6B - The Michigan Daily -_ SportsMonday - November 20, 2000 Men's swimming touched- ut The final 4 By Mike Bloom Daih Spors Writer &anham Natatorium hosted 1I members of the U.S. Olympic swim team this weekend. No, Michigan wasn't hosting the qualifiers for the 2004 summer games in Athens. Canham was the site of the ninth-ranked Wolverines' meet against No. I Texas. Both coaches Michigan's Jon Urbanchek and Texas' Eddie Reese - served as assistants to the U.S. swimming team in Sydney. A combined seven male swimmers from the two teams made the journey down under. flying home with enough metal in their bags to send the detectors into a frenzv. The Wolverines' lone medalist, senior co-captain Chris Thompson. took home the bronze in the 1500- yard freestyle. The five other medals hung around the ,recks of the Longhorns. adding to their aura of intimidation. Anchored by Thompson's wins ;n the 500- and" 1000-vard freestyles, the Wolverines hung tough but fell 15 points short in a 127.50-112.5 final. With nagging injuries to ke" Michigan swimmers. ,r remarkable upset was unikely from the start Junior Jeff Hopwood watched from the bleachers while r esting a groin injury. Two-time NCAA cham- pion Tim Siciliano made his return to the water still nursing a sore shoulder. Testing out the muscles above his "M"-tattooed tricep, he was pleased with the resulst. "The 200 (individual medley) was slow. definitely, but it felt strong the whole way through," Siciliano said. Urbanchek used this weekend as a benchmark to see how much improvement is needed before the con- ference championships. Hosting the nation's best squad, there was no better time to break out the urea- surin stick. "In swimming, everything is geared for the final meet, which is the conference championships and the NCAAs," Urbanchek said. "Bringing in the No. I team in the country forces You to perform to the best of your ability, and I think we accomplished that." The Olvmpic-esque atmosphere excited swim- mers, coaches and viewers alike. Results aside, those in attendance could appreciate the remarkable amount of talent in the water. "I think this was an awesome meet. It's a one!-in-a lifetime chance when you see I11 Olympians in one afternoon, in one setting," Urbanchek said. In spite of the magnitude of the meet, the competi- tors' minds weren't entirely on swimming. Hurrying to his car for a football update, Urbanchek said, "Too bad we scheduled it against the Ohio State football game." kick 11' NCAA CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS TODAY, AMES, IOWA 4 BRANDON SEDLOFF!Daily Michigan seemed doomed from the start as injuries hampered its chances against Texas. The Longhorns won by 15 points. i k m" .."' 1 1 :. <; :; >a ..,. At St te, M' grapplers [a' " s ontinue preparation :. BRANDON SEDLO Dayj The women's swimming team split the weekend meets with Michigan State and Texas. M tankers knockoff Spartans, fall to Texas By Jeb Singer D1)il Sp( \s\ Writer LAST LANSING--Atthe Michigan State Open this weekend, Michigan coach Joe McFarland reflected on what he has seen thus far this season. "It's still early This gives us a chance to see where evervone' conditioning and technique is. It is also a chance to win"' McFarland said. Four Wolverines won individual open titles: Mike Kuiezycki (149 pounds). Otto Olson (1 74), Andv Hrovat (184) and heavyweight Matt Brink. Three Michigan wrestlers took second: Foley Dowd (133), Clark Forward (141 ) and Joe Degain (197). Each lost in the finals to a wrestler anked in the top six nationally. "We are head and shoulders above other teams in tenns of conditioning," Olson said. "We worked out really hard this summer and this is where it pays off" McFarland said that the team needs to continue to be readv to wrestle as soon as the whistie blows "I can't stress inten- sity enough"' he said. In the 141 pound final, Forward may have been a little slow getting started against Michigan State's senior Mike Castillo. -It's kind of disappointing to lose in the finals," Forward said. "I really don't think I got enough shots off earlv" In the 133 pound final, redshirt fresh- man Foley Dowd lost 3-2 to Michigan State's Pat McNamara, who finished fifth at the NCAA tournament last year. McNamara seems to be immune to Wolverine wrestlers - lastyear he never lost to 3rd place finisher Joe Warren. Unlike some of the Warren-McNamara battles, vesterdav's match was never real- ly in doubt. McNamara led 3-0 late in the third period and Dowd's takedown was somewhat of a gift. Overall, Dowd and Forward have demonstrated that they can compete on the college level. One teammate who they have managed to