14 - The Michigan Daily - Monday, May 20, 2002 Wolverines address disappointing year By Charles Paradis Daily Sports Editor With the Big Ten season coming to an end, Michigan has been in a must-win situation for the past two weeks. The Wolverines fell behind in the Big Ten standings early in the season but retained a chance to make the Big Ten Tournament if they could win the majority of their games in the waning weeks of the regular season. While Michigan produced runs when needed and executed offen- sively yesterday in its 7-4 win over Purdue, the rest of the Big Ten sea- Close, but no cigar The six teams with the highest winning percentage advance to the Big Ten Tournament, and the Wolverines were just .31 per- centage points away. Record Pct. 1. Minnesota 18-10 .642 2. Ohio State 18-11 .621 3. Michigan State 16-12 .571 4. Indiana 15-14 .517 5. Iowa 15-16 .484 6. Northwestern 14-15 .483 Illinois 14-15 .483 8. Michigan 14-17 .452 9. Purdue 13-19 .406 10. Penn State 11-19 .367 son had been another story. "We had some guys, myself included, trying to do way too much - just stuff beyond their abilities," sophomore catcher Jake Fox said. "This weekend, we just came out and said, 'We're at the end (of the season). We just need to play. We don't need to play well, we just have to win."' Michigan took care of business against Purdue, taking three of four from the Boilermakers. The series capped off one of the most success- ful weekends of the season for the. Wolverines, who were swept in a doubleheader last Monday at North- western, virtually ending their hopes of a Big Ten Tournament berth. "This weekend, we showed our abilities that we didn't show in the first part of season," Fox said. "We came out and were relaxed, and we were able to play baseball instead of trying to do too much." Entering yesterday's game, not only did Michigan need to win, but Iowa and Northwestern also had to lose for the Wolverines to earn a postseason berth. But this did not affect Michigan's attitude going into the game - an attitude instilled in them by interim coach Chris Harri- son. "In this life, there's things you can't control, and there's things you can," Harrison said. "The things you DANNY MOLOSHOK/Daily Michigan catcher Jake Fox smacked three homeruns this weekend against Purdue, bringing his total for the season to 11. can't'control, you're wasting your time and your energy worrying about them or thinking about them. You do what you can, and you can't worry about things you have no con- trol over." The Wolverines finished the year off in strong fashion, winning four of their last five games - all five at The Fish, where Michigan finsihed with a 13-7 record this season. DEPARTING WOLVERINES: Michgan seniors Bobby Korecky, Jeff Trzos, Kirk Taylor and Joe Young were all honored at yesterday's Senior Day. All four made pitching appearances for the Wolverines and combined for seven wins in 36 appearances this season. Korecky alone accounted for five of those wins. DoUBLE THREAT: Jake Fox proved he was not just a threat with a bat. He not only contributed offensively for the Wolverines yesterday, but he also played a large role in Michi- gan's defense. In the top of the third inning, Fox threw out Daniel Under- wood as he attempted to steal sec- ond base. Fox took the high pitch from Trzos and hurled the ball to second, easily beating the sliding Underwood. BOILERMAKERS Continued from Page 134 catcher Jake Fox. Fox then put the game out of reach for Purdue. In the bottom of the sixth, he stepped in to the batter's box with a runner on first. Fox, who had already hit two homers in the weekend series, blasted his 1Ith longball of the season over the left-field wall. Fox's three homers gave him double- digit homeruns for the first time in his two-year career at Michigan. "I was actually just looking for a base hit to move the runner around, and he threw me an inside fastball," Fox said. "I happened to put the barrel on it and got it up in the air. And the wind was blowing out today, so it just took it over the wall." Much like Michigan, Purdue has been one ofthe top teams in the Big Ten over the last few years but has struggled greatly this season. "(The Boilermakers) put a lot of pressure on you and I thought we han- dled the pressure very well, especially defensively," interim coach Chris Harri- son said. "This weekend was a great way to go out," Fox said. "Overall the year wasn't a great year, but I think this was a great way to end it." REGIONALS Continued from Page 13 Wolverines two weeks ago in the Big Ten Championship. Leading the Wolverines to victory was an exceptional performance by the sec- ond varsity eight boat and a first- place finish by the first varsity four. But it was the seniors that led the way. "Our seniors won it for three straight years, and they wanted to make it four," Rothstein said. "They showed great leadership helping this team to prepare, and it's a credit to the seniors and the whole program." Despite rowing well as a team, the first varsity eight's second-place fin- ish was an indicator of the need for some fine tuning in specific areas. The Wolverines have been struggling with their starts all year long, and despite an improvement from two weeks ago, the rowers know that a better effort is needed. "It's still lacking a little bit, so that's one place we can work on," first varsity eight coxswain Helen Dalis said. The Wolverines must now look for- ward to the NCAA Championships, where they were runner-up last year. In a season full of ups and downs, the Wolverines seem to be peaking at the right time. "The important race is still yet to come. In two weeks, that's when we'll peak," Dalis said. The Wolverines may not have the momentum that last year's team had, but nevertheless, Michigan is headed to the finals again, after persevering and over- coming some differences. "We had a diverse group of personali- ties, but we've come together finally, and everyone's willing to respect each other," Kate Maxim said. "I feel stronger for it, and I'm more proud of this year's win." Last year was a breakthrough year for the Michigan program after three straight years of fifth-place finishes. The Wolverines hope that this year's product will be a national championship. The Best.Job on.C0/a p .3 rU The 2002 SAla Supple en abiotOof aulty/ staff salaries.. .. S l abi a for$ forinfrmation, cal 764 055 eNUW o ato