The MSU softball team opened its Big Ten regular season Sunday, looking to make amends for an embarrassing 11-1 home loss Wednesday against Bowling Green with a road doubleheader at Northwestern. The Spartans fell, 11-3, in the opener, and the finale was still underway at press.
Whenever junior Nick Rinks is on the tennis court, he's focused and concentrated. His mind is one step ahead of the game, always thinking about different strategies and ways to beat his opponent.
When Mark Dantonio was introduced as MSU's head football coach Nov. 27, he used the word "toughness" five times in a matter of minutes when describing his philosophy.
Finally, WrestleMania has come back to Detroit. It has been 20 long years since 93,173 fans packed into the Pontiac Silverdome to see Hulk Hogan topple Andre the Giant at WrestleMania III.
Four years ago, senior captain Chris Lawrence had everything planned out. After his successful stint in juniors with the Pittsburgh Forge of the North American Hockey League, he was going to star at small Division I Mercyhurst College on scholarship in his home state of Pennsylvania, which made his parents happy that he'd be close to home. But then MSU changed everything when the university told Lawrence it wanted him to play hockey as a member of the Spartans. "I never even took a visit when I came here," Lawrence said.
It seems like everything is new again for the MSU football team. New coaches. A (sort of) new quarterback.
MSU softball head coach Jacquie Joseph was hoping for a little more in her team's home opener Wednesday afternoon at Old College Field. Instead, what she got was a lackluster performance in an 11-1 six-inning loss to Bowling Green. The Spartans (18-14) struggled mightily with the top of Bowling Green's lineup, as the top five hitters went 13-for-17 with 10 RBIs and 11 runs scored. Joseph said she "could only hope" that it was just an off game. The Falcons (15-4) got off to a hot start, scoring three runs in the top of the first inning, while adding two more in the top of the second inning. But the big blow came in the top of the fourth, when Bowling Green's Allison Vallas drilled a three-run home run over the right field fence to give the Falcons a commanding 8-0 lead. MSU would get its lone run in the bottom of the inning off a RBI double from senior shortstop Meghan Darhower. Bowling Green tacked on three more runs for good measure in the top of the sixth inning, including a towering home run from Jeanine Baca.
Make sure you buy a program the next time you go to an MSU baseball game. There are a lot of new faces to keep track of. With only three starting position players returning from last season, second-year head coach David Grewe is relying on a mix of freshmen and junior college transfers to help fill the roster.
Although the Spartans won Saturday against Notre Dame in the NCAA Midwest Regional, they lost one of their top defenders. Junior defenseman Daniel Vukovic injured his knee early in the second period when he got tangled up behind the MSU net.
Fans will remember the embraces and fist pumps. They will remember sophomore goaltender Jeff Lerg leaping into junior defenseman Jeff Dunne's arms.
Brian Hoyer got his feet wet at the end of MSU's 2006 season, filling in for injured starting quarterback Drew Stanton, who has used up eligibility. He's not just a substitute anymore.
The MSU baseball team won its home opener against Concordia on Saturday, but was denied the chance for a sweep when Sunday's game was called because of bad weather. Junior center fielder Dennis Jones went 2-for-4 in Saturday's win, including a two-run single in the seventh that put MSU up for good.
The MSU softball team played at the Miami (Ohio) Invitational over the weekend, splitting Saturday's day one by defeating Youngstown State, 14-0, and falling to Purdue, 7-3.
The women's tennis team fell to Purdue on Saturday by a score of 7-0 in its second straight road loss. Seniors Sarah Andrews and Jessica Baron won each of three doubles, 8-3, earning their first Spartans victory. MSU rebounded and won, 5-2, Sunday in its first Big Ten victory of the season at Illinois to close out the weekend play. "I'm very excited about the win," MSU head coach Erica Perkins said in a written statement.
The MSU men's tennis team posted wins on Saturday over Bradley and Valparaiso in a doubleheader, improving the team's record to 9-10. In game two of the afternoon, the Spartans clinched a 5-2 victory after winning five of six singles matches.
The Detroit Lions are reportedly getting a lot of interest for their No. 2 spot in the upcoming NFL Draft. But many teams are balking at the Lions' asking price for the pick — a new general manager. Steve Alford left Iowa last week to take the head coaching position at New Mexico State. Alford is reportedly going to keep taking jobs in time zones farther west until he goes far enough back in time that his haircut is in style again. Detroit Tigers pitcher Justin Verlander has struggled mightily in spring training and says he isn't sure what's wrong at the start of his second pro season. But rumors are already circulating that like teammate Joel Zumaya's Guitar Hero-induced wrist injury, Verlander might be feeling the effects of his obsession with Dance Dance Revolution. Florida head coach Billy Donovan enlisted former professional wrestler Ric Flair to give his team a pep talk before its Sweet 16 game against Butler last week. The strategy backfired in the game's opening minutes, however, when Joakim Noah, picked up a technical foul for hitting Butler's A.J.
The only glamorous thing about the No. MSU gymnastics team's 195.500-195.325 victory over N. C.
Opposing wide receivers might want to keep some breath mints handy. MSU's defensive backs plan on getting very up-close and personal next season. The secondary, one of the most maligned units on the MSU football team during the last few seasons, is revamping its philosophy and relying more heavily on press coverage, in which defensive backs make contact with receivers at the line of scrimmage in order to disrupt their routes. "It messes up timing more than anything," secondary coach Harlon Barnett said Friday after spring practice.
Grand Rapids — Sophomore goaltender Jeff Lerg was supposed to let Hobey Baker goaltending candidates Notre Dame's David Brown and Boston's John Curry control the NCAA Tournament Midwest Regional at Van Andel Arena. Instead, it was Lerg who looked like he was vying for college hockey's top honor, as he stopped 46-of-48 shots in two games.
Grand Rapids — They weren't supposed to beat Boston on Friday night, and God forbid if they did, there was no way they were going to beat the top-seeded Fighting Irish on Saturday to punch a ticket to the Frozen Four in St.