The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Monday, Feburary 19, 2007 - 3B eels Lions roar By ALEX PROSPERI Daily Sports Writer Achilles heel. Never has one phrase so vividly illustrated a season. The No. 9 Michigan women's gymnastics team's Achilles heel has been its inability to put togeth- er four strong rotations successful- ly in one meet. PENN STATE 195.9 Friday MICHIGAN 195.525 night, the ninth-ranked Wolverines scored a season-low 48.350 on the beam and lost the lead and the meet to conference foe Penn State, 195.900 to 195.525. It's the fifth time in six meets that the team has had one event that was substantially worse than the other three. "We have to concentrate on the mentalchoreographythat's in their heads when they're performing on beam," Michigan coach Bev Plocki said. The reason for the third-lowest score on any event this year for the Wolverines canbe attributedtotwo falls. It was the second-straight meet that a Michigan gymnast fell on beam. "You can't be up there thinking 'Don't fall,"' Plocki said. "You have to be thinking aggressive, confi- dent, technical things. You need to be telling your brain what you want your body to do." Two weekends ago, the Wolver- ines did well in three rotations but poorly on beam. Three weekends ago, Michigan yet again did excellent in three rotations, yet had a subpar score on floor. And in the first two meets of the year, the Wolverines posted scores of 48.250 and 48.225. The achilles has also been a problem for Michigan physically. The physical aspect refers to the thickest and strongest tendon in the human body. But it's also the Lady Vols top Netters By CHRIS MESZAROS Daily Sports Writer Saturday's match started out smelling like roses for the Michi- gan women's tennis team, but soon eroded into an awful stench in a match dominated by No. 26 Tennes- see, 6-1. The Wolverines pickedup anearly doubles win, with seniors Jenny Kuehn and Kara Delicata defeating Tennessee's Ghizela Schutte (8-2). It was the duo's first time playing together in doubles play. But momentum quickly swung cross-court after Tennessee picked up the remaining two doubles matches to take an early 1-0 lead in the overall match. Michigan dug itself into a deeper hole with two quick losses in singles play. By meet's end, Kuehn was the only Wolverine to pick up a win for Michigan. "A majority of the team didn't compete well," Michigan coach Amanda Augustus said. "Tennessee just competed harder than we did." Kuehn provided the lone bright spotintheWolverines'loss,standing out in both her matches. She defeat- ed Tennessee's Blakeley Griffith (6- 4, 4-6, 6-3), the No. 12 player in the nation, to claim the sole victory for Michigan. The match was the most competitive in the meet, as both players vied for supremacy at No. 1 position. Her win cements her posi- tion as the backbone of the team. "Jenny's such a talented player," Augustus said. "This was a big win for her. Both players played a great game; it was quite a victory for her." The win will boost Kuehn's rank- in rout ings in the FILA Collegiate Ten- nis Rankings, and help to build her confidence as she continues to adapt to her new life as a Wolverine after transferring to Michigan for her final season. Despite the loss, Augustus said that Michigan (3-2) will learn a lot from the recent adversity. "This loss hurts us in a way that inspires us to get better," Augustus said. "This will motivate the team to work harder." Sophomore Chisako Sugiyama suffered a rare loss that ended her seven-game winning streak. How- ever, she did not go down without a fight, narrowly losing both sets to Schutte (6-4,7-6). "This match was good for (Sugi- yama) today," Augustus said. "Even though she lost, it will keep her hun- gry." Augustus plans to go back to the fundamentals, emphasizing the importance of a clear mind as her players take the court. By replicat- ing conditions on the road and being mentally prepared for any endeavor, she hopes to level the playing field on unfamiliar grounds. "If teams are of a similar playing level, the more mentally tough team wins," Augustus said. The loss against the Volunteers (4-1) is Michigan's second straight followinga 6- defeat to Notre Dame on Wednesday. The setbacks are a blow to the Wolverines, whichbegan the season on a high note with an upset over then-No. 12 Vanderbilt. The team faces another tough test on Friday, as they welcome No. 6 Northwestern to the Varsity Ten- nis Center. Junior Nellie Kippley finished second overall in the all-around, but it wasn't enough to defeat Penn State at home. tendon that has been the grounds for two Wolverine injuries this season. Senior Lindsey Bruck and Sarah Curtis both suffered season- ending injuries to their Achilles tendon earlier this season. "We have a very young team," Plocki said. "The injuries we have had have impacted beam as much or more than any other event. We lost our top four kids on beam out of six, (so) you are bound to have some inconsistencies, but we just have to get back on track and work at building the confidence. Physi- cally they are fine, mentally beam is the most mental event that we do." The Wolverines got off to a hot start Friday night, posting scores of 49.100 and 49.150 on vault and uneven bars, respectively. On vault, sophomore Tatjana Thuener-Rego scored a career-best 9.900, and on the uneven bars, both