6B - The Michigan Daily - SportsMonday - November 12, 2001 Defense gets C-plus in win over Kiondaika With 14 points and five rebounds, center Jennifer Smith dominates the paint for 'M' By Jim Weber Daily Sports Writer After-the only exhibition for the Michigan women's basketball team, a 89-75 win over RTU Klondaika, players and coaches critiqued their per- formance: C-plus. The 17th-ranked Wolverines now have only four more days to find their "A" game before they go on the road to play No. 6 Louisiana Tech in the season opener Friday. Guevara was happy with the 48-31 halftime lead. It was the second half that disappointed her. Klondaika opened the second half with a 10-5 run and eventually closed to within nine with 11:24 left in the game. The Latvians couldn't cut into the deficit any further because of Michigan's presence in the paint. The weaker Latvian players were out-rebounded 45-35 and were unable to contain center Jennifer Smith, who scored 10 of her 14 points in the sec- ond half. Smith also hurt Klondaika on the glass, grabbing five rebounds, four on the offensive end. Louisiana Tech "is going to be a lot different for me because the post players are a lot bigger and a lot stronger," Smith said. "But it did prepare (us) defensively, (playing) weak side and help side. Defensively it probably helped more than offen- sively." The Latvians helped show Michigan how much they need to improve its defense for Louisiana Tech. Klondaika shot 52.5 percent from the field for the game and 56.3 percent in the second half. "We didn't do a bad job (defensively) in the first half. In the second half, it was a complete melt- down," Guevara said. This week's practices will feature the "shell drill," designed to stop penetration through the defense. "They are going to love the shell drill come Monday through Thursday," Guevara said. The exhibition was a showcase for two highly anticipated events. Senior Alayne Ingram played point guard after three years as the shooting guard, and freshman Tabitha Pool debut in maize and blue. Ingram played a team-high 34 minutes and scored a team-high 24 points, half on three-point- ers. But Smith was especially happy with Ingtam's four assists. "She had some sweet passes. She sees you wher- ever and whenever," Smith said. Her coach was impressed by how easy Ingram made the transition to point guard. "I thought she did a very nice job of running the team," Guevara said. "I didn't think there was any question as to who the leader was out on that floor. And that's the kind of thing we need from Alayne." As part of this leadership role, Ingram directed highly touted freshman Tabitha Pool on the floor as she has done in practice to get Pool situated with the Wolverines' system. "I just keep talking to Tab, making suie she knows where to be at. She gets a little mad at me when I yell at her but I say, 'I just want you to do it right because in the heat of the battle it is going to be a lot worse,' " Ingram said. Pool entered the game midway through the first half and played well. She recorded nine points, four boards and a block on a 6-foot-6 Latvian player to put aside any doubts about her knee after tearing her anterior cruciate ligament last season. "I was pleased with the way she came off the bench. You never know how kids are going to respond," Guevara said. "She is Miss Michigan basketball and all of a sudden she is coming off the bench and she is not the go-to (player). I thought she blended in very well. I thought she was aggres- sive." Freshman Tabitha Pool scored nine points In her Michigan debut Friday night. Led by big three, 'M' ends fall on the rise By Melanie Kebler Daily Sports Writer EAST LANSING - If the Michi- gan men's tennis team was looking to end the fall season on a good note, it certainly wasn't disappoint- ed this weekend at the Big Ten Sin- gle's Championships in East- Lansing. Not only did senior Henry Beam and freshman Matt Lockin put up strong individual perform- ances, but the team also exhibited depth and talent. "Coach Mark Mees and I were very pleased with the overall results this weekend," Michigan assistant coach Dan Goldberg said. "This tournament gives players that dur- ing the season may be playing in the lower part of a lineup an opportuni- ty to match up against No. I and No. 2 players from other teams." The Wolverines opened up first round play Saturday morning with three of six players advancing. In the first round of the double elimi- nation tournament, Greg Novak, Chris Shaya and Ben Cox all bowed out. Cox, the No. I1 seed, was upset by Northwestern's Ryan Edlefsen, and later withdrew from the back draw because of nagging arm prob- lems. But two of his teammates defeat- ed top-notch players at the tourna- ment. Anthony Jackson knocked off No. 8 Adrian Bohane of Ohio State and Matt Lockin defeated No. 4 Jackie Jenkins to start the day. No. 3 Beam also advanced, easily han- dling Iowa's Matis Jasicek, 6-3, 6-2. In the second round, Jackson fell to Thomas Hanus of Northwestern, 6-2, 7-5. "He played a better match, he had the right game plan and I don't know if I was aggressive enough," Jackson said. Beam faced Michigan State's Jimmy McGuire and battled through a tough first set before cruising to a win, 7-6 (3), 6-2. Lockin also was victorious in the second round, defeating Purdue's Lait Al-Agba, 6- 4, 6-4. Yesterday, Beam and Lockin con- tinued to advance. Beam defeated Josh Axler of Northwestern in the morn ing, then faced Minnesota freshman Avery Ticer in the quarter- finals later that day. After dropping the first set 4-6, Beam tried to regain control of his service game but ended up bowing out, losing the second set 4-6. "I just had a lot of problems put- ting my serve in the court