ClubSportsWeekly

Water skiing club unphased by alligators

Warnings of alligators outlining the shores of the lake could not falter the Michigan water skiing club at the national tournament last weekend. Their performance in Lafayette, La., proved Michigan to be a major presence in the collegiate world of water skiing, when the Wolverines placed seventh, the best finish by a Midwestern team since Purdue in 1994.

Michigan went confidently into nationals, still on a rush from its first-place regional finish at the Midwest Regional Water-ski Tournament, despite the unpleasant conditions the team had to practice in before nationals.

"Practicing for nationals was really difficult, because the weather was cold and wet for almost every practice we had, so we didn't really get a lot of practice in before last weekend," club president Ryan Majkrzak said. "Fortunately, the high we were on from winning regionals gave us that extra push we needed to just go out there and get it done."

The women's team finished seventh overall, placing seventh in slalom, seventh in tricks and seventh in jumping.

The men took 10th overall, finishing 11th in slalom, sixth in tricks and 10th in jumping.

The highest Michigan individual skiers were senior Dan Smallidge and freshman Carly Edwards. Smallidge, a four-year veteran, placed 10th overall, finishing sixth in slalom, 10th in tricks and 23rd in jumping. Edwards took 21st overall, placing 38th in slalom, 23rd in tricks and 25th in jumping.

"Dan and Carly's performances proved that a small club team has the talent and determination to compete with large, well-known teams like the national champion, the University of Louisiana-Lafayette," Majkrzak said.

"Finishing seventh, ahead of many varsity teams, was incredible for a Midwest club team. This shows that we are a force to be reckoned with."

-Courtenay Basile

Frisbee is about the ultimate sportsmanship

Ultimate Frisbee is a sport unfamiliar to a lot of people and for a stretch of time, it was even unfamiliar to Michigan.

The women's ultimate team, is in only its third year of existence. In its inaugural season, the team went winless.

But last year they finished third in the Great Lakes Region, narrowly missing a chance to go to nationals.

Ultimate puts a lot of emphasis on good sportsmanship. There are no officials so the players call the games themselves.

"Spirit of the game is about good calls and respect for the other players," Captain Jess Hoff said. "It is about playing hard and playing to win, but also about playing fair and honest."

Many of last year's players have returned this year. Coupled with a great recruiting class, there are high hopes and expectations for the team.

Flywheel has been practicing since September even though the actual college ultimate season does not start until late February. The team's first preseason tournament was played on Saturday.

"While we play now to win, these games are not recorded in the standings, so we focus our efforts in the fall more towards teaching the game and building the team," Hoff said.

The Michigan team was split in two and was joined by teams from Indiana, Ohio and Hope College for the round robin tournament.

Ohio won the tournament after finishing undefeated. The highest Michigan team finish was third.

Flywheel's next tournament will be November 4 at Northwestern.

For more information on Flywheel, visit the Ultimate Frisbee Website at http://www.umich.edu/~ultimate/.

- Brad Hoffman