2B - The Michigan Daily - SportsMonday - November 7, 2005 CLUBSPORTSWEEKLY Women's s ccer used to success alinte ll igauttEau Athlete of the Week Name: Stesha Selsky Team: Volleyball Hometown: Manhattan Beach, Calif. Class: Sophomore Why: Selsky's 29 digs in Michigan's victory over Iowa gave her 476 on the season, a Michigan single-season record. It was Selsky's 14th match with over 20 digs this season. Alija Pittenger held the previous record with 455 digs in the 2000-2001 season. 'M' SCHEDULE By David VandeVusse Daily Staff Writer Domination is a word which has accurately summed up the season of the Michigan women's club soccer team thus far. The Wolverines have won each of their 16 contests and have outscored opponents by a jaw-dropping 48-3 margin. A week ago, they charged through the regional tournament with four straight wins and capped the weekend with a 4-1 victory over Purdue to take home the Region III crown. Success is nothing new for the women's club soccer team. The program has won two national titles in recent years - in 2000 and 2002. "The tradition of the women's club program (has pushed us toward success)," senior co-captain Samantha Epstein said. "We hold our standards very high." This year, Michigan has built on its success with consistency on both sides of the ball. The offense has been solid, putting up an average of three goals per game. The defense has been stellar as well, posting a 0.1875 goals against average, which equates to less than one goal every five games. "We've really come together," junior co-captain Dana Restrick said. "There is no lacking position (on the field)." The numbers are impressive, but the cast of characters who have put up those figures are even more remarkable. Of the 23 members on the team, only seven are upperclassmen, leaving the Wolverines to rely on young talent. Still, three seniors anchor this squad. Epstein, Kelsey Lutz and Bre Bennett, who were freshmen during the team's 2002 national title run, provide leader- ship and experience for the Maize and Blue. "Everybody looks up to them," Restrick said. "They are like coaches on the field." Up next for the Wolverines is their biggest test yet. From Nov. 17-20, they will travel to Tuscaloosa, Ala. to compete in the 2005 Collegiate Soccer Sport Club Championships, where a national champion will be crowned. The disappointment of last year's national tournament has left a bad taste in the Wolverines' mouths. In 2004, Michigan made it to the national semifinals in Austin. The Wolverines left the tournament for home without a loss, but also without a championship. The tournament was cancelled due, to weather and never completed - leaving Michigan, UCSB, Colorado, and Colorado State in a four-way tie for tops in the nation. The achievement should not be over- looked, but the Wolverines are determined to claim sole ownership of the championship this year. This week, the team will be up at 6 a.m. to practice, and they will return to the field again at 6 p.m. They hope to prepare for a possible six games in three days at nationals by enduring three days of two-a-day practices. It's a demand- ing schedule, but the Wolverines are determined to do what it takes. "We work really hard in practice and in games," Epstein said. "Knowing what it takes to win a national championship gives us motivation to do it every year." Michigan has defined success in every sense of the word. But it has not achieved all of its aspirations yet. There is one more that looms large - win- ning another national title. "We talk about it every day," Epstein said. "That is our ultimate goal." Date Event 11/9 Volleyball vs. Michigan State 11/10-13 M Soccer at Big Ten Tournament 11/11 W Swimming/Diving at Ohio State 11/11 Volleyball vs. Indiana 11/11 M Basketball vs. Northern Michigan 11/11 Ice Hockey at Northern Michigan 11/11-12 W Basketball at WSF Challenge l 11/12 M Cross Countryl at NCAA Great Lakes Regional 11/12 W Cross Countryl at NCAA Regionals 11/12 Football vs. Indiana 11/12 Ice Hockey at Northern Michigan 11/12-13 Field Hockey at NCAA Tournament 11/12-14 M Tennis at Big Ten Singles Champs. 11/12-13 Wrestling at Michigan State Open1 Location Ann Arbor Evanston Columbus Ann Arbor Ann Arbor Marquette Eugene, Ore. Bloomington Bloomington Ann Arbor Marquette TBA East Lansing East Lansing Time 7 p.m. TBA 3 p.m. 7 p.m. 7p.m. 7:35 p.m. 8 p.m. 12 p.m. S 12 p.m. 12 p.m. 7:35 p.m. TBA TBA TBA 10 shots, but no goals for 'M, By Anne Uible Daily Sports Writer COLUMBUS - They had their chances - 10 to be exact. But like most of the season's opportunities, the Michigan men's soccer team fell short and its chances failed on the goal line. The Wolverines finished their regular season on Fri- day night with a 1-0 loss to Ohio State. The game marked Michigan's third consecutive loss in the past two weeks. The Wolverines racked up 10 total shots but remained scoreless at the conclusion of the 90 minutes. "The effort was there, and I think the overall willingness to win was there," Michigan coach Steve Burns said. "We had some chances that, if we were able to finish, the game would have gone another way. Ohio State had their one good chance, and they finished on it. Each team is going to have their moments to score. It's a matter of being able to weather the storm and take advantage of those moments. The game was lost because we weren't able to convert on our moments." The matchup between the conference rivals was played under the lights of the Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium in Columbus. Before Friday night, the Wolverines had never lost a game to the Buckeyes on the field. The venue was packed with over 1,300 fans for Ohio State's senior night. "It's tough to lose a big