6B - The Michigan Daily - SportsMonday - March 25, 2002
Low seeding doesn't
shut out Wolvennes
WOMEN'S SWIMMING AUSTIN, TEXAS
CHAMPIONSHIPS
'M' has 'worst match'
against Indiana State
By Kyle O'Neill
Daily Sports Writer
If seedings had anything to do with
how an individual would finish, the
Michigan women's swimming and
diving team would have left the
NCAA Championships with no
points.
Instead, the four Wolverines who
went down to Austin, Texas came back
home yesterday in 27th place with
20.5 points. Despite the fact that the
team wasn't supposed to have any All-
Americans, all four Wolverines left
with honorable mention honors.
"We had lifetime bests out of every-
body and I'm pleased with that,"
Michigan coach Jim Richardson said.
"Only 35 percent of all the swimmers
here swim faster than their personal-
bests. We performed well, but we just
don't have the numbers that other
teams do.:
In a season plagued by injury,
Michigan was without three of its best
swimmers and turned to its youth.
And although just three underclass-
men made it to NCAAs, there is much
promise for next year as the experi-
ence gained from this season should
pay off.
"It's unfortunate that we've had
more injuries than in years past, but
you're going to have those types of
years," Richardson said. "The mark
that this team has left is one that will
be carried on. We've never had a more
functional team."
And of the four that went to
NCAAs, only one won't be back next
year. For senior Lindsay Carlberg, she
couldn't have left on a better note after
her last two performances.
Earning two more honorable men-
tion All-America honors, she leaves
Michigan with a career total of six.
Her first honor at this year's NCAAs
came in the 400-yard medley relay
where she, Amy McCullough, Kelli
Stein and Annie Weilbacher finished
in 12th place. But Carlberg saved the
best for the last day, as she finished
third in the consolation finals of the
200 backstroke to earn an 11th-place
finish, the highest of any Wolverine at
this meet.
"Lindsay certainly deserved it, and
I'm really proud of her," Richardson
said. "She's not suited to race short-
course (50-yard length) though.
She's not tall, and it really becomes a
turning contest. Lindsay's a swim-
mer, she took (on average per lap) an
extra 6-7 strokes before the girl next
to her would even resurface from her
turns. When they race in a long-
course (100-yard length) Lindsay has
an advantage stroke-wise over her
competitors."
DAVID ROCHKIND/Daily
Michigan, thanks to all four of its representatives at the NCAA Championships
earning All-American honorable mention status, finished 27th as a team.
The only other Wolverine to fin-
ish with All-America honorable
mention status was Weilbacher, who
finished 12th in the 100-yard butter-
fly. In the two times she raced in
that event and the two times she
swam the 100 fly in the 400 medley
relay, Weilbacher improved on her
career-best every time.
But this isn't anything new to
Michigan Richardson said Weilbach-
er has "made huge improvements all
season" including swimming then-
career-bests at the Big Ten Champi-
onships in late February.
Stein added two top-25 finishes in
the 100- and 200-yard breaststrokes,
while McCullough, the lone fresh-
man, overcame adversity to finish
28th in the 1,650 freestyle.
"For Kelli, the 200 breaststroke was-
n't an easy swim due to how fast the
competition was, but it was a good
swim," Richardson said. "We pulled
Amy in the 200 freestyle (on Friday)
because she has bronchitis, and we
wanted her rested for the mile (on Sat-
urday). She wasn't feeling well, but
she still swam very strong."
Auburn was crowned the NCAA
Champion this year in a meet where 10
United States Open records were bro-
ken, six of those coming in events
where Michigan was represented.
By Brian Steere
Daily Sports Writer
The Ball State men's tennis team
knew it was in trouble yesterday
before it hit the courts against
Michigan.
After learning that Indiana State
(9-7) had pummeled the Wolverines
7-0 on the previous day, the Cardi-
nals faced the daunting task of trying
to upset a Big Ten team that was out
for blood.
Playing with an adjusted lineup,
Michigan (1-3 Big Ten, 9-5 overall)
rolled past Ball State (5-11), 5-2 to
earn a split for the road trip.
With senior Ben Cox out at No. 2
singles due to mononucleosis, coach
Mark Mees had to move everyone up
a spot in the lineup, allowing sopho-
more Brett Baudinet to see action for
the first time.
Despite dropping a tough 7-6, 6-4
decision at No. 6 singles, Baudinet
teamed with junior Chris Shaya at
No. 1 doubles and produced some
rocket serves to help the duo garner a
9-8 victory.
