The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
Thursday, November 2, 2006 - 9A
'Nobody knows him,'
but McFarland excels
By DAVID MURRAY
Daily Sports Writer
Everybody knows who Lloyd Carr is. Even non-
basketball fans know the name Tommy Amaker.
Michigan's hockey coach can simply be called by his
nickname, "Red," and most students would know who
you are talking about.
But Michigan boasts one other coach who has argu-
ably been more successful than any of them, yet most
people couldn't pick him out of a crowd.
His career Big Ten (.875) and overall (.812) winning
percentages are higher than all three of his aforemen-
tioned counterparts, and he has coached 27All-Amer-
icans in his seven-year Michigan coaching stint - 10
more All-Americans than Berenson and four more
than Carr, in fewer seasons. Under his tutelage, the
Wolverines have won three straight regular-season
conference championships - three more than Amak-
er has in his nine seasons as a head coach - and have
finished top 10 in the nation six straight years.
Still have no idea who he is?
Here is one more hint: His 104 career wins rank
third only behind legendary coaches Cliff Keen and
Dale Bahr. If you haven't figured it out yet, head wres-
tling coach Joe McFarland and his wrestlers under-
stand - their program has been the most successful
team to sport the maize and blue in recent memory,
but the head coach hasn't received any recognition.
"Nobody probably knows who Joe McFarland is,"
redshirt junior co-captain Josh Churella said. "He has
played a huge factor in what the University of Michi-
gan wrestling program has come from, and where it
is at now."
Ifyou didn't know him, now you will.
McFarland began his coaching career at the Indi-
ana, where he led the Hoosiers to an undefeated
conference record, and earned Big Ten Coach of the
Year accolades in 1990. After three successful years in
Bloomington, McFarland surprised and took an assis-
tant coaching position at Michigan, his alma mater.
McFarland's return was a homecoming of sorts. He
was one of the most accomplished wrestlers in Mich-
igan's storied history, ranking of second all time in
wins and earning four All-America honors during his
days on the mat.
"I had a great experience here when I was a stu-
dent-athlete," McFarland said. "To be able to come
back and be part of the program with the hopes of tak-
ing over the program eventually, obviously that was a
great attraction for me."
After working for seven years under his former
coach, Dale Bahr, McFarland took the reigns at the
beginning of the 1999 season, and the Wolverines
haven't looked back since. McFarland's gritty attitude
and competitiveness as a wrestler has carried over to
his coaching career, with his most successful seasons
coming most recently.
"I put them through tough and challenging work-
outs, and I think that helps not only physically, but
their mental toughness as well," McFarland said.
"That's why we do all of this hard work. That is how
I want these guys to go out and compete. There is no
question that that was my style, and that is what we
are goingto win with here at Michigan."
McFarland's grapplers have improved each year
under his guidance and have been dominant the past
few years. The Wolverines haven't lost a Big Ten dual-
meet since Feb. 8, 2004 (a combined 18-0-1 in the Big
Ten since), and they finished second in the country
- behind powerhouse Oklahoma State - at the 2005
NCAA.
This year the Wolverines are expected to have their
greatest season yet under McFarland's watch. With
the return of All-Americans Josh Churella and Eric
Tannenbaum, the experience of fifth-year seniors
Mark Moos and NickRoy, the youth of NCAA-qualifi-
er redshirt sophomore Steve Luke and a strong fresh-
man class, McFarland will look to add the one award
absent from his, extensive trophy closet - a team
National Championship.
"We tooksecond inthe country a few years ago, and
last year we didn't do as well as we would have liked
to," redshirt junior co-captain Eric Tannenbaum said.
"But that is a huge step up from what Michigan had
been doing in the past in previous years."
"I think he has done a really good job in recruiting
not just the top blue-chip wrestlers, but guys that he
sees potential in and he is willing to work with. So I
think he deserves more credit than he gets."
Kelly Helvey blocked a shot at the buzzer to secure Michigan's 64-62 victory ovr Athletes in Action in an exhibition game
last night at Crisler Arena.
Blue narrowly wins
in exhibition opener
Savvy gets Bruzdzinski
in touch with records
By CHRIS HERRING
Daily Sports Writer
After blowing a 14-point lead in the first half, the
Michigan women's basketball team looked poised to
falter again when it found itself up by just two late
in last night's exhibition.game against Athletes in
Action.
But the team's lone MICHIGAN 64
senior literally took the AlA_62
game into her hands - or
her hand, at least.
Senior Kelly Helvey blocked the game's final shot
as the buzzer sounded, ensuring the Wolverines'
64-62 victory over Athletes in Action at Crisler
Arena.
Though the team struggled to hold its lead in
the first half, the Wolverines were much stronger
defensively in the second.
"The thing that jumps out atme from the first half
to the second half is our defense," Michigan coach
Cheryl Burnett said. "Two (Athletes in Action play-
ers) were doing a really great job of scoring in the
first half, and we defended them much better in the
second half. We did a great job as a team of making
some slight adjustments to really make those two
kids work hard in the second half."
But the first half was a different story. The Wol-
verines trailed at halftime 40-31, despite opening
with a 23-9 run to start the game.
Michigan's 15 first-half turnovers let Athletes in
Action get back into the game.
"We were giving away easy points and easy
turnovers," said Helvey, who had a team-high nine
rebounds. "In the locker room, we talked about
being smarter with the ball because turnovers were
hurting us."
The turnovers were clearly the team's biggest
negative during the game.
But there was definitely a huge - or tall - posi-
tive as well.
