4C — January 7, 2015
SportsWednesday
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

GLI, World Juniors highlight 
successful break for Wolverines

‘M’ wins GLI 

down four players 
competing with 

Team USA

By ZACH SHAW

Daily Sports Writer

No starts, no problem for Steve 

Racine.

Though it had been nearly two 

months since his last start, the 
junior goaltender looked right 
at home between the pipes at 
the Great Lakes Invitational in 
Detroit. Racine stopped 71 of 73 
shots and led the Michigan hockey 
team to consecutive 2-1 victories 
en route to the Wolverines’ 16th 
GLI title on Dec. 29.

“I had my fingers crossed,” said 

Michigan coach Red Berenson 
about the decision to start Racine. 
“When you’re coaching a team 
and you get players on the team 
that aren’t playing well, they’re on 
the team for a reason. You know 
you’ve seen them play well. That’s 
why you recruited them. It’s just a 
matter of, ‘Can you do it now?’

“I 
thought 
Steve 
Racine 

stepped up and did it now.”

In addition to Racine, Michigan 

(2-1 
Big 
Ten, 
10-7 
overall) 

exceeded expectations at the GLI. 
Despite losing four key players to 
a brief stint with the United States 
World 
Junior 
Championship 

team, the Wolverines were able to 
avenge previous losses to then-No. 
5 Michigan Tech before beating 
Michigan State the following 
night.

Senior forward Zach Hyman 

led the way with two game-
winning goals, but Berenson was 
pleased with the entire team’s 
effort.

“If you were to ask me a couple 

weeks ago about our chances in 
the GLI, I would have said that 
our team is really going to have to 

overachieve,” Berenson said. “We 
had players that hadn’t played 
that well. Our team hasn’t played 
that well. Our goals-against has 
not been what it should be. Now 
we’ve got some players missing, 
so we really had to step up.

“Players that hadn’t been in 

the lineup on a regular basis were 
going to have to step in and do a 
job, and they 
did that.”

The 

tournament 
win 
was 
the 

first of any kind 
for 
Michigan 

since 2011, and 
it comes at a 
crucial 
time. 

Stumbling 
to 

a 2-5 start to 
the season — 
the team’s worst since 1986 — 
the Wolverines have won eight 
of their last 10 games to put 
themselves back into the mix for 
the NCAA Tournament.

“This is exactly what we 

needed coming into the second 
half of the year,” Racine said. “We 

know it’s only two games, but it’s 
something to build off of, and 
we’re excited for what the rest of 
the year has to hold.”

The 
wins 
seem 
more 

impressive when factoring in the 
Wolverines that didn’t contribute 
to the tournament title. Four 
of Michigan’s top eight scorers 
participated in the WJC, where 

the Americans 
went 
3-2 

before falling 
to Russia in the 
quarterfinals.

Freshman 

forward Dylan 
Larkin led the 
U.S. team with 
five goals and 
two 
assists, 

and 
was 

named one of 

the team’s top three players by 
his coaches. Sophomore forwards 
Tyler Motte and JT Compher 
and freshman defenseman Zach 
Werenski also contributed to the 
team’s tournament run.

Though they weren’t able to 

aid Michigan over the break, the 

four look to utilize the added 
game experience in the second 
half of the season.

“It’s 
really 
nice 
because 

we just played in a bunch of 
pressure-packed 
games, 
very 

high intensity,” Compher told 
MGoBlue.com. “To come back 
and know that there’s something 
to look forward to right away 
with a really big series helps get 
my mind off of what wasn’t a 
great tournament really.”

While Compher and company 

competed at an international 
level, the Wolverines still in Ann 
Arbor were able to rest for the 
first time since the season began. 
Based on the results in Detroit, it 
was much-needed.

“The break was a good chance 

for us to regroup,” Racine said. 
“The first half of the season didn’t 
go exactly how we wanted it to 
go. So we went home, had some 
nice time with our families. We 
knew coming back that we had 
to step it up, and that guys that 
hadn’t had opportunities before 
would be called on and had to 
make the most of it.”

