The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Wednesday, October 26, 2022 — 11
Michigan falls to unranked Indiana, 3-1
KENDALL MCCASKILL
For The Daily
At the end of the second set,
audible tension rumbled through
the arena as the score was tight
at 22-24 and the No. 25 Michigan
volleyball team led the match,
1-0. But then, a Wolverine service
error forced an end to the set, giv-
ing Indiana the 25-22 win.
Following the set loss, the
Wolverines (13-6 overall, 4-5 Big
Ten) were unable to regain their
momentum, falling to the Hoo-
siers (11-10, 4-5) in four sets in a
Pink-Out Game Friday night.
“We knew tonight that Indiana
was a team that was going to pose
some challenges,” Michigan coach
Mark Rosen said. “We did the best
to prepare for it but they did a real-
ly nice job tonight.”
In the first set, the Wolverines
got off to a slow start. They trailed
seven points behind Indiana after
a series of serve-receive errors,
eventually forcing them to call a
timeout. Michigan returned to the
floor with more tenacity, starting
with a kill by senior middle block-
er Jess Robinson. The Wolverines
continued on a seven-point run to
tie the game at 15 apiece. After sev-
eral more back-and-forth rallies, a
strong blocking performance by
freshman right-side hitter Serena
Nyambio closed out the first set
over the Hoosiers, 25-22.
Michigan opened the second
set with a kill by junior outside
hitter Kendall Murray. It kept a
tight lead in the first half of the
match, up 13-12. The Hoosiers
fought back aggressively, creating
separation from the Wolverines.
As a result, Michigan fell victim to
Indiana at the service line, ending
the set down 22-25.
“Indiana came out and served
really aggressively; they had a
great game plan in terms of getting
us in trouble,” Rosen said. “When
we were in system I thought we
handled it really well, but out of
system is a different game and
tonight they got us out of system a
lot with that serve.”
In the third set, Michigan
looked to regain its lead against
Indiana but struggled to take com-
plete control of the match. Despite
a kill from senior middle blocker
May Petrofsky to tie the score at
ten, a series of hitting errors that
followed cost the Wolverines
the opportunity to take control
of the match. Michigan fought
back with a three-point run but
couldn’t claw back, falling 19-25
and dropping the match score to
1-2.
In a do-or-die fourth set, the
Wolverines worked to create a
lead against the Hoosiers early.
Spurring a four-point run pow-
ered by aggressive net play from
junior outside hitter Jess Mru-
zik, Michigan jumped out to a
10-8 lead. In spite of its scrap-
piness and hard-fought rallies,
Indiana capitalized on its forced
errors. The Hoosiers followed
with a three-point run to win
the match, 25-23.
“I think just going into this
match
something
that
we
focused on (was) not overlook-
ing anybody,” Mruzik said. “And
especially in the Big Ten this
year it’s crazy, anyone can beat
anybody on any given day. It’s
a blessing that we get to be in a
conference where every single
night you’re going up against the
best teams in the country.”
And with difficult Big Ten
matchups upcoming, Michigan
needs to hone-in to make sure
that blessing doesn’t become a
curse.
Sports
VOLLEYBALL
SportsMonday: Michigan State, the ghost on Harbaugh’s shoulder
Nearly every year of Michigan
coach Jim Harbaugh’s tenure has
prompted the question whether
he’s the right man for the job. Sea-
son after season, questions swirled
and doubts arose — until this one,
that is.
A College Football Playoff berth,
a Big Ten Championship and, per-
haps most importantly, a win over
rival Ohio State vaulted Harbaugh
onto a pedestal. He expelled his
demons overnight like a scene
pulled straight from The Exorcist.
But one ghost still remains.
The final blemish on Harbaugh’s
updated résumé is Michigan State.
Harbaugh holds a meager 3-4
record against the Spartans in his
previous seven seasons as coach.
In the past two years, with Mel
Tucker at the helm in East Lansing,
Harbaugh is winless. And unlike
the juggernaut Buckeyes, Michigan
State has been human, rendering
some losses inexcusable.
It’s why Harbaugh focused his
and his program’s attention on the
Spartans all the way back in July.
“I don’t want us to be more wor-
ried about Ohio State than we are of
Michigan State, because we haven’t
beat (those) guys in two years,”
Harbaugh said. “We need to get
right, get dialed in with them too,
and we will.”
Now is the time for that attention
spent on the Spartans to pay off in
a win; But Harbaugh’s grotesque
history with Michigan State almost
seems, well, haunted.