impressed is Hrovat. Forward and Dowd "don't doubt themselves, and this is key to competing in college," Hrovat said. "I didn't win this tournament my freshman year and I was still an All-American." Dowd and Forward both lost to Michigan State wrestlers and will have a chance at revenge in a dual meet Dec. 8. "I know what I need to do to beat him," Forward said. "It is hard to have to wait two weeks. Next match I will get at him ri ght off the bat." Olson also looked at this weekend's results as a preview of the upcoming intrastate showdown. Michigan State fin- ished with four champions as well. "We really wrestled the style we need- ed to" Olson said. "It is going to be real- ly interesting to see where Michigan State and we are in two weeks." BRENDAN O'DONNELL/Daily Mark Pilja is Michigan's lone male representative at the NCAA championships. Season-long Comeback leads Pilja to nationals 4 By Naweed Sikora Daily Spois Writer After winning the Continental Airlines Classic at Rice Nov 10. the I Ith-ranked Michii uan women's swim- mine team returned home this weekend to face Texas and Michigan State in a dual meet. The Wohlerines (2-3) easily defeated Michigan State, 210-91. but lost to the 10th-ranked I.onghorns, 168- 132. Michigan and Texas also swan Saturday in a non-scoring meet. Although Saturdav:s meet was an exhibition, several Wolverines turned in excellent individual performances. Junior Lindsav Carlberg and freshman Annie Weilbacher finished first in the t00-vard backstroke and 200 breast- stroke. respectively. The relav team of Weilbacher, Jennifer Crisman, Laura Kaznecki and Traci Valasco finished first in the 200 medlev relav. .At Friday's dual meet. Mirchigan per- 1oimed well. racking up five separate first-place finishes. Weilbacher took first in the 100 breaststroke, while fresh- man Emily Fenn had a first and second p Lce finish in the 1,000 and 500 freestyle races respectively. The Wol erines performed particular- ly well in longer events, capturing the top four spots in the 1.000 freestyle and the top three spots in the 500 freestyle. Despite the loss to Texas, assistant coach Stefanie Kerska said she was happy with the team's effort over the weekend. "We had lots of positive things come out of the meet this weekend," Kerska said. "I saw grcat consistency from Carlberg and Weilbacher. and our dis- tance swimmers really stepped up. I feel that we matched up pretty well with Texas.- The Wolverines were without fresh- man freestyle -swimmer Samantha Arsenault, who did not compete due to a tender shoulder. Arsenault, who won a gold medal for the United States in Sydney this past summer, is currently Michigan's top freestyle s\wimner. Arsenault has collected five first place finishes this season while recording NCAA consideration times in both the 500 and 200 freestyle events. "Samantha has been swimming and training really well. "Kerska said, At this point in the season, we did not want to push her too hard." Another impressive streak came to an end for Michigan this weekend. Freshman diver Tealin Keleman, who had not lost a single diving event this season. finished fourth in the one-meter dive and fifth in the three-meter dive. Ve kend sweep halts late-season progress By Shawn Kemp Daily Sports Writer The 2000 cross country season has been a comeback period for Mark Pilja. After finishing 57th in the 1999 NCAA championships, Pilja set out to build on his cross country mileage base and have a strong track season for the Wolverines. But lie encountered some road- blocks along the way. A viral infection in January kept Pilja from training, which, in return, led to his decision to go on a diet. His already lean frame turned into a weak, 5-foot-l0, 130-pound skeleton, caus- ing him to end his track season early. Fast forward to June. With a new strategy to his training, Pilja took more time to stretch, concentrated on run- ning quality miles and regained his confidence to take on the role as Michigan's top runner. Coach Ron Warhurst said he is satis- fied with Pilja's comeback for the sea- son. "I'm tickled pink and pleased about the way he's been running, Warhurst said. "He's shown that when he's healthy and done the right things, he can have an impact." Pilja's lead-by-example mentality has led the Wolverines to runner-up finishes at both the Sundodger and Murray Keatinge Invitationals, with Pilja finishing as the overall champion in both meets. "I kind of thrive on it," Pilja said about being No. I for the Wolverines. "In high school I was the top runner all the time -- I feel like I'm back where I belong" Being back in the top position has brought Pilja to a new level