28 - November 24, 2008 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com f - November 24, 2008 The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom 4 Iq COMMODORES Prom Page l B "I think our defense was abso- lutely outstanding," Borseth said. "In the half court, we were rock- solid." Vanderbilt forward Christina Wirth, a preseason All-SEC selec- tion and a candidate for conference player of the year, was Michigan's main concern defensively. The Wolverines stepped up to the chal- lenge, holding the senior to just six points. "She didn't get shots that she normally gets from the perimeter," Vanderbilt coach Melanie Balcomb said. "But I think they did a good job on her inside, as well." The strong defensive effort continued in the second half as the Wolverine offense got going, opening up their largest lead of the game at 12. The Commodores were switch- ingtheir defense from zone to man all afternoon, and even unveiled a full-court press in the second half. But the Wolverines remained rela- tively unfazed. "They did exactly what we expected them to do," Borseth said. "I think we did a pretty good job with it and we played at our pace." Senior guard Jessica Minnfield led Michigan with 14 points, but Sorry, seniors: 'M'couldn't give you a proper sendof Senior Jessica Minnfield and the rest of the Wolverine defense shut dows Vander- bilt yesterday. it was her contribution as a floor general that helped the Wol- verines the most when she was navigating through the full-court press. "I put it all on confidence, basi- cally," she said. "Having my team- mates have confidence in me." There was typically balanced scoring for Michigan, with senior forward Stephany Skrba con- tributing eight points on 4-5 shooting and Benson nearing a double-double with 10 points and nine rebounds. Sophomore guard Veronica Hicks added seven. After losing to 12th-ranked Texas A&M at home on Thursday by three points, Borseth speculat- ed this win could do great things for his team's confidence. "It just showed that our kids can play with a good, quality team," he said. "And we need that." Dear Seniors, Well, that was it. Our last football Saturday has come and gone. To call the final go-round disappoint- ing would be an understatement. Many of us came to Ann Arbor look- ing forward to matchups with t Ohio State more - than any par- ticular class or degree. But Michigan football went SANDALS 0-4 against the Buckeyes in the last four years, and our memories of the Saturday before Thanksgiving especially won't be fond. We're the second consecutive class of seniors that will receive degrees without an important part of the University of Michigan experience - a win over Ohio State. Certainly, the five-year winless streak against the Buckeyes is hard- er to swallow for those who actu- ally played in the game. But what makes it difficult for us is that the results have been entirely beyond our control. No matter how hard we cheered or how much we cared, we couldn't do anything to change the outcome on the field. We couldn't jump onto the field to fill the gap and stop a long Beanie Wells touchdown run (and we've seen plenty of those). We couldn't slap on pads and pass-block for a harried quarterback. We couldn't put on a headset and call plays. We've invested a lot in our Mich- igan football fandom over the past four years and the results haven't been what we expected. There have been bright spots: The 2005 last-second win over Penn State. The unbeaten run to Ohio State in 2006. The Capitol One Bowl win against heavily favored Florida in Lloyd Carr's last game. The win over Wisconsin in Septem- ber, the biggest comeback in Michi- gan Stadium history. We've seen more than our fair share of low points, too: A 7-5 sea- son our freshman year that includ- ed a home loss to Minnesota. Two losses to end a previously unbeaten 2006 season. Appalachian State. Finishing 3-9 in 2008. We've seen more Michigan foot- ball losses in four years than any group of seniors since the class of 1937. The seniors on the football team have talked a lot this year about being able to vicariously enjoy the success when the program turns around. They've all maintained they can still take some pleasure knowing that they helped build the foundation. The general student population won't be able to enjoy any future success in the same way. Our con- nection to the football program will always be as alumni of the Univer- sity, not as past participants. While a successful team will be alot of fun to watch in years to come, it won't change the fact that we were on campus for one of the worst four- year stretches in program history. 