The Michigan Daily - SportsMonday - April 5, 2004 - 7B
Bowman takes over for
By Gabe Edelson
Daily Sports Writer
It's not every day that a legend must
be replaced.
Nevertheless, Bob Bowman was
elated upon learn-
ing that he had
been chosen to
succeed the retir-
ing Jon Urbanchek
as the Michigan
men's swimming
coach, effective in
September.
"It's an honor,
something that
you really dream Bowman
about," Bowman said. "I'm really look-
ing forward to getting to know all the
guys on the team and immersing
myself in the atmosphere of Michigan."
Bowman will leave the North Balti-
more Aquatic Club - where he has
coached since 1996 - for Ann Arbor,
following the conclusion of the Sum-
mer Olympics. Despite a lack of colle-
giate coaching experience, Bowman's
track record speaks for itself. He has
coached 10 U.S. National Team mem-
bers throughout the course of his career,
including Michael Phelps - perhaps
the world's top swimmer. Bowman has
become well-respected both domesti-
cally and on the international stage.
"Bob is a marquee coach,"
Urbanchek said. "He's probably the
most recognizable American coach.
He's a person who can take the pro-
gram to the next level."
In the end, the search for
Urbanchek's replacement came down to
Bowman and another well-qualified
candidate: Michigan assistant coach
Eric Namesnik. Namesnik spent the
past 16 years working with Urbanchek
- eight years as a swimmer followed
by an additional eight as a coach. Many
had expected Namesnik to wind up
with the job, but either choice would
have been a good one for the Michigan
swimming program.
"(Namesnik) is a loyal Michigan
man," Urbanchek said. "He's probably
just a few years away from having all
the experience he needs. (Bowman) has
a wealth of experience. Michigan
swimming is in good hands, (but) I
would have been happy either way.
We're all going to rally behind Bob
Bowman."
Bowman also has nothing but
respect for Namesnik, both in and out
of the pool.
"He's just a fantastic guy and a long-
time friend of mine," Bowman said.
Urbanchek claims he had no part in
the selection.
"I took myself out of the process,"
he said. "I didn't want to get involved
with that."
The hire also means that there is
suddenly a clear-cut favorite in Phelps'
college search. Though he has already
moved onto the professional ranks and
signed endorsement contracts, which
prohibit him from swimming for
Michigan, it is extremely likely that the
Tankers
18-year-old superstar - who appeared
on the cover of ESPN The Magazine
last month - will be walking around
campus this fall. If he does attend
classes at Michigan, Phelps will swim
for Club Wolverine, Urbanchek's pro-
fessional and post-graduate swimming
program, which Bowman will also take
over.
At last weekend's Councilman Clas-
sic Grand Prix meet in Indianapolis,
Ind., Phelps - whom Urbanchek calls
"the world's greatest swimmer" - was
seen wearing Michigan gear.
"(Phelps) has always dreamed of
coming to Michigan," Bowman said.
"(But right now), we're focused on our
preparations for Athens."
Whether or not Phelps comes to
Michigan, the program has acquired
quite a valuable asset in Bowman, who
sees his new situation as ideal.
"There's a lot of talent on the team,"
Bowman said. "I'm looking forward to
bringing in some student-athletes who
can add to that."
The Michigan water polo team saw its 12-game winning streak come to an end
this weekend in the Fluid Four Invitational at the hands of Loyola-Marymount.
Twelve and done: W
streak comes to -an end
Blue soaks up
rays, brings
home medals
By Phil Kofahl
Daily Sports Writer
With the end of the school year in sight, many
students are anticipating going home. But for
many student-athletes, their season has only just
begun. The Michigan men's track team sent some
of its best down to Atlanta for warm weather and
hot competition. The Wolverines took on track
powers Florida, Georgia Tech and South Carolina,
as well as other international runners, and came
out with a few medals.
Although Michigan was unable to capture a
first-place finish, it did grab numerous top-10 and
top-five titles.
The Wolverines were led by runner-up showings
from sophomore Todd Iacovelli in the 3,000-meter
run, freshman Michael Whitehead in the triple
jump and the 4x400-meter relay. Iacovelli was just
six seconds behind the winner, and the perform:
ance came not too long after he had competed in
the 1,500-meter run.
Wolverines earning automatic bids to the
NCAA Regional Championship meet were
sophomore Andrew Ellerton in the 1,500-meter
run, freshman Jeff Porter in the 110-meter hur-
dles and junior Seth Waits in the 400-meter hur-
dles. This was Ellerton's first race since NCAA
Indoor Nationals, where he was a part of the
winning distance medley relay team. His third-
place performance was the best by a collegian
in the race, and he cut nearly two seconds off
this personal record - despite having come just
one real practice on the track.
"It felt pretty comfortable," Ellerton said. "I
was happy with how it went, considering it's so
early in the season. It should be a sign of good
things to come."
Ellerton used the race more as a workout than a
chance to qualify for regionals, where the sopho-
more has his sight set on earning a trip to nation-
als in the 800-meter run.
