14 - Te Michigan Daily- Tuesday,. May 30; 2000 Wright closes out soi career with defeat 3y Jeff Phillips )aily Sports Writer On Wednesday, No. I singles play- :r Matt Wright lost in the first round tf the NCAA Singles Championship. [he No. 45-ranked Wright lost to so. 36-ranked Ramsay Smith of duke, 6-3, 6-1. Despite battling a back injury for nuch of the season, Wright finished vith 24 wins, tied with Henry Beam or most on the team. Wright defeated two top ten oppo- ients during the year and reached the 'inals of the Big Ten Singles 'hampionships. He. al, became the first Volverine in four years to compete n the NCAA Singles Thampionships. The loss ends an exceptional areer for Wright, who is seventh all- time in singles wins at Michigan with 88. He was a three-time all-Big Ten selection. MOVIN' ON UP: The exit of Wright and No. 2-singles player John Long leaves a gaping hole at the top of the lineup for the Wolverines. Most likely to inherit the No. 1 position is junior Henry Beam. Beam played most of the season at No. 3 singles and tied Wright for most singles wins. Also battling for the No. I posi- tion are juniors Danny McCain and Ben Cox and freshman Zach Held, who had a strong first season for the Wolverines. McCain played at the No. 3 posi- ion this season before Beam's strong >lay moved him up. 'M' handles loss, looks to future By Arun Gopal Doily Spors F[slttor Matt Wright's (pictured here earlier) college career ended last Wednesday. "I expect a lot of improvement over the summer," Michigan head coach Mark Mees said. "Summer competition is very important." Without a clear-cut heir, the com- petition will be fierce. AND HERE'S TO YOU, MR. EISNER: Last Wednesday, former Michigan head coach Brian Eisner was induct- ed into the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Hall of Fame. Eisner received the honor as quickly as pos- sible for a coach - just one year after retirement. Eisner compiled a 438-198 record in his 30 years of coaching Michigan tennis. In addition, the Wolverines won 19 Big Ten titles during his tenure. Eisner is the fourth winningest coach in Michigan athletics' history. While at Michigan, Eisner guided numerous players to the professional ranks, including Malivai Washington. Eisner also coached at the University of Toledo, where he amassed 71 wins in six seasons. Eisner's total of 509 wins puts him 12th all-time in Division I wins. Disappointment is a part of everyday life. At some point in time, all people have to deal with a crushing setback, something that knocks them for a loop and makes them take stock of their situ- ation. The Michigan softball team is going through such a period right now. The Wolverines enjoyed a typically strong regular season, finishing with the sec- ond-best record in the Big Ten. Then, Michigan kicked off its' post- season run in equally impressive fash- ion, journeying to regular-season cham- pion Iowa forthe conference tournament and defeating the Hawkeyes on their home field to claim the tournament title. By virtue of this victory, the Wolverines earned the right to host an NCAA Regional at Alumni Field. But, it was not to be. For the second consecutive season, the Wolverines were forced to watch as another school cele- bated a regional title and a College World Series bid on Michigan's home turf. This time around, fifth-seeded DePaul was the team with a reason to smile, as the Blue Demons defeated Michigan 3-0 in the regional champi- onship game. In the week since that devastating defeat, the Wolverines have had time to reflect on what was, and what might have been. "It's always abrupt when your season ends,' Michigan coach Carol Hutchins said. "Fves if you make it to the College World Series, you lose twice, and you're done. "There's a huge amount of energy, both physical and mental, that goes into a season. All of the players just need some time to regroup." At the start of every season, Michigan's goal is the same - to earn a berth in the College World Series. For a powerhouse program like the Wolverines, anything less would appear to be a disappointment. In that regard, Michigan certainly has reason to be upset with the way this sea- son ended - for the players, losing a regional championship in front of their own fans was devastating. But, a Big Ten tournament champi- onship and wins over nationally-ranked programs such as Texas and Louisiana State are accomplishments that the Wolverines can be proud of. "Getting to the College World Series is