12 - The Michigan Daily -- Tuesday, April 3, 2001 Unexp e edly, Blue set to meet Oakland " ' By Jeff Phillips Daily Sports Writer When the Michigan softball team (2-0 Big Ten, 14-11-1 overall) began its sea- son, it had no idea it was going to play Oakland. But when nine of the Wolver- "We are not a given in the Big Ten Tournament or the NCAA Tourna- ment," Hutchins said. Hutchins points to the lack. of team chemistry as a possible cause for the Wolverines' ines' first 28 games were cancelled, Michigan coach Carol Hutchins was scram- bling for teams to face. "We just called around to see who would play us," Hutchins said. As a result, Michigan will face Oakland (6-14) in a doubleheader today at 2 p.m. To compound the lack of games, the Wolverines ALUMNI FIELD Who: Michigan (14-11-1) vs. Oakland (6-14) when:2 p.m. today Latest: Michigan started j the Big Ten season well and hopes to maintain its momentum with two victo- ries against Oakland, a recent addition to the schedule. struggles this season, but adds that they took a big step in the wins against Illinois. "The message I've sent to them is that they need to take care of their team- mates - they need to be able to die for each other," Hutchins said. Although Michigan is suffering from a lack of games, it has still been. able to play one of the have struggled and find themselves in unfamiliar territory with a winning per- centage at just .538. "I told the kids, 'We need to play as many and win as many as we can,'" Hutchins said. "We aren't winning as many as we have in past years." Michigan could have made up some lost ground in a doubleheader at No. 10 DePaul last Friday, but was unable to come up with a win in either game. "I was a little disappointed walking away from DePaul. We lost an oppor- tunity to beat them in the first game," Hutchins said. "Defense has been our strongest part and it let us down." But with their postseason prospects already in danger, the Wolverines stepped up and won a pair from Illinois on Saturday and Sunday to start the Big Ten season. Now as Michigan returns home it feels a renewed sense of urgency. hardest schedules of any Big Ten team. The Wolverines have a record of 3-8 against ranked opponents this season, including victories over then-No. 6 Louisiana State and then-No. 8 Fresno State. Ranked opponents make up a third of Michigan's schedule. With the Big Ten season underway, strong conference play would put the Wolverines back among the nation's elite. "Second season started on Saturday. This is the season that counts - it is all about what you get done at the end," Hutchins said. Sandwiched between Big Ten games are today's matches against the Golden Grizzlies and a trip to Bowling Green tomorrow. "It is important to play and beat Division I teams," Hutchins said. "Oak- land is important and Bowling Green is important." Bowling Green's potent offense will be a stem test for Nick Alexander and the rest of the Michigan pitching staff. Falcons swooping into the Fish By Benjamin Singer Daily Sports Writer Michigan sophomore Tim Leveque had a scheduled start postponed for the second-straight weekend with the snowfall on Sunday. As a result, he did not get to pitch against one of the top Big Ten teams in Penn State. Instead he'll be facing a Bowling Green base- ball team with hot bats. ."We need to get him some innings," Michigan coach Geoff Zahn said of Leveque. "Keep him sharp." Leveque's 0.00 earned-run average in 17.1 innings will be challenged by the Falcons (5-2 MAC, 14-7 overall) and their team batting average of .318. Of course, he's going to have to give up an earned run at some point or another. "To expect him to go the whole year without an ERA - that's not going to happen," Zahn said. Bowling Green is coming off a win over Ohio in which it connected for 19 hits and as many runs. The Falcons boast six starters who are hitting above .300. "I don't look so much at those kinds of statistics," Zahn said. "I'm much more concerned with our own approach." The last time Michigan (1-3 Big Ten, 10-12 overall) played Bowling Green, four pitchers held the Falcons RHODES, MARSHALL, MITCHELL SCHOLARSHIPS OPPORTUNITIES Students eligible for the Rhodes, Marshall, and George Mitchell Scholarships are invited to 2 informational meetings, sponsored by the Provost's Council on Student Honors. Successful candidates usually have a GPA of 3.7 or better and a distinguished record of participation in activities that demonstrate leadership and commitment. These informational meetings have been scheduled for April 2, from 6 PM to 7:00 PM, Room 1210 Lurie Engineering, North Campus and, April 4, from 6 PM to 7 PM, Kuenzel Room, Michigan Union. Light refreshments will be served at each meeting. Please refer questions to Isabelle Turquat-Mertha, Office of the Provost, phone: 615-1634, fax: 764-4546, email: . RAY L. FISHER STADIUM Who: Michigan (1-3 Big Ten, 10-12 over- all) vs. Bowling Green (5-2 MAC, 14-7) When: 3 p.m. Latest The Wolverines' bats were a bit silent against Penn State, but Bowling Green's staff is known to serve up some hits. to four runs, just two of which were earned, in the 7-4 Michigan victory. Even if Leveque falls from grace and stains his spotless ERA, he