6B - The Michigan Daily - SportsMonday, November 29, 1999
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PeI'C
pers remain resilient until en
All picks made against
the spread.
Home teams in CAPS.
Correct picks in bold. T. Berka
ebraska (15) v .COLORADO Colorado
Texas (-2.5) vs. TEXAS A&M Texas
VIRGINIA TECH (-24) vs. Boston Colege Boston College
Georgia Tech (-5.5) vs. GEORGIA Georgia
STANFORD (-6) vs. Notre Dame Stanford
SOUTHERN CAL (-1) vs. Louisiana Tech La. Tech
Arizona (-1.5) vs. ARIZONA STATE Arizona State
TENNESSEE (-23) vs. Vanderbilt Vanderbilt
OKLAHOMA (-13.5) vs. Oklahoma State klahoma
WEST VIRGINIA (-1.5) vs. Pittsburgh Pittsburgh
Arkansas (-11) vs. LSU "Arkansas
Texas Christian (-12.5) vs. Southern Meth. TCU
HAWAII(45)vs. Washington State Hawaii
MARSHALL (-25.5) vs. Ohio Marshall
Rick Freeman
Nebraska
Texas
Boston Colege
Georgia Tech
Stanford
Southern Cal
Arizona State
Vanderbilt
Oklahoma
West Virgina
Arkansas
TCU
Hawaii
Marshall
Vanderbilt
6-7-1 (0-1)
84804(6-6)
Josh Kleinbaum
Colorado
Texas
Virginia Tech
Georgia Tech
Stanford
La. Tech
Arizona
Vanderbilt
Oklahoma
Pittsburgh
LSU
TCU
Wash. St.
Ohio
Stanford
58-1 (0-1)
82-82-4(r7)
Andy Latack
Nebraska,
Texas
Virginia Tech
Georgia Tech
Stanford
Southern Cal
Arizona
Tennessee
Oklahoma
Pittsburgh
Arkansas
TCU
Wash. St.
Marshall
Southern Cal
6-7-1 (1-0)
82-82-6)
Best Bet
Last week
Overall
Hawaii
6-7-1 (0-1)
86-744 (2-10)
Perfection! Hokies top Boston
College to preserve sweet dream
By Jon Zemke
Daly Sports Writer
The last few seasons the Michigan
volleyball team has had a problem win-
ning in the Big Ten. They would do well
in the non-conference, or "pre-season"
schedule, as the Wolverines refer to it.
But the truth is Michigan can com-
pete, but couldn't win in its own confer-
ence. As close as their resilience could
bring them to the brink of winning, it
never seeme like itwa enough
This was punctuated towards the end
of this season.
After being swept by Ohio State,
Michigan's Big Ten record plummeted to
4-12 (12-13 overall) and brought their
losing streak to five matchea.
"Ohio State was a setback," Michigan
volleyball coach Mark Rosen said. "We
didn't play well or execute at all, we did-
n't play very hard, and our effort was
low"
Those words forced the Wolverines to
make a decision on their season. The
consistent development and all-out effort
that Michiganhad prided itself on was in
question by their own coach, none the
less.
The Wolverines had to make a choice
about how they were going to finish out
their season: step up or roll over.
Michigan went 3-1 in their last four
matches and finished the season with
three more wins in the Big Ten than last
year.
More importantly, their resiliency that
had kept them close in matches all year
was resilient enough to stick around
when they could have easily given up on
this year.
"There were plenty of opportunities,
especially late in the year, to just pack in
the season and say, 'Look we're not
going to the tournament, we haven't
played as well as we'd like, let's just give
up,"' Rosen said. "And we never did,"
It would have been easier for this
year's squad to pack it in, because they
were only graduating two seniors. The
core of the team would be returning for
next season.
But the thought never entered
Michigan's mind. They upset an Illinois
team that had beaten them in four games
earlier this year and was in the upper
echelon of the Big Ten.
The Wolverines dropped their next
match to Indiana, but their resolve never
left, even though as hard as they tried,
they couldn't find the answer to winning
back-to-back matches in the Big Ten.
"I don't think you could ever find
exact answers," Rosen said. "We'd love
BLACKSBURG, Va. (AP) -- The
perfect regular season was finally one
for the books. The fans streamed onto
the field by the thousands, congratulat-
ing the players, rejoicing the comple-
tion of Virginia Tech's magical 11-0
ride.
An hour later, coach Frank Beamer
was both jubilant and exhausted, and
the high emotion of the celebration
sparked him to do a little lobbying for
his team.
"I think we've answered every chal-
lenge, and we did it by playing and not
talking," Beamer said. "What we've
done on the field is the right thing.
