16 -The Michigan Daily - Friday, September 24, 1999 Field hockey guards against big letdown Spikers confident* against tough foes By Michael Kern Daily Sports Write Often when a team scores an emo- tionally charged victory like the Michigan field hockey team's 1-0 win against in-state rival Michigan State on the road Wednesday, there is the possibility of a letdown the next game. That can be especially true if the team's next opponent is not as mean- ingful, as is the case this weekend for the 12th-ranked Wolverines as they play their final two non-confer- ence games at Ocker Field against Ohio and California. For Michigan. the focus all week has been on starting the Big Ten sea- son on a good note with a victory over the Spartans. But now the Wolverines must shift that focus to two nonconference opponents, and maintain the intensi- ty and aggression they employed in their dominating victory over Michigan State. "(Ohio and California) are quite strong, and they are both having good seasons," Michigan coach Marcia Pankratz said. "Ohio beat Kent State which is normally quite a strong team in the MAC. We tied them last spring, so we are certainly looking for them to play really well. 'lt will be tough because our focus has been on the Big Ten sea- son and the Michigan State game. We only have two days to jump into those next two matches and pre- pare." But Michigan is not making any excuses for a possible letdown this weekend. The Wolverines are confident that they can channel the emotion from their victory and maintain rather than lose intensity. "I think it helps the intensity because we know how we feel now, and we want to carry it over to this weekend," junior midfielder Courtney Reid said. Pankratz agreed with the senti- ment of her players, explaining that the Wolverines could use the energy the got from the Michigan State in the two games this weekend. "The momentum is a positive," Pankratz said. "(The players) feel good about their play. They feel more confident, so I think that that will carry over positively into the weekend." Besides having only a short amount of time to prepare for this weekend, Michigan also will be shorthanded on the sideline. Assistant coaches Tracey Fuchs and DAVID ROCHKIND/DaiN Michigan's Courtney Reid thinks the Wolverines will avoid a letdown this weekend, despite playing two nonconference opponents. By Emily Mitchell For the Daily The Michigan volleyball team has two huge Big Ten matches this week- end in Cliff Keen Arena. Tonight, the Wolverines face No. 18 Ohio State, and tomorrow night, they face No. 2 Penn State. With 10 out of 11 players return- ing, the Wolverines' experience and seniority could contribute to the game. Michigan coach Mark Rosen, is confident in his team's ability to rise to the challenge. "Alija (Pittenger) is a huge defen- sive player," Rosen said. Rosen is confident in his team's physical ability, as well as its mental state and spirit. "Annie Maxwell is a spark plug to our personality side. She has a cer- tain finesse in her ball control," Rosen said. Recently, Pittenger reached 300 career digs. She was accompanied in her excellence by Maxwell who recently reached 50 blocks and 100 kills. Dana Chapman, recovering from an earlier ankle injury, has been practicing at full strength and is expected to make an appearance in the game as well. Rosen added that he is "very comfortable with Nicole and Alija's performances." The Wolverines' assistant coach, ex-Buckeye Leisa Rosen is comfort- able with her new allegiance, even facing her old coach. While playing for the Buckeyes, she racked up two Big Ten titles. "I'm excited about a friendly rival- ry," Leisa Rosen said. "We are looking forward to playing Michigan tomorrow night," said Ohio State coach Jim Stone. "I know M ark and Leisa very well. Of course, Leisa played for me and I know she is a very intense competitor. I am she is passing this trait along tolier players." Approximately 21 hours later, the Wolverines will face another moun- tain to climb. The defending Big Ten champion Nittany Lions are led by Lauren Cacciamani, Carrie Schonveld, aind Amanda Rome. These three women have been key players in their last five matchups, dishing out plenty of digs, kills,ed blocks. Since the beginning of its season, Penn State has shut down No: 8 Virginia, No.3 Nebraska, Akron, Bradley, Maryland, West Virginia, UNC-Charlotte, Toledo, Kansas State and Texas, but was defeated in its season opener by then-No. 8 Florida. That leaves Penn State's record at 10-1 with an upcoming match against Michigan State tonight. With tomorrow's upcoming ma1dh, the Michigan coaches have high hopes for their team. "This is a really good test for us to see how we do against such a strong team," said Leisa Rosen. Michigan's strategy for this week- end is "focusing on our side and what we're doing," she added. "We know what we are up against. They are going to be as good t everyone expects them to be," IV Rosen said. Peggy Storrar will be competing for the U.S. national team over the next few weeks in Australia and South Africa, leaving the Wolverines with just Pankratz and assistant Nancy Cox to prepare the team for the bulk of the Big Ten season. "We'll miss them, but we are going to hang on," Pankratz said. "They told us we need to be unde- feated until they get back, so we're trying." Pankratz said the the two would be missed the most "to bounce ideas off of, but Nancy is certainly a fantastic coach and we really bounce ideas off of each other during the game." For now, tho Wolverines just keep plugging away. "I think we are going to go into this weekend exactly the way we went into (Wednesday)," sophomore forward Jessie Veith said. "We'll just keep on firing at them until we win." t -I RUSH PSI U RUSH PSI U PSI UPSILON FRATERNITY 100 HILL STREET OPEN HOUSE: Thursday, September 23, 1999 6-10 p.m. OPEN RUSH: Sunday, September 26, 1999 through Thursday, September 30, 1999 6-10 p.m. HAVE CLUB SPORTS NEWS? E-MAIL DAILYCLUBSPORTS@UMICH.EDU. ........ ............ 761-1055 RUSH PSI U RUSH PSI U 1 0 :.:. ...::.W W: .. . Come See Us On Campus At. The Career Fair, September27-28. NEW GRADUATE OPPORTUNITIES ARE AVAILABLE IN DALLAS, TX; RALEIGH, NC; CALIFORNIA; AND OTHER WEST COAST LOCATIONS. I , V. - Software Development Engineers - Software Support Engineers " Hardware Development Engineers * Mechanical Engineers * System Integration and Test Engineers * Product Engineers CO-OP OPPORTUNITIES ARE AVAILABLE FOR BACHELOR'S OR MASTER'S DEGREE-LEVEL CANDIDATES IN ALL THE AREAS LISTED ABOVE. All co-op positions require a minimum 2.8 GPA and a minimum of 45 college credit hours. nl L .. ............... ...inu...iiin fn. o flnini na nnelirIntn ni n r nrnnrdn Dnonnrnk fonntr I