‘M’ wins 3rd straight 
Orange Bowl Classic

By SYLVANNA GROSS 

For the Daily

When it comes time for the 

Michigan women’s swimming 
and diving team to compete, 
coach Mike Bottom leaves his 
athletes with one expression to 
draw inspiration from.

“Why not me?”
This past weekend in Key 

Largo, Florida, the Wolverines 
responded with a first-place 
finish in the Orange Bowl Swim 
Classic, 
marking 
the 
third 

straight victory at this short-
course meter event.

The team placed either first 

or second in eight of the 10 
individual events. In three of 
those events — the 100-meter 
free, 
100-meter 
backstroke 

and 50-meter backstroke — 
the Wolverines placed in the 
top three spots. Michigan’s 
swimmers set four Orange Bowl 
Swim Classic records.

One of Michigan’s record-

setters 
included 
junior 
Ali 

DeLoof, who, despite primarily 
swimming 
backstroke 
and 

freestyle, placed first in the 
50-meter 
butterfly 
(28.02). 

Three of her teammates also 
earned first with record times: 
freshman Gillian Ryan in the 
400-meter freestyle (4:16.17), 
freshman Clara Smiddy in the 
100-meter backstroke (1:01.44) 
and 
sophomore 
Madeline 

Frost in the 50-meter freestyle 
(26.36).

Along with the four record-

setting times, DeLoof also took 
first in the 50-meter backstroke 
(28.90) and Kopas won the 
50-meter breaststroke (32.91) 
and the 100-meter breaststroke 
(1:11.15). 
Junior 
Marni 

Oldershaw also added a pair of 
first-place finishes in the 100-
meter butterfly (1:04.11) and the 
200-meter individual medley 
(2:19.14).

“Realizing that I can swim 

the 50-fly event made me more 
comfortable training,” DeLoof 
said. “It was nice to swim 
something different.”

Michigan’s 
dominance 

extended to the relay races, 
where the Wolverines finished 
in first place. The 200-meter 
medley relay was raced by 
DeLoof, Kopas, Smiddy and 
junior Zoe Mattingly. Frost later 
replaced Kopas in Michigan’s 
winning 200-meter freestyle 
relay.

The success caps off the 

team’s winter training sessions, 
which culminated in a dominant 
showing at the Orange Bowl 
Swim Classic, as was expected.

“This was not a big meet,” 

Bottom said, “so those people 
who 
have 
not 
scored 
for 

Michigan can see that scoring is 
a possibility.”

More importantly, this meet 

inspired the athletes to push 
themselves harder with the 
‘Why not me?’ campaign at the 
forefront.

Added 
Oldershaw: 
“My 

parents have always said ‘Why 
not me?’ to me, so it was touching 
to hear my coach say it too.”

Michigan is showing that 

success and progress comes 
from a positive mindset, and 
Bottom has made it increasingly 
important 
that 
any 
athlete 

can envision herself atop the 
podium.

With attention turning to the 

upcoming dual meet against 
Notre Dame and Northwestern, 
the battle between the schools 
will come down to total team 
points rather than single events.

The Orange Bowl Classic was 

more of an individual swimmer’s 
race 
rather 
than 
a 
team 

mentality, and that mindset 
will shift to the opposite this 
weekend.

“We’ve been underdogs, we’re 

rising and it’s becoming ‘Why 
not us?’ ” Oldershaw said.

‘M’ takes 5th in Tennessee

By NATHANIEL CLARK 

Daily Sports Writer

In 
early 
January, 
in 

Chattanooga, 
Tennessee, 
the 

Michigan wrestling team had 
a championship atmosphere to 
compete in.

That 
served 
as 
good 

preparation, 
because 
the 

15th-ranked 
Wolverines 
will 

have plenty more in the coming 
months during Big Ten season.

Five was the magic number 

for Michigan, as it finished fifth, 
with 
five 
wrestlers 
earning 

points, at the Southern Scuffle on 
Thursday and Friday.

“This tournament was a really 

positive experience for us,” said 
Michigan coach Joe McFarland. 
“It had an NCAA championship-
caliber feel to it.”

The tournament got off to a 

fast start for the Wolverines, 
as they went 5-0 in the first 
round on Thursday. Redshirt 
sophomore 
Conor 
Youtsey, 

redshirt freshman George Fisher, 
sophomores Brian Murphy and 
Domenic Abounader and fifth-
year senior Max Huntley each 
posted victories.

