20 -- The Michigan Daily - Tuesday, September 14, 1999 Conrad takes ND osition From Staff ReportsF Former Michigan first baseman Traci Conrad - a two-time first-team all-American - has been named an assistant softball coach at Notre Dame, the university announced yesterday. Conrad will help coach the hitters and infielders, and_ will perform administrative duties for Notre Dame head coach Liz Miller. Conrad was the.Big Ten hits leader during her career, which spanned from 1996 to 1999. This past spring,, Conrad was a Honda Award Finalist and a third-team all- American. Conrad also won the Big Ten Player of the Year for the second time and was named most valuable player. Conrad garnered first-team all-America honors in her sophomore season. Conrad also was a first team all-Big Ten selection her last three seasons at Michigan and par- ticipated in the Women's College World Series three times in her career.1 Conrad also was a gold medalist at the 1997 Pan Am qualifier in Medellin, Colombia and was a participant in the 1997 and 1998 USA Softball National Team festival.A Conrad, a two-time Academic all-American, graduated in May with a degree in sports management and commu- nications. She also helped lead the Akron Racers to the FILE PHOTO Women's Pro Softball League championship series, Traci Conrad may have been an all-American at Michigan, but she will be teaching Notre Dame players how to beat her alma where they were runners-up. mater. Conrad accepted a position as an assistant coach at Notre Dame yesterday. Field hockey tries to put weekend in the past MATTHEWS Continued from Page 15 season he found a little bit of luck. During the team's late August qualifier, which decides who makes the team and the order of the top five spots, Matthews found himself in a potentially bad situation late in his round. Nestled in a green- side bunker, Matthews mis-hit a sand shot that rifled over the green. But the ball hit a tree on the other side of the green, and came right back onto the putting surface. Then, as if pulled on an invisible string by an unseen hand, it dropped directly into the cup. Not a bad start to a year which saw Matthews finish con- sistently near the top of the Michigan lineup. His outstanding freshman campaign culminated last summer with a spot in the field on the PGA Tour's Buick Open in Grand Blanc, Mich. "It was incredible: Matthews said. "It's just absolutely amazing that I got to play in a PGA Tour event. I qualified (at three-under) on a Monday and had a U.S. Amateur qualifiet on Tuesday so I couldn't even play an official practice round. From Monday when I played in the qualifier to Friday when I missed the cut I felt like I was in a whirlwind." And when Matthews arrived for his 6:15 a.m. tee time on Wednesday morning he was greeted by two-time Masters champion Jose Maria Olazabal, tying his shoes near Matthews' locker. Just after that, he almost ran into former Ryder Cup captain Tom Kite. "Playing in the field at the Buick Open really helped my confidence," Matthews said. "Now I know I can do it. I kind of had some doubts before about whetherI could play pro- fessionally. But if I just keep practicing and working on my short game who knows. It just gave me that boost that I need- ed to make the jump to the next level." By.Ryn C. Moloney D~aily Sports Writer Usually, when a team has the kind of weekend the Michigan field hock- ey team just had, the sports cliches become as frequent as a parking tick- et in Ann Arbor. "We've really got to step it up and play to our potential," is a favorite. "Let's just take it one game at a time and hopefully, when we look up at thescoreboard, we'll be on top," is another popular one. To their credit, the Wolverines have not resorted to answering questions about their long, strange trip to Virginia with such worn-out phrases. But why not, just for kicks, ask the ultimate in sports cliche questions - is it time to push the panic button? "We are not lacking any confidence at all," team captain Ashley Reichenbach said. "Especially the way we played against Virginia - I had a good feeling coming out of that. "I think we can'beat any team in the countrv." Whoa. This statement comes after the Wolverines were soundly defeated by James Madison on Sunday and nipped in heartbreaking fashion by the Cavaliers on Friday. "We have got to realize that we are a better team than the way we played on Sunday," Maureen Tasch said. "It's out of our system." There is one intangible on any team which sets it above all others, talent aside. The willingness to give cancerous self-doubt the boot. "You just gotta believe;" is more than a tacky Deion Sanders bandana slogan. It may very well epitomize the quest of the Wolverines to do that which has never been done before - bring an NCAA Tournament bid to Michigan. In a sense, the Wolverines came away from Virginia with more than the win-lose record would indicate - the losses were humbling reminders of the work still to be done, and the lapses in concentration will get extra scrutiny in the weeks to come. "One thing we're going to stress is having really intense practices," ReicheAbach said. "Short breaks or none at all, focusing on playing aggressive against aggres- " sive teams." The Wolverines should wa have plenty of shots at redemption - starting with Sunday's match against Syracuse and continuing with their Big Ten opener against Michigan State on Sept. 22. Reichenbach squelched any notion that the Wolverines will still be reel- ing once they roll into Syracuse. "We're going to go into Syracuse and show the Big East what the Big Ten is all about," she said. Syracuse is yet another national powerhouse on a schedule which brings goosebumps to any diehard field hockey fan. Michigan State - while not among the top teams in the Big Ten, is a Big Ten team nonetheless and won't be taken lightly. After all, they're the Spartans. "They're all big games," Reichenbach said. "Every single step of the way is important and State is no excep- tion."If they had to pick the biggest atell you the truth, I ut a Big Tenrng=" --Ashley Reichenbach Michigan field hockey captain Big Ten match of the year? You guessed it, Penn State. The Nittany Lions practically owned the Wolverines last year -up- ending them in each confrontation. The knife-twister? The Big Ten tournament when the 'Lions eliminated Michigan from an automatic bid to the fabled NCAA's. "Penn State is by far the biggest game," Tasch said. "They got us a few times last year so we owe them." There are no hesitant quivers in the voices of these Wolverines. There's a confidence, a swagger if you will, as if they haven't lost a game this sea- son. Two losses in three days? You wouldn't know it. "To tell you the truth," Reichenbach said, "I want a Big Ten ring." LOUISBROWN/Daily The Michigan field hockey team is intent on leaving this past weekend - in which* it lost both games - behind it as it surges into the Big Ten season.