The Michigan Daily - SportsMonday - February 22, 1999 - 7B M inexperience shows at men's chmpionship Freshman jitters surface as Blue stumbles NINTH Continued from Page 1B -W David Mosse Sports Writer MADISON - Week after week, the fresh- men members of the Michigan track team impressed observers by performing way beyond their years. As they rolled into Madison for their biggest test of the year, the stage was set for a storybook finish. How sweet would it be for these young kids to brush aside all the pressure and thrive in the spotlight of the Big ten championships? Reality set in, as the 1999 Big Ten Championships were reduced to a learning *rience for most of the Wolverines' fresh- men. While all the freshmen were confident in the week leading up to the meet, coaches did their best to warn their athletes that first- timers never seem to fair well at the Big Tens. Even the Wolverines' older members, recall- ing their own freshman experiences, knew how difficult this weekend promised to be. Still, their talent was undeniable, creating e hope for big peiformances. ded Padan, the seventh ranked triple jumper in the nation, seemed like a legitimate contender to win the event. Sprinter Ike O enwa came in sporting a streak of 4 con- secutive meets with a victory, and distance runner Mike Wisniewski, steadily improving throughout the year, looked on the cusp of a breakthrough. The first victim of the freshman jinx was Ike Okenwa. Still recovering from a hamstring injury, Okenwa rolled his ankle in practice this Women cor week. Coaches ruled him out of the 200- meters, instead saving him for the 60-meter. Okenwa squeeked into the semifinals with the final spot, and failed to qualify for the finals. Okenwa was noticibly limping throughout the meet but refused to bring up the injury up as an excuse. Instead he said nerves played a factor. "I was very nervous," Okenwa said. "I've never run in front of that many people before." While Okenwa could not hide his dissa- pointment, perhaps no Michigan possesses more promise for next season. "Considering his injury, just making it to the semifinals is a positive, Michigan coach Jack Harvey said. Another Wolverine, 5,000-meter runner Mike Wisniewski, came in with high hopes. In his last two meets, Wisniewski placed second and third respectively. Yet, when the race began, Wisniewski was noticably shaken, fin- ishing in the bottom half of the field. "I was really scared," Wisniewski said. "The first time is always tough, but next year will be a lot different." Like Okenwa, Wisniewski enjoyed a stellar freshman season and will be counted on heav- ily next season. "I think the off season is really gonna help me," Wisniewski said. "Next year I will be stronger and more mature. While Wisniewski struggled mightily, another Wolverine, junior Todd Snyder flour- ished, finishing fourth. Following the race, instead of speaking of his performance, LOUIS BROWN/Daily The Michigan men's track team didn't clear every obstacle this weekend at the Big Ten Championships in Madison. Snyder sympathized with his younger team- mate. "I remember when I was a freshman I got lapped out," Snyder said. "The coaches want- ed me to finish but the judges yanked me out." Padan shined all season long, establishing himself as one of the stars of the squad. On Saturday, Padan clearly displayed nerves, scratching out of the long jump. He performed better on Sunday, placing fourth in the triple jump. "We'll be a whole lot better next year than we are this year," assistant coach Ron Warhurst said. "Next year we're gonna try to win this thing." That goal may seem outrageous considering the Wolverines' ninth place finish. Yet no other team in the Big Ten asked more of their fresh- men than Michigan. And while that may have hindered them this weekend, it provides plen- ty of hope for better days ahead. ne from behind to the 200, his best event. "I didn't get out of the blocks well," Okenwa said. "I can't make any excuses for myself though. I just didn't run well.' Despite Okenwa's injury and the team's finish, there were several bright spots that left the young team encouraged for next season. Most of these came from upperclassmen that had competed in the meet before. Junior Jay Cantin was the Wolverines' sole winner. He cap- tured the Big Ten mile crown and nearly qualified for the NCAA Championships by posting a time of 4:05. "Michigan's won this event six years in a row, so winning just seemed like the right thing to do Cantin said. Another junior, and Michigan's most consistent runner all year long has been Todd Snyder.' He finished fourth behind three Spartans in the 5,000 and met the provisional standard to compete in the NCAAs. In addition to the experienced upperclassmen, some fresh- man bested their nerves to succeed. Patrick Johansson shattered his personal best by three feet on his way to a second place finish in the 35-pound weight throw. "I am really happy," Johansson said. "I did real good today." Jumper Oded Padan, who had a good feeling before the meet. "I'm definitely in the mood," Padan said as he headed off to compete. On Saturday, Padan scratched out of the long jump an1 did not place. He savaged the meet on Sunday by taking fourth place in the triple jump with a distance of 51 feet, 1 inch. Freshman Jeremy Schneider joined his classmates with a strong performance. He placed fifth in his specialty, the 600. "Going from fifth place in my class B state meet to fifth in the Big Ten's is pretty exciting. I think I held back a lot though. I was pretty nervous." The word nervous seemed to be on everybody's lips. "I was incredibly nervous the first time I was here' "Snyder said. "I still think the freshman did awesome. It just shows promise for next year." Although the meet didn't go as well as the team would have hoped, there are many positive performances from the rest of the season that the Wolverines can take with them to the out- door season. After all, an entire season can't be based on one weekend. CHAMPS Continued from Page 1B ance was better than ever. Our kids were equal to the challenge this weekend." McGuire did not think that the team was worried after what transpired Saturday and early Sunday. Purdue jumped out to an lead on Saturday by taking the top two spots in the pole vault and three of the top five places in the pentathlon. The Boilermtakes led by 39 points after the first event on Sunday but