Freshman freestyler David Bryant is eager to take on a Michigan team that all but ignored him during his college search. While Bryant eventually ended up at IU and placed first in the 500-yard and 1000-yard freestyles in the team's opening victory against Evansville, he sent an e-mail to the Michigan coach looking for information and never heard back. Now he and the rest of the Hoosier squad, are eager to show the Wolverines what they missed.
Junior Karie Schlukebir and sophomore Linda Tran have been tearing through the competition this year with an 11-1 record in doubles for the IU women's tennis team. This is no surprise for the duo that went 8-1 in Big Ten play last season. "They're off to a really good start this year," coach Lin Loring said. "They're doing the little things better. Their serves have been better. Their returns have been better. They've always communicated well together."
The IU women's soccer team will conclude its ninth season this weekend as it travels to Lexington, Ky. to play the Kentucky Wildcats, and come home to host the Ohio Bobcats Sunday. Neither opponent is in the Big Ten, although the battle involves two border rivals. The Hoosiers enter the weekend 7-7-1 (3-6-1) playing a Kentucky team they are 4-2 against all-time. The Wildcats are 11-6 and 5-4 in SEC conference play. This will be the first time IU has played Ohio, who enters the weekend 10-7 and 9-2 in the MAC conference.
Many teams might be discouraged going into a conference tournament after a winless conference regular season. But after a year of improvement, field hockey coach Amy Robertson and her remain positive going into the Big Ten Tournament this weekend in Evanston, Ill. The Hoosiers are the No. 7 seed. IU's most notable improvements in its second year have come in the net with junior Molly Pulkrabek and freshman Katie Kanara, keeping the Hoosiers close in nearly all their matches. Kanara broke the IU record for saves in a season, recording her 80th save in an 8-1 loss to Iowa two weeks ago. Pulkrabek is right on Kanara's heels, as she posted her 78th save of the year last weekend against Penn State.
Justin Smith has carried much of the defensive load for IU this season. The senior linebacker has 63 tackles through six games, 22 more than any other player. He leads the team in tackles for loss and has single-handedly stopped opposing offenses at times. His job just got a lot tougher. IU lost three linebackers in the past week; all three are out for the season.
There are two ways to look at IU's meeting with Northwestern tomorrow. • The Wildcats lost their last two games, proving the defending Big Ten champs are beatable. • Those two losses mean they'll be hungry for a victory. Either way you size it up, two teams with two-game losing streaks meet at Memorial Stadium Saturday, and both need to win.
The men\'s soccer team closes out its 2001 regular season Sunday, hosting the IUPUI Jaguars at Bill Armstrong Stadium. The game begins at 2 p.m. IU (11-3-1) continues to climb in the rankings, as the Oct. 29 National Soccer Coaches Association of America poll has the Hoosiers at the No. 4 position. IUPUI (7-6-2) is not ranked. IU plays the role of the favorite once again, but coach Jerry Yeagley sees IUPUI as a dangerous underdog.
Junior swimmer Brooke Taflinger is "home sweet home" in the Hoosier state. Taflinger, a native of Kokomo, went to the University of Florida for her freshman year. But she transferred to IU after her freshman year and received a release from her scholarship at Florida, making her eligible to compete for the Hoosiers this year. "I got homesick, and that played a big part of it," Taflinger said of her transfer. "When I was (at Florida) they made me not like swimming anymore. It felt more like a job than more like an activity that I choose to do." That pressure and lack of pleasure in swimming spurred Taflinger to quit the sport for six weeks until she was contacted by head coach Dorsey Tierney.
For senior and team captain Tiffany Fisher, it's been all golf for the past 10 months. Fisher has competed in 12 IU tournaments since the beginning of the year and also played during the summer.
This weekend, the men's cross country team competed in the Big Ten Championships in Illinois and finished fourth. One reason the team was able to place in the top five was the effort put forth by freshman Kurtis George.
The women's tennis doubles team of junior Karie Schlukebir and sophomore Linda Tran lost a hard-fought battle against No. 6-seeded sophomore Liina Suurvarik and junior Alesia Mikalayeva of Illinois State 8-5 in the finals of the Region IV Championships Monday.
They are new to IU, college volleyball and dorm life, and they are loving every minute of it. Christina Archibald, Stephanie Blevins, Karla Crose and Victoria Zimmerman are the four new freshmen faces this year on the volleyball team.
After Friday night's loss to Purdue eliminated the women's soccer team from a Big Ten postseason berth, the team had a chance to reflect on a season that was memorable. Although IU didn't fulfill their goal of playing in the postseason, the Hoosiers (7-7-1, 3-6-1) did have a productive and enjoyable season.
The best thing that ever happened to Henry Frazier was being told he played like "crap." That's the critique Frazier received after his performance in IU's season opener. Coach Cam Cameron told Frazier, a senior receiver, that he played soft, that he wasn't recruited to play the way he did against North Carolina State, a game in which he dropped several passes. Cameron compounded his critique by sending Frazier from first team to scout team.
If -- right now -- you think watching IU football is less exciting than watching beer ferment and blood coagulate, you're in for a long, long season next year (when senior Antwaan Randle El will be playing six positions in the NFL and not for the Hoosiers). The Antwaan Randle El Tour has only five more stops, and three of them are in Bloomington. Too bad no one (I'm calling 31,116 people in a 52,000-seat venue "no one") will get to see him. Too bad his Heisman hype fluttered after IU lost five of its first six games. Too bad Randle El is the best player no one (again, 31,116 people at a home game) gets to see.
The women's swimming and diving team opened its Big Ten season at Northwestern Saturday and competed in the Big Ten Relays competition in Evanston, Ill. on Sunday. The Hoosiers and Wildcats swam to a 150-150 tie in their dual meet at the Norris Aquatic Center, the first tie IU has had since the 1990-1991 season.
Making the transition to college is hard enough for most, but for an international student, the changes in culture and lifestyle can be overwhelming. Freshman Claire Loots has tried to ease the adjustment by taking part in one of her homeland activities, joining the IU field hockey squad. Loots came to IU via a program in her native Sint Michielsgestel, just south of Holland in the Netherlands. The program allowed her to apply to five American colleges and then select one to attend. Loots chose IU for the campus' size and diversity, not its field hockey program. Loots didn't contact head coach Amy Robertson until she was already on campus for the fall semester.
It was a cold and windy weekend in eastern Iowa with water surrounding the boats in Coralville Reservoir and rain dropping steadily from the sky during the sixth annual Big Ten Bass Fishing Classic. On Oct. 13, the rainy weather prevented the Hoosiers from catching any bass long enough to qualify. But on Sunday, as the freezing wind continued, sophomore Brian Metzler was able to reel in a large enough fish. It would prove to be the winner.
In an effort to provide the Bloomington area with more opportunities for physical fitness, the Recreational Sports Outreach Programs are working to supply families, disabled students and international students with facilities and accommodations for exercise. "Recreational sports are designed sports for everyone," said Rachel Britton, graduate assistant for Outreach Programs.
It had all the makings of a Hoosier football game when senior quarterback Antwaan Randle El dropped the ceremonial opening faceoff at Friday night's hockey game between IU and the University of Kentucky.
Solutions by The State News