no small task," Hutchins said. "I think what our players learned this season is that staying together is the key to suc- cess. It's a long season, and unfortunate- ly, the only weekend that counts is the last one - but we just have to take it one step at a time." The season-ending loss at the hands of DePaul was the final game in a Michigan jersey for several Wolverine seniors, including hyper-intense third baseman Pam Kosanke and catcher Melissa Gentile, who battled through -.orsos----s NORMAN NG/Daily Pam Kosanke cries after Michigan's season-ending 3-0 loss to DePaul. injuries this season to remain one of the team's emotional leaders. Next year, Michigan will be counting on several of its' younger players to piel up their level of performance in as attempt to fill the void left by Kosanke Gentile, catcher Karmen Lappo, and pitcher Kate Eiland. "Everybody has to step up," Hutchins said. "Our kids have to grow up an t better. We need Chrissy Garza to hit .28( or .300. Melinda Moulden is close to being a great player, and we need her to keep improving. We just need to develop consistency in all areas of performance: =MLr Four Wolverines to compete in NCAA track Championships DAILY SPORTS. SPREAD THE WORD AROUND, THE BOYS ARE BACK IN TOWN. RECEIVE INSTRUCTION IN: TAEKWONDG CARDIG-KCKBGXIN Our Cardio-Fit Kickboxing program takes the music, excitement and energy of aerobics but adds impor- tant self-defense techniques like jabbing, kicking, punching and blocking. You learn-while you burn at 800 calories per hour! (SAME STYLE AS TA E-BO) Rleady forSr CHUN-MA TAEKWONDO I KIC OXING (734)994-0400 By Joshua Sherman For the Daily The University of Michigan is send- ing four track stars to the NCAA Championships, to be held May 31st- June 3rd in Durham, N.C. From the men's team, sophomore Ike Okenwa will run the 100 meter dash and junior Mike Wisniewski will run the 10,000 meter run at the NCAA's. Senior Brandi Bentley and junior Katie Clifford will represent the women's team, competing in the long jump and 10,000 meter run, respective- ly. Okenwa is ranked 16th in the coun- try in the 100 meter dash and Michigan men's track coach Ron Warhurst feels that he is peaking and should be able to advance to the second round of the competition. According to Michigan women's track coach James Henry, Bentley should place between sixth and eighth in the long jump and redeem herself after a tough outing at the Big Ten Championships. For Clifford, it has been an extreme- ly long year, having run cross country in both the indoor and outdoor seasons. At the NCAA Championships, she will be competing in the 10,000 meter run, an event she ran for the first time this year. Coach Henry feels that Clifford has demonstrated an ability to compete at a new distance, and that she can run with the best athletes in the event. Wisniewski was the one of the four who was not a sure thing to qualify for the NCAA Championships. "I was really surprised. I wasn't expecting it, but I was hoping. I'm very thankful," Wisniewski said. Said Warhurst: "He never quit on the season. He just missed qualifying auto- matically and could have quit at the end, but he kept coming. His determi- nation did it. He's not done yet, either." Wisniewski is ranked 19th in the country in the 10,000 meter. But Coach Warhurst all but guaranteed that Wisniewski will place higher than nineteen at the NCAA Championships. For Coach Warhurst, this is his 26th season coaching the track team and he has had someone qualify for the NCAA Championship every year. He noted that Michigan has always done well at the NCAA Championship and has captured several individual cham- pionships in recent years. "Michigan has done much better indoors than outdoors," Henry said. He attributed this to the difficulty in competing against warm weather schools and their top talent. Fearsome foursome The Michigan men and women's teams will both send two representatives to the NCAA Championships in Durham, N.C. Mike Wisniewski Junior 10,000 meter run Star cross-country runner who was 'real ly surprised" to receive a bid. Ike Okenwa Sophomore 100 meter dash Ranked No. 16 nationally and coach Ron Warhurst thinks he should advance to the second round. Brandi Bentley Senior long jump Coach James Henry said his starsjump Bentley will finish in the top eight places. Katie Clifford Junior 10,000 meter run Like Wisniewski, Cliffordis a croses-cou try runner as well. Cltfford ust started to ray the 10,000 meter rsn this year.