MEN'S NCAA
BASKETBALL
(18) Charleston 74,
E. TENNESSEE ST. 55
(10) St. John's 104,
Providence 70
NBA
BASKETBALL
NEW YORK 78,
Detroit 69
MIAMI 95,
New Jersey 72
Phoenix 115,
DENVER 106
UTAH 120,
Sacremento 112
PORTLAND 99,
Dallas 84
GOLDEN STATE 101,
Minnesota 99
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Read the Daily tomorrow for the beginning of our
coverage of the men's and women's swimming team*
as they prepare for the Big Ten championships this
weekend.
Tuesday
February 16, 1999
1OA
PART 4 OF THE ffo% froFos-[E3Rfs
Future is now for impatient
Kipping, fellow freshmen
By Geoff Gagnon
Daily Sports Writer
The bag of ice beneath the wrap
that braced her knee stood out almost
as much as her gritty performance
two nights earlier. And as Ruth
Kipping and Michigan coach Sue
Guevara waited outside a conference
room to address the media after rout-
ing Northwestern, in Evanston last
month, Kipping thought she'd better
come clean.
"Coach, my knee is so sore that I
probably shouldn't have played,"
Kipping said.
"That's why we have a team, when
things like that happen other people
can pick it up,"' Guevara said later.
But for Kipping, eager to play after
her heroics muscled Michigan past
Iowa two days earlier, leaving things
to others has never been an option.
And maybe it's that eagerness to
play, even in defiance of injury, that's
made the Quincy, Ill. native into one
of the most promising young post
players in the Big Ten. Without the
patience to develop slowly, Kipping
has shown she's determined to help
make this season one to remember.
In averaging nearly eight points a
game, Kipping's emergence as a
feared force in the paint couldn't have
come at a better time. Michigan is
currently battling to make a second
straight trip to the NCAA
Tournament.
"The future looks good," Guevara
said. "The future is playing, we're
getting some real good contribu-
tions."
The forward finds herself part of a
talented recruiting class that includes
three other freshmen who've all seen
extensive playing time this season and
are being touted as the cornerstone of
a program that will be able to contend
for a Big Ten title.
But this season, it's seemed as if
that cornerstone has been able to offer
more than mere visions of what a
promising tomorrow might hold
they've shown that the moment
now for Michigan. And in a season of
highs and lows, Guevara says that her
freshmen have gallantly grown with
their ability to responded to adversity.
"Adversity builds character and
after what we've gone through, I have
some good characters," Guevara said.
"I think that my freshmen aren't
freshmen, they're sophomores."
That transition came for Kippin*
midway through the season as injuries
nudged her from the bench and into
the starting lineup - and Kipping
answered the call.
"I talked to coach and she told me
that with several players out my role
had changed," Kipping said earlier
this season. "She told me that I need
to step up and rebound more and try
to score a little more, and that's what
I've tried to do."
See KIPPING, Page 120
injuries to
starters earlier In
the season forced
Kipping into the
starting lineup,a
where she hasf
averaged nearly
eight points ax
gamet.
LOUIS BROWN/Dail
Okenwa hurt, will run anyway
By David Mon
Daily Sports Writer
Michigan freshman runner Ike
Okenwa, a Nigerian native who has
quickly established himself as a pre-
mier Big Ten sprinter, injured his foot
in practice yesterday.
"I almost rolled it," Okenwa said
last night. "I had a bad situation. I put
too much pressure on it trying to
change lanes."
Okenwa said the injury will not
keep him from running in-the Big Ten
Championships this weekend.
"It's not even a thought," Okenwa
said. "You've got to suck it up for a
race like this.
"I'm at about 80 percent right now,
but once the adrenalin gets going, it
goes up. I'm icing it, and I'm doped up
on medication right now"
This isn't Okenwa's first injury of
the season. Already hampered by a
hamstring injury, Okenwa slipped on
the icy ground while walking to class,
injuring his ankle.
The pain forced Okenwa to miss the
Meyo Classic, in Notre Dame The fol-
lowing week, Okenwa looked forward
to competing with other premier
sprinters in Colorado. But, snow
storms prevented Michigan from mak-
ing the trip.
"I am very disappointed not to go to
Colorado," Okenwa said. "But things
happen you just have to deal with."
Okenwa was relegated to competing
in the Wolverine Open, a far less glam-
orous competition. Rather than mop-
ping, he made his return from injury a
memorable one. He captured both the
60-meter and the 200, the first time this
season he has pulled off the double.
"I didn't run as well as I wanted to,
but considering the injury, I'm satis-
fied," Okenwa said.
