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The Michigan Daily - SportsTuesday - September 6, 2005 - 7B
Montoya and Tambellini leave Icers shorthanded
By James V. Dowd
Daily Sports Writer
The Michigan hockey team had enough on its
hands trying to replace 10 departed seniors. But
just as it seemed that it had an adequate fresh-
man class to fill the gap, the program lost three
more of its stars to the professional ranks this
summer - starting goaltender Al Montoya,
leading scorer Jeff Tambellini and forward
Mike Brown.
Michigan fans will immediately see how the
new freshman will pan out, but it might be a
while before the departed Wolverines reach the
NHL -if they make it at all.
"I think that Montoya and Tambellini have a
good chance to make the NHL," associate coach
Mel Pearson said. "But all three will spend time
in the minors. So you wonder why they give up
their last year of eligibility to play in the minors.
Jeff and Al will play in the NHL, but Mike Brown
is a long shot."
Montoya was the first to leave, signing with
the New York Rangers on July 27. The Rangers
selected Montoya with the sixth pick of the 2004
draft and encouraged him to join their organiza-
tion in hopes that he would benefit from working
with their accomplished goaltending coach Benoit
Allaire. Montoya will likely suit up for the Ameri-
can Hockey League's Hartford Wolfpack after
participating in the Rangers' rookie camp at Madi-
son Square Garden this week.
To replace Montoya, Michigan brought in
17-year-old Billy Sauer from the United States
Hockey League's Chicago Steel. Sauer will com-
pete for the starting job with remaining Michigan
netminders Noah Ruden and Mike Mayhew.
"The goalie position is as wide open as it has
ever been in the 17 years that I've been at Michi-
gan," Pearson said. "Noah Ruden has been here,
and he knows the system and has some experi-
ence. Billy Sauer is young and talented."
While Mayhew is sometimes forgotten in the
mix, Pearson suggests that Mayhew is in the com-
petition just as much as Ruden and Sauer.
"I wouldn't count Mike Mayhew out either,"
Pearson said. "He was not too far off of Noah's
heels last year. The competition is wide open, and
after the first month we should be able to deter-
mine our starter."
Tambellini and Brown's departures came even
more recently than Montoya's. Brown signed with
the Vancouver Canucks on Aug. 25, just ten days
after Tambellini signed with the Los Angeles
Kings. Losing the pair so late in the summer left
Michigan no time to sign new players, but it was
something the coaches have had experience with.
"Losing three guys was surprising, but, as a
staff, we've been through this before," Pearson
said. "As coaches, we know that sometimes you
have to wait until the first day of class to see who
is staying. We've had guys leave up to three days
before classes in the past."
According to Pearson, Brown's departure came
as the biggest surprise.
"Montoya, we kind of knew in the back of our
heads that he was the most likely to leave," Pearson
said, "Tambellini, we thought about a little because
he was a first round draft pick. But Mike Brown,
that was sort of off the wall."
Pearson is optimistic about the ways the Wol-
verines compensated for the losses but suggests
that Tambellini's nose for the net will the hardest
asset to replace.
"Because we had a backup plan for Montoya
and because Mike Brown scored only three goals
last season, they are a little easier to replace," Pear-
son said. "But (Tambellini's offense) will be much
harder to replace."
In order to make up for the loss of Tambellini,
who led the team with 24 goals and 57 points last
season, the Wolverines will rely on the contribu-
tions of multiple freshmen. Freshman forward
Andrew Cogliano was a first round draft pick this
year and will take the bulk of that load after lead-
ing the Ontario Provincial Junior Hockey League
Senior Al Montoya was one of three Wolverines to leave Michigan early in the hopes of playing hockey professionally.
with 102 points in 49 games last season. But the
weight of Tambellini's absence will likely be too
heavy for one freshman to carry, and Pearson said
Cogliano will have some help.
"We have to replace Tambellini by committee,"
Pearson said. "Cogliano is a very similar player (to
Tambellini). He's a great skater with great stick
skills and a nose for the net. We have so many guys
up front that it will be interesting to see. (Fresh-
man Travis) Turnbull is a bit older and more expe-
rienced and might be ready to take off quickly."
Tambellini and Montoya were both elected
tri-captains for the upcoming season, and their
departure left senior Andrew Ebbett as the sole
captain. The coaches have named senior Brandon
Kaleniecki and juniors T.J. Hensick and Matt Hun-
wick as alternate captains to help Ebbett with his
responsibilities.
"It's a great opportunity for Hensick and Hun-
wick as juniors to be leaders this year," Pearson
said. "They have always been leaders on the ice,
and now they have earned the letters on their jer-
seys. They will be a big help for Andrew in helping
the freshmen adjust."
0 WOMEN'S CROSS COUNTRY
Two-a-days are key
on path to success
Young harriers gear up
for fourth Big Ten title
By Ian Robinson
Daily Sports Writer
By Ian Robinson
Daily Sports Writer
For the women's cross country
team, success in Ann Arbor depends
on its preseason training camp in
Glen Arbor.