nationally - he is a prime contender for All- America honors at the NCAA champi- onships, which begin today in Ames, Iowa. Pilja qualified for nationals Nov. II at the NCAA Regionals, where he placed fourth in the 10-kilometer race in a talented pool of runners, crossing the line only four seconds out of first4 place. Michigan finished seventh in the race, so Pilja will be the lone Wolverine in Ames. Warhurst and Pilja discussed the runner's strategy for the national meet, figuring an average race should put him among the top 25 finishers unless he "gets knocked down and trampled." "This is a no-pressure situation," Warhurst said. Warhurst's encouragement has influ- enced Pilja's mindset for races such as nationals. "He's been able to calm me down," Pilja said. "He's taught me how to pre- pare for big races. I know now that if you can control your emotions, you're going to do well." Throughout his comeback season, Pilja's actions have inspired the rest of Michigan's team, Warhurst said. "They look at hirr and they know who he is. They think, If he can do it, maybewe can, too." His admirers will be rooting him on to accomplish his personal goals on his 176th consecutive day of running. "When the season started, finishing in the top 15 was my goal," Pilja said. "It's still my goal now at the end. Hopefully (today) will be the high point." 1 p By Adam Kaplan t)a ports t \ ito The Michigan volleyball team was on a roll after beating No. 25 Michigan State and No. 13 Ohio State last week. This past weekend, the Wolverines brought this spirit of confidence into their road matches against No. 8 Minnesota and Iowa. But Michigan fell short this weekend, losing 3-l to lowa (1 5-8, 15-1 2-15, 15- 12), and 3-0 to Minnesota (14-1, 10-15, 13-I15). Don't let this fool you- the WVolvcrines played competitively. On Saturday night, Michigan faced a deceptivle team in lova. The Wolverines were frustrated by Iowa's unorthodox style of play. "It was hard for us to get into any rhythm because Iowa had no rhythm to its game?" Michigaii coach Mark Rosen said.. "We ended up playing their styles--- anytime you are forced to play another team's style, you pa the price." Michigan players said they were unprepared for the Hawkeyes. "We weren't accustomed to playing this style before," senior outside hitter Sarah Behnke said. "We never played with this style in practice." Part of Michigan's problem was that its attack was not balanced. Behnke led the team with 25.kills and 15 defensive digs. But, senior outside hitter Alija Pittenger was the only other player to post double digits in kills, with 1. Things went a little better on Friday night against the Golden Gophers. Michigan was able to play a style more to its liking against Minnesota. Despite los- ing 3-0, Rosen was pleased with his team's performance. In the first game, the Wolverines were up 13-12, but Michigan could not put the Golden Gophers away. Minnesota rallied to win that nail-biter, 16-14. Behnke and junior Katrina Lehman led the team with 10 kills apiece. Pittenger finished with 16 digs, a match high. On the downside, freshman outside hitter Chantel Reedus, who has emerged as an offensive force this year, was injured. Rosen said, she might have a stress fracture in her foot. 01 0 Top 10 finish is aim for women's cross ~1 ' -- z ' = ti ' a ,'', 1.f you thin o~ rg~ PROLE .:>NNC KL A~yne n ay 4-:w S~~ e r. V- :fit By Rhonda Gilmer Daily Sports Writer Today marks the last meet of the season for the Michigan women's cross country team. At I1 a.m. the 6-kilometer race kicks off at the NCAA championships in Ames, Iowa. The Wolverines will go up against 31 teams on the Iowa State University cross country course in hopes of finishing in the top 10. "Our goal all year has been top 10," senior Lisa Ouellet said. Favorites for the national title include Stanford, Wisconsin, Colorado and Brigham Young. "When you get to the national meet, anything can happen - there are girls all around you at all times, Also running are sophomores Katie Easton and Jane Martineau and freshman Lindsey Gallo. Gallo will be competing in her first NCAA championship meet. "Hopefully, the weather will be a little nasty, even cold so that teams from the south will have trouble," Ouellet said. Bad weather conditions should be an advantage for the Wolverines against teams from warmer climates such as Arizona, Arizona State and : South Florida. "We're tough, we're a very tough team and Iowa is a tough course - it's pretty challenging:" Ouellet said. Michigan has seen some of its competition earlier this season. No. 3 Wisconsin has been a nemesis for r Tho ,Pviiw nat, Ppor Advivnrv Prese'nt Y I