'hIt Mlcnigan Daily - SportsMoncay Mairo E, 2001 r;T
.Swimming leaders
talke second best
MEN'S SWIMMING . ( MINNEAPOLIS
Ca NIKIN41"
What went wronge
Tankers lose title; new heroes emerge
By Kristen Fidh
MINNEAPOLIS - Louis
Aristrong's "What a Wonderful World"
played as the American flag was brought
to center stage. The venue was the
'University of Minnesota's Aquatic Center
where the national anthem then bellowed
through the stands on the last day of the
91st annual men's swimming and diving
Big Ten Championships.
The races held Feb. 22-24 were indeed
onderful for a handful of Michigan
immers, but the team had to sit in the
runner-up position behind Minnesota -
the 2001 Big Ten champions.
"We all expected to have a victory din-
ner, but things just didn't go our way this
weekend," Michigan coach Jon
Urbanchek said. "Nobody could have beat
Minnesota - they were unstoppable."
No. 9 Michigan finished with 549
points and went home with both the Big
4n Swimmer of the Year, senior Chris
ompson, and Freshman of the Year,
Dan Ketchum. But it was No. 16
Minnesota that had 36 championship
finalists capture 797 points, breaking five
Big Ten records.
The Gophers set the tone of the meet
by finishing first in the 200-yard
freestyle relay with a new conference
record time of 1:18.49. About an hour
later, they repeated their relay success by
winning the 400-yard medley relay in a
ig Ten record time of 3:10.79.
"Holding this (award) in my hand makes
me want to lick my chops and go for two
or three more," said Minnesota's Chad
Krastins of the 400-medley relay. "I don't
want the silver or bronze - I want the
geld. And, if we keep swimming this well,
our whole team will have one of these."
Krastins predicted correctly, but not
before his team would climb to unfore-
n heights - the Gophers would go on
i win the 200-yard medley relay, the
Breaking records
Although it took second place in
the Big Ten Championships, the
Michigan men's swimming team
set three conferencemrecords.
Chris Thom pson
1650-yard freestyle, 14:31.15
Losing his swim cap halfway through.
the Senior of the Year still set a new
pool record.
Tim Siciliano
400-yard individual medley, 3:42.45
Siciliano set a new record even after
suffering through and injured shoulder.
Dan Ketchum
200-yard freestyle, 1:34.99
The Big Ten Freshman of the Year tied
the record with his first conference title.
200-yard breaststroke, the 200-yard but-
terfly, 3-meter diving and platform div-
ing. But, Minnesota's most impressive
feat occurred when it conquered the 100-
yard and 200-yard backstroke with one-
two-three finishes in each race.
"It was only a couple years ago when
we were having one-two-three finishes
like that, so it was their chance to shine,"
Urbanchek said.
According to Thompson, the
Wolverines were the underdogs coming
into the competition. But - as predicted
because of the nature of Urbanchek's pro-
gram - they dominated all of the dis-
tance events.
Upon claiming his two titles, Thompson
became the fourth men's swimmer in Big
Ten history to win both the 1650- and the
500-yard freestyle in four consecutive
years - one of the reasons for being
named conference Swimmer of the Year.
His time of 14:31.15 in the 1650 -
accomplished even after losing his swim
cap at the 1200 mark - beat his own Big
Ten record, made new pool history and was
the second-fastest time ever swum by an
American.
"I felt that it was an awesome race,"
Thompson said. "The last 500 yards were
KRISTEN FIOH/Daily
Senior captain Scott Werner helped the Wolverines take second place at the Big
Ten Championships by finishing third in the 200-yard breaststroke.
By Kristen Fidh
Daily Sports Writer
MINNEAPOLIS -- They were the
defending Big Ten champions, laden
with a presence of tradition and excel-
lence. But on Feb. 22-24, the Michigan
men's swimming
and diving team
took second place SWIMMING
to Minnesota by Commentary
over 240 points.
"Even if we were to have everybody
healthy and no injuries, they still would
have beaten us," Michigan coach Jon
Urbanchek said.
Indeed the Wolverines were the
underdogs, but to lose by that much -
what went wrong?
First, Minnesota accomplished feats
just short of inhuman - its races were
nearly perfect. With 36 championship
finalists, five broken Big Ten Records
and a one-two-three finish in both the
100- and 200-yard backstroke, the
Gophers were simply unstoppable.
"I am so happy for Minnesota
because they had some very fast swim-
ming, and fast swimming is what I like
to see," Urbanchek said.
Second, Michigan suffered a few
horrible qualifying times.
In 2000, captain Scott Werner cap-
tured the conference title in the 200-
yard individual medley. But this year he
only qualified for the consolation heat.
