Umhz £tftwiim hu Women netters face tough weekend The Michigan women's tennis team opens the dual match portion of its sched- ule this weekend. It will not be an easy two days for the Wolverines. Tomorrow, Michigan will be in Madison to take on No. I Wisconsin. On Sunday, the Wolverines will travel to Evanston for a date with No. 3 Northwestern, While both the Badgers and Wildcats will be all Michigan can handle, coach Bitsy Ritt's squad Is coming off an impressive performance at the Milwaukee Tennis Classic where it produced an ail-Michigan final, Friday January 31, 1997 9 tagers prepare for Round II with MSU 'M' icers wallop Buckeyes, 6-1 By Alan Goldenbach Daily Sports Editor A week ago, Michigan beat tichigan State, 74-61, at the Breslin enter in East Lansing. But if you ask Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delaney about the game, he might not know what you're talking about. Last week's contest wasn't a confer- ence game, thanks to the schedule- makers at the Big Ten offices. But Satrday afternoon at 2:30, the scene shifts to Crisler Arena where the Big n says that, yes, this is a conference game. The reason why the two teams only play one conference game this season is because the Big Ten expanded to I I teams in 1993. Instead of increasing the conference schedule to 20 games annu- ally the slate was kept at 18. Therefore, each team plays eight opponents twice and the remaining two only, once. These two teams are deter- Gied at random each year and by ance, Michigan and Michigan State wound up scheduled only once during this season. -But that didn't bother Michigan coach Steve Fisher and Michigan State skipper Tom Izzo, and last week's tilt was sched- uled. so that the two rivals could get together at each other's building. Speaking of the two buildings, the crowd at East Lansing was particularly utal on the Wolverines last weekend. e partisan fans heckled sophomore center Robert Traylor about his girth and junior forward Maurice Taylor about last winter's automobile incident, when he, several of his teammates, and then-recruit (and current Spartan) Mateen Cleaves were involved in an accident. So will the Crisler fans be looking to return the favor to some of the Spartans on Saturday? "Hopefully, we'll have a loud, rau- cous crowd that will go like crazy and yell in a positive way for us and yell at (Michigan State), but not in a way that is vulgar or offensive," Fisher said. "But I want our crowd loud. We need them.' What Fisher needs is for his home crowd to offset the jeers he heard last week, right? "I truly 99 percent of the time don't hear (the insults)," Fisher said. "I hear noise. And if you can do that, you're better served.' But it's not easy to block out chants about a weight problem and a near-fatal accident. "(Michigan State's fans) were pretty loud," Traylor said. "But when you could point to the scoreboard and see that you're up eight or nine points, it doesn't make the crowd seem that loud." However, Fisher thinks that once the fans are taken out of the equation, there is camaraderie between the players on both teams. "I think that the kids on the floor and the attitude they have is healthy," Fisher said. "I do feel there is a genuine respect for one another, even a liking for one another. It becomes personal at times from the crowd, and I don't think that's the overall view of most people who support Michigan State." Don't go telling that to Michigan fans, though. Expect them to be in full force, especially if the Wolverines jump out to a big lead. Junior forward Maceo Baston, for one, is expecting the Crisler fans to bring the noise. "Once we get our crowd behind us and cheering loud, and get some dunks and threes, (the crowd) will be rock- ing," he said. By Dan Stillman Daily Sports Writer COLUMBUS - There was no let down. The Michigan hockey team showed no signs of slumping last night in Columbus, less than a week after grab- bing its two largest victories of the sea- son over Miami (Ohio). Leading, 2-0, after one period, Michigan (15-1-2 CCHA, 24-1-3 over- all) put Ohio State (5-14, 7-21) away with two goals early in the second en route to a 6-1 victory in front of 1,850 at the Ohio State Fairgrounds. "Our team wanted to make sure we had a good presence in this game" Michigan coach Red Berenson said. "We just came off a big weekend, and you don't want to take a step back." The victory extends Michigan's unbeaten streak to 21 games, which ties a school record. The Wolverines stretched their lead to 3-0 just over six minutes