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January 20, 2016 - Image 7

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Sports
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Wednesday, January 20, 2016 — 7A

DAVID SONG/Daily

Junior heavyweight Adam Coon (right) anchors a trio of wrestlers that have become known as “Murderer’s Row” for their dominance at the back end of meets.
“Murderer’s Row” leads Wolverines

By ORION SANG

Daily Sports Writer

It’s not often that one can find

three wrestlers who perform
well
enough
to
deserve
a

nickname like the “murderer’s
row,” but Michigan’s trio of
junior
Domenic
Abounader,

sixth-year senior Max Huntley
and junior Adam Coon seem to
fit the bill.

The 10th-ranked Wolverines

have received great performances
from their captains all season, and
Friday’s dual meet against Illinois
was no exception.

Heading into the final three

matches of the meet, Michigan
(3-0 Big Ten, 7-1 overall) found
itself down, 12-14, against the
13th-ranked Fighting Illini (0-3,
9-3). But because Abounader,
Huntley and Coon had yet to

wrestle, the Wolverines weren’t
worrying.

“If the dual’s tied or close at

184 pounds, we’re going to win,”
Huntley said. “It’s kind of like
a murderer’s row. We all work
very hard, we’re all top-10 guys,
and I don’t see any team that
could win two of the last three
matches.”

Coon agreed with Huntley’s

naming and assessment of the
trio.

“It’s great having those two,”

Coon said. “Those guys are just
dominant on the mat. In the
practice room, how hard they
work, it shows on the mat. It’s
death row when they meet those
two, and I just try to follow
along.”

With its victories over the

Fighting
Illini,
Michigan’s

so-called
“murderer’s
row”

remained
unbeaten
in
dual-

meet play. Their consistency has
led them into the top 10 of the
InterMat rankings for each of
their respective weight classes,
with Abounader ranked No. 10,
Huntley ranked No. 6 and Coon,
No. 4.

The Wolverines’ captains are

not only proficient wrestlers, but
are also good leaders, according to
coach Joe McFarland.

“Those guys are just great

role models,” McFarland said.
“They’ve got a great work ethic
and really focus on all the right
things, on and off the mat. Put
all three of those guys together
and there’s really good leadership
right there.”

Added Huntley: “Everything

we do, we try to beat each other.
We do the conditioning together
in the morning, and we always

wrestle.”

Besides leading through hard

work, though, the three captains
also exhibit a unique blend of
different leadership styles. The
approach for Huntley, the first
three-time captain in Michigan
wrestling history, has especially
changed from previous years.

“I’m
in
more
of
an

advisory role,” Huntley said.
“(Abounader’s) taken over the
vocal part. I’m more of the older,
wiser captain. A lot of guys come
to me for advice for cutting
weight and things like that, and
I try to lead by example now and
leave the vocal stuff to the other
captains.”

If
the
trio’s
leadership

mentality comes to fruition,
opponents
may
be
calling

Michigan’s
entire
lineup

“murderer’s row.”

Wolverines, Fisch
extend agreement

Passing game
coordinator

reportedly re-ups

By JAKE LOURIM

Managing Sports Editor

Michigan football coach Jim

Harbaugh said in December he
was looking to lock up passing
game coordinator Jedd Fisch
to a contract extension. That
deal is done, according to Sports
Illustrated’s Thayer Evans, who
reported Tuesday that Fisch
signed a two-year extension
worth between $650,000 and
$750,000 per year, plus incentives.

Fisch, also the Wolverines’

quarterbacks and wide receivers
coach, just wrapped up his first
season under Harbaugh in Ann
Arbor. He has been an assistant
for nine different teams in 16
years of coaching, never spending
more than four years in one spot.

The new extension secures Fisch,
who has coached eight of his 16
years in the NFL, before he gets
snatched away by a professional
team following the season.

Fisch,
39,
led
a
steady

improvement
in
Michigan’s

offense in 2015. Fifth-year senior
Jake Rudock, a graduate transfer
from Iowa, emerged to complete
one of the best statistical seasons
for a quarterback in Michigan
history. He threw for 3,017 yards
and 20 touchdowns against just
nine interceptions.

Redshirt junior wide receivers

Jehu Chesson and Amara Darboh
and junior tight end Jake Butt
totaled 2,145 of those yards on
159 catches, and all three have
decided to hold off on the NFL
Draft and return for their final
seasons in 2016. Fisch will have
another stable of quarterbacks
to grow. The leader could be
Houston transfer John O’Korn,
who has two years of eligibility
remaining after he sat out in 2015.

ALLISON FARRAND/Daily

Jedd Fisch led Michigan to an offensive resurgence in 2015.

Trio sparks Michigan win

By TYLER COADY

Daily Sports Writer

While this weekend’s Michigan

Invitational
was
technically

just a tuneup for next weekend’s
regular-season
opener,
the

Michigan women’s tennis team’s
trio of junior Ronit Yurovsky,
sophomore Alex Najarian and
freshman Brienne Minor played
like it was anything but against
Tennessee.

In all of the singles matchups

between
the
14th-ranked

Wolverines and the Volunteers,
leads evaporated and deuce points
went either way. As the madness
ebbed and flowed, these three
Michigan standouts found ways
to get wins.

Yurovsky, who was named All-

Big Ten last season, fell into an
early hole in her singles match
against Tennessee’s Eve Repic.
Facing a deficit and having made
numerous
unforced
errors,

Yurovsky looked out of sorts and
out of sync.

Then, Yurovsky surfaced as she

served her way to a 6-0 second-set
win before pulling out a 6-3 third-
set win to clinch the match and
seal an overall singles victory for
Michigan.

“We all had slow starts,”

Yurovsky said. “We all had that
fight to get back into the match.
It is nice to have all those girls

playing by your side … and to get
points for the team.”