"Does anybody here think we don't
belong in New Orleans?"
On the biggest day in Virginia Tech
sports history, the second-ranked
Hokies completed their first perfect
regular season in 81 years with a 38-14
thumping of No. 22 Boston College,
but' concerns about the Bowl
Championship Series lingered.
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Could the Hokies at 11-0 be denied
their obvious date with No. 1 Florida
State for the national championship?
Would Colorado make it a done deal by
making its potential game-winning
field goal against the "other" con-
tender, No. 3 Nebraska?
And most of all, what was the value
of Virginia Tech's four games against
ranked teams, games they won by a
combined - and startling - 174-31?
"You look at the ranked teams that
we played this year, and we've taken all
of them to the woodshed," an emotion-
al Corey Moore said as he held on to a
victory cigar. "I firmly believe and I'm
confident that we'll be in New
Orleans."
ThesHokies got three long touch-
down passes in another big day from
sensational redshirt freshman Michael
Vick and another big effort from its
nationally ranked defense to beat an
Eagles team that had won three straight
and came in at 8-2.
And when it was over, some of the
53,130 fans at Lane Stadium were tear-
ing down the goalposts at both ends of
the stadium or frolicking with the play-
ers, and thousands more had directed
their undivided attention to the end
zone scoreboard.
"Nebraska 27, Colorado 27," it said.
Roars.
"Colorado ball. 2:00 left."
Near delirium.
The Hokies are just ahead of the
Cornhuskers in the chase for the right
to play the Seminoles in the Sugar
Bowl on Jan. 4, and the race is close.
Freshman Katrina Lehman and the Wolverines beat Michigan State this week
to capture the 'State Pride" flag. The win sparked a weekend sweep that fin-
ished with the Wolverines above .500 for the first time since 1997.
Virginia Tech finished the season unde-
feated with an 11.0 record.
The stadium grew silent when word
flashed that Colorado would try a field
goal with one second left, then groaned
as one when word came the kick was
no good.
Moments later, they roared even
louder at the news that Colorado had
won, 30-27. But they were silent when
the final score was corrected:
Nebraska, 33-30.
But the Hokies, Beamer and even
Boston College coach Tom O'Brien all
seemed sure that the trip to New
Orleans had all but been sealed at Lane
Stadium.
"There's still no doubt in my mind,"
Moore said. "I heard Nebraska came
back and won the game. I don't think
any of that matters. We're 11-0.
"What more do you want us to do?"
to. If we could we'd write a book and
make a million dollars."
But at the very end, in their last home-
stand, in front of the largest Cliff Keen
crowd in two seasons, Michigan finally
began to realize why they were so
resilient. The Wolverines did against
Michigan State, one of the premier pro-
grams in the conference, none the less.
"We got' our clocks cleaned,"
Michigan State volleyball coach Chuck
Erbe said. "It was a real quick evening.
"We were made to look inept.
Michigan had a lot to do with that
tonight. They played really well and
made us look inept."
Michigan really started to come
together as a team and play good cohe-
sive volleyball to go with their all-out
attitude.
Their win against the Spartans and
then the Wolverines' sweep o
Northwestern to close out the season
finally showed the progress they were
making.
"Towards the last half of the confer
ence season we started to get a lot better,"
Rosen said. "It's tough in this conference
because it doesn't always translate intE
wins.
It was Michigan's resiliency that
allowed them to see that progression
season, instead of waiting until next sea-
son to try again.
But waiting for next season would
have been uncharacteristic for this team.
They would have had to roll over and die,
something Michigan never did in '99.--"
"I thought that resilient attitude was
the characteristic of our team," Rosen
said. "It's the one that I am the most
proud of."
Cooper's leadership the difference
The University of Michigan
" W H AT'S
REC Department of Recreational Sports
SPORTS
PNTRAMURAS INTRAMURAL SPORTS PROGRAM
PRE-SEASON WRESTLING
BASKETBALL
ENTRIES DUE:
ENTRIES TAKEN: Thurs 12/2, 4:30 PM, IMSB
Mon 11/29 to Weds 12/1
11:00 AM to 4:30 PM, IMSB ENTRY FEE:
ENTRY FEE: $5 per individual
$35 per team MANAGER'S MEETING
MANAGER'S MEETING: MANDATORY
MANDATORY Thurs 12/2, 6:30 PM, IMSB
Thurs 12/2, 6:00 PM, IMSB TOURNAMENT DATES:
PoERBAR TOURNAMENT DATES: NIKE Tues - Thura 12/7 - 12/9
Sun & Mon 12/5 & 6, IMSB Sport Coliseum
BASKETBALL ICE HOCKEY
ENTRIES TAKEN: ENTRIES TAKEN:
Monday 1/10/2000 ONLY Thursday 1/6/2000 ONLY
11:00AM to 5:30PM 11:00 AM to 4:30PM
ENTRY FEE: ENTRY FEE:
$72 per team $395 per team
MANAGER'S MEETING: MANAGER'S MEETING:
MANDATORY MANDATORY
Weds 1/12, 6 & 9 PM, IMSB Thurs 1/6, 6:00 PM, IMSB
PLAY BEGINS: PLAY BEGINS:
Thurs 1/13/2000 Sun 1/9/2000
PoWE RBAR IMSB & Sports Coliseum NIKE Yost Ice Arena
Thanks!
