8 - The Michigan Daily - Friday, February 21, 2003
Owen steps
up for injured
Kulczycki
By Sharad Mattu
Daily Sports Writer
For the Michigan wrestling team, every time a
wrestler has suffered an injury (and it's happened more
times than the Wolverines would like), another wrestler
has been able to step in.
So when fifth-year senior Mike Kulczycki sprained
his ankle Feb. 1 against Northwestern, it was no sur-
Water polo coping with
loss of freshman phenom
By Ellen McGarrty
Daily Sports Writer
prise that redshirt junior Pat
Owen was ready to return
from his MCL sprain.
And given a chance to get
right back in the lineup, the
165-pounder has made the
most of his opportunity.
Owen has gone 3-1 since
his return, including pins
against Minnesota's then-
No. 6 Jacob Volkmann and
To~oR~wT
N) 6 Icina
ro 6mu
It was just two minutes into the first
quarter of the Michigan water polo
team's game against Santa Barbara a
week and a half ago, and star freshman
Megan Hausmann was setting up a shot
against the Gauchos. She was ready to
make her 12th goal as a Wolverine, to
tie her with teammate Casey Kerney
for most goals of the season- but the
opportunity was snatched away from
her by a twist - literally - of fate.
"I don't know exactly what happened
- it's kind of a blur," said Hausmann,
who plays two-meter offensive center
for the team. "I was going to set (up the
shot), and my finger got caught in
another girl's suit. She twisted away
after I shot the ball, and I guess she
took my finger with her."
No one in or out of the pool knew
what had happened. Hausmann
remembers Michigan coach Matt
Anderson yelling for her to get back
and keep swimming, but all she could
do was scream, "My finger is broken!"
Anderson lamented that if Haus-
mann was going to break her finger,
she could have at least scored the goal.
Hausmann not only didn't score a goal
for her team, she will lose out on much
of an entire water polo season.
"Chances are, she's gone for the sea-
son," Anderson said. "We are hoping to
(redshirt) her as of right now. The
NCAA is a stickler for certain rules,
and Megan is on the cusp of being able
to redshirt."
Anderson will try to obtain a med-
ical redshirt for his talented newcomer,
but Hausmann thinks it is unlikely the
NCAA will grant her one.
"Technically, I've played in 28 per-
cent of the games (this season), and
you can only play in 20 percent (to red-
shirt)," Hausmann said.
The only settling thought for Haus-
mann is that her finger could heal in
time for the end of the season.
"I'll be out of my splint by the end of
March," Hausmann said. "Hopefully
I'll be back for the (NCAA) Champi-
onships."
Hausmann's loss poses a huge
challenge for the rest of the team,
has left for its West Coast Spring
Break trip.
"We were learning how to play with
her, and now we'll have to learn how to
play without her," Anderson said.
"Because (Hausmann's loss) came
early, we are fortunate, but she really
took a lot of pressure at both ends of
the pool. We are going to have to
restructure our offense and defense."
Not all is lost, though. Anderson still
has many strong and capable players
that will learn to take over Hausmann's
spot. Sophomore Casey Kerney has
made 12 of the team's 48 goals this sea-
son, and junior Julie Nisbett is Michi-
gan's career leader in goals scored.
"I expect us to come back with a
winning record," Anderson said.
0
9
Ohio State's No. 4 John Clark. The latter pin clinched
an upset over the fifth-ranked Buckeyes last Sunday.
Owen is one of the Wolverines' most aggressive
wrestlers, and always goes right after his opponent;
his pin against Volkmann came just 1:38 into the
match. He wrestled the same way against Clark, but
couldn't get an early takedown. After a scoreless first
period, Clark may have expected Owen to be tired
and frustrated, but that wasn't the case. Owen stayed
aggressive and scored two takedowns, finally finish-
ing the match with a pin.
Sunday's pin was especially important to Owen
because it followed up a disappointing loss to Penn
State's Doc Vecchio the night before. Owen was his
usual attacking self in the first period, and had a com-
manding lead heading into the third period. But Owen
ran out of gas and allowed Vecchio to steal the win.
Despite that hiccup, Michigan coach Joe McFarland
doesn't want Owen to change his style at all. If he did,
results such as Sunday's wouldn't happen.
"He's one of our most aggressive wrestlers, and I real-
NIOLTR ILLIR/ Dy
Fifth-year senior Mike Kulcyzcki hasn't seen any action after spraining his ankle against Northwestern on Feb. 1.
