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The Daily Illini | www.DailyIllini.com
Friday, April 6, 2012
Track heads South for Battle on the Bayou Women’s track to face top-ranked opposition in La. BY BOB MERLO STAFF WRITER
After taking home six event victories last weekend, the Illinois women’s track and field team will attempt to take its momentum south, competing against some of the nation’s top teams. The Illini will travel to Baton Rouge, La., for LSU’s Battle on the Bayou. They will face the likes of No. 2 LSU, No. 10 Texas Tech and Big Ten foe Penn State. With three competitive outdoor meets already under its belt, this weekend will provide the Orange and Blue with its best indicator of progress that the team has had all year. “This is going to be our biggest meet of the season. We’re really expecting to go in there and get some personal bests and run fast,” head coach Tonja BufordBailey said. “The weather is going to be nice, competition is going to be great — this is really going to be our indicator of where we are and what we need to do in training, getting ready for postseason.” All-American freshman Ashley Spencer looks to return to form this weekend after battling illness the past two weeks. She currently holds the nation’s fastest time in the 200 meters and will lead six other Illini competing this weekend. “She’s still a little down, not at 100 percent, so we’re still going to work her through it though because she’s been out for a few weeks,” Buford-Bailey said. “She’s going to run the 200 again and an open relay, so we’re hoping she’s going to be back to where she was a month ago.” Spencer took home the Big Ten indoor title in the 200 and was integral in Illinois’ title in the 4x400 meters as well. The Illini’s success in indoors has carried over to the outdoor season thus far, and hopes are that it will continue. “We came off of a pretty good indoor season, and everyone still has that momentum going, and we’re just ready to keep going and just get better and better,” sprinter Ashley Kelly said. At this point last season, the Illini were coming off a disappointing seventh-place finish at Big Tens, and they were still practicing indoors due to the weather. This year, their fourth-place finish indoors and warm temperatures have them better prepared for meets like this one. “I think the first two weekends were kind of like getting your feet back under you, getting used to outdoor track again, adjusting from indoors to outdoors,” Kelly said. “LSU is going to be more about just putting your race together, everything you’ve worked for in practice and really executing it against competition.”
FOOTBALL FROM PAGE 1B “As the season progressed last year, I got more and more comfortable,” O’Toole said. “Not only for me, but I feel like my teammates, they can see that I was somewhat successful in some games. Knowing that I can actually go out there and make plays, they can trust me.” Beatty said O’Toole has improved as a leader and that he brings a positive energy to the team. “He’s kind of infectious,” Beatty said. “Those guys, they like his personality. He gets excited. He hit a big ball yesterday and he was chest bumping everything.” In addition to competing for playing time, Scheelhaase and O’Toole, along with Osei who has also been playing running back, have had to learn a new offense. Co-offensive coordinators Billy Gonzales and Beatty have implemented their spread offense in spring practices, which Scheelhaase said is considerably different from what the Illini ran last season under former offensive coordinator Paul Petrino. Scheelhaase said the new offense emphasizes getting players the ball in space. “Obviously that is just a different feel for everybody,” he said. “I think guys have seen what it’s been able to do as far as get them chances to make bigger plays and things like that.” Scheelhaase said the Illini haven’t gotten too far into the intricacies of the system, as Beatty and Gonzales have opted to focus on the basics this spring. “We need to get a whole lot better,” he said. “We need to learn a whole lot more, just the smaller parts, the fine details of what makes the offense really work. But I think guys can see that, can see the development that we’ve all had as far as what this offense has done.” With the quarterbacks’ varying strengths and skills, Gonzales believes the Illini are very strong at the position. “What we’ve realized is, son of a gun, we’ve got three guys that can run the offense extremely well,” he said. “Bottom line is you better be a great leader to play that position, plain and simple. No matter what offense you’re running, you better have great leadership skills. “And all three guys have stepped up and done a fantastic job so far.”
JOSHUA BECKMAN THE DAILY ILLINI
Andrew Riley, front, crosses the finish line to win the 60-meter hurdles during the Illini Open at the Armory. Riley will make his debut in 110-meter hurdles at Saturday’s Battle at the Bayou.
