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ORTS
-~.
FRIDAY
FEBRUARY 23, 2001
9-
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spark against Purdue
gymnasts look to,,
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By Dan Williams
Daily Sports Editor
The Michigan men's basketball team
is doing everything in its power to block
put the cataclysmic events - the Big
'rn Tournament and a decision regard-
ing the coaching staff's
future - looming in a few
weeks. Instead, the team is CRISLER
focusing on the last three who: Michigan
regular-season contests. Ten, 10.14 ove
"I'm not discussing Purdue (59, 1
anything other than When: 3:01 p.r
Purdue" Michigan coach latest: The Wo
rian Ellerbe told the looks to avenge
media at the beginning of loss in West La
yesterday's weekly press conference. "I
justowant to let you know right off the bat
if you have questions about anything
else."
Michigan will face the Boilermakers
n Crisler Arena tomorrow before round-
ing out the conference season by hosting
Northwestern Wednesday and traveling
o Michigan State in eight days.
But with a 4-9 Big Ten record (10-14
Cverall), Michigan will need to make a
n in the BTT to receive a postseason
herth, regardless of the outcome of the
next three games.
"We're going to win the rest of our
games. We don't have a choice,"
Michigan junior Chris Young said. "If
we want to do anything past the Big Ten
Tournament, we have to win."
The first roadblock in Michigan's path
Cers fal t
ey Joe Smith
Rally Sports Editor
SAULT STE. MARIE - When it
rains, it pours for the Michigan hockey
team.
Battling in another must-win game,
o. 5 Michigan (15-8-3 CCHA, 21-10-5
verall) gave away crucial points for the
third-straight week to a tcam settling in
the lower echelon of the CCHA. This
time it was a 2-1 loss to hpst-place Lake
Superior (8-17-0, 13-20-0).
"It's really devastating,"said freshman
defenseman Andy Burnes, whose
Wolverines are now skidding on a sea-
son-high, four-game winless streak (0-3-
1). "We needed this game to get back the
iomentum and to get back on track, and
to come all the way up here and lose the
game -- it's devastating."
The loss mathematically eliminated
the Wolverines from CCHA title con-
tention and clinched the coveted prize
for-Michigan State in one fell swoop.
A
n(4
ra
lvi
e a
afay
to a miraculous turnaround is Purdue,
which already beat the Wolverines in
West Lafayette, 80-60.
The Boilermakers (5-9, 13-12) have
fallen victim to injuries since that Jan. 3
contest. Forward Rodney Smith, the
team's leading scorer, and center John
Allison, the team's leading
rebounder, are both side-
RENA lined with foot injuries.
4-9 Big Purdue coach Gene
dt) vs. Keady "is juggling around a
12) lot of different lineups
because of those two guys
erines being out;' Ellerbe said.
a 8460 "They've played without
yette. them for a little while now so
I think they're getting adjusted a little bit."
In the game at Mackey Arena, Smith
and Allison combined for 30 points to
help thwart the Wolverines.
Michigan, which has dropped five of
its last six contests, has had a week off to
try to change the tide.
Following Saturday's 93-75 loss to
Minnesota, Ellerbe called some players
on his team "immature."
"We're going to make some guys
grow up pretty quickly and finish the
season up with some pride and some
character," Ellerbe said in the post-game
press conference.
If this sentiment resulted in any
changes, the team isn't revealing it.
"I think we've had some productive
practices this week;" Gavin Groninger
said. "Not much is different."
Slightly more than 22 years ago -
February 20, 1979 - the Utah women's
gymnastics team lost a
home meet to Cal-State
Fullerton and Clarion. PROvO
The significance? It has- Who: Michige
n't lost a home meet since. Utah (6-4)
Utah's tumblers hold an when:7:00 p
unprecedented streak of test The wt
161 straight wins at home, the roadagan
far and away the longest wn 'nat*
streak of that nature in tender. Utah c
women's gymnastics. bads a 161-rm
Tomorrow night, the winning streak
Michigan women's team faces the less-
than-enviable task of trying to be the
first team in over two decades to solve
the curse of the Huntsman Center.
