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(07/25/02 8:23pm)
Inexperienced competitors can be a big influence on the outcome of a sporting event, and the Little 500 is no exception.\nThe back of the men's field is where much of the inexperience for this year's Little 500 is placed. 23 of the 34 riders in the final three rows are rookie competitors.\nRow 9\nSi Senor (2:46.690)\nFour of those rookie riders comprise Si Senor, a team led by senior captain Jared Micklos. Senior Troy Otte and sophomores Bill Soukup and Jay Walter round out the Si Senor roster.\nMicklos said the team's lack of experience will set them back at race time.\n"With the exception of the spring series activities, we are really at a deficiency to all the other teams that have had that past race experience," Micklos said. "Team members and the coach from the Fratello team have been very helpful and given us some pointers. That has been a big help for us so far."\nForest (2:47.281)\nThe Forest team is the most experienced team in the final three rows, as it has three returning riders. Senior captain Lucas Calhoun, and sophomores Joey Pumo and Kevin Simonelic all raced last year. Freshman Neal Patel is the lone rookie on the Forest squad.\nPumo and Simonelic were the fastest riders for the Forest team in the Individual Time Trials this year as they placed 69th and 75th, respectively. Pumo said his time was 13 seconds faster than his time from last year, and he believes the team has a realistic chance to finish in the top 15.\nAlpha Phi Omega (M) (2:47.373)\nSenior veteran rider Matt Pflieger leads the Alpha Phi Omega men's squad into the race as one of two teams in the last three rows with only three riders. The other riders are junior Dan Moore and sophomore Kyle Fellerhoff.\nPflieger thought having three riders would have an affect on the team's performance in the race.\n"Realistically we aren't trying to win the race," Pflieger said. "Our goal is to hold our position or try to move up. We will try to catch on to wheels of people who are not in the pack and trying to stay out there much longer than other people would."\nRow 10\nDelta Chi (2:47.478)\nLike Alpha Phi Omega, Delta Chi consists of only three competitors. Juniors Justin Hiday, the team captain, and Pat Thomas are returning riders, and junior Dan Jeff is a rookie.\nHiday said he doesn't believe his team will be hindered by having only three riders.\n"We have worked very hard and gotten our endurance up," he said. "A lot of teams don't really utilize their fourth riders that much anyway, so I think we can handle it. Hopefully we can prove everybody wrong that three riders can do well."\nDelta Sigma Pi (M) (2:47.946)\nJunior Drew Marsch is the only returning rider for the Delta Sigma Pi team, which is also composed of three rookies -- senior Nathan Bruce, junior Drew Buser and sophomore Kelly Cantwell.\nCoach Todd Paulus, a Delta Sigma Pi senior, is confident his team will be able to improve on its 28th-place finish from last year.\n"These guys have been working a lot harder than our teams have been working in the past," Paulus said. "I think we should have a pretty good finish for our team. They could do a lot better than they qualified, because their strong suit is more endurance, rather than sprinting."\nWillkie (2:49.119)\nThe Willkie team is also made up of one veteran and three rookie riders. Junior captain Chris Shickles is the lone veteran, while junior Scott McCarthy and sophomores Ed Fujawa and Jeremy Hess are all rookies.\n"They have all worked really hard," Shickles said of his rookie teammates. "I think they have picked up things better than I did last year as a rookie. I try to help them with the experience factor about what it will be like on race day and with our race strategy."\nRow 11\nDelta Upsilon (2:49.667)\nThe Delta Upsilon team starts in the same position (31) in which they started last year, when the team was able to move up seven positions and finish 24th.\nJunior captain Christian Blaine and senior Mike Reed are returning riders for the Delta Upsilon squad. They will be joined by rookies Brian Lower and Steve Aksamit, both sophomores.\nBlaine said he hopes the team can get to the front early in an attempt to avoid the wreck likely in the middle or back of the pack.\nPhi Sigma Kappa (2:49.954)\nFour sophomore rookie riders make up the race-day roster for Phi Kappa Sigma. Captain Chris Camerucci and teammates Paul Myrda, Ryan Kane and Rob Lynes will all be making their first Little 500 appearances.\nCamerucci said the team's lack of experience and a coach has led it to seek assistance from experienced riders. He said the team was pleased to qualify and would like to improve on its starting position in the race.\n"We are going to try and do our best on the track," Camerucci said. "We want to place in the teens; that is our goal for the race."\nLambda Chi Alpha (2:50.000)\nThree more rookie riders compose the Lambda Chi Alpha team, including sophomore captain Josh Armstrong. Junior Pat Morrison and senior Nick Jasper are also first-year riders, while senior Josh Caves will be competing in his fourth Little 500.\nArmstrong believes the team can do better than its qualifying effort.\n"Half our team hadn't practiced the week of qualifications and we didn't have it down yet," Armstrong said. "We want to move up quickly and then whoever is on the bike has to pick up a couple of spots and never move back. We think we can finish top 15 if we can stay out of wrecks and penalty problems"
(04/29/02 4:15am)
The IU softball team concluded its season last weekend, recording three more losses in conference play against Penn State and Ohio State. The losses made the Hoosiers 0-17 in Big Ten play, the worst record in school history in conference games.\nIU's struggles baffled coach Diane Stephenson who expected more wins from this squad.\n"It is really disappointing because I think we have a really good group of kids, but we just were not able to get it done," Stephenson said. "We should have been a lot better team and we should have won a lot more games."\nPenn State (28-21, 9-8 Big Ten) downed the Hoosiers 4-1 on Friday, despite committing three errors to IU's two. Senior Brooke Monroe led the Hoosiers with a pair of doubles in four plate appearances. The Nittany Lions took an early 1-0 lead in the first, but IU tied the game at 1-1 in the bottom of the fourth.\nFreshman pitcher Katie Witham threw 4 2/3 innings for IU, allowing two runs on eight hits. Penn State starter sophomore Marisa Hanson held IU to five hits and one run in four innings. Nittany Lion freshman Tina Skelly pitched three innings of one-hit ball to shut the door on the Hoosiers comeback hopes.\nAfter taking a 2-1 lead in the fifth, Penn State scored two unearned runs in the sixth on IU senior Alison Cooke to extend the lead to 4-1. Cooke and freshman second baseman Annika Ochoa each committed an error that aided the Nittany Lions. IU and Penn State were scheduled to play on Saturday, but the game was canceled due to rain.\nThe Hoosiers returned to the field against Ohio State (49-9, 15-3) for a doubleheader on Sunday, still in search of their first conference win. The Big Ten leading Buckeyes dominated the opener, winning 8-0 in five innings.\nOhio State junior Annie Dedic went 2-for-3 with three runs batted in and senior Anna Smith went 2-for-4 with a run scored to lead the Buckeyes. Ohio State sophomores Wendy Allen and Kristi DeVries teamed to limit the Hoosiers to just one hit in the game.\nIn the nightcap, IU (13-31-1, 0-17) looked to Cooke to shutdown the Buckeye offense. Cooke looked impressive early, striking out five Ohio State batters in the first three innings as the Hoosiers built a 2-0 lead going into the middle of the fourth.\nCooke said she wanted to leave it all on the field in her finale as a Hoosier.\n"I knew it was my last game and I just wanted to come out and give it everything I had," Cooke said. "I really wanted to enjoy and to have fun."\nJunior Katie Joy equaled her season total with two doubles in the first four innings. Sophomore Kristine Dugan knocked Joy home in the third and Joy's double in the fourth allowed sophomore Abby Stark to score.\nThe Buckeyes loaded the bases on three infield singles to lead off their half of the fourth. Ohio State senior Stacy Roth then hit a ground ball to IU sophomore first baseman Valerie White. White tried to get the force at home, but her throw was late and the bases stayed loaded.