The Michigan Daily - Friday, October 25, 2002 - 9A 'M' stickers head East . to face nation's best Gators handle Blue in first home meet By Brian Steere Daily Sports Writer It's easy to see why Michigan field hockey coach Marcia Pankratz believes that this weekend is the most important yet for her team, This afternoon, the sec- ond-ranked Wolverines (5-0 Big Ten, 14-1 overall) will take their 13-game winning streak into State College, where a victory over No. 6 Penn State (3- 1, 13-2) would give them sole possession of the reg- ular-season Big Ten title and the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament. STATE CO Who: No. 2 Mich 5-0) vs. No. 6 Pe (31,12-2), No.: Dominion (14-2,E When: 4 p.m. to p.m. Saturday Latest: With a wi the Wolverines c Big Ten title outri "That's why we schedule Old Domin- ion late in the year," Pankratz said. "We're trying to prepare for the Big Ten Tournament and the national tourna- ment. And certainly, to win Big Tens on the road against Penn State would be well deserving. So, it's a great chal- , lenge, and we're definitely up for it." )LLEGE Defeating the Nittany igan (14-1, Lions would be particular- nn state ly satisfying since they 1 old beat the Wolverines last 6-0 ECAC) year at the end of the regu- night, 2 lar season, preventing Michigan from winning a in tonight, share of the Big Ten title an win the with Ohio State and Michi- gan State. Last year's loss "is definitely on our minds" junior Kate Dillon said. "We're really gunning for Penn State right now. They are a good team; they're always a good team. Playing at their field, we're looking at a tough week- end in front of us." Michigan has faced four ranked opponents so far this season, and this weekend adds two more to that total. With such sound experience in marquee contests, Dillon knows what Michigan must do to be successful against Penn State and Old Dominion. "I really think it comes down to the tactics," Dillon said. "Our coaches are really good about preparing us, tactical- ly - scouting the other team and bring- ing us videotape which we watch? By Chris Amos For the Daily Less than 24 hours later on the same . field, Michigan will have to face No. 1 Old Dominion (6-0 Colonial Athletic Association, 14-2), which just seized the top ranking in the country last weekend by toppling then-No. 1 Maryland. "Michigan State was our biggest weekend (prior to this one)," Pankratz said. "But this is a double weekend where we have back-to-back games, and we're playing on the road - so that's not easy. It will be a great chal- lenge for us, and we're looking for- ward to it." The hallmark of any championship team is the ability to win games against the toughest competition. Pankratz knows playing against the best will help prepare Michigan for its postseason run. Giants take 3-2 series lead SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Teased and taunted for tiptoeing around Barry Bonds, the Anaheim Angels decided to challenge him. Whack! Bonds lined an RBI double that sent the San Francisco 2002 Giants zoom- er-d n 4 ing to a big lead that not even these ' w* pesky Angels could over- -r come, win- ning 16-4 in Game 5 last night to take GAME 5 -ANAHEIM 4, a 3-2 lead in SNF~cso1 the World Series. Jeff Kent sealed it with a pair of two- run homers, starting the party in full force at Pac Bell Park and putting the Giants on the brink of their first World Series title since Willie Mays & Co. won it for NewYork in 1954. Rich Aurilia's three-run homer in the eighth gave the Giants the most runs by a team in a Series game since the New York Yankees walloped Pittsburgh 16-3 in 1960. It was the 17th homer overall by the Angels and San Francisco, tying a Series record. Once again, it took only one big swing by Bonds - Mays' godson - to swing the momentum in this Series. But, really, the Angels were caught in a lose-lose squeeze from the start. They pitched to Bonds in the first inning, and the Giants got three runs. They walked him in the second, and San Francisco scored three more. Halloween was still a week away, but the big guy in orange and black had plenty of tricks for Anaheim. The Michigan women's swim- ming team was swamped by Florida last night at Canham Natatorium. Florida swimmers took first place in 10 of 14 individual events en route to outscoring Michigan 173- 127 in both teams' first meet of the season.. Michigan coach Jim Richardson was especially impressed by the Gators' performance. "Florida was awesome," he said. "Sara McLarty and several others swam really strongly." Richardson said the Wolverines would benefit greatly from the experience of competing against the Gators' powerful swimmers. "We set a high bar for ourselves, but we expect it to pay dividends later," Richardson said. "We wanted to start against a top team, and Florida is probably among the top five teams in the nation. Our fresh- men were really nervous, and this should help them gain confidence in the future." Richardson cited several strong showings by Michigan swimmers as positives to build on in evaluating the loss. He was particularly impressed