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Mar>c~ 2001 TRISTRAM'S SPORTS REFLECTIONS TRISTRAM COFFIN , Sports ~ditor It's that time again for Cinderella to come out and dance. March madness is almost in full swing with a couple of weeks to go until tournament time. Teams are now fighting for a spot in the field of sixty-four and their chance to become national champions. Thirty-one conferences will receive an automatic bid to the tournament this year. Taking this into consideration ,sports analysis from ESPN are projecting only fourteen conferences out of the thirty one to send only one representative to the field of sixty four. This leaves seventeen other conferences with the possibility to send more than one representative to the tournament. There are thirty-four at-large bids. Add thirty-four to the thirty-one and you have a total of sixty-five teams eligible for the NCAA tournament. You're probably saying wait isn't the field only sixty-four? Yes, but this year number sixty- four and sixty-five will have to duke it out in Dayton, Ohio on March 13 for the right to earn the official sixty-fourth spot. Here are some of my picks to make the field of sixty-four. Look for North Carolina, Duke, Virginia, and Maryland from.the ACC to make it. But don't forget Wake Forest or Georgia Tech. They could receive one of those thirty-four at-large bids. In the Atlantic ten conference, look for two teams to make an appearance in the dance: St. Joseph's and Xavier. Another conference to watch out for i~ the Big East. Boston College,'Notre Dame, Syracuse, Providence, and Georgetown could all make impressive runs in the tournament for this conference. A team to watch out for in the Big East to get an at-large bid is UConn. , Now for the Big Ten. Look for Illinois, Michigan State, Ohio State, Wisconsin, Iowa, and Indiana to all be possibilities. In my opinion look for the Big Ten to be the conference to beat in the tournament this year, with the ACC close behind. The Big Twelve conference also has several solid possibilities for the tournament. Iowa State, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas all are solld teams in there own respects. There are two teams from the Big Twelve to watch if they receive an at-large bid. Missouri and Texas. Look for Missouri to do especially well if they get in. Let's not forget the Pac-10. Look for Arizona, California, Stanford, and UCLA to all make a showing in the tournament. The conference I would like to talk about is the SEC. Some sports analyses think that the SEC will be the conference to beat this year. Alabama, Florida, Kentucky, Mississippi, and Tennessee are expected to make an appearance in the field of sixty-four. Look for Arkansas and Georgia to make at-large bids to the tournament possibly too. Now that I've chosen a few teams I feel have a good shoot to make the tournament, let me give you my Cinderella I sleeper list. Ifl had to make these choices two weeks ago I would have chosen Central Michigan as my number one sleeper, but unfortunately in the past week or so they lost to many games too even be considered for the MAC conferences bid. Look for Kent to now m¥e a appearance in the field of sixty- four. UC Irvine is also a skeper on my list. With a twenty plus win season and an impressive win over California don't count them out. Creighton is another Cinderella team on my list for this year. Creighton's impressive record this year and wins over Providence and Georgia State should guarantee them a spot in the dance. Now for my number one stunner of year. Gonzaga. This team has been famous the past few years for their showings in the NCAA tournament. Count on Gonzaga making history again. Ifl had to pick my Sweet Sixteen right now I would chose Duke, Michigan State, Arizona, Florida, Stanford, Virginia, North Carolina, Illinois, Notre Dame, Kansas, UCLA, Iowa State, Xavier, Boston College, Wake Forest, and Georgetown. My elite eight would be Michigan State, UCLA, North Carolina, Arizona, Duke, Illinois, Florida and Wake Forest. My final Four would consist of Michigan State, Duke, Arizona, and Florida ifl had to choose rightnow. Tristram's Pick: Look for Michigan State to repeat 94-89 . over the Duke Blue Devils. Vs ilLSSU Delivering Academic Excellence Business Administration • Accounting Nursing • Criminal Justice Individualiud Studies All classes held at -A_ Alpena Community College ~ C.111 Kelly Smith at 517-356-9021, ext. 302 *S e F * pr1ng ever MEGAN FLETCHER Sport's Co-Editor The Lady Jacks are hard at work getting ready for their up- coming softball