The Wolverine

January 2013

The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports

Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/99673

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 15 of 83

  inside michigan athletics Michigan's Top Olympic Sports Performers Men's swimming and diving senior Miguel Ortiz: The Tokyo, Japan, native was named the Big Ten Swimmer of the Week Dec. 4 after earning three individual victories at the Hawkeye Invitational. He touched the wall in first place in the 100yard butterfly (46.79 seconds), 50-yard freestyle (19.83 seconds) and 100-yard backstroke (46.67 seconds), and placed second in the 100-yard freestyle (43.82 seconds). He also helped the Wolverines to wins in the 200-yard freestyle relay, and the 200- and 400-yard medley relays. Women's soccer senior Haley Kopmeyer: One of four Wolverines named to the All-Great Lakes Region team, the Troy, Mich., native was awarded NSCAA All-America honors, becoming the fifth player in program history to garner such distinction and the first since 2002. U-M's starting goalie in 24 matches, Kopmeyer allowed just 17 goals, permitting only 0.68 markers per game while boasting an .848 save percentage. She recorded a Big Ten-best 13 shutouts in being named the conference's Goalkeeper of the Year. Wrestling junior Dan Yates: Michigan's captain, the 174-pounder placed second at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, going 4-0 before bowing out before the final with a knee injury. Ranked No. 14 nationally in his weight class, Yates returned to the mat Dec. 8 to help lead U-M to a 32-3 victory over Eastern Michigan. The Hesperia, Mich., native remained undefeated with his 6-2 individual win, and sported a 10-0 record through Dec. 16. He and the Wolverines will wrestle again at the Midlands Championships Dec. 29-30. Field hockey freshman Lauren Thomas: The Aylesbury, England, native was named one of the top rookies in college field hockey this past season. Thomas finished fifth on the team with 12 points, including five goals, scoring four times in U-M's final eight games in propelling the Wolverines to a 7-1 mark in those contests. For her efforts, Thomas was also named second-team All-Big Ten and second-team All-West Region by the nation's coaches. Women's swimming and diving senior Adrienne Bicek: Named the Big Ten Swimmer of the Week Dec. 4, Bicek earned four top-three finishes at the Hawkeye Invitational, winning the 1,650-yard freestyle with a time of 16:13.51. She also placed second in the 500-yard freestyle (4:43.28), third in the 400-yard individual medley (4:16.04) and third in the 200-yard butterfly (2:01.13), while helping U-M's 800-yard freestyle relay to a victory. The Downers Grove, Ill., native now has two individual triumphs this season. 16  the wolverine    January 2013 Maize And Blue Notebook Something To Prove • The Michigan women's gymnastics team, which begins its season Jan. 4 when it faces No. 9 Oregon State and BYU, has been picked to finish second in the Big Ten by the league's coaches. Nebraska, which took home the 2012 team title in its inaugural season in the Big Ten, was named the league's top team. The Wolverines have won 18 of the past 21 conference crowns, but placed fourth a year ago, equaling a fourth-place finish in 2006 that stands as U-M's lowest since placing sixth in 1990. In the Cornhuskers, the Maize and Blue finally have legitimate competition in the Big Ten. Directors' Cup • In a Dec. 13 update, Michigan ranked second nationally in the Directors' Cup with 265.0 points. The Wolverines scored 75 points in women's cross country with a fifth-place finish nationally, 51 points in men's cross country (23rd), 25 in field hockey (ninth), 64 points in women's soccer (ninth) and 50 points in men's soccer (17th). The Directors' Cup will release its final fall standings Jan. 10, following the conclusion of the football and volleyball seasons. U-M should score significant points in volleyball after the team qualified for the Final Four, and will earn points in football with a top-25 finish. North Carolina leads the country presently with 292.0 points. TheWolverine.com's Facebook Feed Michigan fans can find The Wolverine on Facebook at: Facebook.com/TheWolverineMagazine. This month we asked followers if the Big Ten seeks to add two more teams to reach 16, who should it add and why? Mike Suchowolec: "If we go to four big conferences of 20, I'd start with Georgia Tech, Florida State, Texas and Notre Dame. Georgia Tech for the Atlanta market, Florida State for the Florida market, Texas and Notre Dame for obvious reasons." Dhruv Sud: "Cincinnati and Pittsburgh. I'd like to see Ohio State and Penn State get some serious in-state competition for recruiting." Jason Ceo: "North Carolina and Duke or Virginia. They are all great academic schools." Lee Thompson: "Vanderbilt because its program is getting going and they have great academics, and Syracuse because it's Syracuse." Paul Schoessler: "Oklahoma and Oklahoma State. I want to add schools that bring football respect unlike Maryland and Rutgers." Steve Cheesemeister: "Florida State and Texas to open up the two biggest football states in the country. Wishful thinking I know." Scott Fader: "I was all for Notre Dame until they decided to stop playing Michigan in favor of ACC schools, so I said Louisville, Florida State and Georgia Tech because they're all solid programs and have good recruiting territories." Charles Northrop: "How about the opposite of adding — go back to 10." Brandon Moodispaugh: "Quit watering down the Big Ten. Add somebody worth adding — Texas, Oklahoma, Florida State or Notre Dame."

Articles in this issue

Links on this page

Archives of this issue

view archives of The Wolverine - January 2013