to all the Students, Faculty and Staff who participated in the 1999 Fall Term
Intramural Sports Program. The IM staff looks forward to seeing you during the 2000 Winter Term.
Have a safe and enjoyable Semester Break and Holiday! Take care.
OFFICIALS NEEDED!
Join us at the IM Official's Clinics!
Pre-Season BASKETBALL: Tuesday November 30
ICE HOCKEY: Wednesday January 5
BASKETBALL: Wednesday January 5
All clinics are held at the Intramural Sports Building (IMSB).
All clinics begin at 7:00 PM.-
For Additional Information Contact: Intramural Sports Program, IMSB, 606 E. Hoover, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-3717, (734) 763-3562
http://www.rec. srts.umich.edu
PRIDE
Continued from Page 11B
nance early on. Making the last home
appearance of her illustrious career,
senior captain Maggie Cooper fitting-
ly served the Wolverines to a 4-0 lead
to get the action started. And
Michigan only got stronger as the
match progressed.
"After the first five points, we all
knew that the team was really on,"
Rosen said. "We executed really well,
played very disciplined, and that's
something every team strives for. Late
in the year we're finding it more and
more, but this was by far the best
example all year long."
"Every single player was on, every-
one stepped up," Melka said. "It was
awesome, everyone played out of their
minds."
Whether she was firing up her
teammates on the sidelines or leaping
and pumping her fist high in the air
after every point, Cooper's unbridled
enthusiasm set a tone for the evening,
spreading contagiously on the
Michigan side of the court. Katrina
Lehman followed her captain's lead,
eliciting jubilant screams to celebrate
a smash.
As hard as they tried to stay calm,
the girls' anxious faces were ready to
explode into smiles as the match
neared its conclusion. And when a
Nicole Kacor kill sealed the affair,
they did.
"In athletics you talk about getting
into a zone, a flow where everythi
happens, and it's really hard to maser
that where you can do it all the time,"
Rosen said. "Tonight we definitely
had it, we were very much in a flow
where nothing could go wrong
everything goes your way."
Appropriately, Cooper provided the
definitive word. At the end of the post-
game press conference, as the
reporters filed out, her voice penetrat-
ed the relative silence.
"Awesome win tonight!" Cooper
yelled, clapping, exciting Cliff Keer
Arena visitors for the last time.
Her statement - and the way she
said it - summed up a magical
evening.
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Emotion
lifts A&M
over Tex
COLLEGE STATION, Texas (AP)
After all the grief, TexasA&M final
took some small solace.
In as emotionally charged game
they will ever play, the No. 24 Aggi
rallied from a 16-6 halftime deficit t
beat No. 7 Texas 20-16 at Kyle Field o
Friday.
s 'fhas b an unelentingly
season for the Aggies, even beforeth
Nov. 18 deaths of 12 people who di
building the traditional campus bonfir
Coach R.C. Slocu's son underwe
heart surgery in April. In June, quarte
backs coach Ray Dorr was diagno
with LouGehrig's disease.
On Oct. 2, a loss to Texas Tech co
te Aggiesa runforsthe ntionaleca
pionship. Embarrassing losses t
Oklahoma and Nebraska dashed
hopes for another Big 12 South title
But Dorr kept coaching, and th
Aggies kept fighting.
On Nov.d I, they defeated Misso
and started getting ready for thei
biggest rival, the Longhorns. Then th
bonfire tumbled.Eleven 11 students an
'a recent graduate died and 27 peopl
were injured. Many players wnt immne
diatel tohe scene to help remove faI
en logsin the search for those trap
Slocum worried that the gni
would take its toll on his players.
But the team found its strengtl
against Texas. The Aggies got the ear
lead, buta bobbled extra point try and
fumble by quarterback Randy McCowi
helped the Longhorns take a 16-6 half
time lead.
At the final whistle, players, coaches
fans mingled on the field. They huggea
and sobbed.
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