The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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INSIDE MICHIGAN ATHLETICS ing and all of that. Just to have a guy that's proven, he's won everywhere he's been as a coach and I don't think it would be any different if he went to Michi- gan. I would say 'yeah.' Go Blue." — Former Michigan cornerback and Heisman winner and current Oakland Raider Charles Woodson when asked if he'd rather have Jim Harbaugh as U-M's next coach or Oakland's MAIZE AND BLUE NOTEBOOK COLE SOARS ONTO HONOR SQUAD Michigan volleyball sophomore middle blocker Abby Cole has risen above the net all season, and she's taking it to new heights. The second-year Wolverine has been named to the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) All-North Region team. That leaves the door open for possible AVCA All-America honors, which are announced in the middle of December. Cole, a unanimous All-Big Ten performer, averaged 3.67 kills per set and led the Wolverines with 103 blocks through Dec. 9. She stood fourth in the conference in points per set (4.26) and fifth in hitting percentage (.359). She set career highs with 24 kills in each of Michigan's matches against Indi- ana this year. Cole also tied a career best with nine blocks in the Sept. 27 match against the Hoosiers. Cole made the All-Big Ten Freshman squad a year ago, and has continued to increase her skill set, not to mention the accompanying attention she's receiving. FRESHMAN MAKING WAVES IN THE POOL Michigan freshman swimmer Gillian Ryan is making a splash for the No. 12-ranked Wolverines, recently rewriting the record books. She set a pair of school records at the AT&T Winter National Championships Dec. 3-6 in Greens- boro, N.C. Ryan swam the 200-yard freestyle in 1:45.24, and the 500-yard freestyle in 4:37.78 — both Michigan record times. The effort allowed Ryan to garner Co- Freshman of the Week honors from the Big Ten, along with Indiana's Kennedy Goss. She boosted Michigan's effort at the event by scoring 49 points, including second-place finishes in the 500 and the 1,650-yard freestyle. Ryan's time in the 1,650 (15:54.31) marks the second-fastest ever by a Wolverine. Emily Brunemann holds that mark, with a clocking of 15:51.29, set back in 2008. The time in the 1,650-yard freestyle represents an NCAA qualifying time, while the efforts in the 200 and 500 are NCAA provisional times. TRIO EARNS CAPTAIN SPOTS FOR WATER POLO Michigan's water polo squad tabbed two seniors and a junior to serve as cap-