"Brett played very solid in dou-
bles," Mees said. "I thought he had
some chances in singles but was
unable to convert at the end."
The Wolverines claimed the dou-
bles point with easy victories at the
No. 2 and No. 3 spots, and then
cruised in singles to drop the Cardi-
nals for the second straight year.
As strong as Michigan played
against Ball State, Saturday's match
against Indiana State was certainly
one to forget.
In Mees own words: "It was the
worst match possible."
Indiana State pounded the Wolver-
ines in singles, earning straight-set
victories in five of the six matches.
Beam was able to push Stefan Him
to a decisive third set at the No. 1
spot, but eventually succumbed, 6-3,
3-6, 6-3.
Despite his gritty performance, the
loss was certainly a disappointing
one for the Wolverines' marquee
player.
Beam entered the contest having
won nine of his last 12 matches,
including a huge victory two weeks
ago over 16th-ranked Danny Wester-
man of Wisconsin.
At No. 2 singles, Cox returned to
the lineup after missing Tuesday's
match against Bowling Green, but he
was clearly not the player who is
accustomed to overpowering his
opponents. Vedran Vidovic handed a
6-0, 6-0 thumping to the Michigan
senior, who is still trying to get back
to his old form following the layoff.
"Ben is clearly not healthy; he did-
n't practice all week," Mees said.
Michigan will just have two days
to rest before facing No. 7 Notre
Dame on Wednesday at the Varsity
Tennis Center.
The Fighting Irish boast the
nation's No. 7 singles player in Javier
Taborga, and they roll into Ann
Arbor having taken four of their last
five matches against the Wolverines,
including a 7-0 drubbing last year in
South Bend.
Small Cox
Since contracting mononucleosis
before spring break, senior Ben
Cox has played in four matches at
No. 2 singles. Despite his resielen-
cy, he is clearly not the same play-
er that was ranked No. 83
nationally earlier in this season.
Opponent outcome score
Illinois Loss 6-2, 6-3
Minnesota Loss 6-3, 6-3
Wisconsin Loss 6-4,61
Indiana State Loss 6-0,6-0
Softball sweeps through four
games in the Bluegrass State
By Bob Hunt
Daily Sports Writer
The Michigan softball team has let too many
games slip away this season, and it was not going
to let that happen again.
The Wolverines (21-6) scored a key run in the
top of the seventh on Saturday and put up three
big runs yesterday en route to a sweep against
Louisville and a 4-0 record in this weekend's
Louisville Invitational.
In yesterday's 3-0 win, Marissa Young pitched
her second shutout of the weekend allowing just
two hits while fanning six. The Wolverines got
their first run in the second when Michelle
Teschler drove in Mary Conner, who was at the
time pinch-running for Young. In the fifth, Ste-
fanie Volpe hit a two-run homer, giving Young
plenty of insurance to wrap up the game and a
perfect tourney record.
"We had great team demeanor," Michigan
coach Carol Hutchins said.
Young also pitched well in Saturday's game
against the Cardinals, looking strong after strik-
ing out the side in the second with the bases
loaded and nobody out. But, the Wolverines were
only able to put on one baserunner in the game's
first six innings. Michigan was able to end the
deadlock in the top of the seventh, when Monica
Schock doubled to right field driving in Volpe for
the game's only run.
"We've had some trouble holding on to those
close games," Volpe said.
After giving up seven runs to Minnesota in the
Seminole classic, Young returned to her old form
and upped her record to 12-4. She has now won
nine of her last 10 starts.
Michigan defeated Saint Louis on Friday and
Saturday afternoon behind the solid perform-
ance from the mound by freshman Nicole Moty-
cka. Motycka, stepping into the No. 2 position
in the pitching rotation, has been able to go the
entire contest in just five of her 12 starts so far
this season.
But this weekend, she went the distance both
times, giving up just two earned runs, extending
her winning streak to four games and improving
her record to 9-2.
"She's had to adjust, and she definitely adjust-
ed this weekend," Volpe said. "She improved a lot
and hopefully will carry that into the rest of the
season."
