The Michigan Daily - SportsMonday - October 23, 2000 - 3B A nother milestone for Berenson DAVID DEN HERDER By Joe Smith Daily ports Writer BOWLING GREEN -- In his last col- legiate hockey game as a player, Red Berenson led the Michigan Wolverines past St. Lawrence in the 1962 National Consolation Game - in doing so, he ended the season of Saints' plaveron Mason. Nearly four decades after that night in Utica, NY, the two former players are still often mentioned in the same breath, as they stand alone as the two most successful coaches in CCHA history. Berenson Further evidence of this came last night, as Berenson became only the second coach to reach 300 career CCHA victories in Michigan's 4-3 win over Bowling Green. The only man with more is Mason, w/ho has 460 conference victories and is in his 22nd year at the helm of intrastate rival. Michigan State. Each general has brought a mediocre hockey program in the state of Michigan to national prominence - while taking separate paths along the way. Even with the milestone victory, Berenson remains modest and tries to focus on what he could take from his lat- est game against the Falcons. "I've been here a long time," said Berenson, who is in his 17th season as Michigan coach. "I'm the coach here. I',m not keeping track of wins and losses, but I am keeping track of the way we play." Berenson became the first collegiate player to immediately jump into the NHL, spending 17 seasons with four dif- ferent teams, including the Montreal Canadiens and Detroit Red Wings. He then had a brief coaching stint in St. Louis before landing the position as the coach of his alma mater in 1984. Mason didn't play in the N-IL, but accepted his first coaching job just two years after graduatingsfrom St. Lawrence. He made two stops, at Lake Superior State and Bowling Green, along the way before accepting the job at Michigan State in 1979. Five years later, Berenson started his quest to put a struggling Michigan pro- gram back on the map and take on Mason's CCHA powerhouse, Michigan State. It took six years, but Berenson took the Wolverines from a ninth-place finish in 1984 to second place - garnering national respect in the process in reach- ing the NCAA Quarterfinals. Since then, no one has been able to touch Berenson, as he has won more games than any other coach in Division I hockey in the 90's, while taking control of the conference. Michigan has finished first in six of the past nine seasons, including four CCHA Tournament titles - with a 17-14-4 record in that time period against Mason's Spartans. When Berenson took the reigns in 1984, his mission was to model the Wolverines in the image of the great Montreal Canadien dynasty of the 1970's from which he played - not only in terms of championships, but the rich tra- dition, prestige and respect that the NH L club was associated with. The alum surely hasn't disappointed, garnering much national respect in his tenure. This includes two national titles, six Frozen Four appearances. Michigan's 10 consecutive appearances in the NCAA Tournament is the longest active streak in Division I. Even with all the success and tri- umphs, Berenson is never satisfied. "I always think that you're never good enough," Berenson said. "I want this year's team to prove that they can live up to that reputation. But they have to earn it." This year's Wolverines are off to a 4-0- 2 start, including wins in their first two conference games -- but there's still a long road ahead. Berenson has built the Michigan pro- gram to where he feels it should be -- at the top. But he feels he is only a small piece of the rich history and tradition Michigan hockey claims. "Now I'm just a small part of that," Berenson said. "Before I came here there were great coaches and there will be great coaches in the future. But I just hope that in my time we should get it to where it should be. It is then the players got to keep it there." As evident not only his records, but the way his team plays - when Berenson's days as coach are through, whoever has to fulfill the legacy he has put in place will have hefty shoes - or skates - to fill. Four in a row: Daily outmuscies State News Bowling Green hockey doesn t compare to M' I By Ryan C. Moloney Daily Sports Writer BOWLING GREEN - The road trip down to Bowling Green, a school with at least two factual inaccuracies in its