4B - The Michigan Daily - SportsMonday - March 10, 2003 Chatting into the boards "It does feel like a win." - Michigan coach Red Berenson on Friday night's 4-4 tie. Michigan overcame a two- goal deficit in the third period and knotted FRIDAY'S GAME R...M ichigan 4 Ohio State 4 SATURDAY'S GAME Michigan 3 Ohio State 3 Key play 0:01 of the third period - With just one second remaining Friday night, Michigan freshman Andrew Ebbett scored the game-tying goal after Ohio State goaltender Mike Betz stopped a barrage of shots. the game on an Andrew Ebbett goal with one second remaining. FRIDAY'S GAME Michigan 4, Ohio State 4 Michigan Ohio State 2 0 1202 - 4 4 First period -1, MICH, Eric Nystrom 12 (Jeff Tam- bellini 13) 5:35 (pp); 2, MICH, Jason Ryznar 6 (David Moss 16) 8:28; 3, OSU, Rod Pelley 7 (Lee Spector 2) 16:04. Penalties - RJ. Umberger, OSU (hit after whistle) 1:34; Nick Martens, MICH (hit after whistle) 1:34; Scott Titus, OSU (checking from behind) 4:27; Joe Kautz, MICH (hit after whistle) 8:41; Doug Andress, OSU (slashing) 8:41; Mike Roemensky, MICH (interference) 14:03; Brandon Kaleniecki, MICH (slashing) 18:18; Daymen Bencharski, OSU (holding) 18:42. Second period - 4, OSU, Rod Pel- ley 8 (Scott Titus 5, JB Bittner 9) 8:33 (pp); 5, OSU, Lee Spector 2 (T.J. Latorre 1, Chris Olsgard) 14:03. Penalties - Reed Whiting, OSU (roughing) 2:15; John Shouneyia, MICH (obstruction-hooking) 3:12; Nate Guenin, OSU (roughing) 3:48; Mark Mink, MICH (roughing)3:48; Mark Mink, MICH (checking from behind) 7:20; Paul Caponigri, OSU (high sticking) 18:41. Third period - 6, OSU, Ryan Kesler 9 (Paul Caponigri 19, JB Bittner 9) 7:53; 7, MICH, Eric Nystrom 13 (Brandon Rogers 14) 9:30; 8, MICH, Andrew Ebbett 9 (Brandon Rogers 15) 19:59. Penalties - Ryan Kesler, OSUJ (ud) 3:10. Shots on Goal: MICH 11-9-15-2 37; OSU 1014-5-2 31. Power plays: MICH 1of 5; OSU 1of 4. Penalties: MICH 7 (14 min.); OSU 8 (16 min.). Saves- MICH, Mon- toya (24-9-2) - 27; OSU, Mike Betz ()- 33. Referee: Steve Piotrowski. At: Value City Arena, Columbus. Attendance: 12,696. SATURDAY'S GAME Michigan 3, Ohio State 3 'M stuns crowd with late strike By Dan Rosen Daily Sports Writer COLUMBUS - The Ohio State faithful were elated. As the clock ticked down towards zero on Friday night, their Buckeyes held a 4-3 advantage over hated Michigan and seemed poised to secure a big win in a big game. The fans were on their feet, jackets in hand, ready to leave the building with a victory. But the Wolverines would have none of that. Somehow, the team remained optimistic. And with goalie Al Montoya pulled in favor of an extra attacker, Michigan found some openings. "For some reason, it felt like we were going to get one there in the end," defenseman Brandon Rogers said. "For the last minute, we had pretty good sus- tained pressure in their zone, and we kept getting the puck through to the net and just missing." A Jeff Tambellini shot even dribbled past Ohio State goalie Mike Betz, missing the post by mere inches. Most importantly, Michigan managed to keep the puck in the Buckeyes' zone and away from its own empty net. With 17.7 seconds left, the Wolverines earned a faceoff to the left of Betz for what would probably be their last chance to tie it. "The faceoff was set up but there was a mistake made," Ohio State coach John Markell said. "We actually won the draw, but we had nobody going to it." With Michigan controlling the puck off the faceoff, a melee of players packed in front of the net. The Ohio State fans held their breath and prayed for the final buzzer to end the game. Rogers' initial shot was blocked, but a rebound bounced to forward Andrew Ebbett. Somehow the fresh- man's shot found a seam and the top of the net. Everyone in the building looked up to the scoreboard to see if somehow it had gone in too late. But one second still remained. "You can play a good, solid game and all of a sudden a bounce goes the other way, and