were tin t to hold the lead. "We knew that Purdue would get double-digit points in the weight throw (first event on Sunday)," McGuire said. "But at the same time, we had our strong events--the 600, 800, and 5,000 - still to come, and we got big points in all of those events. There was only one track event where we didn't have a shot to score. "Purdue was huge in four events, and Indiana really came on. It's like stocks - you're up, and then you're down. We fell behind in some events, but we made it up in other areas. As they say in football, when the offense fumbles, the defense picks up the slack. We picked up the slack this weekend." The Wolverines were ecstatic after their win. Following a vic- tory lap, several team members doused Henry with buckets of water before the entire team posed for a group photo wi fr Big Ten championship trophy. The team broke out into an impromptu rendition of "The Victors" during the photo, fol- lowed by a chant of "It's great ... to be ... a Michigan Wolverine!" "This is awesome;" middle distance runner Angie Stanifer said. "I'm a senior, and this is my first ring, so it feels great. I've wanted a ring for four years." "We lost some points early on, but we knew we were strong. Our best day was today, Stanifer said after the meet. "We knew we had it won before the last event (the 4x400 relay)." Several athletes from other schools also turned in stellar per- formances. Wisconsin's Jenelle Deatherage and Ohio State's Dominique Calloway were each double winners. Deatherage took victory in the 3000 meters and the mile, while Calloway won the 60 meter low hurdles and the 200 meter dash. Still, the weekend belonged to the Wolverines.- "It was a phenomenal performance" Michigan sprinting coach Arnett Chisholm said. "No single performance stood ot. All of them were responsible for this victory. We pulled togeth- er, we rallied around each other, and we got it done." secure second-straight trophy By Stephen A. Rom Daily Sports Writer In the waning moments of this yqrs Big Ten Women's Indoor ek & Field Championships, a chant rang out on the campus of Ohio State University, the host school. "It's great! To be! A Michigan Wolverine!" Of the remaining friends, family, fans, and opponents few could dis- agree with that claim. On a weekend that asked the TRACK Xverines to report at 9 a.m. at Commentary a rival school to --------------- compete at championship level, the women responded with all the enthusiasm, heart, and desire of a champion - a conference champi- on. "It was something we talked about. It was something we wanted t do," Michigan . coach James ury said. Henry was responding to his teams goal of winning "back to back" conference championships. With an effort that seemed like the tale of two cities, the two door Indoor track and field champi- onships ended with Michigan accomplishing their goal of sealing a second Big Ten title in as many years. uring the 18-event competition, t olverines experienced a string of emotions that took them from the pinnacle of glee to the cellar of dis- belief. After day one of the two day meet, the Wolverines found them- selves down big to an extremely dominant Wisconsin and Purdue team. "Some of the girls are disappoint- ed," assistant coach Mike McGuire said of their team's placing after day one. More disappointing is the fact that the Wolverines ended the day by finishing second in an event they should have won. The distance medley relay asked four Wolverines to try and regain some of the confidence that may have been lost because of the sur- prising dominance of the other Big Ten schools. During the 11:41 second race - which happened to be the main event of the day - Michigan saw a familiar sight - a Badger passing them on the outside. This time, dis- belief was the prevailing emotion. And in case it seemed like some- how the Wolverines would find a way to turn on the jets, a freshman Badger running the anchor made sure there would be no extra thrust for the Wolverines. Although this event resulted in a loss of only two points in the final tally, it still set a tone that would carry into the evening and the final day of competition. Sophomore Erin White who gave up the lead for the Wolverines when she was handed the baton from lead- off runner Katie McGregor, couldn't hold back the disappointment. Those tears represented the emo- tion that this competition was all about. After the Wolverines were pre- sented their Big Ten Championship trophy the next day, a much calmer White reflected on the event. "I wish I could have contributed more for the team," she said. Perhaps a little too critical of her- self, this event was not about indi- vidual performance - neither is this team. "It took a collective effort," said McGregor. This consummate performance was all the more apparent to Michigan's star athlete when she reflected on her performance on the first day. "I'm not too happy with it," she said of her time in the 3,000 meters. "I didn't help the team out. I hope to do something tomorrow." When Sunday eventually came the Wolverines showed up. They did this with the help of a well though out plan of attack, devised by McGuire. "I do a projection sheet," he said. I know what they have coming in and I plan accordingly." Step one of this plan was to get Sunday off to a good start by a win in the high jump, which senior Nicole Forrester supplied, and a strong day of running to follow. The latter was accomplished by having 11 track qualifiers to Purdue's five. This plan that took a season to develop and about six hours to be carried out. With it was created a kaleido- scope of emotions that were dis- played on each and every Wolverine in French Field House. And as time goes by, and the months give way to years, these memories and lessons are the things that will remain. These things will last longer than any championship plaque or team victory photo. So in future years when fans gaze through a display case at the 1999 women's track & field team's accomplishments, all that will be left will be a picture. A picture worth a 1000 words, and written with a heavy hand of emotion. LOUIS BROWN/Daily The Michigan men's track team suffered at Big Tens because of a large contingent of freshmen. ,.. I r 1 Swing Dancing After Spring Break! Fitness Program University of Michigan Kinesiology Two Sections, 5 Weeks Color Calls! 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