Porter grabbed his qualification despite hitting
the second hurdle violently, costing him his early
RYAN WEINER/Daily
Freshman Jeff Porter earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Regional Championships In the 110-meter hurdles.
lead. Despite the hit, Porter finished the race in
seventh place amongst some strong competition.
Waits, the third regional qualifier, led the
Wolverines to a 3-4-5 finish in the 400-meter hur-
dles. Juniors David Battani and DarNell Talbert
both finished within a second of Waits, displaying
the depth Michigan has in the event. Battani's time
was two-tenths of a second off of the regional
qualifying time, aind was a personal best.
"(They were) great conditionstc race in," Bat-
tani said. "The weather was good, but the competi-
tion was great. Anytime you can get those guys in
there it's great, because those guys can just fly."
Senior Nick Meter rounded out the field of
Wolverines in the event, finishing ninth, giving
Michigan its fourth hurdler in the top 10.
Battani knows that his success is a result of
working with such a competitive field of hurdlers.
"It's definitely great working with these guys,"
Battani said. "It's great to train with such talented
guys. We push and feed off each other every day.
With all of us together, we're definitely one of the
deepest teams in the nation."
Michigan also received some good performanc-
es from its freshmen on the track.
Freshman Sebastien Lounis captured third place
in the 800-meter run, and freshman Ethan Brown
grabbed third place in the 5,000-meter run.
Brown's finish came in spite of the fact that he
accidentally followed a rabbit, a person who sets a
face $a'ce then drops out mid-way.
"I'm happy with how I finished place-wise,"
Brown said. "I went out too fast and I would've
liked to have had a better time.
"The team had a lot of great performances, and
I'm very glad (about) how we did against the other
schools."
The Wolverines will put in some rigorous work-
outs this week and take the weekend off from
competition. Their next meet will be close to
home - April 16 through April 18 at the Eastern
Michigan Invitational in Ypsilanti.
By Brad Johnson
Daily Sports Writer
The Michigan water polo team did
something on Saturday that it had
not done in 12 prior games: it lost.
The No. 8 Wolverines fell 8-6 to
No. 7 Loyola-Marymount at the
Fluid Four Invitational in Blooming-
ton. The game was tight throughout
the first half, and the teams entered
halftime in a 2-2 deadlock. Loyola-
Marymount (19-4) was then able to
open up the game in the third period,
scoring three straight goals to take a
5-3 advantage heading into the final
frame. Michigan came back to score
three of the next four goals, tying
the score at 6-6 with less than three
minutes to play.
"Loyola-Marymount is a game
that is going down to the buzzer no
matter what," Michigan coach Matt
Anderson said.
With the score tied up in the clos-
ing minutes, Loyola-Marymount
overpowered the Wolverines to score
the final two goals of the game and
secure the victory.
"We could have played better,
without a doubt," Anderson said.
"For how we played, to go into the
last couple minutes of the game
with the opportunity to beat the No.
7 team in the nation, I was happy
with that."
Michigan (25-8) rebounded in the
second game of the invitational to
defeat No. 20 Cal. State-Northridge
9-5. The Wolverines were aided by a
hot start against Cal. State-North-
ridge (14-11), as they leapt out to a
3-1 lead after the first period. From
there, the team never looked back,
with freshman standout Shana Welch
and sophomore Megan Hausmann
both picking up hat tricks.
6M 9 NOTE
Tennis splits weekend
away from Ann Arbor
The normally dependable doubles
teams for the Michigan women's ten-
nis team came up short this weekend,
and it cost the Wolverines their first
Big Ten match of the season.
Michigan dropped the doubles point
in both matches over the weekend,
including Saturday's 4-3 loss to Iowa,
the first Big Ten setback of the season.
Yesterday, the Wolverines were able to
overcome the early deficit left by
dropping the doubles point, coming
from behind for a 5-2 victory against
Minnesota.
Both No. 1 and No. 2 doubles are
ranked in the top 35 nationally, but
they couldn't put together a strong
enough performance to secure the
"(In the second game, we) just
refocused on a few things defensive-
ly," Anderson said. "It's tough to
play a game like that after you lose a
very tough game. I was worried
about a letdown, and jumping out to
the type of lead we did shows the
kind .of team we are capable of
being."
Despite the positives from the
solid win against Cal. State-North-
ridge, the loss to Loyola-Marymount
had significant NCAA Tournament
implications for the Wolverines. The
teams split their season series at one
game apiece, so now it is up to the
NCAA seeding committee to deter-
mine who will get the higher seed.
"On paper, we are even in com-
parison of power points and every-
thing," Anderson said. "It's going to
come down to the decision of, 'Well,
(Loyola-Marymount) beat them last
so they should get the better seed.' "
Even though he hates to take a
loss, Anderson was somewhat
relieved because the defeat meant
that Michigan would not have to try
to beat Loyola-Marymount a third
time should they meet in the NCAA
Tournament.