Werner's final finishing time of 1 -48.84
was good enough for fifth position and
14 points, but he had to take first in the
consolation heat, behind swimmers
with slower times, to earn only nine
points because of his poor preliminary
time.
"What happened was that I wore
one of those suits that go from your
shoulders to your knees (during the
preliminary swim), and I couldn't
move right - I could barely turn,"
Werner said. "I should have tested it
out before the swim, but I just didn't
think about it."
Though not as severe of a letdown,
Eric Wilson in the 400-yard individual.
medley, Justin Drake in the 500-yard
freestyle, Ryan Earhart in the IOfvard,
backstroke and Jordan Watland inthe,
100-yard freestyle suffered the sarm.
point-losing situation due to slow qpl-
ifying times in the preliminaries.
Third, the Wolverines failed to.put
swimmers in the championship heat of
three races - the 50-yard freestve.as
well as the 100- and 200-yard butterfly,
But although the team failed, in,
reaching its ultimate goal of winning
the title, Michigan did emerge with-new
stars - Wolverines who ensure
promising seasons to come.
Big Ten Freshman of the Year Qan
Ketchum and standout freshman ,diyer
Jason Coben will indeed be key assets-
in future competitions, but not without
the help of Michigan's unsung heroes...
Named to the All-Conference Team,
junior Jordan Watland swam in,two
individual races and five relays, Ae
helped the Wolverines earn 172 total
points and is, arguably, the team's most
valuable swimmer.
Likewise, junior Jason Mallory is
key in the backstroke and individ4&
medley as well as the medley r, ;
Luckily, he still has another seasTh, ;
eligibility.
And, although he took the year th
redshirt due to a groin injury, juniorJ.at
Hopwood will be rested and readyIS,
continue his success in the breast itO
and individual medley next seasort.
"I was kind of upset about (redht
ing) at first, but now I like the fact-hat-
I have one more year," Hopwood*i
"I probably could have swam (an: f'
Tens), but it would be better if I jT4r
compete all year next year.
Along with Garrett Mangierf'cfr
sprints, Tony Kurth in the butterfly, and.
more experienced Wolverines adding'
depth to the bench, Michigan will have a
viable shot at the conference title in 2002.
It's just too bad the Wolverines will
have to wait a whole year to see.
painful, but I am happy with the finish. I
kind of fell apart at 1100 even though I
hung on as long as I could."
Also racing in the 1650, junior Tim
Siciliano placed second (14:51.63),
sophomore Justin Drake finished fifth
(15:03.20) and Ketchum touched sixth
(15:05.77).
Thompson and Ketchum then scored
the one-two finish in the 500-yard
freestyle, with Siciliano placing fourth.
For the third-consecutive year,
Siciliano, the defending NCAA champi-
on, took first in the 400-yard individual
medley. His time of 3:42.45 set a new Big
Ten record- an incredible race for
recently recovering from a shoulder
injury that prevented him from compet-
ing in earlier meets this season.
"My team wanted me to go out there
and -break the pool record (of 3:40.64),
but I just wanted the win," Siciliano said.
"It felt real great despite coming off my.
injury. I have been sore at times, but I
have been able to work through that"
Michigan also took first in the 800-yard
freestyle relay. Jordan Watland led off to a
fourth-place start, but it was Ketchum who
dove in and caught the team up to first. All
Thompson and Garrett Mangicri had to do
was secure the win.
"We all kind of jumped on Dan's back
and let him carry us through this race,'
Thompson said. "He definitely makes us
a stronger relay team."
Ketchum would go on to win the 200-
yard freestyle in 1:34.99, tying the Big
Ten record. The Freshman of the Year
competed in three individual events and
contributed to two different relays.
"I really didn't expect it," Ketchum
said. "If you would have asked me at the
beginning of the year - or anytime dur-
ing the year - if I thought I would have
done this well or swam this fast, I would
have said 'No way."'
But, despite Michigan's successes and
newly set records, it was Minnesota that
enjoyed a victory dive, taking home the
championship plaque.
Women's track excels at Big Tens
WOMEN'S TRACK WEST LAFAYETTE
U~.
By Adam Kaplan
Daily Sports Wrier
The performance of the Michigan
women's track team in the Big Ten
Championships capped what the
Wolverines had been trying to accom-
plish all season long
hi West Lafayette, Michigan finished
in fourth place, winning two individual
championships and establishing four
NCAA provisional times.
Michigan coach James Henry was
ased with the team's overall effort.
L'My goal was to finish hopefully in
the top three and we ended up one-half a
point away from third place," Henry said.
"It was an outstanding team effort."