Fisher 
rode 
the 
early 

momentum 
with 
a 
strong 

showing 
in 
the 
141-pound 

class. 
He 
defeated 
Drexel’s 

Franco Ferraina, 19-4, with six 
takedowns and five back points. 

Despite falling to Oklahoma 
State’s Dean Heil, 7-2, he later 
rebounded to top Heil in a 9-3 
decision to place seventh.

Not to be outdone, sophomore 

heavyweight Adam Coon fought 
his way to a runner-up finish. 
His signature win came when 
he pinned Kent State’s Samuel 
Breese 4:27 into the match, while 
his only blemish was a loss to No. 
4 Austin Marsden of Oklahoma 
State in the finals, 7-3.

“(Coon) 
was 
disappointed 

with his last match,” McFarland 
said. “He couldn’t score when he 
needed to.”

Junior 
Rossi 
Bruno 
also 

placed second for Michigan at 
133 pounds. He topped North 
Carolina’s Troy Heilmann in 
an 11-1 major decision and No. 6 
Mason Beckman of Lehigh in a 
7-5 tiebreaker. But Iowa State’s 
No. 13 Earl Hall kept Bruno from 
the top spot, 5-2.

Abounader built off his first-

round success to leave the 
tournament with a 6-2 record 
and a fifth-place finish in the 
184-pound class, topping No. 9 
Willie Miklus of Missouri, 4-3, 
Nebraska’s T.J. Dudley, 4-3, and 
Oklahoma State’s Nolan Boyd, 
5-3, in the process.

Huntley followed his first 

triumph at 197 pounds with two 
more victories, including one over 
the Golden Flashes’ Cole Baxter, 

13-2. He lost to Penn State’s 
Morgan McIntosh, 7-4, in the 
quarterfinals before rebounding 
for two wins and then defaulting 
out due to injury and ending the 
tournament in sixth. McFarland 
said he didn’t expect the injury to 
be a long-term problem.

Although they both missed 

placing by a single match, Youtsey 
and Murphy left Chattanooga 
with 4-2 records in the 125-
pound and 157-pound classes, 
respectively.

“There 
were 
some 
tough 

losses late in the tournament,” 
McFarland said. “But we had a lot 
of great individual performances, 
and that’s something we can 
build off of.”

The Southern Scuffle was 

the 
Wolverines’ 
last 
contest 

before conference play begins. 
Including Michigan, 10 Big Ten 
teams are currently ranked in 
the top 25 nationally, with Iowa 
and Minnesota at No. 1 and No. 2, 
respectively. Michigan will have 
to wrestle against seven of those 
teams, but McFarland believes 
his team will be healthy and 
ready for the daunting task ahead 
of them.

“We were a little undermanned 

entering the tournament, and 
that was frustrating,” McFarland 
said. “But right now we’re 
focusing on conference play, and 
we should be ready to go.”

Barnes Arico rekindles old 
rivalry with newcomer Rutgers

By BRAD WHIPPLE 

Daily Sports Writer

This weekend, the Michigan 

women’s basketball team bathed 
in the glory of 
defeating 
its 

in-state 
rival, 

then-No. 
24 

Michigan State.

The 

Wolverines’ 
victory 
was 

hard-earned, 
given that they 
have 
dropped 

their last three 
meetings with 
the 
Spartans. 

The 
win 

embodied 
the 

idea 
of 
the 

“Michigan way” that coach Kim 
Barnes Arico has alluded to in the 
past — a style defined by physical 
and mental grit.

That same toughness must 

continue for Michigan (2-1 Big 
Ten, 10-4 overall) to defeat No. 
24 Rutgers when the Wolverines 
travel 
to 
New 
Jersey 
on 

Wednesday.

“I tried to get away from 

(Rutgers) when I left the East 
Coast, 
and 

here 
they 

are again in 
our 
league,” 

Barnes Arico 
told 
WTKA 

Radio 
on 

Tuesday. 
“Anytime 
you 
go 
to 

the 
(Rutgers 

Athletic 
Center), 
it’s 

going to be incredibly difficult.”