into the second period when Michigan left wing John Madden found center Bobby Hayes from behind the net. Hayes, coming towards the goal from the left side, took the feed from Madden and wristed the puck past Ohio State goaltender Ray Aho. Thirty-one seconds later, Michigan struck again when defender Bubba Berenzweig beat Aho clean on a slapshot from the left point to make it 4-0. The Buckeyes showed signs of life ever-so-briefly later in the period on a power play. Off of a faceoff in the Michigan zone, Ohio State's Chad Power skated into the right corner with the puck and passed to a streaking Hugo Boisvert, who scored to cut the Michigan lead to 4-1. But the Wolverines returned the favor 17 seconds later on a Madden wrist shot. Up next .. Who: Bowling Green Where: Yost Ice Arena When: Tomorrow, 7 p.m. Madden's goal was just one of 51 shots generated by the Wolverines, com- pared to Ohio State's 14. "We kept them to under 15 shots, and that's always a good performance" Michigan forward Jason Botterill said. Turco stopped all but one of then Buckeyes' shots, including a couple of big saves in the first period. "This is a statement tonight to give up only one goal," Berenson said. The Wolverines drew first blood more than six minutes into the game on their second power play. After Ohio State failed to clear the puck out of its zone, Michigan's Jason Botterill gained pos- session, skated down the right side, and crossed to Mike Legg, who got Aho to commit left before Legg swerved the puck into the right side of the goal. Left wing Greg Crozier assisted on the Wolverines' second goal more than six minutes later. After Aho deflected a shot to his right, Crozier swooped in near the post and backhanded the puck in front of the net to Warren Luhning, who put it in, giving Michigan a 2-0 lead. Botterill accounted for the only goat in the third period, before the stanza,. deteriorated into sporadic fighting. In all, nine players were ushered off the ice in the period. For Michigan, Sean Ritchlin, Dale Rominski, Warren Luhning and Bubba Berenzweig left early, while Chris Feil, Ryan Skaleski, Jason Selleke, Taj Schaffnit and Chris Richards made the early exit for Ohio State. The Wolverines return home to host Bowling Green tomorrow night at 7. MARGARET MYER Michigan's Maurice Taylor skies for a dunk earlier this season against Northwestern. The Wolverines will need Taylor to be on top of his game when Michigan State invades Crlsier Arena tomorrow at 2:30 p.m. Women gymnasts vie for state supremacy By Sara Rontal Daily Sports Writer Say Yes, Michigan! - the state, that is. That's what the fans will be thinking as they watch Michigan's women gym- asts compete in the State of Michigan assic on Sunday in Ypsilanti. The meet, which also features Eastern Michigan, Michigan State, Western Michigan and Central Michigan, show- cases some of the state's best talent. So what does that mean for the Wolverine gymnasts? Say Yes, Michigan! -the Wolverines, that is. The Wolverines, who are currently ranked 10th in the nation, lead the state mpetition in almost every category, ncluding the uneven bars, where they are also ranked 10th. Although Michigan is enjoying its place coming into the meet, Michigan coach Bev Plocki said the team cannot let itself be fooled by the competition. "Michigan State is a legitimate team," Plocki said. "Last weekend, there was only a 1/10 of a point difference in our two scores.' Against Louisiana on Jan. 18, Spartans Polly Kiker and Briony Lecky tied for first on the uneven bars with a 9.850. That score puts both gymnasts ahead of Michigan freshman Sarah Cain, the Wolverines' leader on the uneven bars, whose career-best score of 9.825 came just last weekend. In the floor exercise - hardly the Wolverines' strongest event - it is Michigan that has the edge on Michigan State. "We were training well this week" Plocki said. "But I don't know if we can improve the floor routine. This week we need more polish on the performance and dance" This could prove troublesome when competing against Eastern Michigan, which is ranked 19th in the nation in the floor routine - one place ahead of the Wolverines. But there is some good news. After two poor showings on the floor in their first two meets of the season, the Wolverines scored 49.300 against Massachusetts, the fifth-best score in school history. Last weekend also saw Central and Eastern Michigan competing head-to- head, with the underdog Chippewas emerging victorious. But Plocki is not letting the talk of other teams interfere