In the weekend opener on Friday, the Billikens
struck first after Beth Puttcamp - who reached
YESTERDAY'S GAME
Michigan 3, Louisville 0
Louisville (15-17) Michigan (216)
Player AB R H BI Player AB R H BI
Meisenburg ss 2 0 1 0 Kollen 2b 4 0 0 0
Bausher cf 3 0 00 Doecf 4 0 11
Calderon rf 3 0 0 0 Volpe 3b 4 0 1 0
Jacobo 3b 3 0 0 0 Schock c 4 0 1 0
Sparks 2b 3 0 00 Young p 3 22 1
Estes2dh 3 0 1 0 Moulden 1b 4 0 1 0
McMillan c 2 0 0 0 BetleylIf 2 1 2 2
Sherman 1b 1 0 0 0 Merchantss 3 0 0 0
Nord 2 0 0 0 Teschier dh 1 0 0 0
Blois p 0 0 0 0 Conner rf/pr 1 0 0 0
Rak p 0 00 0
Total 22 0 2 0 Total 24 3 7 3
E - Louisville 1: Meisenberg. DP - Louisville 1; Michigan 1. LOB -
Louisville 3; Michigan 8. 2B - Michigan 1: Estes. HR - Michigan 1:
Volpe. BB- Louisville 1: Meisenberg; Michigan 4: Volpe, Young,
Moulden, Teschier. HBP - Michigan 1: Sherman. SB - Bowling Green
2: Barkholz 2 (7); Michigan 1: Rutkowski (2). CS- Bowling Green 2:
Henschen (1), Lipari (1); Michigan 1: Koman (3).
Louisville 000 000 0 -0 2 1
Michigan 010 020 X -3 7 0
IP H R ER B SO
Louisvile
BloisL,(0-3) 1.2 2 1 1 2 1
Rak 4.1 5 2 2 2 3
Michigan
Young 7 2 0 0 1 6
At - Ulmer Stadium; Lexington, Ky. Attendance --364 Time -1:23
choice. But the Wolverines tallied five in the
fourth to blow the game open. The Wolverines
ended up winning 8-2.
In Saturday's first game, the Wolverines also
had to come from behind after the Billikens got
on the scoreboard in the second. Michigan
responded with two in the next half-inning on
two RBI singles by Volpe and Melinda Moulden.
Moulden drove in an insurance run in the fifth,
and Motycka's pitching did the rest to secure
another one-run game, 3-2.
"That's something we have not been able to do
is to come back on teams when we have been
down, which is big," Young said.
This was the final regular season tournament
for the Wolverines as they have traveled to Cali-
fornia, Georgia, Florida (twice) and now Ken-
tucky. The team opens their home schedule
tomorrow afternoon, when it plays Bowling
Green State at 3 p.m. at Alumni Field.
This will be Michigan's final non-conference
tune up before it opens up the Big Ten season
with two games against both Penn State and Ohio
State this weekend.
4
Consistency preached
in three-game streak
By Brian Schick
Daily Sports Writer
Expressing concern last week about
consistency, Michigan women's tennis
coach Bitsy Ritt hoped her team would
have a dominating weekend and keep a
winning streak together.
Michigan traveled to Milwaukee this
weekend and defeated Marquette 6-1
on Saturday and Tulane 5-2 yesterday.
The Wolverines (1-3 Big Ten, 7-6
overall) won two matches in a week-
end for the first time since January,
and are riding a three-match winning
streak - their longest of the season.
"We really played well this weekend,
especially against Tulane," Ritt said.
Michigan might have its first sig-
nificant injury of the season, as junior
Jen Duprez, who has played the
majority of the season at No. 5 singles
and No. 2 doubles, injured her hip
during her match against Marquette.
She didn't play against Tulane the fol-
lowing day, and it is unclear how seri-
ous her injury is.
As a result, senior Jen Vaughn saw
her first action of the season, filling
in for Duprez at No. 2 doubles with
sophomore Kim Plaushines. Vaughn
has been rehabbing an injury to her
hip since Sept., and hasn't played in a
competitive doubles match since last
April. Vaughn and Plaushines easily
beat the Eagles' tandem 8-1.
"It was great to see Jen Vaughn
back on the court," Ritt said. "It's
been months and months of rehabili-
tation, and she played a great match. I
thought it was rewarding for her and
the team."
As a result of Duprez's injury,
Plaushines saw her first action in sin-
gles since Jan. 20 against DePaul
against DePaul. Plaushines won her
No. 6 singles match in straight sets,
improving her record in singles to 4-1
on the season.
The Wolverines encountered an
interesting lineup situation against
Marquette. The Golden Eagles (2-11)
only have six women on their roster,
the bare minimum. However, this had
not caused any problems for Mar-
quette this season - besides their dis-
mal record - until Saturday.
One of the Marquette players
injured herself, and was forced to
withdraw. Since Marquette had just
five remaining players, Michigan was
given the No. 6 singles point by
default.
The Wolverines will test their con-
sistency Thursday, when they return to
Big Ten action against Michigan State
in East Lansing.