4 There's no doubt this seniorclass will be proud of its time at Michi- gan. As students, we've attended one of the world's finest universi- ties. But will we be as proud of our Michigan fandom in the years to 4 come? I hope we will, because the link we've had as fans is as strong as any we've built on this campus. Our Saturdays in fall, both good weath- er or bad, drunk or sober, win or lose, have been the only timeswe've truly come together as a whole with a common goal. While the past four seasons haven't played out the way we would've liked, there's no denying that they brought us together. And that's something to be proud of. -Sandals can be reached at nsandals@umich.edu. WOM EN'S SWIMMING A ND DIVING Michigan's NCAA hopes look bright after weekend Tauro rises to the top, hopes to shine at NCAAs By RYAN A. PODGES Daily Sports Writer Tough competition is nothing new for the No. 18 Michigan wom- en's swimming and diving team. Already this season, the Wolver- ines have faced No. 3 Stanford, No. 4 Texas, No. 5 Florida, No. 9 Indi- ana and No. 11 Minnesota. So when Michigan entered the three-day Art Adamson Invitation- al at Texas A&M this weekend to swim against No. 6 California, No. 8 Texas A&M and No. 14 Southern Methodist, among others, Michigan coach Jim Richardson was excited to see how his battle-tested team would respond to the meet's speed. If Michigan's third-place per- formance was any preview of the NCAA Championship meet, which will be held in the same pool, the Wolverines are poised to have one incredible meet. "I can't honestly recall a better swim meet for us in November," said Richardson, who is in his 24th season as the Wolverines head coach. "I couldn't be happier. We try to swim intelligently, and when you look at the way we swam and the splits for each segment of the race, I can't recall a better meet than we've had even at the end of a season. We just swam really well." Junior Margaret Kelly had the only first-place finish for Michigan in the 200-yard individual medley. Kelly also finished fifth in the 100- yard freestyle with a personal-best time of 49.33 and fourth in the 100- yard butterfly. Sophomore Natasha Moodie broke 23 seconds in the 50-yard freestyle twice in one night when she led off the 200-yard freestyle relay with a time of 22.7 and then swam 22.8 in her individual event. Richardson estimated her relay split was one of the top four or five swims in Michigan history. Michigan began the meet with impressive swims in the 200-yard freestyle and 400-yard medley relays, which finished second and fourth, respectively. "I don't think we've ever had six relays in this meet swim as well as we had swim on Friday and that's really impressive to me," Richard- son said. "In three relays you have 12 people, and for all of them to swim well is a hard thing to have happen. We did that twice tonight. We just did not have a bad swim on those relays and it was excellent." The meet took a bizarre and dis- appointing turn on Friday night when several records set at the meet, including the Big Ten and school record Kelly set that night in her 200-yard individual medley, were ruled invalid. The pool was measured at 75 feet and 0.5 inches the day before the meet, but tight- ening the lane lines between the pool wall and the moveable bulk- head apparently caused the bulk- head to move toward the wall and made the pool length 1.125 inches shorter than the 75-foot minimum requirement when it was measured again after competition ended Fri- day. The only reason the pool was measured again was because Aggie senior Triin Aljand set an NCAA record in the SO-yard freestyle. Since it is unclear at what time between the two measurements the bulkhead moved, the number of races swum at the correct and incorrect distances is unknown. An appeal will be filed with the NCAA to permit the a time conversion to be used to generate new times for each race.TheNCAAmaythenrecognize these new times as valid records and NCAA qualifying times. Richardson said the team's incredible performance was a result of how the team has been training. Before this weekend, all of theWolverines' meetshave beenon Fridays and Saturdays after a long week of hard training. Richardson took a special approach to training for this weekend, one he has taken each year before this meet. "We trained 100% on Monday, trained about 75% on Tuesday, about 50% on Wednesday, travel on Thursday and then we