with the performance of seniors Laura Kaznecki and Erin Abbey, junior Anne Weilbacher and sophomore Amy McCullough, who combined to win the 400-yard freestyle relay in a time of 3:30.13. "They swam a faster time in an opening meet than any other Michi- gan team that I can remember, and I have been here for some time," said Richardson, who is in his 18th sea- son at Michigan. Richardson was also impressed with Weilbacher's individual performance in the 200- yard butterfly because she had not competed in the race since her freshman year. Weilbacher won the event with a time of 2:04.83. Other Wolverines placing first in individual events included Kaznec- ki, who won the 50-yard freestyle in 24.15 seconds and senior Julie Kern, who took first place in the 400-yard individual medley with a time of 4:34.97. Junior Tealin Kele- men also won the three-meter div- ing competition with a score of 325.85. Richardson felt that the team's overall performance was average, but added that the team would spend the next two weeks working to improve its swimming tech- niques. The Wolverines hope that this work will lead to a better per- formance in next month's meet in Chapel Hill, N.C. against North Carolina and Harvard. "I saw a lot of good things tonight," he said. "I like the team's spirit, attitude and focus. I hope we see better results next time." Michigan sophomore midfielder Adrienne Hortillosa looks to help the Wolverines this weekend, as they face the nation's No.1 team, Old Dominion. "Then we work on specifics in prac- tice of what they're going to do and what we're going to need to bring to beat their game plan. I think that's real- ly what wins the game." Should Michigan complete the weekend sweep, it would likely garner the No. 1 ranking in the country, the first time in school history for the Wolverines. While being the best in the land is not an immediate concern for the Wolverines, the achievement would certainly be gratifying. "We don't look at the rankings too much because they don't really mean that much until the end of the season," Dillon said. "But it would be nice to be at the top for once." 'State pride' on the line as' By Michael Nisson Daily Sports Writer After splitting two games for the second consecutive week, the Michigan women's soccer team looks to make like a janitor and sweep its games this weekend. The Wolver- ines head to East Lansing today to take on the Spartans, and then come back on Sunday to face E ST1. Oakland at home. Who: Michiga The game against the Spartans 12-4 overall) will undoubtedly be a knee- State (5-3-1, knocking battle for state Oakland 2-2M supremacy. Coach Debbie When:3p.m. Rademacher noted that this is a p.m. Sunday good motivating factor for the Latest: The s team. their last hom "We're playing for state pride, Sunday. playing Michigan State," she said. "We want to be the best program in the state, so there's a loe that we're playing for." The game against the Grizzlies is equally a LAS AR an vs. 11- MC . to eni me important, but for a different reason. For the seven seniors on this year's team it could mark the last time that they will step onto Varsity Field sporting the maize and blue uniform. The Wolverines (7-2-0 Big Ten, 12-4-0 overall) are still waiting to see if Ann Arbor will be deemed one of the sites for this year's NCAA tourna- NSING, ment. 7-2 Big Ten, The 2002-2003 senior class has Michigan compiled an impressive four-year 4-1) and record of 55-27-3, highlighted by C, 6-10) trips to the NCAA Tournament in day and,1 each of the last three years. They are an amazing 31-7-1 at home ors will play going into Sunday's game. game on "Every senior class has a dif- ferent personality," Rademacher said. "The difference is there's a lot of them, so obviously they're a core of the team. Six of them are starting players. Picking one player among the seniors who ' eyes sweep stands out is often a challenging task, but this year Abby Crumpton instantly comes to mind. Crumpton, a forward, is at the top of most of the offensive categories in the Big Ten. She is currently third in points and second in goals all-time at Michigan. With three reg- ular season games left, she has a very good chance to become the all-time leader in both categories. "She's one of our best players ever to come through the program," Rademacher said. "She's done so much for us in terms of her speed and athleticism. "She's taken us to the next level, and we'll definitely miss her when she leaves." Crumpton noted that it will be hard finish- ing out her career. "I've enjoyed my four years here," she said. "It's kind of sad." "We set the standard for this program. Ninth in the country - we've never been ranked that high before." - --W*wap va *" ALYSSA WOOD/Daily Carly Williamson fights for possesion against Notre Dame on October 17. Cameron to play for U.S. Under-20 team r1 By Jake Rosenwasser For the Daily The Michigan men's soccer team will have the luxury of playing with sopho- more Knox Cameron for just three more games in this year's regular season. Cameron was recently selected to play for the National Under-20 