\nBuckeye senior Chrissy Fowler then hit a ground ball to Hoosier junior third baseman Stormy Hanson. Hanson's throw hit the Ohio State runner, Smith and trickled to the backstop. Smith and Allen both scored on the play to give the Buckeyes a 3-2 advantage. Stephenson challenged that Smith was running inside the base line, but the umpires conferred and the play stood.\nOhio State added another run in the fourth and stretched the lead to 5-2 heading into the seventh inning. White led off the seventh with a single, but was forced out at second when Joy grounded into a fielder's choice. Sophomore Dawn Ramynke then struck out, bringing Dugan to the plate.\nWith a 2-2 count, Dugan hit a high fly ball to right field that was carried out of the park by the gusting winds blowing from left to right. The homer was Dugan's third of the season and brought the Hoosiers within a run at 5-4. The next Hoosier hitter was Monroe who had been hitless in the game.\n"I really wanted to get that extra chance to get a hit," Monroe said of the opportunity to hit after Dugan's home run.\nMonroe hit a fly ball to left field that on an average day might have left the park, but with the wind blowing in from left Smith made the catch about twenty-five feet inside the fence to end the Hoosiers season.\n"That is just the way things go sometimes," Monroe said about her last at bat.\nCooke finished the game allowing only two earned runs on eight hits. She also posted seven strikeouts, just one shy of her career high.\nStephenson said the Hoosiers failed to create breaks for themselves and was disappointed they could not get a win for their seniors.\n"When you are not winning, it just seems like nothing ever goes your way," Stephenson said. "I think Alison came out and threw a good game and Brooke did a nice job of calling for her and I wish we could have won for them"
(04/26/02 5:22am)
Going into its final weekend of Big Ten competition, the IU softball team is still in search of its first win in conference play. The Hoosiers play host to both Penn State and Ohio State for two games apiece this weekend.\n"We definitely need to win that game in the Big Ten," IU coach Diane Stephenson said. "I just wish we could win one good, close game against a tough opponent because I think that we have a great group of kids, and they deserve to be winning. We just haven't been able to get it done."\nIU (13-28-1, 0-14 Big Ten) and Penn State (27-21, 8-8) will square off at 4 p.m. today and again at noon tomorrow at the IU Softball Field. No. 20 Ohio State (46-9, 13-3) comes to town for a doubleheader Sunday that is slated to begin at noon.\nHeading into the weekend, Penn State is led by outfielder Gina Bianchini, who is hitting .344 on the year. Three other Nittany Lions are hitting above .300, including third baseman Jennifer Tripken, who also has 12 home runs.\nWith the Big Ten tournament two weeks away, Penn State and Ohio State will be looking to solidify their bids to be one of the six competing teams for the title. Penn State currently sits in seventh, and Ohio State leads the conference with its 13-3 mark. Sophomore hurler Marisa Hanson leads the Nittany Lions with 12-10 record and a 1.38 ERA. Hanson is also limiting opposing hitters to a measly .197 batting average.\nSenior Brooke Monroe believes the Hoosiers will need to battle tough this weekend but hopes they can pull an upset of the Nittany Lions or Buckeyes.\n"We just need to keep fighting, not giving up on each other and not giving up on the coaches," Monroe said. "With us being the underdog, we are going to go in and try to knock them off."\nOhio State is led in hitting by outfielder Anna Smith, who is batting .521 with seven triples and 60 runs. The Buckeyes have a total of six everyday players hitting above .300 and are led by Stacy Roth's 13 home runs. Sophomore Wendy Allen paces an impressive Ohio State pitching staff that has a staff ERA of 1.47 with 19 shutouts. Allen has a 0.93 ERA and is one of three Buckeye pitchers with 14 wins or more on the year.\nThe Hoosiers will look for another strong performance out of freshman pitcher Katie Witham. Witham delivered her second career shutout Tuesday at Ball State to lower her ERA to 3.00. Junior Stormy Hanson continues to lead the Hoosier hitters with a .269 batting average, 11 doubles and seven home runs.\nThe Hoosiers will have history on their side against both Penn State and Ohio State as they have dominated both schools in head-to-head competition. The Hoosiers have a 25-9 record against the Nittany Lions and a 50-17 advantage over the Buckeyes. Penn State and Ohio State, however, have fared better in more recent meetings. Penn State has taken six out of the last seven games against the Hoosiers, and Ohio State has won three of the last four against IU, including two shutouts last season.\nHanson said it will be key for the Hoosiers to have a solid all-around game to be successful and said the team hopes to take more than just a game in this weekend series.\n"The biggest thing in order for us to win this weekend is to play solid defense and have our offense produce runs," she said. "I think at least confidence-wise that to finish the season with one win would probably be great, but obviously we would like to go into this weekend and have more than one win"
(04/19/02 5:00am)
Coming off a 9-0 shutout of IU-Purdue University at Indianapolis Tuesday, the IU softball team returns to the field today as it travels for the weekend to play two games at both Minnesota and Wisconsin.\nIn the victory over IUPUI, IU had its second error-free game of the year as senior pitcher Alison Cooke notched the ninth shutout of her career.\nCooke thought the Hoosiers' improved defensive showing would give them confidence and carry them into the weekend games.\n"Solid defense is really what it comes down to -- just pitching it and letting the defense behind you do the work," Cooke said. "The defense's play will help up with confidence going into the Big Ten weekend. It is really nice to see solid play."\nAgainst IUPUI, IU coach Diane Stephenson switched up the Hoosier defensive lineup, completely revamping the IU infield. Junior Heather Suca was moved from second base to third base, senior Brooke Monroe went from catcher/third base to shortstop and freshman Annika Ochoa and sophomore Valerie White started at second and first, respectively.\nWith the error-free performance, Stephenson was pleased with the changes and thought she might keep them in line for the weekend.\n"The defense did a really good job (against IUPUI)," Stephenson said. "We mixed the lineup up a little bit. It was the first game for Heather (Suca) at third and for Brooke (Monroe) at third, and I think they did a really nice job. We will definitely continue to work on that and look for that this weekend."\nIU (12-25-1, 0-12 Big Ten) will be in search of its first Big Ten win when it takes on Minnesota at 6 p.m. in Minneapolis, Minn. The Golden Gophers (31-16, 5-5) have won five of their last six games, including a doubleheader sweep of Drake on Wednesday. The Gophers and Hoosiers will also play at noon Saturday.\nMinnesota is led by outfielder Tammi Hays, who was hitting a team high .369 coming into the week. The Gopher pitching duo of Piper Marten and Angie Recknor will pose stiff opposition to the Hoosier hitters. Marten boasts a 17-9 record with a 1.09 ERA and 277 strikeouts in just 166 2/3 innings pitched. Opposing hitters are batting a measly .161 against Marten. Recknor has a 10-6 record on the year with a 1.12 ERA.\nFollowing their games with Minnesota, the Hoosiers will travel to Wisconsin (25-14, 7-5) to play a doubleheader Sunday starting at noon. The Badgers enter the weekend having won four of their last five, including a 2-0 shutout of No. 12 Michigan last weekend.\nPitchers Andrea Kirchberg and Katie Layne lead Wisconsin. Kirchberg has a 1.50 ERA while compiling a 16-11 record and striking out 214 opposing hitters. Layne has a 9-3 record with a 1.54 ERA. Infielder Meghann Reiss leads the Badger hitters with a .291 average and seven doubles on the year.\nJunior Stormy Hanson believes if the Hoosiers play to their potential they will be successful against the Gophers and Badgers. \n"I hope as a team that we can come out and perform to what we are capable of defensively, offensively and our pitching staff," Hanson said. "We know that we can do it, and hopefully it will lead to a sweep for the weekend"
