The Michigan Daily - Thursday, March 17, 2005 - 9A

* Transfer makes
immediate impact

'M' improves in
Vegas, takes 4th

Uy Kevin Wright
Daily Sports Writer
When Michigan junior Carly
Strub decided to leave Hartwick and
transfer to Michigan to play water
polo, those around her told her not
to do it.
"A lot of people discouraged me
from coming, saying that I wouldn't
get a chance to play," Strub said. "I
took that on as a challenge. I came
anyways, and I think I'm still giving
it my all."
While proving her doubters
wrong, it took a unique situation at
Hartwick College to bring Strub to
Michigan.
Last year, Hartwick's president
decided to move the women's water
polo program from a Division I
sport to a Division III sport. As a
smaller college, many of Hartwick's
varsity teams played at the Division
III level, but water polo was always
different. After being informed
of the future plans, the water polo
players had the option to transfer
without losing any eligibility.
Later, the president retracted the
change, but Strub still decided to
transfer. She looked at a variety
of schools around the East Coast,
but Michigan attracted her with its
tradition of academic and athletic
excellence.
"Michigan is an amazing school,
and I had to take that opportunity,"
Strub said.
During her two years at Hartwick,
Strub enjoyed immediate success in
the pool. Her freshman season, she
scored 21 goals, and recorded -31
assists and was named the Hartwick
College Outstanding Female Fresh-
man in 2003.
"I was really excited about (the

award)," Strub said. "I was up
against really athletic and talented
girls. It was a big honor to get that
award."
While Strub enjoyed the recogni-
tion for her play in the pool as a fresh-
man, she would shine even brighter
her sophomore year. She tallied
18 goals and 21 assists and helped
Hartwick enjoy a dream season. It
finished 33-12 and advanced to the
Final Four after defeating Michigan
in the Eastern Championship.
This season, Strub hopes to help
the Wolverines reach the Final Four,
and Michigan coach Matt Anderson
believes that she has dramatically
improved his team's chances.
"I feel that Carly is the missing
link," Anderson said. "She's a trans-
fer that came in at the right time and
played the right position. As I've
told her before, she's a godsend for
this program. We were very blessed
to get her here."
When Strub arrived at Michigan,
she had to adjust to her new role on
the water polo team: coming off of
the bench. While acclimating to
Anderson's system, she has enjoyed
a solid start to the season with four
goals and six steals.
Anderson believes that Strub's
work ethic and affable personality
have allowed her to contribute to
the team in a variety of ways.
"Carly is extremely likeable and
very talkative," Anderson said. "She
is very focused on what she needs to
do whether it is school, personal or
athletic. She understands time man-
agement and never really seems to
not be enjoying anything that she's
doing."
Not only has Strub had to adapt
to her new role on the team, but she
has also had to make the transition

By Randy Ip
Daily Sports Writer
The week just got better and better
for the Michigan women's golf team.
It finished tied for fourth overall with
Tennessee in a very competitive field
of 18 at the UNLV Spring Invitation
in Las Vegas yesterday. As a team,
Michigan shot 62-over-par, with a final
score of 926 in the three-day tourna-
ment. The team improved its score
after every round, but it was Southern
Cal that led from day one and never
relinquished its position at the top.
"Any time you can keep improv-
ing throughout a tournament is a
good feeling," Michigan coach Kathy
Teichert said. "That is what we did
all weekend. I am very proud of the
way we came together and competed
for 54 holes. To get better with each
round, again, really shows how this
team competes."
Senior captain Laura Olin had
another tremendous day yesterday,
shooting a team-best 71 to help the
Wolverines finish in fourth place.
Olin's 1-under round made her the
only Wolverine to finish under par in
any of the rounds.
After a shaky start on Monday,
when she shot 9-over-par, Olin quick-
ly bounced back. She shot eight and
two strokes better on the following
days. Olin's solid outings earned her
fifth place overall in Las Vegas.
Olin was poised to break 70 in the
final round of the tournament when
she was three-under going into the

final hole. But her drive on the 19th
hole took an unfortunate bounce
after hitting the fairway and found
its way into the sand. She ended -up
double bogeying the hole, costing hfr
a chance for fourth place
"I striped it and just got a bad
kick," Olin said of her misfortune
on the 18th. "I chucked it out of the
bunker and had to take an unplayable
lie, but I hit the green and then two
putted. It kind of flustered me to fin-
ish that way because there is no way
it should have been in the bunker. But
I am over it now because we played
well as a team, and I did have a solid
tournament."
Olin wasn't the only Wolverine
who showed signs of improvement
over the week. Yesterday, every
Michigan player equaled or improved
on her day-two score. Freshman Isa-
belle Gendreau shot a 15-over-par 87,
on Monday but cut her score down to
plus-five on the following days. Junior
Amy Schmucker and sophomore Bri-
anna Broderick also contributed nice-
ly, finishing 26th and tied for 27th.
Broderick was also consistent yester-
day. She bogeyed just five holes, while
finishing 4-over-par.
The Wolverines have played well
all season. In eight tournaments, the
team has finished first three times,
and has never finished worse than
sixth out of nineteen teams back in
October. Michigan doesn't play until
March 20, when it heads down to
Texas for the Baylor Tapatio Springs
Shootout.