rivalry game like this," senior forward Trai Blanks said. "But we had our chances to win it." The game opened up strong for the Wolverines when senior forward Ryan Alexander drove through the Buck- eyes defense at the 13th minute and slid the ball into the feet of Blanks who was up front on the right side of Ohio State's goal. Blanks booted the ball at the net, but Ohio State's goalkeeper Ray Burse Jr. made a diving save to keep the game scoreless. Even late into the first half, the Wolverines had several opportunities to convert balls but remained unsuccessful as the first half wound down with a score of 0-0. As the second half started, the Buckeyes (3-2-1 Big Ten, 10-6-2 overall) came out strong and kept the pressure on Michigan's defensive end. After several missed attempts, Ohio State finally got their opportunity. The Buckeyes' senior forward Kevin Nugent had pos- session of the ball just above the 18-yard line and passed it into sophomore Xavier Blac, who was positioned in RODRIGO GAYA/ Daily Senior Tral Blanks and the Wolverines had 10 scoring chances but couldn't convert on a 1-0 loss to rival Ohio State on Friday. the center of the penalty box. Blac sent the ball back to Nugent, who was then at the right side of the Wolverines' goal. Michigan's senior goalkeeper Peter Dzubay came out of the box to make a play on the ball but arrived just a little too late, and Nugent slid the ball past Dzubay and crossed it into the left corner of the net. "I was late coming out of the goal, and I tried to make a play," Dzubay said. "It didn't work, and the player was able to beat me." After the Buckeyes scored, the Wolverines began to play with a sense of urgency. Michigan players began grabbing at their opponents and trying their best to steal the ball. Their aggressive play was greeted with two yellow cards given to Alexander and freshman Chase Tennant and an ominous red card for Bobby Trybula after he intentionally ran into an Ohio State player. Burns thought the aggressiveness proved that his team still has a lot of fight in them, which makes him eager to get to tournament play. "I think winning makes you stronger and losing makes you tougher," Burns said. "And right now, we're tough and strong. It's a good position to be in for the Big Ten Cham- pionships. I think we've got the fight in us." With their regular season closed, the Wolverines' next venture will be the Big Ten Championships, which starts this Thursday at Northwestern. The only way Michigan (2- 4-0 Big Ten, 8-9-1 overall) will continue on to the NCAA Tournament is with a solid performance and at least two wins at the conference tournament to give Michigan a record of at least .500. "We've got to win," Dzubay said. "We're in a little bit of a losing streak, but it's a whole other season now." WRESTLING Youngsters open up Grapplers' season By David Murray For the Daily YPSILANTI - The Michigan wrestling team showcased its depth this Saturday at. the Eastern Michigan Open. Despite hav-, ing none of last year's starters wrestle, the Wolverines placed in four of the nine weight classes at the Bowen Field House, Coach Joe McFarland used the tournament to give his younger wrestlers some experi- ence before the dual matches begin against Penn State Nov. 26. Sophomore Casey White, who fin- ished in fifth place at last year's Eastern Michigan Open, dominated his first three matches at 197 pounds, winning each by four points or more. White's impressive winning streak ended in the finals, where, he lost a 2-1 heartbreaker to Purdue's Nate. Moore in overtime. Sophomore Tyrel Todd also had no trou- ble reaching the finals in the 184-pound weight class, outscoring his opponents a combined 39-9 in his first four matches. But Purdue's All-American Ben Wissel gave Todd all he could handle in the finals, beating him 7-3. The two others who placed for the Wol- verines were juniors Jeff Marsh and Hassen Berri, who wrestled in the 157-pound an d 174-pound weight classes, respectively. After convincing wins in his first two matches, Marsh fell 5-3 to Columbia's Devin Mesanko but persevered to win his final four matches and finished in third, place. Junior Hassen Berri ended up in fifth., place with a 4-2 record. It was Berri's best, finish in his collegiate career. "I thought the guys did a nice job today," Michigan coach Joe McFarland said. "They wrestled hard, they hustled, and this gives us a good idea of where we're at right now We did a lot of good things, but we came away with a lot of things we need to work on and improve on." The Wolverines have high expectations after finishing as the team runner-up at last year's NCAA tournament. McFarland, whose squad returns four All-Americans from last year, hopes no team will pick up where the team left off at the end of last year. "It has been a building process to get where we were last year, and we would like to build off of that this year," McFarland said. Michigan will travel to East Lansing next weekend for the Michigan State Open. I MAYO CLINIC SUMMER III FOR JUNIOR NURSING STUDENTS IF BRETT FARVE WAS OUR MANAGING SPORTS EDITOR, WE'D BE UNDEFEATED HE WON'T SIT SPORTSMONDAYS OUT. JOIN DAILY SPORTS. RICHARD S. TEDLOW CLASS OF 1949 PROFESSOR OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL RENOWNED AUTHOR AND SPECIALIST IN THE HISTORY OF BUSINESS We invite you to explore the Summer Ill Student Nursing Experience with Mayo Clinic in Rochester. Minnesota. This program is for junior year students of a four-year baccalaureate nursing program. Summer Ill begins in early June and lasts for 10 weeks. Summer III is a paid, supervised nursing program exposing the student to a broad range of direct and indirect patient care settings on inpatient and surgical units. I I