41 .be 1itrbiganx &iil SPORTS michigandaily.com sportsdesk@umich.edu WEDNESDAY APRIL 3, 2002 10- A Cammalleri's absence helped Icers prepare By Naweed Sikora Daily Sports Writer How different would this year's Michigan hockey team be if its leading goal-scorer, Mike Cammalleri, hadn't missed 10 games in the second half of the sea- son because of mono? "You never know how things would have evolved if Mike would have been here," Michigan associate head coach Mel Pearson said. Even if Cammalleri hadn't missed those games, things couldn't have turned out much better for the Wolverines, who advanced to the Frozen Four and will play Minnesota in tomorrow's semifinal round. But could Cammalleri's illness have actually bene- fited the team? The junior's absence not only gave others an oppor- tunity to step up, it also forced them to make plays. It forced Junior John Shounyeia to emerge as a leader on the team. It forced freshmen like Eric Nystrom, Dwight Helminen, Michael Woodford and Milan Gajic to find an offensive rhythm. And it forced the Wolverines to develop depth that had been non-exis- tent with Cammalleri in the lineup. All of these things happened, and Michigan went 7-1-2 in 10 games without him. "We found out a lot about our team when Mike went down," Pearson said. "Everybody had to pitch in a little more and step up, and I think we met the chal- lenge. The guys had an opportunity to take bigger roles on the team. Shouneyia is one example who filled a leadership role." The passes that Cammalleri would have made came from Shouneyia, who picked up 10 assists in Cammalleri's absence. Shouneyia currently leads the team with 40 assists, an average of just under one per game. The goals that Cammalleri would have scored sud- denly came from other sources. It was Helminen who scored the game-tying goal in the third period against Michigan State on Jan. 19. It was Nystrom who scored an overtime goal against Nebraska-Omaha on Feb. 8 to give Michigan the win. And finally, it was defenseman Eric Werner who scored Michigan's lone goal in its 1-0 win over Lake Superior on Feb. 2. When Cammalleri returned, it seemed certain that this depth would continue to show and the Wolverines would be very difficult to beat. Not only did they now have one of the best players in the country back, but they also had a supporting cast that was producing rather than watching. But this wasn't the case, as the depth disappeared and Cammalleri had to once again carry the team through the first two rounds of the CCHA Tourna- ment. He scored five goals in two games against Lake Superior to help Michigan escape the first round. Then he scored both of Michigan's goals against Ohio State to lead them into the championship game. But in the CCHA title game, the supporting cast re-emerged. In their last three games - wins over Michigan State, St. Cloud and Denver - Cammalleri hasn't scored a goal, but his teammates have picked him up. "Teams get better as you go on," senior Craig Mur- ray said. "Mike put in his chances then. But lately, he's been getting checked tightly, and he has to fight for every inch he gets." Cammalleri will be watched very closely in the Frozen Four by opposing defensemen. The Wolver- ines know they cannot wait for him to generate all of their scoring chances. To win, they will need to demonstrate the depth and consistency that they have shown in their past three games and in the 10 games when Cammalleri was out. "We have preached to our players that you have to be ready as an individual in every game," Pearson said. "It might be you who gets the one chance to make the difference." I I TOM FELDKAMP/Daily Mike Cammalleri carried the Wolverines against Ohio State In the CCHA Tournament, but the whole team needs to contribute to beat Minnesota tomorrow. Wright and Lollio go back-to-back as usual By Dan Rosen Daily Sports Writer Michigan first baseman Nate Wright had seen it plenty of times before. On March 19, Wright watched from the on- deck circle as his friend and teammate, rightfielder Gino Lollio, belted another home run. This homer came in the bot- tom of the eighth inning and propelled the Wolverines to a 4-3 win over Bowl- ing Green. Today, when the Wolverines square off against Detroit at 3 p.m. at The Fish, Lollio and Wright will likely assume their normal spots in the batting order - hitting fifth and sixth, respectively. Over the past summer, the two occu- pied similar spots in thier lineup in the Northwoods summer league in Min- nesota, where Wright watched Lollio hit so many home runs that his team- mates called him "Longball Lollio." But watching his friend bounce that dramatic homer off the top of the fence to beat Bowling Green lit a fire in Wright to hit one of his own. "I just thought 'God, I want to hit a home run so bad,"' Wright said. He said he knew that he just had to relax and get a good pitch to hit and he could do it. So last Saturday, as Wright stood in the on-deck circle and watched Lollio hit another ball over the fence in left - the right fielder's second of the season - he knew he had to launch one of his own. The senior didn't waste any time at the plate either, clobbering the first pitch he saw to the exact same spot. "I was almost more pumped up for his home run (than mine)," Lollio said of Wright's home run. "I loved that." The two developed their friendship over the summer playing with a team in the small town of Alexandria, Minn. They lived with local families and enjoyed somewhat of a celebrity status amongst the people of the town. "There's no one else there," Wright said of Alexandria. "Every- one knows who you are, it's like you're the Beatles." Along with enjoying their local fame, Wright and Lollio got some valuable experience playing alongside a number of other Big Ten players, such as Min- nesota outfielder Sam Steidl. Their summer will greatly benefit the Wolver- ines because of the important role the two play in the order. "They've got to protect Brandon Roberts and Brock Koman," Michigan interim head coach Chris Harrison said. "They've got to be swinging the bat well enough so Brock and Brandon see good pitches." Harrison also said that they needed to drive in big runs for Michigan like they did over the weekend against Iowa. The two combined to drive in five of the RAY FISHER STADIUM Who: Michigan (3-1 Big Ten, 6-13 overall) vs. Detroit (0-0 Horizon League, 4-10) When: 3 p.m. Latest: The Wolverines are looking to build off the momentum from last weekend's