The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/315684
OLYMPIC SPORTS MEN'S TENNIS BOUNCED FROM THE FIRST ROUND AT NCAAS The Michigan men's tennis team seemed just on the cusp of taking the next step throughout the 2014 season. The Wolverines had terrific highs, beating then-No. 11 Mississippi 4-3 in the ITA Kick-Off Jan. 25 and toppling then-No. 18 Vanderbilt 5-2 Feb. 23. But they also hit too many stumbling blocks, like a 5-2 loss April 11 at a Min- nesota team that finished 11-13 on the year. The Wolverines (16-13 overall, 6-5 Big Ten) finished sixth in the final league standings and had an impres- sive showing at the Big Ten Tourna- ment, topping Wisconsin (4-0) and No. 24 Penn State (4-2) before falling to eventual runner-up Illinois (4-0) in the semifinals. It was enough to earn an at-large berth into the NCAA Tournament, but Michigan lost 4-2 to No. 28 Okla- homa State in the first round. The Wolverines took the doubles point when senior Shaun Bernstein and freshman Kevin Wong posted an 8-5 win, and juniors Alex Petrone and Michael Zhu also won 8-5. Senior Alex Buzzi also claimed a win in the No. 5 singles spot (2-6, 6-3, 6-2). But the Cowboys took the remain- ing four points. Alex Petrone, ranked No. 85 nationally, lost the No. 1 sin- gles match (7-6, 5-4). After the season, Michigan parted ways with head coach Bruce Berque, who went 159-104 in 10 seasons with the Wolverines. Berque led Michigan to three second-place finishes in Big Ten play and nine straight NCAA Tournament appearances. MEN'S LACROSSE PLAYS IN FIRST-EVER POSTSEASON GAME After making the transition from a club-level team to Division I before the 2012 season, the Michigan men's lacrosse team knew the road to sus- tained success would be a long, tough journey. In their first two seasons, the Wol- verines went a combined 2-26. This year, the Wolverines proved that they are building and progressing. They went 5-11, including the program's first-ever win in Eastern College Ath- letic Conference play. The Wolverines toppled Ballarmine 11-10 March 15 in Louisville, Ky., to claim the historic ECAC win. Fresh- man attacker Mikie Schlosser netted the game-winning goal with the clock winding down in overtime to seal the victory. Michigan also held tight with some of the best teams in the country. The Wolverines nearly upset then-No. 15 Cornell March 1, losing in overtime 15-14. They also battled with then- No. 1 Maryland March 18 before losing 13-5, and nearly pulled off an upset over then-No. 15 Fairfield (9-8) April 5. The Wolverines earned a spot in the ECAC Tournament for the first time, playing Fairfield in the opening round. After a scoreless opening quarter, Fair- field pulled away with seven goals in the fourth quarter to win 12-5. ❏