The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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INSIDE MICHIGAN ATHLETICS Men's swimming and diving junior Miguel Ortiz: TOP PERFORMERS OF THE MONTH MICHIGAN'S One of Michigan's top sprinters, Ortiz has recorded U-M's fastest times in the 100-yard freestyle (43.57 seconds) and 100-yard backstroke (46.56 seconds). The Tokyo, Japan, native recorded both times in earning first-place indi- vidual event finishes, along with relay wins in the 200-yard medley and the 400-yard free- style, to lift No. 1 Michigan to a victory at the Hawk- eye Invitational in early December. Women's basketball junior Kate Thompson: The Plymouth, Minn., native has es- tablished herself as Michigan's top re- serve this season, averaging 9.9 points per game coming off the bench for the Maize and Blue. In December, she scored in double figures in back-to- back wins over Iowa State (15 points) and Detroit (16), had 14 points in a loss to Eastern Michigan, and added 12 points in a Dec. 17 win over Indiana State while adding 14 rebounds, 10 assists and six blocks during the four-game stretch. Women's swimming and diving senior Caitlin Dauw: The St. Charles, Ill., native added to her impressive haul this season with a pair of individual event wins at the Hawkeye Invitational Dec. 2-4, giving her six titles in her senior year. Dauw claimed first in both the 100- (53.00 seconds) and 200-yard (1:457.42) butterfly races. Dauw also helped U-M to four relay victories, in the 200- and 400-yard medley swims and the 200- and 400-yard freestyle events. Wrestling redshirt sophomore Eric Grajales: A promising wrestler ranked among the nation's best during his prep career, Grajales earned his first collegiate tournament title with a 149-pound weight-class victory at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational Dec. 3. The Brandon, Fla., native posted a per- fect 4-0 mark, upsetting No. 4 seed Taylor Walsh of Indiana in the quarterfinals and Air Force's second- seeded Cole Von Ohlen (Grajales was the No. 5 seed) in the finals. Volleyball redshirt junior Claire McElheny: Michigan wasn't expected to ad- vance beyond the NCAA Tourna- ment first round, but the Wolverines earned a Sweet 16 berth with an up- set of No. 6 Stanford Dec. 3 thanks to a team-high 18 kills from McElheny. The 6-2 outside hitter added 13 ter- minations in a round-one victory over Baylor, and finished third on the team this season with 333 kills after notching six in a season-ending third-round loss to Florida. 12 THE WOLVERINE JANUARY 2012 Student-Athlete Of The Month Junior Men's Soccer Player Latif Alashe According to the latest U.S. News rankings, Michigan boasts the No. 5 mechanical engineering program in the country, just behind the most prestigious technological universities, such as MIT and Cal Tech. And, upon arriving in Ann Arbor, Latif Alashe thrust himself into the rigors of one of the most difficult undergraduate programs at the school. "Growing up and throughout high school, the subjects that I felt I excelled in were math and physics," said Alashe, now a junior. "So when I was coming into college and trying to make a decision, I wanted to stick with those subjects, and I felt like engineering cor- related really well with those." Juggling an intense educational schedule and soccer wasn't easy. "It was a tough transition in the first couple years, especially in the fall with all the traveling and going to games and having practices every day," Alashe said. "But you get used to knowing that whatever little free time you have, you have to spend it doing your homework, making sure you're getting everything done and getting your study- ing in. "Especially the first year, when I was doing all the prerequisite classes I had to take, like calculus and things, I would pretty much go into the Academic Center every day and get help with my homework, with the tutors they supplied there." Alashe has found a balance. He earned a starting spot during the first game of his freshman season and hasn't looked back, tallying a start in all 63 games of his Wolverine career. In the process, he earned second-team All-Big Ten and All-Big Ten Tournaments honors this year. He's also been named to the Academic All-Big Ten team in each of the last two seasons. With one more year of school, Alashe will attempt to further his soccer career at the professional rank. But, he has bigger aspirations off the pitch. "It would be nice to work for one of the automotive companies here, or maybe stay at Michigan a little longer and do a graduate program and get a higher-level degree," he said. — Andy Reid Alashe earned second-team All-Big Ten and All-Big Ten Tournament honors this year, and he's also been named to the Academic All-Big Ten team in each of the last two seasons. PHOTO COURTESY U-M SPORTS INFORMATION