they got it," Markell said. With the tie, Michigan clinched a second seed in the CCHA Tournament. But with Ferris State's win at Bowl- ing Green on the same night, the Bulldogs locked down the conference title. THE BIG PICTURE: Both Markell and Michigan coach Red Berenson were concerned about placing for the CCHA Tournament this weekend. But getting into the NCAA Tournament remained a concern and that played a role in the way that they coached. Football rivalry is now getting ice time Michigan Ohio State 1 2 0 1 0 2 - 3 - 3 First period -1, OSU, R.J. Umberger 23 (Eric Skaug 8) 11:26; 2, MICH, Jeff Tambellini 25 (John Shouneyia 24, Eric Nystrom 9) 16:21 (pp). Penalties -Andy Burnes, MICH (hit after whistle) 2:32; Scott May, OSU (hit after whistle) 2:32; Chris Olsgard, OSU. (roughing) 10:50; Jed Ortmeyer, MICH (rough- ing) 10:50; Brandon Rogers, MICH (ht) 13:31; Bran- don Rogers, MICH (10-minute misconduct) 13:31; Chris Olsgard, OSU (checking from behind) 15:54; Rod Pelley, OSU (roughing) 17:23; Jason Ryznar, MICH (tripping) 19:34. Second period - 3, MICH, David Moss 13 (unassisted) 3:39; 4, MICH, Bran- don Kaleniecki 13 (Andrew Ebbett 15, Danny Rich- mond 18) 5:12 (pp). Penalties - Mike Roemensky, MICH (tripping) 1:36; Chris Olsgard, OSU (cross. checking) 3:51; Doug Andress, OSU (roughing) 10:02; Andy Burnes, MICH (holding) 13:31; Dwight Helminen, MICH (roughing) 19:00; Ryan Kesler, OSU (high sticking) 19:00.Third period - 5, OSU, Paul Caponigri 14 (Pete Broccoli) 1:08; 6, OSU, Daymen Bencharski 10 (R.J. Umberger 26, Doug Andress 16) 11:45 (pp). Penalties - Michael Woodford, MICH (kneeing) 6:24; Brandon Kaleniec- ki, MICH (checking from behind) 10:32; Paul Capon- igri, OSU (10-minute misconduct) 20:00. Shiots on Goal: MICH 12-11-7-1 31; OSU 14-11-13-3 41. Power plays: MICH 2 of 4; OSU 1 of6. Saves- MICH, Mon- toya (24.9-3) - 20; OSU, Mike Betz () - 28. Refer- ee: Steve Piotrowski At: Value City Arena, Columbus. Attendance: 13,628. HOW THEY FARED No. 1 Colorado College (25-5-5) def. No. 14 Denver 4-2. No. 2 Cornell (244-1) did not play. No. 3 New Hampshire (23-76) def. Mass.-Lowell 8-4, def. Mass.Lowell 8-4. No. 4 Maine (24.8-5) lost to M assachu- setts 4-2. No. 5 Ferris State (27-8-1) def. Bowling Green 4-2, def. Bowling Green 4-3. No. 6 Boston College (239.4) def. Merri- mack 4-1, def. Merrimack 2-1. No. 7 Minnesota (20-8-9) def. St. Cloud State 5-3, tied with St. Cloud State 1-1. No. 8 Michigan (24-9-3) tied with No. 15 Ohio State 4-4, tied with Ohio State 3-3. No. 9 Minnesota State-Mankato (17-8- 10) tied with Nebraska-Omaha 2-2. No. 10 Boston University (23.12-3) def. No. 13 Providence 5-4, def. Providence 7-1. No. 11 North Dakota (24-9-5) def. Wis- consin 5-2, def. Wisconsin 5-0. No. 12 Harvard (1948-2) did not play. No. 13 Providence (19-14-3) lost to No. 10 Boston University 5-4, lost to Boston University 7-1. No. 14 Denver (20-11-6) lost to No. 1 Colorado College 4-2. No. 15 Ohio State (22-10-5) tied with No. 8 Michigan 4-4, tied with Michigan 3-3. CCHA. ROUNDUP Fria's games: Notre Dame 3, NORTHERN MICHIGAN 2 Michigan State 4, WESTERN MICHIGAN 0 OHIO STATE 4, Michigan 4 MIAMI 8, Lake Superior 1 ALAsKA FAIRBANKS 6, Alaska Anchorage 4 Ferris State 4, BOWUNG GREEN 2 Saturday's games: ALASM FAIRBANKS 5, Alaska Anchorage 0 MIAMI 3, Lake Superior 0 MICHIGAN STATE 8, Western Michigan 5 Ferris State 4, BOWUNG GREEN 3 NEBRASKA-OMAHA 2, MSU-Mankato 2 NORTHERN MICHIGAN 4, Notre Dame 1 OHIO STATE 3, Michigan 3 CCHA STANDINGS RYAN WEINER/Daily Andrew Ebbett, right, celebrates his game-tying goal Friday night with just one second left. Late in Friday's overtime, Markell considered pulling his goalie to go for the win. A tie would have ended his team's hope of second place. "I thought he would pull the goalie," Berenson said. "It's a big game. That point is important to both teams." But Markell's concern for what a loss would do to his team in the rankings won out. He