10 - The Michigan Daily - Wednesday, November 3, 1999 Kacor set marks last weekend. By Emily Mitchell For the Daily Last weekend the Michigan vol- leyball team split two matches against No. 9 Iowa and No. 2 Minnesota. The Wolverines fell against Minnesota, 3-15, 3-15, 10-15, last Saturday night, but swept Iowa, 15-8, 15-2, 15-10. Not only did the victory over Iowa snap Michigan's two-match losing streak, but it was also one of the most successful games of the year for sophomore Nicole Kacor. Kacor, who plays outside hitter, "played the best blocking game she has had all year," Michigan coach Mark Rosen said. "Her blocking was a big factor for us." Against Iowa, Kacor had 14 kills, 14 digs, and three blocks, bringing her career totals to 276 kills and 272 digs. This raises both her kills-per- game average and digs-per-game average to over 3.7. "Kacor is a great competitor. She goes for everything and really drives to succeed," freshman, Dana Chapman said. "She is a really big competitor. She really wants to have everyone do well." "Nicole has really stepped up this year. She has helped the team tremendously," junior teammate Sarah Behnke said. In addition to a great game played by Kacor, Alija Pittenger also had an exceptional serving game. She served five aces, four of them in game one. Not only did Kacor do well in the game against Iowa, but she also reached the 300 kill mark against Minnesota. "It wasn't that we played bad against Minnesota," Rosen said. "They are ranked No. 2 and are one of the top teams in the country." Behnke agreed. "I don't think we played much dif- ferently against the two teams, Minnesota just forced us into a lot more errors," Behnke said. Despite the split this weekend, the team has remained positive. "This team has been really tight this year," Rosen said. "They are learning to play and compete better together. We really feel good about it. Our court personality has gotten a lot better in the past 2-3 weeks." Perhaps due to the newfound camaraderie, Rosen and rest of the team are really looking forward to the upcoming games this weekend. Michigan plays No. 6 Purdue on Friday at 7 p.m., and No. 4 Wisconsin on Saturday. Overall, the team has a pretty good feeling about the upcoming match against Purdue. Rosen, Chapman and Behnke all think that they have a pretty gooC chance at winning. When the two teams met a month ago, Michigan lost in five tough games (15-8, 11-15, 2-15, 15-7, 12- 15). This time, however the team is confident that they will come out on top. JOANNA PAINE/Daily Despite this weekend's split to Iowa and Minnesota, Michigan maintains a positive attitude for this upcoming weekends games against Purdue. , , t ;, Tigers trade six for Rangers' Gonzalez . 0 0 ..-V--- 6 S 0 e ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) - Two- time AL MVP Juan Gonzalez was trad- ed from the Texas Rangers to the Detroit Tigers in a nine-player deal yesterday. Going with Gonzalez to Detroit were pitcher Danny Patterson and catcher Gregg Zaun. The Rangers received pitchers Justin Thompson, Alan Webb and Francisco Cordero, outfielder Gabe Kapler, catch- er Bill Haselman and infielder Frank Catalanotto. The Tigers get "a franchise player and future Hall of Famer" in Gonzalez, Detroit general manager Randy Smith said. "I guess it heated up over the last cou- ple of days," Texas general manager Doug Melvin said. "We had talked about it at length. Randy Smith has been on vacation in Hawaii, so it was a long-dis- tance call trying to get the deal done." Gonzalez, who turned 30 on Oct. 16, was the AL MVP in 1996 and 1998. The Tigers have until Saturday to exercise a $7.5 million option on him for next year, and the sides spoke shortly after the trade was made. Gonzalez is eligible for free agency after the 2000 season. "We just weren't prepared to ... go into next season with that over our heads," Melvin said of Gonzalez's free agency. The All-Star outfielder hit .326 with 39 home runs and 128 RBIs last year. He led the Rangers to the AL West titles in 1996, 1998 and 1999, yet all three sea- Europe Australia + Asia +. + South Africa America sons ended in disappointment as each time they were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by the eventual World Series champion New York Yankees. Detroit went 69-92 last season and finished third in the AL Central, 27 1/2 games behind Cleveland in their final season at Tiger Stadium. The Tigers hope for a fresh start next season when they move into new Comerica Park under newly hired