The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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NOVEMBER 2019 THE WOLVERINE 11 INSIDE MICHIGAN ATHLETICS PAIR OF WOLVERINE GRAPPLERS PLACE FIFTH IN THE WORLD Two Wolverines who were sup- posed to be fifth-year seniors this season, but are instead tak- ing Olympic redshirts, established themselves among the best wres- tlers in the entire world in late Sep- tember. Stevan Micic and Myles Amine both placed fifth at the 2019 UWW Senior World Champi- onships in Nur Sultan, Kazakhstan. Micic, representing Serbia and wrestling at 57 kilograms (125.7 pounds), went 3-2 and both of his losses came by one point. Amine, wrestling for San Marino at 86 kilograms (189.6 pounds), won four straight matches to reach the semifinals, including an upset of a four-time world bronze med- alist from Belarus, who was ranked ninth in the world, and a former world silver medalist. His first loss came against the eventual cham- pion, who is now a three-time Olympic and world champion. Micic and Amine, who are three- time NCAA All-Americans, quali- fied their countries for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, despite it being the senior world debut for both. They will become the first- ever freestyle wrestlers from their respective countries to ever compete in the Olympics. The two, along with classmate Logan Massa and redshirt junior Kanen Storr, will all sit out this college season as Olympic redshirts. Massa and Storr will both look to make the U.S. squad at the 2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials on April 4-5, 2020. A pair of Michigan alums, Malik Amine (65 kilograms, representing San Marino) and Adam Coon (130 kilograms, representing USA in Greco-Roman style) were also in action at the World Championships but did not place. SENIOR LACROSSE STANDOUT INCLUDED ON U.S. NATIONAL TEAM ROSTER U-M senior Molly Garrett was one of 27 players named to the U.S. Women's National Team for the 2019 Fall Classic in early October. She was one of just five collegiate players on the squad for the event that ran Oct. 18-20 in Sparks, Md. The reigning world champion U.S. team beat 2017 silver medal winner Canada twice and also topped defending NCAA champion Maryland in a scrimmage. Garrett, a midfielder from Winter Springs, Fla., was one of four Wolverines who started all 20 games at U-M last year, when she served as a team captain. She posted 29 goals, which tied for fourth on the team, and was named to the Big Ten All-Tournament team, in addition to being the first U-M player ever named to the Tewaaraton Watch List for the nation's top player. ERIK BAKICH EARNS ANOTHER NATIONAL COACH OF THE YEAR AWARD After leading his Wolverines to the College World Series Finals in 2019, U-M head coach Erik Bakich was named the National Coach of the Year by D1Baseball.com and the Na- tional Collegiate Baseball Writers Association. The College Baseball Foundation's honor in that category didn't come out until Sept. 24, but they agreed with the oth- ers and dubbed Bakich as the nation's top college mentor, awarding him the Skip Bertman National Coach of the Year award. "Erik's ball club was the talk of college baseball in June, from the regional win in Corvallis all the way to the College World Series Finals," Mike Gustafson, president and CEO of the College Baseball Foundation and chair of the Bertman Award committee said. Last season marked the Wolverines' third appearance in the CWS finals and its eighth trip to Omaha, while the team posted a 50-22 final mark, its most wins since 1987. Thanks to new NCAA rules that allow two fall scrimmages, U-M hosted Dayton Oct. 20 and then will rematch the Col- lege World Series Finals with a trip to Vanderbilt Nov. 10. — Ryan Tice Michigan wrestlers Stevan Micic (pictured) and Myles Amine both placed fifth in the world at the UWW Senior World Championships in late September and qualified their respective countries for the 2020 Olympics. PHOTO BY DARYL MARSHKE/COURTESY MICHIGAN PHOTOGRAPHY MAIZE AND BLUE NOTEBOOK