decided that pulling Betz too early wasn't worth the risk, waiting until there were three seconds left in overtime to make the move. "I didn't think a loss would help us at all in the big pic- ture," Markell said. "Obviously, we were trying to get sec- ond place, but you have to look at the big picture as well." No NErs: On March 16 of last year, a shot by Colum- bus Blue Jackets forward Espen Knutsen struck and killed 13-year-old fan Brittanie Cecil. The NHL respond- ed by making nets above the boards behind the goal mandatory in all league arenas. Across town, at Ohio State's Value City Arena, nets are not required by the NCAA and none have been raised. An official with the school's athletic department did say that the boards have been built two feet higher than is required to provide safety. On Saturday, a number of stray pucks did go flying into the stands, including one sharp Ohio State slap shot at 15:25 of the second period. COURTNEY LEWIS Full Court Press COLUMBUS - To Michigan fans who are used to games at a frenzied - Yost Ice Arena, the crowd at Ohio State's Value City Arena probably wouldn't be particularly impressive, and when the fans go around the rink yelling, "Ohio (with each section shouting a letter)," it wouldn't do much more than display the Buckeyes fans' spelling ability. But Ohio State forward Paul Caponigri thought the crowd "was great. When they started doing the O-H-I-O around, it felt like I was at a football game. It was great. I hadn't experienced that." Clearly, Columbus isn't a hockey town. And the Michigan-Ohio State matchup on the ice isn't yet a rivalry comparable to the one the two schools share on the gridiron. But it's getting there. While Michigan State is the premier opponent for Michigan, and the one the pla'yers relish most, this weekend went a long way toward building an icy rivalry between the Wolverines and Buckeyes. Friday's game was full of momentum swings and comebacks - each team saw a two-goal lead disappear - complete with a goal at literally the last possible second of regulation. The final minute of the third period was about as exciting as hockey gets - total chaos in the Buckeyes' zone, as the Wolverines made a mad scramble to sal- vage the game. Saturday, the Buckeyes seemingly clawed back from a two-goal deficit in the third period, only to have the tying goal waved off by the officials because it was kicked in. Then they tied it for real minutes later. It was one of the most entertaining two- game series of Michigan's season. The games didn't quite have that extra intensity and desperation of a meeting between archrivals, and the focus was on playoff positioning, not on the tradition of Michigan vs. Ohio State. By the time the Michigan and Ohio State hockey teams started playing each other reg- ularly, their football counterparts had reached the height of their rivalry - the Woody Hayes-Bo Schembechler era - and they have not often been at equal talent levels. But this weekend, the Buckeyes and Wolverines were jostling for a No. 2 seed in the CCHA Tournament, and signs of a passionate rivalry waiting to develop were evident. The called-back Ohio State goal Saturday that would have tied the game and Andrew Ebbett's goal that stole away an impending Ohio State victory at 19:59 of Friday's third period are sure to linger in the Buckeyes' memories. Without those two plays, Ohio State likely would have swept Michigan and bumped it to third place in the league. Saturday's game featured a physical third period, with bodies colliding in the neutral zone. On one of those collisions, Caponigri and Michigan sophomore Michael Wood- ford met knee-to-knee, and the Buckeye was left writhing in pain on the ice while the Wolverine skated away. In an altercation at the end of the game, both players earned a 10-minute misconduct. But while a one-on-one matchup like that might have produced bad blood had it hap- pened in the