(04/17/02 4:45pm)
The experience and jubilation of Little 500 allows for clubs throughout the IU community to come together and show their Hoosier spirit while gaining exposure for their individual groups at the same time.\nThis year, the men's and women's Army ROTC teams are looking to do just that.\n"Little 5 will exemplify the fact that we are here on campus," said Jonathan Grabill, a senior and captain of the men's team. "It will be a very positive experience, because if people don't know about us, they will see us out there."\nLt. Col. Wayne Pollard echoed Grabill's thoughts that the race will help publicize the IU Army ROTC program to the rest of the campus. But Pollard also supports the ROTC team's involvement because one of the program's graduates started the Little 500.\n"The real reason why we are participating is because Howdy Wilcox, who started the Little 5, is an Army ROTC graduate," Pollard said. "Hopefully Saturday, the day of the race, I will get the chance to meet him with our men and women's teams.\n"Howdy created the race to unify the campus and to give everybody a single purpose on the campus," he said. "I am looking for our cadets to be fully immersed in IU culture, and there is really no better way than to participate in Little 5."\nThe ROTC men's team consists of Grabill, senior Justin Goble and sophomores Andy Higgins and Chris Beck, all of whom are rookies to the race. This year will mark just the second year Army ROTC has qualified a team for the men's race. Last year Grabill was injured on the day before qualifications and the team failed to qualify. This year's team starts 24th.\nGrabill said he hopes the team's biking experience will help on race day, even though the riders haven't been in race situations such as the Little 500.\n"I expect everyone to do their best and for everyone to have a good time," Grabill said. "We are all kind of into cycling a little bit outside of Little 5, but we have never really been in competitions. I think we all have a good sense of what to do, because the IU Student Foundation helps out a lot with the Rider's Council, and we have talked to other veterans about what to expect."\nThe women's ROTC team is led by senior captain Adrienne Barker. Barker and seniors Rosemare Hirata, Christina Sandoval and Emily Birck are all Little 500 veteran riders. Junior Angela Cherry also trained and went through "Rookie Week" for the women's ROTC squad.\nBarker believes the experience the team gained from last year will help it heading into this year's race.\n"I think the fact that we do have the experience behind us is going to give us an upper edge on some of the other teams," Barker said. "It is just going to give us more of a comfort level since everything won't be so new to us. We are going to expect a lot of the accidents, and we are going to know what the inexperienced people are going to do, because we probably did it last year."\nLast year the women's Army ROTC squad started 27th and finished 29th. This year the women's team qualified 26th. Barker said she hopes the team can finish at least around 20th.\nFellow cadet member Casey Dean, a senior, is the team manager for the women's squad. Birck said Dean provides the team with encouragement and takes care of some of the little things it takes to field a team.\n"He is there more for motivational support and for getting all of the logistics together," Birck said. "He's a very upbeat guy and is really helping out with getting our battalion excited for the race"
(04/17/02 4:37pm)
The Little 500 races are often dominated by the greek teams on the IU campus, with residence hall teams and independent teams scattered in.\nBut it is the tradition of having residence hall team's in the Little 500 that keeps Forest Fire coach Sarah Nessler involved in the race activities. Nessler rode in the women's race in 1999 when she was a junior at IU.\n"I lived in the residence halls when I was a resident assistant, and we are trying to keep the tradition alive of having residence hall teams," Nessler said.\nForest Fire team member, junior Becky Lockwood, believes putting together residence hall teams and finding proper training schedules can prove harder than what sorority teams may face.\n"I think the big difference is that in a sorority you are living with those people," Lockwood said. "We are pretty much scattered on and off campus, so it makes it harder to get together, we can't just walk down the hall and say, 'Hey, let's go for a ride.' I would definitely say that we have a disadvantage because we have so little money and because we are scattered all across campus."\nLockwood and senior teammates Michelle Vaught and Melissa Blake all went through rookie training last year and Vaught and Blake competed in the race. Junior Cheresa Jonkman is the lone rookie on the Forest Fire team.\nWith the experience of the other three riders and guidance from Nessler, Jonkman said she believes she will be ready on race day.\n"(Nessler) is kind of the mediator between all of us," Jonkman said. "If someone feels that someone else isn't really pulling their weight or they aren't working as hard, she can kind of step in and tell you exactly what is expected of you. That has been a big help to me, because I always didn't know where I stood on the team and if I was doing what I should be."\nThe team qualified in 17th place with a time of 3:05.583. Last year Vaught and Blake were part of the Forest team that finished 24th after qualifying 20th.\nVaught said the team didn't really have any expectations going into last year's race, but with a year under their belt, they will look to improve on race day this year.\n"We feel like there is room to improve," Vaught said. "Our qualification was a little slow for us because we had to be really conservative with our changes since we had already fouled twice in the morning. I think anything could happen (in the race). We don't really expect to be in the top 10, but we could probably be anywhere from 10th to 25th depending on what happens."\nHaving three veterans and with the progress of Jonkman, Nessler thinks the team has a legitimate shot to finish in the top 10.\n"Their goal is to place top 10, and they have the will, strength and determination to do it," Nessler said. "I am hoping that things go well for us and that they can actually meet their goal"
(04/17/02 4:19pm)
The Dodds House Little 500 team has perennially been the best residence hall team in the men's race, including a race victory in 1998. But its run of seven straight top 10 finishes was snapped last year when the team finished in 11th, after qualifying ninth.\nThis year, the Dodds team is looking to regain its form and add to its 25 top 10 finishes in 49 races. Dodds qualified seventh for the Little 500 this year, with a time of 2:35.096.\nSenior captain Tom Moore and senior Charlie Metzger are returning riders from the 2001 race, while junior Brad Davies competed in the 2000 event as a freshman. Dodds' lone rookie competitor in the race will be Craig Luekens. Freshman Raj Joseph and sophomore Tyler Christman also trained with the team, but will not be competing on race day.\nMoore believes the team this year is stronger than in recent years.\n"We had a pretty strong team last year, but I wouldn't say that our team was as many as four riders deep," Moore said. "This year we are really riding with four very strong riders. We are looking to have a much more successful year this year."\nThe Dodds team has already had a successful year, having won the Fall Cycling Championship Series and placing three riders in the top 14 for the Individual Time Trials. Luekens was the team's fastest ITT rider, placing third overall with a time of 2:26.31.\nLuekens thought the experience of his fellow riders has helped him prepare for what he will face on race day.\n"Earlier in the year, I was always looking for tips, and they would always help me out," Luekens said. "They are there to give tips and help out with how you can get better, because that kind of stuff is just intangible in a race like this."\nThe Dodds House has also won the last four Erickson All-Campus Championships as the housing unit that competes in the most in IU Student Foundation activities throughout the course of the year. Dodds once again leads the Erickson All-Campus Championship heading into Team Pursuit and the Little 500 race. Dodds has compiled 638 points, while Pi Kappa Phi sits in second place with 615 points.