, :. MAJOR LEAGUE TORONTO 7, BASEBALL Tampa Bay 1 AMMICAN LEAGUE Oakland at Minnesota 1, Seattle, inc. DETROIT 0 (12) NATIONAL LEAGUE CLEVELAND 5, NEW YORK 8. Kansas City 2 (10) Florida 1 Anaheim 13, Cincinnati 7, TEXAS 5 CHICAGO 2 San Diego 8, COLORADO 5 (11) Atlanta 8, PHILADELPHIA 6 Los Angeles ARIZONA, inc. PROFESSIONAL BASKETBALL Charlotte 92, nrrnnrr CAR A~d~Mu Dfg Tracking 'M' teams Haven't had a chance to catch the Michigan men's tennis team's undefeated Big Ten season? Head down to the Varsity Tennis Center this Saturday at 1 p.m. to catch all the action. Tuesday April 13, 1999 9 .M' baseball looks to soar past Eagles CHRIS CAMPERNEL/Daily The softball team caps off a stretch of nine games in just seven days with a doubleheader against Central today. Softball finishes §tretch of nine By Michael Shafri Daily Sports Writer Nine games in seven days is a tall order for anyone. But for the Michigan softball team, it's business as usual. Coming off a weekend sweep of Big Ten rival Minnesota, Michigan (8-0 Big Ten, 35-5-1 overall) heads into the final four games of this nine-game stretch with the No. 6 ranking in the national polls, riding a 31 game unbeaten streak. SPenn State (4-2, 21-13) invades Alumni Field today for afternoon doubleheader. If the Wolverines are to nintain their spot at the top of the conference, they need to get by third-place Penn State unscathed. .Michigan coach Carol Hutchins doesn't think that the grueling schedule will have much of an effect on her team. "We've played seven games in a weekend before, so we're used to it Hutchins said. "Sure you get tired, but it's part of the deal - you get used to it and expect it." The Nittany Lions will bring two familiar faces with em, as former Michigan players Kelly Kovach and tiyn Tate are now assistant coaches for Penn State. Both were All-Americas at Michigan in the '40s. Penn State got its conference play started with a bang when the Nittany Lions swept a three game series with Iowa, Apr. 3-4. But if history is any indication, the Wolverines should be able to counter whatever the Nittany Lions throw at them. Michigan is 21- all-time against Penn State, including an Il-game win streak. If Michigan has any weakness, its on defense. tchins spent most of practice yesterday working on fensive drills with her players. "I1'm not real pleased with our defense. We've been putting two errors on the board pretty regularly," Hutchins said. "We've been making the big plays but have had some trouble with the routine ones." As a bookend to Michigan's nine-game marathon, Central Michigan comes to Ann Arbor for a doublehead- er on Wednesday, providing the Wolverines with a break from their conference schedule. Michigan has already beaten the Chippewas once this season, an 8-0 victory on March 28. Hutchins feels that her team will not lose focus during last game of the stretch. 'It's a game no matter how you look at it, whether it's in the Big Ten or not," Hutchins said. "We're used to playing 60 or 70 games in a season, so you've got to get your games in sometime." If Hutchins had any concern about her defense, she should be able to relax with Marie Barda on the mound. Barda has a pair of one-hit shutouts against Central Michigan in her career - the most recent of which was on the March 28 game. Nine games in seven days - it will all be over on ednesday evening. Chances are the Wolverines are going to go home on Wednesday, put their feet up and take a much deserved nap. By Geoff Gagnon Daily Sports Writer As Michigan coach Geoff Zahn headed for the Michigan 4 y.: clubhouseafter Sunday's disappointing 13-10 loss t Big Ten :..<,.~., . < front-runner Ohio State, he watched as his team pulled a bat- 7 ~ .,,.. tered tarp over the field at Ray Fisher Stadium. The rain-soaked squad, looking as beaten as the field they sought to save from the drizzle, seemed to be laying a week- yend of frustration to rest with the gesture. 6And as Zahn and company take to "The Fish" this after- noon to host Eastern Michigan, they'll be hoping to turn a pivotal corner in resurrecting a season of promise after this weekend's setbacks. The Wolverines (6-6 Big Ten, 18-16) look to rebound after seeing their Big Ten stock drop on the heelsaof three losses to teBuckeyes. Despite coming up short in an attempt to dis- mantle Ohio State, Zahn said his team is anxious to use this week's non-conference matchups with Eastern Michigan and Oakland to get back on pace before battling Minnesota this weekend. "Our approach is the same in the midweek games," Zahn said. "We want to win them. We've got two midweek games, and it'll give us a chance to see some other pitchers and then hopefully get ready to face Minnesota this weekend" Eastern Michigan enters today's game after dropping three of four Mid-American Conference contests to open its con- ference season before a 12-3 loss to Michigan last week. Despite the state of the stumbling Eagles, the Wolverines know they can't afford to take their Washtenaw County neighbors