"This meet is a really exciting oppor-
tunity for us," Michigan coach Bev
Plocki said. "It would be huge for us to
go in there and break that record"
In the two weeks since its loss at
Florida, Michigan has taken several
strides towards righting the ship.
A solid showing at Georgia ended
],1
an
p.mr
intV
anal
can
mee
ak.
By Cdso UuAo
Dily Sporn Writer
AAM&.A
with a loss, but a win over Southeast
Missouri State last Saturday has again
established the team as title contenders.-
The Wolverines posted their highest
score of the year (197.225) against the
Otahkians, The day ended
with back-to-back perfect
UTAH marks on the floor exercise
(85) vs. courtesy of Bridget
Knaeble and Big Ten gym-
a nast of the week Elise RayY
ernes hit "To finish like that was
o take on very, very exciting,
I title con, Knaeble said. "I hit on all
rently my new passes and did tei:
et home correct last pass, and everyw."
thing was, just very exci
ing."
The intense crowd at Utah usuallyr
numbers near 10,000. But Michigan has
faced that type of pressure before, at
Alabama, Florida and Georgia.
"I think at this point of the season, you,
get used to it," Plocki said. "My kids getA
more excited when there's a big crowd."
A streak of 161 straight home wins isr
no doubt intimidating.
But if everything goes according to:
plan, Michigan won't be No. 162.
Men lose co-captain
Roulston for season,
MARJORIE MARSHAL/Daily
Brian Ellerbe and the Michigan basketball team are concentrating on what is
directly in front of them. Their first hurdle will come against Purdue tomorrow.
beat underdog, again
Michigan has two games remaining with
a slim four-point cushion between it and
Miami (Ohio) for second place.
But even more devastating than the
loss was the way it ended, with a con-
troversial goal at the 2:06 mark of the
third period.
While a mad scramble ensued in front
of the Michigan net, a Tyson Turgeon
shot from the point clanked off the right
post. Or at least that's what the
Wolverines thought.
Seconds later, referee Brent
Rutherford thought otherwise and sig-
naled for the eventual game-winning
goal after conferring with the goal judge.
"If he didn't see it go in, and the lines-
man didn't see it go in, and the goal
judge didn't turn the light on, it's not a
goal;" an animated Michigan coach Red
Berenson said after the game. "It's as
simple as that"
But the game was Michigan's to win
for most of the first two periods. The
Wolverines tripled the Lakers' shot total
early on and created numerous, gift-
wrapped scoring chances that they just
couldn't finish off.
"We should have put them out of the
game in the first period," Berenson said.
Instead, the Lakers struck first, utiliz-
ing a common weapon as of late against
Michigan - a powerplay goal. The
Lakers' Chris McNamara fought
through a check in the corner and beat
two Michigan defensemen to the puck
before sending a backhand shot past
Michigan goalie Josh Blackburn.
The Wolverines' Craig Murray
answered five minutes into the third peri-
od with a powerplay tally of his own.
Other than that, the Wolverines couldn't
solve Lake Superior goaltender Jayme
Platt and the rest of the hungry Lakers
that have been snake-bitten this season
by several injuries and close defeats.
The win "is kind of sweet redemption
for a season gone bad," Lake Superior
coach Scott Borek said. "We've had so
many things we've had to fight through,
YESTERDAY'S GAME
LAKE SUPERIOR 2, Michigan1
Michigan 0 0 1--1
Lake Superior 0 1 1 - 2
fisst peod - none. Penies- LSSU, McNamara (roug
rg) 7:39: UM, Mink (checking from behind) 13:09; LSSU,
Nightingale (high stickirg).
