12 - The Michigan Daily - Wednesday, March 29, 2000 Individual meetings spark 'M' By Joe Smith Daily Sports Writer Some coaches make their players run laps until they throw up, while others resort to verbally abusing their athletes - hoping that their ranting, raving and tearing away at one's dignity will spark a flame in the heart and serve as motivation to improve. But Michigan women's tennis coach Bitsy Ritt prefers another approach - one that is better received by her players. After another disappointing loss against Minnnesota two weeks ago, bringing her Wolverines' skid to five losses in six matches; Ritt met indi- vidually with each of her players in an attempt to discuss how to turn things around. Instead of chastizing her players and ripping into them about flaws in their games, Ritt put a more democ- ratic method into action. "She sat me down and had me write down seven things that I felt I could improve in my game," fresh- man Joanne Musgrove said. After the players constructively criticized their own play, Ritt used her 16 years of coaching experience to figure out where to go from there. "She let us decide a lot what was wrong with our games," senior co- captain Brooke Hart said. "She then agreed with our assessments, and we 4 Dot Com Internship/Job Searching Getting You Down? It's TIME to do something about it! Career Planning & Placement can help in our NEW Technology Room! Career Counselors are available: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday: 3-4:30pm Wednesday: 4-5:00pm CP&P- 3200 SAB- 764-7460 - www.cpp.umich.edu then worked together to set goals for the week." These short-term goals vary from player to player, dealing with an array of aspects, from confidence to mechanics to physical fitness. "My input comes in terms of how they can achieve those goals," Ritt said. "I tried to think of drills and other methods we could use in prac- tice to help each player work on their weaknesses." The joint effort paid off on Saturday when the visiting Wolverines (1-3 Big Ten, 6-5 overall) dominated Michigan State, blanking the Spartans, 7-0, and showing subtle improvements throughout the lineup. "The level of play was not as high against Michigan State, but there was significant progress made in terms of the players' short-term goals," Ritt said. With red-hot No. 14 Notre Dame (13-5) coming into the Varsity Tennis Center today, further improvements are needed because Michigan's mar- Frustrated and disappointed with the University? Need help making sense of your U of M experience? Check out http://universitysecrets.com TODAY VARSITY TENNIS CENTER Who: MIchigan (65) v. Notre Dame (13-5) When: 4p.m. Latest: The Wolverines look to break the Fighting Irish curse. Notre L:ne has beaten Michigan the last Sx tilmes they've fiet., gin for error will be slim to none. The Fighting Irish have won six out of their last seven, including a 9- 0 thrashing of Kansas on Monday night. Victorious in eight of their last nine against Michigan, Notre Dame has also owned the rivalry for the past decade. "The past three years Notre Dame has proven to be one of the strongest teams in the Midwest," Ritt said. "We've competed well against them the past few years, but we cannot look at the big picture in terms of the whole match, rather focus on matchup for matchup. "We have to emphasize the impor- tance of each person doing their own job." Things won't get any easier for the Wolverines as they also host No. 28 Southern Florida and regional foe Marquette this weekend. "This is a very important homes- tand for us," Ritt said. "We want to play well and show everyone how we've improved. With these noncon- ference matches we can really help ourselves and gain confidence in preparing for our remaining Big Ten schedule." By Sam Duwe Daily Sports Writer Hail on the Victors. Icy pellets, rain and wind blew fiercely at Michigan softball practice yesterday. Through the miserable, dark cold, the team continued to run drills to prepare for the Big Ten SOFTBALL opener this Friday against Indiana in Notebook Bloomington. But brighter things have happened to the Michigan squad lately, as well. Freshman outfielder Melinda Moulden received co-Big Ten Player of the Week honors yesterday. Moulden, who was named tourna- ment MVP at this past weekend's Boilermaker Invitational, is the sec- ond Michigan player to receive Player of the Week honors in as many weeks. Marissa Young, also a freshman, received the honor last week. At the Boilermaker Invitational, Moulden went 6-for-12 with eight RBI. Her shining moment was a three-run homer against Notre Dame, spurring a 5-1 Michigan victory - a defining moment in the Wolverines' tournament championship. THREE KINGS: In order to be a great team, one must excel in three facets of the game: pitching, defense and offense. "We're in the top three statistically in every category," Michigan coach Carol Hutchins said. "It's always our goal to be the top team in each of the areas. All are good, but without a doubt, the one really bright spot we've had is our pitching." Marie Barda leads this corps with a barely-visible 0.29 ERA. With such solid pitching, Hutchins is more concerned with what the team can do to be better: putting the bat on the ball. "I think our offense has gotten a lot better, but it still has a way to go," Hutchins said. "(Our team average) has gone from a .240 to almost a .300, but we want over a .300 to be successful." Hutchins says that the key is to get some of the clutch hitters perform- ing, and the others will follow. "Good offense is contagious," Hutchins said. KEEPING IT CLOSE: Michigan, with its 22-6 record, could easily be undefeated. All six games the Wolverines lost were by just one run. Still, the important part of the season hasn't started. "As I told the kids, we haven't accomplished anything yet," Hutchins said. Blue fights hail to prepare for opener Career !'tannin};. Placement t Tt"--lf V,.U,. All- 6 wr iF v ; s. v lI q t Y fs pj program board LOOKING FOR IDEA PEOPLE And MAKE IT HAPPEN PEOPLE 4 Positions: MUPB Executive Leader Arts & Entertainment Programmer Promotions Coordinator Current Events Programmer $250.00 Stipend per semester Applications for The 2000-2001 Board Are Now Being Accepted. Pick Up Applications at the Campus Information Center in the Michigan Union. Applications due Thursday April 6, 2000 in Michigan Union Room 1310 Build Community through Programmatic Ideas and Action Contact Robb Thibault 763-3202 or rthibaul@umich.edu i i I I i C WW KLSD 1W LU ~cL{ SI'LCL/&L 1/3 lb. Cheeseburger & Fries only $3.49 11:30-3:00pm One third of a pound of lean ground chuck served on a kaiser roll with lettuce, tomato, and American cheese. 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