It began in Harbaugh’s first bout
against the Spartans as coach, per-
haps the most harrowing of them
all. You might not want to talk
about it, but you know it as well as
any game — win or loss — in the
past decade.
It’s 2015, the No. 12 Michigan
football team is 5-1 and a No. 7
undefeated Michigan State team is
in town. Up 23-21 late in the fourth
quarter, the Wolverines landed
an all-important sack and forced
a turnover on downs. An upset,
the first rivalry win in Harbaugh’s
career, was in reach. With 10 sec-
onds left, Paul Bunyan was all but
Michigan’s — all the Wolverines
had to do was punt.
You can fill in the blank.
“We played winning football and
didn’t get the result,” Harbaugh
said after the game. “Welcome to
football.”
Welcome to the rivalry, Jim.
Harbaugh’s Spartan woes never
really went away. A 14-10 loss in
a virtual monsoon, a Halloween
COVID-year upset and a heart-
breaker last season in a top-10 battle
of unbeatens round out the remain-
ing defeats. His results haven’t done
much to inspire confidence in a
rivalry where Michigan fans like to
claim dominance.
That confidence is a large reason
why, from an outside perspective,
this game matters so much for Har-
baugh. There’s been little reason,
and few legitimate excuses, for his
teams not to be dominating this
rivalry. Year after year, the Wol-
verines bring in better recruiting
classes. Michigan State has even
undergone a coaching change. But
still, Harbaugh has struggled.
Some losses, such as last year’s,
are so puzzling that all Harbaugh
has left to say is simple.
“That didn’t go the way we want-
ed to,” he lamented after the 2021
defeat.
And what else can he say? That
he failed once again? That, whether
the Wolverines are the better team
or not, the Spartans seem to be able
to walk away with Paul Bunyan in
years they shouldn’t?
No, the only thing that can speak
for Harbaugh are the results on the
field. And those results can shout.
After the 2020 loss, in Michi-
gan’s worst season in many years,
three-star recruit Andrel Anthony
— an East Lansing-native — might
have wavered.
“That did open a lot of eyes,”
Anthony told the Detroit Free
Press in 2020. “I can tell you that.
It opened eyes across the United
States. Everybody was looking
at MSU as ‘Oh, they’re really bad
right now and they’re in a rebuild-
ing process.’ But to go out and beat
Michigan, I am pretty sure every-
body was surprised.”
JULIA SCHACHINGER/Daily
The sophomore receiver, as we
of course know now, did not flip his
commitment. Anthony remained
steady, bound for Ann Arbor. But
that’s not always the case, and
there are fallout effects that span
larger than a loss on the record.
And it’s on Harbaugh to prevent
that from happening.
A 3-4 record isn’t enough, zero
wins against Tucker isn’t enough
and frequently losing to worse
Michigan State teams is far from
enough.
This Saturday, against the hob-
bling 3-4 Spartans, Harbaugh has
the chance to get even in his tenure
and begin to reclaim the rivalry.
Frankly, he doesn’t have a choice. A
loss would be catastrophic, not only
proving once again Michigan State
has his number, but crippling the
Wolverines’ chances at the College
Football Playoff and back-to-back
Big Ten trophies.
A win won’t earn Harbaugh
high praise or laurels. It’s what
should happen, and it’s what needs
to happen. But it will be a part of his
narrative. This week, in prepara-
tion, Harbaugh gets to dip his pen
in the ink one last time.
Saturday, it hits paper.
Liza Cushnir: By failing Brittney Griner,
we’re failing all women in sports
Brittney
Gri-
ner, an eight-time
WNBA all-star and
Phoenix Mercury
center, turned 32
last week. Instead
of being able to
celebrate with her
friends and fam-
ily, she spent her
birthday in a Rus-
sian jail cell — just like she’s spent
the past 249 days.
On Feb. 17, Griner was detained
in a Russian airport, accused of
having vape cartridges with hash-
ish oil in her luggage. On May 3, the
US state department declared her
“wrongfully detained” and on Aug.
4, Griner was sentenced to nine
years in a Russian prison for drug
smuggling.
As Griner awaits her appeal
hearing, which is set to start on Oct.
25, she worries about being forgot-
ten back home.
Those fears aren’t unfounded.
Outside of the WNBA and women’s
sports, the sports community has
largely stayed silent. The WNBA
started its most recent season in
May featuring decals with Griner’s
name and initials on every single
court. The NBA, on the other hand,
has mostly remained disengaged.