with the practices she is leading. "The regular season has no determina- tion on the Big Ten championship," Plocki said. "We go in there fresh, and whatever happens, happens." And after all, the Wolverines do have Cain. Last weekend, she captured her sec- ond consecutive all-around title with a 39.475 total, winning both the vault and the floor exercise. The Wolverines are again counting on her to come through with another strong showing on the floor, particularly because of an injury to senior captain Andrea McDonald. McDonald has been slowed by back troubles since the begin- ning of the season. "We are hoping that she can compete this weekend," Plocki said. "We probably won't make the final decision until Thursday or Friday. "She'll probably compete on the bal- ance beam and the vault." If the Wolverines do well at the meet, they will put themselves in good position when they face Big Ten foe Ohio State on Feb. 6. But with all the good statewide teams competing, it's anybody's game. No wonder the fans are confused about who to cheer for. VARSITY TENNIS CENTER Irish only familiar foe for Wolverines at Meyo Invitational By Chad Kujala ly Sports Writer Whodunnit? Much like the reader of a murder- mystery novel, the Michigan men's track team doesn't know how this weekend's meet will unfold. The Wolverines know little about their suspects and are travel- .ing into uncharted territory. Because the Wolverines only traveled a siort distance to Ypsilanti last week, this meet is their first real road trip. As for their opponents, Michigan 1no~ws little about them. Of the five other teams, Notre Dame is the only team the Wolverines have competed against this year. Notre Dame is the host for the two- day Meyo Invitational to be held today and tomorrow. Big Ten foes Purdue and Ohio State are among a field that also includes Alabama and Missouri. 'When the Fighting Irish visited Ann arbor two weeks ago, they were left in he shadows as they witnessed Michigan and Eastern Michigan duke it out in the infield when a brawl ensued after the 4x400 relay. Because the Wolverines and the Eagles took all of the headlines, many don't remember that the Irish were even here. They did, however, take home three victories with them. Notre Dame came up with winners in the 200, the 600 and the long jump. It also had several other strong second- and third-place performances. The fact that Purdue and Ohio State will be at this week's meet is positive for the Wolverines. The more Big Ten teams to which Michigan is exposed, the better prepared it will be for the Big Ten cham- pionship at the end of February. The Wolverines will be able to gauge their progress and see how they stack up against other Big Ten teams. The Wolverines finished a distant sec- ond last week in Ypsilanti, but sonie run- ners' fatigue and sickness forced coach Jack Harvey to pull his team from the 4x400 relay, one of its best events. This week, Michigan will throw its best one-two punch at the Meyo Invitational in the 55-meter dash. Senior Damon Devasher has finished first in the event the past two meets, but his closest competition has come from one of his teammates. Freshman Steve Jenkins has been steadily improving with each meet, and last week was no different. Jenkins finished second, only 1 /100 of a second behind Devasher. The success in this particular event was greater than anticipated at the begin- ning of the season. Michigan lost its top sprinter from last year, Felman Malveaux, to graduation. Devasher and Jenkins have successfully filled the void left from Malveaux's departure. The 55 is not Devasher's only solid event. The senior is also an improving high jumper. Devasher won the high jump last week with a leap of seven feet. Devasher says his personal goal is to jump 7-feet-3. Much like Devasher, Jenkins also has a second event. He has fared well in the 200, finishing last week with the team's best time this season. His time was good enough for third place. The Wolverines will also take the always-dependable Neil Gardener with them to South Bend. He has yet to be beaten this season and will attempt to keep his streak alive. Michigan will be exposed to a lot of new talent this week- end and the mystery won't be solved until Saturday afternoon. Who will it be? The Buckeyes, in South Bend with the candlestick? AN ARMYS SCHOLARSHIP COULD HELP YOU THROUGH MEDICAL SCHOOL The U.S. Army Health Professions Scholarship Program offers a unique opportunity for financial support to med- ical or osteopathy students. Financial