The Michigan Daily - SportsMonday - October 1, 2001- 3B Queens coach offers insight on Cold War £ RAPHAEL GOODSTEIN By J. Brady McCollough Daily Sports Writer This past weekend, the Queens Uni- versity Golden Gaels had the unfortu- nate task of taking on Michigan State and Michigan -- a week before the two powers clash in front of 72,000 fans in Spartan Stadium. The Golden Gaels were used like a crash-test dummy by the Spartans and Wolverines on consecutive days, los- ing Saturday to Michigan State 14-2 and yesterday to Michigan 9-0. With the "Cold War" getting closer by the minute, it would be easy for the Spartans and Wolverines to use the other team's performance against Queens as a tool for preparing for Sat- urday's game. Michigan coach Red Berenson didn't pay much attention. "I just went home," Berenson said when asked if he saw the Michigan State game on Saturday. "I got a good night's sleep last night." One coach who was forced to pay close attention to both games was Queens coach Chris MacDonald, whose team was outshot 51-15 against Michigan State and 66-10 by Michi- gan. "(Michigan State) is a big team, they're strong," MacDonald said. "I think Michigan has great speed. What I'm thinking is that I'd love to have a ticket to that game next weekend." The first thing MacDonald noticed about the Spartans was their goal- tender, last season's Hobey Baker win- ner Ryan Miller. "He's a pro. I don't know how much longer he's going to be in college," MacDonald said. "Once you get past their defense who are all returning players and are very mobile, and you get a chance to shoot, there's this guy. I would be shocked if he doesn't play in the NHL next year. He's that good." The Golden Gaels lacked offensive punch all weekend long, but did man- age two goals against Miller, who played all 60 minutes. Scoring two goals on Miller and the Spartan defense was something that didn't hap- pen very often last season. "I think the defense at Michigan State is more mobile and has a little more speed," MacDonald said. "They like to jump up into the play a little more. Although we lost big, we still had some chances that we created because their defense was getting up ice, getting a little greedy. They seemed to have a cowboy mentality - they liked to gamble, run up, see what they can do on offense." Gimmicks will not help college hockey So Saturday is college hockey's day in the sun. The Cold War. When college hockey becomes a major sport. Just like Magic-Bird in '79. Blackbum-Miller. Right? We'll see. Everyone thinks this will be the best thing to happen to college hockey since whatever the last big milestone in col- attention moves back to the same sports that always receive attention, these fans will stop paying attention to college hockey. Fans who attend this game just because of the hype won't attend games in two months. Regular college hockey games won't get as much attention with the press. This game has become the party that everyone is going to because everyone else is going. TOM FELOKAMP/Daily Freshman Eric Nystrom will get a crack at Michigan State's defense Saturday. Michigan's defense never allowed the Queens offensive attack to get off the ground. MacDonald felt the Wolverines came out with a more con- servative approach at the blue line than the Spartans. "Michigan strikes me as a team that likes to stay at home and move the puck," MacDonald said. "When it comes down to playoff time and you want to keep your goals-against down, I like Michigan's defense." Michigan State was able to convert on four out of eight powerplay oppor- tunities against the Golden Gaels. The Spartans also held Queens scoreless when they were under-manned. The Wolverines also were able to tally four powerplay goals, two coming off the stick of freshman Eric Nystrom. "I think both teams have great spe- cial teams," MacDonald said. "I don't see a major difference between their powerplays. I wouldn't want to be the referee calling a penalty late in the game against either of those two clubs, because it's probably going to make the difference." 