For thirteen years, coach Mike
McGuire has started the season with
an eight-day training camp in the
town about four hours northwest of
Ann Arbor, on the shores of Lake
Michigan, to get in shape for the
upcoming season.
Including conference titles in the
last three years, Michigan has finished
first or second in the Big Ten Cham-
pionships in 11 out of the 12 seasons
that the squad trained in Glen Arbor.
"We get some good work in, and
there is a laid back atmosphere,"
McGuire said. "It is not a boot camp,
but it is productive."
The daily routine includes two prac-
tice sessions, one in the morning and
the other in the afternoon. The day
begins with a short run at 7 a.m., fol-
lowed by strides, core work and push-
ups. In the afternoon, the team goes
for a longer run that is between six and
11 miles long.
"Two-a-day training is tougher
because you have a shorter recovery,"
redshirt junior co-captain Katie Erd-
man said. "It's tough to get back in
the groove."
When not reacclimating to intense
training, the team uses its downtime
as an opportunity to apprize their
teammates of summer experiences.
"When we're not training, we hang
out," Erdman said. "It is good to catch
up because people do so many differ-
ent things over the summer, whether
it's travel or internships."
There is such camaraderie on the
team that Erdman considers her team-
mates to be friends before she thinks
about them as teammates.
"We are a bunch of friends," Erd-
man said. "We always have a close-knit
group of girls, but it seems especially
close this year."
The camp allowed the team's new-
est members - a quintet of fresh-
men - to become integral parts of
the group.
"It allows them to spend a lot of
time with the team and gives them a
good transition," McGuire said.
Every year, coach McGuire holds a
team meeting at camp to discuss goals
for the upcoming season.
First and foremost, McGuire hopes
that his team can stay healthy and
continue to improve.
Last season, Erdman suffered an
injury at the end of the cross coun-
try season that forced her to miss the
entire indoor season.
"I want to train at the highest
level that I can and still maintain my
health," Erdman said.
In terms of tangible goals for this
season, McGuire hopes that his team
will post results similar to those of
last year's squad that won the Big Ten
Championship and finished sixth at
nationals.
Expectations will be high since the
team returns its top six finishers from
last season's NCAA championships,
and it will be boosted by a strong class
of freshmen, both true and redshirt.
The defending Big Ten Champion women's cross
country team started its quest for a fourth consecutive
title on Friday afternoon when a contingent of five
Wolverines competed in the non-scoring Jeff Drenth
Memorial 5k meet at University Park in Mt. Pleas-
ant.
After weeks of training, coach Mike McGuire had
been anxiously awaiting the start of the season.
"It was good to go out and get a meet under our
belts," McGuire said. "You can train all you want, but
when you race, it's different."
The first of the Wolverines to cross the line was
sophomore Laura Glynn, who posted a ninth-place
time of 19:19. Three other Michigan harriers posted
finishes in the top 25.
Glynn, who had been hampered by a foot injury that
forced her to miss some practices, was eager to see how
her foot would react to the stresses of a meet.
"I wanted to see how it would feel," Glynn said.
"My foot didn't bother me the whole race."
Though encouraged by the lack of pain during Fri-
day's 5k race, Glynn is still worried that her foot might
not be able to hold up as well during the longer meets.
"My next race will be different because it is a
6k," Glynn said. "As I get more work, hopefully it
will get better."
For three redshirt freshmen, the meet marked their
first time competing in a maize-and-blue singlet.
The highest finisher among them was Lisa Mont-
gomery, whose 11th place of 19:30 was just eleven
seconds behind Glynn.
"It was a good first race for Lisa Montgomery,"
McGuire said.
McGuire was also glad to see Natasha Luppov on
the trail. The Ann Arbor native, who finished in 25th
place with a time of 20:20, suffered an injury during
the outdoor track season that forced her to miss some
cross country training.
"She did a good job," McGuire said. "Her fit-
ness level is not at the same place as the others."
Linda Montgomery, twin sister of Lisa,
was the other harrier to make her Michigan
debut on Friday. She posted the 38th-pace
time of 22:03.
The only other Wolverine to compete in the
meet was senior Chelsea Homan, the third Michigan
to cross the line. The Cincinnati-native ran a time of
20:03, good enough for 23rd place. .
Former Michigan cross-country runner Sarah
Pizzo also competed in the race. Pizzo, who reg-
istered a second-place finish, has exhausted her
cross country eligibility, but still has one year of
track eligibility remaining.
Senior Chelsea Homan, left, finished 23rd at the Jeff Drenth
Memorial meet.
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War Veterans Loathe War
So why do they loathe protests?
While the media will always find a few war veterans who protest
any war, nearly all veterans and active duty military personnel get
angry when they see protests. The reason is that a serious stu-
dent of any war will likely come to the conclusion that protests
prolong a war and cause many more deaths. Warriors want to
come home; protests and signs such as Bring Our Troops Home
Now work against that goal.
You probably knew that the Soviet Union supplied most of the
arms and ammunition used by North Vietnam and Viet Cong dur-
ing the Vietnam War, but did you know that the Soviet budget for
fueling the protests exceeded their military aid?
Did you know that North Vietnam had decided to surrender and
had their surrender speech written, but the protests forced a halt