success against Iowa. Wolverines' 17 runs over the four-game series. Harrison knows that the Wolverines will need that type of production to continue against Detroit. Michigan is hoping to build on last weekend's suc- cess - in which it won three of four games. "We need to keep playing better, and I think the guys know that," Harrison said. "(Our) Big Ten record is good, but I know (the players) would like to improve their overall record." Pride and camaradene key to Blue's softball success By Bob Hunt Daily Sports Writer thing I have learned is how to have pride in the program," Doe said. Under the leadership of Michigan coach Carol Hutchins, Doe and the rest of her teammates feel a When Meghan Doe traded the sunny 95-degree days of Tucson, Ariz. for the snowy 30 degrees of Ann Arbor three years ago, she did not know what to expect. She had heard of the "Big House" and the tradition of the Michigan name. She remembers telling her high school classmates that she was going to Michigan and what a big deal that was. But-nothing could prepare her for the camaraderie she would share with her teammates after joining the Michi- gan softball program. "Softball-related or not, the most desire to play well not just for them- e I selves or for the team, but for the pro- ALUMNI FIELD gram. When they run onto the field Who: No. 13 Michigan (3- each game, they feel as if they are repr 1 Big Ten, 24-7 overall) esenting the past, present and future of vs. Bowling Green (3-3 Michigan softball. MAC, 10-12) "It's amazing what only she and the en3Mchigan looksto program teaches us," Doe said. ride its momentum after "Everyting from tucking your shirt in sweeping No. 25 Ohio at practice everyday and respecting state. coaches and umpires." To keep the tradition going, the important team's upperclassmen take the freshmen from the moment they come to campus and teach them about the program and the pride they have for it. "Everyone comes in here a superstar," junior first baseman and left fielder Melinda Moulden said. "It's taking everybody's experiences, pride and self-confidence and molding it together." While many Michigan teams may have that same talent and pride, softball is different. It has had success despite being a cold-weather school playing a warm-weather sport. The only softball programs that have been to the Women's College World Series more than Michigan are UCLA, Ari- zona, Fresno State, Oklahoma State and Cal State Fullerton - all warm-weather schools. But despite their accomplished past, the Wolverines know'stay- ing at the top is just as tough as getting there. "It's going to be a tougher challenge for us than any of these years in the past because the competi- tion in the Big Ten is especially unbelievable this year," Doe said. But becoming the best in the Big Ten is not good enough. The Wolverines want to be one of the perennial powerhouses of college softball. "Pac-10 teams don't have any sympathy for us when we don't get to play outside and neither does anyone else;' Doe said. "I don't want people to say 'oh, they're good for the Midwest or from the Big Ten,' I want people to say 'they're good."' And that quest will not end for the.Wolverines until they win a title. "I want a national championship," Moulden said. "And when I leave here, I want to be darn sure that as I leave this program, (the team) is still going to be fighting for one."Y There's s l time to apply! The deadline for fall 2002 is We accept applications until the sites are fully enrolled. Stud IAbroad FLORENCE * LONDON *"MADRID - PARIS - PRAGUE with NYU PROGRAMS IN THE FALL AND SPRING TERMS OR FOR A FULL ACADEMIC YEAR * CHOOSE COURSES IN ENGLISH OR IN NATIVE LANGUAGE * DIRECT ENROLLMENT AVAILABLE TO PROFICIENT STUDENTS * FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES MAY BE AVAILABLE NewYork University Launc'h a New Career. g " Create your own mixes with iTunes. Burn your own CDs. Store 1,000 tunes on your Apple iPod. Special Pricing for UM Students iMacs starting at $1,249. Apple iPod $369. M' wants to avoid letdown vs. Spartans By Brian Steer. Daily Sports Writer Experiencing a letdown after a huge victory is one of the toughest tendencies to avoid in sports. The tremendous confidence that results from a marquee win can easily pro- pel a team to look past its next opponent. Fresh off its upset over No. 4 Notre Dame last week, the Michigan men's tennis team (1-3 Big Ten, 10- 5 overall) will try to sustain its momentum tonight against Michi- gan State (1-3, 13-6) at the Varsity Tennis Center. "There are only two ways we can go after the Notre Dame match," Michigan coach Mark Mees said. "Either we can really use it as a springboard to get better, or we can sit back and feel good about our- selves and not play as well. That was a good win for us, but we have to make sure we build on it." Although the rivalry between the Wolverines and Spartans has been entirely one sided of late, with Michigan taking the last 10 matches, junior Chris Rolf knows that the team can't afford to get complacent. "Michigan State has a very good team this year," Rof said. "They are young and talented and will be tough at every spot. We can't look past them at all." With only six matches remaining before the Big Ten Tournament, Michigan will need to augment its dismal 1-3 conference record if it wants to make the NCAA tourna- ment for the fifth consecutive year. In the past 10 years, the Wolverines have never advanced to the postsea- son with a sub-.500 record in the Big Ten. Despite the team's precarious state, junior Chris Shaya believes the Notre Dame win solidified Michigan's spot in the NCAA Tour- nament. "I don't think there's any concern about making the tournament," Shaya said. "I think we're in, and even if we'renot in (at this point in the season), I don't think .anybody cares. After a win like that, you can't really put a limit on this team anymore." A big reason for Shaya's immense confidence is that Notre Dame is a legitimate contender for the national championship. Earlier in the year, the Fighting Irish defeated No. 3 Illinois 4-3 in Champaign. Since the Fighting Illini are cur- rently atop the Big Ten standings, Shaya expressed some brash words about the Wolverines' chances in the conference tournament. "I believe that we will win the tournament," Shaya said. "I am call- ing the team out right now. I don't see any reason why we can't be Big Ten champions." The Wolverines have yet to win th __,_ __aen rnfrar _, a_-_, I I I I 41 A