'lege hockey was. But I'm not so con- vinced. There are a few reasons for this pessimism: First and foremost, this scheme was concocted in East Lansing and what was the last good idea to come from there? As a general rule of thumb, "great" ideas from "E.L." really aren't that great. Everyone thinks this will be the best thing to happen to college hockey since whatever the last big' milestone in college hockey was. If college hockey is to grow, it needs to find a new market outside of Midwest and the East Coast. Like the NHL did, col- lege hockey needs to find a market in college campuses that normally don't care about the sport. The NHL had the bene- fit of marketing players average fans had heard of. Twin killing: 'M' beats Gophers, Hawkeyes By Charles Paradis Daily Sports Writer Erin Moore's 38th kill of the Dweekend deflected off two Min- nesota players and landed out of bounds to win the match and cap off a critical two days of Michigan vol- leyball (2-2 Big Ten, 5-5 overall). The Wolverines prevailed in both matches, beating Iowa (1-2, 2-8) in a five-game match, and then defeat- ing No. 17 Minnesota (2-2, 8-4) in four games. The win over the Golden Gophers arked the Wolverines first win over a ranked team this season and also raised Michigan's record to .500 - a season-long goal for the team. Last weekend's loss to North- western was a set back for the Wolverines as they lost a game they thought they would win. "We put our backs against the wall last weekend by going 0-2," *Michigan coach Mark Rosen said. After the loss to a weaker oppo- nent, Michigan knew it would have to win against a stronger team to get back to .500. That win did not come easily for the Wolverines. In the third game, Minnesota proved too much for Michigan, handing the Wolverines a 26-30 loss. This win came after the Gophers had lost the first two games in the last points. In the beginning it looked like the Wolver- Wines would cruise to victory as they quickly took-an 8-4 lead. But the Gophers would not be so easily defeated. Rallying back, Minnesota tied the score at 14. The teams trad- ed points back and forth for a few minutes until the Gophers went on a four-point run to make the score 22- 18. Minnesota held onto its four- point lead all the way to 27-23. Then the Wolverines tried to mount a comeback - but the Gophers proved too strong. The game stopped a five-game losing skid for the Gophers, who had lost to the Spartans on Friday night in straight games. With renewed confidence, Minnesota took to the court in the fourth game to prove it was a top 25 team. The Wolverines again jumped out to an early lead, this time 9-4. Again, Minnesota was able to come back and tie the game at 16. But the Wolverines would not let the Gophers come all the way back this time. Refocusing, Michigan ral- lied around two big kills in a row from Chantel Reedus to move ahead 20-16. From there the Wolverines cruised to a victory (30-26, 30-27, 26-30, 30-27). The weekend was packed with big kills as offensive stars stepped up for Michigan. Katrina Lehman, Jennifer Gandolph, Reedus and Moore each had double-digit kills against Iowa. Moore's phenomenal match was highlighted by a career-high 25 kills and a .500 attack percentage. Moore credited much of her success to the play of senior Shannon Melka. "We got the ball on the money a They're usually dumb, and alcohol- induced. But all cheapshots aside, if the idea here is to showcase college hockey, why is a gimmick needed? College hockey isn't what's being showcased. Michigan State's ability to play Don King is what's being showcased. Can it get fans to pay attention to a game that they normally wouldn't? What's more, this game isn't even being showcased to such a large audience. Yes Spartan Stadium will be sold out. But the reality is that college hockey is already very big in East Lansing and Ann Arbor. About as big as it'll ever be. The sport has a cult following in these cities, and it's unlikely that the sport will ever reach college basketball's level of popularity because hockey doesn't have the potential that basketball does. For the most part, hockey is only played in cold-climate areas, and these are the areas where the sport is popular. While NHL