11 Thursday, May 14, 2015 The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com SPORTS T ennis topples Redhawks and Blue Demons, wins Region By BEN KIM Daily Sports Writer Tensions were high at the Varsity Tennis Center as the No. 11 Michigan women’s tennis team needed a victory in one of the remaining two matches in order to earn a spot in the Sweet 16. Michigan was up 3-2, with junior Ronit Yurovsky down 3-1 in a tie- breaking third set and freshman Mira Ruder-Hook’s set tied at 4-4. Hook was in danger of extending her match to a third set after winning the first. With all eyes on her, the freshman was able to win the next two games and punch the Wolverines’ ticket to the Sweet 16. Michigan (11-0 Big Ten, 26-3 over- all) took the weekend, rolling through Miami (Ohio), 4-0, and grinding out a 4-2 win against DePaul. “We’re happy to get through,” said Michigan coach Ronni Bernstein. “We’re relieved and excited. The girls did a good job.” In years past, the Wolverines had entered the NCAA Championships following a loss at the Big Ten Tourna- ment. Things were different for Mich- igan this time, having claimed its first Big Ten Tournament Championship in program history. The Wolverines fed off the success they found in the conference tournament. “We have a lot of confidence com- ing from the Big Ten Tournament,” said senior Emina Bektas. “We’ve had some really good practices. Not being able to come through (in past Big Ten Tournaments) has put our confidence lower than it usually is. Finally being able to come through has been really good for us.” Michigan rode that confidence to a swift win over the Redhawks (8-0 Mid-American, 17-6 overall). The Wolverines quickly clinched the doubles point, never giving up a lead in either of the completed matches. Sophomore Sara Remynse and Ruder- Hook took the first doubles match, 8-0. Yurovsky and senior Sarah Lee ended doubles competition with an 8-4 win of their own. Michigan continued its dominance in the singles matches. Bektas was the first off the court with a 6-1, 6-1 victory. “I just wanted to set a tone,” Bek- tas said. “I wanted to get off the court quick, get a point up and not let things get away from me.” Yurovsky and freshman Alex Najar- ian would follow Bektas’s lead with tri- umphs of their own. Yurovsky cruised to 6-1 and 6-3 victories, while Najarian took her match with 7-6 and 6-1 wins. The duo clinched the match for the Wolverines and earned them a sec- ond round matchup against the 37th- ranked Blue Demons (5-0 Big East, 22-5 overall). Michigan’s solid play continued into the doubles matches against DePaul. Lee and Yurovsky were conceded a lead, as they came off the floor with an 8-4 victory. Remynse and Ruder-Hook ended the doubles competition for the weekend with an 8-4 win of their own. The similarities between the first and second rounds ended after dou- bles play. The Wolverines struggled in singles matches against the Blue Demons, though Lee gave Michigan the 2-0 lead with her 6-0, 6-3 victory. DePaul roared back, winning the next two matches to even up the score. Remynse and Najarian couldn’t find their rhythm on their way to 3-6, 4-6 and 2-6, 3-6 victories. The pair, along with Yurovsky, had a hard time on the floor as the Blue Demons gave them all they could handle. “They just didn’t play that well and their energy wasn’t great,” Bernstein said. “They competed hard, but I don’t know if their body language and energy wasn’t as good as it needs to be. It was a bit of a struggle, but a lot of it was DePaul and how well they played them.” Bektas gave the Wolverines the advantage with her 6-3, 6-4 win, giv- ing them a 3-2 lead. In the end, Rud- er-Hook won her match, 6-4, 6-4, and made a place for Michigan in the Sweet 16 for the fifth time in six years. “I think those are the most fun moments,” Ruder-Hook said. “When everyone’s watching, you can just feel the energy. I’ve never had the oppor- tunity to clinch a match and that’s exactly what I came here for.” The Wolverines will face off against No. 6 Georgia in the next round of the tournament with a chance to advance to the Elite Eight for the first time in program history. After another strong weekend, it’s rinse and repeat for Michigan. “There’s nothing to change, tennis- wise,” Bernstein said. “I think we’re there now, we just got to relax.” Countess, Norfleet leaving Michigan football program By MAX COHEN Managing Sports Editor The Michigan football team’s secondary will have a new look next season. Fans already received a glimpse of redshirt freshman Jabrill Peppers play- ing safety in the Spring Game, but additional changes are on the way. Fifth-year senior cor- nerback Blake Countess announced on his Instagram on Wednesday afternoon that he will not be returning to Michigan for his final season of eligibility. “My past four years here at the University of Michigan have been great!” Countess wrote. “Noth- ing but love and appreciation for Ann Arbor, the faculty, the coaches, the support staff and the great fans but after many sleep- less nights and much prayer I have decided to play my final year of eligibility elsewhere. I truly thank those that have been there for me and hope you would con- tinue to do so. #ForeverGoBlue.” Countess started 30 games for the Wolverines during his career. He recorded six interceptions in 2013, a season in which he earned first team All-Big Ten honors from the media and second team All-Big Ten honors from the league’s coaches. Countess start- ed 10 of Michigan’s 12 games last season. One day before Count- ess posted about his transfer, the Wolverines officially announced the transfer of fifth-year senior corner- back Wayne Lyons from Stanford. Lyons will be immediately eligible because of his status as a graduate trans- fer. His arrival had been rumored for months and was confirmed by Michigan secondary coach Mike Zordich during spring practice. Lyons recorded 128 tackles, three interceptions and three forced fumbles for the Cardi- nal, playing in 43 games. Lyons’ mother, Gwendolyn Bush, works for the football program as the director of player devel- opment. “He brings great experi- ence and ability to our second- ary and special teams unit,” Zordich said in a statement. “In addition, Wayne is a super indi- vidual who will achieve great things both on the field and in his future career.” *** As first reported by MLive. com Tuesday afternoon, rising senior receiver and kick returner Dennis Norfleet has been dis- missed from the Michigan foot- ball team. No formal announcement has been made by the program, but according to Dale Harvel, Nor- fleet’s coach at Detroit’s Mar- tin Luther King High School, the decision to remove Norfleet from the team was a disciplinary one. “Evidently he was dismissed from the team, Dennis informed us he was no longer on the team,” Harvel told MLive Tuesday afternoon. “Something about a disciplinary thing between him and (Michigan coach Jim) Har- baugh. Whether it was academ- ics or something internal, I’m not sure. He just said they had a disagreement and he was let go.” TERESA MATHEW/Daily Seniors Blake Countess and Dennis Norfleet will leave the Michigan football team before its 2015 season begins “I truly thank those that have been there for me.”