Thuener-Rego and fellow sopho- more Becky Bernard scored 9.900. On their fourth and final rotation, floor exercise, Michigan scored well again, led by junior Nellie Kip- pley who putup a career-best 9.875. But it was during the third rotation that the team's Achilles heel kicked in and prohibited the Wolverines from moving into double-digits in wins for the year. Although Michigan (1-2 Big Ten, 9-2 overall) lost for the first time in at least six years after leading fol- lowing two rotations, the weekend did have some positives. Thuener-Rego won her fifth straight bars title and third all- around of the season. Bernard won her third bars title of the season and senior Carol McNamara had a season-best 9.850 on vault. But in order for the Wolverines to continue to move up in the rank- ings, they will have to eliminate this Achilles heel. "We have got to stop worrying about wining or losing and start performing and just do what we do," Plocki said. "We have to rise to the level of competition." Blue wins six events in non-scoring meet The No. 1 Michigan women's track and field team will no longer be competing at the U-M Indoor Track Building this seaason. But the Wolverines went out with a bang during the Harold Silverstein Invitational on Saturday. Michigan won a total of six events, and the top performance came from sophomore Tiffany Ofili. The Ypsilanti native won the 60-meter dash in 7.45 and was 0.01 seconds shy of an NCAA provision- al standard. This weekend's event was non- scoring and just a preparation for next weekend's Big Ten Indoor Championship in Champaign. GAA From page 1B Miami finishes the regular season with a series at Northern Michigan, while the Wolverines head to Columbus. No MO' JOE: Yesterday's game marked the end of a 12-year "Home-and-Joe" agreement between Joe Louis Arena and Lake Superior State. Under the terms of the deal, the Lakers would play one game each season in Detroit against Michigan or Michigan State instead of in Sault Ste. Marie. While Lake Superior State is technically the home team in these matchups, it hasn't enjoyed much of a home-ice advantage. Michigan has gone undefeated in games in the series. "I'm sure their coach is looking to when they play both games at home," Berenson said. When the agreement was made, Lake Superior State was a hock- BIG TENS From page 1B were that close in the race." Michigan also placed first and second in the 200-yard freestyle on Saturday. Sophomore Bobby Savulich won his first individual Big Ten title in 1:35.99 after setting a pool record in the preliminaries, and sophomore Sal Barba finished second in 1:36.32. Savulich also placed third in the 100-yard free- style. "It was great to go out there and win," Savulich said about his strong individual performance. "It was huge to be able to do it with my teammates, with Sal getting second and Evan (Ryser) getting eighth." After trailing Ohio State by 14 points and Minnesota by one after the firstday, the Wolverines surged ahead of both teams to lead the meet after Saturday's events, tally- ing 405 points to Minnesota's 403. Michigan began Sunday night's competitionbyearning55 pointsin the 1,650-yard freestyle, with Pat- ton earning first place, freshman ey powerhouse, winning NCAA Championships during the 1991- 92 and 1993-94 seasons. But since then, they have made just one NCAA Tournament appearance. In exchange for the games at the Joe, Mike Ilitch - whose company Ilitch Holdings Inc. operates the arena - agreed to fund part of the expansion of Lake Superior State's Taffy Abel Arena. NOTES: Sophomore Danny Far- dig's goal on Friday night was his first in his last 46 games. Before the contest, he was the only player who played forward in every game without a goal. He knocked in a rebound in the first period to give Michigan an early lead.... With his two-point performance on Friday night, sophomore Andrew Coglia- no became the third player on the teamtonotch 40 points this season. It's the first time the Wolverines have had three 40-point scorers since the 1997-98 season when Bill Muckalt, Mark Kosick and Booby Hayes reached that mark. Charlie Houchin finishing third and sophomore Christian Sprang taking fifth. With four events remaining, Michigan temporar- ily lost the lead to Minnesota, but regained its first-place standing before the last event. All the senior swimmers and divers participating in their final Big Ten meet were honored at the beginning of Sunday's competi- tion. No Michigan swimmer was on the list. Yet, despite their lack of experienced leadership, Michi- gan fell just shy of sealing its first championship in four years, and effectively removed its role as underdog, a stigmathe Wolverines have struggled with nearly the entire season. "I think we really outswam the expectations of everybody here, and the guys just swam their hearts out," Michigan coach Bob Bowman said. "I couldn't ask for more. Obviously, we want to win this meet, and that's what Michi- gan deserves, and we'll find a way in the future to do that." Added Savulich: "Minnesota is a hell of a team, but we all know we'll be back next year." LAKERS From page 1B nobody that's going to catch them," Berenson said. "I wish we'd do that more." Hensick took over the scor- ing reigns soon after, notching a highlight-reel 4-on-4 goal. The alternate captain split the defenders, patiently played the