The Michigan Daily - Friday, October 27, 1995 - 13 cekem aim ue wi Donald Adamek ly Sports Writer Indiana's Bill Armstrong Stadium s seen little action lately, but that is out to change. The Michigan women's soccer team -5-1 Big Ten, 5-10-2 overall) closes its nference season in Bloomington to- y. It will be Indiana's~(2-2-1, 6-8-1) t home game since Oct. 4. The field, wever, will be the site for the Big Ten ampionships starting Nov. 3. For the Wolverines, the game basi- Ily amounts to a tune-up and a chance get used to the field before the con- rence tournament. "There is no pressure for us to win," ichigan coach Debbie Belkin said. e have nothing to lose. A win won't ise our seed ... it is not a do-or-die me." For the Hoosiers, the game has more gnificance. They own a .500 confer- ce record and the contest's outcome J1 impact who they face in the tourna- nt next week. Indiana is looking for provement from an offense that av- ges 1.21 goals a game. We have othing to lose. A in won't raise our eed... it is not a o-or-die same." - Debbie Belkin Michigan women's soccer coach "They play a direct game," said elkin. "They use long balls. They're aggressive, fast team." The Wolverines' last hope for a con- rence victory hinges on their ability capitalize on an Indiana defense sur- ndering over two goals a game. Michi- n is slowed by injuries, however. op-goal scorer Ruth Poulin sprained rankle in practice this week and will t be available. Tri-captain Michele rach is hindered by a broken toe but is pected to play. Midfielder Wendy Dillinger and for- ard Amy Friedreich are Indiana's key, ayers. The duo is responsible for a ird of the team's shots and nine of the oosiers' 19 goals this season. Women swimmers face tough Wildcats By Chris Murphy Daily Sports Writer Throughout this young season, the No. 1 Michigan women's swimming team has had one thing in mind: Constant improvement. For the Wolverines, success is not necessarily measured in terms of wins and losses. In the early part of the sea- son, the goal is to develop a team that can be competitive in the post-season. With matches against national con- tenders like this weekend's opponent, Northwestern, Michigan's performance can serve as a barometer for its im- provement thus far. "I'm less concerned about winning and losing the meet than Iam about how we perform, how fit we look and how we race structurally," coach Jim Richardson said. "Those are the things that need to be addressed first. "You can't be so concerned about winning and losing that you are ignor- ing the things that are most important." This week, the team has practiced well and Michigan hopes that can trans- late into a competitive performance this weekend. "I'm really pleased with this week's training," Richardson said. "This has been just a great week." With that under their belts, the Wol- verines face a Northwestern squad that is one of the top teams in the country. The Wildcats finished I lth inthe NCAA tournament last spring. Despite losing several swimmers to graduation, Northwestern still returns most of its nucleus. Add to that an impressive freshman crop and the Wild- cats should provide stiff competition for the Wolverines in most events. Richardson credits Northwestern's balance for its ability to compete at a high level. "(The Wildcats) are a very good team," Richardson said. "They don't have any glaring weaknesses in my mind right now." The heart of Northwestern's squad is its seniors. All the members of this group have garnered numerous honors in their careers, and they represent the Wildcats' hopes of a National Champi- onship this year. Kim Patten, an All-American in the middle-distance and freestyles, as well as the backstroke, leads Northwestern. Patten is also a Big Ten Champion.Joining Patten are All- Americas Merideth Booker, Laura Yenglin and Margaret Bendenstein. One of the Wildcats' bright young swimmers is Joy Stover. The sopho- more is the team's top mile runner and 500-meter freestyle swimmer. To counter Northwestern's stacked lineup, Michigan will feature a group of swimmers that can