Beating an opponent three times
in one season is a difficult task for
any team to pull off.
"To beat a top-10 team, you have
to play well," Anderson said. "To
beat them two times in a row, you
have to play extremely well. To play
them a third time, and beat them
three times in a row, that's pretty
darn close to (playing) perfect."
Before they can start worrying
about facing Loyola-Marymount for
a third time, however, the Wolver-
ines must first vtake on the U.S.
Women's Olympic team tomorrow at
7 p.m. at Canham Natatorium.
early lead for Michigan in either
match. The duo of junior Michelle
DaCosta and freshman Kara Delicata,
ranked No. 30 in the country, lost both
No. 1 doubles matches this weekend.
Freshman Lindsey Goldstein made
her collegiate dual meet debut at No.
3 doubles with junior Leanne Ruther-
ford for Michigan's lone doubles win
yesterday.
Junior Kavitha Tipirneni extended
her team lead in dual match victories
(14) with a pair of wins this weekend
at No. 3 singles. She has also won 10
straight matches. Freshman standout
Elizabeth Exon and sophomore Debo-
rah Streifler also swept their matches
this weekend.
Freshman Kara Delicata didn't
allow her opponent to win even one
set, as she won her No. 6 singles
match yesterday against Minnesota's
Shelby Rohrer, 6-0, 6-0.
-Brian Schick
M WOMEN'S TRACK
Boyle returns from injury and breaks record
By Gabriela D'Jaen
Daily Sports Writer
There are few things more satisfy-
ing in an athlete's career than to come
back and be successful after suffering
an injury.
Sophomore Elizabeth Boyle may
have fallen five inches short of first
place in the pole-vault at the Yellow
Jacket Invitational at Georgia Tech,
but at roughly 13 feet in the air, she
was soaring above any other female
athlete in Michigan history. Last
year, Boyle set the school record at
12-foot-10. At this year's Atlanta
Invitational, Boyle cleared a height
of 13-foot-3.5.
After attending a camp in Jones-
borough, Ark., this past summer,
Boyle was invited to stay an extra
week to receive individual attention.
It turned into a month, and eventual-
ly Boyle decided to take the fall
semester off to train.
But just as she was returning to
Michigan in the winter, Boyle tore her
quadriceps muscle. She is currently
recovering from the injury with inten-
sive physical therapy.
"At first, they didn't know the mus-
cle was torn," she said. "I started
doing pool workouts, but nothing was
working, so I took a month off and the
pain slowly subsided."
The Yellow Jacket Invitational was
just Boyle's second meet of the year.
By integrating her meets with her ther-
apy, she had few expectations except
to recover and "get back into the
swing of things."
Boyle explained that, before the
would be considered 14 steps. In her
first meet back, she could manage
just eight steps. Even with just a 12-
step approach, she was able to break
the record.
"I learned a lot down in Jonesbor-
ough," Boyle modestly said.
As the season continues, Boyle
said she is not setting expectations
for herself but is surprised with her
performance.
"It's so soon back that I wasn't
expecting to break my record," she
said. "It just felt great having the
support of the whole team and the
coaches."
Boyle wasn't the only member of
the women's track and field team to
have a noteworthy comeback perform-
ance this weekend. The team took the
divide-and-conquer approach, sending
the throwers and distance runners to
Tampa at the South Florida Invitation-
al and the jumpers and sprinters to the
Yellow Jacket Invitational.
Senior quad-captain Melissa Bickett
has been nursing her sprained ankle for
weeks on end. Her first-place finish in
discuss this weekend is a sign of her
progress, showing she is just one step
closer towards full rehabilitation.
"Melissa is finally coming back,"
throwing coach Anne Tackas said.
While the throwers had an average
performance, the long distance runners
had a slew of personal-best perform-
ances and first-place finishes.
Runner Lindsey Gallo ran the 800-
meters in 2:11.07 for a first-place finish,
only to run the 1,500-meter Invitational
Run a few hours later and win the event
clocking in at 4:23.47 seconds.
Other highlights included the 1,500-
meter event, where Teresa Feldkamp,
Erin Webster and Chelsea Homan had
first, second and third place finishes,
respectively.
Both Feldkamp and Webster quali-
fied for the NCAA Regional Champi-
onships with their times. Michigan run- -
ners Katie Erdman, Jessie Allen-Young
and Jackie Gaydos went one, two and
three, respectively, in the 3,000-meter
event. Junior Ana Gjesdal had an out-
standing performance, finishing first in
the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a
time ofjust over 11 minutes.
"The weather was pretty windy and
not quite what we were expecting," dis-
tance coach Mike McGuire said. "We
performed well despite it and are off to
a great start."
Back in Atlanta, senior quad-captain
sprinter Vera Simms posted an NCAA
Regional qualifying time of 59.12 sec-
onds in the 400-meter hurdles.
Runners, jumpers, throwers and
sprinters will all reunite in Knoxville,
Tenn. this Friday for the Sea Ray
Relays.