Senior distance-runner Katie
Jazwinski and sophomore Rachel Sturtze
highlighted Michigan's success in the
track events.
Jazwinski won the 5,000-meter run
with a personal best and NCAA qualify-
ing time of 16:31.73. Her feat marks the
*I'ennis' los
second Big Ten individual crown of her
career. She was named All-Big Ten first
team with her championship perfor-
mances and was also selected to the sec-
ond team for her second place perfor-
mance in the 3,000 run.
Sturtze secured her first individual Big
Ten Championship title after winning the
800 run in 2:11.07. Her mark earned her
All-Big Ten first team honors.
Overall, the Wolverines were well-bal-
anced. They dominated the 800 led by
Sturtze. Junior Ursula Taylor and Senior
Adrienne Hunter placed third and fourth
in the event.
In the 1600 relay, Michigan finished
third, achieving an NCAA provisional
time and season-best time of 3:44.78.
Senior sprinters Tamika Craig and
Regine Caruthers teamed-up with fresh-
man Mora Arnold and sophomore Carly
Knazze to set forth this mark.
In the field, sophomore Nicole
Denamur provided Michigan with a tie
for third place in the high jump as she
cleared 5-8 1/2. Teyonna Simpson placed
fourth place with a mark of 39-4 1/2 in
the triple jump.
"Running in January and February
was just a dress-rehearsal for the champi-
onship," Henry said. "What you do in the
Big Ten Championships makes the dif-
ference on your season."
Certainly all the hard work paved off in
preparation for this big competition.
Henry pointed out Jazwinski, who has
carried the team with her veteran leader-
ship all season.
"She was our go-to young lady,"
Henry said. "She started the season slow
with a bad back'and finished strong late
in the year."
Jazwinski will represent the
Wolverines in the NCAA champi-
onships, running in either the 3000 run or
the mile. She will attempt to become an
All-American.
The NCAA Championships will be
held in Fayetteville, Ark. on Mar. 9
and 10.
-j
ing skid reaches five
Young Wolverines struggle in Florida over spring break
By Albert Kim
Dailv Sports Writer
Normally a spring break spent in
rida is something to remember and
WJoy.
But for the Michigan men's tennis
team, this spring break was neither
memorable nor enjoyable.
The Wolverines started the break at
home on Saturday Feb. 24, and dropped
a tight match to Minnesota, 4-3. It was a
tough loss to swallow, particularly
because it was their third straight loss.
And it didn't end there.
Michigan then headed to sunny
,Qrida to play its first outdoor matches
the season. Unfortunately, the team
ran into a determined and talented No.
22 Miami team that blanked the
Wolverines 7-0.
"We just got beat pretty bad," co-cap-
tain Henrv Beam said.
The Wolverines went down in straight
sets in all but two singles matches, and it
wasn't the outdoor weather that was
affecting them.
"I don't think there's one reason"
sophomore Chris Rolf said. "We're not
playing the big points well."
With its losing streak at four matches,
Michigan looked to end the skid versus
Clemson on Saturday, but fell 5-2.
"For us not to win one match (over
break) was pretty pathetic," Beam said.
It has been an eye opening experience
for Michigan the last two weeks, as it has
gone 0-2 in the conference, and 0-5 over-
all. Its doubles play, which was so reli-
able and consistent during the season-
opening five game win streak, has
deserted the Wolverines. They've lost the
doubles point in each of the last four
matches.
"We're still confident in our doubles
and our depth," Rolf said.
T eir singles play hasn't been much
better, as players have continued to
struggle to win consistently. It doesn't
matter where they've played either -
they've lost at home and on the road.
Without any seniors on the team, this
trip has been a growing experience for
Michigan.
"We're a young team, and it's hard to
pull it together," Beam said. "We're not
used to our roles"
This team still believes in its talent,
depth and potential. There are still a lot
of matches to be played, and right now,
Michigan can only continue to play hard
and hope the shots fall its way.
"Each person has got to take it upon
themselves to win," Rolf said. "We've
got to fight and claw - we've got to
believe."
With the bulk of the Big Ten season in
front of them, the Wolverines will need
to pull it together quickly in order to
compete.
"A lot can happen between now and
(the NCAA tournament)," Beam said.
"We just need to get better."
Women's tennis swept over break
B Seth Klempner
DIUly Sports riter
In tennis, the numbers don't always
sgeak for the performance of a team -
ed Eldina Fazlic at the No. 2 spot. It was
her first singles victory since January 27th
against Yale.
In their next match against the Wildcats,
the Wolverines lost all nine matches, lead-
spring-break destination of San Diego,
rain forced their first outdoor match to be
pushed back a day.
The team received good news when Jen
Duprez saw her first action of the season.
m