Second period -1, LSSU McNa4a 6 (Vgiante), 1413
(pp). Penltes -SSU, Toon (roghin),923; UM,
Konisarek (roighirg), 12:55; LSSU, Nghtirgaie (high stick-
ig)1912
Thundperiod - UM 2, Murray 8 (Kosick, Matzka) 5:36 (pp);
LSSU 3. Turge 1(Nightigale, Anderson) 17:54. Pew
- LSS.J. McNamara (hoking), 4:52: LSSU, Vince (rough
rg), 10:38; UM, Shoneya (high stic rg), 10:38; UM.
Hilbert (slashing) 18:47; L.SSU, Nightrgale (roughirg after
the whistle) 0,00; UiM, Mazka (ronghirig after the whistle)
0:00: LSSU, Vinice (ronghig after the whistle) 000; UM
Koch (roghing after the whistle) 0:00; LSSU, Nightigale
(roghing ater the whistle) 0:00;UM, Matzka (roughing
after the whistle) O.); LSSU, Vince (rtghi ater the
whistle) 0:00: UM Koch (ronghig after the whistle) 0:00;
UM Koch (10mhie misconduct) 0:00.
Sht ndl- UM, 14-1212 - 38; LSSU, 410144- 28.
PoerPlap -UM, 1 o ;5:Lti,1lof 3.
Saws -- UMlacktxrn 4413-26; LSSU, Platt 1412-11
-- 37.
Referee - Brent Rutherford
Unes ten- Tony Crip, Terry Shug
At: Taffy Abel Arena Attpiuim: 2,480.
I mean sometimes, you don't have
enough bullets in your gun - players
with injuries and guys playing at 70-per-
cent. They got what they deserved
tonight, which was a win. Hopefully we
can catapult this into a playoff run."
By Swapnil Patel
Daily Sports Writer
Coming of a huge win against No. I
Oklahoma, the No. 3 Michigan men's
gymnastics team (11-0)
Minnesota this weekend to
battle the eighth-ranked
Gophers.
But the fact that
Michigan senior tri-captain
Kevin Roulston is now
officially out for the
remainder of this season
supercedes any worries
about the upcoming meet.
Roulston, who suffered
heads to
" a
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MINNEA
Who: Michigan (
Minnesota (2-2)
When: 2 p.m.
Latest: Michigan
to continue its w
ways as it Wnesb
come the loss of
Roulston.
year of eligibility. I'm keeping my fin-
gers crossed?'
The Wolverines will continue to strive
for consistency, rather than difficulty, in
their routines against the Gophers.
"Our attitude is the same as it has been
all year and that is to jist go
out there and have fun,
POLS junior Brad Kenna said.
(11-0) vs. After having competed
against some top-notch
teams around the nation,
n will look Michigan will try to avoid a
Ninning let down against the
to oer- Gophers, especially with
>f Kevin the team looking ahead to
its spring break trip.
"For the Minnesota meet, I think the
main focus for this team is just to get
through this meet healthy and enjoy our
spring break in Spain," junior Scott
Vetere said. "We will compete against
the Spanish and Portuguese national
teams so we want to be ready fo? that
meet.
"We are definitely not takin.
Minnesota too lightly though. They have
some good guys on their team and could
easily pull an upset if we don't hit."
a knee injury prior to Michigan's dual
meet against Penn State two weeks ago,
had an MRI last week. The results con-
firmed the gymnast's worst fear - a
completely torn ACL.
"The good news is that all the other lig-
aments and tendons appear to be fine, as
well as the miniscus," Roulston said.
"The bad news is that the doctors feel that
I shouldn't try to compete on my knee.
"We are petitioning for a medical red-
shirt, which would grant me another
Loss revolves around controversial finish
Marathon:12 games in
10 days for 'M' softball
After getting shut out twice and
blowing a four run lead, the Michigan
softball team is thrilled to get out of
California.
Michigan (2-4) will play 12 games
between now until March 4.
