December 7, 1998 - SportsMonday -- The Michigan Daily - 3B
*Women tankers win Notre Dame Invite
Sy Michael Shafrir
Daily Sports Writer
IThere was no reason to, expect the Michigan women's
swimming team to iepea t as champion of the Notre
Danie Invitational this weekend. After all, this was just
supposed to be a meet where it would see how it stacked
up against some tougher competition.
The Wolverines found out that they could compete
pretty well in this nine-team field. In fact, they won.
"Our goal wasn't to win this meet. It never really is,"
said freshman Kerrianne Kalbko. "This meet was just
really to see how far along we are."
-Entering the third and final day ahead of Notre Dame
by 73 points, the Wolverines knew they would have to
swim well in three events - the 200 backstroke, 100
freestyle and 400 freestyile relay - in order to make up
for weaknesses in others..
Junior All-America Shannon Shakespeare led
Michigan to a 1-2-3 sweeep in the 100 freestyle. This
0 enabled Michigan to overcome depth difficulties in the
1,650 freestyle and the 200 breaststroke.
The Wolverines never trailed in the event. They led
Florida State 360-274 after day one, helped by a win in
the opening event of the meet, the 200 freestyle relay.
Senior Jennie Eberwein, sophomores Jen Crisman and
Missy Sugar and junior anchor Shakespeare swam to a
meet and pool record in 1:32.61.
Shakespeare was dominant all weekend, winning
three individual events in addition to swimming on four
victorious relay teams. Shakespeare recorded three
NCAA consideration times and two NCAA automatic
times.
"Shannon swam really well," said Kalbko. Michigan
coach Jim Richardson "wanted to see if she could make
some NCAA considerations or automatic times."
Crisman took the 100 breaststroke in an NCAA auto-
matic time of 1:01:65. A time of 23.08 in the 50
freestyle was good enough for a win and an NCAA
consideration time.
The fall season has seen the emergence of freshman
Lindsay Carlberg, and she continued her winning ways
this weekend. Carlberg took first in the 200 backstroke
with a NCAA consideration time of 2:00.15. She also
placed second in both the 200 and 400 individual med-
leys, behind Shakespeare and senior Cathy O'Neill,
respectively.
Kalbko, who has also performed well this fall, gave
the Wolverines three top-five finishes.
Michigan was especially strong in the relays, losing
only the 400 medley relay to Notre Dame. In addition
to the 200 freestyle relay, the Wolverines set a meet and
pool record in the 800 freestyle relay.
The Michigan diving team, meanwhile, was at the
Eastern Michigan Invitational. Senior Jill Unikel and
junior Hanna Shin took first and second in the three-
meter springboard. Unikel's score of 426.55 was good
enough for NCAA zone diving qualification.
This was the last meet before the Wolverines head
to Hawai'i for their winter training trip - but not
before they go up against perhaps their toughest oppo-
nent yet.
"Hawai'i is going to be really nice," said Kalbko.
"But first we have to study and take our finals"
JIM
ROSE
Wrestlers cash in at
Vegas, finish fourth
By Tracy Sandier
Daily Sports Writer
The Michigan wrestling team left
Neyada and the Cliff 'Keen Las Vegas
Invitational with a fourth-place finish
out of 43 teams,. Mong with five
wrestlers placing in their respective
weight classes.
Both 125-pound wrstler Chris Viola
and 133-pound wrestlei Joe Warren fin-
ished. third, while 141-pounder Damion
Logan finished fifth. Otto Olson (174
pounds) placed foiurth for the
Wolverines, and 184-pounder Andy
Hrovat placed seventh.
Racking up 9045 points, the
Wolverines were beat b'y Arizona State,
Oregon State and Illinois. Overall,
Michigan was pleased with the way it
performed as a team.
"We wrestled pretty well and with a
lot of intensity,"Viola said. "A lot of the
scores weren't indicative of how much
we dominated."
On a personal levelAthe second-seed-
ed Warren was slightly disappointed
with the way, the tournament went.
Warren lost in the semifinals to the
third-seeded wrestler--- who went on to
win the individual title,
"I wrestled great until the semifi-
nals;' Warren said. "I got down by a lot
in the first period, and I just didn't have
*enough time to come back. I'm kind of
angry with my perforrance, but it's the
beginning of the year, and the end is
what counts."
Although he didn't place as high as
he may have hoped, Logan was pleased
with the way he wrestled. The seventh-
seeded Logan was forced to compete
against the No. 1, No. 3, No. 4 and No.
5-ranked participants in his weight class.
"I got beat in the quarterfinals by
West Virginia's Whitey Clebo," Logan
said. "He's tough, but it was a good
match."
Logan secured a fifth-place finish
with a 7-0 victory, and all in all, he did a
lot of things that he was happy with.
"I wrestled aggressively, but I made
little mistakes," Logan said. "I had a
good tournament. Was it great a great
tournament? No. But was it a poor tour-
nament? No. Am I happy with it? For
now, yes. I have to make adjustments. I
know what I have to do to improve."
