Three Hoosiers honored to All-Big Ten teams
It's only Wednesday, but Jill Chapman has already endured a one-of-a-kind week.
It's only Wednesday, but Jill Chapman has already endured a one-of-a-kind week.
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Frank Williams' last two games against IU were ones he'd rather forget. Half of his final season at Illinois has been far from storybook. The 6-foot-3 point guard has been under the scrutiny of the media, fans and his coach and had the struggles of his team pinned on his back.
Sunday's game at Michigan State wasn't a must-win. IU lost a 16-point lead, the game and sole possession of first place in the Big Ten. Tonight's game at Illinois is a must-win. IU can't afford anything else if it wants to stabilize chances for its first Big Ten title since 1993. The eternally optimistic Hoosiers have accepted that. Whether they come through on the plan will unfold at 7 tonight in Champaign's Assembly Hall when No. 25 IU and No. 15 Illinois tangle for the second time this season. IU routed the Fighting Illini 88-57 in the first meeting Jan. 26 behind a school, and Big Ten-record, 17 three pointers.
Freshman Murph Halasz has competed in the 200-yard butterfly nine times so far this season. He's won all of them. Now, with the Big Ten championships beginning on Friday, Halasz hopes he can not only extend that streak, but also write himself into the record books by unseating Olympian Mark Spitz for the best time in school history.
Junior College transfers have been making major impacts in big time college sports for awhile now. Would the 1990 NCAA champion UNLV Runnin' Rebels have won the basketball championship without Larry Johnson? What about IU's basketball team? Lynn Washington and William Gladness played major roles in the post near the end of Bob Knight's reign.
IU baseball has already dominated one NAIA opponent this year, but now it's Indiana Wesleyan's turn to take on the Hoosiers. The Hoosiers will face off against the Wildcats at 3 p.m. today at Sembower Field.
The IU women's tennis team was victorious over Indiana State University Sunday at the Indiana Tennis Center. The Hoosiers routed the Sycamores 7-0.
Much has changed for No. 15 Illinois since the Illini were buried by the prolific three-point shooting of the Hoosiers when No. 25 IU beat them 88-57 Jan. 26 at Assembly Hall in Bloomington. And for the Hoosiers, for that matter. Illinois (21-7, 9-5 Big Ten) found itself two games behind IU and Ohio State for first place in the Big Ten after losing to the Hoosiers in January. The Illini had opened their Big Ten season by losing two of their first three games.
Last weekend, IU Recreational Sports played host to the largest student fitness conference in the Midwest, which drew in some of the top minds and bodies in the business. Nearly 250 fitness leaders, personal trainers and passionate fitness participants from nearly 27 colleges and universities across the Midwest came to IU to share new ideas and to learn about the latest trends in the fitness industry.
Center Jill Chapman got a marriage proposal. Point guard Heather Cassady addressed half of Assembly Hall, thanking everyone from her sisters to people from her high school. Reserve center Jelena Lazic got to hear the Serbian national anthem for the first time in five years.
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- For IU, this is the one that got away. And Tom Coverdale took the blame. All of it. The junior point guard committed a foul, missed a free throw and missed a potential game-tying three pointer as time expired Sunday. IU coughed up sole possession of first place in the Big Ten, falling to Michigan State 57-54 in front of a Breslin Center crowd of 14,759.
The Frank Southern Center isn't known as one of the more luxurious facilities in the American Collegiate Hockey Association. Because of its smaller ice surface, low ceiling and, until recent renovations, inadequate lighting, "The Frank" was often jokingly referred to as "the cave" by opponents.
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.
UNIVERSITY PARK, Penn. -- The IU women's track and field team would have been in good shape if it controlled its own destiny heading into the final event of the Big Ten Indoor Championships. The event was the 4x400-meter relay, and IU broke the meet record in a time of 3:40.44.
Tragedy struck the Big Ten Men's Indoor Track and Field Championships this Saturday as Penn State sophomore Kevin Dare landed on his head while pole vaulting. The 19-year-old Dare did not regain consciousness after the fall.
With a focus on team performance, the IU women's indoor track and field team heads to Penn State this weekend to compete for the Big Ten Championship. The Hoosiers are projected to compete well across the board. Heading into the conference, 21 IU athletes are ranked in the top 10 in the Big Ten. Twelve of the 21 are ranked in the top three in their respective events.
Freshman Ryan Recht is the definition of hard work. Take this as evidence. At Fort Wayne's Homestead High School, he was the youngest winner of the Fort Wayne city tournament in its 89-year history at the tender age of 17. He went on to win the tournament three consecutive years.
The IU men's tennis team hits the court with a clash against Evansville Saturday at 9 a.m. at the Indiana Tennis Center. This marks the Hoosiers' (5-3) last non-conference match before the Big Ten season begins March 2 at Northwestern. IU has played eight matches this spring, while Evansville (1-1) has played only twice.
The IU baseball team travels to Daytona Beach, Fla., this weekend to face Bethune Cookman in a three-game series. The Wildcats are 7-4 this season and have advanced to the NCAA Regionals the past four years.
This weekend is important for the men's track and field team. The team heads to Minnesota today for the Big Ten Indoor Track and Field Championship, and IU is a title contender this season along with Minnesota, Penn State, Purdue and Wisconsin.