man- ager Phil Garner. "Over the last few years, we have worked hard to develop a farm system with a high talent level and strong depth,' Smith said, without which "we could not have made today's deal." Melvin said Thompson is highly regarded, although the left-hander underwent arthroscopic surgery on his pitching shoulder Aug. 26. At the time he was put on the disabled list, then manager Larry Parrish said Thompson was "mentally beat up." "Whenever there's surgery, there's a certain amount of risk involved," Melvin said. "He was pitching hurt, and that was affecting his last few performances." Thompson, 26, was 9-11 with a 5.11 ERA. He was an All-Star during his first full season in 1997, but has been slowed by injuries. In 11 seasons with Texas, Gonzalez batted .294 with 340 home runs and 1,075 RBIs. Gonzalez played in 49 games com- bined for the Rangers in 1989 and 1990 before spending his first full season in the majors in 1991. lie batted .314 with 47 home runs and 144 RBIs in 1996 as Texas won its first division title, and batted .318 with 45 homers and 157 RBIs in 1998. The Puerto Rican native put up more big numbers last season, but his produc- tion was somewhat overshadowed by his refusal to play in the All-Star Game and the strong offensive production from teammates Rafael Palmeiro and Ivan AP PHOTO Yesterday the Tigers trader five players, including Gabe Kapier, Francisco Cordero and Frank Catalanatto for Ranger Juan Gonzalez. S7RACTJSZ UNZVURSZTY Division of International Programs Abroad Summer Programs 119 Euclid Avenue Syracuse, NY 13244-4170 (800) 251-9674 DIPAsum@summail.syr.edu httpJ/sumweb.syr.edu/dipa/summer Rodriguez. Gonzalez and the hard-hitting Rangers also were criticized after getting swept by the Yankees in the opening round. Texas has scored a total of only two runs in their last 60 postseason innings, and lost nine in a row to New York. Gonzalez was considered a lock to be one of the reserves chosen for July's All- Star game in Boston, but he told reporters that he would not play in the classic unless he was voted in as a starter by the fans. Melvin and Rangers manag- er Johnny Oates said they disagreed with Gonzalez's decision, but never criticized him publicly. Kapler, 24, became the Tigers' center fielder once Brian Hunter was traded to Seattle early in the season. Kaplerhi .245 with 18 home runs and 49 RBIs. Cordero, a 22-year-old righty, made his major league debut and was 2-2 with a 3.32 ERA in 20 relief appearances. Catalanotto, 25, hit .276 with 11 home runs and 35 RBIs as a second baseman. Haselman, a 33-year-old back- up, hit .273 with four home runs and 14 RBIs. Webb, a 20-year-old lefty, was 9- with a 4.95 ERA at Double-A Jacksonville. Along with Gonzalez, the Tigers got Patterson and Zaun, both 28. The right- handed Patterson was 2-0 with a 5.67 ERA in 53 relief appearances and Zaun hit .247 with one homer and 12 RBIs as a backup to Rodriguez. Commentary GUESS WHICHONE DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHERS WANTED * WE'RE LOOKING FOR AMATEUR PHOTOGRAPHERS WHO WANT TO TAKE LOTS OF PICTURES! * $25 FOR EVERY PHOTO THAT IS ACCEPTED AND OTHER GREAT INCENTIVES " DIGITAL CAMERA PROVIDED FOR NON-OWNERS FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT ANNA AT (734) 395-9905 OR VIA EMAIL TO ANNA(-LIGHTSURF.COM. Small leaveS lastig it restures tezvart's legacy w By Dena Beth Krischer Daily Sports Writer When sports figures pass on, they are often remembered for the ways that they affected our lives while on the field, court or course. Payne Stewart, 1999's U.S. Open champion and Ryder cup team member, died last Monday. I never met Payne Stewart. I wonder if he was a good man. I wonder if he was a good husband. I wonder if he was a good father. I wonder if he was a good son. But that doesn't matter now. Having a better understanding of his life will, in no way, change the sadness and the dis- appointment that I still feel right now. Stewart was a joy to watch on the golf course. He played hard and with pride. He sunk a remarkable fifteen-foot putt on the 72nd hole of the U.S. Open to clinch his third major title. But this putt is not what I will remember him by. During the Ryder Cup this pas# September, Stewart was in a tough match against Colin Montgomerie arguably the best golfer in the world. On the final hole of the tied match, Montgomerie had to drain a long birdie putt to defeat Stewart, even though the Cup had already been secured by the ,. < ., ,« .,>. ..; , < . . hN f t, . . _._. 7'A.I.a~.~"'7 -