lightly. "Eastern is going to come out fighting," senior Bobby y t. Scales said. "We don't expect them to lay down for anybody, ,s,,f.that's just how they are." And in an unpredictable spring in which every game counts for the Wolverines, Scales says his squad is confident they know what they have to do. "We have to take care of our business this week;' Scales said "We know we have to play them hard because that's '.baseball. You can get blown out one day and then blow some- body else out the very next day, so you have to go hard every- day" N -Luke Bonner, who fell to 3-4 on the season on Sunday, and w '- ~' freshman Bobby Korecky, nursing a 6.84 ERA, will be among those thankful to earn a bit of rest this week after four grueling games in two days this weekend. Despite seeing his pitching staff shelled by the Buckeyes who tallied 13 runs on 16 hits in Sunday's series finale, Zahn says there's no need to question the strength of the Michigan hurlers. "Luke Bonner started to get behind in the count for us, and as soon as he did, they started to hit him pretty well,' Zahn said. "And with Bobby Korecky, it was just one of those 3 things that happen as a freshman. The adrenaline was flow- ing, but he'll be alright. Korecky's going to be a key for us." .~ ~ Keying things for the Wolverines from the plate, Mike FILE PHOTO Cervenak, Jason Alcaraz and Scales, among others, will be Senior cocaptain Mike Cervenak and the Michigan baseball team square off today in a rematch with cross-county rivals, looked upon to shoulder Michigan's offensive burden. Eastern Michigan. The Wolverines won the first contest at Ray Fisher Stadium, 12-3. Scales will also be looking to extend his 18-game hitting streak. His .364 batting average leads the team. Track conquers west coast 1 By Ron barber Daily Sports Writer For the first time this outdoor season, it was a vic- torious Saturday for the Michigan men's track and field team. The Wolverines dominated the distance and field events en route to an upset of Washington and a demolition of New Mexico in the San Diego State Quad Meet. "It was a real good meet for us," Michigan coach Jack Harvey said. "We had quite a few big perfor- mances." For one of the first times this year, the big per- formances came mainly from Michigan's upper- classmen. The Wolverines got three first-place fin- ishes from their elder statesmen, including wins in the 5,000 meters and 4x400 relay that allowed the team to eke out a seven-point victory. "We were in a dogfight right until the end of the meet;' assistant coach Ron Warhurst said. Although the sprinters did not fare as well as the rest of the squad, it was a special weekend for fresh- man sprinter Ike Okenwa. Okenwa competed for the first time as a Wolverine in his hometown since graduating from Morse High School in San Diego. "It was great;' Okenwa said. "The whole entourage came out for the meet. It was good to see everyone again." Although the team didn't win any sprint events, they put together some encouraging performances, especially in the hurdles. Sophomore Jon Cohen and Freshman Derek Applewhite finished second and fourth in the 110 hurdles, respectively. "My times were pretty vast improvements over last time," Applewhite said. "Next week I just want to do better, you know, take baby steps." All American Jay Cantin, the reigning Big Ten indoor mile champion, was victorious in the 1,500 and 800, important events that set up Steve Lawrence's dramatic victory in the 5,000. Lawrence, drained after finishing second in the 1,500, came back and won the 5,000, an event that along with the 4x400 put Michigan over the hump. For now, I'll snorkel 1200 miles of coral reef. Hike a Tasmanian trail. Or, maybe I'll hang in a Melbourne pub with some cruisy Aussies. Then again, I could balloon over the Red Centre. Australia is the land of the free; free to do whatever I choose. Aussie Escape Packages including air, coach pass and extras start as low as $995*. As for. Europ-t, ^. Iya l Pt " I so^,... Travel CIEE: Council on International Educational Exchange 00" I i ( CALL 800-329-0975 or www.counciLtraveL.com .. ) Prc nlds on-rpai rmL ._Sde.pu.O xeine rvlps fo ynyt 'Price includes round-trip air from LAX to Sydney, plus Oz Experience travel pass from Sydney to Melbourne, Sydney Starter pack, and VIP Backpackers Membership kit. Valid dates; 4/1/99 - 10/31/99. Add-ons available. Restrictions apply. Taxes not included. Price subject to change without notice. 1999 Australian Tourist Commission. !. ,, .Y / 1Mt.a Y. t F L l . .. .. . a a ... .r. rY ...,....r... -i r -- r I i ., - - s. i Ylp , .; Attention Marketing and Communications majors! Are you having trouble finding a job that offers REAL business experience? Better Scores Better Schools Better Career The Michigan Daily has the answer...as our Circulation Manager you would be responsible for monitoring drop sites around campus, reaching out to local businesses, and expanding the Daily's reach into the University and Ann Arbor MCAT GMAT LSAT GRE t a-