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Sports

BASKETBALL

Lorbek withdraws from draft

Sarah Frank
June 19, 2003

Erazem Lorbek is going pro - again. Lorbek surprised the Spartan nation following MSU's Elite Eight appearance with what some believe a premature announcement that he would forgo his three remaining years of eligibility and enter his name in the NBA's draft. But the 6-foot-10 Slovenian will formally announce today his decision to withdraw his interest in the NBA's June 26 draft so he can pursue playing professional basketball in Europe, said his father, Radovan Lorbek, on Wednesday. Whether Lorbek will commit to the NBA in a year remains unknown. "He will play next year in Europe and he will decide from the season," Radovan Lorbek said.

BASKETBALL

Top teams fill Spartan basketball schedule

Evan Rondeau
June 18, 2003

For the first time in NCAA history, the Spartan basketball team is set to play five of the 11 winningest programs of all-time in one of the hardest nonconference schedules in school history.The Spartans will face Duke at Breslin Center, travel to Kansas, UCLA and Syracuse and play Oklahoma and Kentucky at Detroit area neutral sites - the Palace of Auburn Hills and Ford Field, respectively.Head coach Tom Izzo said in a statement this year's schedule is shaping up to be one of the toughest the Spartans have seen and one of the hardest in the nation.John Lewandowski, assistant athletic director at MSU, says the schedule against those five schools is arguably the toughest he's seen."This schedule will go down as one of the toughest in the history of college basketball, not just MSU," Lewandowski said.

SPORTS

Kryzminski places fifth, earns All-American nod

After pacing the MSU women's track and field team in distance running all season long, junior Jamie Kryzminski capped her season with a fifth-place finish in the 10,000-meter run at the 2003 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships late Thursday night. Kryzminski trumped her own school-record in Thursday's race, posting a 32:52.87 time - more than 30 seconds better than her previous best. The fifth-place finish earned her All-America recognition for the second straight season and improved on her seventh-place finish at the same event one season ago. She became the first female Spartan track and field athlete to be named an All-American in consecutive seasons. @Byline:Patrick Walters

SPORTS

Manz hurls to eleventh place at NCAA finals

As the lone participant from the MSU men's track and field team in the 2003 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, junior Steve Manz capped the season with an 11th-place finish in the shot put Friday evening. Of three tosses in the finals, Manz's final throw went 57 feet 1 1/2 inches.

SPORTS

'BasketBowl' sales on target to break record

Ticket sales for "BasketBowl" have already eclipsed the 32,000 mark, well on pace to break the attendance record for an NCAA basketball game, the MSU Athletics Department reported Saturday. "BasketBowl," an MSU-Kentucky men's basketball matchup scheduled for Dec.

SPORTS

Senior golfer on way to major LPGA tour event

MSU senior golfer Allison Fouch has a date with some of the best golfers in the nation. After shooting a 36-hole score of 153 at Tuesday's sectional qualifying tournament held in New Jersey, Fouch secured a spot in the U.S.

BASEBALL

Lugnuts land comeback win over River Bandits, 7-4

Kelly Thesier
June 11, 2003

Lansing - With so much riding on Tuesday night's game, it appeared the Lugnuts were in danger of folding to the Quad City River Bandits.But Lansing designated hitter Donny Hood was not about to let that happen.With the Lansing (36-25) trailing 4-3 in the sixth inning, Hood hit the only home run of the night to put the Lugnuts ahead for good.The game started well for the Lugnuts when in the second inning, Lansing took its first lead of the night off a wild pitch by River Bandits starter Jason Miller.

SPORTS

Lugnuts fall 5-3, lose first place

Evan Rondeau
June 11, 2003

Lansing - The Lugnuts fell to the Quad City River Bandits 5-3 in a 12 inning battle Monday at Oldsmobile Park, losing control of first place in the Eastern division for the first time since May 18.Lansing starter Justin Jones (3-3) allowed only one earned and one unearned run during the first inning, though the Lugnuts (35-25) spent most of the game playing catch-up.Quad City (28-34) hurler Scott Tyler threw a no-hitter through five innings of work, keeping the Lugnuts off the scoreboard until the fourth inning.