\nDavies hopes to win the Erickson Championship again, but he has his eyes set on race day.\n"It is always nice to win (the Erickson Championship)," Davies said. "But we definitely hope to win the race."\nThe Dodds team is coached by Glenn Spiczak, a 1986 graduate of IU and Dodds House alumnus. Spiczak is a physics professor at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls, but Davies said he works with the team on spring break, race day and some occasional series events. Spiczak was a member of the Dodds team in 1986, the last year the team failed to qualify for the race.\nMoore said Spiczak vowed after that to never let Dodds fail to qualify, and he has been the team's coach ever since.\n"In 1986, he was a senior and they dropped the exchange on the final qualifying attempt," Moore said. "He decided at that point that Dodds would never not qualify for a race again. There is actually a picture in our bike lounge of that dropped exchange that says, 'so that we will never forget.'"\nSpiczak won't be the only Dodds alumni in town for the Little 5 race though. Davies said the team often has many former Dodds House members come for the race.\n"On race day we will have alumni from 40 years ago show up," Davies said. "It is really nice to have them all here. They all buy a t-shirt on race day and support the team"
(04/12/02 5:40am)
Having split both of its doubleheaders this week, the IU softball team goes into this weekend's competition against Illinois and Purdue in search of its first win in Big Ten play.\nThe Hoosiers head to Illinois (23-16, 3-5 Big Ten) tonight for a 6 p.m. game. IU (11-21-1, 0-8) and the Illini will also battle at noon Saturday in Champaign, Ill. The Hoosiers then travel to West Lafayette to take on rival Purdue (29-15, 0-6) in a doubleheader starting at noon Sunday.\nSophomore outfielder Abby Stark said the Hoosiers can be successful through the rest of the Big Ten season if they can play like they did in their 4-3 loss to Michigan last weekend. \n"(The Michigan game) was a good morale booster for us," Stark said. "We have the rest of the Big Ten to go, and if we play like we did as well as we did (against Michigan), we are going to win a lot more games."\nIllinois comes into the weekend on a three-game winning streak, including a doubleheader sweep of Indiana State on Wednesday. Both of the Illini wins over Indiana State were shutouts, including a five-inning no-hitter. Purdue enters its games vs. IU following a sweep of Ball State. The Boilermakers also traveled to play Notre Dame yesterday.\nPurdue swept IU in last year's games, posting 3-1 and 4-1 victories, but IU leads the all-time series 19-16. Last year was the first time in school history the Hoosiers had taken on the Illini. Illinois and IU split their games, with Illinois winning 2-1 and IU posting a 5-0 shutout.\nSenior captain Brooke Monroe said the Hoosiers will have to limit their miscues to have success against the Illini and Boilermakers this season.\n"We need to come out a lot more aggressive to win and cut down on our mistakes," Monroe said.\nIn recent games, IU coach Diane Stephenson has switched up the Hoosier batting order. In the doubleheader against Evansville, Stephenson's top four hitters were Monroe, Stark, junior third baseman Stormy Hanson and first baseman Heather Stillians.\nStephenson said the move was an attempt to generate more offense by putting hot hitters together in the order.\n"I am just trying to pack in people that are swinging their bats well," Stephenson said. "We are trying to find different parts of the order to score."\nSophomore shortstop Lindsay Hamma leads Illinois, hitting .462 with 10 doubles and 24 RBIs. Freshman pitcher Abby Lovejoy and sophomore hurler Sherri Taylor lead the Illini pitching staff. Lovejoy is 7-0 on the year with a 1.92 ERA. Taylor has a 12-12 record with six shutouts and 18 complete games in 21 starts and a 2.18 ERA.\nFreshman infielder Andrea Hillsey leads Purdue's offense. Hillsey is hitting a team-high .362. Senior shortstop Katie Crabtree is hitting .340 for the Boilermakers with 10 home runs and 36 RBIs. The Purdue pitching staff boasts two 10-game winners, with senior Nicole Crouse having a 10-5 record and junior Leighann Burke sporting a 12-7 mark on the year. Crouse leads the Boilermaker pitchers with a 1.55 ERA and six shutouts.\nThe Hoosiers look to carry the momentum from their win in the nightcap of their doubleheader Wednesday at Evansville into the weekend games. IU's win over Evansville gave Stephenson the 400th win in her coaching career.\n"If you stay somewhere long enough, you're bound to add up some numbers," Stephenson said of reaching the milestone. "It is always nice, and I always think that those things are very indicative of the players that you have had come through your program"
(04/10/02 5:11am)
The IU softball team snapped its nine-game losing streak Tuesday with a 6-5 victory over Wright State (6-16) in the first game of a doubleheader at the IU Softball Field. But the Raiders returned the favor with 1-0 shutout of the Hoosiers (10-20-1) in the second contest.\nIU head coach Diane Stephenson fiddled with the Hoosier batting order, trying to find the right combination. The switches moved catcher/third baseman Brooke Monroe to the lead-off spot and third baseman/catcher Stormy Hanson to the third spot in the order.\nMonroe, a senior, was comfortable batting lead-off, the place in which she'd hit throughout her Hoosier career until earlier this season.\n"I have always been a lead-off hitter, all the way through high school and when I got here," Monroe said. "I am used to it, and I just go up there trying to get us started."\nHanson led the Hoosiers, going 3-for-6 in the doubleheader and raising her team-leading batting average to .360. Outfielder Abby Stark provided the big hit for the Hoosiers in the first game, knocking in two runs with a single in IU's five-run fourth inning.\nSophomore pitcher Heather Stillians got the win for the Hoosiers, moving her record to 6-8 on the year. Stillians threw 4 1/3 innings, allowing seven hits and four runs, three of which were earned. Alison Cooke replaced Stillians in the fifth inning to secure the victory.\nThe second game was a pitchers' duel between IU freshman Katie Witham and Wright State's Kristin Bultinck. IU managed just four hits off Bultinck in seven innings, and Witham surrendered only three hits in five and a third innings pitched.\nThe Raiders scored the lone run of the game in the fifth inning. Wright State shortstop Erin Hanlon singled to right field with one out in the inning. Hanlon advanced to second on a fielder's choice as Stillians got a force out at first base. Hanlon then tried to steal third base and was called safe by the umpire. Raider center fielder Sandra Brieby then singled to center to score Hanlon.\nStephenson didn't think the call on Hanlon at third was the deciding factor in the game.\n"The difference in that game was two plays," Stephenson said. "Brooke Monroe not sliding at second base on a hit-and-run attempt (in the first inning) -- she would have been safe. Stormy gets a base hit, and we would have scored a run. Then on the ball hit to (Stillians at first base), us not getting the lead out at second and that runner scoring. Those plays were the difference in that game."\nIU now heads to Evansville (22-17) for a make-up doubleheader that was originally scheduled for March 20. The first game is scheduled to start at 3 p.m. at Evansville's Cooper Field.\nThe Purple Aces are led by freshman Brooke Luker, who is hitting .342 with 19 RBIs. Freshman pitcher Katie Markle leads Evansville with a 1.56 ERA and a 12-7 record. Markle is allowing opposing teams just a .219 batting average.\nIU goes into the doubleheader with the Purple Aces looking to avenge two losses to Evansville last year. Despite the defeats last year, IU holds a 19-3 all-time record against the Purple Aces.\nStillians believes the Hoosiers need to overcome their mental errors on the field to be successful.\n"We just need to get back to playing how we know how to play instead of second-guessing ourselves," she said. "We have the physical skill for it, but we just need to get our mental game back together -- and we will." \nWith a victory at Evansville, Stephenson will reach the 400-win milestone. She is already the winningest softball coach in IU history.
