12A - The Michigan Daily - Thursday, October 7, 1999 Michigan looks to stay atop Big Ten; continue domination of Spartans By David Mosse Daily Sports Writer The special buzz around campus this week can only mean one thing - Michigan vs. Michigan State. But you don't have to wait until Saturday to see the two schools square off. Tomorrow afternoon, the Michigan soccer team welcomes the Spartans to Ann Arbor, in their final home game of the Big Ten season. The Wolverines will be looking to bounce back from a 4-1 defeat at the hands of Notre Dame on Tuesday. The loss snapped a seven- game unbeaten streak (6-0-1) and dropped -Michigan to 8-3-1 overall. The Wolverines played the sixth-ranked Figting Irish much tougher than the score would indicate. But their vaunted offense was completely derailed by the Notre Dame {defense. "We just need to stay composed," senior Emily Schmitt said. "we need to capitalize on dour scoring opportunites." Despite the loss, the Wolverines sit atop the ,Big Ten standings with a 5-0-1 record and are favorites to knock off Michigan State. Last year Michigan cruised past their in-state rivals by a 4-0 score. But the Wolverines arc not tak- ing the Spartans lightly. "This is the best State team we have faced since I have been here," Schmitt said. "They are going to be a difficult test. The Wolverines defense figures to rebound against a Spartans offense that has amassed nine goals the entire season. Senior goalkeeper Carissa Stewart will take aim once again at tying Jessica Jones' school record of 26 career wins. Stewart, who is two back at 24 wins, has surrendered just three goals in six Big Ten games, a 0.48 goals-against average. The Wolverines offense, which has grabbed most of the headlines this season, will look to rebound from the nightmare in South Bend. Amber Berendowsky is back to her best and leads a balanced attack. Junior Kacy Beitel and Big Ten freshman of the year candidate Abby Crumpton should provide support. "Amber is so unselfish. She makes every- one around her better," Crumpton said. "She and I always try and work together." Michigan State (4-5-3 overall, 3-2-1 Big Ten) is coming off a 1-0 loss to the Iowa Hawkeyes. Spartans coach Tom Saxton described his team's performance as the best "team soccer" it has played all season. The Spartans boast one of the more experi- enced squads in the Big Ten. They returned 20 players from last year's team. But the Spartans have sputtered on offense as their top guns Jessica Moorman and Gina Dawson have failed to provide a scoring punch. Senior goalkeeper Mara lee has done well to keep the Spartans in games. Anchoring the defense will be fifth year senior Melissa Jannetta and promising sophomore Nicole Leplae, who will look to clamp down on the Wolverines' talented forwards. Michigan is in the midst of a dogfight with Penn State for the Big Ten title and needs this game very badly to keep pace with the Nittany Lions. But beyond the standings, this game means so much more. "Being from Michigan, I know several players on their team," said Schmitt. "I am really excited to take them on." K 4 DAVID ROCHKIND/DaiIy Andrea Kayal and the rest of the Michigan defense looks to rebound from a 41 loss to Notre Dame, when they facer a weaker offensive team in Michigan State. Field hockey learns from its mistakes, gears up for undefeated No. 3 Iowa DANNY KAUCK/Daly Defensive power Iowa will try to hold off Laura Stinson and the rest of the Michigan offense this weekend. By Sarah Ensor For the Daily With yet another challenging weekend looming ahead, the No. 9 Michigan field hockey team hopes to prove its staying power in the race for the Big Ten title. With conference games against Northwestern and No. 3 Iowa, Michigan will have the chance to demonstrate its strengths in front of hometown fans and affirm its status as one of the nation's top teams. The Wolverines are looking to build off of last weekend's efforts, which resulted in a 3-2 victory over then-No. 7 Ohio State and a close 2- 1 loss to arch nemesis and then-No. 5 Penn State. Although the loss to the Nittany Lions ended Michigan's five-game winning streak and hope of an unde- feated conference campaign, it proved that the Michigan stickers have the ability to keep up with any team in the country. "We played really well over the weekend," Michigan coach Marcia Pankratz said. "The team's pretty confident about their play over Penn State even though we didn't win." Pankratz and the Wolverines hope that this confidence carries over into this weekend's equally challenging matches. The first test comes tomorrow at 3 p.m., when Michigan faces undefeat- ed Iowa at Ocker Field. The Hawkeyes enter the game with a 10-0 record, including a 3-0 con- ference mark. They proved themselves as a seri- ous contender for the Big Ten throne with an impressive 2-0 shutout of then-No.2 Penn State in September, and have not looked back since. They currently stand alone atop* the conference standings, a statistic that Michigan would love to change. "Hopefully we can take what we've done and bring it to this week- end, especially against Iowa," junior midfielder Courtney Reid said. "Hopefully we can take the loss to Penn State and make it into a win against the Hawkeyes." One of Iowa's main strengths this year has been its defensive power. The team shut out five of its first ten opponents, and held four of the remaining five to only one goal apiece. The game will be a battle of wills, as Michigan's potent offense faces a defensive unit noted for its stingi- ness. "We need to just do what we do best and try to execute our corners and take them at speed," Pankratz said. "The speed of our play was quite good against Penn State, so we'll just make a few tweaks here and there against Iowa." Although Iowa is undefeated and has been met with little resistance all season, it does have one significant weakness that Michigan hopes to exploit. There are I I freshmen on the