OKLAHOMA CITY - What a difference a year makes.
Last year, the Michigan softball team went 1-2 in the Women's College World Series, and it made history. This year, after the same outcome, the only word to describe the Wolverines' season - they finished 56-7 - is disappointment. 
Coming up short: Softball fails to meet expectations at WCWS
Dale Bahr has been involved in wrestling for most of his life, but Bahr announced earlier this summer that he will step down as the Michigan wrestling coach after the 1998-99 season.
"I'm not resigning," Bahr said. "I'm sick of people using that word. I'm going to coach for one more year, then work on the summer camps."
Wrestling coach Bahr to step down after upcoming year
The search for the next Michigan wrestling coach is on, and current assistant Joe McFarland has a leg up on the other candidates, Athletic Director Tom Goss said.
"He will be our leading candidate," said Goss, but "I couldn't say 100 percent" that the coach will be McFarland.McFarland top candidate for job
This was a team that started out 6-0 in the Big Ten. This was a team that looked like it could be on its way to a Big Ten title and its first NCAA team appearance in 10 years. But instead, the Michigan men's tennis team heard about the NCAAs from home, after finishing the season 13-10.
Fast start false hope for men's tennis
Cellars are cold, dark places that most sane people try to avoid. Michigan first baseman Bryan Besco isn't a big fan of cellars.
He found his team stuck in a deep one entering the final series of the season at Indiana.
Zahn's team, one season removed from Big Ten championship, finish in a flurry
OKLAHOMA CITY - The Wolverines have been here before. In fact, the Michigan softball team has been here the last three years. The Wolverines rationalized that their previous experience in the College World Series would pay dividends for them this year.Relaxation does not pay off as plan of action
Throughout last season, the Michigan softball team was looked upon as the best chance for the Michigan women's sports program to get its first-ever national crown.
While the Wolverines didn't bring home a national title this season, they earned many other noteworthy honors. Michigan finished tied for fifth in the nation with a 56-7 record. The final NFCA poll placed them at sixth. The Wolverines finished 22-1 in Big Ten play, 7.Softball's season for ages provides hope
OKLAHOMA CITY - At the beginning of the year, every softball program craves a national title.
Michigan was no different. Seniors leave legacy for Michigan softball
OKLAHOMA CITY - Michigan softball fans know it. The opposition knows it. Even she knows it.
During the regular season, there was a feeling that any game Sara Griffin pitched would be a victory.Griffin walks 15 as her World Series struggles conclude
Michigan men's basketball coach Brian Ellerbe, after less than a year in the full-time position, finally has his people in place.
He completed the overhaul of his coaching staff with the hiring of Kurtis Townsend as an assistant in mid-June.
Summer winds blow through basketball offices, changing staff
Many students planned to get away from school or work and go on vacation this summer. A common destination for these refugees of real life is Europe.
At first glance, Michigan basketball players Josh Asselin and Brandon Smith seemed to follow the European route of fun after joining coach Brian Ellerbe in traveling to Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany.Ellerbe coaches Big Ten tour de Europe
The CCHA made consideration a reality this summer by accepting Nebraska-Omaha as its 12th member, effective the 1999-2000 season.
"It's terrific," new CCHA commissioner Tom Anastos said. "It's a good fit for the CCHA and Nebraska-Omaha. They have a very committed program - they're committed to being successful."
Neb.-Omaha to join CCHA
Michigan defenseman Mike Van Ryn may not have been the first pick in Saturday's NHL entry draft, but he was the first college player taken when the New Jersey Devils took him 26th overall.
Michigan's Geoff Koch was taken by Nashville in the second round, and Mark Kosick, who scored two goals in the 1998 NCAA Championship game, was taken by the Carolina Hurricanes.'M' icers, present and future, dream of NHL
A sweet deal for Michigan coaches might get a little sweeter in the next two or three years.
The Athletic Department wants to consolidate all the coaches' individual sports camps and bring them "in-house," Senior Associate Athletic Director Peggy Bradley-Doppes said. In-house sports camps under the Bahr regime could mean more cash for coaches
Charles Woodson and Sara Griffin capped off stellar seasons when they were voted the Big Ten Athletes of the Year by a media panel. In the process, Woodson and Griffin gave Michigan a clean sweep of the award, the school's first.'M' sweeps Big Ten Athletes of the Year
For years, the Michigan-Notre Dame rivalry has been one of the most heated in all of college football. But starting in the near future, the Wolverines and the Fighting Irish might be playing for more than just bragging rights - they could be battling for the Big Ten title.
Notre Dame in discussions about entrance to Big Ten
As the Washington crew crossed the finish line in the National Rowing Championships at Lake Lanier, Ga., in the spring Michigan's hopes for the first women's national title in school history vanished for the second time in as many weeks.
Blue finishes fifth at rowing nationals
Michigan golfer Brent Baribeau, paralyzed in a June 19 slip off of a boat, said he plans to return to class as scheduled Sept. 8. The accident occurred as Baribeau and friends were headed to East Troy, Wis. for a Jimmy Buffet concert.
'M' golfer recovering
Long-term stability has come to the Michigan football program in the form of head coach Lloyd Carr's new contract, signed. The seven-year contract extends through the 2004 season.
Carr's latest contract bucks a trend of one-year contract renewals for the long-time football coach.Carr to stay parked through 2004
At first it looked like a dream had fallen to earth, along with Kevin Sullivan.
From the gasps of the crowd to the way he walked across the finish, at first, it appeared as though a minor apocalypse had descended upon the track world. Or at least Sullivan's track world.
Sullivan's fall in final meet just a pothole on life's road
BUFFALO, N.Y. - The only things Kevin Sullivan took home from his final NCAA Championships this weekend were the scratches on his right elbow.
Michigan's best chance for a national title came crashing to the UB Stadium track, just 700 meters from glory.Sullivan, Longe end stellar 'M' track careers
TAMPA, Fla. - Drew Henson's mother said blue must be her son's color.
The incoming Michigan freshman will wear two hats, or caps, this year, having signed a four-year contract with the New York Yankees. Henson will be fighting for the starting quarterback spot with the Wolverines in the fall as well.Double-Duty Drew: Quarterback plans to attempt two-sport career
Throughout the United States, thousands of little boys dream about becoming major league baseball players.
Five Michigan players took a step towards obtaining that dream, as they were selected in Major League Baseball's 1998 first-year player draft.Field of dreams awaits 'M' quintet
To be chosen to represent one's country is regarded by many as the greatest honor bestowed on an athlete.
Of the millions of kids in the United States that have dribbled a basketball on their driveway, only a select few have worn the red, white and blue.Thomas starred for U.S. squad during European vacation
Many analysts said the strength of Michigan's basketball team last season was its frontcourt. Teams echoed that notion at the NBA Draft in Vancouver, British Columbia, as center Robert Traylor and forward Maceo Baston were selected.Busy day for Traylor, Baston as NBA holds its annual draft
The Michigan women's swimming team has perennially been one of the top 10 teams in the nation. Last season was no exception as the Wolverines won their 13th consecutive Big Ten title and finished seventh overall in the nation.
But in May the team lost 10 swimmers to graduation, including several NCAA and Big Ten champions, as well as numerous Big Ten record holders.
Changes coming for swimmers
09-08-98
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