(04/09/02 5:51am)
After being swept by Michigan and Michigan State in Big Ten Conference play last weekend, the IU softball team returns to action today against Wright State at the IU Softball Field. The Raiders and Hoosiers are scheduled to play a doubleheader beginning at 3 p.m.\nIU enters the match-up with a 9-19-1 overall record, while Wright State is 5-15. Wright State was swept by Miami (Ohio) Sunday, the first games they had played since defeating Drexel on March 24. The Hoosiers are in the midst of a nine-game losing streak as they also got their last win on March 24 with a 7-1 win over Butler.\nSenior captain catcher/third baseman Brooke Monroe expressed the Hoosiers emotions about the current skid.\n"We are definitely kind of frustrated," Monroe said. "Coach told us after the game that we are at a new starting point and all we can go from here is up and I think that's our goal."\nJunior third baseman/catcher Stormy Hanson still leads the Hoosiers with a .351 batting average, despite going one-for-12 last weekend. Hanson's lone hit was a solo home run in her last at bat of the weekend.\nSophomore outfielder Abby Stark was the Hoosiers most consistent weekend hitter, going five-for-nine and improving her batting average from .300 to .329. Stark had a double, a home run, two runs scored and two runs batted in on the weekend.\n"I think my confidence has improved from being aggressive at the plate and trying to take one pitch at a time," Stark said of her improved hitting. "Bad cut or whatever, I just go up there with a new game face."\nThe IU pitching staff was hit hard in their weekend appearances, allowing 32 runs in the four games. In 10 1/3 innings pitched freshman hurler Katie Witham was knocked for 20 hits and allowed 17 runs, 13 of which were earned. Sophomore Heather Stillians threw 1 2/3 innings, allowing five earned runs on six hits. Senior ace Alison Cooke pitched 10 innings, gave up 10 runs, seven being earned runs, on 13 hits. Prior to the weekend, the IU staff earned run average was 2.98, after the weekend, their earned run average was up to 3.55.\nWright State is led by sophomore outfielder Amy Price, who in the Raiders two games has five doubles, two home runs, twelve runs scored and eight runs batted in. Price also leads Wright State with a .381 batting average. The Raider pitching staff is led by junior Kristin Bultinck with a 4-7 record and eight complete games while posting a 2.96 earned run average.\nThroughout the Hoosiers' current nine-game slide, the IU squad has failed to put together a complete game in the mind of head coach Diane Stephenson. But Stephenson said if the Hoosiers can put all facets of the game together, they could be an explosive team.\n"I think our goal is still to play a solid game all the way around, pitching, hitting and defense," Stephenson said. "We have only had a few of those this year. We know that we have solid pitching and we know we have solid defense and we know we have solid offense, but it is just a matter of getting it all going on the same day"
(04/05/02 4:22am)
Coming off a heartbreaking 5-4 loss to Louisville Wednesday, the IU softball team returns to action this weekend, starting today at 4 p.m. when the Hoosiers play host to No. 13 Michigan. IU will look to end its five-game losing streak with four games this weekend.\nThe Hoosiers have been plagued by errors on the defensive side of the ball in recent games. They've committed 21 errors to their opponents' three in the last five games. IU pitchers have allowed just 10 earned runs over that span, but errors have accounted for 17 unearned runs. The Hoosiers lost those five games by a total of 17 runs.\nCoach Diane Stephenson said the Hoosiers will need to be flawless on defense this weekend to find success.\n"We need to keep working on eliminating all of our errors," Stephenson said. "We are going to have to start playing errorless ball to win."\nMichigan (24-7, 3-1 Big Ten) and IU (9-15-1, 0-4) will also battle Saturday, with the first pitch being thrown at noon. The Hoosiers will also play host to Big Ten foe Michigan State (13-21, 1-3) in a doubleheader starting noon Sunday.\nIU and Michigan State split their pair of games last year, and the Hoosiers hold an all-time mark of 46-37 against the Spartans. Michigan hasn't been beaten by IU since the 1996 season, and IU has a 26-48 all-time record against the Wolverines.\nHoosier sophomore pitcher/first baseman Heather Stillians and junior third baseman/catcher Stormy Hanson will lead the IU offensive attack. Hanson leads the Hoosiers with a .390 batting average, five home runs and eight doubles. Stillians has recently improved her hitting and has her average up to .352 for the season.\nStillians believes the Hoosiers will need to keep up their improved offense and limit the defensive miscues this weekend.\n"We are definitely going to have to cut down on the errors and keep our bats up the way they have been," she said. "We need to make sure that we have confidence and get back to that fun level that we used to and have faith in ourselves and our teammates.\n"The pitching staff has been doing a good job of keeping hitters off balance, so if we can bring all those aspects together, I'm sure we'll be fine."\nMichigan will look for senior third baseman Stefanie Volpe to continue her hot hitting. Volpe leads the Wolverines with a .390 batting average. Michigan has two other hitters batting better than .380 as well. The duo of Marissa Young and Nicole Motycka will lead the Wolverine pitching staff. Young has a 1.07 ERA with a 13-5 record and eight shutouts. Motycka owns a 1.59 ERA with a 12-2 record.\nSophomore first baseman Natalie Furrow leads Michigan State with a .321 batting average and 14 runs batted in. Senior right-hander Becky Gray leads the Spartan hurlers with a 2.61 ERA and a 6-10 record.\nOf the Hoosiers' 15 losses, six of them have been by three runs or less. In four of those six games, IU has led by at least one run heading into the sixth inning. Hanson believes holding onto leads and closing out tight games will be key to the Hoosiers' future success.\n"Mentally and defensively we just need to be stronger and know that with two outs we can close the door and get the win," Hanson said. "More mentally than anything, just to get past that block that we don't think we can finish the game"
(04/04/02 5:24am)
Defensive miscues cost the IU softball team another close game yesterday as they fell 5-4 in nine innings to Louisville. The teams were slated to play a doubleheader, but played just one game in expectance of inclement weather.\nThe Hoosiers (9-15-1) committed five errors to Louisville's one, including two in both the sixth and ninth innings. IU led the Cardinals 4-2 going into the sixth inning, but allowed two unearned runs to score in the top of the sixth to knot the game at 4-4.\n"If you look at our line scores (from recent games), we are committing five, six, or seven errors, but we are still right in some of these games," IU coach Diane Stephenson said. "It just boggles my mind that we can still be in these games the way our defense has played."\nAfter allowing Louisville (18-17) to tie the game in the sixth, freshman pitcher Katie Witham retired the next five Cardinal batters. Witham allowed a single to Louisville freshman center fielder Sara Bausher, but senior catcher Brooke Monroe threw Bausher out as she tried stealing second.\nIn Louisville's half of the ninth, Monroe and Witham each committed an error to allow Louisville to take the 5-4 lead they wouldn't relinquish. The loss was the Hoosiers fifth straight.\nSince having their lone error-free game of the year on March 24 against Butler, the Hoosiers have committed 21 errors in five games and given up 27 runs, of which only 10 were earned.\nSophomore first baseman/pitcher Heather Stillians said the Hoosiers need to re-focus to improve their defense.\n"I am not sure where all of our heads are right now, but we need to get them back into the game," Stillians said. "We play a lot better when we have fun and relax and aren't so tense about situations."\nIU scored four runs on Louisville freshman starting pitcher Krystle Herold, who threw five innings and gave up nine hits. Cardinal ace pitcher, junior Jessica Rak shut the door on the Hoosiers offense, hurling 3 and 2/3 innings of scoreless and hitless ball. Rak retired all eleven IU batters she faced.\nMonroe and Stillians each had two hits to lead the Hoosiers offensive attack. Monroe had a double, run batted in, run scored and a walk. Stillians went 2 for 5, with one of the hits being her first career triple. Stillians also had two runs batted in and a run scored in the game.\n"I have a lot of confidence in my bat right now," Stillians said of her hitting. "I am pretty relaxed when I get up to bat and it all kind of works out."\nIU returns to action tomorrow at 4 p.m. when they host No. 13 Michigan in Big Ten action at the IU Softball Field.
