12A - The Michigan Daily - Thursday, February 12, 1998 Year after freshman award, Thomas hasn't slowed a step By Tracy Sandler Daily Sports Writer The title 'Big Ten freshman of the year' can bring lots of pressure. It's commonly referred to as the "sopho- more jinx." But Michigan basketball player Stacey Thomas has been able to avoid the dreaded curse. "I didn't feel any pressure," Thomas said. "I just wanted to come in and contribute as much as I could." And contribute, she has. The sophomore guard has been averaging 12.1 points and 6.7 rebounds per game, which is second on the team. "Last year, not a lot of people knew about Stacey," Michigan coach Sue Guevara said. "She wasn't even a preseason candidate for Big Ten freshman of the year, but then she did really well last year," averaging 12.9 points and 6.6 rebounds per game. "The 'sophomore jinx,' if you will, happens maybe to kids who put a lot of pressure on themselves and to kids who don't really work on their game. "Stacey worked on her game. She's got a long way to go yet, but she's a competitor, and she knows the role she has on this team. She's been able to carry that out. She's got a lot of pride in her game. I don't think Stacey even thinks about the sopho- more jinx. That's about other peo- ple." According to Guevara, Thomas represents the type of player that she is glad to have on her side. She does- n't have to play against her. "I love to watch her play," Guevara said. "1 love to watch her fly down the court, rebound the ball and take it the length of the court. One of my favorite things about Stacey is her smile. She's got a great smile." Coaches always tell their players that they need to practice the same way that they want to play. In terms of Thomas, that is the philosophy she uses when working on her game. "Stacey is a very good practice player, as well as a gamer," Guevara said. "Some kids are gamers, and they don't practice. But Stacey puts out all the time in practice. The effort that you see in a game is the same effort that we see in practice every day." Thomas - as strong as she has proven to be in practice and in games - is not perfect. "She needs to work on her jumper off the pass, and she needs to work on her range and being consistent," Guevara said. Thomas first began playing bas- ketball when she was in the seventh grade. Before she attended Southwestern Academy in Flint, where her father was both the foot- ball and track coach, she would shoot around with the girls team, waiting for her father to finish practice. She wasn't old enough to play competi- tively at that school yet. Then, as a freshman in high school, Thomas made the varsity team. "My father encouraged me to go out there, have fun and do my best," Thomas said. "I started to think that this could turn into something," Guevara began recruiting Thomas while she was an assistant at Michigan State. "Stacey has a tremendous amount of athletic ability," Guevara said. "She's quick, she can run, she's got great hands, she's got a great jump shot and she's a good kid. She's a good student." Thomas's personal favorite part of her game is her defensive play, which is evident in her team-leading 68 steals and 14 blocks. "When my defense is going well, it turns into my offense," Thomas said. "They feed off of each other. I love to get in somebody's shorts, make them turn the ball over and make it hard for them to score." Aside from any physical aspects of her game, Guevara said that there are certain emotional aspects that Thomas can still improve on. "Stacey's not a big 'talker," Guevara said. "If that's one thing that she needs to work on, it's being more verbal, being more of a communica- tor on the floor. "She'll talk to people, but she's not a rah-rah kind of person. She's not a trash-talker. If anything, her actions speak louder." As far as Thomas is concerned, the best part about basketball is the com- petition. "I love to compete in anything that I do." Thomas said. "That's what dri- ves me. I wish the games would never end. I love playing and putting on a show for people to watch." JOHN KRAFT/Daily 1997 Big Ten Freshman of the Year, Stacey Thomas hasn't slowed up much as a sophomore. Thomas leads the conference in steals. Three swimmers aim for looming Big Tens with three-day Michigan Open 0I By RickFreeman Daily Sports Writer It's housekeeping time. The Michigan men's swimming and diving team will tidy up this weekend, as three swimmers will compete in the Michigan Open. While the rest of the team practices and trains---------- as usual for off-week- Tomorrow's ends, Jay Zawacki, Chris Laskowski and Mike Who: Michigani O'Connor will each local swhim1pers make cameo appear- Michi Open ances at Canham Where: Canhar Natatorium in a meet where entrants can be as When: all week young as I1 years old. So why are three big Notable: Three college students swim- will face compe ming with a bunch of half their age. junior high schoolers? The three swimmers still lack official times in some races. The Open gives them a chance to register those scores. Laskowski wants to have an entry time in the 200 IM so he can swim it at the Big Ten Champioships. The 200 IM is held Feb. 26, the first day of competition. Laskowski wants to get a race - any race, not his best, he said - under his belt. "We just need them to get an official finish, swim a legal race," Michigan assistant coach Eric Namesnik said. Four 'M' women's swimmers will gear up for Michigan Open this weekend --------- tourney and other in the m Natatorium end. Wolverines tition nearly The swimmers have no feelings either way on the race, the former Olympian said. "I just have to go swim it," Laskowski said. Laskowski will be swim- ming the 200 Individual Medley on Sunday. But isn't this an inconve- nience, though, swimming on your day off? "I don't know," Laskowski said. "I might get up a little earlier." JOHN KRAFT/Daily The Wolverines host the Michigan Open this weekend. But Junior Tom Malchow won't be competing. He has already qualified for the Big Ten Championship. You Serious About Your CareerAsA Software Profes sional? Do YOU WANT CHALLENGE, GROWTH, AND REWARD? There's lots of reasons why Geneer, one of country's hottest software development companies, continues to attract and retain the most talented young software developers in the country. Ambition and Skill are Appreciated At Geneer, the Software Professional is king. We really understand how software people like to live and work. Even our CEO is into software! You Get To Do the Really Cool Stuff Because companies come to us for software, you get to work on a wide variety of projects. 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