But so far, junior Pat Owen has been able to fill this void - and fill It well.
ly like that' McFarland said. "He went out extremely chance to be in the lineup in the Big Ten and NCAA
hard Saturday but hit a wall in the third period. But Sun- Championships. Once Kulczycki recovers from his
day against Ohio State, he was in control of the match. ankle injury, he and Owen will wrestle-off at 165
He paced himself well and was ready to pounce when pounds. There is also a possibility the loser and R.J.
he got his opportunity in the second period." Boudro will wrestle-off at 174 pounds.
Senior A.J. Grant came away impressed with Owen. With just one dual meet remaining before Big Tens,
"Pat usually comes out real strong, but then he tends Owen feels fresh, and he has his injury to thank for that.
to lose his momentum throughout the remainder of the "I've come into these last two weeks with a
match;" senior A.J. Grant said. nothing-to-lose attitude," Owen said. "That down
"I don't know where that move (against Clark) time gave me a bit of a revival. Sometimes I think
came from. Pat is pulling some stuff out of some- a little time off can help. I obviously didn't want
where - I don't know what's going on. That kid just to miss a month in the middle of the season, but it
put himself in a weird position, and Pat just laid on really helped me as far as focusing, realizing
him. It was nice." where I want to be at the end of the season and
Owen's aggressive style has given him an excellent what I need to do to get there."
Streifler solidifies herself
among veteran netters
Strange supe
By Gina Adduci
Daily Sports Writer
A mouse farm? This is just one of
the many unique and unknown quirks
of the men's tennis team.
After living in his apartment for
three months, sophomore
David Anving discovered
that his roommate was
harboring a mouse farm.
The farm began with just
two mice and rapidly
grew to 12. Sometimes
escaping into the bath-
room, they startle Anving
3 t r a_'lim e : N
Va rsity Terni<
rstitions help
lucky charm. The past two times the
mice have procreated, the team won
the corresponding matches.
Sophomore Vinny Gossain has his
own source of luck, though. When
Gossain is busy "dancing" on the ten-
nis court, one can't help to notice his
eccentric socks. Last year
he asked a member of the
RoW women's soccer team for a
pair of blue soccer socks.
ig He didn't get a chance to
on wear the pair last year, but
iCer~eraamazingly, in his most
recent two matches, Gos-
sain has worn the blue
socks and won.
"I wore the socks the other day but I
didn't want coach to know I was wear-
ing them, so I wore my pants for the
warmup," Gossain said. "I was dying."
Aside from the superstition, sen-
iors Chris Rolf and Chris Shaya are
avid watchers of the television show
"Seinfeld."
men's tennis
"If there was an all-Seinfeld channel,
I'd never leave the house," Shaya said.
These roommates revolve their
schedule around the three reruns of
"Seinfeld" shown daily. Their regiment
consists of preparing and eating dinner
during the evening showings, leaving
for the library and then returning
promptly to catch a little late-night
George Costanza.
A loyal fan of "The New Adven-
tures of Superman" and the occasional
movie on Lifetime, Michael Rubin has
something even more interesting under
his belt. This sophomore used to live
with tennis star and current boyfriend
of Mandy Moore - Andy Roddick.
"When we were younger, around 15
or 16, we used to be best friends,"
Rubin said.
Rubin is undefeated against the ten-
nis star, who has only suffered 37
career defeats.
"If we played today, though, I'd
probably have to play my best and he'd
By Eric Ambinder
Daily Sports Writer
in the morning when he goes for his
daily shower.
"I woke up on Monday morning,
walked into the bathroom, and saw one
of the little guys running around,"
Anving said. " But they don't have any
tails, I love that."
In a strange turn of events, the
mouse farm may serve as the team's
DANNY MOLOSHOK/Daly
Junior Anthony Jackson hopes his
team's superstitions will help it win.
have to drop down," Rubin said.
Michigan's distinctive men's tennis
team will play on tomorrow at noon
against Butler University.
Last weekend's match against Ohio
State was special for Michigan fresh-
man tennis player Debra Streifler.
"It came down to Michigan or Ohio
State," Streifler said about her decision
on where to play collegiately. "I was
really nervous to play them, but once I
got out there, all the nervousness turned
into positive energy."