(03/29/02 4:27am)
After winning the Indiana Invitational, the IU softball team takes the field today to open Big Ten competition at No. 19 Iowa at 5 p.m. The Hoosiers and Hawkeyes are also scheduled to play at noon Saturday before IU travels to Northwestern for a doubleheader starting at noon Sunday.\nIU (9-10-1) is on a four-game winning streak, while Iowa (14-12) split its two games Wednesday against Illinois State. Northwestern (9-8-1) won five of its eight games at the Hawaii Invitational last weekend.\nJunior third baseman/catcher Stormy Hanson will lead the Hoosiers. She's hitting .446 with a career-high five home runs and 13 RBIs. In last weekend's games, Hanson went 4-for-10 with a double and two home runs, one being a game-winning shot.\nSenior catcher/third baseman Brooke Monroe is also swinging a hot bat after the Indiana Invitational. Monroe was hitting just .302 heading into the weekend but went 4-for-8 in three games to improve her average to .326. \n"My confidence (is better), seeing more at-bats and just having confidence," Monroe said of her improved success at the plate.\n"I think anytime you win it is going to help you," Stephenson said. "Losing is a bad habit and winning is a good habit but I think that they are both habits. I think us winning four games in row is a really good habit"
(03/08/02 6:09pm)
After a successful showing at the Big Ten Championships, the IU women divers return to action March 15-16 at the NCAA Zone Diving Championships. The Hoosiers regional zone is competing at Purdue's Boilermaker Aquatic Center.\nAt the Big Ten Championships, the Hoosiers had all six of their competitors score team points on both the one- and three-meter boards. Junior Sara Reiling finished first-place in the 1-meter and platform events. The IU divers compiled 131 team points in the two scored events at Big Tens -- the one- and three-meter springboards.\nSophomore Cassandra Cardinell thinks the Hoosiers' showing at the Big Ten Championships will propel them to success next weekend.\n"Big Tens was a big confidence booster for all of us and helped us realize how good we can be," she said. "It gave us a lot of self-confidence, and (made us) feel like that we do belong to go to NCAAs. That alone is a big aspect of trying to make it to NCAAs."\nDespite their success at Big Tens, Coach Jeff Huber believes his divers can perform better at the zone meet.\n"We typically seem to do our best diving Big Tens, (and) we tend to get better," Huber said. "I think our performance at Big Tens bodes well for us. I think our women came out of there feeling a lot more confident and hungry because nobody was really satisfied."\nThe Hoosiers' zone consists of the Big Ten schools and other teams in the Midwest. Huber expects Purdue senior Kara Hajek-Gustafson, competing on her home turf, and Michigan State senior Carly Weiden to be some of the other top athletes. Weiden defeated Reiling by .75 points to win the three-meter competition at Big Tens.\nWith the Hoosiers sending six divers to the meet, Huber expects it to be a tough competition.\n"The bottom line is that we can't miss," he said. "We (can't) go up there and chunk a dive. If we do that, we will be in good shape."\nOnly the top seven divers from IU's zone qualify for the NCAA Championships in Austin, Texas, March 21-23.\nReiling is confident the Hoosiers will find success and believes the large number of competitors IU will take to the meet will help the team perform better.\n"I think it is a bit of an intimidation for other teams because our team is so big and so good," she said. "We aren't just a big team, but we are also good. Staying together and keeping each other happy, positive and motivated and having fun will help all of us"
(03/07/02 5:50am)
Looking to improve on its 1-3-1 record in the young spring season, the IU softball team is heading to Fresno, Calif., to play six games in three days at the Hedrick's Hallowell Chevrolet Classic hosted by Fresno State.\nOf the Hoosiers' 13 scheduled games, they have played only five due to cancellations from bad weather. The Hoosiers are eager to get back on the field as they are slated to face California Polytechnic State at 3 p.m. today and San Diego State at 5 p.m.\n"This has been the worst start we have had with weather," coach Diane Stephenson said. "More than anything, we are ready to get started. We just need to play."\nOther teams in this year's event include Tennessee Tech, Baylor, Boston and host No. 10 Fresno State. IU holds a 9-4 record against Baylor, is 0-2 against Fresno State and 0-1 against Cal-Poly. The Hoosiers have never faced Tennessee Tech, Boston or San Diego State.\nIU is coming off losses to Coastal Carolina and South Florida at the South Florida Invitational. Coastal Carolina got just four hits against IU, but the Hoosiers three defensive miscues did them in as they were defeated 6-2. The Hoosiers were shutout 9-0 by South Florida and mustered only three hits, while committing two more errors.\n"We have done a lot of evaluation the last two weeks," Stephenson said. "I think I needed to give our kids a bit of a wake up call so they know what to expect; they have responded really well. We have worked a lot harder in the last ten days, and that will turn into a positive at some point in the year."\nCal-Poly comes into the match-up with the Hoosiers with an 11-6 record, while San Diego State is 9-9-1. The Hoosiers' five game total is the least of any of the seven teams. Tennessee Tech, with 11 games played, is the next lowest.\nSenior Alison Cooke thinks the inexperience could be both a positive and a negative for the Hoosiers.\n"Everyone is really excited to play because we haven't played as many games as we expected," Cooke said. "But as far as at bats and game situations, we haven't seen as many, but we have been able to work on those in practice."\nThe Hoosiers will face two nationally recognized teams: Baylor on Friday and No. 10 Fresno State on Saturday. Baylor received votes in the National Fastpitch Coaches Association Top 25 poll.\nSenior co-captain Brooke Monroe hopes the tough competition will prepare IU for a Big Ten schedule where they will see five teams that have received votes in the poll.\n"Hopefully it will make us work a lot harder," Monroe said. "We want to let people know who Indiana is and how good we could be. I think it will bring our level of play up, and we can carry that through the rest of the season"
(03/04/02 7:14am)
A second-place finish at the Big Ten Championships for the IU women's swimming and diving team, its best finish ever, wasn't all the Hoosiers wanted before they head to the NCAA Championships in Austin, Texas, later this month.\nAfter last weekend's conference championship meet, the Hoosiers had five swimmers qualified for the NCAA Championships. But they wanted three more in the form of a relay.\nAnd the Hoosiers got what they wanted over the weekend at the Indiana Open.\nAn automatic qualifying time in the 400-free relay is 3:19.71. At the Open, senior Susan Woessner, junior Anne Williams, sophomore Meghan Medendorp and freshman Erin Smith finished in 3:19.66, qualifying with a time just .05 quicker than they needed. The time also set a new school record, which had previously been set at last year's Big Ten Championships.\nWoessner swam the lead leg of the relay in 50.55, handing it over to Williams, who swam her 100 yards in a personal-best 49.47. Medendorp continued the fast pace with the fastest leg of 49.40, also a career-best in the 100-yard distance. Smith completed the event with a leg of 50.24 to secure the Hoosiers' qualification. Woessner was already qualified for NCAAs in the 100- and 200-yard backstroke events, so Williams, Medendorp and Smith are added to the Hoosiers list of NCAA qualifiers.\n"It is huge for us to get the relay in," Medendorp said. "There are going to be so many people there cheering now, and I am really excited for everyone that is going."\nIU coach Dorsey Tierney echoed Medendorp's comments on the importance of the Hoosiers qualifying a relay team.\n"More than anything it gave peace of mind to those four young ladies," Tierney said. "Their time would have won Big Tens; it was a fantastic job by all of them."\nWilliams and Medendorp also swam to personal season-best times in the 50-yard freestyle, with Williams edging Medendorp by .03 with a time of 23.41. Both times are NCAA provisional qualifying times. Williams also posted a provisional qualifying time in the 100-yard free, finishing in 50.98.\nTierney thought Williams' performances were important to boost her confidence heading to NCAAs.\n"Anne gets it done every day; her performance last week was sub-par for her, and she just needed another week," Tierney said. "This is huge for her confidence. She had her best-ever split on the relay and swam great in the 50-free."\nSmith also competed in the 100-yard butterfly, swimming to a career best 54.84, only .32 off an automatic qualifying time. The time also broke the school record of 54.90, which had been the longest-standing Hoosier record, dating back to the 1997 season.\n"I could feel the team chemistry all week and knew we were going to qualify the relay," she said. "I really can't believe that as a freshman I get to go to NCAAs. I really feel lucky and honored that I am going to be there with all of my teammates."\nThe Hoosiers will return to action when they head to the NCAA Championships Mar. 21-23 at Texas' Lee & Joe Jamail Swimming Center.
