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2B - The Michigan Daily - SportsTuesday - January 21, 2003

CLUBSPORTSWEEKLY
Figure skating team scores big with 'M' hockey fans

ATHLETE OF THE WEEK

By Jim Weber
For the Daily

Although nothing will ever replace
Score-O during intermissions of Michi-
gan men's hockey games, fans are start-
ing to welcome an additional form of
intermission entertainment: The syn-
chronized figure skating team.
"Hockey fans eat up the figure
skaters, junior Kristin Lang said.
"I think part of it was they liked see-
ing a bunch of girls going out in skirts,"
senior Julia Seckzo said about the
team's performance during an intermis-
sion of Michigan's 3-2 overtime win
over Miami (Ohio) on Jan. 4. "They are
like, 'There are a bunch of pretty girls
out there in skirts.' But then, when we
perform, they really appreciate the tal-
ent that it takes."
Seckzo said that guys came up to the

team after the performance saying how
good they looked and women comple-
mented them on how well they skated.
Men and women agreed that they had
done the best skating up until that point,
because the Wolverines trailed the Red
Hawks when they performed.
The team performed the short routine
it uses for competitions for the first
game but plans on adding new moves
for a game on Feb. 7.
"This time we are going to make it
really fun and do back flips because
people don't know what is hard and
what is required," Seckzo said.
The performance at Yost Ice Arena
will be the conclusion of a hectic sched-
ule for the team. It travels to North
Dakota for the Midwest Championships
next week and will travel to Alabama
soon thereafter for National Champi-
onships.

The skaters won't just be short on
time during this time period; they will
also be short on cash. The cost of being
on the team is high, especially during
the time the team competes. Each
skater pays about $1,000 a month for
the eight-month season to pay endless
expenses:
- Travel Cost: $200 per flight.
- Outfits: $500 dollars a piece. One
for each the short and long program.
- Coaching fees: $20,000 per year.
- Ice time: Over $100 an hour
-Team apparel: $300
- Team dues: $475 per person
The cost of being on the team
requires some team members to get
jobs. Despite skating for about 15 hours
a week, Lang works at the Real Seafood
Company on Main St.
Lang did not skate competitively her
freshmen year after doing so throughout

high school, making her realize how
important skating was in her life.
"It really gets to a point where you
have skated so long that you just can't
let it go," Lang said.
Fifth-year senior Kate Kingsbury has
a more demanding schedule than anyone
on the team, working approximately 25
hours a week in Northville on top of
skating and school. Kingsbury, who uses
grants and loans to attend Michigan,
even admits to paying for skating with
her loans before. Despite the time and
costs that go along with skating, both
Lang and Kingsbury said that being a
part of the skating team is priceless.
"Skating is my life and everything
else is on the side," Lang said. "Which
is terrible to say, but that is how I feel."
Said Kingsbury: "I like a busy sched-
ule ... If I wasn't on the team, I would-
n't know what to do with myself."

Who: Kim Plaushines
Hometown: Oconomowoc, Wisc.
Position: Singles and doubles

Sport: Gymnastics
Year: Junior

Why: After dropping their first three games to DePaul, Plaushines and
doubles partner Jen Duprez came back to win 8-4. The win helped the
Wolverines earn the doubles point. Plaushines also won at No. 5 sin-
gles after dropping the first set. Plaushines
M SCHEDULE
Wednesday, Jan. 22
M Basketball vs. Minnesota, 8 p.m.
Thursday, Jan. 23
W Basketball vs. Northwestern, 7 p.m.
Hockey at Lake Superior State, 7:05 p.m.
Friday, Jan. 24
Wrestling at Illinois, 8 p.m.
W Gymnastics at Georgia, 7:30 p.m.

I

Pirate

Bowl

"" R "UARY

SAN DIEGO (AP) - It looks like
the perfect Super Bowl matchup:
Oakland's high-powered offense
against Tampa Bay's stingy defense.
For all the common denominators,
from their swashbuckling logos to
the coach they have shared, the most
intriguing theme is sports' age-old
one. Can the prolific Raiders, led by
the NFL's most valuable player, over-
whelm the Buccaneers, who have the
league's defensive player of the
year?
For all of Oakland's offensive
playmakers, from Rich Gannon to
Jerry Rice to Tim Brown to Charlie
Garner, Tampa Bay can offer such
defensive stalwarts as Derrick
Brooks, Warren Sapp, John Lynch
and Ronde Barber.
And for all of Jon Gruden's suc-
cess as coach of the Raiders, he
never made the Super Bowl with
them. He now has with the Bucs.
The challenge for
Oakland, which
scored 71 points
in two playoff
victories,
including a 41-
24 decisiony
over Ten-
nessee on Sun-
day for the AFC

Pirate Tawk
Paying tribute to the all-Pirate Super Bowl, two of the Michigan Daily sports
writers give their analysis and prediction of the big game.