Hawkeyes' roster, meaning that many of their key players lack big- game experience. "lowa is young," Pankratz said. "If we can get on them. early and break their momentum, I think it will be a close match because they have a lot of freshmen playing." After the Iowa game, the Wolverines' weekend is far from over. On Sunday at 1 pm, they face Northwestern at Ocker Fiel Michigan has had a great deal o recent success against Northwestern, sweeping the season series the last two years. The Wildcats come into this weekend with a 4-6 record,. including a 0-3 conference mark, but Michigan knows it is dangerous to overlook any team in the powerful Big Ten. "This season anyone can win," junior forward Kelli Gannon sail "Every game is a big game." It is important that Michigan not suffer a letdown after facing Iowa, as Northwestern's powerful offensive- tandem of junior forward Lindsay Wright and senior forward Amy Haase will take advantage of any opportunities offered to them. Focus is the key for the Wolverines throughout the weekend, and the Michigan players believe that this i their time to shine. U "I'm excited," Reid said. "it should be a good weekend." 0? C w' 0 C9 £ zt " to 1"f ('f z v z s EuA " 0 FRANCE GREECE THAILAND RUSSIA MEXICO " Octobe7,1to M z -n 8TH V YABROAD z FAIR'9 . N Octoher 7,199C 13Michigan UBllroom 4:0010 6:00 PM ee z that- yet? The University of Michiganr Office of International Programs0 " G513 Michigan Union0 734 764 4311 tel C Olp o LAN oip@umich.edu 0 HINA " ENGLAND * JAPAN " GERMANY * AUSTRIA "*Y Women's golf plays host for Wolverine Invite Home course, crowd, give Wolverines advantage at weekend tournament against top teams .... By Benjamin Singer For the Daily The Michigan women's golf team only plays in Ann Arbor once this year - this weekend. Michigan hosts the Wolverine invitational, its third tour- nament this season. "Each time you have your own home tournament, you want to play well in front of your family and friends," Michigan coach Kathy Teichert said. "You like to showcase your talents." The Wolverines feel they have an advantage playing on their home course, and not just because of the home crowd. "Scores are usually significantly higher (on Michigan's course)," said sophomore Misia Lemanski. "Our course is one of the toughest courses in the Big Ten." Teichert said the best way to do that is with a team victory. She is also look- ing for some individuals to finish in the top ten, though so far only two Wolverines have finished inside the top 30 in their first two competitions. Sophomore Bess Bowers, who Teichert views as one of the most con- sistent players for Michigan, has the best average per round at 79.8. The best outing for the Wolverines this sea- son came from Bowers at the Lady Northern in Madison, when she shot a 236 to tie for 28th place. Her consistency was never more evi- dent than at the Mary Fossum in East Lansing two weeks ago when she shot an 81 in all three rounds. Freshman Kim Benedict emerged as the top Wolverine at the Fossum with a 237 to tie for 26th despite an affliction. Benedict had a problem with her right contact and was only wearing one in her left eye for the first two rounds, skewing her depth perception. She still managed to shoot a 78 and 83: For the third round, Benedict decided to put in her right contact believing that her eye could take it for the four hours it would take her to complete the tournament. She went on to shoot a 76. Her con- tacts are no longer a problem and she will have perfect vision for this week- end. Michigan's aim to win the tourna- ment may be a tricky task because of some tough competition. Golf Week ranks four of the participating teams in the Wolverine Invitational above 84th ranked Michigan. No. 31 Kent, No. 67 Southwest Missouri State, No. 68 Ohio, and No. 83 Eastern Michigan, all rank above the Wolveirnes. Kent, who also competed against Michigan in their first two tourna- ments. Kent shot a 923 over 54 holes at the Lady Northern to place sixth. Michigan ended with 966 to finish 10th out of 16 teams in Madison. A week later, Kent outdid Michigan again finishing second with a 923 at the Mary Fossum in East Lansing. Michigan shot a 962 to come in 10th again, this time against 18 teams. Ohio which will also be at the Michigan Invitational, came in ahead' of Michigan by shooting 943 to place fifth. If Michigan cannot win the Wolverine Invitational, Teichert hopes to take consolation in achieving per- sonal goals for the golfers. S believes that the Wolverines shou concentrate on their own talefts at this point. "If you worry about your own game, it'll end up helping the team inthe long run," Teicheri said. Michigan will likely shoot lower than their season hest of 96? this tour- nament, but then again so will every team since only 36 holes will be played instead of the usual 54. Last year, holes were originally scheduled for the first day, and 18 on the second as had always been the case. However; due to the cold weather, the golfers only had to play 18 holes each day. This year, only 18 holes per day are being sched- uled for the start due to past problems. Last year at the Wolverine Invitational, Michigan finished fourth out of 13 teams. Playing host The Women's golf team goes into this weekend's Wolverine Invitational after two No. 10 finish es. As host this weekend, Michigan looks to improve on that mark. Last season, the Wolveirnes No. 4 finish was their best of the season.- CI The University of Michigan BASKETBALL BAND AUDITIONS Auditions will consist of scales and sight-reading. Drum Set players will also need to demonstrate various styles. REHEARSALS for both Bands will be on Tuesday evenings. Positions open for: Drum Set Electric Bass Electric Guitar Piccolo Clarinet Approved by college students. The fifth was a loser. These are the teams who the Wolveirnes will host: Bowling Green Cincinnati Eastern Michigan University of Illinois Illinois State Kent Notre Dame 11 ( I i! :.k g:R.