Cyymnastics sessions set The top-seeded women's gymnastics team was selected to compete in Session I1 of the NCAA champi- onships on April 13. Check online to see the team's competition. nichigandaily.corm/sports P 9 WEDNESDAY APRIL 5, 2000 11 0 .April flurries bring cancellation for 'M' Nine By Ryan C. Moloney Daily Sports Writer If it wasn't obvious by the periodic snowflakes nd chilling northern wind yesterday, it became pparent after stepping into the p'arking lot at Ray Fisher Stadium. Instead of P.A. announcer Jim Schneider's far- reaching player introductions and the occasional windshield-bound foul ball, the stadium stood in hulking silence, reflecting its cross-tracks neighbor, UpCoUli Michigan Stadium.A On account of the winter-like Friday, Apr conditions, the Michigan base- at Illinois, 6 >al did not take the field yester- day against Toledo. A make-up Saturday, A game is scheduled in Toledo on at Illinois (D April 12. The cancellation marked the Sunday, Apr second cancelled home game in as at Illinois, 1 many weeks for the Wolverines, the first being their opening day Tuesday, Ap contest against Eastern Michigan Ball State, 3 on March 22. "It was 12 degrees on the field Wednesday,. with the wind chill," outfielder C.J. at Toledo, 3: . hannam said. "The chances of pulling (a mus- cle) are too great, it's just not worth it to go out there" Michigan coach Geoff Zahn and Toledo coach Joe Kruzel made the decision to cancel tlle game late yesterday morning before the Rockets were scheduled to leave Toledo for Ann Arbor. A native of Farmington, Ghannam said the can- cellation was not due to the reluctance of the team to play. "Being from Michigan, we're used to playing in this weather," Ghannam said. "It's the coach's call - it's mainly injury prevention." Senior lefthander Bryan Cranson echoed Ghannam's sentiments, but he also viewed the can- cellation as an opportunity to work on fundamen- tals before the Wolverines' four-game tilt with Illinois this weekend: "Our tools are pretty sharp," Ghannam said. "But a day off like this might not be too bad for us. We'll have a long practice tomorrow outside." ng games l 7 :35 p.m. pril 8 )H), 4:05 p.m. ril 9 - :05 p.m. ril 11 :00 p.m. April 12 _ 00 p.m. For the Wolverines, Toledo looked like a good opportunity to advance in its steep climb back to .500. The lowly Rockets are 8-13 overall, 0-4 in the MAC. But with a weekend of crucial Big Ten play ahead of them, the Wolverines opted to play it safe and limit possibility for injury. Sophomore Kirk Taylor was scheduled to start on the hill. Though he's only seen five and one-third innings of action this season, the southpaw currently sports the team's second-lowest ERA at 3.38. All three of Taylor's appearances were in relief. The game was Taylor's oppor- tunity to stake his claim for the 25-man weekend traveling roster "A lot of pitchers in the bullpen don't get a chance to throw," Cranson said. "We like to start them in some of these midweek games to see what they can do to earn a weekend spot." The Wolverines' scheduled home opener with Eastern Michigan was cancelled on account of bad field conditions. The two teams are scheduled to play in Ypsilanti on May 3. PETER CQRNUE/Daiy The Wolverines were hoping to start their climb back to .500 yesterday, after splitting the series with Indiana last weekend. Unfortunately yesterday's game was canceled due to the cold weather. No.20 Michigan home again with crucial match-up against Spartans By Brian Steere Daily Sports Writer With all of the excitement in East Lansing centering around the Spartans' basketball team, most of the Michigan State fans probably weren't thinking about their school's tennis program. But Michigan State's men's tennis team is traveling to Ann Arbor tonight to take on the No. 20 Michigan men's tennis team at the Varsity Tennis Center. "Any time that a Michigan player looks across the net and sees a green and white opponent, it's obvious what's at stake," senior Matt Wright said. "Playing against Michigan State definitely pumps everyone up and provides an extra incentive to win." Tonight's meeting marks the 99th time that the schools have met on the hard courts, and Michigan owns the all time series, 8 1}-17, including eight straight victories. If there's one sport where the Wolverines should beat the Spartans this year, tennis is it. Michigan State is entering today's match with a 5-14 record, and the team has lost its first three Big Ten contests. Michigan, on the other hand, has compiled an impressive 8-3 record and is unbeaten at home. Despite starting the conference season 1-2, the Wolverines are ready to return to the Varsity Tennis Center and prove that they are a dominant Big Ten team. "It's definitely nice to come back home after being on the road for so long," Wright said. "The fans give us an extra advantage along with the familiar slow courts." Michigan has been away from Ann Arbor for its last six matches. During that time, the team went 3- 3 and was shut down by No. 23 Minnesota and No. 6 Illinois, the three-time defending Big Ten Champions. The Fighting Illini match showed Michigan that it can compete with the best talent in the Big Ten. "Nobody likes to lose, but (play- TODAY VARSITY TENNIS CENTER Who: Michigan (1-2 Bi Ten, 8.3 overall)vcs MichiganState (0-3, -14) When:6 pm.