J. BRADY MCCOLLOUGH

JIM WEBER

ANALYSIS: Yargghhhhh!! The Bucca-
neers are headed for rough waters in
San Diego ... Yargghhhhh! Bucs' cor-
nerback Ronde Barber will have too
much of a challenge when he goes
up against league MVP Rich Gannon
and the Raiders' dazzling passing
attack. The key to the plundering
will be the Bucs' ability to contain
the Jerrys (Porter and Rice.)
PREDICTION: Raiders 27, Bucs 20

ANALYSIS: Ahoy matees! The Bucca-
neers are unstoppable right now
after crushing the 49ers and pillag-
ing Philadelphia. Tampa has balance
on offense and defense that Oakland
can't match. Expect the Bucs to
exploit the only weakness on either
team - the Raiders' secondary -
and for Tampa to set sail back east
with a ship full of booty!
PREDICTION: Bucs 30 , Raiders 24


title, is not just to move the ball
against Tampa Bay, but also find the
end zone. The Bucs, who beat
Philadelphia 27-10 for the NFC
championship, yielded the fewest
yards and the fewest points in the
league.
One of the best matchups next
weekend will be Rice, Brown
and rapidly burgeoning Jerry
Porter vs. Barber, Lynch and the
rest of the Bucs' superb second-
ary.

course. The Raiders even seem
oblivious to their lack of discipline -
14 penalties for 127 yards didn't
stop them Sunday.
"We were making a lot of dumb
mistakes out there," Oakland line-
backer Eric Barton said. "Fortunate-
ly, we sucked it up and stopped it.
That shows the character of this
team."
The Raiders, heading to their first
Super Bowl in 19 years, ranked first
in total offense and
passing offense.
The Bucs, going
to their first
Super Bowl,
were No. 1 in
total defense
and pass
d ef e ns e.

They had a league-high 31 intercep-
tions, and defensive player of the
year Brooks had four runbacks for
touchdowns this season.
"We're a confident bunch and
knew what we had to do to get it
done," All-Pro defensive tackle Sapp
said. "We didn't have to talk about
it, just let the pads do the talking."
Before the pads collide at Qual-
comm Stadium, both sides will be
inundated with questions about Gru-
den. After guiding the Raiders for
four seasons, he was "traded" to the
Bucs, who had fired Tony Dungy
last January, for four high draft
picks and $8 million.
Replaced by his offensive coordi-
nator, Bill Callahan, Gruden hardly
was missed as Oakland opened its
playbook further and scored 450
points this season. And he didn't
really put his offensive touch on the
Bucs until these playoffs, in which
they have outscored the Eagles and
49ers by 58-16.
"Certainly there's some sensitivity
there and some emotion to see Oak-
land play in the Super Bowl," Gru-
den admitted. "I have not talked a lot
about how I got here, but I respect
where I came from. I know there's
some players that maybe don't feel
that, but I'm proud of my experience
there and I have a lot of respect
for the players there and
what they may have done."
Gruden knows there
won't be any sympathy
coming from the Silver
and Black during the big
game. The Raiders' trash
talk already has begun.
"How ya doing,
Coach?" Porter quipped.
"I '11see ya later."