With a seasoned veteran like

Yurovsky setting the tone for
a comeback, that spirit clearly
rubbed off on Minor.

Minor, a newcomer to the

team, played with a sense of
composure and confidence in
her first set, come-from-behind
victory. Minor, down 5-4 with the
game score tied at 30-30, laced a
backhand shot down the line that
nestled itself within the white
chalk. That shot — a graceful but
powerful backhander — proved to
be the much-needed momentum
boost that Minor needed.

While she went down again,

this time 6-5, Minor quickly rallied
to send the set to a tiebreaker. In
the tiebreaker, it was a painless
win for the true freshman as she
won, 7-2. With a set victory in
hand, Minor never looked back,
dictating the play with her serve
and groundstrokes, and winning
the clinching set, 6-3.

“Usually when I am down, I

just think about the team and that
I need to pull this win out for the
team,” Minor said. “I needed to
make (the team) my number-one
priority.”

As Yurovsky and Minor labored

for wins, more drama unfolded on
Najarian’s court. The sophomore,
an All-Big Ten selection last year,
had to channel all she had in order

to fend off a valiant Volunteer
challenge.

Najarian, after a 7-6 first-set

victory, ran into a bit of trouble
in the second set. After a string
of unforced errors and trouble
dealing with her opponent’s left-
handed serve, she found herself
on the brink of having to play a
third set.

“I knew I had to keep my

energy up and not let her dictate
the points as much, which led to
me being down,” Najarian said.
“She was hoping I was going
to miss, and I just tried to take
control.”

And take control she did.

Najarian
reasserted
her

service game, becoming more
comfortable with her opponent’s
serving and notching a string
of winners to secure a 7-5 set
victory.

Michigan
coach
Ronni

Bernstein, who traversed much
of the tennis facility throughout
the day as she sought to keep
an eye on all of her players, was
happy with what she saw in the
comeback victories.

“The matches are long, and you

have to be able to keep your foot
on the pedal,” Bernstein said.

While Yurovsky, Minor and

Najarian didn’t cruise past their
opponents, they were able to find
the right gear at just the right
time.

FILE PHOTO/Daily

Ronit Yurovsky clinched a Michigan win over Tennessee by winning her final sets, 6-0, 6-3, over Eve Repic.

Wolverines shine in front
of Leone, Hahn, Connors

By AVI SHOLKOFF

Daily Sports Writer

Michigan women’s gymnastics

coach Bev Plocki believes there
are two core aspects central to the
collegiate athletic experience:

“One part of it is winning

championships, being on a team
and learning about teamwork,”
Plocki said. “The other part of it
is learning to be humble, learning
that it isn’t always all about us.”

While
the
top-ranked

Wolverines are well on their
way to fulfilling Plocki’s first
core aspect, Plocki’s second core
aspect made itself apparent this
weekend in Michigan’s meet
against Ohio State (1-0-1 Big Ten,
1-0-1 overall). Michigan learned
firsthand about appreciation and
gained insight into the experience
of living with autism.

Saturday, the Wolverines (1-0-

0, 3-0-0), defeated the Buckeyes,
196.950-195.275,
in
front
of

Abby Hahn and John Leone,
two individuals on the autism
spectrum who have both spent
significant time with members of
the gymnastics team.

Hahn performed a magnificent

floor routine before the meet
began, and the crowd graciously
applauded. After Hahn’s routine,
Brian Connors, another individual
with autism, sang a roaring
national anthem, which was also

met with cheers of approval.

The meet offered freshman

Olivia Karas, as well as her
teammates, a unique opportunity
to bring familiarity to the public
about the disorder.

“It was awesome to compete

for something bigger than just
Michigan, for a greater cause,”
Karas said. “(It was) a great honor
having the (autism) symbol on our
cheeks.”

Karas
lived
up
to
her

expectations. She finished with
the highest all-around score in the
meet and also set a career high in
the uneven bars, achieving a score
of 9.850.

John Leone, a college student

at
University
of
Michigan-

Dearborn, has spent many hours
in the gym with the Michigan
team over the years, growing in
comfort after each visit. Because
of the amount of time he has
spent with the Wolverines in the
gym, the older members of the
team have established an ongoing
relationship with him.

Junior Nicole Artz, in her third

year of taking part in Autism
Awareness Meet, praised Leone
and his influence on the team.

“(Leone’s)
been
a
true

inspiration and a really good
friend to us,” Artz said. “(He is) a
number-one Michigan supporter,
(he) cares so much about us, and
we love him as well.”

Artz also thrived in the meet,

garnering the second best all-
around score and earning the
top score in the floor event with
a 9.900. She also tied her season
bests in both the vault and the
balance beam.

Many
individuals
on
the

autism spectrum had prominent
roles in Saturday’s meet, perhaps
highlighting
Plocki’s
message

that individuals with the disorder
enjoy participating in the same
activities as those without it.

“We want people to learn from

what we’ve learned and from our
experiences,” Plocki said. “When
we can have Abby come out and
demonstrate her ability or Brian
come out and sing like he sang,
(it is) hopefully changing ideas
or perceptions of the people who
were here at this meet.”

Plocki shared one final story

about Leone and his experiences
in Michigan’s team huddle after
each practice.

“We put him with (the) girls

around him, close to him and
touching him to do a ‘Let’s Go
Blue,’ ” Plocki said. “After that, he
immediately ran back over to his
mother, and he was like, ‘I did it!
I did it!’ ”

On a day when the Wolverines

showed why they are the No.1
team in the nation, it was
ultimately their humility and
appreciation that stood out.

EMILIE FARRUGIA/Daily

The Michigan women’s gymnastics team participated in the Autism Awareness Meet over the weekend.

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