MAJOR LEAGUE
BASEBALL
Chicago White Sox 9,
TEXAS 2
Kansas City 4,
BALTIMORE 1
Detroit 11,
TAMPA BAY 6
Cleveland 10,
SEATTLE 9
N.Y. METS 1,
Philadelphia 0
San Diego 10,
CINCINNATI 2'
ATLANTA 2,
Milwaukee 1
ST. LOUIS 6,
Los Angeles 0
FLORIDA 11,
Chicago Cubs 6
San Francisco 9,
HOUSTON 4 (13)
Colorado at
ARIZONA, inc.
NHL HOCKEY
WASHINGTON 5,
N.Y. Islanders 2
PHILADELPHIA 3,
Chicago 2
ftbe Bd jiim 04v~
rraIldg 'M'teams
For the second day in a row, the Michigan baseball i
team's talents will be on display here in Ann Arbor.
This afternoon's game against Detroit begins at 3 p.m.
at Fisher Stadium.
Wednesday
April 1, 1998
19
Trayor
knows rik/t
time to go
ETROIT - The military official
usted the flags in the confer-
ence room so everythingwould
~e perfect. Potted plants were set out to
add an effect of comfort, but little
could disguise what was about to occur.
And Robert Traylor - despite his
stated hesitations - followed through
as expected
"I'm going to leave college early to
enter the 1998 NBA Draft," Traylor
said, unflinching in his resolve.
To a casual observer - and in the
midst of 75-degree March tempera-
tures, it was assuredly casual -
Traylor's announcement beckons sad-
ovi ng
{ -
f.
ness.
After all,
Michigan is los-
ing its best play-
er and unques-
tioned emotional
leader.
It is two-time
captain Traylor
who leads the
cheers and serves
up the monster
dunks.
. It is Michigan
MVP Traylor
MARK
SNYDER
Mark My
Words
who slaps teammates on the butt after
exciting plays, and waves the towel to
incite the Crisler crowd._
It is Traylor whose jersey spurs
clothing sales for local merchants.
It was Traylor.
But as much as it hurts, he must be
applauded for his decision.
Look how far he has come in just
three years.
Traylor weighs significantly less than
he did when he arrived and is obviously
more agile. Over the course of three
seasons, he has developed a soft jump
shot and moves with the quickest feet
this side of Baryshnikov.
When he came to Michigan, he was
a project, a large man who could dunk
over anyone.
Now, his aunt Lydia Johnson is chal-
lenging that claim.
"She said, 'I bet I can name three
guys in the NBA you can't dunk on,'"
said Traylor, referring to Shaquille
O'Neal, Alonzo Mourning and
Dikembe Mutumbo. "But I don't care."
And therein lies Traylor's greatest
strength - aside from his massive
arms. The man has unimaginable confi-
dence and lets nothing stand in his way.
I discovered this the hard way as the
300-pounder hurdled me on his way to
hug his grandmother after the Big Ten
Tournament.
His family remains at the heart of his
decision and will continue to play a
role as the NBA experience develops.
An entourage of family members -
13 people of differing ages, sizes and
surnames -joined Traylor at the front
table as a show of support and a
demonstration of the unity of his
extended family.
But while Traylor's eight-year-old
brother, Walter Glover, shied away from
the television lights, the former
Michigan man embraced the spotlight
and discussed how obstacles wouldn't
hinder his cause.
"When you have a chance to achieve
a goal, you can't let roadblocks stand in
your way," Traylor said.
And he's speaking from experience.
The allegations, incidents and acci-
dents of his career read like a laundry
list of emotional baggage - all of
which he has overcome.
Compared to that, the pros must be
the easy life.
Just ask Maurice Taylor.
- Mark Snyder can be reached via e-
mail at msnyder@umich.edu.
Postseason
sh ows true
team colors
By Fred Uank
Daily Sports Writer
Before the season, Michigan captain Matt
Herr warned that the Wolverines might lose 10
games in the first half of the seaon, but when it
came time to perform at the end of the season,
the Wolverines would be ready.
Contrary to Herr's warning, the Wolverines
played well in the early part of the season. But
toward the end, it didn't look like the
Wolverines were playing the kind of hockey
they needed to win a championship.
With the CCHA regular season title on the
line, the Wolverines lost three of their final six
regular-season games. And once the playoffs
began, the Wolverines weren't playing their
best, either.
After surviving their first-round matchup
against Notre Dame, the -------------
Wolverines looked terrible Hockey
in losing to Ohio State, 4-2,
in the CCHA semifinals. Commentay
And to make matters-------------
worse, heading into the NCAA West Regional
last weekend at Yost, defenseman Sean Peach
was sidelined with a concussion.
So, coming into the NCAA Tournament,
most people didn't expect the Wolverines to do
much. They weren't "peaking at the right time,"
many observers said.
But like most cliches, "peaking at the right
time" doesn't mean a whole lot.
Against North Dakota on Saturday, the
Wolverines played their best game of the sea-
son and pulled out a victory in a game few
expected they could win.
So now, instead of being destined for failure,
the Wolverines are being cast as one of the sur-
prise teams of the NCAA Tournament.
But the truth is, Michigan is not much dif-
ferent this week from what it was a week ago.