name, should be standard prac- tice for anybody who calls themself a Michigan hockey fan - not just because there were plenty of pump- kin-colored bleachers to go around this weekend, but also because it's nat- ural to become fat, sassy and unappre- ciative when you grow accustomed to the best. And make no mistake, Yost Arena is the best. Believe it or not, the Bowling HOCKEY Green hockey Commentary experience matches Michigan's in many respects. Both hockey teams boast a faithful fan base of retirees, alumni and students, both count the incomparable Mr. Spot's as sponsors and the cheers con- cocted by each student section are strangely similar. But while the set up at Yost is major league Detroit. Bowling Green's is class A Favettcville. To be fair, Bowling Green's student section was able to hold a candle to Yost's in the beginning of Friday's -amne, with a clever introduction cheer for Michigan players and their own version of "C-va." But when the game started to get out of reach, fair-weath- erness set in. The ultimate low -- as goaltender Tyler Masters flailed around for the puck, down 5-1 with Michigan threatening to score again, the students began cheering. Someone jr Bowling Green p.r. started chuck- itig hotdogs at the suddenly invigorat- ,.n4 students - one got the feeling that ,it ,as a fairly standard down-by-four- -;oals ritual. ri n tihe period Intermissions On ~iathe falcon faithful were "enter- tained" by a supposedly grown person wearing a falcon costume who, by all indications, had never skated before that night. The falcon ankle-skated around, at once trying to rile the stands without falling down. At one point, for reasons unfathomable, the falcon began full-body smacking into the boards. "Smack, smack," this hap- pened about five or six times - maybe it was prognosticating how many goals Michigan would end up w ith. The symbol of Bowling Green's ineptitude nearly ran into Josh Blackburn as he attempted to leave the ice. Blackburn knocked the stick out of its hands, and having lost its means of support, the falcon nearly toppled over while trying to pick it up. "It was invading my space," Blackburn later said. The falcon's display would terrorize most small children, but it elicited mostly yawns -perhaps they've grown used to it. But Bowling Green does line up with Michigan in one area - the resilience of its die-hard fans. On the opposite side of the player's benches sat people who have made Bowling Green hockey a part of their life's fab- ric. Maybe that's a testament to the game itself, as Bowling Green's national prominence more or less evaporated after Rob Blake left in 1990. When Bowling Green scored its first goal, the section burst into thun- derous cheering -- though Michigan had already scored four times. One woman was asked how long she had watched Bowling Green hockev. "About twenty years," she said without a hint of sheepish hesitation. Even on this particular weekend. Michiga nfans can take their hats off to that kind of dedication. FA LCONS Continued from Page 1 behmd, spending the game clawing back from early deficits. In first peri- ods this season, Michigan had been outscored 8-5. But as conference play started, the Wolverines wanted to establish themselves early and play with a lead. While they certainly did that, Michigan could not claim as much success last night in finishing off the Falcons as they had on Fridav night. Michigan's defense suffered a let- down, despite leading 3-I at the start of the third period. The Wolverines allowed Bowling Green center Greg Day to complete his hat trick for the night and tie the game at 3-3 with 5:03 remaining in the final stanza. Berenson was not pleased with how his team finished the game. "I thought we got sloppy and maybe overconfident," he said. "We just got into a bad funk. I'd like to leave here thinking that we made a bigger statement than we did.'' What precluded them from leav- ing on better note was the impressive play by Bowling Green goalie Tyler Masters. In the final two periods, Masters stopped 24-of-26 shots. It was a far more impressive show- ing than the six goals that he gave up on Friday night, and with an offen- sive attack to back him up last night, he came very close to being the story of tie game.