Neck and neck The NiT has reached its finals. Go online to find out where all three of you stand in The Michigan Daily's NIT Ch llehge. michigandaily.com /sports Utg £ldlgau ali SPORTS WEDNESDAY MARCH 29, 2000 10 Senior icers bid adieu in radio show By Uma Subramanian Daily Sports Witer if soeone had strolled into Yost Ice Arena yesterday afternoon, he probably would have done a double-take. After all, it's not every day that Mike Comrie dons goalie gear in order to stop Josh )3lackburn from putting the puck in the net. But yesterday was not an ordinary day - in fact, for Michigan's. top center and its No. 1 goalie, their days of having fixed routines are over, ended by the Wolverines' loss to Maine on Sunday in the semifinals ofthe NCAA Tournament. Yet even though the season's over, the players are still trekking to the rink - but now it's to have a little bit of fun. So how did Comrie, Michigan's top score-. do in net? Rumor has it that he stopped every shot he faced, prompting seniorforward Krikor Arman to ask, "Mike, is there anything you can't do?" Alright, but in case any Michigan fan is concerned, chances are pretty good that by the time October rolls around, Comrie will be back in his normal position. But Oct. 6 and the 2000-2001 regular- season opener are a long way away. And though it may take them a while to get readjpsted to life without a daily hockey routine, the younger players are looking forward to the extended break. For the seniors, however, the summer' will be their passage into the real world. "It's tough for all the seniors," captain Sean Peach said yesterday at Michigan coach Red Berenson's weekly radio show, held at Banfield's West Bar and Grill. "I woke up (on Monday) and real- ized that next year I don't know what I'm going to do as far as playing hockey." Regardless of what the future holds, Peach and his fellow seniors can revel in the successful runs they had at Michigan. At the radio show, the last one of the 1999-2000 season, while the underclass- men expressed their thanks, the seniors bade goodbye to the loyal Dekers who throw their hearts and souls into Michigan hockey. It was a chance for various Wolverines to share memories of the past season, and in a few cases, their careers. Senior Kevin Magnuson, asked about his most memorable moment wearing the maize and blue, recalled Michigan's early-season 5-1 victory over Michigan State his freshman year, when a squad of injury-plagued Wolverines defeated the Spartans en route to a 35-win season. Arman, who will pursue a hockey career before heading to law school, merely cherished the opportunity. "Four years ago, I never would have thought in a million years that I'd do the things I've done," said Arman, who walked on to the team as a freshman. The same could be said for freshman Mike Roemensky, who was added to the team midway through the season to pro- vide depth on the defensive front. Against Colgate in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, Roemensky scored his first career goal - an image still fresh in everyone's mind. "It was really exciting (to score)," Roemensky said. "It was a surprise to me. I thought the shot was going to be blocked, but then I looked at the bench and saw that everyone was cheering. I decided, okay, I'll cheer too." As WTKA's Doug Karsch prompted him for his comments, Comrie also had a chance to speak his mind about many things - including how, as one of Michigan's smallest players, he has made his mark on the college hockey universe. "If you're working hard, it doesn't mat- ter how big you are," Comrie said. "It only matters how big your heart is." Though it's rare for the players to make appearances, Berenson's weekly show has been a tradition in Ann Arbor for years - in fact, even the Alumni Band makes a showing. Yesterday, as the Wolverines' general strode majestically into the room, all eyes turned to him as The Victors enveloped the audience. But the most memorable aspect of the evening is the image of Berenson's fans hanging on to his every last word as he reflected on a memorable season. "We had high expectations," Berenson said. "The team competed all year. It was a great season. I'm proud of our team - the way we handled adversity." MARJORIE MARSHALL/Daily Michigan starter Brad McCloskey had a rough outing against Western Michigan yesterday, surrendering five runs in three innings in the Wolverines' 11-4 home loss. Ei ght stMichigan Nine s winless strea continues at home NIT final: Wake Forest-Notre Dame NEW YORK (AP) - Notre Dame came into the National Invitation Tournament focused on winning it. Now, there's just one team standing in its way. Troy Murphy had 18 points and eight rebounds to lead the Irish to a 73-52 rout of Penn State in the semifinals of the NIT yesterday night at Madison Square Garden. Notre Dame (22-14) will play Wake Forest (21-14) in