14 - The Michigan Daily - Tuesday, May 4, 2004 Netters bounced by Spartans in By Ryan osin Daily Sports Editor EAST LANSING - Back in the days of Wild West shootouts, one moment of hesitation would lead to a sharp shooter's ultimate demise. For the Michigan men's tennis team, the hesita- tion in East Lansing led to an early exit from the Big Ten Tournament after a 4-2 loss to Michigan State. The eighth-seeded Wolverines fiercely battled the ninth-seeded Spartans and forced four matches into a decisive third set. "It was windy out here and that means you really have to concentrate," Michigan coach Mark Mees said. "You've got to look at the ball, and you've got to play smart." Michigan played without its top player, junior Michael Rubin. An injured rib muscle has plagued Rubin, a member of the 2004 All-Big Ten Conference team, and he was forced to watch the match from the bleachers. The No. 1 doubles pair of Michigan freshmen, Ryan Heller and Brian Hung, toppled Michigan State's Andrew Formanczyk and Chris Mitchell 9-7 in the decisive doubles match, giving Michi- gan the early 1-0 lead. But its lead did not last long, as the Spartans won the No. 4 and No. 6 singles matches. Eric Simonton overwhelmed Michigan's David Anving 6-2, 6-3 while Michael Flowers followed with a 6-4, 6-4 win over Josef Fischer. Heller had a chance to bring Michigan back from behind in the second set of his match with Mitchell. After a handful of errors and a faltering serve, Heller saw his 5-4 lead turn into a 6-7 set loss ina tie breaker. "He did geta little tentative when he was serv- ing in the second set," Mees said. "He kind of let that set get away." Heller came back for the third set fired up. "What time is it?" a teammate barked from the sideline. "Break time," Heller replied with a grunt. Heller went beyond breaking the serve. He won the final set 6-1 with an inspired perform- ance, giving Michigan its second and final point of the day. "(Heller) is a fiery guy. He thrives in situations where it is pretty emotional," Mees said. Another valiant attempt at a comeback came from Steve Peretz in No. 5 singles. After drop- ping the first set 6-4, Peretz pushed the match to a decisive third set, but he was unable to over- come Michigan State's Joseph McWilliams and lost the third set 6-4. "You can't keep thinking about consequences," Mees said. "You can't let stuff creep into your head." Playing in the top spot against Fromanczyk, senior Anthony Jackson fell behind 4-0 early in the first set before mounting a comeback to win the second set. The match was eventually abandoned when the outcome of the meet was determined. The match will likely mark the end of the Michigan co-captain's collegiate career, as the Wolverines are unlikely to receive a bid for the NCAA Tournament. He finishes with a 72-63 record in four years as a regular in Mees' line-up. "(Anthony's) been a big part of our program for the last few years," Mees said. "We all enjoyed having him around, and he's going to be missed." The Wolverines await the draw for the NCAA Tournament, which will be announced tomorrow. Tens ROWING n s Continued from Page 13 Going into the final heat of the day, the Wolverines sat in third place and needed an outright victory in the First Varsity Eight race to win the Big Ten Champi- onship. Michigan's toughest competition, Michigan State and Ohio State, both defeated the Wolverines handily earlier this season. "We've raced each other a lot, and we've always been really competitive towards each other," said Mandoli about competing against the Buckeyes and the Spartans. "It's not such a rivalry - we use each other to get better." The difference between April's dual matches and the Big Ten Tournament was additional speed training during practice and heightened team passion. "We definitely went in to this weekend with a dif- ferent attitude than previous weekends," Mandoli said. "We've gained some confidence from a couple weeks of great practice. We had a little bit more desire and heart going into this weekend than we've had. None of us were happy with our results so far this season." The Wolverines' goal coming into the Big Ten Championship was to finish ahead of their fourth- place seeding. It appeared as if the Wolverines were poised to finish below expectations until the tourna- ment's final two races, where they scored 105 of their 128 points. In those two competitions - the First Var- sity Eight and Second Varsity Eight races - a com- bined 3.1 seconds separated Michigan and the second place finishers. That time difference, Michigan coach Mark Rothstein believes, was achieved because of team unity throughout the up-and-down season. "Everybody had been disappointed with our per- formances (this season), but the team stuck togeth- er. Nobody pointed fingers," Rothstein said. Up next for the Wolverines is the Central Region Championships, where bids to the NCAA Champi- WILLA TRACOSAS/Daily onship depend on a strong showing. The Wolverines' ler went 12-8 this goal is to compete well enough to receive their sev- singles positions. enth consecutive NCAA bid. Michigan Freshman Ryan Hell season at the No. 3 and No. 4 {+ V s, ® 0% 1$17 THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN MULTI-ETHNIC STUDENT AFFAIRS 2202 Michigan Union Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-1349 734-763-9044 FAX 734-615-6842 Division of Student Affairs Dear Students: Are you interested in being involved in developing a multicultural center that reflects and serves student needs? If so, we invite you to nominate yourself or other students to serve on the Trotter Multicultural Center Facility and Program Vision Committee. This university committee will include a team of student representatives, facilities experts and staff to recommend possible options for Trotter House. We are seeking a wide range of students across campus who express an interest in the future of Trotter. Seven students will have a unique opportunity to learn about Trotter's history and work with others to develop a vision for Trotter. This team will work together over the summer months and into the fall. Your input and contributions to this process are central to the development of Trotter's future. If you would like to serve on this team, please send the following information to Patricia Aqui Pacania (pmaqui@umich.edu) who will select the members. Name: Year: Major: Email: What is your interest in serving on this committee? If you would like to nominate someone to be on the committee, please send the following information to Pratricia Aqui Pacania (pmaqui@umich.edu) who will select the members. Nominee's Name: Nominee's Year: Nominee's Major: Nominee's Email: Why should the person you are nominating serve on this committee? Thank you in advance for your assistance and I will keep you updated about further developments in this process. Sincerely, Patricia Aqui Pacania Director, Office of Multi-Ethnic Student Affairs 0