2B - The Michigan Daily - SportsMonday - February 21, 2005 CLBSPORTsWEEKLY Synchro team swims to surprise finish By Colt Rosensweig For the Daily Athlete of the Week Name: Justine Mueller Team: Swimming & Diving Hometown: Monroe, Mich. Class: Freshman Why: Mueller won three individual titles at the Big Ten Champi- onships this weekend and swam on two winning relay teams. She was named Big Ten Swimmer of the Championships and Fresh- man of the Year. dance. Swimmers ofte forming under water. "The hardest thingi Yesterday, the huge aspirations of the synchronized swimming team got a significant captain of the team." boost. Competing against Walsh University Cavalier and Ohio State at the Maize and breath." Blue Invitational - where they were expected to be the third-best team- the team Synchronized swin placed second. forming in the Michi "(The best part of the meet) was when I was in my office calculating the scores, and sity sports for women I realized we got second," co-coach Becky Domegan said with a big grin. once again in the 198 Despite missing one of their best swimmers due to mononucleosis, the Michigan improving their natio synchro team performed excellently. The Wolverines exceeded even the high expecta- club varsity status. tions of their two coaches, Domegan and Stephanie Sherk. Michigan also overcame one Gaining that status i swimmer getting kicked in the head and losing her nose clip in a trio performance. ings. The coaches mu "People say synchro is not a contact sport, but I disagree," Sherk said. the club's readiness, frc Michigan finished behind Ohio State - a varsity team with up to triple the amount The two coaches fe of practice time per week. "We run an intense Each school competed in solos, duets, trios and team routines. While Ohio varsity practices." State athletes placed first in each event, Michigan also had a very strong show- The team goes thro. ing. Senior and former captain Sarah DuBay placed second in the solo perfor- in order to perform at t mance, and one of the four Michigan entries in team routines - made up of competitiveness for the Amy Blanshard, Sarah DuBay, Katie Messana and Sarah Van Wesep - also "In 1999, we had one finished in second. At Michigan, synchronized swimming is a club sport, and it with the team. "Now it is at an extreme disadvantage when competing with varsity teams. This makes After a strong perio their second-place overall finish even more impressive. almost all the member Synchronized swimming may look easy, with its graceful movements, over-the-top season. But Domegan makeup and smiling athletes. But it is actually one of the hardest sports around. "We are the largestc "You use muscle groups you never knew you had," said junior Cynthia The coaches also pr Saw, who swam competitively in high school and started swimming with there is a space for any the synchro team this year. The team members Synchronized swimmers must have endurance, flexibility and extension in abun- 20 at Ohio State. Warhurst uarantees It, Willi1's deli'vers on -mark en must not breathe for up to 45 seconds as they continue per- is holding your breath," said Erica Piccioto, a junior and former You still have to swim your hardest even when you're out of mming at Michigan first started in 1946 as a show team, per- gan Union pool. In the 1970s, it became one of the first var- nat the University. But after a brief heyday, it became a club 80s. The current club and its coaches have two main goals: nal ranking, from 19th of 29 teams last season, and gaining s almost as much of an ordeal as moving up in the national rank st go through a lengthy application process, submitting proof of om financial records to letters of support. el strongly that their program is ready for the leap in status. yearly practice plan," Sherk said. "We model our practices after ugh rigorous anaerobic, aerobic, strength and flexibility training the highest level possible, and it has been a long journey back to synchro team. e returning swimmer," said Domegan, who is in her seventh year 's in the 20s." d in the early 1990s, the club deteriorated following 1994, when rs graduated. The club was in danger of disappearing after that and Sherk are close to returning it to its former glory. competitive club in the country," Domegan said proudly. ide themselves on the fact that even on such a competitive club, one who is interested - even people with no experience. and coaches are now focusing on regionals, coming up on March 'M' SCHEDULE Date Event 2/21-22 W Golf at Central District Class Location 2/23 2/23 W Basketball at Michigan State M Basketball vs. Penn State 2/24 Water Polo vs. Loyola Marymou 2/24-26 M Swimming & Diving Big Ten Championships 2/25-27 2/257 2/25-27' Softball at NFCA Leadoff Class Baseball vs. Illinois-Chicago