At the NFCA Leadoff Classic in
Columbus, Ga., the Wolverines are pit-
ted against Georgia, Fresno State and
Missouri.
After the round-robin tournament,
Michigan will play games against
Mississippi and Alabama to prepare for
the Alabama Crimson Classic in
Tuscaloosa. On tap for the Wolverines
there: Marshall, Evansville, and
Alabama.
The Crimson Tide are the most for-
midable opponents of the bunch,
ranked fourth in the nation after an
7 appearance in the College World Series
last season.
Alabama is 5-0 and led by Shelly
Laird who has already recorded four
wins.
- David Roth
'M'baseball to open
its. season In Florida
Get out your gloves. Michigan base-
ball is about to get underway.
The Wolverines will play three games
in three days this weekend against in-state
rival Western Michigan in Lakeland, Fla.
The Broncos took both meetings against
the Wolverines a year ago.
Broncos' skipper Fred Decker has a
little extra incentive to win. A series
sweep would take him to 700 career
Swimmers in second
place after day one
MINNEAPOLIS - Defending its
2000 conference title, the Michigan
men's swimming and diving team took
third position yesterday with 162 points
in the first day of the Big Ten
Championships. The Wolvienres cur-
rently are riding behind Minnesota (241)
and Penn State (170).
A 2001 title for Michigan may be in
jeopardy because of yesterday's lax per-
formances in the relays, the 200 individ-
ual medley and the 50 freestyle, but
Michigan already has one champion.
Senior Chris Thompson, who didn't
fully taper for the meet, captured his
fourth-straight title in the 500 freestyle
with a time of 4:16.22. The Wolverines
dominated the event with freshman Dan
Ketchum touching second and junior
Tim Siciliano taking fourth.
-Kristen Fidh
By Jon Schwartz
Daily Sports Editor
SAULT STE. MARIE -Yogi Berra
once said that he would rather be lucky
than good. A little bit of luck went a long
way for Lake Superior last night.
What started off as a simple shot from
the point by Tyson Turgeon of the Lakers
turned into a controversial finish that left
the Wolverines crying foul.
No one knows for sure what hap-
pened. Depepding on whom you speak
to, the details are going to be very differ-
ent. Hockey is, as the NHL likes to call
it, "The fastest game on icc"
What is a fact is that the goal judge did
not light his red light to signal a goal,
while the referee, Brent Rutherford,
appeared to indicate that a goal had been
scored. Play continued, and when the
whistle blew at the 2:06 mark of the third
period, the melee began.
Rutherford called the goal judge, and
when his facial expression seemed to
imply that the goal would count, Taffy
Abel Arena went mad.
And the Wolverines just got mad.
"I heard it hit the post," Michigan
goalie Josh Blackburn said.
"I was pretty sure the first shot was a
goal just by the sound of it. You could
hear it hit the back of the net;" Lake
Superior coach Scott Borek said.
Replays proved inconclusive.
But Borek could understand why
Michigan coach Red Berenson, who's
seen just about everything in his hockey
life, couldn't stand still.
"From Michigan's standpoint, if that
happened at Yost Ice Arena, I would have
thought it was just as bullshit and I
would have been talking to (Rutherford)
just as long. And I probably would have
been calling his mother names."
None of the officials would speak to
the media as per league rules.
"My question is, Berenson said,
"why do you phone the goal judge if the
goal judge has already not turned the
light on? If he thought it went in he
would have turned the light on"
To further the point that no one knows
for sure what happened, Borek without
being informed of any of Berenson or
the Wolverines' comments, had a
response for that, too.
"The light went on, initially, and then
he turned it off," Borek said. "The tight
initially went on which was why we were
upset on our side."
The light didn't appear to illuminatein.
replays.
Michigan will submit the issue to the
CCHA offices, but will not exactly wait
by the phone for a response.
"What difference does it make'if we
submit it to the league," Berenson said.?
"They're not going to change it. It4.j ust
a terrible call."
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