6B - The Michigan Daily - SportsMonday - November 17, 2003 Powerplay disappears, but 'M' icers manage series split wit Bu ckeyes 0 By Michael Nisson Daily Sports Writer COLUMBUS - Jekyll and Hyde rolled into Columbus this weekend, and they came in the form of the Michigan hockey team. The Wolverines (5-3 CCHA, MC__GAN ___ 9-3 overall) split two games AtE with CCHA-leading Ohio State, winning Friday's contest MICHGAN 2_ 4-0 and losing 5-2 on Saturday H E night. Hyde reared his ugly head on Saturday, and he did so in the most unlikely of fashions. With 4:57 remaining in the second period, Ohio State senior Chris Olsgard was given a game misconduct penalty for hitting from behind. Olsgard's mistake gave Michigan a five-minute powerplay, and for a few minutes, the Wolverines held a 5-on-3 advan- tage; the Buckeyes had also sustained another penalty right before Olsgard was sent off the ice. Olsgard's penalty came at a critical juncture in the game, as Michigan was trailing the Buckeyes 3-1 at the time. Instead of taking advantage of the rare opportunity and narrowing the Ohio State lead to a goal, the Wolverines did the opposite, surrendering a 5-on-4 shorthanded goal to Ohio State captain J.B. Bittner. Bittner got the puck in front of the net and knocked home his own rebound, leaving Michigan goalie Al Montoya laying helpless on the ice. Once Bittner scored the fourth goal for the Buck- eyes, the game was essentially over. "Every time you're facing the number one pow- erplay in the league, it's always a challenge, and I think we were up to it tonight," Ohio State for- ward Scott May said. "I thought we did real well. (The five-minute major penalty kill) definitely motivated the team." "The difference in the game was their penalty killing overcame our powerplay," Michigan coach Red Berenson said. "We just couldn't get back in the game." Ohio State, on the other hand, was able to take control when Michigan took an early lead. At the beginning of the game, it seemed like the Wolver- ines would continue the dominance they had shown the night before. Michigan junior forward Dwight Helminen went to work as soon as the puck was dropped in the first period. Just 21 sec- onds into the period, Helminen took a shot from almost behind the net and sent the puck off Ohio State goalie Mike Betz's pads and into the net. Instead of hanging their heads, the Buckeyes kept pressing, and three minutes later they evened the score. Freshman Dave Barton skated up the left side with the puck and then sent a pass to May in front of the net. May beat Montoya five- hole. Ohio State (7-3, 8-5) took the lead at the end of the period. In a similar fashion to the Buckeyes' first goal, Montoya was faced with a 2-on-1 and was drawn out of position. Freshman Kenny Bernard came in on the left side of the zone and forced Montoya to commit to him. Bernard then passed the puck over to forward Lee Spector, who easily punched it into the net. "Our defense was trapped in the offensive zone (and) didn't get back," Berenson said of the sec- ond goal. The game seemed to get away from the Wolverines at the very beginning of the second period. With 19:32 remaining, Ohio State for- ward Dave Steckel got a shot off in front of the Michigan net, and although Montoya made the save, the puck bounced off Helminen's skate into the Michigan net. Bittner's later goal would pret- ty much seal the deal for the Buckeyes. Michi- gan forward Brandon Kaleniecki did add a late score for the Wolverines, but it was too little, too late. Friday, Michigan played in the controlled man- ner that avid readers associate with Dr. Jekyll. Michigan's offense was able to pick apart the Ohio State defense, and Montoya was on fire. As rattled as he seemed on Saturday, Montoya was t solid on Friday, stopping every one of Ohio State's 30 shots en route to his second shut-out of the season and his first on the road. "Obviously, the difference in the game was Al Montoya," Berenson said. "He was sharp, and he made some huge saves in the game." The Wolverines came out firing on all cylin- ders. After a sluggish first few minutes of the first period in which the teams did not get many shots off, the Michigan offense came alive, scoring two goals in the period. Junior defenseman Nick Martens, who has struggled to earn playing time for much of the season, made a spectacular play for Michigan's second goal, keeping the puck in Ohio State's zone and then nailing a beautiful shot past Betz for the score. The Buckeyes couldn't recover, giving up two third-period goals to finalize the Wolverines' drubbing. The Wolverines return to action in two weeks, when they face WCHA powers Wisconsin and Minnesota at Yost Ice Arena in the College Hock- ey Showcase. Minnesota ended Michigan's season last year the Frozen Founr and went on to repeat as Natoinal Champions. In spite of the extended time off after the tough loss, Michigan alternate captain Eric Nystrom felt okay about where the Wolverines stand. "(Ohio State is) the first place team for a rea- son right now, and the schedule is going to get tougher on the way," Nystrom said. "We've got to start playing a little better defensive hockey, and we should be alright." JOEL FRIEDMAN/Daily Sophomore Andrew Ebbett had been on an offensive tear in recent weeks, but could manage just an assist on Brandon Kaleniecki's goal Saturday night. Rubin advances to semifinals of tourney By Kyle Carpenter Daily Sports Writer He floats like a butterfly and stings like a bee. Michael Rubin's performance in the Big Ten singles championship quarterfinal match at the Varsity Tennis Center against Christian Tempke of Northwestern was rem- iniscent of the great Muhammad Ali in the boxing ring. Rubin showered the court with strategic jabs, upper- cuts, lobs and spikes yesterday afternoon, and the No. 1 seed emerged victorious. In the most intense match of the tournament, Rubin and Tempke went serve-for-serve the entire match. Rubin played the Ali card, tiring out his opponent and throwing the final knockout punch in the second set to win. Rubin won the first set 7-6(5) in a tiebreaker and 6-4 in the sec- ond set. Rubin's small stature forces him to be resourceful on the court, using his brains and composure to wear his opponents down and strike when they are tired and weak. "Michael's strength is using his feet and his head," Michigan assistant coach Dan Goldberg said. "Most play- ers in this league are around 6-foot-5, and for Michael to beat those guys he's got to be a smart, good all-court player." Typically, serving is Rubin's weak point, but yesterday his serves were strong and consistent. His defensive returns and cross-court drop shots were even stronger. He played consistently and conservatively, which allowed him to keep his poise and control the court. "Michael is very smart and very fast," Northwestern head coach Paul Torricelli said. "He is an extremely chal- lenging guy to play." Rubin made few mental mistakes all day, including his match against Joey Atas of Ohio State, which he won 3-6, 6-4, 6-0. "I really battled out there," Rubin said. "For me, it was more mental and more heart." Tempke, a freshman from Evanston, showed a certain skill that made this match-up a thriller for the crowd and the coaches. His strength gave him an edge in serves and slam shots. Rubin, however, was able to take advantage of Tempke's youth and inexperience to come out on top. "I think I beat a tough player today," Rubin said. "He hit some good shots, but I just kept battling." Michigan freshman Brian Hung also played in a quar- terfinal match, against senior Roddy Cantey of Penn State, but didn't come away with a victory. Hung lost to Cantey in three sets, 5-7, 7-6(4), 6-2. "Brian has had an excellent tournament," Goldberg said. "It will be a real good boost for his confidence, because he knows he can play with anyone in this league." Whether or not Michael Rubin has ever stepped foot into the boxing ring, he has the mind and the heart of a heavyweight juggernaut. He will use his strengths against Cantey in the Big Ten semifinal match today at the Varsi- ty Tennis Center. 6 SETH LOWER/Daily Junior Michael Rubin is the lone Michigan representative remaining in the Big Ten singles tournament. I We Reserve The Right To Limit Quantities. No Sales To Dealers. 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