Individuals and teams such as
Stephen Curry and the Memphis
Grizzlies have taken it upon them-
selves to show their support for
Griner on occasion. But outside of
women’s sports, the sports world
has generally refrained from advo-
cating for Griner.
And that’s the crux of the issue;
The sports world can claim to sup-
port women’s sports as much as it
wants to, but when it comes down
to it, people refrain from making
comments and in some cases, even
ridicule those who do lend their
voices.
Society
doesn’t
care
about
women in sports, and female ath-
letes — including at Michigan —
notice.
“When you compare Title IX
and if you compare an NBA player
that’s going to be there and in the
same situation that she’s in, you
could argue that they would either
be back by now or that a lot more
people would be involved to try to
solve that,” Michigan guard Leigha
Brown said at Big Ten Media Days
on Oct. 12.
Society makes it a habit to tell
young female athletes that Title IX
provides them with equality. But
outside of mandates for equality in
institutions receiving federal fund-
ing, where can women in sports
look to see that society cares about
them, that society values them?
Imagine a parallel: Picture LeB-
ron James or Patrick Mahomes
— or any star male athlete, for that
matter — being arrested in a for-
eign country. Now think of the out-
rage and demands for their return
that would follow. There would be
immense pressure, from all fronts,
on the United States government
to do whatever it takes to get them
home.
Brittney Griner deserves the
same outrage. Not just from the
women’s sports world, but from the
entire sports world.
“I think about Brittney every sin-
gle day and I pray for Brittney and
her family every single day,” Michi-
gan women’s basketball coach Kim
Barnes Arico said at Big Ten Media
Days. “And I hope we’re working
incredibly hard outside of our wom-
en’s basketball network, nationally,
to bring her home.”
But right now, that simply isn’t
the case. And if the entire sports
world doesn’t get involved, Griner’s
prospects remain the same: slim
and dark.
Of course, there have been
people doing everything they can
to bring Griner home. Across the
women’s basketball world, players
and coaches have repeatedly called
for her release and sent prayers her
way.
But the NBA has a far wider
reach than the WNBA, with a much
larger fanbase. More voices within
the NBA community calling to
bring Griner home could have a sig-
nificant impact.
“I think everybody in the Phoe-
nix community and the WNBA
community and women’s basketball
and basketball as a whole has done a
fantastic job of keeping (Griner) top
of heart and top of mind,” Cindy
Brunson, the play-by-play voice of
the Mercury told The Daily. “ … In
the NBA because their platform is
so gigantic, and their voices are so
big, anytime they have the opportu-
nity to speak on it, it just keeps the
issue top of heart and top of mind.”
Brunson — who works for vari-
ous other networks in addition to
the Mercury — has spoken about
Griner’s detention as much as
she can and intends to do so on
all broadcasts she is part of for as
long as Griner remains detained.
If the rest of the sports world joins
Brunson and those who already
are fighting for her freedom, that
detention will likely be a lot shorter.
When speaking to The Daily,
Brunson suggested multiple ways
to pressure the Biden adminis-
tration to work harder towards
advocating for Griner’s release,
including canceling the NBA’s
Christmas games. That would
show that the NBA actually cares,
compelling the government to
listen. Because right now, not
enough people are showing that
they give a damn to force the State
Department to listen.
For things to change, NBA
players, teams and fans have to
show that getting Griner home is
important to them.
“If those teams decided, we’re
not going to provide wall-to-wall
basketball (on Christmas). We’re
going to stay home with our
families because (Griner) can’t,”
Brunson said.
Brunson highlighted the exi-
gency of the situation. Griner has
been away from home for eight
months. That’s eight months
away from her home, her wife, her
family and her team.
And while canceling Christ-
mas games would be a significant
and unprecedented step, NBA
players have refused to play to
bring attention to social justice
issues in the past. After the shoot-
ing of Jacob Blake in August 2020,
the Milwaukee Bucks and Orlan-
do Magic boycotted their play-
off game which led to all three
playoff games scheduled for that
day also being postponed. Play-
ers used their platform, and the
world took note.
Yes, the situations are very dif-
ferent. What it showed, though,
is that when athletes call atten-
tion to an issue that matters to
them with a significant gesture,
fans are forced to pay attention.
Brittney Griner deserves that
attention. She needs that atten-
tion to get home quickly, perhaps
even to survive.
There are many ways to call
attention to Griner’s detention.