expansion has helped introduce the sport to places like Ari- zona and Florida, few in these areas care about college hockey, they really just care about their team. And as far as this game goes, just because fans are going to this game, doesn't mean that they will attend more games in a month. In fact, once the College hockey doesn't have such stars - regardless of what Michigan State thinks of goaltender Ryan Miller. But how does this game reach any of new markets? ESPN won't sacrifice college football for the game. In fact, ESPN2 didn't even pick up the game. The game will be televised on Fox Regional -- that's right, Fox Regional. The fans who will watch the game on television are fans who would watch the game no matter where it was being played. What's more, hockey wasn't made to be played outdoors. What happens if it rains? It would hurt the Astroturf at Spartan Stadium. Now, many are likely wondering, if this game isn't good for college hockey, why are nearly 80,000 fans going to see this game Once a ticket becomes hot, people take an interest. But any publicity isn't good publicity. The University of Michigan should hold itself to higher standards than shenanigans like helping Michigan State set an attendance record that few know about and fewer care about. Even if college hockey doesn't. Raphael Goodstein can be reached at raphaelg@umich.edu. ALYSSA WOOD/Daily Erin Moore's 38 kills led Michigan to wins over No. 17 Minnesota and Iowa. lot. Our setters were great," Moore said. Melka started this weekend in place of freshman setter Lisa Gamalski, who had been starting earlier this season. Rosen started Melka to infuse the lineup with more experience and also to help stabilize a very young lineup. Reedus, who also credited Melka with her success, was not far behind Moore. Against Iowa, she posted a career-high 22 kills. Coming off of an injury that sidelined her last week, Reedus led the team with 39 kills over the weekend. The Wolverines remain undefeat- ed at home this year and with Fri- day's win over Iowa, the team improved its "Rock the -louse" win streak to seven consecutive years. A look at the underside of U of M Has college expanded more' than dour horizons? www.universitysecrets.com Attention CHORAL SINGERS You are invited to join the University Musical Society CHORAL UNION Thomas Sheets, conductor 2001-2002 Season Handel: Messiah Ann Arbor SO [ves: Symphony No. 4 San Francisco SO Brahms: German Requiem Ann Arbor SO Beethoven: Missa Solemnis Detroit SO The UMS Choral Union does it all! Under the leadership of Thomas Sheets, the 135-voice Choral Union appears regularly in Ann Arbor with major orchestras and conductors in critically acclaimed performances of choral masterworks. The 72-voice Concert Choir Picked up a few pounds lately? You're not alone. Studies show the average college student gains 15 pounds before graduating. 4-Week EasyRates Package jD $30 Bring this ad and valid Student ID and you'll receive, by mail, a FREE mousepad and a Power Water Bottle upon joining: The University of MichiganW HAT'S REC Department of Recreational Sports SPORTS INTRAMURALS INTRAMURAL SPORTS PROGRAM TRACK & FIELD ULTIMATE MEET FRISBEE ENTRIES DUE: ENTRIES DUE: Tues 10/2, 4:30 PM, IMSB Weds 10/3, 4:30 PM, IMSB ENTRY FEE: ENTRY FEE: $25 per team $35 for team $5 per individual MANAGERS MEETING: 3 MANAGER'S MEETING: MANDATORY MANDATORY Thurs 10/4, 6:00 PM, IMSB Tues 10/2, 6:00 PM, IMSB TOURNAMENT DATES: MEET DATE: Saturday 10/6 & Sunday 10/7 Thurs 10/4, UM Varsity Track Mitchell Fields ROLLER HOCKEY CROSS COUNTRY RUN ENTRIES DUE: Weds 10/3, 4:30 PM, IMSB ENTRIES DUE: Thurs 10/11, 4:30 PM, IMSB ENTRY FEE: $50 per team ENTRY FEE: $25 per team MANAGER'S MEETING: $5 per individual MANDATORY Thurs 10/4, 6:30 PM, IMSB RUN DATE: Saturday 10/13, 9:00 AM TOURNAMENT DATES: Mitchell Fields/Gallup Park Saturday 10/6 & Sunday 10/7 Get ready for the Purdue Elbel Pad Game - race at 9am. Be at the BIG game by 11am. Entries for the Pie-Season FLAGFOOTBALL TOURNAMENT will be taken Monday October 15 through Wednesday October 17; and, the entry deadline for the 2-Person TEAM GOLFSCRAMBLEis Thursday October 18.