(02/25/02 6:15am)
Ann Arbor, Mich. -- Going into Saturday evening's final session of the Big Ten Women's Swimming and Diving Championships, IU knew what it needed to do claim the Big Ten title. \nThe Hoosiers led second place Penn State 429-416.50 heading into the last six events.\nA second place finish and school-record swim by sophomore Sarah Fiden and eighth place for senior Erin Rice in the 1650-yard freestyle padded the Hoosiers lead. Senior team captain Susan Woessner swam to a 1:56.58 school record in the 200-yard backstroke to claim victory. \nBut Penn State's four swimmers in the two finals heats brought the Nittany Lions within 5.5 at 477-471.50.\nThe Hoosiers held the close lead through the 100-yard freestyle behind a third place finish by sophomore Meghan Medendorp, but Penn State claimed the lead 512.50-499. \nNittany Lion sophomore Corrie Clark won the 200-yard breaststroke, and Penn State extended its lead to 560.50-515\nThe next event was the 200-yard butterfly. IU had five swimmers in the 200-fly final heats, compared to the Lions' one in the consolation final.\nA second place finish by junior Kristy Martin, sixth by junior Tina Gretlund, ninth by freshman Erin Smith, and 13th and 14th by juniors Jenny Bechem and Maggie Helmers helped IU close the lead to 1.5 points at 562.50-561. \nThe 400-yard freestyle relay was the final event, and the Hoosiers needed to place ahead of Penn State to claim the Big Ten title.\n"We were confident heading into the relay," IU swimming head coach Dorsey Tierney said of the Hoosiers chances in the relay. "Our girls have been great on the relays and we thought if we could get out early we could beat them."\nIU had a faster seed time in the event heading into Big Ten's, but Penn State had defeated the Hoosiers in the head-to-head competition in the event.\nPenn State swimming head coach Bill Dorenkott admitted he was tense heading into the relay.\n"I was nervous as heck," Dorenkott said. "We had four years of hard work tied up in one relay race."\nIU's quartet of junior Anne Williams, Woessner, Medendorp and Smith took position in lane five; right next the Penn State's team of junior Kristin Weinhold, senior Barbara Mulshine, freshman Dierdre Dlugonski and senior Piper Chamberlin in lane six.\nThe Hoosiers led the Lions by nearly a second after each leg of the relay and appeared to be Big Ten Champs as Smith beat Chamberlin to the wall at the end. \nBut it was announced the times were unofficial. Referees conferred and determined IU was disqualified, giving Penn State a 594.50-561 victory. The final score was the third closest finish in Big Ten Championship history.\nA disappointed group of Hoosiers gathered behind the starting blocks and broke into the IU fight song and all teams fans in the crowd clapped along, approving of the Hoosiers hard work.\n"We were the hardest working team out there, and our girls swam their hearts out tonight," Tierney said.\nIU and Penn State battled throughout the four-day competition. Woessner led the Hoosier swimmers with wins in the 100-yard backstroke and 200-yard backstroke. Her time of 53.59 to lead off the 400-yard medley relay set an all-time conference record for the 100-back and was the 14th-fastest time in American history in the event.\nThe Hoosiers depth prevailed in the 400-yard individual medley as the Hoosiers went 1-2-3. Sophomore Brooke Taflinger set a school record with a time of 4:16.78 while teammates Martin and Gretlund took second and third. Combined, the Hoosiers broke nine school records and posted four NCAA automatic qualifying times.\nWoessner was also named the Big Ten Swimmer of the Year and Tierney claimed her second consecutive Big Ten Coach of the Year award after leading the Hoosiers to their best finish since the championships has been a Big Ten sanctioned event. Woessner, Taflinger, Fiden and junior diver Sara Reiling were all named to the Big Ten All-Conference team.\nThe Hoosier divers posted as impressive of display as the IU swimmers throughout the competition.\nIU had four of the eight divers that qualified for the one-meter finals and three of the eight qualifiers for the three-meter competition.\nThe Hoosier divers were led by Reiling who won the one-meter and platform competitions and placed second in the three-meter event, just .75 points behind Michigan State senior Carly Weiden. The two crowns give Reiling five Big Ten titles and her third in three tries on the platform. The titles also helped Reiling claim the Big Ten Diver of the Championship award.\nReiling's score of 307.00 in the one-meter event was an IU Big Ten pool record. She thought the atmosphere of the one-meter competition, with four IU finalists, had a practice-like feeling and helped her reign victorious.\n"Having half our team (in the finals) made it a lot more like practice, and we all dive real well when we have a practice setting in our head," Reiling said. "Along with all the swimmers cheering us on, it was just like our home environment."\nAll of IU's six divers scored points in both the one and three-meter competitions. IU head diving coach Jeff Huber was elated for Reiling and said all the performances were impressive.\n"I am very pleased for Sara (Reiling), it was nice for her to perform well," Huber said. "She did a nice job with some of her tougher dives like we had hoped she would. All the girls we pretty excited, there was a lot of energy. It is pretty hard to get that many team members into finals in one event in our sport, like we did on the one-meter."\nDespite falling just short of their first Big Ten title, the Michigan public address announcer said it best in awarding the Hoosiers second place, "and the best second place team in the nation, Indiana"
(02/20/02 6:00am)
IU finished third in last year's Big Ten Women's Swimming & Diving Championships, and head swimming Coach Dorsey Tierney admits she thinks her squad snuck up on the rest of the pack.\nThis year it won't be so easy, and Tierney and the Hoosiers know it. But Tierney hopes last year's experience will help her squad.\n"The level of expectation has risen quite a bit," she said. "Last year I think our overall performance was a little bit unexpected by the rest of the conference. Going into it (this year), I am not thinking about winning or placing; it is more a matter of everyone stepping up and putting together races that they are capable of. If we do that, the rest will take care of itself."\nThe No. 19 Hoosiers enter the meet with a 7-1-1 overall dual record and a 4-1-1 record in the conference. IU's lone defeat came at the hands of No. 14 Penn State.\nWith six teams ranked between No. 14 and No. 21, the conference meet is shaping up to be a competitive one. Along with the Hoosiers and Nittany Lions, other top contenders include No. 16 Northwestern and No. 18 Michigan, last year's champion.\nTierney said she believes the Hoosiers are a long shot and said will take a team effort to be in the running.\n"I can't predict what any other teams will do," Tierney said. "We have an outside shot. It would take a perfect meet for us (to win); we need a total team effort."\nThe meet kicks off this evening at 7 p.m. in Ann Arbor, Mich., at Michigan's Canham Natatorium. Tonight, swimmers will compete in the 200-yard medley relay and the 800-yard freestyle relay. The rest of the competition will take place Thursday through Saturday with pre-lims at 11 a.m. and finals at 7 p.m. each day.\nIU will be led by sophomore Sarah Fiden, junior Tina Gretlund and senior Susan Woessner. Heading into the meet, Fiden has the second-fastest time in the conference in the 500-yard freestyle and third-fastest time in the mile. Gretlund has posted the fastest times in both the 200-yard and 400-yard individual medley and is third quickest in the 200-yard butterfly.\nWoessner has the fastest time in the conference in the 100-yard backstroke and is second in the 200-back. She has high hopes for her last conference championships.\n"I want to go out with a bang," Woessner said. "As a team, hopefully we can get at least a top-two finish. If everyone is on I think we can win, and that would definitely be a great accomplishment to have during my senior year."