FILE PHOTO
Michigan's Stefanie Volpe led the Wolverines' offense
with a two-run home run yesterday against Louisville.
base on a Volpe error
- scored on a fielder's
4
I
Even weather not friendly to baseball on road
Pitchers sturggle in Kansas allowing 20 runs in two games, while offense musters only 11
LARGEST SELECTION
By Jim Weber
Daily Sports Writer
The Michigan baseball team was
seeking revenge yesterday. Unfortu-
nately, they never got the chance.
The Wolverines' game against
Kansas yesterday was cancelled due
to rain after Michigan dropped Fri-
day's game to the Jayhawks, 9-7,
because of a heartbreaking two-out,
three-run homer off Bobby Korecky.
The Wolverines were especially dis-
appointed that they didn't get a
chance to play Kansas again on a
field they felt was playable.
"The surface was fine," outfielder
Brandon Roberts said. "We thought
we could have played today. It was
their coaches' call, and it made a lot
I '
of guys mad because we thought if
we had played, we would have
kicked their butts."
Michigan also played on Saturday,
losing 11-4 to Oral Roberts.
Due to the cancellation, the
Wolverines spent yesterday after-
noon practicing indoors. Interim
coach Chris Harrison thought it was
especially beneficial for his pitching
staff, which struggled the previous
two days.
On Saturday, Michigan was tied
with Oral Roberts, 1-1, in the bot-
tom of the fourth inning but allowed
the Golden Eagles to score 10 runs
in the final five innings. The game
got away from the Wolverines in the
sixth inning when, trailing 4-1, Oral
Roberts' David Castillo hit a three-
run homer off starter Rich Hill.
Hill was replaced after the inning,
but the bullpen didn't fare much
better against the Golden Eagles
(13-8). Senior Kirk Taylor gave up a
home run to the first batter he
in its last nine tries.
After 15 games, this is the worse
start to a season for Michigan (3-
12) since 1996, but that didn't dis-
courage Harrison.
"As funny as it sounds with our
record, I think we have been playing
good ball the last two-and-a-half
weeks," he said.
Roberts said the team is more
focused on improving than on bet-
tering its record, and he believes
that the Wolverines will start win-
ning more games in the Big Ten
season, which starts next Friday.
Roberts has done plenty of
improving on his own. He leads the
team in batting average (.367) and
RBIs (14). The early season success
for Roberts comes after a freshman
year that saw him bat just .207.
Harrison said he and the coaching
staff worked with Roberts during
the fall and helped him make some
adjustments.
"I'm using my legs better, and I
have a. differenit mrid set when T
miscues, committing just three more
in his last 11 outings.
Because of yesterday's cancella-
tion, Jim Brauer - who was sup-
posed to start against Kansas -
will start Wednesday against West-
ern Michigan.
SATURDAY'S GAME
Oral Roberts 11, Michigan 4
Oral Roberts (134)
Player AB R H
Boyle2b 4 2 01
Stewart If 4 3 2
castilloc 6 3 5
MacAlmon pr0 0 01
Harvick c 0 0 01
Reynolds rf 4 0 1
Thornton 3b 5 1 1
Richardson 1b 4 0 2
Bigley dh 5 1 1
Donaldson cf 5 1 2
Bernier ss 0 0 0
Raciop p0 0 0
Sanderson p 0 0 0
Michigan (312)
BI Player AB R1
0 Lollo rf 5 0
1 Sokolilb 4 11
4 Komanss 3 1
0 Roberts If 4 2
0OFox dh 4 0
1 Wuerfel c 4 0
2 Cataiessa 2b 3 0
1 Jominy 3b 4 0
1 Butler of 2 0
0 Rutkowski p/cf 1 01
0 Burhans ph 1 01
o Hil p 0 01
0 Taylor p 0 0
Tognetti p 0 01
H BI
0 0
0 0
1 0
3 2
1 1
1 1
3 1
1 0
0 0
0 0
00
0 0
0 0
0 0
AO
L2
Total
41111510 Total
354104
1-
III
Food for Thought
Manipulating Opinion
Yulng r-1 'rL author of
E- Oral Roberts 2: Stewart (1); Michigan 1: Stewart
(1), Koman (6). DP - Oral Roberts 1; Michigan 1.
LOB - Oral Roberts 11; Michigan 7. 2B - Oral Roberts
2: Castillo (13), Donaldson(5); Michigan 1: Canta-
lamessa (3). 30- Michigan 1: Roberts (1). HR-Oral
Roberts: Castillo (6), Bigley (1). B5- Oral Roberts