But right now, all she gets from
the majority of the sports world is
inaction.
One of the best players in the
WNBA has been detained in Rus-
sia for 249 days. Few outside of
the women’s sports world have
consistently brought attention to
her plight.
Women in sports are listening,
and they’re hearing silence.
And that, more than any legis-
lation like Title IX, more than any
claims about supporting gender
equality, is the clearest message
being sent.
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
FOOTBALL
JULIA SCHACHINGER/Daily
LIZA
CUSHNIR
NICHOLAS STOLL
Managing Sports Editor
Ian Hume’s impact:
as remembered by Michigan
CHARLIE PAPPALARDO
Daily Sports Writer
Last Friday night, just prior to
their matchup, the lights dimmed
and the No. 5 Michigan and Lake
Superior State hockey teams lined
up on their respective sides of the
ice for a shared moment of silence.
It was a solemn moment, but it
also served as a clear reminder of
what the Wolverines were playing
for this past weekend. They weren’t
just playing for themselves, or glory,
or their future careers; they were
playing for the memory of their
longtime equipment supervisor —
and friend — Ian Hume, who had
sadly passed away the night before
after a battle with cancer.
In every play on the ice after that
moment of silence, it was clear that
Hume’s presence was still with his
team. After two dominant perfor-
mances in which Michigan both
swept and outscored the Lakers,
10-3, Hume was top of mind for
many of the Wolverines’ players and
staff postgame, and his memory had
only served to push them further.
“He was a huge part of this orga-
nization,” junior defenseman Jacob
Truscott said. “ … He was great
to us, and obviously it’s sad to see
someone like that go. He’s a huge
part of our team. We’ve just got to
honor him and keep playing for him
every game.”
From conversations with play-
ers and staff one thing is clear:
Hume’s impact will be felt far past
his 33-year tenure at the Univer-
sity of Michigan. For starters, it’s
clear that he was an expert at his
job. After quite literally stumbling
into the role under long-time coach
Red Berenson, Hume spent the next
three decades honing his craft. And
his dedication to his work didn’t go
unnoticed.
“I’ve known (Hume) for a long
time,” Michigan coach Brandon
Naurato told The Daily. “ … And
he’s a legend, very well respected
by equipment managers from pro
hockey to college.”
Freshman forward Adam Fan-
tilli shared a similar sentiment.
“He was an amazing guy,” Fan-
tilli said. “An amazing equipment
manager and I know he loved this
team with everything he had.”
While on paper Hume’s job title
may have been equipment super-
visor, a position usually seen as
administrative, he understood that
his role extended far past what most
would expect. He understood him-
self to be an outlet for players to just
talk. He consistently made himself
available and instituted an open
door policy for players to come in
and talk about anything, hockey or
otherwise.
And it’s clear that while that
wasn’t necessarily asked of him, it
was something players needed. He
was a friendly and supportive face
for student athletes who needed
affirmation, and he was always
there to provide it.
“He did so much for us,” junior
forward Phillippe LaPointe said.
“He wasn’t just an equipment man-
ager, he had an open door policy.
And you know oftentimes I’d just
sit there and shoot the (breeze)
with him. … I’ve had some really
tough conversations with him
with adversity and stuff like that,
so I’ve opened up to him, he’s
opened up to me. And you know,
we’ve always had that really good
strong relationship where we can
tell each other anything. I’ll be
forever thankful to have him as a
friend and mentor.”
Hume wasn’t just a staff mem-
ber who sharpened skates. He
wasn’t just someone who got
equipment from point A to point
B. Heck, he wasn’t just an equip-
ment manager. He was a friend
to everyone on the Michigan
hockey team who needed him to
be a friend, and he stood up for
his athletes and colleagues when
they needed someone to stand up
for them.
That’s the part of Hume that
won’t be forgotten, that’s the part
of Hume that the Wolverines had
in mind after they swept Lake
Superior and that’s the part of
Hume that Michigan has vowed
to play the rest of their season for.
“We showed it this weekend,
we played for him,” LaPointe said.
“And I’m grateful for the memo-
ries that I have with him.”
ICE HOCKEY
With Saturday’s matchup against Michigan State looming, Jim Harbaugh has the
opportunity to take control of the in-state rivalry.
Brittney Griner has spent the past 249 days in a Russian jail cell, and her appeal hearing is set to start on October 25.
FILE PHOTO/Daily
With the passing of Ian Hume, the No. 5 Michigan hockey team was playing for a
greater purpose this weekend.