SPORI TSMonday- December 8, 1997
Season ends after historic win
AGGIES
continued from PagelB
next five points.
in the third game. the W) I erines
were thoroughly outplayed. The
Aggies jumped out to an -c lead
before a Texas A&M hitting error put
the Wolvcrines on the scoreboard.
Michigan cut into the lead several
times. but coui come no closer than
12-6.
"The key is, they've been there
before," Giovanazzi said. "'Their goal
wasn't to get to the N'AAs, their goal
was to get to the sweet 16."
There were some bright spots for the
Wolverines. Junior outside hitter
Karen Chase had an attack percentage
a .40. ind unior outside hitter Jane
Ste\ ens contributed with an attack per-
centage o .357,. despite only getting
significant playing time in the third
game.
.K aren was hot from the very begin-
ning" Giiovantzzi said. "Our passing
w asn't vecry good, though, and we
couldn't get her the ball.
"Jane only played the third game,
but she was on fire. I second-guess
myself for a little bit. If I had known
that she was going to be that hot, I
would have gotten her in a lot earlier."
Particularly di:appointing in the
match was senior middle blocker
Sarah Jackson. Jackson, who has been
a leader for the Wolverines throughout
the season. recorded only three kills on
17 attempts. C(oupled with her four
errors, she had a dismnal attack per-
centage of-.057.
The passing game, something that
has been strong all seison long, also
proved inconsistent for the Wolverines.
Although senior setter Linnea
Mendoza had 28 assists, she often had
trouble finding the outside hitters to
put away the point.
Giovanazzi pointed to their
Thursday night match as a major dis-
advantage. The Wolverines won a five-
set, see-saw match against Temple, 15-
8, 6-15, 15-12, 8-15, 15-10. Although
Giovanazzi said his team was not tired,
the five-set match gave the Aggies a
good look at the Wolverines, while the
Texas A& M sweep of H-ofstra showed
Michigan very little.
"They got a good look at ussand
were able to find our weaknesses,"
Giovanazzi said. "We didn't get to see
much of Texas A&M,retxcept for the
onse video tape that we received earlier
in the week. Going into the match, I
didn't feel we had a great report on
them."
With the victory, the Aggies
advanced to the sweet 16 of the tour-
nament. They will play in the East
Regional in State College next week-
end.
"On that night, they were the better
team," Giovanazzi said. "Looking at
the two teams, I think we match up
very well, and I'd like to have a
rematch, but that's not the way it works
in athletics. But without question, they
were the better team that nitght."
GoiNQ TO Los5 ANQ E1E5
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FOR ThE ROSE Bowl?
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Junior outside hit-
ter Jeanine
Szczesniak and
senior middle
blocker Sarah
Jackson go up for
a block. Both
players were an
integral part of
Michigan's first
NCAA tournament
in history.
Jackson finished
with the second-
most kills in
team history.
FILE PHOTO
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Successful year offers glimpse of
a bright future for M' volleyball
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Wednesday December 31st 1997 Starting at 8:30 p.m. til 3:00 a.m.
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By T.J. Berka
Daily Sports Writer
It occurs countless times in the world
of sports - a team comes out of
nowhere to have a remarkable season
and falls back into the realm of also-rans
just as quickly.
While the Michigan volleyball team
had its best season ever with a 21-12
record and a win in their first NCAA
tournament game, it looks at this season
as the start of a winning pattern, not an
aberration.
"We feel really good about how the
team stacks up the next few years,"
Michigan coach Greg Giovanazzi said,
"We have a lot of experience at outside
hitter and Linsey Ebert is one of the pre-
mier middle blockers in the Big Ten."
The Wolverines return 10 of their top
12 players next season, including four
out of six starters. Michigan returns all
five of its outside hitters and four out of
five middle blockers.
The two players that the Wolverines
lose are setter Linnea Mendoza and mid-
dle blocker Sarah Jackson. While both
players are among Michigan's all-time
volleyball greats - Mendoza finished
with more than 5,000 career assists and
Jackson is leaving with the second-most
kills in school history - the Wolverines
do have players that can fill their shoes.
The Wolverines are counting on fresh-
man Joanna Fielder to take Jackson's
place in the lineup. Fielder saw limited
action in her freshman year but was a
leader of the second team in practice.
"We have somebody like Joanna to
come in, who I feel could have played all
year long," Giovanazzi said. "She is the
heir apparent to Jackson."
Replacing Mendoza is a trickier
proposition, because she has been the
main setter since she arrived in 1994.
The Wolverines however have a setter ih
this year's recruiting class who has the
potential to be a viable replacement.
"We don't expect her to be as goo '
Mendoza, that is too much to ask of an
body," Giovanazzi, who is not allowed to
talk about recruits by name, said. "She
has the potential to be a good setter for
us."
There has been a lot of excitement-a4
Cliff Keen Arena this season, and there:
is a lot for the Wolverines to be proud of.
The Wolverines would rather use this
season as a spark to a new a n
Michigan volleyball as opposed to bi
a flash in the pan.
"There was a funny feeling of accomn
plishment on the bus coming hoate
Saturday," Giovanazzi said. "Howetr,;
we are looking forward to more success-
ful seasons in the future:'
Posters of the
. - -
Michigan football
team's Rose Bowl!- 4.
clinching vi ctory over_
The "Bedrock Home" is a privately owned residence, used for
private occasions and film shoots. This event is exclusively
hosted by Michigan alumni and other Rose Bowl supporters. ..
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For More Information Contact:
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Ohio State are still
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Pick them up on the
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