The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com September 2, 2008 - 3B The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom September 2, 2008 - 3B Michigan sweeps opening weekend From Page 1B shutout. Michigan opened its regular season Friday night with a 4-3 vic- tory over Wisconsin-Green Bay. The Wolverines (2-0-0) relied on late-match heroics from junior for- ward Peri Marosevic, who scored the game-winning goal in the 79th minute of the contest. Michigan hopes to play at its new soccer complex during its next home stand starting Sept. 12. Even though the fields aren't located within walking distance of Central Campus, Burns sees the new complex assa sign of prog- "I think it shows that our administration is looking to raise the level of soccer on our campus, and that's everything a coach can ask for" Burns said. Sophomore Lexi Zimmerman tallied more than 30 assists in back-to-back games this weekend, helping Micb igan to an undefeated opening weekend. Zimmerman leads Wolverines to fast start Junior Peri Marosevic scored three goals in Michigan's two-win weekend. He was named the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week. With. Sophomore emerges as a young leader in weekend wins By MARK BURNS Daily Sports Writer Underclassmen aren't usually expected to emerge as team lead- ers. But sophomore Lexi Zimmer- men has been just that for the Michigan women's volleyballteam, a year after she earned Big Ten All- Freshmen honors. Zimmerman continued that success last weekend, leading the Wolverines to a 3-0 record at the Rice University Mizuno Invita- tional in Houston. "Last year she had a lot of senior attackers around her, so if she made a mistake they could bail her out," Michigan coach Mark Rosen said. "This year, she is that player. A lot of the younger players are looking to her now for leadership." Zimmerman and the Wolverines began the season on a positive note Friday afternoon, beating Louisi- ana-Lafayette (25-10, 25-22, 25-17). Senior Beth Karpiak had the best attack percentage of the match (.412), scoring 10 kills on 17 attempts. Karpiak grabbed All- Tournament honors along with Zimmerman and juniors Juliana Paz and Megan Bower. Michigan's stellar defensive game complemented Karpiak's of- fensive effort, forcing the Cajuns to tally a negative hitting percent- age. Tournament MVP Bower led the way with three stuffs. It was the first time Michigan held an opponent to a negative hitting per- centage since 2004. The Wolverines continued to cruise Saturday with three easy sets (25-19, 25-13, 25-12) over Tex- as-San Antonio. Paz helped the Wolverines' of- fensive explosion, tallying 11 kills in the match. "My first Division IStrip went re- ally good," Paz said. "I am getting to know the coaches and players better everyday and so far, it has been great." Later Saturday night, the Wol- verines squared off against the tournament host, Rice. Both teams came into the match undefeated. But the Bower-Zimmerman leadership tandem again led the Michigan charge. Bower had a career-best 14 kills while Zimmerman dished out 34 assists, her second straight match with more than 30 assists. The Owls kept it close early in game one. The Wolverines then took an 18-11 lead and never looked back, winning 25-16. Michigan was able to capitalize on multiple miscues by Rice throughout the match. The Wolverines were solid through the next two games, win- ning 26-24 and 25-15, capping off a great first weekend. "Our focus is just getting better every match and taking baby steps to becoming a better team," Zim- merman said. Rosen will look to Zimmerman to help lead this young Wolverine squad as they continue to mesh to- gether as a team. "Everyone on the team is get- ting along phenomenally well," Rosen said. "One thing I think we need to try more is to push each other, but at the same time keep- ing that 100-percent positive team perspective." >; :. ...>:.: s. I' S24 H00 4120EllsworthRoad,Ypsilanti48197 Across from Meijer O en 4 Hours Phone (734) 528-4006 Breakfast served 1 1 pm -11 am _ ~ One Free classic , f' ot r 'Hand-Dipped Milkshake with purchase and valid Student ID card 1 ~ Expires 12/31 /08 _ www.steaknshakc I... THE BIGGEST BACK TO SCHOOL POSTER SALE 3 You have one Event Invitation! UAC Afterparty A chance to find your niche on campus! Tons of free food with performances and presentations by all 14 committees! Hosted by: UAC (University Activities Center) Type: Party Where: Michigan League in the Vandenburg and Hussey rooms When: Thursday, September 4 from 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm People Attending: Amazin' Blue, Big Ticket Productions, ComCo, Groove, Impact, M-agination Films, M-Flicks, Michigan Academic Competitions, Michigan Every Three Weekly, Michigan Pops Orchestra, Mini-Courses, MUSKET, The Rude Mechanicals, Student Astronomical Society Visit our website at www.umuac.org 0\31 0 li 7'' . li 1. IN. EL G p s P Most Images Only 7,v 8and 9