today," Beam said. "The other guy was a pretty good player and he took advantage of that. I thought I had a real good chance to win it, but I didn't put myself in that position and I didn't play well enough today." Lockin put away his first match of the day against Minnesota's Manuel Lievano, battling back from a one set deficit early in the match to advance to the quarterfinals. Lockin lost the first set against Jamal Parker of Illinois in a tie breaker, but seemed to regain con- trol in the second, taking a 4-1 lead and going on to win the set 7-5. The final set was hard fought and the score remained close throughout. The match ended in a heartbreaking loss for Lockin when Parker won the final tiebreaker point on a let serve. Despite this bittersweet end to the tournament, the team still show- cased a considerable amount of depth and skill against the Big Ten's top singles players. "We had two players in the quar- terfinals which is obviously a really good effort," Goldberg said. "Matt had a number of good wins here. The (three) Victors No. 3 seed senior Henry Beam (3-1): def. Matis Jasic (Iowa), def. Jimmy McGuire (Michigan State), def. Josh Axler (North- western), lost to Avery Ticer (Minnesota) Freshman Matt Lockin (3-1): def. No. 4 seed Jackie Jenkins (Northwestern), def. Laith AI-Agba (Purdue), def. Manuel Lievano (Minnesota), lost to Jamal Parker (Illinois) Sophomore Anthony Jackson (2-2): def. No. 8 seed Adrian Bohane (Ohio State), lost to Thomas Hanus (Northwestern), def. Justin Baker (Wisconsin), lost to Jamie Sahara (Northwestern) Anthony beat the No. 8 seed in the first round, which was a confidence booster. I think we can take a lot of positives out of this event." The Wolverines hope to use their impressive showing at this final fall tournament as a momentum builder as they look toward the spring sea- son, which starts in January. "We'll still be conditioning, doing individual work outs and players will be hitting on their own," Gold- berg said. "This is really a very crit- ical time because I think we want to sustain the momentum that we had at this event and also at the Rolex Regionals. We want to sustain that momentum through the remainder of the fall and right through exams so that in January in the team matches everyone feels like they are at the top of their games." In January, the team will face a tough Big Ten conference schedule. Minnesota and Illinois - whose players were responsible for knock- ing out Beam and Lockin - showed incredible depth this week- end. Minnesota sent five of six players into the quarterfinals yester- day and is sure to be a favored con- tender for the Big Ten title in the spring. Ohio State and Northwest- ern should also be strong this year. But Beam doesn't think Michigan should be counted out just yet. The senior was impressed with his own team's results this weekend and is of the opinion that Michigan has a chance to contend for the title. "Everyone on our team had pretty good results," Beam said. "We'll be good this year." Food for Thought Iraq Embargo A recent study showed that people living in northern Iraq, out of the control of Sadam Hussein, have plenty of dairy products for children. Gary Lillie & Assoc., Realtors www.garylillie.com By Kyle O'Neill Daily Sports Writer EAST LANSING - Usually facing a seeded player in the first two rounds of a tournament more than once is a bad omen. Unless your name is Matt Lockin. For the freshman, beating top-ranked players in the early rounds has become as consistent as his serve return. After beating the No. 5 seed at the ITA Midwest Regional two weeks ago, Lockin returned to competition Satur- day at the Big Ten Singles Champi- onships with a win over No. 4 Jackie Jenkins (6-2, 7-5). "Lockin's going to be a good player for us," Michigan men's tennis coach Mark Mees said. "He's a good competi- tor, he works hard and he's got a lot of talent so we expect some good things out of him." Though the upset on Saturday cou- pled with his second-round victory over Purdue's Laith Al-Agba (6-4, 6-4) were impressive, they were nothing in comparison to his two matches yester- day, including a thrilling quarterfinal loss. In his quarterfinal match against Manuel Lievano from Minnesota, Lockin dropped a tough first set 3-6 before taking the next two 6-3, 6-1. Early in the second set, a rally of shots led to what would be a change in momentum. Lievano hit a winner into the net that dribbled over the tape to make a Lockin return-impossible. Instead of getting down as a result of the point, Lockin got fired up with his opponent's loud celebration over the cheaply won point. Lockin then began a comeback that Lievano could only sit back and watch. "There was a turning point in the second set where I got in (Lievano's) head a little bit," Lockin said. "Also, he didn't really bring it all together in the third. He started spraying balls and wasn't into the match like I was. "I turned it up and he shut down mentally." That mental toughness shown against Lievano was what drew Mees into making Lockin a Wolverine. "The first time I ever saw (Lockin) play was in South Carolina," Mees said. "It was hotter than sin down there and he's out there grinding away in a three hour match when his team had already won the meet. "At that point, I knew he was a pretty good competitor and that he's not going to be phased by losing a first set. Someone is going to have to put in a full match to beat him." In Lockin's semifinal match, Illinois' Jamal Parker gave him all he could handle in what would be one of the closest matches of the tournament. The first set appeared to belong to Parker early on as he, with his over- powering first serve, had a 5-2 lead after the first seven games. As Parker's serve