- Langfeld, along with linemates Andy Hilbert and Scott Matzka made Masters work hard. The line scored three of Michigan's four goals, including the game-winner at 18:42 of the third period. Langfeld buried two of his four shots on the night, his first 28 see- onds into the game. His second came much in the same fashion as the first, this time 23 seconds into the second period and put the Wolverines ahead 3-h. But after Langfeld's second tally, Bowling Green seemed to take over the game. The Falcons were far more intense and had the Wolverines offense quieted for most of the sec- ond half of the game. "I think we just kind of shut it down," Matzka said. "That was the biggest problem with our team. They capitalized on all their chances, but we gave them a lot of chances." Still, when it looked like Bowling Green had the momentum that would push it over the edge, the Wolverines rallied behind the vocal Michigan fais in the building, fans that would have "The Victors" echo- ing throughout the building when Matzka put Michigan ahead for good. For both weekend games, the Wolverines were without team cap- tain Geoff Koch. He missed practice all week due to a right ankle injury as well as a death in the family. He expects to start practicing again early this week. t was an otherwise ordinary night in Ann Arbor this past Friday - the air damp with anticipation for Saturday afternoon's festivities, the bars slowly filling to their usual weekend hum. But under the lights at Elbel Field, the Michigan-Michigan State rivalry was already boiling over. The State News, Michigan State's student newspaper, had descended on South Campus to do one thing. No, there were no riots to cover or highly touted hoopsters to watch. The State News had come to defeat The Michigan Daily in an annual game of "touch" football, and snap its three-year losing streak. But as the minutes rolled careless- ly into hours and dusk gave way to the pitch of night, the lights above Elbel could reveal only one thing. Another weekend of broken hearts, and another year of quasi- bruised egos at The State News. Daily Editor-ln-Chief Mike Spahn caught the game-winning touchdown pass on fourth-and-goal to secure The Daily's fourth-straight victory over The State News - a streak that began during Michigan's undefeated national championship season of 1997. "Four years ago I traveled to East Lansing to help begin this streak, and this was a fitting end to a domi- nant era in journalistic football," Spahn said. "There was never any doubt who would win this one." The Daily never trailed in the game, but bruised its way to victory, 10 touchdowns to 8. Daily sports writer and team cap- tain Dan Williams, who had three interceptions before going down with a severe ankle sprain, said that injuries may have kept the game close, but could not stop the momen- tumll. "The fanatics on this team began focusing on this game and operating as a football unit since early in the summer. Expectations have been fes- tering for a long tie, and it's satis- fying to see our team make the kind of gale-changing plays that are nec- essary to maintain a four-year win- ning streak." Junior sports writer Jeff Phillips had been sidelined three weeks with torn ligaments in his left ankle, but hobbled on to keep the game-win- ning drive alive with a 20-yard reception up the near sideline. Laid out by a teammate accidentally and left gasping for air early in the game, junior Geoff Gagnon returned to join senior Chris Duprey for impressive performances at wide receiver. Duprey led the team with three touchdowns. "We were so amped up before the war, we were hitting each other," said Daily junior Rohit Bhave, who anchored the defensive line. Freshman Steve "Action" Jackson led the Daily's defensive backfield, which stonewalled The State News in the second hour of play, allowing the Daily to open up a slight lead. Sports writer Shawn Kemp's touchdown reception capped a long drive that put the Daily up 8-5, but a quick answer and recovery of the ensuing on-sides throw brought The State News within a touchdown. But Daily arts editor Chris Kula was seen "doing the robot" on the sideline as the Daily defense stopped the State News on the goalline. That was all the battered Wolverines needed to push them through the final two drives. "I had so many bruised ribs by the time this thing was over, I needed seven Motrin just to fall asleep," an unidentified Daily sports editor said after the