The Michigan Daily - SportsMonday - March 28, 2005 - 3B

Frosh helps lead
Blue to second

Brawl- 0-Meter high for
re-Malice at the Palace

By Sara Livingston
Daily Sports Writer
On any given day, anyone can have a
breakout performance and show what
they are truly capable of achieving. For
Michigan freshman Isabelle Gendreau,
that moment was this past weekend at the
Baylor Tapatio Springs Shootout. Gen-
dreau led the No. 24 Michigan women's
golf team to a second-place finish, just
seven strokes behind Baylor. The fresh-
man held her own, finishing in the top-10
after each round and ending the tourna-
ment in, tied with teammate senior Laura
Olin for fifth place.
Gendreau was on point for most of the
three-day tournament, finishing the first
round 1-under-par in first place overall.
And despite running into some problems
during the second and third rounds, Gen-
dreau was still able to finish high, largely
because of her elevated level of concentra-
tion during play.
"Isabella always comes through when
we needed her," coach Kathy Teichert
said. "In the beginning, the upperclassmen
struggled a little bit, and she really came
through. And when you have a freshmen
playing in the No. 1 position all three
rounds, I have to give her a lot of credit
for not faltering and keeping her head high
and playing as well as she did."
After the first round of play, Gendreau
was the only Wolverine to finish in the
top-10. While many of her teammates
struggled during the opening round, they
redeemed themselves as the tournament
progressed. All of the golfers finished the
event in the top-15. Olin worked her way
up from 18th place the first day to eighth
the second, and she finished the tourna-
ment in fifth place.

"The first day, Ijust struggled a little bit
all over the course," Olin said. "I feel like I
played as best as I could because I was so
far behind from the beginning. On Satur-
day, my short game was a little off, but, by
making some birdies, I was able to make
up for that."
Along with Olin, sophomore Brianna
Broderick improved, reducing her strokes
by four from the first to third rounds of
play and finishing in ninth place. While
Broderick has had some trouble early this
spring season, Teichert is confident that
she will soon regain the focus she had dur-
ing the fall and become one of Michigan's
standout golfers.
"Brianna just hasn't been off to a good
start this spring," Teichert said. "It was
nice to see that she improved each of her
rounds this weekend. She started to come
along, and, in the long run, I think she
is going to be the catalyst for us. We are
going to need for her to keep low numbers,
and I think she is very capable of that."
But, as a team, the Wolverines were as
consistent as ever, maintaining their sec-
ond-place ranking throughout all three
rounds of the tournament and holding
their composure during Saturday's hour-
long rain delay. Despite shooting a com-
bined 303 in the third round of play (three
strokes higher than in the second round),
the team was able to stay on top largely
due to their strong performance after the
rain delay - a time when many other
schools lost focus and struggled on the
course.
"Our goal as always was to win it," Olin
said. "We all came out playing really well,
and we kind of got behind the last couple
of days. After the rain delay, everyone
stayed focused and proved we can really
play through anything. I think we exceed-

JASON COOPER/Daily
Freshman Isabelle Gendreau placed fifth
at the Baylor Tapatio Springs Shootout.
ed our expectations because we were the
low team by seven strokes today."
The consistency that the Wolverines
exhibited in Texas is something Teichert
hopes they will carry with them when they
begin training on their home course for
the Big Ten Championships next month.
Although the second-place finish is disap-
pointing on paper, knowing that all of the
golfers improved dayato-day tells Teichert
that the team learns fast and has great
potential as the season progresses.
"We have played very consistent
throughout the whole entire tourna-
ment," Teichert said. "After the rain
delay I was pleased that we picked up
a lot of strokes today and I was pleased
with our performance. I can honestly say
that everyone gave it all they had and
that's all I can ask for."