may receive the run support that Michi- gan's pitchers have been lacking. Bowling Green's team ERA is 6.36. And if the Falcons' 19 runs scored against Ohio is an indication of their potent offense, then the 14 runs Bowl- ing Green allowed in that game show that Michigan hitters have a chance to get healthy. "I would like to see the bats come alive a little bit here," Zahn said. "We're a better hitting team than we've shown.' Michigan had one of its better days at the plate in its last game with Bowl- ing Green on March 27. The seven runs the Wolverines put up against the Falcons constitute Michigan's highest offensive output over its past seven contests. Michigan homered four times in that game. Zahn has expressed disappointment in the hitting from the bottom half of the lineup, but maintains confidence that the bats will come around. Tomorrow, Michigan will face another weak pitching staff as it travels to Eastern Michigan. The Eagles' pitchers combine for a 6.59 ERA. Rich Hill (1-2, 4.50 ERA) will be making the start against Eastern Michigan. Food For Thought Human Rights The protesters accused the U.S. of supporting a brutal South Vietnamese regime. Where is the American Media, when Reuters is able to report the beatings of Montagnard civilians by communist Vietnam? Gary Lillie & Assoc., Realtors www.garylillie.com sco3F51 Continued from Page 11. the occasional NCAA Tournament upset, Bennett's hiring was still a risk, but Wisconsin gambled and won. Ryan comes from the same hyphenated past, having coached 17 seasons at Wisconsin-Platteville and Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Following last season's run to the Final Four, Richter and the Badgers got bigheaded, thinking they were on the road to becoming Duke.W Wisconsin had no chance of beat- ing Michigan State in that national semifinal, and seemed to ignore the fact that it was part of the weakest Final Four in recent memory. "We're the Wisconsin Badgers," they said. "We have tradition." (They don't.) "Our basketball pro- gram is coveted. Coaches want to come here." (They don't.) By returning to its roots, Wiscon-0 sin can keep expectations on its program realistic: Win a few more than you lose, recruit as well as you can without a true big city to sup- ply talent and don't grow bigger than your britches. Ryan can keep the Badgers focused on accomplishing exactly that. KEEPING IT REAL: Credit Michi gan football coach Lloyd Carr for continuing to schedule with charac- ter. The structure of the BCS lends itself to playing the occasional game against a ranked team - which happens anyway in the con- ference season -- and filling the nonconference portion of the schedule with near-guarantee wins. In both 2001 and 2002, Michigan has stuck to its pattern of playing nonconference home-and-home with another quality program, while granting local schools the chance to visit Michigan Stadium. This season, the Wolverines play at Washington on Sept. 8, a favor that will be returned in 2002. The Notre Dame series is back next year, and Oregon comes to Ann Arbor as well. Each year features home game against Western Michi- gan in Septembe Financially, the 2002 schedule will be a success. Thanks to some skillful maneuvering, Michigan will be playing four nonconference games, three at home. That means the Athletic Department will pull in revenues for seven home contests next year. The last time Michigan hosted seven home games was ir9 1997. Athletic director Bill Martin has said in the past that gross sales from three of Michigan's home games go to paying the University the market rate for scholarships for all 25 varsity sports. That constricts the department with regards to expansion and renovation projects. Thus, a seventh home game is al* gravy. Michigan would have hosted a seventh game this upcoming sea- son, but abandoned the plan when a suitable opponent failed to present itself. HIGHER POWER: St. John's Epis- copal Church in Detroit held its annual prayer for the Tigers yester- day, leading up to today's season opener. While churchgoers are at it may they place a curse on Juan Gonzalez -- and make his back really hurt. Chris Duprey can be reached at cduprey@umich.edu. mm" q~ hru the / :: tape WE'RE HIRING: *Computerized Layout assistants .Scanning coordinator .Archiving assistants 01i IjCICiigHR II 3F I 734-7641 BLUE DEVILS Continued from Page 11 0 assists. Williams, saddled with foul trouble, had 16 points on 5-for-15 shooting. Duke is the first No. 1-ranked team to win the national championship since UCLA in 1995. Dunleavy had three 3-pointers in an 11-2 run that put the Blue Devils up 50-39 four minutes into the second half. Arizona came right back with a 9-00 run that was capped by a hook shot by Woods with 14:11 left that made it 50- 48. It took Duke just four minutes to get the lead back to 10, 61-51, on Dun- leavy's last 3 of the game with 10:08 to play. Again, the Wildcats came back. Four times Arizona got within three points. Three times it was Battier, the* outstanding player of the Final Four, who responded for Duke. His dunk on a pass from Williams made it 77-72 with 2:31 left, and Williams hit a 3 with 1:45 left that gave the Blue~Devils an eight-point lead. m m