Saturday, Jan. 25
Water Polo vs. San Jose State, 10 a.m.
W Swim/Diving at Northwestern, 2 p.m.
Water Polo vs. Indiana, 4 p.m.
Water Polo vs. Eastern Michigan, 5 p.m.
M Gymnastics at Penn State, 7 p.m.
Hockey vs. Lake Superior State, at Joe Louis Arena, 7:35 p.m.
M Track/Field in Red Simmons Invitational
W Track/Field in Red Simmons Invitational
Sunday, Jan. 26
Water Polo vs. Hartwick, 11:15 a.m.
Water Polo vs. Michigan State, 12:15 p.m.
M Basketball vs. Michigan State, 1 p.m.
W Tennis at Tennessee, 1 p.m.
M Tennis at Tulsa, 2 p.m.
W Basketball vs. Penn State, 5 p.m
6M NOTES

Fenn leads Blue over
Illinois, Notre Dame
Michigan women's swimming
coach Jim Richardson had two
things in mind for the Illinois Invi-
tational this weekend.
"Our team goals were to go to
Illinois and win every session, and
ultimately win the meet," Richard-
son said.
And did the Wolverines ever.
No. 19 Michigan took on rivals
Notre Dame and Ilinois and
emerged victorious. The Wolver-
ines beat the Fighting Illini 225.5-
141.5.
Michigan won every session, and
DAY SCORE B

walked away with wins in 14 of the
20 events. One of the standout per-
formances came from junior Emily-
Clare Fenn, who has been
swimming "exceptionally well,"
according to Richardson.
Fenn had a tough schedule at the
meet. After finishing the 1,650-
yard freestyle, she had to turn
around and swim the 200 backstroke
and 100 free.
Juniors Annie Weilbacher and
Sara Johnson also had a great meet
overall.
"I was very impressed by all of
the girls," Richarson said. "They
proved that we are a strong team and
that we can rise to any challange."
-Ann Uible
OARD


NBA STANDINGS
EASTERN CONFERENCE

NHL STANDINGS

Atlantic Division
New Jersey
Boston
Philadelphia
Orlando
Washington
New York
Miami
Central Division
Indiana
Detroit
New Orleans
Milwaukee
Chicago
Atlanta
Toronto
Cleveland

W
28
23
21
21
20
15
14
w
29
26
21
19
14
14
10
8

AP PHOTOS

Bill Callahan

Pct.
.718
.575
.525
.500
.500
.395
.350
Pct.
.725
.667
.512
.475
.350
.350
.244
.190
Pct.
.795
.641
.615
.605
.550
.308
.256
Pct.
.725
.610
.605
.462
.462
.436
.385

GB
5.5
7.5
8.5
8.5
12.5
14.5
GB
2.5
8.5
10
15
15
19.5
22
GB
6
7
7.5
9.5
19
21
GB
4.5
5
10.5
10.5
11.5
13.5

Ottawa
Toronto
Boston
Montreal
Buffalo

w
30
25
23
18
14

Southeast Division
W
Washington 21
Tampa Bay 18
Florida 14
Carolina 16
Atlanta 14

EASTERN CONFERENCE
Atlantic Division
W L
Philadelphia 26 11
New Jersey 27 12
NY Islanders 21 18
Pittsburgh 20 19
NY Rangers 19 23
Northeast Division

L
10
17
18
19
23
L
18
18
15
21
26

WESTERN CONFERENCE
Midwest Division
W
Dallas 31
San Antonio 25
Utah 24
Houston 23
Minnesota 22
Memphis 12
Denver 10
Pacific Division
W
Sacramento 29
Phoenix 25
Portland 23
Seattle 18
LA Lakers 18
Golden State 17
LA Clippers 15
NBA GAMES

WESTERN CONFERENCE
Central Division
W L
Detroit 26 13
St. Louis 25 13
Chicago 21 15
Columbus 17 23
Nashville 14 20

T
8
3
5
3
6
Tt
5
4
4
5
6
T
5
6
9
6
2
T
7
5
8
4
8
T
5
5
7
9
7
T
10
7
4
6
7

PTS
61
60
49
48
45
PTS
66
55
51
46
36
PTS
50
46
45
42
34
PTS
60
59
53
40
40
PTS
61
55
54
48
40
PTS
63
48
44
42
41

GF GA
117 98
115 88
131135
129137
122147
GF GA
156 97
135116
140125
124140
100119
GF GA
131130
125135
106136
101127
117 168
GF GA
138114
149114
113108
131146
101124
GF GA
149122
130124
118103
129121
99 128
GF GA
146 94
111 113
116129
119 138
109 131

Northwest Division
W
Vancouver 28
Edmonton 22
Minnesota 23
Colorado 17
Calgary 15

L
14
14
16
14
22

Pacific Division
W L
Dallas 26 10
Anaheim 19 17
Los Angeles~ 18 20
San Jose 16 19
Phoenix 15 20
NHL GAMES


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