raced on Friday," he said. "I think that hav- ing a couple days of recovery so that they're not running on fumes at the end of the week means our performances here are really a more accurately reflect how they train and prepare to race." The training appears to be work- ing, but Richardson seems to have said it best. "The results speak for them- selves," he said. I By AMY SCARANO Daily Sports Writer Danielle Tauro was enjoy- ing middle-school gym class in her hometown of Manahawkin, N.J., when an unexpected visitor showed up. Her future high-school cross country coach considered the nearby middle school recruiting territory. "He kind of picked me out from gym class and told me to come out for the cross country team," Tauro said. "I did, and everything just escalated from there." Tauro had never been a runner before, but she apparently looked enough like one. Seven years later, Tauro is a sophomore rising star on the No.17 Michigan women's cross country team, will compete at the NCAA Championships in Terre Haute, Ind., today. The Wolverines have had a suc- cessful season, led by fifth-year senior Nicole Edwards who has been the top finishing Wolverine in four races this season. but Edwards will exhaust her eligibility after this season. That's where Tauro comes in. "Danielle contributes a lot more than she does just time-wise," Michigan coach Mike McGuire said. "She is really well-received by all her teammates, and she is a very team-oriented person. Always smil- ing, great attitude, she is the type of person with an infectious attitude you like to have on the team." Tauro spent her freshman sea- son adjusting to the challenges of college athletics and has spent this 0 Sophomore Danielle Tauro will be a big part of the Michigan contingent NCAA Championships in Terre Haute, Ind. today. year chasing down other runners. Tauro exhibited her talent from the start of this season when she won the season opener. "I'm usually just staring at the person in front of me, hoping I can close the gap," Tauro said. "I'm thinking about my teammates, where they are in the race. Mike (McGuire) sometimes will count and tell me what place I am in." Tauro is running furiously to be Michigan's top runner in the com- ing years, after being named the Big Ten Runner of the Week twice this season. A consistent scorer all season, Tauro usually finishes in second or third place for Michigan. She crossed the line first for Michigan in the Big Ten Championships ear- lier this month, placing 13th overall in the team's disappointing fifth- place finish. "I definitely want to try and fill some big shoes," Tauro said. "I am going to try to step it up, especial- ly in the Big Tens. I want to start trying to make it individually for Nationals, and hopefully, eventu- ally get All-American." Although she's just a sophomore, Tauro's teammates and coaches have noticed her as a potential leader. "It is kind of like passing the torch down to Danielle to lead the team," redshirt junior Geena Gall said. "She has become more of a leader this year than last year. She motivates me to run faster and to stick with it." Lucky to have a runner's build as a 14-year old, Tauro now runs like one too, and that's a definite advan- tage for the Wolverines. VOL LEYBA L L Blue falls short again in bid to knock off ranked foe It is: lack of isn't a 1 So w ball tea to-back season The teams,' Rosen: Afte beating Wolver overall under t Frid Wolver defeati second Butt smashe (13-4,2 four se ion. Dow 'erines A fiftha Mic 11-7 ads thanks hitter J dIle bloc By MARK BURNS But the Wolverine lead quickly Daily Sports Writer evaporated as Minnesota tied the set at 15 apiece. n't a lack of focus. It isn't a With all the momentum and execution. And it definitely home-court advantage, the Golden ack of heart. Gophers grabbed four of the next rhy has the Michigan volley- five points, forcing Rosen to call a im been unable to win back- timeout. kconference road games this The timeout proved ineffective as Minnesota ran away with the set reason is "very, very good and the match, giving the Wolver- " Michigan coach Mark ines their sixth Big Ten road loss of said. the season. r losing to Minnesota and The Golden Gophers' defense Iowa this weekend, the held the Wolverine offense to a ines (11-7 Big Ten, 23-7 mediocre attack percentage of .149 ) have yet another road split and registered 10 blocks on the heir belt. night. ay night, the 20th-ranked "We knew they'd be motivated," ines had high hopes of Rosen said. "They are very good ng No. 12 Minnesota