The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Monday, November 6, 2006 - 3B 'M' learns to finish in upset Lions too much for Tuura, Blue By ANDY REID Daily Sports Writer The same thought resonated through the minds of the players, coaches and fans alike after the Michigan volleyball team defeat- ed No. 12 Minnesota Saturday night at Cliff Keen Arena: whew. The Michigan volleyball team has struggled all season long to finish games, especially against tough opponents. Those struggles were nowhere to be found as the Wolverines downed the Golden Gophers in four games. Adaybefore Michigan'simpres- sive performance against Min- nesota, the Wolverines continued their woes when they lost at home to No. 10 Wisconsin, three games to none. Against Wisconsin (10-3 Big Ten, 18-5 overall), Michigan stayed close in games one and two, but like so many times this year, they were not able to finish either one of them. But the tough loss had no last- ing affect, though, and Michigan came out swinging the following evening against the Gophers. The first game was tight while both sides tried to get a feel for each other, before Minnesota (11-3, 17-7) squeaked out a three- point victory. But coming into the second game, Michigan picked up its intensity and began to play its best volleyball of the season. "We just came out and played like we had nothing to lose (in the second game)," sophomore Beth Karpiak said. "Even when (Min- nesota) scored a point, we just brushed it off and said 'It doesn't matter. We are going to win.' " The team was visibly more relaxed in the second game. Teammates were laughing, cel- ebrating and even dancing to the music played over the P.A. sys- tem. Many members of the team agreed that the loose atmosphere helped the Wolverines play to their potential. Juniors Katie Bruzdzinski and Lyndsay Miller led the way with 21 and 19 match kills, respective- ly. With Michigan's game two win (30-23), the teams went into intermission tied at one game apiece. Coming out of the break, it was clear that the Wolverines (5- 9, 18-9) had not lost any of their momentum. They kept constant pressure on Minnesota by blast- ing shots over the net, flustering the Gophers. "Thebiggestdifferencebetween the two games this weekend was that we didn't go out and attack Wisconsin," Miller said. "We just kind of let them do whatever they wanted. We were attacking Min- nesota at every point and forced them into situations they didn't want to be in." The constant pressure resulted in Michigan's 10 point game three victory. With their backs against the wall going into the fourth frame, the Gophers attempted to mount a comeback. In the most tightly contested game of the night, the teams practically matched each other point for point. With a 23-22 lead, the Wolver- ines took control. Finally, Michi- gan finished a big game, and the result was a victory over Minne- sota- the third highest ranked team a Michigan volleyball team has ever beaten. Michigan coach Mark Rosen, who said that the team created scenarios in practice that helped them finish games, was very impressed with the win. "This is a very passionate team, and they were more passionate tonight than they've ever been," Rosen said. "We needed a break- out game to get over the hump. Now we know that we can play like that all the time." By ROBERT KAITZ Daily Sports Writer Michigan senior goalkeeper Megan Tuura didn't want Friday night's matchup against Penn State in the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament to be her final colle- giate game. And her play reflected that. She stood on her head for the Michigan women's soccer team, but the tour- nament host and top-seeded Nitta- ny Lions prevailed in a 2-1 victory. The loss means the Wolver- ines will anxiously await news of whether they will receive an invi- tation to the NCAA Tournament, which begins next weekend. Against Penn State, Michigan struggled to keep the ball out of the defensive end and allowed a season-high 28 shots. Tuura's phe- nomenal play kept the score closer than it probably should have been. She registered 11 saves, many com- ing from close range. "I felt like I gave 100 percent, and there wasn't much else I could do," Tuura said. "It is still frustrat- ing that we lost and that this may be my lastgame ever." Part of the Nittany Lions' moti- vationcamefromwaitingto avenge an emotional loss to Michigan in the Big Ten Tournament last sea- son. The host Wolverines stunned undefeated and top-ranked Penn State in a first-round shootout. "Penn State came out pretty motivated to play us," Michigan coach Debbie Rademacher said. "They put together a really strong performance." No. 12 Penn State (8-1-1 Big Ten, 14-4-3 