AUBURN HILLS - Inebriation and impulse spending.
For many folks, these two go together like peanut butter
and jelly.
And on the night of Nov. 19,.2004, this killer combo was in
full effect for yours truly.
Because that it was the eve of the Michigan-Ohio State foot-
ball game, I spent the night in a Columbus-area Holiday Inn bar,
downing overpriced brews and pump-
ing George Washingtons into the bar-
top Megatouch video game console.
The Pistons-Pacers game on TV had
already become a distant afterthought
when Indiana opened up a double-digit
lead late in the fourth quarter. But in
the middle of my umpteenth game of
Astro Joe (the only Megatouch game GENNARO
with attainable high scores), my friend FILICE
tore me away from the machine to wit- The SportsMonday
ness the events unfolding on the silver Column
screen. Before I knew it, Ron Artest,
Stephen Jackson and Jermaine O'Neal had unleashed a foray
of haymakers on Pistons fans, John Saunders had slammed the
entire city of Detroit, and I had found my way back to a computer
in my room to purchase four tickets to the Pistons game on Fri-
day, March 25 - the Pacers next scheduled game at the Palace.
Now I'll admit it. Although at the time I did believe that this
game would boast playoff implications, the true motivation
behind this impulse buy had little to do with watching a quality
NBA basketball game. Like the cynical sports fan that watches
NASCAR for the crashes, I just desired a train wreck. I wanted to
attend the Malice at the Palace Part II.
In the next four months, a slew of friends promised that they
would join me at the game if provided with one of my three extra
tickets. But of course, come Friday, Rick's and Touchdowns took
precedent over all things fun and exciting, and I was scurrying to
find at least one person to join me. Finally, Willow (yup, just like
the movie) signed on, and the two of us were Detroit-bound.
As college days dwindle, so do the opportunities to throw
all integrity out the window and make an idiot of oneself at a
sporting event. So, Willow and I decided to make this game a
memorable one by producing Ron Artest popsicle stick heads
(fashioned after the heads in "Pardon the Interruption") and a
pair of signs. My sign - "Stephen Jackson Eats Babies" - was
an obvious reference to Jackson's crazed antics during the Basket-
brawl, while Willow's sign - "Joe Dumars Smokes Crack" -
was just a senseless and obnoxious low blow at one of Detroit's
most beloved individuals (Willow's a proud Pittsburgh native).
Upon arrival at the arena, I quickly discovered that the Pal-
ace didn't share my desire for a repeat of Nov. 19's circus show.
Entrance security personnel forced every fan to empty all pockets
and spread all limbs so they could administer handheld metal
detector friskings. While the Artest popsicle stick heads cleared
security, the signs did not. Our usher uttered a simple "That's
not going to fly" to my sign and then followed with a perplexed
"Come on, man" to Willow's before pointing to the garbage bin
next to him. Appalled at this injustice, Willow and I donned Art-
est's popsicle stick grill over our own faces during the walk to our
seats and received some equally strange looks from passers-by.
When we arrived at our section, I eagerly anticipated locating
our seats because I had splurged and bought the $22 tix instead of
the cheapest offered. But our assent up the stairs seemed never-
ending. Finally we came to our seats, which were one row down
from the back wall. So basically, I had shelled out the extra dough
to move a grand total of two feet closer to the action. Spectacular.
Moments after we sat down, Mason (the Pistons' P.A.
announcer) proudly recited two words - "Joe Dumars." And
then the scoreboard screens flashed a four-minute highlight reel
of the team's President of Basketball Operations during his play-

