The Michigan Daily - Thursday, March 8, 2001 - 15A

Stretch ends with Irish

Jazwinski looks to surprise

By Seth Klempner
Daily Sports Writer
The Michigan women's tennis team's
trip to No. 6 Notre Dame is the last
match in a stretch where the Wolverines
faced five of the top 30 teams in the
nation, three of which have
n on the road,
They have a lot of talent
and experienced players NOTR
who have won a lot," Who: Michig
Michigan coach Bitsy Ritt Notre Dame
said. "They are used to win- When: 11:0(
ning and there is no substi- Saturday
tute for the talent they have al-time agai
throughout their lineup." Dame and h
This will not be the first the last 10
time that two of Michigan's victory comi
top players have seen Notre
c this season.
hen the Wolverines hosted the ITA
Regional Championship in the fall,
then-No. I seed Chrissie Nolan faced
off against the Fighting Irish's Michelle
Dasso in the round of 16. Dasso has
gone on to be one of the best players in
the nation this year.
In that match, Nolan lost 7-5, 6-4, but
not before rallying back from several
two-game deficits. In the second set,
oan was down double-match point,
but forced deuce with hard-fought
points before finally losing.
"Chrissie appeared a little intimidat-
ed," Ritt said at the time. "But then once
she got into the match and started play-
ing her points smarter, I think she real-
ized she could play with her."
Since that match, Nolan has faced
other top players around the nation and
has gained maturity and confidence in
herself despite not having won a singles
*ch since Jan. 27 against Yale. Last
week she played well against Heather
Polumbus of San Diego and may be
moved back to the No. I spot to play
Dasso.
Kavitha Tipirneni - who last week
was moved up to the No. I spot - also
faced a member of Notre Dame's squad
at the ITA Championships, Leslie
Caylan. Tipirneni lost to Caylan - who
plays No. 4 singles - 6-2, 6-1.

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Ritt is unsure of who she will start
against Dasso on Saturday but noted
that Tipirneni has played well of late.
Tipirneni defeated Eldina Fazlic of
Illinois, 6-4, 6-4, and lost a three-set tie-
breaker to Katarina Valkyova of San
Diego, 2-6, 6-1, 7-6 (5) last week.
"I think Illinois was a
® big win for Kavitha," Ritt
DAME said. "I think it opened her
eyes and helped her real-
(3-5) vs. ize that she can compete
-2) with anyone and can beat
.m. anyone. After that match
an is 11-7 she moved up to number
No. 6 Notre one. She is right there and
lost nine of with a positive attitude she
h their last will continue to be
in 1994. rewarded with wins."
Defeating Notre Dame
will be no easy task. The Fighting Irish
are coming off a tough loss to No. I I
Northwestern, but this was at the end of
a stretch in which Notre Dame played
eight consecutive road matches.
"This is the highest ranking we have
ever had," Notre Dame coach Jay
Louderback said. "Everyone is excited
to be playing at home. We have mid
terms this week so we will be trough
with those and we will be leaving for
Miami on Sunday so everyone is excit-
ed about that."

The one and only.
Katie Jazwinski will be the
sole competitor to represent the
Michigan women's track and
field team during the NCAA
Indoor Championships this
weekend. During the two-day
meet in Fayetteville, Ark.
Jazwinski will be competing in
the 5,000- and 3,000-meter
events.
"Only people who meet very
stringent and rigid standards
qualify for NCAA
Championships," Michigan
coach James Henry said.
Jazwinski had to rank among
the best athletes in the country
to qualify. Although she is a
qualifier for the NCAA cham-
pionships she is not the top
seed.
"She is going in as a lower
seed, but I don't think she'll
finish at that seed," assistant
coach Mike McGuire said.
"Her focus is to run the 5,000-
meter and score really high dur-
ing the first day. She also hopes
to do well in the 3,000-meter

By Rhonda Gilmer
Daily Sports Writer

event because there are no pre-
liminaries."
Jazwinski's race strategy
might be different than at Big
Tens. No longer will she have
to take a leading role. This
could prove beneficial during
the meet bec use she won't feel
the pressure early on.
"She won't have to lead like
she did in the Big Ten meet,"
McGuire said. "Instead she can
follow at the early part of the
race.
Henry and McGuire will pro-
vide moral support during the
championships. McGuire guid-
ed Jazwinski throughout a
tumultuous but successful cross
country season. With many ups
and downs during the season
McGuire was there to keep
Jazwinski focused and positive.
"It's more," McGuire said.
"She's on a roll again because
she's physically fine and has a
tremendous background
because of what she did in the
fall."
Henry will also be on-site to
boost Jazwinski's confidence
level.
"I want to continue to tell her

what she already knows,"
Henry said. "This will help to
psychologically prepare her for
what she's about to endure."
Jazwinski got off to a slow
start in the track season, but
since then, she has improved
for various reasons.
Part of her problem was due
to injuries, which made it
tougher for Jazwinski to com-
pete at the high level of intensi-
ty she's known for.
"I was happy because she
started out the season with a
nagging back injury," Henry
said.
"She went on to train through,
her back injury and prevail by
being a finalist for the champi-
onships."
Another factor has been
Jazwinski's determination. She
is a self-motivator on the team
who leads by example. In prac-
tices she is the first one on the=
field and last one off the track.
She takes this strong work ethic
with her to every meet.
"She goes above and beyond
what's expected of her and we
really have high hopes for her
at this meet," Henry said.

KHANG TRAN/Daily
Katie Jazwinski serves as the sole representative for Michigan
In the NCAA Championships tomorrow and Saturday.

.. . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . .

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