One problem the Wolverines had as a
team was close matches. It was difficult
for Michigan to finish them out.
"We're in great condition, but we lost
a lot of close matches." Warren said.
"We did better on the mat than on the
tables."
With a strong tournament behind
them, the Wolverines go into Friday's
home meet against Michigan State
knowing that a little work can take them
a long way.
"We just need to get in the wrestling
room and work on a few things,"Warren
said. "I'm looking forward to Friday. It's
going to be a great dual."
Gfkanazzis resginaton-A
sad day for more tan players
ometime this past Friday evening, the phone on The Michigan Daily
sports desk rang. The caller was Greg Giovanazzi. That, in itself, was
nothing unusual. Giovanazzi, in his seven years as Michigan's vol-
leyball coach, has made countless calls to that very phone.
What was unusual, however, was the conversation that followed. He
wasn't calling to talk about a match, and he wasn't returning anybody
else's call.
Now, if you've ever spoken to Giovanazzi, you know that he has a very
distinct voice. On this day, it sounded a little bit different. It,wasn't quite as
resonant -- not as sure of itself as it usually is.
That was clue No. I that something was wrong.
It didn't take many more clues to pinpoint the problem.
"I've resigned my position," Giovanazzi said, about 10 seconds into the
conversation. He went on to say that his resignation "is required by" a neu-
rological condition that literally leaves him "unable to function on a daily
basis."
Boom.
The last time I had personally spoken to Giovanazzi, I was asking him
why his team was under .500 this season. We were talking about expecta
tions, and the crowds at Cliff Keen Arena, and we talked a great deal about
his current group of seniors.
We were not talking about functioning on a daily basis.
Now, I don't want to sound overly dramatic. Giovanazzi made it explicit-
ly clear that his condition is not life-threatening - he described his cond
tion as a near-constant migraine headache. "This is not a life-or-death deci
sion," he said, "but a quality of life decision." He was concerned, under-
standably, that the news be handled tastefully, with the appropriate respect.
Keeping all of that in mind, this much should be said: Michigan's
Athletic Department is losing more than a volleyball coach.
I've never played for him, so I don't know whether he's a good coach or
not. The way his players talk about him, you'd think he was a volleyball
god, but that isn't the point.
Here's the important part: In terms of sheer personality, Giovanazzi is
someone the Athletic Department will have a difficult time replacing. In
terms of people skills, finding an adequate successor will be darn near
impossible. His players respect his volleyball knowledge; they revere his
people skills. You learn that much in the first couple sentences.
Since learning of his resignation, various team members have described
the decision in terms ranging from "sad" to "heart-wrenching." Giovanazzi
himself said the "emotional" team meeting, during which he informed the
team of his resignation, was the toughest part.
"The women on this team have been so, so supportive," he said. "Meetin-
with the team was difficult, but they really have been incredible. They just
are a great group of people."
I don't know Giovanazzi on a personal level, per se, and my experiences
with the volleyball program have been minimal, to be honest. But I do
know, after four years of working in this sports section, a thing or two
about the impression he's left.
Every year, without fail, there are a handful of Michigan Daily sports
writers who sit around sometime near the start of volleyball season and malk
about the beloved Coach Giovanazzi. The lucky writer who's assigned to
the volleyball beat each fall is generally the toast of more than a few con-
versations.
"He's the best,"the experienced ones gush. "You're sooo lucky to be
covering volleyball!"
Nobody does this when you take over the football beat. Trust me.
I could be wrong, but my general impression is that when a coach makes
his job the absolute, No. 1, get-out-of-my-way top priority, he seals himself
off from the rest of the world just a tiny bit (sometimes more). With some
of the high profile sports, that's perhaps an unavoidable evil. But one of the
admirable things about Giovanazzi is that he certainly seems to have the
proper perspective. Michigan had its best-ever season while he was coach
- but winning has never taken precedence over some of the other, more
important things. That, I think, is refreshing.
He'll tell you that volleyball has been his top priority, and there's no rea-
son to doubt that. But the fact is, his resignation shows that there's more in
his life than volleyball. "Quality of life" is the term he used. Yes, it will be
a life without, from now on, volleyball - but it will still be a "quality"
life.
In the middle of our phone conversation on Friday, Giovanazzi was inter-
rupted briefly. I could tell that somebody - presumably his daughter -
entered the room on his end of the phone. He put the phone down for just a
second to say hi.
"That's the good part about all of this," he said when he returned his
attention to the phone call. "I still get to be a parent."
Michigan's next volleyball coach has a tough act to follow.
- Jim Rose can be reached via e-mail atjwrose@umich.edu.
FILE PHOTO
Michigan wrestler Joe Warren captured third place in Las Vegas at the Cliff Keen
Invitational. Overall, the Wolverines took fourth place at the meet, with Warren's
third-place showing tied for the highest finish by a Michigan wrestler.
Freshman leads gymnasts in season opener
By chnIs Grandstaff
Daily Sports Writer.