Men’s track will contend against best teams in country at Saturday’s meet BY BOB MERLO STAFF WRITER
The Illinois men’s track and field team will get a chance to see how it stacks up against some of the best teams in the nation this weekend. In Baton Rouge, La., the Illini will compete in LSU’s Battle on the Bayou. Among others, the Illini will battle with the likes of No. 2 LSU, No. 7 Texas Tech, No. 9 Mississippi State and No. 20 Iowa. The meet will be the first of the outdoor season for All-American Andrew Riley, as well as for other top Illini athletes. “With the competition this weekend, we’re really looking forward to this meet,” head coach Mike Turk said. “Obviously, we’re going to have some top-level competition from across the country and it’s a great facility, the weather is going to be hot, and this is a great early season meet for us.” Riley, who sat out the first two meets
after a grueling indoor season, will meet of the outdoor season, so I’m just make his season debut in the 110-meter going out there to have some fun and get hurdles, an event that he narrowly lost back in the competitive spirit.” his national title to last Riley will also comseason against LSU’s pete in the 4x100 meter Barrett Nugent by relay alongside fellow All-American senior five-hundredths of a second. Stanley Azie, freshman “I expect to go out Brandon Stryganek there and have some LSU’s Battle at and senior Josh Zinzer. Illinois fun,” Riley said. “With It will be the first time the Bayou Nugent, the guy I’ve this season the Orange been battling over the and Blue will have its Saturday, all day years, it’s going to be a top relay squad out on Baton Rouge, La. good competition. It’s the track. good for him and it’s The men’s and women’s fields include “It’s going to start top-10 opponents No. 2 LSU and No. with seeing our pergood for me.” 7 Texas Tech. Riley isn’t getting formances, seeing our caught up in old rivaltime and our distancries, however. He plans to treat this meet es improve, and that’s the big thing,” just as it is: his first meet of the season. Turk said. “I think we’ll see quite a bit “I’m just looking to go out there to get of improvement.” the rust off,” Riley said. “It’s my first Freshman Joey McAsey and sopho-
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more Ryan Lynn will also open their competition in the 800 meters this weekend, an event that could prove pivotal in the team’s final standing on the leaderboard. “We’re going to be opening up with some of our guys that haven’t been on the track yet this outdoor spring, or guys that haven’t been running their main events,” Turk said. The meet should provide the Illini with the benchmark they have been looking for, as their top performers will have an opportunity to see how they stack up against top-notch competition and see what needs to be done to improve. “I’ll be looking back and comparing where they were at this time last year,” Turk said. “I know all indications have been that we’re a little ahead of where we were last year at this time, so I want to see that trend continue.”
Illinois women’s tennis eyes victory over Michigan, shot at Big Ten lead Illini hope to end Wolverines’ 3-year, 30-match winning streak in Big Ten play
BY STEPHEN BOURBON STAFF WRITER
A battle against a top-20 team for a share of the Big Ten lead is the challenge that faces the Illinois women’s tennis team. No. 19 Illinois (12-5, 4-1 Big Ten) hits the road this weekend to face conference-leader Michigan on Saturday and then Michigan State on Sunday. The Illini have won six in a row, four of them conference wins, a run that has propelled them to the national rankings. The No. 19 ranking is the fourth highest in school history — the highest was in 2004 when Illinois was ranked No. 16. “We’re not going to change one thing,” head coach Michelle Dasso said. “We’re trying to keep things as consistent as we’ve been over this last month or so.” The No. 15 Wolverines (12-5, 5-0) have also been hot, winning five straight matches. They have been a juggernaut in the Big Ten over the past three years, as they haven’t lost a conference match since March 29, 2009, where they dropped a 6-1 decision to Northwestern. The threeyear streak spans 30 matches, and their head coach Ronni Bernstein is 43-2 in her career in conference clashes. Both losses came against Northwestern. “I don’t think so,” said fresh-
WOMEN’S GYM FROM PAGE 1B tive, optimistic person in the gym and remind them to focus on the little details,” Joannides said. “I’ll be the first to admit, I get so frustrated when I mess up, so they are always there checking on me, saying ‘finish this skill’ and ‘point your toes’
MEN’S GYM FROM PAGE 1B win or lose. “That can wait for NCAAs,” he said. If the Illini win the NCAA title match, they will have won the first national championship for the program in 23 years and the first for Illini athletics in nine years. That goal was not quite conceivable three years ago. If the Illini accomplish it, Spring said more intense emotions can be expected. “There’s a lot of teams I was on where winning a championship, getting a ring is just an endless pursuit that never happens,” Spring said. “Having the opportunity to win four Big Tens in a row and a national title, it’s pretty unreal.”