All season long, he has displayed
remarkable maturity in handling his
success.
"I still need to work on certain parts
of my running," said Okenwa. "I need
to improve my start in the 200. The
first 100 meters are the key."
With the indoor season winding
down, Okenwa now faces his biggest
test - running in the Big Ten cham-
pionship while injured.
Okenwa will face competition the
likes of which he has not encountered
all year. But he refuses to be intimidat-
ed and looks forward to the experi-
ence.
"Just being in the Big Ten champi-
onships will be really exciting for me,"
Okenwa said. "This is what we've
trained for all year and there is no turn-
ing back."
No Wolverine enters the Big Ten
championships carrying more momen-
tum on his side than Okenwa, who has
a streak of four consecutive competi-
tions with a victory.
Continuing this streak would appear
to be a tall order, considering the
See OKENWA, Page 12A
McGregor, the
defending0
national
champion in the
3,000-meters,
will run in her
final Big Ten
Indoor
Championships
this weekend.
WARREN ZINN/Daily
McGregor wraps up solid career
REC
SPORTS
I %.P AL M
The University of Michigan
Department of Recreational Sports
INTRAMURAL SPORTS PROGRAM
WHAT'S
HAPPENING
INTRAMURALS
PRE-SEASON
VOLLEYBALL
VOLLEYBALL
By Arun Gopal
For the Daily
The Michigan women's track and
field team has had a number of solid per-
formers over the years. Names like Tania
Longe, Mindy Rowand and Molly
McClimon bring to mind multiple all-
America honors, individual champi-
onships, and team championships.
When her career at Michigan is over,
senior Katie McGregor will likely be
remembered alongside the names men-
tioned above. In her four years in Ann
Arbor, McGregor has gone from being a
good runner to being one of the top in
the country.
"She's one of the best distance runners
ever here at Michigan," Michigan coach
James Henry said. "She's a good athlete,
and she was a good runner when she
stepped on campus, but she has devel-
oped tremendously over the last four
years."
McGregor has had a decorated career.
A four-time track and field all-America,
she is the defending indoor national
champion at 3,000 meters. In addition,
McGregor was the runner-up in the
5,000 at the NCAA outdoor
Championships in Buffalo last year. She
has also won a national title in cross-
country.
There has been more to this success
than natural ability. In the past four
years, McGregor has become known for
her toughness as much as her talent.
"I think her greatest asset as a runner
is that she is very gutsy," Henry said.
"She epitomizes this year's team - she's
a hard worker, she's determined and
she's very confident. Like the whole
team, she has used setbacks to energize
her even more."
McGregor's combination of skill and
grit has made her a natural leader for her
teammates, underclassmen as well a4)
upperclassmen.
"The best indication of what kind of
leader she has been is that she was
named a tri-captain of this team by the
coaches, along with Nicole Forrester and
Nikki Keith," Henry said. "After our per-
formance in Indianapolis, we felt like we
See MCGREGOR Page 12A
v
ENTRIES TAKEN:
Mon 2/15 to Weds '2/17
11:00 AM to 4:30 PM
ENTRY FEE:
$35 per team
MANAGER'S MEETING:
MANDATORY
Thurs 2/18, 6:00 PM, IMSB
TOURNAMENT DATES:
Sat & Sun 2/20 & 2/21, IMSB
i /
ENTRIES TAKEN:
Monday 2/22 ONLY
11:00 AM to 5:30 PM, IMSB
ENTRY FEE:
$70 per team
MANAGER'S MEETING:
MANDATORY
Weds 2/24, 6:00 PM, IMSB
PLAY BEGINS:
MONDA Y.3/8
IMSB
-- -
Il
I.
, I I'
INNER TUBE
WATER POLO
ENTRIES TAKEN:
Monday 2/22 ONLY
11:00 AM to 5:30 PM, IMSB
ENTRY FEE:
$45 per team
MANAGER'S MEETING:
MANDATORY
Weds 2/24, 7:00 PM, IMSB
PLAY BEGINS:
MONDA Y 3/8,
r-
4 0f 00 /
RELAYS MEET
ENTRIES DUE:
Tues 2/23, 4:30 PM, IMSB
ENTRY FEE:
$25 per team
MEET DATE:
Weds 2/24
U of M Track Building
EVENTS:
1/2 Mile (each runs 1 lap)
3/4 Mile (2 = 1 lap; 2 = 2 laps)
1 Mile (each runs 2 laps)
2 Mile (4 =2 laps; 2 = 4 laps)
..
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