for the defensively and have one of the time this season. best liberos (junior Christine Tan) hose hopes were eventually in the country." rd, as the Golden Gophers Tan has earned Big Ten Defen- 23-6) defeated Michigan in sive Player of the Week five times ts inside the Sports Pavil- this fall. Pazled the Michigan attack with n 2-1 inthe match, the Wol- 11 kills while Karpiak and junior looked to send the match to right-side hitter Megan Bower and deciding set. each had 10. higan jumped out to a quick Sophomore setter Lexi Zimmer- vantage in the fourth frame, man added 38 assists in the losing to kills from junior outside effort. Zimmerman is second in the Juliana Paz and senior mid- Big Ten with 11.51 assists per set. cker Beth Karpiak. But the Wolverines were not about to let Friday night's out- come affect their play for the entire weekend. "We're a very resilient team," Rosen said. "When we've won, we've never been too overconfi- dent, and when we've lost, we've never been too dejected." The pattern held on Saturday. That night, Michigan traveled to Iowa, where it defeated the Hawkeyes (6-12, 14-16) in three sets. "We played a team that was not as good as Minnesota," Rosen said. "But I'm still proud of how our girls competed." Zimmerman's 37 assists on the night went to a handful of Wol- verines. Her offensive distribution confused the Hawkeye defense, leading to a .308 attack percent- age. Paz again led the Wolverine offensive with12 kills while Bower and freshman right side hitter Alex Hunt each added eight. Kar- piak had nine kills in the match, giving her more than 1,000 for her career. As Michigan returns home for its last home weekend. Rosen and the Wolverines will look to knock off No. 1 Penn State for the first time since November 2002. Wolverines ready to pack a punch at NCAA Championships 4 Seven runners need to keep together to find success By CHANTEL JENNINGS Daily Sports Writer Last Wednesday at practice, the No. 9 Michigan men's cross coun- try team took off for its eight-mile run down Division Street the way it always does - ina pack. And this afternoon, in the Wol- verines' biggest race of the year at the NCAA Championships in Terre Haute, Ind., they will also take off and finish together ina pack. All season, Michigan coach Ron Warhurst has stressed the neces- sity of keeping the pack together, no matter what. Michigan's goal is to keep its spread (the time difference between Michigan's first and fifth runners) under 20 seconds and make sure all five scored runners finish in the top 50 or 60 overall. If Michigan can do that, Warhurst believes the team will finish somewhere in the top 10. Warhurst believes this year's team has more talent than a group that ran to a Michigan program- record fourth place 10 years ago. "I don't know how high we can go if we're exceptional," Warhurst said. "Anything can happen." The seven closely matched run- ners will be battling for the five scoring positions. However, it's dif- ficult to predict who will be leading the pack. It could be senior Lex Wil- liams who led at the NCAA Great LakeRegionals;redshirtsophomore Ciaran O'Lionard, who led the Wol- verines at the Pre-Nationals meet a month ago; or redshirt junior Sean McNamara, who led Michigan at the Big Ten Championships, finish- ing sixth. In such a crowded race, with more than 250 runners, staying in a pack will benefit each individual runner by making sure they don't drop their pace or become over- whelmed by the multitude. "It's a big help, being able to run with teammates during the race," McNamara said. "If we continue to do that we'll do pretty well" It will be the last collegiate race for three Wolverines: seniors Wil- liams and Justin Switzer and fifth- year senior Seth Thibodeau. Last year, Williams helped the Wolverines go into the NCAA Championships ranked 11th in the nation. But on race day, Michigan didn't run well and placed 24th out of 30 teams. "Nationals is all about being solid and not blowing up, not hav- ing a bad race," O'Lionaird said. "If we can go out there and run to our capabilities, I see no reason why we can't finish in the top five." Warhurst isn't worried about his I team blowing up or having a bad race. In his 34th season coaching the Wolverines, Warhurst has led 12 teams to top-10 finishes in the NCAA Championships. "There's a difference between I being scared and afraid to go out and perform versus being nervous (and) excited about 'Let's get it going and see what we can do,' " Warhurst said. "And I think that's where we're at."