began to falter, Lockin took advantage with key returns to break Parker's serve to make the match 5-4. The two competitors each held serve to reach a tiebreaker at 6-6. But Parker's serve proved to be too much to handle for the freshman as the first three points were won by Parker leading to his 7-2 win the first set. There's no trouble Lockin it up The second set was just as close with both not giving an inch on their serve. Lockin eventually broke serve and took the second set 7-5 to earn third set which was as dramatic as the first two. Neither lost a serve in the third set leading up to the second tie-breaker of the night. Lockin this time broke one of Parker's serves in the tie-break to give himself a 3-2 lead. Parker then took the final four points, including the final point reminiscent of the one Lievano had hit earlier in the day. Lockin had a change early on in the set to get a break to eventually win the match, but couldn't convert the oppor- tunity. "There was a chance in the begin- ning of the third set when I was up 40- 15 with two points to break him which probably would have been the match and the set," Lockin said. "It came down to me not coming in enough. I didn't serve and volley like (Parker) did (in those two break points). Just the way it happened in the tiebreaker." Though he lost, Lockin ended his fall season with a 6-2 record in his final eight matches. Even as just a freshman proved he is going to be ready to be one of Michigan's top singles players in the spring after he takes care of a few mechanics in his net game. "I don't come in enough off my first serve," said Lockin. "I try to take too many short balls and hit groundstrokes with them. I need to focus on serving and volleying more. "But I feel that with the field we have now I have a very good chance of doing well" next time in Big Ten tour- nament play. 6 6 4 I Headaches? Michigan Head*Pain & Neurological Institute is conducting a research study evaluating an investigational medication as a potential treatment for migraine. Participants must be 18 or older and experience at least 2 headaches per month. Study- related medical care and compensation for time and travel will be provided. Please call our Research staff for more information. Michigan Head*Pain & Neurological Institute Joe/R. Saper MD, FACP FAAN, Director 3120 Professional Drive Ann Arbor, Ml 48104 (734) 677-6000, ext. 4 www.MHNI.com WEBB Continued from Page1B has adjusted to this distance, and cross country better than anyone had anticipated. The individual winner of Satur- day's race was Boaz Cheboiywo, a 23-year-old Kenya-native who recently transferred to Eastern Michigan. Cheboiywo dominated the race, taking the lead from the " start and immediately pulling away from his closest pursuers. Cheboiy- wo, who is favored to win the national meet, ran a time of 29:52 - 45 seconds faster than Webb. "I would be shocked if that man did not win the national meet," Warhurst said. Although Warhurst did not expect Webb to beat Cheboiywo, Webb hadn't ruled out the possibility. "I wanted to see what (Cheboiy- wo) was doing," Webb said. "I'm a little disappointed. I wanted to win, but at the same time, it's just a pre- lim. Now I know what I have to do." Alan Webb is a "killer competi- tor," said Warhurst. "But he's human. Boaz was just better today. When you're as good as Webb, you've got to run against these guys, and you don't always win." Michigan also placed four other runners in the top 30. Senior Mike Wisniewski covered the course in 30:56, finishing sev- enth overall. "Mike ran great today," Warhurst said. "He was only two places off of his finish at Big Tens, and this is a bigger, tougher field." The regional meet marked Wis- niewski's third consecutive top five finish. ALYSSA WOOD/Daily With 82 points, No. 11 Michigan finished behind only No. 5 Notre dame this weekend to automatically qualify for the NCAAs next weekend. a "I think I ran better than I've been doing in the past," Wisniewski said. "And I can do better than I did today. There's always room for improvement." Fellow senior Mark Pilja also improved on his Big Ten meet per- formance, finishing 16th overall with a time of 31:19. The fourth and fifth runners for the Wolverines were Tom Greenless and Nathan Brannen, who finished together earning 29th and 30th place, respectively. Greenless, who finished in 55th place at last year's regional meet, ran himself into the right group of runners immediately and shaved 40 seconds off his time from last year. "Greenless ran tremendous," Warhurst said. "He is coming along hcw we hoped he would." Although only one place behind Greenless, Brannen ran a much dif- ferent race than his teammate. The freshman ran conservatively in his first collegiate regional meet, start- ing further back, and steadily mov- ing through the pack. Helping Brannen out in the early stages of the race for the Wolver- ines was redshirt freshman Brian Turner who finished 44th overall in what Warhurst called "his best cross country race ever." Even with the unexpected suc- cess at the regional meet, coach Warhurst maintains that the meet is "just a qualifier, not a final. The point is the team gets to go (to nationals)," Warhurst said. "The key in cross- country is the team. This is fun - this is group therapy." The team will undoubtedly take away more than just a qualifier for nationals. "We have a lot more confidence than we did a week ago," Warhurst said, "and that will be key at nation- als." SPINK Continued from Page 1B Ininr Tanne Snink ran a sreat race finishing iust we're a team that is going to go to nationals. So this is a disappointment." ' The key, McGuire said, for next year is "getting redshirt kids into the line-up." ~ : Ai