id not over- the tat: whelm their opponents. - Gi.ovanazzi Michigan was able to hold the Wolverines together, howev- er, and it has been smooth sailing ever since. Since their early season jitters, the olverines have managed to win fouri of five and vault themselves intolthe Big Ten title picture with a 4-5 overall record. "Ever since George Mason (which beat Michigan in three sets last Saturday), we have had an upward swing in confidence," Giovanazzi said. "Our players are stepping up, and that is showing in the stats." The team's schedule also had omething to do with that upward swing. "We played four teams (at the beginning of the season) that were top 15 teams," Giovanazzi said. "Now we have been playing teams that actually do make some mis- takes." But now Michigan takes on one of those "mistake-free" teams in Notre Dame. The Irish have lost only six times under coach Debbie Brown. Giovanazzi is confident, however, that the Wolverines will be able to step up to the task. "(Michigan's) Sarah Jackson has come into her own, and Mendoza has a good grasp of the offense's game plan," Giovanazzi said. Both Jackson and Mendoza will have to have good games if the team is to win. Michigan is also receiving some Irish luck. Notre Dame comes to Ann Arbor a banged-up team.. Injuries to starters Carey May and Kristina Ervin have caused ince major shake- ups to the fason, We Notre Dame lineup. But the Wolverines wing in know full well ), . t, t By Will McCahill Daily Sports Writer Come 1998, March Madness just might get a little crazier.,' According to a report in yesterday's editions of The Ann Arbor News, the Big Ten is set to conduct an end-of-season men's basketball tournament as soon as March 1998. A committee has been appointed by Big Ten presidents and chancellors to study the feasibility of such a tournament, according to associate Big Ten commissioner Mark Rudner. Although the News reported that the committee is expected to recommend instituting a tournament, Rudner said the group's report is still "under construction" and will not be pre- sented to university presidents and chancellors until December. "We're focusing on the academic, financial and competitivZ impact of a tournament," Rudner said Although many of the conference's coaches have oppose4.. such a move in the past, that situation has apparently changd.1 "It has gone from almost a unanimous 'no' to now givipg, (Big Ten commissioner) Jim Delany the go-ahead to look into it," Michigan head coach Steve Fisher told the News yesterda2.4 That opinion was echoed by Rudner. "It's not unanimous, but there is more support (amon coaches) than in the past," he said. Rudner said the idea of a Big Ten tournament is not a ne one, by any stretch. "The issue comes up pretty regularly (at various meetingsre Rudner said. There are several possible stumbling blocks to organizi' such a tournament. The academic impact upon the athlete involved is one such concern, while scheduling may also be factor. Some sort of special format would have to be implement$ in order to allow all lI conference teams to participate in th( tourney. Also an issue is the potential financial bonanza a tourna, ment could bring to the Big Ten. Rudner refused to speculate on the monetary possibiliti inherent in a post-season tournament, adding that such an iss is up to the heads of the 11 universities. e s ice. Our are ~up, and ,howin1g in Greg Giovanazzi volleyball coach that injuries will not keep Notre Dame from attack- ing. Tomorrow night's game is an impor- tant test for Michigan, for it will show G i ovan azzi just how far his team has come. seem, Giovanazzi FILE PHOTO/Daily Michigan basketball player Louis Bullock may have the opportunity to play in a postseason Big Ten tour- nament before he graduates. The Big Ten is set to conduct a conference tournament at the end of the regular season as soon as March 1998. Right now, the only postseason action the Big Ten looks for- ward to in March is the NCAA and NIT tournaments. A Big Ten tournament would put the conference on pace with most of the other conferences which have postseason tournaments. Funny as it may is more concerned about a possible letdown against Saturday's oppo- nent, Eastern Michigan. "We play a tough game against the Irish (tomorrow night)," Giovanazzi said. "Then the next night, we play a lesser team in Eastern Michigan. "We have to play solid games, both nights." This weekend is the last preseason tournament the Wolverines will com- pete in before opening up conference play against lowa and Illinois next week. women' By Nancy Berger Daily Sports Writer It is easy for Michigan women's golf coach Kathy Teichert to tell her players what they need to do in order to have a strong showing at this weekend's Lady Northern Invitational in East Lansing. "Our top two players need to be in the 70s, probably three in the 70s," Teichert said. "We need a couple in the 80s, and our sixth player can't average more than 82 strokes per round." For those who don't play competitive golf, this may sound like a reasonable game plan. The Wolverines will be the first to tell you that playing competitive golf is easier said than done, especially at the collegiate level. For sophomore Sharon Park, concen- trating on both golf and school work can have a profound effect on your per- formance on the greens. "I am used to playing college golf this year" Park said. "I know that I am a good player and that I can play better than last year. It is just frustrating, because I don't have the time to focus on the game because of school." Park made her collegiate debut at last year's 54-hole Spartan Invitational and placed fifth overall after recording a 78.3 average. Her average was one golf tees off in weekend tournef stroke off second-place finisher Shannon McDonald, who now works under Teichert as the undergraduate assistant coach. While Park tied for I1th with an 80.50 average at last week's Wolverine Invitational, she is looking to average a 75 for all three rounds this weekend. One intangible that could help both Teichert and Park in obtaining success this weekend is the weather. The weath- er was an obtrusive guest at last week's tournament and was integral to the out- come of the tournament. The Wolverines hope that the weath- er, as well as the strong invitational field, won't get the best of them this weekend. The tournament hosts 15 teaml, including all 11 conference tearts. Missouri, Iowa State, Illinois State q'd Northern Illinois round out the field' The outcome of this tournament wol determine the pairings when Michigan State hosts the Big Ten championships this spring. The Wolverines placed third in the tournament, but Teichert doesn't fore- see a possible improvement over last year's finish. "I don't see that winning is a realistic chance this year,' Teichert said. "I am See GOLF, Page 13A V 1 (I) V r~ (~) V > COOKIES Welcome Back Students! It's Cold Outside 3Ea~.4"W~dz'za.o ima Mzmss. Treat Yourself to Cookies, Low Fat Muffins, or Colombo Fat Free Frozen Yogurt' 715 N. University 761-CHIP Mon-Fri 9:00am-8:00pm " Sat 10:00am-5:00pm " Sun 12:00pm-5:00pm w 1 IQ Al A AC A i V V Experience Seville, a crossroads of cultures, a crucible of history Study in Spain *Free Extra Help *Great Instructors *Free Software.. 'Guaranteed Improvement *Small Class Size ~ THE PRINCETON m REVIEW we score more 1-800-2-REVIEW DEDICATED EXCLUSIVELY TO EXCELLENCE IN INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY THROUGHOUT THE WORLD FINNEGAN, HENDERSON, FARABOW, GARRETT & DUNNER, L.L.P. T he C enterfor Cross-Cultural Study Upper Division Spanish Studies Program (Fall, Spring, and Academic Year) Explore language, literature, history, art. sociology, business, and politics, taught in Spanish, and TEFL. Intensive Intermediate Program in Spanish Language and Culture Progress to the advanced level. Fall or ., lP[T1 P !lnn in I , I I SUE EU UU~ EU!.E~U. I