The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/703389
say, 'Don't you wish you'd done that?'" she noted. "In the back of my mind, of course — it's everyone's goal to win the national champion- ship, but only one team gets to. "I'm not the only one who wished I'd have won it this year. There are a lot of other teams who wished they'd have won it, but they didn't. Okla- homa did. My sister did. I was happy for her." Now, Romero finds herself in a po- sition to keep on playing. She's in the day-to-day pro grind, from one town to another, but remains mindful about a role model opportunity she readily accepts. "It's been awesome," she said. "It's hard. It's tough. It's harder than I thought it was going to be. It's been a lot of fun, adjusting and playing with so many legends. "You have all these little girls com- ing up to you. It's cool seeing the expansion of the sport. At one point we didn't have professional softball, and we didn't have it as big as it is today. These little girls look up to you, and they want to be like you. It's cool they have something to play for now." Romero will play as long as she can while looking into broadcasting for the future. She's already spoken to the Big Ten Network and made con- tact with ESPN, hoping to one day make the calls when she's no longer making the plays. For now, she's still in the game, fashioning a legend of her own. ❏ fourth in points (307) and third in steals (210). Her work as a senior made her a first- team ACWPC All-American, as well as an NCAA All-Tournament first-teamer. 4. Ronit Yurovsky, tennis — This senior from New Kensington, Pa., capped a career featuring All-Big Ten selections in every year she competed at Michigan. She saved her best for last, becoming a 2016 ITA All-Ameri- can in singles and the 2016 ITA Mid- west Region Senior of the Year. She leaves Michigan No. 3 on the school's list for all-time singles vic- tories, with 117, four years after be- coming the 2013 Big Ten Freshman of the Year. She wrapped up her career ranked No. 12 in the nation in singles — the second-highest mark by a Wol- verine ever in the sport. 5. Erin Finn, cross country – A ju- nior out of nearby West Bloomfield, Mich., Finn became an All-American for the second time during the 2015 season, reprising her 2013 selection. She wound up 19th at the NCAA Championships, despite running barefoot over the final 4,000 meters of the 6,000-meter race after getting stepped on from behind. Finn's gutsy effort helped the Wol- verines finish No. 6 in the nation. Prior to that, she became the top finisher in the Big Ten Championships for the second time in three seasons (2013 and '15). She's one of only five com- petitors in the history of the Big Ten to win multiple conference titles, joining former Wolverine Katie McGregor in that elite company. — John Borton