tlhje a tta t , iWil PORTS Sports desk: 763-2459 sportsdesk@umich.edu SECTIONB ww, i ; gnaiyci - rs ruAtur ~h ;, .Mn, Nvbr$, 2001 D'Backs rattle Rivera, win Series ARIZONA 3, NEw YORK 2 PHOENIX (AP) - The final World Series comeback belonged to the Arizona Diamondbacks and it was the greatest of all. Luis Gonzalez hit an RBI single to cap a two- run rally off Mariano Rivera in the bottom of the ninth inning, and Arizona stunned the New York Yankees 3-2 in Game 7 last night. The Yankees were only two outs from their fourth straight World Series title when it all fell apart. Tony Womack tied it with an RBI double and, after Craig Counsell was hit by a pitch to load the bases, Gonzalez blooped a soft single to center field. Rivera, who had saved 23 straight postseason games, could do nothing but watch the ball fall in to end the Yankees' dynasty. What began as a November duel between Curt Schilling and Roger Clemens climaxed with the Diamondbacks winning the title in just their fourth year of existence. It was the fastest rise in history, breaking the mark of five years set by the 1997 Florida Marlins. The Diamondbacks did it by bouncing back from two of the toughest losses in Series history. They dropped Games 4 and 5 at Yankee Stadium, blowing two-run leads in the bottom of the ninth both times. Randy Johnson, at 38, earned the victory in relief. He also won Game 6 on Saturday night, a 15-2 romp. Johnson was 3-0, making him the first pitcher to win three times in a Series since Detroit's Mickey Lolich in 1968. He and Schilling are linked in history not only as World Series winners - but as MVPs. Johnson, Schilling and several Arizona old- timers, including Gonzalez, Mark Grace, Matt Williams and Mike Morgan, won their first cham- pionship ring. "They have a great ballclub over there, but this team was relentless," Gonzalez said. "This is prob- ably going to go down as one of the best World Series ever." Brenly became the first manager to win the championship in his first year since Ralph Houk did it with the Yankees in 1961. The Yankees, the team that would not give up, nearly won it for the city that would not give in. A highly motivated bunch, they showed extra resolve after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in New York. The Yankees were a homerun swing away from elimination in the first round against Oakland, and lost the first two games at Bank One Ballpark.' But back in the desert, they looked lost. "We're obviously disappointed in the result, but not the effort,"Yankees manager Joe Toree said. Alfonso Soriano's solo homer off Schilling put New York ahead 2-1 in the eighth. Rivera, the most dominant reliever in postseason history, set down the Diamondbacks in the bottom half. Then in the ninth, Arizona rallied. Grace led off with a single and Rivera threw away Damian Miller's bunt for an error, putting runners at first and second. Jay Bell bunted into a force play at third, but Womack lined a tying double to the right-field corner. Counsell, who scored the winning run in Game 7 with Florida in 1997, was hit by a pitch. With the infield in, Gonzalez hit it hard enough for a game-winning single that set off fireworks, pounding music and deafening cheers. The Yankees fell to 5-6 overall in deciding Game 7s of the Series. AP PHOTO/Daily Arizona's Luis Gonzalez is mobbed by teammates after hitting the game-winning single in the bottom of the ninth inning in Game 7 of the World Series. Wait one second Varsity can't blame tough loss on the final seconds EAST LANSING - Maybe the clock ran out, maybe it didn't. It's impossible to know. Official time is, after all, kept by the officials on the field. Maybe there was still a second left. Maybe there were three. From my standpoint, it looked like time expired. Sitting in my seat, I was convinced that Michigan was robbed. But here's the thing - the Wolver- ines left their door unlocked. There was no reason for them to be in that position to begin with. Intra-state rivalries usually bring out the best in everyone. And Michigan State played better than it had all sea- son. But where was the Michigan team that was thinking Rose Bowl? Where was the nation's No. 1 rush defense? Where was the com- posed John Navarre, the one that looked too good to let JON another UCLA slip SCHWARZ away? The Schwartz Coach Lloyd Carr Authority said that his Wolver- ines "deserved bet- ter." He said that about six times during his post-game press conference. But did they? Couldn't it be argued that they got exactly what they deserved? The fact remains that the game was over long before Michigan State quar- terback Jeff Smoker made the phantom spike. The game was over when he threw an incomplete pass on fourth- and-16 from the 50. But cornerback Jeremy LeSueur committed one of most ill-advised penalties in Michigan history, grabbing Michigan State receiver Charles Rogers by the face- mask and flinging him out of bounds. What would have been the end of the game turned into a 15-yard penalty and an automatic Michigan State first down. But it's as unfair to blame the entire outcome on LeSueur as it is to blame the clock. Countless times, Michigan could have put the game away. But poor decision making and worse execu- tion led to the loss. It started right at the beginning of the game. When Rogers ran across the field when the Spartans were punting from Michigan's 31, did the Wolverines really not see the fake coming? How did Rogers get such good position that he had to be interfered with, extending the drive?, A ]n.,.x r ,,-c. NA hgy..ri ' , rnch DANNY MOLOSHOK/Daily Gavin Groninger lit up the EA Sports All-Stars, scoring 29 points in the Wolverines' 94-68 victory. 