probably match up with any team in the country. Junior Rachel Gustin and senior co- captain Beth Jackson lead the Wolver- ines. While both Gustin and Jackson were double-event winners last week- end against Stanford, they should bd tested again this week. In order to win, the Wolverines will look to take the breaststroke, the 50 meter freestyle and the individual medi ley. Michigan relay teams were able to set pool records in the 400-meter med- ley and 400-meter freestyle relays last weekend in Canham Natatornum. However, Northwestern's balance of talent could present a problem for the Wolverines. Michigan's lack of depth in events like the mile and the 200- meter freestyle could cost the team a victory Saturday. The Michigan field hockey team looks to break a 3-game conference losing streak tomorrow in Happy Valley. Stickerslo o eon No. 10 Michigan By Jed Rosenthal Daily Sports Writer No one likes to lose. Practice upon practice is supposed to produce divi- dends at game time. The No. 10 Michigan field hockey team, after winning six of seven early in the season, is struggling in conference games. The Wolverines beat Central Michi- gan, 5-0, Tuesday, but have still dropped four of their past five Big Ten games including three straight. This weekend's road trip to Colum- bus and Happy Valley concludes the Wolverines' regular season. Today, Michigan (3-5 Big Ten, 11-7 overall) battles Ohio State with the hopes of curing its current woes. The Wolverines beat the Buckeyes, 3-0, Oct. 8 when their new field was dedicated to Phyllis Ocker. That vic- tory was their last in conference play. Michigan's recent losing spell may be attributed to its lack of firepower in the second half. The final 35 minutes have proven to be most unfriendly to the Wolverines, as early leads have been quickly relinquished. "We have to stay strong in the second finishes season 1n Happy Valley We've never been outplayed by any Big Ten team. We can play with any team." - Aaleya Koreishi Michigan field hockey player half," co-captain Aaleya Koreishi said. "We have to concentrate on playing hard and playing together in the second half. We saw it happen against Penn State last time." Yet no matter who the competition is, Koreishi feels that Michigan has never been out of a game. "We've neversbeen outplayed by any Big Ten team," she said. "We can play with any team." For the most part, the senior is cor- rect. But Koreishi and the Wolverines may try to block out their performance Oct. 6 against the Lady Lions when they play them Sunday. Michigan found itself up, 3-1, with under 10 minutes remaining only to watch Penn State (4- 4, 10-8) storm back and win the game, 4-3, in the final minutes. The most accurate prognosticator will receive a $15 gift certificate to Steve and "We played strong against (Penn Barry's University Sportswear. Contestants are limited to five entries per week. State). Our passing was really good," 1. Minnesota at MichIgan 14. Clemson at Georgia Tech Koreishi said. "We just have to finish 2. Iowa at Ohio State 15. Virginia Tech at West Virginia opportunities and score." 3, Michigan State at Wisconsin 16. Arizona State at Oregon Passing is a crucial element to the 4. Northwestern at Illinois 17. Oklahoma at Missouri Wolverines' game. It could be the de- 5. Indiana at Penn State 18. Utah State at Utah ciding factor in their success. 6. Boston College at Notre Dame 19. Bowling Green at W. Michigart "We have to work on being aware 7. Kansas at Kansas State.20. Miami (Ohio) at Central Michigan and moving into spaces," Michigan ~ ~ a ooao2.EsenMcia tTld coach Patti Smith said. "When our pass- 8. Nebraska at Colorado 21. Eastern Michigan at Toledo ing is on, we have opportunities." 9. Southern Cal at Washington.22. Cornell at Brown Scoring opportunities have been few 10. Florida at Georgia 23. Columbia at Princeton and far between for the Wolverines, but 11. Ark. vs. Auburn @ Little Rock, Ark. 24. Dartmouth at Harvard Tuesday's outburst may have set the 12. Hawaii at Brigham Young 25, Pennsylvania at Yale foundation for this weekend's contests. 