game. Spahn's game-winning catch inspired the Daily bench to rush the field and chant "Four! Four! Four!" while jumping frantically. Daily Arts Editor Gabe Fajuri, who played the final play wearing jeans and hiking boots, was partic- larly emotional. "I don't own active wear," he said. Fajuri then joined his blood- stained colleagues in a rousing cho- rus of "The Victors," which officials are calling the loudest, proudest ren- dition ever sung by student-journal- ists on Elbel Field - a venue fit- tingly named after the composer himself. - David Den Herder could use some more Morin. He can be reached at dden @un mich.edu. WHY HAS THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN FAILED ITS STUDENTS? For some answers see: www.universitysecrets.com I Bo. REC SPOTS INTRAMURALS The University of Michigan Department of Recreational Sports INTRAMURAL SPORTS PROGRAM WHAT'S HAPPENING Michigan 2 1 1-4 Bowling Green 1 0 2 - 3 First period - 1. UM, Langfeld 5 (Jillson), :28; 2. UM. lillson 3 (Cammaller Hibert), 7:08 top); 3. BGSU. Day 1 (Fultz), 17:17 Penalties - 8GSU, Bieksa (cross checking), 7:00; BGSU, Eaton (checking from behind), 13:00; UM, Langfeld (hit' ting after whistle, 16:43; 8GSU, Statkus (hitting after whistlet, 16:43. Second period - 4. UM. Langfeld 6 (Hilbert), :23 Penalties - BGSU, Moore (ten-minute miscon- duct). 2:10; UM. Hilbert (roughing), 4:07: BGSU, Wiliams (hooking). 6:34: UM, Komisarek {interfer- encet. 8:24; UM, Burnes (obstruction-hooking), 14:02; CM, Vancik (unsporismanlike conduct), 16:47; BGSU, Wires (slashing). 16:47; BGSU, Bieksa troughming. 17:24; UM. Kosick (hooking), 18:59; BGSU, HewSon (high sticking, 19:43 Third period- 5. BGSU, Day 2 rValentine;, 4:18 (sh): 6. BGSU, Day 3 (Moore, Valentine, 14:57: 7. UM, Mattka 2 fHilbert, Langfeld). 18:42 Penalties - BGSU, Wires {hooking). 3:47; BGSU, Masters (hitting after whistle), 16:10; UM, Cammalleri (hit- ting after whistlet, 16:10: UM, Huntzicker (holding, 18:54. Shots on goal - UM, 20-9-15 --44: BGSU, 4-5.9 18 Power Plays - UM, 1 of 6; BGSU, 0 of 5 Saves - UM, Black bur 3-5-7 - 15; BGSU, Masters188 $4 - 40 Referee- Mark Wilkins Unesmen - Bria WTroester, Dean Sanborn At: BGSU Ice Arena. Attendance: 1.975 Michigan Bowling Green 2 2 2 -6 0 1 o -a1 Fist period- 1. UM. Mink 1 (Shoneyia, Kor sarek). 10:29 tpp); 2. UM. Mat zka 11SLangeld, Trainor), 13:38 Penais - UM, Hunticker (interference), 1:00; UM, Wyzgowski (croscheckingj. 3:46: BGSU, Williams (rough- Ing after the whistle), 7:29; BGSU, Mass troughing), 8:30; UM. Largfeld (tnpprg), 11:23; BGSU, Hewson (slashing, 12:12: UM. Roerrensrky (holdirgi 12:45; BGSU, Escobedo (interference), 17:54 Second pericd - 3. UM. Mink 2 (Showeya). 2:23; 4. UM, Cammallen2(Ortmeyer),14:59 (sh); 5. BGSU, McConvey 1(Mrphy), 15:36 (pp Penalties- UM, Vancik (obstructionriooking). 2:51; BGSU. Hewson (obstructior4rippingl 701; UM, Showaeyia (slashing, 10:25; BGSU, Leonard (roughing after whistle). 13:43: BGSU, Williams (roughgg after wistle), 13:43; UM, Jilson (roughing after whistle). 13:43: UM, Kautz (roughing after whistle), 13:43; UM, Mink (interference, 14:40; BGSU, Hewson (slashing) 17:25; BGSU, Mass (interference, 183:16; CM, Matzka (roughing). 20:00 Thkd period -6. CM. Jilson 2 (osick, Carmnmaleri, 521 (pp); 7. UM, Shouneyia 3(Mink, Konisarek),18:55 Penales- BGSU, Hewson (high sticking), 4:36; BGSU, McConvey (slashing), 4:36: UM, Hilbert (roughing), 4:36; UM. team (too many on ice), 10:10: UM, Cammaleri (holding the stick, 13:17; BGSU, Breksa (holding), 15:49; BGSU, Bieksa (roughing), 18:55: BGSU, Beksa (cross hecking, 18:55; BGSU, Bieksa (ten-minute misconduct), 1855 Shots on goal - UM, 17-13-17-- 47; BGSU, 3.168 - 27 Power Plays-- UM, 2 of 9: BGSUl of 10 Saves -CUM, Blackbum 3158 - 26; BGSU. Masters 15 11-15-41. Referee -- Steve Mclrchak Unewmen - Crag Usko, Tim Katrinak At :GSU Ice Arena Attendance: 3,007. N N Net Intramural Flag Football Officials Needed!! o Experience * Get a Free cessary T-Shirt REC SPORTS /llcials are INTRAMURALS * Flexible d for All Hours mes Worked Training Clinics Continue a Pai Ga Team Northern Michigan Michigan %Alot rnAsihi n CCHA Standings W 2 2 '1 L 1 0 n CCHA T Pts GP 1 5 4 0 4 2 1 12 ') GF 13 10 '1 GA 11 4 Q OVERALL W L T 2 1 2 4 0 2 7 1 1 WEEKEND RESULTS Friday's games: MICHIGAN 6, BowuNG GREEi N. Mich. 4, FERRIS STATE 3 (ot) Nnh.-Omaha 2. MICH. STATE 1 , I i I -.,