The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/614487
INSIDE MICHIGAN ATHLETICS MICHIGAN'S TOP OLYMPIC SPORTS PERFORMERS Sophomore men's swimmer P.J. Ransford: The Pitts- ford, N.Y., native took a silver medal in the 1,500-meter freestyle at the prestigious AT&T Winter Nationals Dec. 6, an event that draws the best swimmers in the country. Ransford clocked a 15:18.46, earning a U.S. Olympic Trials standard time by better than 30 seconds. He also took 10th in the 400-meter freestyle. Sophomore women's basketball player Katelynn Fla- herty: The Big Ten's Sixth Player of the Year award winner in 2014-15, Flaherty is making an early case for Player of the Year, averaging 21.3 points in eight games through Dec. 8. The 5-7 sophomore has scored in double figures seven times with four 20-point games, including a career- high 34-point night against USC Upstate Nov. 23 and 33 at Princeton Dec. 6. Senior track and field runner Nate Chapman: The distance and middle-distance runner was named the Big Ten Track Athlete of the Week Dec. 9 after taking first place in the 600-meter run at the Grand Valley State Holiday Open Dec. 4. Chapman ran 1:19.62, beating the field by more than two seconds while setting a new personal record. Junior track and field runner Jamie Morrissey: The middle-distance runner from Rochester, Mich., was named Big Ten Track Athlete of the Week Dec. 9 after win- ning the one-mile run at the Grand Valley State Holiday Open with a new personal best (4:44.56) five days earlier. She beat out senior teammate Gina McNamara, who was the runner-up, for the title en route to the first conference honor of her career. Junior wrestler Domenic Abounader: The reigning Big Ten champion in the 184-pound weight class, Abounader was the top Wolverine finisher at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational Dec. 4-5, taking second place in his weight class with a 5-1 record. Abounader's loss in the final was his first defeat this year; he was 8-1 through Dec. 8 and 46-20 in his career.