ing days to the tune of The Temptations' "The Way You Do the
Things You Do." I wonder how Willow's sign would have been
received by surrounding Pistons fans during this lovefest?
When 8 p.m. rolled around, there was no sign of the players.
8:15 ... 8:30 ... still no players. The Michigan State-Duke game
came on the big screen and suddenly the Palace turned into the
Breslin Center. As the crowd passionately cheered for Sparty,
the loudspeakers belted out the Michigan State fight song. A few
minutes later, an announcement brought out the night's first boo
birds: "Continue to enjoy the Michigan State-Duke game, but
until further notice, this game has been delayed due to unforesee-
able circumstances."
My original hypothesis was that Jackson had gone postal on
fans outside the locker room, but Willow dispelled this theory by
calling some friends that were watching the game (or lack there-
of) on TV. They informed him that the Pacers would not leave
the team bus because of a bomb threat. At this point, I was some-
what confused at what my next action should be. Do I leave?
Somehow I found myself laughing at this potential disaster. Other
people in our section confirmed the bomb threat through cell
phone usage, and their reactions were quite similar. It was like
everyone was somehow content with the current, endangered sta-
tus, and I could almost hear a collective rationalization of the situ-
ation: "Bomb threat? Eh, whatever, I don't wanna miss the end
of this State game." But one guy sporting an Isiah Thomas jersey
seated directly behind me refused to accept the bomb threat as a
viable reason why Indiana players wouldn't leave the bus: "They
just scared to come out on the court - they scared we gon' beat
they ass." Touch6, Isiah, touch.
At 9:10 p.m., an announcement said the game would start
in 20 minutes. Of course, this perfectly coincided with State's
finish. With just under two minutes left in what looked to be a
huge upset win for the Spartans, the scoreboard screens opted for
Pistons player introductions. And as the Pistons faced deafening
boos courtesy of the hometown fans for the first time since the
teal days, I knew that this rowdy crowd - which had already
been drinking for an hour and a half - was basketbrawl ready.
Jackson's intro confirmed the crowd's maliciousness. And,
come game time, boo birds re-appeared each time he had the ball.
But the first half elapsed without a single abnormal occur-
rence. At halftime, a scoreboard message asked that fans "Please
refrain from throwing any objects." It was like a kindergarten
teacher pleading with students to stop pulling each other's hair.
My interest was piqued with 4:27 left in the third when Jackson
received a technical foul for arguing with officials. The Brawl-O-
Meter in my head skyrocketed. Jackson's response to the tech was
subdued though, and play continued without incident.
As the game played on, it became eerily similar to the Nov. 19
contest. Indiana opened up with a huge lead, the arena emptied out
and Ben Wallace mixed it up with an opposing player (Scot Pol-
lard in this instance). I was almost positive a plastic cup would fly,
and Palace-style malice would ensue. It seemed as though the fans
seated in the lower deck section (where the infamous November
brawl had taken place) shared my belief, as very few of them had
left. Guess they all craved a souvenir of the black-eye form.
With just under two minutes left in the game, a fistfight broke
out between two fans across the arena, instantly drawing 30
security guards. And the slight rush I felt finally made me realize
how sickening my entire approach to this game had been. I had
entered this game basically hoping for another horrific incident.
Leaving the Palace, I was ashamed at myself. Brawls are not
among the desires of a true sports fan. What had happened to
me? When did I lose my values? What about the kids?
As I walked through the parking lot, I didn't feel like showing
my face.
So I donned Artest's likeness instead.
Gennaro Filice can be reached at gfilice@umich.edu

C a(
1

ends

season
with
pride
By Anne Ulble
Daily Sports Writer

TONY DING/Daily
Junior Chris Dejong swam Michigan's best time in the 800-yard freestyle relay.