season. Their season opener is on March 24, at Kellogg Commu- nity College where they will play a doubleheader. Then on Satur- day, March 25, they turn around and play another doubleheader against Muskegon Community College. There are 15 players on this year's team. McCourt is hoping to be competitive this season. Right now they are concentrat- ing a lot of fundamentals, since quite a few of the players have not played softball in a while. Opening day is only a few weeks away; hopefully the Lady Jacks will be ready. Head coach Frank McCourt · said that the weather is going to be the biggest factor in whether or not the, team will be ready for their first games. Right now the team is practicing in the East Campus gym and has not been able to practice on a real field yet. McCourt is trying to get the team down to Mt. Pleasant to use CMU's indoor softball facil- ity before the games start. Right: Holly Benac gets ready for a bunt. Bottom Right: Sarah Ellis .warms up her arm. Below: Rachel Bischoff shows off her arm power. JV\ . I " . ' 1· . / ~===========~~~~ ) ( RIS'T'ORANTE I T ,\ L I A N (_) ~ Down Town Ossineke (517) 471-5517 Enfoy Your Favorite Sport On Our variety Of TV■ Full Lint ol StHkl'. Ponertioo.MI. Atbeye, Top Slrloln. New Y0<1< Strip 411 N. Second Ave.• Alpena 35&-1666 or 354-42TT Mon. tllN Frt. 11 a.m. 10 2 a.m. • Saturoay and Sunday 4 p.m. to 2 a.m. • Air Conditioned • Pool and Darts r:W-:-0-rl:-:-d-=F■-m-0-u-,1 • Seven TVs • Great Lunches Bogle • Great Times Burgers • Great Friends Alpena's #1 Steakhouse • Air Condilioned • • Appetizer■ • Prime Rib • Homemade Hoaglea • S.ndwtchH • Mexican Entr-• • BBQ Rib■ • Wrape • Famou■ Homemade Pizza • Seafood Entr-■ Casual Fine Dining With A Dynamic View of The River! 313-1i2B N. Second Avenue Alpena, Michigan 49707 517-354-8190 Open from 4 p.m. to 11 p.m. TuHday, Wed,-day and Thu,sday 4 p.m. to 12 p.m. Friday and Saturday 4 p.m. to10 p.m. Sund•y • CfoHd Mondays •------------;------------ T~e Lum ber>jack 8 Lady Jacks 2001 Softball Schedule Sat. Mar.24 at Kellogg CC 3:00p.m. Sun. Mar.25 at Muskegon CC 11:00a.m. Wed. Apr.4 at Delta 3:00 p.m. Sat. Apr. 7 at St. Clair CC 2:00p.m. Sun. · Apr. 8 at St. Clair CC 11:00 a.m. Fri. Apr.13 at Mott CC 3:00p.m. Sat. Apr. 14 at Mott CC 11:00a.m. Wed. Apr. 18 Delta 3:00p.m. Fri. Apr. 20 at Oakland CC 3:00p.m. Sat. Apr. 21 at Macomb CC l:00p.m. Sun. Apr. 22 atMacombCC 10:00a.m. Fri. Apr. 27 Oakland CC 2:00p.m. Sat. Apr. 28 Henry Ford CC 12:00p.m. Sun. Apr. 29 Henry Ford CC 11:00a.m. mil . \ Let's Ride!!! JOSHUA BREGE Staff Writer Remember those good old days when you were young and had fun playing in the snow? Your mom, dad, or friend would pull you in a sled or push you down the hill to see how fast you could go. Well, your older now and there is a new type of sled for you. A snowmobile! For those of you who own a snowmobile or have been snowmobiling before, you know what a thrill slicing through the snow can be. For the rest of you, this is yet another great opportunity Old Man Winter has to offer. Sitting behind the handlebars of a screaming snowmobile is fun for everyone! For the passenger on back, sitting on your butt has never been so great! On a snowmobile, you are in complete control of where you want to go. Over hills, through the woods, or across the state are just a few fun places to pursue on a ' snowmobile. Attempting jumps and · climbing hills is an awesome . experienc,:e for thrill seekers. Pro- ) Racers do this for a living, but there are many amateurs right here in Northern Michigan. Almost every weekend from mid-December to March there are local snowmobile races for those who want to test their talents on the track. These races are not only exciting for the riders, but great fun to watch as well. There is usually an admission fee for the weekend, but it's money well spent. The most common type of snowmobiling is through the woods. Northern Michigan has a great trails system open for everyone to enjoy. These trails are groomed by the DNR. This makes for a road like condition and an enjoyable ride. These trails run from town to town. The other common type of snowmobiling is traveling. Many snowmobilers follow the roadways across Michigan. They eat at restaurants and stay the nights at hotels along the way. If you've never been snowmobiling before, find a friend who is a fanatic about it, get out and go for a ride. Whether you are gearing up for a long vacation on a snowmobile . or just heading out for an afternoon on the trails, it is sure to be a great time. Be safe, responsible, and never drink and drive.