Her energy transformed into wins, as
she was the only undefeated Wolverine
in singles and doubles matches last
weekend. Unfortunately
for the Wolverines (1-1 "
Big Ten, 4-2 overall), they
were unable to beat the
Buckeyes (3-0, 5-0) on F
Sunday, losing 4-3.:
But the weekend was a Day:
personal victory for Strei-
fler (the only freshman on
the team), as she solidi-_
fied herself as a role play-
er among veterans.
"We basically have the same team as
we did last year, so she had to step up
and prove herself to break into the line-
up," junior Chrissie Nolan said. "This
weekend, she really stepped it up."
Streifler has been consistent all year
long, compiling a 13-4 singles record,
the second-highest winning percentage
on the team behind Joanne Musgrove.
And while they lost a very close
match against their rival, the Wolverines
are anything but demoralized. Streifler
credits the team's chemistry as the driv-
ing force in overcoming defeat.
"We're really close; we're like a fami-
ly," she said. "The sky's the limit for us
this year."
Nolan echoes her doubles partner's
excitement about this season.
twii
Ft
"We're all much more confident this
year,"Nolan said. "We all trust each
other and know we can get the job
done."
Nolan mentioned that trust is some-
thing the Wolverines lacked in years
past, but this year is different because
the Wolverines return essentially the
same team from last year's Big Ten
semifinal finish.
"We have high expectations and high
goals,"Nolan said. "We can accomplish
them if we play up to our potential."
This year, the Wolverines have added
that extra confidence needed to make a
stronger push towards the
postseason. The key, Nolan
EEiK and Streifler stress, is win-
ning in crunch time.
4 k "Last year, we played a
lot of 4-3 matches, and we'll
have lots in the future," said
Nolan. "It's a matter of win-
TeI" s ning the tight ones."
Of the six dual matches
played this year, four have
been decided by one win.
And more tough competition is on
the way. Michigan will spend their
spring break in North Carolina playing
against No. 28 Wake Forest and No. 4
Duke.
"Wake Forest was the turning point
last year," Nolan said. "We really
came on strong for the end of the Big
Ten season."
The Wolverines lost at then-No. 3
Wake Forest last season, but developed
enough confidence to win nine of their
final 13 matches. This year, the Wolver-
ines confidence level has been sky-high
since the beginning.
"Last year we surprised a lot of
teams;' said Nolan. "This year people
know what to expect when they play
Michigan."
Childhood dancing lessons key to Phillips' success
By Jeremy Antar
Daily Sports Writer
Last Saturday was a monumental day for April
Phillips. In the Sykes-Sabok Challenge Cup at Penn
State, Phillips, the senior tri-captain of the Michigan
women's track and field team, broke two
school records in the shot put and the
weight throw and earned Big Ten Athlete TOM(
of the Week honors. Michiga
But breaking these records was as Silversrot
much a relief for Phillips as it was an 'une: 9
accomplishment. After an All-American U-M Im
hammer throw season in the spring of Bui
2002, Phillips hurt her shoulder and spent
most of the summer waiting for it to heal.
As the season approached, Phillips was nervous about
the effect the injury could have on her performance.
"I was really discouraged," Phillips said about the
injury. "I wasn't sure if I was going to be ready for Big
Ten's,"
Going into this season, Phillips's personal best in
the shot put stood at 52' 4", but up until this weekend,
Phillips had not thrown farther than 51' 4 1/4" this
n. Ii
ul
season. Surpassing her personal best and getting the
school record began to weigh down on Phillips and
have an effect on her performance.
"It was a mental thing," Phillips said.
Now, having finally broken her own personal best
in the shot put, and setting school records in both the
shot put - and the weight throw -
Phillips feels as though she is able to be
R R OW herself again and focus on higher goals.
at Harald This past weekend Phillips made her
witational presence felt on the national level, and
_M/nroon she hopes to build on that success for the
or Track rest of the season. Phillips's goals for the
ling rest of the season include returning to the
Big Ten Championships and to Nationals.
She acknowledges that she may not
have the size and strength of some of the top throwers
she will face at Big Tens. But what she lacks in brute
strength she makes up for in form, technique and coor-
dination - skills she attributes to one of her lifelong
hobbies, dancing. Phillips said dancing "helps me with
my technique" in the weight throw and shot put.
Phillips danced throughout her childhood while
growing up in Fraser. When it came to high school
track and field, Phillips was solely a high jumper until
her junior year.
As a freshman and sophomore in high school,
Phillips went to the state finals in the high jump. Influ-
enced by her brother, who had competed in shot put in
high school and his old coach, Phillips decided to give
shot put a try during her junior year.