Water Polo at UC-Santa Barbara Invite 2/26-27 W Track & Field Big Ten Championship 2/26 M Tennis vs. Northwestern 2/26 M Gymnastics vs. Stanford 2/26 Baseball vs. Illinois-Chicago 2/26 W Tennis vs. Kentucky 2/26 M Basketball vs. Northwestern 2/27 W Rowing vs. Eastern Michigan 2/27 Baseball vs. Illinois-Chicago 2/27 M Tennis vs. Wisconsin 2/27 W Basketball at Illinois 2/27-3/1 M Golf at Puerto Rico Classic; 2/28 Baseball at Florida Atlantic ic Parrish, Fla. East Lansing Ann Arbor nt Los Angeles Minneapolis ic Columbus, Ga. Port St. Lucie, Fla. Santa Barbara. Calif. Ann Arbor Ann Arbor Ann Arbor Port St. Lucie, Calif. Ann Arbor Evanston Tampa, Fla. Port St. Lucie, Fla. Ann Arbor Champaign San Juan, Puerto Rico Boca Raton, Fla. Boca Raton, Fla. Gainesville, Fla. Gainesville, Fla. Orlando, Fla. Honolulu, Hawaii San Diego By Pete Sneider Daily Sports Writer It wasn't quite as bold as Namath's guaran- tee in 1969 - nor as highly publicized - but Michigan track and field coach Ron Warhurst's statement on Friday was loud enough to create some noise. In Friday's edition of The Ann Arbor News, Warhurst was quoted as saying, "Willis will break four minutes; I guarantee it." Junior Nick Willis walked Warhurst's talk at the Harold Silverston Invitational in Ann Arbor on Saturday with a time of 3:58.07 - guaran- teeing himself an automatic flight to the NCAA Indoor Championships in Fayetteville, Ark. The time was also fast enough to break the 21-year- old facility record held by former Wolverine and three-time Olympian Brian Diemer. It was Willis's second race of the season and his second NCAA automatic mark - the first coming two weeks ago in the 3000-meter run at the Meyo Invitational. His time converts to 3:57.27 on a banked track, giving him the fourth- fastest mile time in the nation this year. "To be honest, I really didn't have that many expectations," Willis said. "I thought I could have run anywhere from 3:54 to 4:04." Warhurst was a bit more cavalier. "I got what I expected, . got what he expect- ed, and I got what the crowd expected," War- hurst said. "Don't worry, I checked with (Willis) before I made (the guarantee)." Willis ran a steady race with consistent splits of just over 59 seconds. After freshman Mike Woods paced him for the first 800 meters, Wil- lis had to push himself the rest of the way. "I thought I would be able to kick home a little faster than I did," Willis said. "But considering the situation - I had no one to race against - it's certainly understandable." The New Zealand native was glad to net the NCAA qualifying mark but even more excited to do it before a home crowd. "There are so many people who ask me when I'm going to run in a home meet, and, normally, I would say never," Willis said. "But nobody has run a sub-4 mile in over twenty years, so I thought it would be a great opportunity to do something for the local community and give them something to get excited about. The crowd was really supportive, and I enjoyed hearing them." Senior Nate Brannen made his second attempt of the season to qualify in the 800-meters but finished a couple seconds too slow at 1:50.08. Brannen looked on pace to reach the automatic qualifying standard after consistent splits of 26 seconds, but a 31-second final lap prevented him from eclipsing the required mark of 1:48.60. A two-time national champion in the 800- meter, Brannen must qualify to get a shot at the three-peat - a feat that has never been accom- plished. "Coming into this meet, I was hoping to get the (automatic) standard," Brannen said. "I wasn't sure how I'd feel after coming back from Tyson, being sick and really fighting that all week. After the race, I was kind of seeing black and really dizzy. So I take that as a sign that this sickness not being totally out of my body." Brannen will have the Big Ten Champion- ships and the Alex Wilson Invitational - the last-chance meet in South Bend - to book his flight to Fayetteville, Ark. 3/1 3/1 3/1 Baseball vs. St. John's Softball at Florida Softball at Florida Time TBA 7 p.m. 8 p.m. 6 p.m. TBA 2:30 p.m. 2:00 p.m. TBA 9:30 a.m. 10 a.m. 1 p.m. 2 p.m. 2 p.m. 8 p.m. TBA 12 p.m. 12 p.m. 3 p.m. TBA 7 p.m. 2 p.m. 4 p.m. TBA 1 p.m. 12 a.m. 5 p.m. TBA TBA 11 a.m. 11 a.m. 3 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 7 p.m. 7:05 p.m. 7:30 p.m. 5 p.m. 5 p.m. TBA 9 a.m. 11 a.m. 11 a.m. 12:17 p.m. 7:35 p.m. TBA TBA *I 3/2 Softball at Central Florida 3/3 Water Polo at Hawaii 3/3 W Tennis at San Diego State 3/3-5 W Golf Rio Verde, Ariz. at East/West Rio Verde Invitational 3/3-3/7 W Basketball at Big Ten Tournament 3/4 3/4 3/4 3/4 Baseball at East Carolina Softball vs. Chattanooga Softball at South Florida M Tennis at San Diego 3/4 M Gymnastics at French National Training 3/4 Ice Hockey at Bowling Green 3/4 W