13. East Carolina at Southern Miss. Koreishi summed up what is on the Tiebreaker - Minnesota at Michigan, total points: Wolverines' minds. NAME: PHONE: "Revenge will be the key." pikers hot Y Doug Stevens iiy Sports Writer All season long, the Michigan vol- yball team has been cruising along. In fact, during its first 18 games of e season, the Wolverines have only st consecutive matches once and have lso enjoyed a four-match winning treak. Now, Michigan has lost its last ree matches to the Big Ten's top three ams.- Before hitting the road for three atches, Michigan (6-5 Big Ten, 12-9 >verall) had won its previous two con- sts and was alone in fourth place with 6-2 conference mark. The Wolverines subsequently got wept by nationally ranked foes Penn tate, Ohio State and Michigan State. ost recently, Michigan fell to the first- lace Spartans (15-5, 15-8, 15-10) ednesday. Forperhaps the first time this season, de Wolverines are going to have to arner a big conference win when the hips are down. Michigan's ability to vercome adversity will be tested to- orrow when it plays Iowa (2-8, 9-12) t Cliff Keen Arena. The loss to the Spartans dropped ichigan to fourth place - a signifi- ant spot because it would almost guar- ntee the Wolverines an NCAA Tour- ament berth. "We have a goal and that is pretty learly accomplished finishing in the p four (in the Big Ten)," coach Greg iovanazzi said. "This match is really rucial." Despite the Hawkeyes' poor record, ichigan can expect a long, tough )e to end match. In anticipation of the I Wolverines spent the week more on Saturday's match Wednesday's contest with State. To justify the need to be prepared for this match, the W need not search further back weeks ago. The Hawkeyes ga, gan all it could handle Sept. 2 City. The Wolverines finallya Iowa (12-15, 15-10, 15-12, 10) in a five-game thriller. "I think the confidence leve good," Giovanazzi said. "We' (the Hawkeyes). We won't Iowa lightly. They are too go to be 2-8." Michigan will have toplay without the services of Ruschiensky, one of its bes hitters. Ruschiensky re-injure( in the Michigan State match miss the Iowa game. Shareen] continue to fill in for Ruschi she has throughout her abseni "(We have gotten) a little bi playing without (Kristen)," Gi said. "Hopefully, Shareen will to improve." Because of Iowa's poor bloc Wolverines should focus pa on its offensive executi Hawkeyes are currently ranke, losing streak battle, the the Big Ten in blocks per game. Just as focusing the Wolverines' top attackers like Sh- than on annon Brownlee, Suzy O'Donnell and Michigan Jeanine Szczesniak have exposed other poor blocking teams, they should be properly able to execute against Iowa. Such was olverines the case in Michigan's last match with than four Iowa, when the Wolverines had four ve Michi- players accumulate double-digit kill 9 in Iowa totals to contribute to a team total of 71. overcame While the Wolverine attackers will 4-15, 15- be looking to expose the Hawkeye de- fense, Iowa will also be striving to take - is pretty advantage ofa Michigan blocking front vebeaten that is currently ranked last in the Big be taking Ten. Michigan will have to contend od a team with Hawkeye attackers Jennifer Webb and Katy Fawbush, both of whom tal- thematch lied 20 kills in the first match between Kristen the two teams. t outside YELLOW 2050 Commerve M Ann Aro, Ml48103 663-3355 ® Largest and newest fleet ® 4 can share the fare Service to metro airport Night Ride service * 663-3888 24 Hour Taxi Service Vanessa Redgrave Uma Thurman Edward Fox A Month By The Lake 1:30 4:30 7:00 Michelle Pfeiffer Dangerous Minds 1:30 4:30 7:00 9:00 Sztas9:e Vaq 9:00 PULP FICTION 11:30 FRI& SATONLY 1:30 Saturday & Sunday Only : 11:30 Fri and Sat Only Manage Your Own Team of Your Favorite Wolverines & Other Big Ten Players MICHIGAN HOOP FANS!!! College Basketball Fantasy Leagues Big Ten. Big East, & More... .{ ., Realistic Head to Head Format Start a League With Your Friends Ask About Student Discounts For Free Info: 1-800-511-7300 Press Box Statistical Systems. Inc i i FOR S ,o As SAM's = I m Ix,,