10A - The Michigan Daily - Thursday, March 25, 2004
Blue infielders
must adjust to
new positions.
By Gab. Edelson
Daily Sports Writer
It's not receiving as much attention as the New
York Yankees' acquisition of Alex Rodriguez, but the
Michigan baseball team is also dealing with major
changes in the infield.
Two starters, first baseman Kyle Bohm and second
baseman Chris Getz, are adjusting to life in Ann
Arbor after transferring from Auburn and Wake For-
est, respectively. A.J. Scheidt played almost exclu-
sively at second last year, but he will start at third this
season. Sophomore Jeremy Goldschmeding remains
at shortstop, but he has just 25 starts under his belt
from last season.
Growing pains would normally be expected with
such a collection of players, but the group has flour-
ished, and the squad has a surprisingly good .968
fielding percentage.
"It's almost like a whole new team," Michigan
coach Rich Maloney said. "It's going to take us a
while to grow, but I've been extremely pleased, from
a defensive standpoint."
Goldschmeding has enjoyed building relationships
with his fellow infielders.
"We're kind of all learning together," he said.
"We're having a blast."
Players are often sensitive about switching posi-
tions, but Scheidt's move to the hot corner was
accompanied by no such difficulties.
"I was happy to move to third base," Scheidt said.
"Getting a guy like Chris to transfer and come play
second base was a better situation for the team.
Chris and Jeremy do a pretty good job of directing
the middle."
The sweeping changes on the diamond have
caused some problems, though. Maloney's chief
Olin named Big Ten
Golfer of the Week
SETH LOWER/Daily
Sophomore shortstop Jeremy Goldschmeding,left, will be back at his familiar position, but A.J. Scheidt will be
adjusting to a new position, while Chris Getz and Kyle Bohn adjust to a new school.
By Katie Niemeyer
For the Daily
A great swing and a positive attitude
helped junior Laura Olin become just
the fourth Wolverine in Michigan histo-
ry to be named Big Ten Conference
Golfer of the Week. Laura placed 11th
at the UC Irvine Anteater Invitational,
carding a three-round total of 227, lead-
ing her team to a fourth-place finish out
of 13 teams. Olin was delighted to
receive the award, but was more focused
on the implications the honor had for
her entire team.
"I was very excited, very honored,"
Olin said. "It was a good representation
for Michigan and our golf team. We've
been really successful the last three
tournaments, so it's just an honor that
they are honoring the way that we've
been playing.:
Coach Kathy Teichert believes Olin
has a special personality, saying that
Olin is always optimistic and looks out
for her teammates. These qualities and
her abilities on the course make her the
leader Michigan's young team needs.
"She's had some great rounds,"
Teichert said. "But I think her personali-
ty is what really stands out in my book,
and her character. She's very positive.
She's always looking at the light at the
end of the tunnel. She's always cutting it
out, no matter what the situation is."
Olin's positive attitude comes in
handy at the end of a grueling tourna-
ment. With 36 holes of golf in one day,
Olin's bound to make a few mistakes,
but knowing herteam is counting on
her, she finds ways to pull herself
together and finish strong.
"Sometimes I lose my concentration
and I screw up on a few holes," Olin
said. "And I'm like, 'Oh my God, I have
to get this back.' I just feel that every
time I go out and play, every single
stroke I'm taking is affecting my team,
and I have that in my head at all times."
In the sport of golf, each stroke does
count. Olin regularly leads her team,
and has carded the lowest score in seven
of eight tournaments this season (she
found herself one stroke behind fresh-
man Brianna Broderick in the first tour-
nament of the season). Her consistency
earns high praise from Teichert.
"She's always had a very good golf
swing that will hold up under pressure,'
Teichert said. "One of the best qualities
about her game is that we know that we
can count on Laura in every single
round. She's never out of it. She's able
to stay patient. She's able to stay
focused, and it's those qualities that lead
her to be a great leader for us."
This leader wasn't born overnight. Olin
came to Michigan as a freshman and
learned from experienced players. That
year fielded the best team Michigan has
ever had. According to Teichert, the expe-
riences she gained by winning tourna-
ments that year was invaluable to Olin.
Olin believes that she has improved
greatly in her mental game, putting and
short game since then. And her striking
capability has continued to set her apart
from the rest of her competition.