Auburn ran awa
team title, scoring 49
were led by a strong4

MINNEAPOLIS - The atmosphere tough sprinters, both
inside Minnesota's University Aquatic lacked this weekend.
Center was electric. The deafening In the attempt
screams of excited fans mixed with the gan's 2004 NCAA
intensity of the competition created the yard freestyle re
perfect battle ground for the NCAA juniors Peter Van
Men's Swimming and Diving Champi- and Chris Dejong
onships this weekend. Hurd swam to th
The No. 5 Michigan team brought 10 of the season (6:1
swimmers into Gopher territory with short of the win a
hopes of claiming a top-five finish in the ahead in the fina
nation and left with an honorable sixth- Dejong posted the
place team finish. (1:33.94) after chas
"I couldn't be more proud of our boys Brian Hartley duri
this weekend," coach Bob Bowman said. "I just didn't wan
"I think sixth was just about as well as we the relay down," De
could do. We ended our collegiate season new guy on the relay
on a high note." had won the nationa
Junior Davis Tarwater provided Michi- has been a lot of his
gan one last point surge on Saturday with that relay. We ended
an individual title in the 200-yard butter- this year."
fly to seal the sixth-place finish. Individually, Mic
"Davis's race was the highlight of Sat- ers were Vanderkaay
* urday," Bowman said. "He raced better After winning
than I've seen him this season." style title on the first
Over the course of the weekend, the Vanderkaay continu
team started off in ninth place, but, with races by earning a
the longer distance events later in the pro- in the 200-yard free
gram, Michigan improved its standing in 1:33.71, which v
every day. and a school record
TARWATER
Continued from page 1B
In his fourth and final 50, Tarwater out-split every
swimmer by more than half a second to win the race. His
time of 1:42.30 was the third-fastest performance in the
event in NCAA history.
"I knew that I could finish better than anyone else in the
race," Tarwater said. "My strategy was just to go out with
everyone but bring it home faster."
After hitting the wall, Tarwater turned to the scoreboard to
look at his time.
He broke out into a huge grin and lifted his hands above his
head. Then he pointed up into the stands to where his family
was sitting.
"I didn't really know what to do," Tarwater said. "I just kind
of did the first thing that came to my mind. I did some kind of
celebration, but words really can't describe how it felt."
Dwight and Mary Tarwater were elated when they saw that
Davis won.
"It's very emotional to see one of your own win a national
championship," Dwight said. "Davis has worked so hard for

y with the NCAA
91 points. The Tigers
diving program and
hof which Michigan
to defend Michi-
A title in the 800-
lay, the team of
derkaay, Tarwater
and senior Andrew
e team's best time
8.17) but was just
fter Florida pulled
d leg of the relay.
team's fastest time
ing down Florida's
ng the third leg.
t to be the guy to let
jong said. "I was the
,since the other three
i title last year. There
tory and tradition in
d up just a little short
higan's top perform-
and Dejong.
the 500-yard free-
t day of competition,
ed his trend of fast
second-place finish
style on Friday night
was a personal best
. Then on Saturday,

Vanderkaay was the runner-up in the
1,650-yard freestyle in 14:36.54 - a time
drop of nine seconds. He lost to Southern
Cal's Larsen Jensen, who is the Olympic
silver medalist in the event.
"Peter is the iron man," Bowman said.
"He swims all the tough events. He's our
go-to guy - whenever we ask something
of him, he always comes through."
After a tough first day of events, Dejong
rebounded for the final day of competi-
tion and earned a third-place finish in the
200-yard backstroke.
"I did everything I thought I could
do," Dejong said. "I swam the race as
smart as I could. I was happy with the
time, but I was hoping for a little bit
more. It was kind of an up and down
meet for me, but I just kept fighting the
whole time, and I can leave the meet
with my head held high."
Bowman respected the efforts put in
by everyone on the team - especially
Hurd, Alex Vanderkaay, Chuck Sayao
and Brenden Neligan, all of whom had
significant time drops in their events
- and was happy with the way the meet
turned out.
"It's been a lot of fun, and I couldn't be
more pleased with the way things turned
out," Bowman said. "The guys have been
great, and I'm looking forward to the class
we're bringing in next year."


this moment, and we couldn't be more proud. Our family was
thrilled for him."
At the awards ceremony, the trophies for the event were
handed out by Olympic gold medalist at the 2000 Sydney
games and former Michigan great Tom Malchow. It was a
special moment for both men since they had trained together
for two years.
"Having him give me my award was truly meaningful," Tar-
water said. "I can attribute part of my success to Tom because
we trained together for two years and I learned from him. He
was the best in what he did for so long, so it meant so much. I
felt like it was a proverbial passing of the torch."
Malchow was also honored to be able to present Tarwater
with the title trophy.
"It was weird because it was my first time giving out a big
award," Malchow said. "I'm usually used to getting awards,
but it was special giving it to Davis. He worked hard for it and
definitely deserved it. He had a great race, and I was really
happy for him."
Even though his collegiate swimming season concluded this
past weekend, Tarwater will look to qualify for the World Cham-
pionships next week at the trials being held in Indianapolis.

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