SPORTS

IM sports provide escape from stress

Benita Mehta
June 10, 2003

If during the course of the school year you get tired of studying, or you don't study at all, look no further than intramural sports as your escape from college life. Each semester, MSU's IM facilities offer a variety of sports for everyone from beginners to hard-core athletes. In the fall, the IM facilities offer football, three-on-three basketball, soccer and volleyball, along with roller and floor hockey, badminton and individual golf and tennis tournaments. Basketball, indoor soccer, inner-tube water polo, volleyball,softball and track are all available in the spring. "With all of the studying and things students have to do, the IMs offer an outlet from all the stress," Johnny Allen, IM sports assistant director said.

BASKETBALL

Spartans hope for success in upcoming season

Last March, three wins in seven days at the 2003 NCAA Tournament laid a season of skepticism surrounding the MSU men's basketball team to rest - and woke up the groggy sleeping giant of MSU basketball fandom.But even though the Spartans' run to the Elite Eight in the 2003 NCAA Tournament was an improbable - albeit unexpected - step back to championship-caliber expectations, players and coaches are looking toward the national crown this season regardless.Last season, all talk was about "bridging the gap" between the Spartans of 2003 and the 2000 national championship team that cut down the nets at the Final Four.

SPORTS

Underdog sports lack attention

Chris Mackinder
June 10, 2003

Of all the male sports at MSU, football, basketball and hockey soak up most of the attention. But seriously, what makes those three sports any more important and entertaining than the other male sports? The answer: nothing. Despite the pre-season powerhouse football team plummeting into the nation's biggest laughingstock, a fall that included two embarrassing losses by a combined score of 110-10, football is football. Basketball will be one of the nation's top programs as long as Tom Izzo is at the helm and hockey, though it faded a bit in 2003, will get back on the map. But in MSU's smaller sports there is just as much of a winning tradition, if not more of one. The MSU baseball team entered the 2003 season after setting numerous Spartan records in 2002 en route to a superb 38-19 finish.

SPORTS

Lugnuts fall flat against Quad City

Dawn Klemish
June 9, 2003

Lansing - After a successful weekend, the Lugnuts were kept off the board in a 7-0 stomping from the Quad City River Bandits on Sunday in a rain-shortened matinee at Oldsmobile Park. The Bandits (27-34) took a quick 2-0 lead in the top of the second off a triple from left fielder Garrett Guzman to score designated hitter Omar Burgos and center fielder Alex Romero. Lansing (35-24) had an opportunity to slice into the lead in their half of the frame, but third baseman Robinson Chirinos grounded into a double play with the bases loaded to end the chance. A costly error from Lugnut shortstop Buck Coats in the third allowed Quad City first baseman Danny Matienzo to cross home and increase the lead to three. With Lansing struggling to get its offense going, the Bandits tacked on two more runs in the sixth, courtesy another Coats error and a sacrifice hit. Coats has a team-leading 21 errors, but said his teammates' support allows him to keep his head up despite the loss. "People pick each other up, it's fun to be on a team like that," Coats said.

SPORTS

Critics should put cork on Sosa issue

Sports media has been "bery, bery" bad to Sammy Sosa.It seems Sosa's popped cork unleashed some of the worst media coverage, as bubbly airheads hit the airwaves spouting off all the hot air they could muster from their inflatable minds.Phrases such as "Say it ain't So-sa," "Whammy Sammy" and "Busted" were tossed around like a busy bullpen, as the all-star right fielder was given the Martha Stewart treatment - though, at least the design diva didn't say her stock move was a practice trade.ESPN, err

SPORTS

Jorgensen prepares for pros

Amy Davis
June 5, 2003

Former MSU golfer Eric Jorgensen's golf career excelled on amateur golf courses, and now he hopes to continue his success on the professional circuit.Jorgensen's performance on the men's golf team earned him several recognitions - All-Big Ten Second-Team honor and being named to the Ping All-Midwest Regional Team for the second straight year to name a few - along with a load of confidence in his prospects as a pro."I was thinking about it before school ended," he said.