The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/901162
DECEMBER 2017 THE WOLVERINE 15 INSIDE MICHIGAN ATHLETICS Student-Athlete Of The Month Volleyball Junior Outside Hitter Carly Skjodt U-M junior outside hitter Carly Skjodt accomplished plenty in both the classroom and on the volleyball court in high school, and that success has carried over to her career at Michigan. She explained the impor- tance of both while also revealing what her biggest accomplishment has been in each. "In high school, we lost in the state championship [game] my sophomore and junior years," Skjodt recalled. "We came back and won it, though, my senior year, so it was great just to finally over- come that hurdle. I was also the Gatorade Player of the Year in Indiana that season. "As for the academic side of things, being named to the Academic All-Big Ten team, along with being a scholar-athlete for Michigan the past two years, has been pretty special to me." Skjodt is passionate about academics, and that combined with her athletic experience to lead her to the major she's currently studying. "I'm majoring in sports management," the junior said. "I'm interested in math and sports are obviously something I'm passionate about, so it's great when you can combine those two things. "I have more of a business brain, but I also know the management side that involves marketing, promotions, sales and things like that. It just combines my passion for sports and management." Skjodt admits the balance of being an athlete and taking on a heavy aca- demic workload is not easy, but she has found the key to successfully doing it. "There's a quote that says, 'Do what you need to do before you do what you want to do,' and I live by that," she revealed. "I make sure I get my work done way ahead of schedule or whenever I have free time. "I also get tutors and stay ahead of the game as much as possible. Getting things done early and as quickly as possible is something that has really benefited me." Her academic strategy has certainly paid off on the volleyball court in 2017 — she was named a co-captain prior to the season, and leads the team in several statistical categories through Nov. 14, including points (400) and kills (361). While volleyball is important in her life, Skjodt made it clear how much a degree from U-M would mean to her. "Everyone obviously knows it, but Michigan is an amazing academic school," she said. "Being here is such a great opportunity for me. Playing volleyball and eventually earning a degree from Michigan would be incredibly beneficial." With that being said, Skjodt confirmed she'd like to continue her playing career once she graduates. "Playing overseas is definitely on my list of possibilities," she explained. "If not, though, I'd like to move to a big city and see what my opportunities are there — I'm not 100 percent sure what I want to do quite yet, though." — Austin Fox Skjodt is a team co-captain who has started all 28 matches this year, played in a team-high 100 sets and leads the team with 361 kills through Nov. 14. PHOTO COURTESY MICHIGAN ATHLETIC MEDIA RELATIONS MEN'S TENNIS DUO WINS BIG TEN INDOOR DOUBLES CHAMPIONSHIP Freshman Harrison Brown and senior Da- vis Crocker won five consecutive matches Oct. 27-29 at the MSU Tennis Center in East Lansing, Mich., on their way to the doubles title at the Big Ten Indoor Singles and Dou- bles Championships. Brown and Crocker cruised through the first two rounds, defeating Matt Galush and Noah Sutter of Penn State (8-4), and Jasper Koenen and Jack Winkler of Michigan State (8-3). They then picked up consecutive tie- breaking victories in the quarterfinals and semifinals to advance to the final, where they defeated Will Davis and Piotr Smielana of Iowa (8-4). Brown and Crocker weren't the only two Wolverines who had success in the pre- season, though. Senior Alex Knight won the consolation singles bracket at the Oracle ITA National Fall Championships in early November. SEVERAL FIELD HOCKEY WOLVERINES GARNER CONFERENCE ACCOLADES Several Wolverines garnered Big Ten ac- colades when the conference released their postseason awards Nov. 1. Senior midfielder/backer Katie Trombetta and senior goalkeeper Sam Swenson led the way, claiming the league's Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year awards, respectively. Trombetta also earned All-Big Ten first- team honors for a second straight season, while Swenson (also a first-teamer) gar- nered all-conference honors for a third straight year. Sophomore midfielder/forward Meg Dowthwaite joined the aforementioned players on the all-conference first team, while fifth-year senior midfielder/forward Esther de Leijer earned second-team rec- ognition. Fifth-year senior midfielder Casie Ammer- man was selected as Michigan's recipient of the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award, which is given to the student-athletes who distin- guish themselves through ethical behavior, while demonstrating academic success and good citizenship. In addition, head coach Marcia Pankratz was named the Big Ten Coach of the Year for the sixth time in her 18th year at the helm. The Wolverines won the Big Ten reg- ular-season and tournament champion- ships. — Austin Fox