overall) dominated from the opening minute. It controlled play territorially and outshot the Wolverines 10-2, but couldn't solve See NITTANY LIONS, Page 6B Season ends in shutout loss to Bucks By JAMIE JOSEPHSON Daily Sports Writer They had barely caught their breath coming out of halftime. Just 39 seconds into the second half of Friday's semifinal game of the Big Ten Tournament against No. 2 seed and host Ohio State, the No. 6 seed Michigan men's soccer team gave up a goal that would prove to be allthe Buckeyesneeded to escape with a 1-0 win - and seal the end of the Wolverines' season. "Scoring goals in soccer is about finding if you can take advantage of one or two consecutive mistakes that the opponent makes," Michi- gan coach Steve Burns said. "Ohio State scored a good goal against us. ... The difference in the game was who finished the chances." After the first half concluded in a scoreless deadlock, the Buckeyes (3- 2-1Big Ten, 11-6-3 overall) broke the stalemate at the outset of the second stanza. Left alone at the top left cor- ner of the 18-yard-box, Ohio State's Geoff Marsh collected a pass and beat Michigan goalkeeper Patrick Sperry to tally the score. Instead of rolling over, the Wol- verines bared their teeth in attack mode. "I think Ohio State just caught us off guard and, from there, we knew we were going to have to fight hard- er and give everything to get back in the game," freshman Mauro Fuzetti said. Leading goal-scorer Peri Maros- evic had two good looks on the net at both the 53rd and 62nd minute- marks. But Ohio State goalkeeper Casey Latchem made the saves to stifle the freshman's chances for glory. Marosevic - who tallied four shots on goal for the day - also had a golden scoring opportunity in the first half. On a breakaway from the right flank in the 34th minute, the rookie fired from 12 yards out. Latchem was able to knock the ball out of bounds, setting up a series of three corner kicks for Michigan (1- 2-3, 7-10-4). But each restart passed without a conversion. At the end of the day, the Wolver- ines took a total of 18 shots without a result - a familiar scene for Michi- gan this year. Despite tallying more shots than any other Big Ten team this season, Michigan often came up empty. The Wolverines' 18-goal total from the regular season is the lowest in the conference. "Before this season, I believed that you should finish one out of every six shots," Burns said. "(By that equation), we should've been on 50 goals. But we're not. It's through maturity and experience that you'll learn how to get to that one to six ratio. When you have a young attacking team, they need to play beyond their years if they are going to have success scoring goals." Struggling to convert, Michigan increased its level of physicality to match an aggressive Buckeye team. The Wolverines earned 19 fouls - including three yellow cards - compared to Ohio State's 18 fouls and two yellow cards. "When you're playing in the Big Ten Tournament against a higher seed, you have to go in with that fighting mentality, and our guys did that," Burns said. "We set the table for them by making them realize that we were going to see what kind of men we were and what kind of guts we have. ... Ohio State is a big rival of ours, and we expected that it would be physical at any time. We've got a lot of fight on our team though we are small in stature. We are not going to back down." Despite Michigan continuing to apply pressure, the Buckeyes began bunkering in, staying behind the ball deep in their territory and hav- ing their forwards track back. In the end, Ohio State's defen- sive game plan absorbed Michigan's attack, and the Buckeyes held on for the narrow 1-0 victory. Michigan ended its season tied for fifth in the Big Ten with an over- all record a few games shy of .500. Burns attributes the season's results to a difficult schedule. In terms of RPI, Michigan's strength of sched- ule ranked as the 10th most difficult in the country. With such ayoung team this year, freshmen were immediately thrown into starting roles as attackers in pressure-filled situations. Often, inexperience resulted in defeats and disappointments. But holding the underdog posi- tion for most of the year proved a valuable learning experience for these rookies. "I realized that you can't let down See BUCKEYES, Page 6B Sutudents Fly Cheaier Sample Roundtrip Airfares From Detroit to: New York $151 Fargo $202 Paris $377 Dt S $202 Florence $429 tem:Auifareae eDasdrtpral and incldela tdetUiese serie fee oflt5 Doesticfaes icua.5% USransportanax Otherasand fesvar, dndig onheeItinrarydare notincldd. Fres aresettoavaiabiiy dhageittntie. 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