THORNTON FROM PAGE 1B
CHONG JIANG THE DAILY ILLINI
Illinois’ Melissa Kopinski eyes the ball during her doubles match against Iowa. The freshman Kopinski is undefeated in her last seven singles matches, as the Illini take to the road to face Michigan and Michigan State this weekend. man Melissa Kopinski when mark in dual matches this year. asked if there was any added She is currently No. 125 in the pressure playsingles rankings. Also, reding a team like Michigan. shirt senior “We’ve had a Marisa Lamgreat run in bropoulos has the Big Ten won six sinthis year. We’ll gles matches No. 19 Illinois No. 15 Michigan treat it like any (12-5, 4-1 Big Ten) in a row for the (12-5, 5-0) other match Illini. and go execute Michigan Saturday, 11 p.m. our game plan has a superb Ann Arbor, Mich. and see how freshman of Illinois aims to claim a share of the its own in Emithat goes.” conference lead. Kopinski is na Bektas. She is ranked No. 6-0 in her last 10 in singles seven singles matches — one of which was and holds a 13-3 record in dual unfinished — and has an 11-2 matches. She also has been
named Big Ten Athlete of the Week four times this year and has been ranked as high as seventh in the nation. Michigan State (8-8, 0-5) is in the conference cellar, having lost four in a row and seven of its past nine overall. However, it does boast an 8-4 record at home this year. “I don’t really care what’s going on with any other team in the Big Ten other than the University of Illinois,” Dasso said. If Illinois wins, there is the potential for a four-way tie at the top of the Big Ten standings, with Northwestern and Nebraska both holding 4-1 records in conference.
the regional. “Big Ten’s was awesome,” sophomore Sarah Fiedler said. “Just the energy from Big Ten’s, we have been transferring that this week and we’ll definitely bring that to regionals also. We did really well at Big Ten’s, so it gets you excited for regionals also.” Being present for both Illinois appearances at the NCAA Cham-
pionships, Landrus holds high expectations for her team going into this weekend and hopes to take her team to nationals for the first time as head coach. “I want to go out there and hit 24 for 24,” Landrus said. “I want to leave Assembly Hall knowing that we have done everything that we can. And of course our goal is always to finish in the top two.”
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and ‘that was really good, but it could have been better.’ I think I just try and keep up the energy and help everyone make the best out of every day, even if it’s not perfect.” Though the Illini placed fifth at the Big Ten Championships, they recorded their secondhighest score this season with a 195.850. The Orange and Blue plan to carry the momentum into
(suspended one year), Loomis (eight games) and Vitt (six games) to win their appeals. Not only did they deny the program’s existence but continued its practice after multiple warnings by the league to stop. In addition to the suspensions, the Saints were forced to forfeit their next two second-round picks and fined $500,000. Williams became a member of the St. Louis Rams’ staff before the penalties were announced. Goodell has since suspended him indefinitely from the league, and there’s no indication he plans to appeal it. Despite telling his players, “We don’t f****** apologize for how we’re going to play,” Williams has publicly apologized twice since the scandal went public. Now I’m not friends with Goodell or anything (yet), but I’ve got a good feeling Pete Rose will get into the Baseball Hall of Fame before Williams is allowed to coach another NFL team. As far as Payton’s concerned, he should hope Bill Parcells wants to coach the Saints next year and find a good book to read — as it looks like he’s going to have a lot of free time on his hands for the next 12 months.
Kevin is a sophomore in Media. He can be reached at thornt10@illinimedia.com. Follow him @kevinthorn10.