AMY DRUMM/Daily
Michigan junior Carly Strub (white cap) has adjusted well to her new role.

into life on a large campus. She
credits her experience in Hartwick's
smaller classrooms for reducing the
adjustment period.
"I excelled at Hartwick, which
has helped me excel here at Michi-
gan and not just being thrown in
as a number," Strub said. "Being
in smaller classes has helped me
(adjust to Michigan). I think I'm
doing real well."
Once at Michigan, Strub changed
her major to psychology and has
loved the entire educational experi-
ence.
Critics doubted Strub, but she
has taken hold of her opportunity
to play water polo at an extremely
competitive level.
In just her second game as a Wol-

verine, Strub experienced first-hand
the bitter rivalry between Michigan
and Indiana. In a close game, Indi-
ana defeated the Wolverines by one
goal, and Strub admitted that the
game overwhelmed her.
"It was extremely nerveracking,"
Strub said. "At Hartwick, we didn't
have a rival like that, and I cannot
stress how nerveracked I was during
that game."
This weekend, Strub and the Wol-
verines have another chance to defeat
the Hoosiers as Michigan hosts the
Wolverine Invitational. Michigan
plays Indiana at 7 p.m. on Friday
night at Canham Natatorium.
"I'm really excited for Friday's
game because now we've played and
I know what its like," Strub said.

Blue faces uphill climb for NCAA title

SARA LIVINGSTON
ON MEN'S GYMNASTICS
With the postseason on the hori-
zon, the No. 4 Michigan men's
gymnastics team needs to raise its
intensity to the next level. If they
fail to do so, the Wolverines will
have to face the fact that they may
not achieve their preseason goal:
NCAA Champions.
Throughout the regular season
coach Kurt Golder and his team
have struggled through minor inju-
ries and illnesses - none more
serious than senior captain Geoff
Corrigan's foot injury, which
may not be healed in time for the
Big Ten Championships later this
month. While the Wolverines are
beat up and sore from the day-to-
day grind, it is imperative that they
bear down.
"I don't think anybody on our
team isn't beat up at this point in
the season," junior Justin Laury
said after a loss to Penn State on
Feb. 19. "I have to see day by day
how I feel."
Like many of his fellow Wolver-
ines, Laury spends an hour after
every practice wrapped up in ice
packs, cooling down his strained
and overworked muscles. While the
team watered-down their routines
against Ohio State in order to rest
for the upcoming championships,
it is imperative that the gymnasts
turn up their intensity and realize
that Big Tens, which they have been
working toward all season, are just
two weeks away.
The Wolverines have been saying
all season that they are "saving"
themselves for the championships
- both NCAA and Big Ten - and
that, come the end of the season,
they can add two more trophies to
Golder's office.
"We all know what the impor-
tant meets are, and that's the Big
Ten and NCAA Championships,"
Corrigan said. "We are going to be
focused on those and, hopefully,
win those."
Michigan has a shot at both
championships largely due to their
experienced coaching staff - both
assistant coaches, Daniel Diaz-
Loung and Scott Vetere, won an
NCAA Championship with Michi-
gan in 1999 and two Big Ten Cham-
pionships, in 1999 and 2000, under
Golder - and strong lineup (with
the exception of an injured Corri-
gan). But a Big Ten Championship
is more likely. The Wolverines have
faltered on road trips all season,
losine four of their five away meets

of mental toughness, and the chal-
lenge lies in them - can they get
themselves up?"
One of Michigan's problems on
the road stems from its inconsis-
tency on the pommel horse - the
first apparatus the visiting team
performs on. The Wolverines have
scored higher than 36.0 just once
on the road. But when at home,
Michigan begins the meet on
floor exercise; and, in all of their
head-to-head meets - both home
and away - the Wolverines have
scored better than a 35.5 on the

event, leading to early success and
confidence when they're in Crisler
Arena.
Despite the team's current state,
the Wolverines are just as confident
that they will end the season as
victorious as they were in January.
When the seniors were asked what
their favorite Michigan moment
was, they all smiled, saying the best
was yet to come, and their time in
Ann Arbor wouldn't be complete
without an NCAA Title.
"I'm looking for a national title,"
said fifth-year senior captain Chris

Gatti. "This is the best team I have
been on here. It's the best team, both
physically and as a cohesive team.
Everyone seems to get along really
well, and we have really bonded to
one another."
The Wolverines host the Big Ten
Championships on March 25. Then,
they will have to see if they have got-
ten over their past traveling issues
when they head to West Point for the
NCAA Championships on April 7.

Michigan sophomore Brianna Broderick finished in a tie for 27th place.


- -mmmiq

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Matsuri
Japan Cultural Festival 2005