team. From Nov. 4th to Nov. 18th, Cameron will be training and competing in Charleston, South Carolina at the CONCACAF group B qualifying tournament. "It's a great honor for him to play and represent our country," Michigan coach Steve Burns said. Cameron will miss the last two games of the regular season and the entire Big Ten Tournament. Burns would rather have Cameron with his Wolverines, but he thinks the team can overcome the loss. "In the game of soccer, one player does not make a team," Burns said. "It takes 11 players working well together to accomplish something." Cameron has appeared in every one of Michigan's 30 games the past two seasons, registereing 13 goals and six assists. His goal count makes him the all-time leader in Michigan's brief soc- cer history and his eight goals this sea- son is one off the team lead. Burns, whose team travels to Illinois- Chicago and Northwestern this week- end, is already thinking about replacements for Cameron. Robert Wurth and Mike White are possibilites The conference tournament will be a daunting task without Cameron's pres- ence. The team needs an excellent show- ing in the Big Ten Tournament to give itself a shot at earning a bid in the NCAA tournament. If Michigan should earn a bid to the tournament, Cameron would be back in time to play. "We will have something to prove in the Big Ten Tournament," Burns said. "We want to show that we are more than a one-player team." Cameron's absence makes one won- der if he will be around in the years to come. Might Cameron be tempted to turn pro and leave Michigan early? Burns thinks that this scenario unlikely. "With the poor salaries that soccer players in this country make, it would be wise for Cameron to stay and get his degree," Burns said. "The advice he is getting from home and from the coach- ing staff is to stick around for the full four years. He has a good head on his CHICAGO Who: Michigan (1-3 Big Ten, 5641 overall) vs. Illinois-Chicago (3-2-1 Horizon, 76-2), and Northwestern (0-3 Big Ten, 6-8) When: 4 p.m. today and 3 p.m. Sunday Latest: Knox Cameron plays two of his final games before leaving for the National Team. shoulders, and he should definitely be -around in the future." NANOOKS Continued from Page 8A "It means that you have programs like Michigan, Michi- gan State, and Ohio State come up here," Alaska-Fairbanks coach Guy Gadowski said. "And the hockey fans here just eat that up." What the CCHA got was a school, a town and a state that is mad about hockey. College hockey is the top dog in Fairbanks, where capacity crowds always fill Fairbanks' Carlson Center. When the Nanooks started their 2002-03 season in an exhibi- tion against Mt. Royal College, more than 4,000 fans showed up - equivalent to one eighth of the non-student population of Fairbanks. The mayor of Fairbanks and the governor of the state even know the Nanooks on a first-name basis. "It's such a hockey town," Gadowski said. "Our fans are very knowledgeable; they really appreciate the finer points of hockey as well. They're not just there to see goals and hits. They're talking about your forecheck and your penalty kill and things like that." But with the notoriety also comes long road trips. When the Nanooks have a Friday-Saturday road series, they have to leave before eight in the morning on Wednesday. They fly from Fair- banks to Anchorage to Detroit before busing to where they are playing. They then spend Thursday practicing, adjusting to the four or five-hour time change, and attending study tables to make up for lost class time. This is all before they hit the ice on Friday night. "They have a lot of demands on their time," Gadowski said. "But the travel is sometimes a great time to get caught up in studies and rest, and it actually works out really well." Having the Nanooks in the conference also gives the teams of the league a chance to go to Alaska and bond as a team. Berenson has always enjoyed breaking away from normal rou- tines and traveling up north early in the season. This is the first year the Wolverines have not gone to Alaska since 1995. Anchorage native Jason Ryznar enjoyed going back to his home state last year even though he got a little grief from his teammates about his home state. "People were saying 'How can you live here? How can you be from this state?"' Ryznar said. "It brings the whole team together, I wish I was going back this year." I SCRIMMAGE Continued from Page 8A preseason and it will give Michigan fans a chance to get a sneak peak at the Wolverines in a game situation. From a game standpoint, tomor- row will be the first opportunity for highly touted freshmen, such as officials and a crowd watching the team, thecoaching staff is trying to simulate a game setting and see what effect it has on the Wolver- ines. "It is one of the earlier times our kids can play in front of people," Amaker said. "It gives us a look at players under game conditions." CRISLER ARENA What: Maize and Blue Scrimmage When: 4 p.m. Latest: The scrimmage is free of charge. Fol- lowing the game, fans are invited to stay to meet players and coaches.