tomor- row night's NIT final. The Demon Deacons beat North Carolina State 62-59 in the other semifinal. It will be the fourth NIT final appearance for the Irish, and first since losing to Virginia in 1992. Matt Carroll added 13 points, and backup Jere Macura 12 points and seven rebounds for the Irish, who shot 53 percent on 25-for-47 shooting. Penn:State trailed by double digits the entire second half, and Notre Dame led by as many as 22 when Murphy's slam dunk at 2:25 gave the Irish a 70-48 lead. Murphy shot 6-for- 11 from the field and catne out with 1:33 left in the game to a loud ovation. WAKE FOREST 62, NORTH CAROLINA STATE 59 (OT): Wake Forest won bragging rights in its rivalry with North Carolina State and earned a spot in the final of the National Invitation Tournament. Darius Songaila scored 18 points, including six in overtime, as Wake Forest beat Atlantic Coast Conference rival North Carolina State 62-59 in the semifinals of the NIT. Wake Forest will play Notre Dame in tomorrow's final. Songaila made a layup off a pass from Robert O'Kelley with 58 seconds left to give Wake Forest a 58-56 lead in overtime. Songaila was fouled by Kenny Inge on the Demon Deacons' next possession with 35.9 left and made both foul shots for a 60-56 lead. N.C. State's Tim Wells responded with a 3-pointer with 22 seconds left to bring the Wolfpack within 60-59. Songaila was fouled by Anthony Grundy with 13.7 sec- onds and made both free throws to seal it. By Ryan C. Moloney Daily Sports Writer A mudder: it's a horseracing term - a horse that loves the sloppy conditions provided by lousy weather. For Western Michigan, the term applied for more rea- sons than the appropriateness of their nickname. The Broncos seemed completely unfathomed by the rain and hail pouring into Ray Fisher Stadium yesterday as they handed Michigan an II- 4 drubbing, the Wolverines' W MICHIGAN 11 fifth straight loss and their eighth defeat in the past nine " MICHIGAN 4 games. Western Michigan ripped off five runs in three innings against first-time starter Brad McCloskey (0-1) and cruised the rest of the way behind solid pitching and fielding. "It's the same thing and the players know it," Michigan coach Geoff Zahn said. "The bases on balls kill us, the errors kill us. We start out pitching behind on the count and have to throw fastballs over the plate. But today I saw a lot more positive things than I did on the weekend." Western Michigan jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning, but Jordan Cantalamessa's two-run shot in the bottom portion of the frame trimmed the score to 3-2. The Broncos sealed the deal with single runs in each of the second and third innings before tacking on more insurance with a five-run fifth inning off of middle reliev- er Rich Hill. Both McCloskey and Hill showed occasional flashes of brilliance, though their game ERAs don't show it - inevitable growing pains, Zahn explained. "We gave McCloskey a start and he got anxious. He wasn't himself" Zahn said. "Players have to go through that - they have to deal with that anxiety. Now he's angry, he knows what he did wrong and he'll correct it. "The same goes for Hill. He can be dominating, but he overthrew out there. He finally settled down and left knowing he can win a game if he pitches like he did in his last inning." Angelo Palazeti worked the first four innings for the Broncos, surrendering three runs. Josh Clark took over for 3.1 innings and allowed Michigan's only other run. Pat Misch finished up. The Wolverines currently sport a 5.60 ERA in their first five games at home. On the brighter side for Michigan, it did not give up a single unearned run after yielding 17 over the previous four games. For Cantalamessa, his two hits signaled a bit of a break- out after a recent slump. "I'm feeling a little bit more comfortable out there," Cantalamessa said. "I've just got to keep swinging and hopefully get a few more hits." Freshman Alex Coleman got the start at catcher in place of regular David Parrish and led the Wolverines in hits with two. Zahn said Parrish will see occasional rest due to the rigors of a season behind the plate. "Alex is very intelligent and he calls a good game. The season would wear on David a little bit to have to catch every game, so it's good to give him a break. The pitchers have confidence in Alex and he can help us out a lot." Bowling Green journeys to Ray Fisher Stadium at 3 Inside: See pitching analysis and boxscore. Page 11 0' - .', . - -~ www.michigandaily.com - a cyberspace odyssey __ _ _ _. _ v:: " U., Our spring and summer class sessions let you complete a course in just six weeks. They're short, sweet, and to the point so you can pick up that class you need and still have time to enjoy your summer break. Visit us at www.gvsu.edu for a schedule of courses in Grand Rapids, Allendale, Holland, and Muskegon.