Before 
moving 
from 
the 

American Athletic Conference 
to the Big Ten, Rutgers ended 
last season with a 2014 WNIT 
Championship. Luckily for the 
Scarlet Knights, they still have 
their ace — their coach.

Vivian Stringer — the third-

winningest coach in women’s 
basketball history — will return 
to the Big Ten for the first time 

since 1995, when she coached her 
12th and final season with Iowa.

During her time with the 

Hawkeyes, Stringer went 269-
84, 
including 
a 
Final 
Four 

appearance in 1993, the year 
she was awarded the Naismith 
College Coach of the Year. She 
has also led Cheyney State 
College (1982) and Rutgers (2000, 
2007) to the Final Four, making 
her the first coach to guide three 
different programs that far in the 
postseason.

In her last 17 seasons in 

Piscataway, Stringer has led 
the Scarlet Knights to 14 NCAA 
Tournaments. And now with 
the thought of national success 
still fresh in Rutgers’ mind, 
Stringer is poised to have another 
memorable season.

But she knows the Big Ten 

won’t be a cakewalk even with 
her team returning all of last 
season’s starters.

“We know that (joining the 

Big Ten is) going to be tough,” 
Stringer said at Big Ten Media 
Day in October. “I can’t think of 
one team that is weak in the Big 
Ten. … We do come with a veteran 
team and one that is itching and 
excited about the possibility of, 

one, qualifying 
for the NCAAs 
and 
(two), 

going 
much 

further.”

Stringer 

said 
that 
in 

the Big Ten, 
the 
scouting 

focus 
would 

need to shift 
from athletes 
to 
coaches. 

By taking a look at Barnes 
Arico — who battled the Scarlet 
Knights many times during her 
10-year stint at St. Joseph’s — 
Stringer will find a fresh coach 
still developing a program. 
Rutgers (1-2, 10-4) will need 
its best players to fight Barnes 
Arico’s hard-pressing strategy 
to overcome its sluggish start to 
the conference schedule.

Despite 
returning 
from 

a 
sprained 
thumb, 
forward 

Betnijah Laney has been the 
Scarlet Knights’ leading scorer 
in their three Big Ten matchups 
thus far. With four players taller 
than her on the roster, Laney has 
managed to become the team’s 
leading rebounder with 163 — 
18 more than Michigan senior 
forward Cyesha Goree, who has 
a four-inch advantage over the 
6-foot Laney.

Rutgers will also look to 

leading 
scorer 
Tyler 
Scaife, 

who is shooting a team-high 50 
percent from beyond the arc 
while averaging 16.6 points per 
game — more than any Wolverine. 
After being ranked the top point 
guard in the country during her 
recruitment, she was named the 
2014 AAC Freshman of the Year 
after a breakout season.

Michigan, meanwhile, is on 

a hot streak. Freshman guard 
Katelynn Flaherty hit five treys 
against the Spartans, Goree has 
registered five double-doubles in 
her last six games and the team 
has been smooth sailing since 
its last loss, which came against 
Wisconsin on Dec. 28.

But now, Barnes Arico’s team 

will have its hands full against an 
old Eastern foe.

ALLISON FARRAND/Daily

Sophomore Adam Coon finished second as Michigan took fifth place at the Southern Scuffle in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

Michigan 
at Rutgers

Matchup: 
Michigan 10-4; 
Rutgers 10-4

When: 
Wednesday 
7 P.M.

Where: Rut-
gers Athletic 
Center

TV/Radio: 
BTN Plus

“I can’t think of 
one team that is 
weak in the Big 

Ten.”

BY THE NUMBERS
Michigan vs. Rutgers

3

Programs Vivian Stringer has led to the 

Final Four
939

Career wins for Stringer

4

Michigan players averaging double-

digit scoring totals
0-3

Michigan’s road record, with losses to 
Pittsburgh, Notre Dame and Wisconsin

LUNA ANNA ARCHEY/Daily

Steve Racine led the Michigan hockey team to two wins at the Great Lakes Invitational, stopping 71 of 73 shots.

“This is exactly 
what we needed 
coming into the 
second half of 

the year.”

WOMEN’S SWIMMING

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