football rivalry, Caponigri didn't show much ire afterward. When a reporter asked him if Woodford's hit was a cheap shot, he declined to stir things up. If the players haven't yet developed an extreme distaste for each other, the fans have started to. Although the Value City crowd wasn't much for chants, the games did draw more than 25,000 people combined on the weekend, and the Buckeyes' fans showed that familiar anti-Michigan hatred at times. They harshly booed a young Michigan fan who caught a stray puck on Friday and a group of kids in Michigan garb who appeared on the giant screen on Saturday. Ohio State has played tough games against Michigan in past seasons, only to fall back into the bottom of the conference and become an easy opponent the following year. But the Buckeyes finished third in the conference this year and if they can sustain that level of play, the matchup could quickly develop into a heated rivalry. One worthy of Woody and Bo. Courtney Lewis can be reached at cmlewis@umich.edu. With Michigan's tie on Friday, Ferris State clinched the No. 1 spot in the CCHA Tournament beginning next weekend. The tie also guaranteed the Wolverines second place in the conference, meaning they will face Bowling Green at home in a three-game series. That matchpasiwel asithe other five firstround series, is broken down by hockey writer Kyle ('Neill. Page 8B 0 BUCKEYES Continued from Page 1B tie the game. The Buckeyes then had numerous chances, but Montoya was able to hold strong. "Tonight he was as good of a player as there was on the ice," Michigan coach Red Berenson said. After Andrew Ebbett tied Friday's game with one second remaining and after Saturday's Buckeye comeback, Michigan and Ohio State could be set for a classic duel in the semifinals of the CCHA Tournament in two weeks. Barring any upsets - which tend to happen - the two will meet a week from Friday with more at stake. If that game comes to fruition and is as evenly played as this weekend was, it's going to be a wild ride. "It was a whole weekend of breaks, missed opportunities, and taking advan- tage of opportunities," Berenson said. "Neither of these teams are going to lie down." RYAN WEINER/Daily Michigan senior John Shouneyla takes a faceoff at Ohio State's Value City Arena Friday night. Shouneyia had one assist in Michigan's 3-3 tie against the Buckeyes. Bulldogs win CCHA Friday, avoid major letdown in series finale By Kyle O'Neill Daily Sports Editor Team Ferris State Michigan Ohio State Michigan State Northern Michigan Miami Notre Dame Western Michigan Alaska-Fairbanks Nebraska-Omaha Bowling Green Lake Superior w 2 m 1' 1 1- 1< 1C 9 5 3: CCHA NL 2 5 B 7 .6 8 .7 10 .4 13 3 12 3 12 3 14 0 11 3 17 20 3 24 T Pts 1 45 3 39 4 36 1 35 1 29 3 29 3 29 1 27 7 27 2 20 3 13 1 7 Overall W L T 27 8 1 24 9 3 22 10 5 21 13 2 18 16 2 20 15 3 15 15 6 15 19 2 15 12 7 13 19 5 8 23 3 6 26 4 BOWLING GREEN - Ferris State is now 1- 0 as CCHA champions. A night after clinching the regular season title - thanks to a 4-2 Friday win over Bowling Green - the Bulldogs showed no signs of slow- ing down with a 4-3 win over the Falcons. Unfortunately for Ferris State and Bowling Green, the referees slowed down all momentum either team had with the 28 penalties called dur- ing the game. "It was kind of an ugly game, there wasn't a whole lot of flow to it," Ferris State coach Bob Daniels said. "It was a disappointing game all the way around I guess. I was concerned it would be (a let down), but it wasn't. Both teams came out and battled pretty hard. I was disap- pointed with all the penalties with both teams tonight." With just three of the seven goals coming on the powerplay, it was the nine penalties killed apiece that was most impressive about the game. "We had some good kills ... I thought we did an excellent job," Bowling Green coach Scott Paluch said. "What I really liked was the 4-on-3 (kill) in the second period, but the 