The Michigan mean's gymnastics team jump-started
its season on Friday night in front of an enthusiastic
Cliff Keen Arena carowd at the Maize and Blue
intrasquad meet.
The event, which split the team evenly into two
squads, pitted the, Maize team versus the Blue team.
The Blue team was. victorious, posting a score of
219.85 to the Maize's.216.65.
"I was really pleased with the way some of the guys
attacked the event,' Michigan gymnastics coach Kurt
Golder said.
The evening was highlighted by the perfor-
mance of freshman Scott Vetere. Vetere, competing
fqTtthe Maize team, placed first in the all-around
standings with a score of 56.10. He defeated junior,
fiv time national champion and fan favorite Jose
"LaLo" Haro, whose score of 55.65 helped lead the
Blac team to victory.
"1'm not surprised about Scott's performance,'said
GoIder. "He's been re ally steady in practice."
*After a wild
picture beco
'Me Associated Presst
Vetere, who was competing in his first collegiate
event, also placed first in the pommel horse and paral-
lel bar events with scores of 9.80 and 9.60 respectively
en route to his all around victory.
"Scott rose to the occasion," Michigan assistant
coach Mike Burns said. "He's gonna be a good one."
Not to be outdone, Haro placed in the top two in
four of the six events. His performance included a first
-place tie with last year's Big Ten freshman of the year,
Kevin Roulston, in the vault with a score of 9.65, sec-
ond place in the floor exercise (9.40), second place in
the parallel bars (9.50) and second place in the hori-
zontal bars (9.40).
Haro's performance was a major factor in the Blue
team's victory, and his popularity was evident as
screamsof "LaLo" filled the arena preceding each and
every one of his attempts.
"LaLo is a great competitor and knows how to play
the crowd," said Burns. "He's a classic showman."
Other Wolverine standouts included senior Randy
D'Amura, who placed first in the floor exercise with a
score of 9.50, junior Ethan'Johnson, who took first in
the still rings with a score of 9.60, and freshman Daniel
Diaz-Luong, who grabbed first in the horizontal bar
event with a score of 9.50.
The team's performance was especially impressive
considering that it was short two gymnasts. The
Wolverines were missing freshman Brad Kenna, who
was out with a bad back, and sophomore Justin Toman,
who was in Colorado with the U. S. National Team. ,
Despite all the praise, the Wolverines left some
room for improvement.
"I'm a little disappointed with some and I'm very
pleased with others," Golder said. "Guys were happy
just with dismounting and that's not good enough."
Expect practices to get a little more difficult for the
Wolverines from here on out.
"We suffered in the routines and dismounts later in
the program," Golder said."We need to emphasize our
training and endurance."
The Wolverines will have plenty of time to make
any needed adjustments. Michigan's next event is Jan.
16, when the Wolverines travel to Chicago for the
Windy City Invitational in their official season opener.
Saturday, bowl
mes crystal clear
U
ce.t un a No i vc Nn ?
'-College football has the national title
matchup fans want to see every season
- INo. I vs. No. 2. And this time it will
be Tennessee vs. Florida State in the
Fiesta Bowl.
-It took a wild Saturday of upsets, but
when the results vwre in there was real-
ly.no need for. comnputers, quartiles and
stgth-of-scheidul es after all.
The biggest loseor in the maneuvering
was No. 4 Kansas State (11-1). The
Wildcats lost to Texas A&M 36-33 in
double overtime inithe Big 12 title game
and lost out on a $12 million payday by
* not being included in the Bowl
G6rmpionship Series mix.
The biggest winner turned out to be
No. 7 Florida, which despite losses to
Tennessee and Florida State was selected
because it will helpfill the Orange Bowl
by bringing tens ofthousands of fans.
In the final BCS standings, which use
.dUsl.I LJ . b UL U I . V. . INV. G
matchup and incorporated The
Associated Press' media poll, the coach-
es' poll, three computer ratings,
strength-of-schedule and the number of
losses into the process of picking the top
two teams.
Tennessee finished with 3.47 points
- I point for poll average, 1.67 points
for computer ranking, 0.80 for the 20th-
toughest schedule and zero points for
losses.
"I feel we arrived at two tremendous-
ly qualified teams to be ranked 1-2,"
BCS chairman Roy Kramer said. "They
deserved to be there based on all the cri-
teria. We want to create No. 1 vs. No. 2
.The others are up to the individual
bowls."
The Fiesta Bowl in Tempe, Ariz., was
the site of the last 1-2 matchup in a post-
season game. In the '96 Fiesta, No. I
Nebraska won the national title with a
62-24 rout of No. 2 Florida.
It will also mark the 12th time No. I
played No. 2 in a bowl game. Top-
ranked teams have won six times.
"We have been a resilient team all
season and we've found a way to get it
done," Vols coach Phillip Fulmer said
after he watched UCLA and Kansas
State lose before his team had all it
could handle before beating Mississippi
State. "We've been on the edge of play-
ing in a national championship game,
and now we have a chance to do it."
Kristen Schoenfeld, Nursing Freshmen, University of Michigan
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