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complaint is the lack of communication between his
players. The coach is still searching for somebody to
step up and "direct traffic."
"It's not easy," Maloney said. "The more success
you have, the more confidence you have. The more
confidence you have, the easier it is to communicate.
It goes hand in hand. (Communication) is an area
where we haven't done as good a job as we need to
do to be the best defensive club we can be."
Second baseman Getz credits fall practice for pro-
viding the foundation for the team's cohesiveness.
"I think we built a lot of chemistry earlier in the
fall," Getz said. "It's always nice to see how it comes
along in the spring. Fielding-wise, I think we've been
on the same page."
As a former middle infielder himself, Maloney has
a certain interest in the progress of the group.
"Your infield is your first line of defense," he said.
"They will receive most of the plays in most games.
To be a good infielder, you have to do a couple of
things extremely well. You have to field the ball
cleanly and then you have to make a clean throw. You
have two parts of the puzzle that have to be complet-
ed perfectly in order to make it work."
Michigan's infield will have plenty of opportuni-
ties to showcase its slick fielding in this weekend's
Michigan Classic. The Wolverines will play two
games each against Detroit and Oakland from tomor-
row through Sunday at Ray Fisher Stadium, and the
players are eager to play their first home contests of
the year.
"We're ready to go," Bohm said. "I think we feel
pretty comfortable with each other."
Getz sees past this weekend and envisions great
things for the infield as a whole.
"We're all young," he said. "I think it's only going
to get better. We have two or three more years togeth-
er, so it's a taste of what's to come."
0 MEN'S GOLF
Wildcats provide challenge on the links
By John Stiglich II
For the Daily
What teams are worthy of being
called Michigan's rival? Ohio State
certainly competes well in football.
Wisconsin can hoop it up with the
best of the Big Ten basketball teams.
And the Golden Gophers of Min-
nesota can skate with the Wolverines
in hockey games. But in the world of
men's golf, Northwestern has proven
to be a formidable opponent in
recent years.
This weekend, the Wolverines and
Wildcats will face each other for the
second time this spring season.
Northwestern was clearly the domi-
nant team at last month's Puerto Rico
Classic, when it bested Michigan by
21 shots. However, the Wolverines
have shown significant signs of
improvement in recent weeks.
"It'll be good for us to play
against them (Northwestern),"
coach Andrew Sapp said. "They
are one of the best teams in the Big
Ten and have been for the past four
or five years."
Two weeks ago at the General
Jim Hackler Invitational in Myrtle
Beach, S.C., the Wolverines
jumped four places on the final
day of competition to finish 14th
out of 19 teams.
The comeback was led by senior
Rob Tighe and freshman Kevin
Dore. Dore finished in a tie for
29th place, while Tighe finished
four shots behind his teammate, in
a tie for 44th place. The duo's
strong play resulted in Michigan's
tournament-low team total of 299
strokes.
"We're making baby steps," Sapp
said. "We're continuing to improve.
Not at the accelerated rate I'd like to
see, but we are improving."
Sapp noticed Tighe's improved
play while the team practiced in
Puerto Rico over Spring Break and
decided to bring the upperclassman
to Myrtle Beach. Tighe, who was not
in Sapp's original starting lineup,
was able to qualify for the Myrtle
Beach Classic through a pre-tourna-
ment practice round.
"I'm glad (Tighe) did (qualify),"
Sapp said. "He played fairly well for
us with a second-place finish on the
team in that event."
Tighe earned a spot in the starting
lineup this weekend, along with
Dore, sophomores Christian Vozza
and Brandon Duff and freshman
Matt McLaughlin.
Sapp is also looking for continu-
ing improvements in the team's
cohesion.
"I think that team chemistry is
definitely important as we make our
stretch run," Sapp said. "This is our
last event before what I consider our
Big Ten season."
Following this weekend's
action, the men's golf team will
compete at Purdue, Ohio State and
Michigan State. With its Big Ten
schedule, Michigan will have
plenty of opportunities to tame
the Wildcats before coming back
to Ann Arbor for the Big Ten
Championship in May.
I
Junior Laura Olin was named Big Ten Golfer of the Week for her efforts in the UC
Irvine Anteater Invitational.
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