10 - The Michigan Daily - Wednesday, September 22, 1999
FREEMAN
Continued from Page 9
your feet. There's times you don't feel
the ground, right?"
"Well, yeah."
"And then there's times it seems
your shoes are full of sand. I've
watched it happen. But you gotta show
up for those big games, man. I did.
Especially against Michigan. And I'll
tell you how, if you're willing to learn."
"Uhhhh,"
"Good enough. Now what you do is
Ron listened to the man w hose name
he did not know. He learned how to be
hungry, how to want something so bad,
his desire crowded out any doubts. He
kept his. football cradled under his
arm.
"See, Ron," the man said as they
said their goodbyes, "the thing to
remember is, these yahoos put their
pants on one leg at a time, just like
you. Remember that."
"Uh-huh," Ron couldn't wait to get
to practice tomorrow. He felt a solid
nugget of confidence inside hiem.Ile
was ready to run through a wa i "On
Wisconsin" throbbed in his head. Hdye
could already smell autumn in the air.
Didn't he used to love this time of
year? Suddenly, Michigan's defense
didn't look so intimidating.
"And Ron, don't worry about the
Heisman. You can have one of mine."
- Archie Grbn has never persona1v
appeared in Rick Freeman s dreams.
but ifyou have any other questions,
you can e-mail Rick at
rickfreewin. umic h.ed .
ton deficit for spikers
Same results, but volleyball 'an entirely different group' this year
By Dena Krischer
ichigan's voleybal squad is per-
haps the most underesimated team in all
of Michiian. And the Wolverines are
probably not etting the attention they
But the lack of exposure will not get
insi the heads of the players. They are
still playing hard, still going strong and
still anxious to defeat those who are
deemed better.
In nine matches, Michigan has
ignored notions that it is mediocre, and
has shown vigor, potential, and merit as
not only a team, but an establishment at
Michigtan.
With an 8-1 record, the Wolverines
have mo ved their way up the rankings.
The Wolverines started at 25th, moved
up to 21st, and now, after taking first
place in the Carolina Classic this past
w eck n, have just cracked the top 20 -
they're currently No. 20.
But vait. Last year Michigan started
off with a preseason record of 8-2 but
went on to a rocky, 4-16 Big Ten season,
and ended the year with a 12-18 record.
That was then. This is now.
The Wolverines have a new coaching
staff and new players.
"It's hard to compare last year's team
to this year's," said junior middle block-
er Annie Maxwell, who was named to
the All-Carolina Classic team.
"Last year's team wasn't bad. We just
lost five seniors and took on an entirely
new coaching staff. It's just an entirely
different group.
In the next three matches, Michigan'
will face teams that are expected to hold
the top three spots in the Big Ten: Ohio
State and Penn State this Friday and
Saturday night at Cliff Keen Arena (7
p.m.), and then Wisconsin on the road
next week.
"We need to be fired up," said junior
middle blocker and tournament MVP
Joanna Fielder. "If we play like we know
we can, I honestly think that we can win.
It's to our advantage that we play Ohio
State first so that we can see where we
stand."
The Wolverines, expected to finish
10th in the Big Ten, said they don't care
about preseason critics and won't let it
hold them back.
"It's easier to prove someone wrong
than it is to prove them right," said
Fielder. "We're in a good position to do
that. We have absolutely nothing to lose
this weekend. If we focus on our side of
the net, the rest will take care of itself."
Winning this weekend could move the
team up in the polls, possibly to the top
I.
"We try not to pay a lot of attention to
the critics," said Maxwell. "It's nice to be
ranked and all, but the rankings me
nothing when we're competing '
Friday and Saturday nights. We're just
focusing on our side of the court and
using what we've done in preseason to
get us through the rest. What the other
teams do doesn't matter. It's what we do
on our side that counts."
The Big Ten is acknowledged as the
hardest, most competitive conference in
the NCAA.
Yet with that in mind, the Wolverines
remain fearless. They are not concern,
with what the other teams have in sto
for them, but what they have to prove to
the other teams.
"There's no team that we're focusing
on in particular," said Maxwell. "That's
the beauty of the Big Ten. Anyone can
beat anyone on any given night.'
Big Ten volleyball is a dog-eat-dog
world. These underdogs hope to take it
all. And they do not want to go it alone,
"We could use all of the support 4
can get," Fielder said. "The big crowds
will benefit us. Last year we didn't do so
well, and we didn't have anything to give
to the fans." But this year, they do.
Freshman picks up scoring load
in 'star' Berendowsky's absence
Will Abby Crumpton
By Dan Williams
Daily Sports Writer
When freshman Abby Crumpton
fielded a cross on a half volley and
put it past the Vanderbilt goalie, she
didn't get excited because it was her
first collegiate goal.
And it wasn't until after the
Michigan soccer team's 3-0 win over
the Commodores that it dawned on
Crumpton that she had achieved a
major first in her career.
"During the game I just saw the
score, but after the game I got excit-
ed that I got my first goal,"
Crumpton said.
Six months ago, while in high
school, Crumpton would have been
surprised to hear that she would
make an impact this year. She never
expected to be the team's leading
scorer seven games into the season.
"I'd hoped to start, but I wasn't
sure I was going to," Crumpton said,
chase Amber's Michigan soccer records?
I'm just glad I could make the transi-
tion from club ball to college."
Michigan coach Debbie Belkin
wasn't quite as surprised.
"She was a pretty accomplished
high school player," Belkin said, "we
had a feeling she was going to come
in here and score some goals for us."
So now Crumpton has tallied four
goals on the season, including two in
a 2-1 win over Ohio State. She has
quickly escaped the title of freshman
with potential and has grown into a
scorer.
Crumpton's speed and goal-finish-
ing ability, as well as her ability to
get past defenders, has made her an
instant success at forward.
So far, most of Crumpton's goals
have come off of crosses and
rebounds. But in a summer scrim-
mage against Clemson, in which
Crumpton had three goals, she
scored on a breakaway down the
sidelines that showed off her best tal-
ents.
"It was a long run, and then I
fooled the goalie by going near post
with the outside of my foot,"
Crumpton said.
Belkin was most impressed by one
of Crumpton's goals against Ohio
State.
"She read the play real well,"
Belkin said. "She made an 18-yard
run into the box and finished it wi'th
a one-touch."
Crumpton feels the team has real-
ly helped her be successful by pro-
viding a supportive environment.
"No one acts jealous," Crumptc'
said, "I really love my teammates."
Despite the instant success, Belkin
feels that Crumpton is maintaining a
good attitude.
"She's pretty humble," Belkin
said. "She knows she can still get
better, and she wants to work on
putting more goals away."
For now, Crumpton's main focus
continues to be on Michigan's cur-
rent season, which seems to have
large upside after Sunday's 0-0 dra
with No. 4 Penn State. Crurpton
took three shots, including a last sec-
ond chance which Penn State goalie
Emily Oleksiuk saved.
For the future, Crumpton hopes in
her four years she will win a Big Ten
regular-season title, win a Big Ten
Tournament, and go far into the
NCAA Tournament.
But she isn't setting long term str
goals for herself.
"I'm not going to put extra pres-
sure on myself for stats," Crumpton
said, "That stuff will just happen on
its own."
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