Women ski team captures first place
Special to The Observer
The powerful one-two punch of Nikki Douillet and Molly Munsterer catapulted the women of the ski club to another first-place team finish last weekend at Schuss Mountain in Michigan.
Douillet captured the slalom event, with Munsterer finishing a close second. The two reversed their finish in the giant slalom Sunday.
The entire women's team fared well. Jen Caswell placed fourth in the slalom and fifth in the giant slalom, Ellen Block captured eighth and ninth, respectively, and Elisha Hines finished top 10 in the slalom.
The team far outdistanced its league opponents, Michigan State, Grand Valley, Michigan and Western Michigan. The Irish are poised to capture the MCSA divisional championships this week.
Despite the men's team's last-place finish, freshman Mike Ryan's performance portends a promising.
Ryan was third after his first run, but wiped out on the second run to drop to 14th. Eric Hansen and Alex Paul were next for the Irish in the Giant Slalom, finishing 23rd and 24th, respectively.
Water polo
The women's water polo club rebounded from a stinging 12-6 opening loss to Miami (Ohio) to rout the rest of the field in the Midwest Conference Regionals.
Laurie Healy's three goals were not enough as the Red Hawks of Miami garnered a measure of revenge. It was the Irish who dethroned the three-time champion Red Hawks last year in the championships.
In the second round, Notre Dame defeated Ohio University, 15-6, as Jen Beranek tallied four goals and Liz Parolin three.
Liz Kuzniar found the back of the net six times as Bowling Green fell victim to Notre Dame 15 - 8 in the third round.
Notre Dame closed out competition by handling host Western Michigan 11-1.
This weekend, the Irish will look to even the score at the Miami Invitational, featuring a strong 12-team field. The club opens against Illinois and Maryland in the first two rounds.
Gymnastics
The gymnastics club opened its season at the Miami Cup this weekend with solid showings.
Strong performances propelled the men's team to a third-place standing in a strong field.
Captain Jason Miller earned fifth all-around, based on his third-place finish in the high bar, fourth in the rings and sixth in the vault.
Mickey McGarry claimed the only first-place finish for Notre Dame, winning with a standout effort in the vault.
Ryann Cox's second spot in the bars and Erin Henry's third place in the vault and fifth in the bars highlighted the women's competition.
The Irish will next compete in Purdue's Golden Grips Classic on Feb. 19.
All Sports Stories for Tuesday, February 8, 2000