A 6-foot-6 one.
The team made the most of its height advantage,
as freshman center Krista Phillips -who is 6 foot
6 - scored a team-high 12 points to go along with
four rebounds.
Phillips immediately made her presence felt, as
she gave the Wolverines the post presence last sea-
son's team clearly lacked. Her efforts helped bolster
Michigan, which scored 38 points in the paint.
"I love it," said sophomore point guard Jessica
Minnfield of having a taller player to dish the ball
to. "All I have to do is throw it up there, and I know
she'll go get it because nobody is her size."
While Phillips played well, she also noticed the
team's sloppy play in the first half.
"We just needed to relax," Phillips said. "It was
nerves more than anything out there. At one point,
we got kind of scraggly and got comfortable with
the lead we had at first. I think in the second half,
we played a much better half of basketball."
No one would argue with that last statement.
After allowing 21 free throws and 40 first-half
points, the defense clamped down, limiting Ath-
letes in Action to just 22 points in the second.
The Wolverine defense helped jump-start the
offense after halftime. Following a Michigan free
throw, Minnfield picked off an errant pass in the
backcourt. She found freshman Kalyn McPherson
for an easy two with just under 12 minutes left in
the game, giving Michigan a 49-43 lead.
Minnfield was a big reason the Wolverines went
on a21-3 run to open the half. She scored eight points
and notched three assists in the second frame. The
point guard also hit a key 3-pointer down the stretch
to push the Wolverine advantage to 62-55 with just
over two minutes remaining.
But Athletes in Action wouldn't fall easily. Fol-
lowing the Minnfield basket, Athletes in Action
closed Wolverines' lead to two, outscoring Michi-
gan 7-2.
On the game's last possession, Athletes in Action
forward Katie Voigt threw up a last second 3-point
attempt that would have won the game. But the
defense that had been solid in the second half came
through when it mattered most as Helvey blocked
what was a potential game-winner.
Despite the victory, Burnett had to remind her-
self the win doesn't mean much.
"I wore my sweats because I wanted to be remind-
ed that this was just practice for us," she said. "We
want to make sure that we get a lot accomplished in
what we call a practice environment. The only dif-
ference was that this time, we had some uniforms
on for the game. We want to be prepared for our
first real game. That's what matters."
By ANDY REID
Daily Sports Writer
Opposing defenses beware:
Junior captain Katie Bruzdzinski
has wreaked havoc on any team
that dares line up on the other side
of the net.
While the Michigan volleyball
team has struggled in Big Ten play
this season, Bruzdzinskihas racked
up kills faster than a kid hovering a
magnifying glass over an anthill.
She became the fastest Michi-
gan player to reach 1,000 kills (76
games), and she currently ranks
fourth on Michigan's all-time kill
list with 1,142, just 420 behind the
all-time leader, Jennifer Gandolph.
As an outside hitter, Bruzdzinski
isn't considered the most physical
player on the court. Most players
at that position use brute strength
to blast the ball across the net at
opposing defenses, but Bruzdzin-
ski uses her knowledge of the game
for an extra advantage.
Instead of just spiking the ball
as hard as possible, Bruzdzinski
likes to mix up her array of shots
with short tips over the defenders
and other shots that she has in her
arsenal. A savvy approach Michi-
gan coach Mark Rosen said. Her
shots keep the defense on its toes
because it can't predict what might
be coming next.
But kills and crafty shots aren't
Bruzdzinski's only specialties. She
currently ranks eighth on Mich-
igan's all-time aces leaderboard
with 106 and leads the Big Ten in
service aces per game. She is also
quickly moving up the ranks in all-
time digs.
"She has great volleyball skills,
but it's the intangible things that
make a player really special," Rosen
said. "Katie definitely displays
those intangible qualities."
Another intangible Rosen attri-
butes to Bruzdzinski is her grow-
ing leadership abilities. Rosen said
one of the differences between
good players and great players is
how they can affect other players
on the court. A great player can
make those around her play better,
while a good player has great skills
but leaves her teammates feeling
alienated-and alone.
"Katie is a really intense and
competitive leader," Rosen said.
"Whatever she needs to get her
teammates going, whether it be
a light-hearted comment, a look
across the court that shows confi-
dence in another player or just an
honest kick in the tail, she knows
how to do it."
Bruzdzinski, who is more mod-
est than Rosen about her role on he
court, said that the only difference
of being a captain is the need for
more maturity.
"I don't really feel that much
added pressure this year because I
am a captain," Bruzdzinski said. "I
do feel the need to be a steady play-
er on the court and show steady
behavior off it. I want the team to
know that they can trust me."
Freshman Veronica Rood, who
has started the last two games for
the Wolverines, is one of the big-
gest beneficiaries of Bruzdzinksi's
leadership. When an injury to
senior Megan Bowman left the
team without a middle blocker,
junior Lyndsay Miller filled the
spot, opening a spot for Rood to
start at outside hitter. Starting as a
freshman can sometimes be over-
whelming, but Bruzdzinski, who
also started her first year, helped
Rood through it.
"She's someone to look up to on
the court," Rood said. "She is always
there if you ever need to ask any
questions,andshealwayshasadvice
when we're on the court together."
Rood agreed that Bruzdzinski's
leadership abilities have helped her
improve, but it's Bruzdzinksi's play
on the court that really motivates
her.
"At the beginning of the year,
I would always be across the net
from her in practice because I
wasn't on the starting team yet,"
Rood said. "Competing against her
like that helped me a lot because I
want to be able to be agreat outside
hitter like she is."
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