She ended up going to the state finals for both shot
put and high jump her junior and senior year.
Phillips has enjoyed her time as a Wolverine.
"The team has been amazing all four years," Philips
said, adding that she loves the camaraderie she shares
with her teammates.
As for next year, Phillips has no definite plans, but
she does have an eye on the Olympics. She believes
that her best shot to represent the United States willvbe
in the hammer throw, which is an outdoor track event.
. The hammer throw is lighter than the weight throw,
and Phillips believes this works to her advantage
because technique and skill are her specialties.
"The hammer throw is the most practical event for
me in the Olympics because it does not require the
strength that the shot put does. It's based more on
technique and coordination," Phillips said.
Tumblers ready to spend
Spring Break in Rockies
BIG TENS
Continued from Page 7
helpings of Clif Bars, and large doses
of Vitamin C, Michigan is working on
making the most of its taper in hopes of
fulfilling all of its coach's goals. During
a taper, swimmers reduce yardage week
by week, until they eventually end up
completing about 30 percent of what
they swam at the height of condition-
ing. This decreased yardage is coupled
with race visualization to ensure peak
performance during postseason meets.
"We just don't want anyone to over-
visualize their event," Urbanchek said.
"We don't want too much anxiety."
To combat any angst, the swimmers
attempt to follow a set of guidelines,
involving lots of rest and fine tuning of
SCOREKEEPERS
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starts, turns and finishes,
compliment the taper.
Urbanchek believes that
created to
having the
meet over Spring Break will allow the
swimmers to devote their entire focus
to swimming well.
"Having the Big Ten meet during
break is ideal,"he said. "They can sleep
in a little, they don't have to be con-
cerned about missing school; they have
no worries whatsoever." "Except they
need to win this meet."
This year, Michigan's end result will
depend largely on the performances of
a few very talented freshmen.
"Although everyone contributes,
the freshmen class is carrying the
destiny of the team," Urbanchek said.
"They are really a pleasure to have on
the team."
For Urbanchek, the goals of this
meet are twofold.
"As a team, we want to win Big Tens,
but we also want to qualify as many
guys as we can for NCAAs," he
explained.
In order to do this, Urbanchek is
hoping for the support of all
Wolverines.
"Anyone not going to Cancun for
break, and staying in Ann Arbor spend-
ing time studying at the library should
come out for Big Tens," he said. "It
should be a great meet.
By Albert Kim
Daily Sports Writer
Heading to Colorado for Spring
Break usually means skiing and snow-
boarding. But for the Michigan women's
gymnastics team, all it means is training
at a higher altitude. The Wolverines
aren't allowed to ski or snowboard, due
to the risk of injury, and the closest
they'll get to the peaks of mountains
will be a gondola ride. Previous spring
break activities for the Wolverines
included tubing and going to see "The
Tonight Show." But the trip will still be
welcome.
"It's going to be nice to get out ofAnn
Arbor for a while," junior Calli Ryals
said. "We just need to keep the excite-
ment up."
Tomorrow will mark the first time
Michigan coach Bev Plocki will coach
against former assistant Melissa Kutch-
er-Rinehart, who left Michigan in 1999
to take the head coaching job at No. 11
Denver.
"I think that's always kind of cool,"
Plocki said. "It makes me feel kind of
proud to see her out with her own pro-
gram, being as successful as she's been
with Denver."
The Wolverines will spend a few days
behind them, after counting just one fall
in last weekend's meet against Northern
Illinois, as opposed to three the previous
week. The team looked good working
on parts of its routines in practice Mon-
day, and while there's still some work to
be done, Sherman feels that things will
continue to progress.
"Mental skills in competition are just
like physical skills - the more you
practice, the better you get," Sherman
said. "I think a lot of the corrections that
needed to be made weren't so much
technique as attitude and focus."
One gymnast who seems particularly
focused right now is freshman Jenny
Deiley, who won her third all-around
title of the year last Friday. Deiley has
been nothing short of spectacular this
season, winning nine event titles in 35
events competed, and has finished no
lower than fourth in the all-around in
every meet.
"I can really see her getting the hang
of this whole college gymnastics thing,"
Plocki said. "I just hope she continues to
have success because she deserves it."
Sophomore Chelsea Kroll has also
stepped up, hitting her bars routine in
competition for the first time in a while.
"Chelsea Kroll is such a hard worker"
Plocki said. "We knew when we recruit-
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
Vietnam/Iraq Comparisons
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