As Berenson has said time and again this sea-
son, the Wolverines aren't much better than
anyone else, but they're not much worse, either. ,
And so Michigan's fate will depend on how
well they do the things they need to do to win.
This time of year, nothing matters but how well
a team plays in each game.
Against Ohio State, the Wolverines didn't
have their heads in the game. Usually reliable
players like Bobby Hayes and Marty Turco
made terrible giveaways, leading to two Ohio
State goals. Forward Bill Muckalt missed the
net on several power-play chances, and the
See HOCKEY, Page 12
0
4
MARGARET MYERS/Daily
Marty Turco's primary responsibility tomorrow will be to stop pucks Instead of opposing players. In order to defeat New Hampshire and advance to
Saturday's NCAA title game, Turco will need to once again be at the top of his game.
Tei1ers ' Dru'ry ends career on low note
C'
The Daily Free Press
(U-WIRE) -- Chris Drury was the last player
out of the Boston University lockerroom before
the start of overtime last night.
He glided over to Boston's net, twice skated in
a circle to the right of goalie Michel Larocque,
and, as he does before the start of every period,
tapped his goalie on the pads with his stick before
heading to the faceoff circle.
He didn't know it then. Neither did his team-
mates. And the Terrier fans that made the trek to
Albany, N.Y., for the NCAA East Regional Final
against New Hampshire would not have believed
it, either.
But, in fact, Drury was going through his rou-
tine for the last time as a Terrier. There was reason
for Boston fans to think otherwise. Just a year
ago, in the same round of the tournament, Boston
was tied with Denver heading into overtime with
the season on the line. Drury came up with the
winner that sent the Terriers to the frozen four.
Last night, with a trip back to Boston and the
FleetCenter at stake, it seemed inevitable that, if
not Drury, someone would come up with this
year's miracle.
But Wildcat forward Mark Mowers scored a
shorthanded goal 10:49 into the extra session that
snatched the 4-3 win and ended both the Terriers'
season and Drury's illustrious collegiate career.
"It's tough in general to see all the seniors go,"
junior defenseman Dan Ronan said. "But playing
with Chris Drury - I really don't know what to
say. He'll probably go down as one of the best
players ever to play college hockey and Boston
University hockey."
Just where among the many stars that have
worn the Terrier uniform Drury stands is a tough
question to answer, but his place among the very
best will never be questioned. His 113 career
goals are the most in team history, and he's third
on Boston's career points list with 213. With two
assists last night, which brought his career total to
100, Drury also became the first Terrier to record
100 goals and 100 assists in a career.
But to him, it's never been about the numbers or
the awards. It's been about the joy he got from see-
ing 20 of his best friends every day and putting it
all on the line with them night after night.
"A lot of guys say it, and a lot of NHL guys say
it when they're retiring, and fortunately, I'm not
retiring yet," Drury said. "But the thing I'll miss
the most is the 15 to 20 minutes before and the 15
to 20 minutes after a game or practice,just having
See DRURY, Page 12
I
--------
'2 N' Baseball edges Western, 7-5
By Jacob Wheeler
Daily Sports Writer
Sometimes it seemed like the first
win would never come.
Michigan pitcher Brian Steinbach,
who became the team's ace after going
9-4 last year, finally won his first game
of the season yesterday, 7-5, over
Western Michigan.
Opponents on teams much tougher
than the Broncos hit Steinbach (1-4)
extremely hard in his first four out-
ings.
But once he threw the opening pitch
yesterday, Steinbach had no trouble.
Steinbach gave up only five hits in his
six innings, never allowing more than
one hit per inning.
He gave up only one earned run, a
solo homer to Western Michigan
cleanup hitter Derek Ottevaere.
"That's the old Steiney we know,"
Michigan catcher Mick Kalahar said.
"He's keeping the fastball low and get-
ting them out with his changeup."
The Wolverines (1-3 Big Ten, 8-12-
1 overall) wasted no time giving their
pitcher run support, scoring one in the
first inning, four in the third and two in
the fourth to build a 7-2 lead.
Michigan had 13 hits yesterday, but it
wasn't the beef of the order that did the
damage. Derek and Bryan Besco -
the fourth and fifth hitters - went a
combined 0-for-10.
Instead, Michigan's tablesetters pro-
duced the runs. The first three hitters
- Scott Tousa, Jason Alcaraz and
Mike Cervenak - reached base 10
times against Western Michigan.
Tousa and Alcaraz scored two runs
apiece.
"Tousa's been doing the job all
year'" Michigan coach Geoff Zahn
said. "Alcaraz is gonna hit, Cervenak
is gonna hit. But the Bescos are str
gling right now. The other guys are
going to have pick them up until (the
Bescos) start swinging the bats:'
After Steinbach left the game, the
Broncos put on their rally caps, string-
ing six hits together in the eighth and
ninth innings. Western Michigan
scored three times in the eighth and
later sent the go-ahead run to the plate
with two men on base in the ninth.
"I was a little nervous, the wayt
season had gone," Steinbach said. "A
I was confident (we) would get the job
done.'
FILE PHOTO
Matty Herr didn't pitch yesterday, because he was in Boston getting ready for the
final four. But the Wolverines managed, as they bucked Western Michigan 7-5.
PURSUING A CAREER IN
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