puck until Laker goaltender Jeff Jakaitis went down and then slipped it past Jakaitis's left skate for a resounding 3-0 Michigan lead. Sandwiched between the two goals was a stifling Wol- verine penalty kill. Lake Supe- rior State didn't get a single shot off during its power play, the best chance getting blocked by senior Tim Cook. The lone Laker tally came in the third period when Dan Eves whipped a wrister over Sauer's blocker. Sauer made 35 saves for the game. On the other end of the ice, Jakaitis - who leads the coun- try with a .937 save percentage - stopped 23 shots. The All- American netminder bested the Wolverines Friday night with sharp saves and smart positioning. But Hensick found the cure for Jakaitis yesterday on Mich- igan's second shot of the after- noon. The Hobey Baker Award candidate flicked the puck straight in the air in front of Jakaitis and swatted it in. The goal was reviewed for a high stick, but stood as called. "Their defenseman, he didn't tie me up," Hensick said. "He just let me stand there. I found the puck, and with my hand- eye coordination, I should be able to do that." Hensick and his teammates now stand second in the CCHA, one point ahead of No. 11 Miami (Ohio) and four points ahead of No. 6 Michigan State. Notre Dame clinched the regular- season title Friday night. The key to locking up the runner-up position and getting a chance in the NCAA Tourna- ment will be returning to the steady success that kicked off 2007. "I know this team is capable of playing with the best," Hen- sick said. "Other times, we're bad. ... If we can consistently play down the stretch here, we'll have the chance to do some damage." BROMWICH From page 1B Saturday, he ran right back down the court and converted a Smith pass into a lay-up. And with just more than one minute remain- ing, he converted two clutch free throws to extend the Michigan lead to five. Senior Brent Petway sometimes has trouble staying involved in a game all the way through. But the forward recorded two blocks in Indiana's first three possessions. And after fouling Hoosier forward Mike White 25 feet from the bas- ket (giving him two free throws) and missing a short jumper with just two minutes remaining, Pet- way responded by taking a charge from White on the next posses- sion. Sophomore Jerret Smith com- mitted a horrible turnover, throw- ing the ball directly to guard Errek Suhr with Michigan up by three and just 50 seconds remaining in the game. But after White con- verted the lay-up on the other end, Smith, and the Wolverines' NCAA Tournament hopes were put on the line. The Romulus native calmly sank two free throws, putting the Wolverines back up by three and forcing Indiana to do what coach Kelvin Sampson called "the hard- est thing in the world ... to get a three when you need a three." Individually and collectively, the Wolverines conquered adver- sity on Saturday. Amaker's press conference helped explain why. "We have a saying with our team, 'Next play,' " Amaker said. "Whether it's a good play or a bad play, that's the beauty of basket- ball, it's moving, it's continuous and you have to be able to move onto the next play mentally. Some- times those plays can linger and cause you to have a few other neg- ative plays. I was trying to make sure that we were focused on the next play and I thought our kids did that very well." For a coach who doesn't often give noteworthy answers, Amaker hit the nail on the head with this one. Previously, the Wolverines haven't responded positively to negative plays. When faced with adversity, they have been known to crumble. Their heads often hang, their shoulders droop and their play suffers. But not Saturday. Not in this game, with any dreams of the Dance ready to dis- appear with a loss. Not Michigan? - Bromwich can be reached at dabromwi@umich.edu HOOSIERS From page 1B half. Part of Indiana's woes were due to the absence of point guard Earl Calloway, who dressed for the game but did not play due to a shoulder injury. "There's no question they are different (without Callo- way)," Amaker said. "Calloway is very tough with the ball, and he can penetrate. I think they would have been in much bet- ter rhythm had he been on the floor." Indiana junior D.J. White, a Big Ten Player of the Year can- didate, was also held in check. After dominating the paint in the Hoosiers' 76-61 win over the Wolverines earlier in the sea- son, White had just seven points and four rebounds on Saturday. He was saddled with foul trou- ble for a large portion of the sec- ond half. After the game, Michigan players reflected on just how important this win could prove to be, knowing that a loss would have been the nail in the coffin for its still-slim NCAA Tourna- ment chances. "In order to get where we want to go, we had to come and get (a win) in this game," Harris said. "If we hadn't have gotten it, I don't know what our mind- set would have been. I don't know how we would have taken it if we had lost." D D Sample Roundtrip Airfares From Detroit to: New York $131 London $302 Miami $193 Frankfurt $320 Coming in March 2007 to the University of Michigan The Millionaire' Forum is seeking the top student leaders on campus Millionaire's Forum Will you be one of them? IMMIGRATION SEMINAR Q& A SESSION GREEN CARDS 01ITHER VISAS FEB. 22 @u 4 PM - 6 PM MICHIGAN LEAGUE KALAMAZOo ROOM A'"IORNEY RICHARDI PIERC'