'M'pounds E All-Stars, 94-68 By David Horn Daily Sports Writer EA Sports is not known for its basketball. Of the EA Sports video game family, their basketball games are proba- bly the weakest. But they field a real basketball team too, and it was that team that gave Michigan its first test of the season in yesterday's exhibition. Exhi- ( EA SPORTS 68 bition or regular season, video game or real live men, the M MICHIGAN 94 Wolverines were interested in the win. "Never underestimate the habit of winning," has become an early mantra of head coach Tommy Amaker. Michigan got the win, 94-68, on the strength of a phenomenal shooting day by junior guard Gavin Groninger. Groninger, who is .never hesitant to pull the trigger on 3- pointers, shot 7-of-i 1 from 3-point land and 9-of-14 overall, finishing the game with 29 points. He was helped offensively by senior captain Leon Jones, whose 19 points and nine rebounds picked up the slack of three key players who spent their day on the bench. LaVell Blanchard sat down after just six minutes when he re-aggravated his ankle, which was injured last week during practice. He should practice today and for the rest of the week. Bernard Robinson sat due to a violation of team rules. He will practice this week, and will likely play in next weekend's exhibition. Josh Moore is still nursing his back, which has been giving him problems all preseason. See EA SPORTS, Page 3B Stickersbaned in Big Ten semi__s S FIELD HOCKEY Ir, rCHAMvPIONSHIPS By Blake FRlion Daily Sports Writer DANNY MOLOSHOK/Daily Eric Brackins and the rest of the Wolverines had a tough time bringing down Michigan State's T.J. Duckett, who ran for 211 yards and scored two touchdowns, including the game-winner with no time left on the clock.. Last-second heroics doom Wolvernes By Arun Gopal Daily Sports Writer EAST LANSING - When Michigan State coach Bobby Williams walked up to the podium for his press conference follow- ing Saturday's last-second, 26-24 victory over No. 6 Michigan, he looked at the microphone, smiled and asked, "Is this thing on?" The normally-reserved Williams could afford to crack jokes, following what might have been the greatest game in the storied Michigan-Michigan State rivalry. When tailback T.J. Duckett caught Jeff Smoker's heave into the endzone on the final play to give the Spartans (3-2 Big Ten, 5-2 overall) the victory, Spartan Stadium exploded and Michinan State celhrated an imnrnhhle ing on the pile, but I said, 'No, no, I better not'," a visibly thrilled Williams said. "That was a huge win for this program." Michigan (4-1, 6-2) entered the game having lost on three of its last four trips to East Lansing. The last thing the Wolverines needed was to fall behind early, which is exactly what happened. After being stopped at Michigan's 31- yard line on its first possession, Michigan State lined up in punt formation. But, the Spartans had no intention of kicking the ball; instead, punter Craig Jarrett lofted a pass to a streaking Charles Rogers, who drew a pass-interference penalty against freshman cornerback Marlin Jackson. The penalty gave the Spartans a first- down at the 16-yard line, and Michigan State wated little time in taking advantage. Spartans a 7-0 lead just 5:27 into the game. "I just tried to make a play, tried to put some points on the board," said Rogers, who finished with 86 yards and a touch- down on six receptions. "Smoke went to me, and it was the right time." The Wolverines responded on their next possession when Hayden Epstein kicked a school-record 57-yard field goal to cut the deficit to four. Michigan finally took its first lead of the game in the second quarter. Following a missed Michigan State field goal, the Wolverines got the ball at their own 33-yard line and drove 67 yards in eight plays. Michigan quarterback John Navarre connected with Marquise Walker for a 14-yard touchdown to give the Wolverines a 10-7 lead. But. the Soartans wasted no time in The disappointing season for the Michigan field hockey team continued as it fell to Ohio State 3-0 in the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament. After defeating Northwestern 6-1 in the quarterfinals, the Wolverines looked poised to capture their third-consecutive conference tournament title. After the victory the team - including coach Marcia Pankratz - was very optimistic about its upcoming matches and the level of I I