12 Tuesday, May 5, 2009 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Blue falters in Big Tens Af leo d The3 came of the Big' in the t close. B continu( days, fin Mich lege to Blue Cc The We Purdue strokes nament Soph boosted on the f score o' ter first round were the worst of the eleven Big Ten teams on Saturday, shooting ad, Wolverines a 302 - five shots more than any other team. rop to eighth "It was disappointing because even going into the third round By TIM ROHAN we were only 11 shots off the lead," Daily Sports Writer said Michigan coach Andrew Sapp. "But we just weren't able to mount Michigan men's golf team a charge." ut firing this weekend at The Wolverines failed to con- Ten Championships, firmly tend after Friday, and even though op spot as Friday came to a they strung together some good tt the Wolverines couldn't holes, missed putts and key mis- e the charge in the final two takes ultimately cost them the ishing tied for eighth place. tournament. igan traveled to State Col- While the overall team momen- compete on Penn State's tum wasn't there, the trio of ourse over the weekend. Sitompl, sophomore Lion Kim, and olverines ended tied with senior co-captain Nick Pumford with a 1,179 total score, 30 made a strong showing. Each shot behind Illinois, the Tour- career 72-hole personal records at Champion. State College. smore Alexander Sitompul Michigan's top individual was Michigan into first place Kim, who finished 14th with a 293 irst day with a two-under score over the weekend. Following f 69. But the Wolverines Kim for Michigan were senior co- captain Bill Rankin and Sitompul who tied for 17th with a score of 295. But even with the Wolverines' individual successes, the middle two rounds kept Michigan from gathering steam and having a successful weekend after their impressive entrance into the tour- nament. "We played well in the first round, obviously - we had the lead," Sapp said. "Got off to a great start, but the middle two rounds really sunk us. And (we) played solid (Sunday) in the final round and we were able to move up. "Those middle two rounds real- ly hurt us and obviously that's what cost us finishing a lot higher." The tough competition the Wol- verines faced this weekend could prepare them for their NCAA Regional, which will be played at the University of Texas Golf Club in Austin, Tex. from May 14 to May 16: NO-HITTER From page 11 of scoreless work, Wimmers and Fetter - two of the Big Ten's best pitchers - accounted for 14 strikeouts. But after Dew's hit, Fetter fell apart as he allowed four runs in the sixth and sev- enth innings. Fetter's performance in the first game of a series often serves as the measuring stick for the rest of the Wolverines' weekend. And it's no secret that the team counts on Fetter for a win. "It's huge to go 1-0 on a team," said sophomore centerfielder' Ryan LaMarre. "If you get that first one under your belt, you're one win away from winning the series. We know (Fetter) always gives us a chance, and that's important to our success." After Fetter was dealt a loss in Saturday's first game, the Wol- verines were hard-pressed to bounce back in the nightcap. Michigan came out firing with two quick runs, but sophomore pitcher Tyler Burgoon fell vic- tim to a six-run hitting spree that shortened his campaign to just Master of Science 10 intergrated training for biologists, chemists, & engineers Earn a graduate degree in only 15 months and prepare for a rewarding career in biotechnology or pharmaceuticals. Apply today at: www.MBP.northwestern.edu '5 NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY 1.2 innings. Despite a comeback attempt in the game's middle innings, the Wolverines lack of consistent pitching doomed them to a 9-6 loss. "We were a few bounces from being in the first and second games," LaMarre said. "(Sun- day's game) MICHIGAN 0 was our OHIO STATE 6 surprise game. We all MICHIGAN 9 knwiOHIO STATE 9 knew it, so we went out MICHIGAN 9 as hard OHIO STATE 2 as we could and played with despera- tion." Apparently, desperation was what Michigan needed in the final game of the series as it cou- pled a consistent effort on the mound from junior Eric Katz- man, who allowed just four hits and one earned run, with solid play at the plate as four Wolver- ines got multiple hits leading to a 9-2 win. By salvaging a win in Sun- day's game, the Wolverines kept within a half-game of Purdue, which holds the sixth spot in the Big Ten standings after winning two games against Indiana this weekend. Only the top six teams make the conference tournament, so if Michigan hopes to compete for the Big Ten Championship, it'll have to be one step ahead of the Boilermakers in the two remain- ing weekends of the conference season. "We've had three straight Big Ten championships," LaMarre said. "No one is feeling sorry for us where we are." But Michigan coach Rich Maloney knows the Wolverines' postseason position depends on what happens in the next two weeks and whether Michigan can pull together the complete, consistent effort it has strived for all season. "We know we can beat any- body, win any day, but because of our inconsistency, we haven't been able to," Maloney said. "The Tournament, for us, is far out there. The biggest thing for us is to be a better team, get in that six spot, and perhaps play our best baseball at that time." NEED MORE? Check michigandaily.com for updates on your favorite Michigan sports.