\nWhile the swimmers battle it out in the pool, the six Hoosier divers will take on the Big Ten's best on the boards.\nHead diving coach Jeff Huber said he thinks experience will be a factor for his talented squad.\n"Experience will help, but in some cases some of the dives we are throwing we haven't ever done before in big meets," Huber said. "That will be an X-factor for us -- how well we handle our newer dives. If we can handle that, we should have a good meet."\nThe Hoosiers' six divers are second-most of the 11 squads, with Minnesota having nine divers entered and host Michigan also having six competitors.\nHuber knows the depth of his squad could hinder the Hoosiers more than helping them.\n"I've already told our women that if they miss even a little bit, they are going to get hammered hard (by the judges), but they have to be aggressive," Huber said.\nJunior Sara Reiling will be returning to action for IU in the Big Ten's after red-shirting last year to compete in the 2000 Summer Olympics. Reiling is a two-time Big Ten champion on the platform. She also won the one-meter competition as a freshman while finishing second on the one-meter and fourth on the three-meter her sophomore season.\nReiling said the Hoosiers will be ready for the competition and is energized to be back in the conference's elite competition.\n"Going into Big Tens, I'm excited," Reiling said. "A couple of weeks ago, I was a little ahead of myself, thinking too far in advance. We will be ready. Jeff (Huber) is real good at timing us and getting ready to go. I think it is going to be fun"
(02/12/02 6:31am)
When senior diver Erin Quinn was in high school at Sylvania Northview in Sylvania, Ohio, she was a two-time Ohio state champion and an All-American. Her success led Quinn to be pursued by IU, Minnesota, Ohio State, Alabama and Arkansas in the recruiting process.\nQuinn eventually chose IU because of its strong team and diving coach Jeff Huber's success in creating national-caliber divers.\n"(Both when I was getting recruited) and now we have a really strong team, with lots of close friends," Quinn said. "Huber's program of turning divers with little experience and making them into national-level divers is what impressed me the most about coming here."\nQuinn's success from high school has carried over to her Hoosier career, as she has placed no lower than third on the 1-meter and ninth on 3-meter in her three Big Ten Championship competitions. She also placed second on platform the two years she competed in it at Big Tens.\nNow, with her last Big Ten Championships meet just more than a week away, Quinn is trying to ease the pressure on herself and not really think about her collegiate career coming to a close.\n"I am trying not to really think about (Big Tens) as my last one, because I feel like I might put added pressure on myself," Quinn said. "I just want to go and have fun. It is definitely sad, but there are some good and bad things about being done."\nWhile success at the Big Ten level has been nice for Quinn, she hasn't stopped there. At the 2001 U.S. Diving Outdoor Nationals, she was awarded the Athlete Performance Award for Outstanding Diving. She also garnered the Women's All-Around Award after taking second on the 3-meter, fourth on platform, fourth on synchronized 3-meter and third on synchronized platform.\nEach having had vast national and international experience, junior teammate Sara Reiling said Quinn is a good influence and brings a different perspective to preparation than Huber is always able to provide.\n "We feed off each other because we have both had a fair amount of success; we try to use it to our advantage," Reiling said. "Hearing things from Erin in a different perspective can help a lot sometimes.\n "It may not be the little thing that is going to click for you, but taking a comment from Erin with all her success, it is an honest comment, and I know she knows what it is like (at the higher levels of competition)."\nFollowing her career at IU, Quinn wants to continue diving. She plans on training at IU for two years and hopes to make this year's U.S. World Championship Team and the 2004 U.S. Olympic Team. Quinn is an elementary education major and envisions teaching but is leaving her career options open.\nEverything hasn't been easy for Quinn, who has battled injuries during her career as a Hoosier. She sat out the 1999-2000 season with a torn ligament in her elbow. She also missed much of the fall season this year with nagging injuries.\nNonetheless, Huber said Quinn's strength has allowed her to overcome adversity.\n"She has been a great team captain and leader for us," Huber said. "She is very tough mentally and physically and has a great positive attitude. She has had to overcome a number of injuries and her toughness has helped her get through that.\n"She's kind of a coach's dream"
(02/06/02 5:47am)
After wrapping up its dual-meet season with a sweep of Kentucky and Cincinnati last weekend, the IU women's swimming and diving team has two and a half weeks before its next competition.\nIt is a needed break for the Hoosiers who have competed the last four weekends and will now get the time to refocus and make final preparations for their most important event to date -- the Big Ten Championships. \nSchool record holder in the 200-yard breaststroke, sophomore Brooke Taflinger thinks what the team is able to work on over the break is critical to IU's success at the championships.\n"It is going to be crucial," Taflinger said of the break. "Now is the time to rest our bodies and to start preparing for Big Tens by getting our minds in tune with our bodies. It will allow us to rest and prepare and focus on all the little things like starts and turns so that we will be great at Big Tens."\nThe No. 19 Hoosiers finished their dual meet season with an overall record of 7-1-1; 4-1-1 against Big Ten opponents.\nDespite what swimming head coach Dorsey Tierney considered a "sluggish" meet for the Hoosiers this past weekend, Tierney is pleased overall with the progress her team has made.\n"This is where all the hard work culminates," Tierney said. "You beat up your body for six months (in training), and then rest for two or three weeks. If you have done the work for the past six months, it kind of takes care of itself. I feel very good about where we are at right now. Now it is time to trust yourself and swim with confidence and be the best we can be three weeks from now."\nJunior swimmer Kristy Martin said most of the minor details should already be in place for the Hoosiers, but the break would give the squad a chance to get ready for the conference championship.\n"It's pretty much all automatic now, because we work on it every practice," Martin said. "But we will be resting a lot, and it will help us mentally prepare and rest our bodies a little bit."\nMuch like the swimmers, the Hoosier divers will utilize the break from competition to prepare for Big Tens and make sure all the little things are in order for them to be at their best.\nSenior Erin Quinn was especially enthused by the break, knowing it would give the Hoosiers a chance to rest and focus on their primary goal of the year, the Big Ten Championships.\n"I am excited to have a break, and I think it is going to help a lot," Quinn said. "I feel like everything has been geared toward the weekend (competitions). We have to pace ourselves throughout the week, and we are tired by the end of the week. When the meets come we feel exhausted. It's going to be nice to have the break and be able to train without having to be energized for the weekend."\nMichigan's Canham Natatorium will play host to this year's Big Ten Championships, which are scheduled to kick off 7 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 20 with the 200-yard medley relay and 800-yard freestyle relay events. Thursday, Feb. 21 thru Saturday, Feb 23 will see the teams compete in multiple events each day with preliminaries starting at 11 a.m. daily and finals beginning at 7 p.m.