- Latest: After a tOugh start totheBig Ten season, - the men's tennis team returns homerto take advantae of their in-state rieal. ing Illinois) was a positive experi- ence," head coach Mark Mees said. "We really felt that we could play with anyone on their team." Although the Wolverines lost to the Fighting Illini, 6-1, the score was not indicative of how they played. Two of the team's defeats occurred in 3 sets, including a 9-7 tiebreaker loss by senior John Long at No. 2 singles. With the Michigan State match marking the start of a six-game homestand, the Wolverines are entering the most critical part of their season. If the team has any chance of win- ning this year's Big Ten champi- onship, it has to make a run starting tonight. "We need to win these six match- es at home," Wright said. "Anything less would be a disappointment." Nice try, CBS, but I'll see you next March ince the national champi- onship game has concluded, I will now return to my normal habit of ignoring all CBS program- ming until March Madness 2001. Sure, CBS tried to hook me. The network did its best, I have to give it that. The advertising nerds at "The Eye" thought they were pretty sly, slipping me "Falcone" pro- mos every 10 seconds in an effort to show- case how badly a mob show is going to fail playing to a CHRIS senior-citizen D PRy audience. Dupe's Even worse, Scoop after Verne Lundquist and Billy Packer finish reading off their cue sheets about CBS' latest failure, the cameraman finds the "star" of Falcone, sitting in his seat and enjoying the game. This leads to fil.l-in ad-lib com- mentary by Lundquist and Packer, neither of whom have seen the show - neither of whom probably want to, either. Way to go, CBS. I'm impressed. You really got all your big guns to come out this time. CBS paid a pretty penny to retain the rights to broadcast the NCAA Tournament, a very wise move for a network that doesn't have much else to boast. But instead of selling high-priced comnercial spots to the Big Three and other corporate giants, it wastes all its commercial time promoting its loser shows. The network loses twice. The thing is, maybe I would take a glimpse at some of these new CBS television series if the network hadn't shoved them in my face so much these past three weeks. Perhaps, after the tournament fren- zy had subsided, I would find "Falcone" to be a gripping, thrilling drama. Maybe, despite the odds, I'd become hooked on it. Now I'll never get that chance. I made a pact with myself- I refuse to watch any CBS sitcom, whetheir it was one that was overhyped dur- ing the tournament or not. I'm penalizing the network for its behavior. It's one thing to oversell commer- cials to National Car Rental and its bothersome rhythmic clapping - "Let's Go!" ads. At least you're earning some money off that com- pany. That's understandable. But to shamelessly promote yourself by annoying the hell out of your only loyal viewing audi- ence? You deserve everything you've got coming. You're worse than the office loudmouth who totes her son's Little League fundraiser order form around the office and asks if you "would like" to buy something. it's not some secret that CBS i a second-class network. Back when Seinfeld was wrapping up its run, David Letterman said that the best way for the show's producers to keep the ending a secret was to "air it on CBS." There's some truth to that. Still, CBS could rise above the cheap shots by wielding its power. stick, the NCAA Tournament, with great care. I never notice outra- geously frequent promos when CBS hosts NFL games on fall Sundays. Maybe those promos exist - they're just not the in- your-face kind that make you feel so used. Someone has to hold CBS accountable. You MBA advertising twerps think commercials increase sales? Well, I'm going to teach you a lesson for once. I don't have a Nielsen ratings box, a direct line to the president of the network or even 100 shares of CBS stock. So, technically, I have no power whatsoever. I do have this column, though, and I'll use it since 1 hsa tn. DAVID KATZ/Da iy John Long and the rest of the No. 20 Michigan tennis team face Michigan State tomorrow evening for the Wolverines first home meet in over a month. DHL Worldwide Express FULL TIME Summer Employment WITH AN OPTION FOR PART-TIME SCHEDULE IN THE FALL SEMESTER Your Needs: Starting wage $11.29/hour Paid Holidays Up to 3-weeks paid vacation per year Tuition Assistance up to $3,000/year Expanded Benefits: Reduced Airline travel Paid Medical Paid Vision Paid Dental Short term Disability Paid Life Insurance Maintaining a Balance Opt for a full-time schedule this summer then revert to a flexible part-time schedule ranging from 10 to 25 hours per week during the fall semester DO YOU WANT BUSINESS EXPERIENCE? " ' Yes, Gargoyle Magazine offers you a real worldbusi ness experience while you work towards your degree, right here on campus. Students with business and organi- zational talents are invited to apply for the position of business manager of'The Gargoyle. The Gargoyleais a magazine of humor with commercial publishing goals, roduced by undergraduate -- M students at the University of ... ..Michigan. Interested students may aply by submitting a brief biography and an essay on why they would like to be business manager and why they would be successful. Candidates Sui mmer: Full Time Locations 9 _v ....... . . w r+ Plymouth Toledo Midland Troy Grand Rapids Ann Arbor Part-time: Fall - 2000 Ann Arbor Lansing Plymouth Grand Rapids Kalamazoo Minimum Qualifications: A valid Driver's License having no more than one moving violation and zero i