Gymnastics vs. Iowa 3/4-5 W Track/Field at Alex Wilson Invitational 3/4-5 M Track/Field at Alex Wilson Invitational Indianapolis, Ind. Greenville, N.C. Tampa, Fla. Tampa, Fla. Sand Diego Antibes, France Center Bowling Green Ann Arbor South Bend South Bend 1 PETER SCHOTTENFELS/Daily Junior Nick Willis ran a sub-4 minute mile in the Harold Silverston Invitational Saturday. Freshman Victor Gras made his season debut, running unattached in the 3,000-meter run. His time of 8:20.33 was .02 ticks behind first-place finisher Steven Crane - an Eastern Michigan alumnus. Gras is redshirting the indoor season due to injury. Junior Andrew Bauer joined Gras in the 3,000 and knocked nine seconds off his personal best with a time of 8:31.67. The Wolverines will travel to West Lafayette next weekend for the Big Ten Championships. 3/5 3/5 3/5 3/5 3/5 3/5 3/5 W Rowing vs. Central Florida Tampa, Fla. Softball vs. Temple Tampa, Fla. Softball vs. Florida Tampa, Fla. Baseball vs. Georgia Greenville, N.C. M Basketball at Iowa Ann Arbor Ice Hockey vs. Bowling Green Ann Arbor Wrestling at Big Ten Championships Iowa City 3/5-6 Water Polo at CWPA League Tournament Grove City, Pa. Shaq steals show as East triumphs over West DENVER (AP) - Primping, preening, playful and preposterous, The Big Entertainer gave the NBA All-Star game a supersized dose of personality - though he wouldn't go so far as to do it while wearing a shoe phone. For the second straight year, Shaquille O'Neal made people laugh, applaud and appreciate his oversized way of doing everything, infusing an otherwise non- descript All-Star game Sunday night with just the right amount of precociousness. He danced as he was introduced, struck a pose before missing a foul shot and goofed with the rap stars and hip-hop artists who lined the front-row AP PHOTO seats across from the Eastern Confer- ence bench. All that showmanship didn't win O'Neal MVP honors -that award went to Allen Iverson - as the East beat the West 125-115. But if MVP stood for Most Vibrant Personality, this one was a runaway decided squarely in favor of the 360- pound, 7-foot behemoth who was mak- ing his 12th appearance in the league's showcase event. O'Neal's display of showmanship came after he unveiled his size-22 red and white shoe phone in the locker room before the game. An actual work- ing telephone mechanism is built into the sneaker, and an antenna pops out near the toes. "It's big, you can take it anywhere, make people look at you," O'Neal said. "And it prevents muggers. Kick them right in the (behind) with that Shaq shoe phone. "There's an addition at the top where you can pull out the strings and make it a Shaq-shoe handbag and phone all-in-one." The silliness O'Neal displayed and the reception he received were in stark contrast to the way things went for his former teammate, Kobe Bryant. Bryant finished with better numbers and was the most intense player on the court during the fourth quarter, but this show was clearly not his. Bryant, who was accused of rape in Col- orado two summers ago before the charges were dropped last September, was the only player booed during pre-game introduc- tions. O'Neal, Iverson and Vince Carter Allen Iverson won the MVP, but Shaq stole the show in Denver. received the loudest ovations, and O'Neal played to the crowd by strutting down the runway wearing a huge smile. "Leave it to Shaq to do something like that," teammate Dwyane Wade said. "He's always doing something to keep fans involved." O'Neal and Bryant ignored each other but exchanged hugs and hand slaps with the other starters as they stood at the center circle for the opening tip. They first came into contact with each other midway through the quarter when O'Neal poked the ball away from Bryant as he drove, only to be called for a foul. O'Neal nearly howled in disgust, yet another of the many contortions his face and body made throughout the night. When he went to the free throw line in the first quarter after driving around Yao Ming and dunking, he held the ball in his right hand, placed his left hand on his hip - striking a pose, as the fashionistas say - as he shot the ball one-handed. Naturally, given O'Neal's history as a poor foul shooter, he missed. O'Neal went to the line once more, midway through the third quarter, and displayed his usual form - or lack thereof - in missing two more free throws as the ball came off his hand with sidespin on the first one and top- spin on the second. The West never pulled close, and the game ended with O'Neal getting to attempt a 3-pointer. It missed, but it didn't matter. The showman had gotten the last moment in the spotlight. Greyhound Helps You And A Friend Unleash This Spring Break. A [x, 0l HEALTHY, MEDICATION-FREE VOLUNTEERS, AGES 18-45, ARE NEFnFl EfPD A DCAD PU TIlV I