5-on-3 in the third period - that's the momentum type of kill we needed and what a lift it gave us." The first situation Paluch described was at the 18:20 mark of the second period with the score tied at two. Bowling Green's Don Morrison was called for goaltender interference, and Ferris State defenseman Phil Meyer was called for hit- ting after the whistle. One minute and five sec- onds later, Bowling Green defenseman Kevin Bieksa was called for roughing. Despite the Fal- cons being down a man in the third period, they had the best chance when defenseman Brian Escobedo had a breakaway on Ferris State goalie Matt Swanson - regular starter Mike Brown was rested for the playoffs. Escobedo was stopped by the leg pads of Swanson, who record- ed 33 saves on the night. But where Bowling Green didn't capitalize, the Bulldogs did. At 8:40 in the third period, Fer- ris State forward Derek Nesbitt recorded a short- handed tally when he skated in from the left side and wristed the puck over the glove of Bowling Green senior Tyler Masters. Less than two minutes later, the Falcons' prob- lems multiplied when Steve Brudzewski jacked the Bulldogs' Matt York in the face. While Brudzewski used his glove to inflict the punish- ment, the referee saw the injured York on the ice and called a five-minute high sticking major. One minute after that, Bowling Green's Jon Sitko was called for slashing. But Bowling Green seemed, to turn it on, instead of backpedalling. "I thought it was very aggressive throughout the whole zone," Paluch said. "We extended 200 feet pretty well, and probably the most important thing tonight: We were able to stay up and not let (Chris) Kunitz, Nesbitt and (Jeff) Legue gain a line on us on the powerplay." The Bulldogs did add one even-strengthed goal with just 2:10 left. Kunitz drew two defend- ers on a breakaway and then found a wide open Nesbitt for a goal. After that, all hell broke loose, as Kunitz was called for slashing at the same time as the goal and had sent to the locker- room with a 10-minute misconduct. It was an interesting call that Kunitz, a Hobey Baker can- didate, played in an essentially meaningless game while Brown sat out to rest. "(Kunitz) wants to play, and he wouldn't have been happy about that at all," Daniels said. "Ht's a player who wants to play, and I would have lost more than I would have gained by sitting him." At the 18:40 mark, that Bowling Green power- play was negated when alternate captain Tyler Knight was called for tripping. But the Falcons regained the man advantage when York was called for slashing. With a pulled goalie and a two-man advantage, Bieksa scored from the point for Bowling Green with just 16 seconds remaining. Though the Falcons had the puck in the Bulldogs zone for the remainder of the game, they could not manage a shot for the equalizer. Though the win was a positive, it was a reminder to Daniels that March hockey brings out the best in everyone. "I gotta tell you, I wouldn't want to face Bowling Green, and I don't really want to face Lake State (the Bulldogs' opponent next week) and I'd just assume get a bye right to the Joe - but that's not going to happen," Daniels said. "You always say, 'Well, jeez, we'd like to play them or we'd like to play them.' The truth is I'd rather have the free pass." Daniels used the example of how Hockey East's third-place team, Maine, had a good sea- son, but still fell victim to being swept by sixth- place Massachusetts. "That could very well happen to us, so it's hard to enjoy (the CCHA title) until after the season," Daniels said. 60 0 CCHA LEADERS Through March 9-- League games only Player G A P 1. Chris Kunitz, FSU 24 27 51 2. R.J. Umberger, OSU 15 23 38 3. Brad Fast, MSU 10 27 37 4. John-Michael' les, MSU 14 22 36 I :cw Jiree stars of the weekend 1 Eric Nystrom o-s---"--d 9 Andrew Ebbett Freshman/forward r t Brandon Rogers Sophomore/defenseman 0 I koJIJI&JIItmft5IijI Wt$IUA