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The No. 6 Michigan mens tennis team continued its streak of dominance with a 4-0 win over Purdue on Saturday. But within the excellence that led to yet another shutout match, something stood out. Something new.

Two players who previously hadnt played much freshmen Patorn Hanchaikul and Will Cooksey both shined. Cooksey was paired with graduate student Nick Beaty, and the duo secured a doubles win in a dominant 6-1 fashion. And while Hanchaikuls match was called off after the first set due to the Wolverines having already secured the victory, he showed tenacity and promise in his season debut.

And throughout these strong showings from the freshmen, those on the team not playing made their voices heard as they cheered for and with their teammates on the court.

Im sure theyre tired of hearing it from me, but (playing for each other), thats our identity, Michigan coach Adam Steinberg said. So thats what we emphasize on a daily basis.

That support continued into the singles matches. On court six, Hanchaikul battled in his first appearance of the season. After dropping the first two games, he fought back, forcing the set into a tiebreaker and ultimately winning. Hanchaikul didnt get to finish his match as the Wolverines secured the win before his second set began. But throughout his comeback, the support of his teammates was abundant.

When somebody goes in who hasnt played much like Patorn as a freshman it helps them so much to be around that team environment, Steinberg said. And you can tell the guys really helped him through the tiebreaker.

Its not just the young players that feel the support of their team its the leaders, too.

Playing singles on the court adjacent to Hanchaikul, senior Andrew Fenty got off to a slow start. But he too powered back, winning his first set in a tiebreaker as well.

Everyone was winning. And I was like I gotta win, Fenty said. Just not letting my teammates down, just keep competing, just trying to help us out.

Michigan is a team that plays for each other, and as it showed Saturday, it does so well.

As Hanchaikul battled, his teammates led cheers based around his name and cheered louder than they did for any other matchup.

But thats just part of the teams culture. Steinbergs expectation is that seniors will guide their younger teammates the same way their own former teammates guided them.

And when a team plays for each other and underclassmen follow suit, successes like the Wolverines current 12-game win streak emerge.

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Chemistry propels Michigan men's tennis over Purdue - The Michigan Daily

LVIV, Ukraine, April 12 (Reuters) - Ukraine on Tuesday said it arrested the Kremlin's most prominent ally in the country as Russian President Vladimir Putin gave his strongest signal yet the war will grind on, warning peace talks were at a dead end.

In February, Ukraine said Viktor Medvedchuk, the leader of the Opposition Platform - For Life party, escaped from house arrest after the authorities opened a treason case against him.

The pro-Russian figure, who says Putin is godfather to his daughter, has denied wrongdoing. On Tuesday a spokesperson was not immediately available for comment.

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"Pro-Russian traitors and agents of the Russian intelligence services, remember - your crimes have no statute of limitations," Ukraine's security service posted on Facebook alongside a photo of Medvedchuk in handcuffs.

Operatives "conducted this lightning-fast and dangerous multi-level special operation", the head of the organisation Ivan Bakanov said.

A Kremlin spokesman was cited by the Tass news agency as saying he had seen the photo and could not say whether it was genuine.

Hours earlier Putin used his first public comments on the conflict in more than a week to insist Russia will "rhythmically and calmly" continue its operation, citing the need to achieve goals on security.

"That Blitzkrieg on which our foes were counting did not work," he said, batting aside the impact of sanctions and warning that on-and-off peace talks were in a "dead-end situation." read more

But he frequently seemed to ramble or stammer. Only occasionally did he adopt the icy, confident demeanour that has been his trademark in public appearances over more than 22 years as Russia's leader.

Putin, who had been ubiquitous on Russian television in the early days of the war, had largely retreated from public view since Russia's withdrawal from northern Ukraine two weeks ago.

On Monday he met the visiting chancellor of Austria.

But the meeting was held at a country residence outside Moscow and no images were released, a contrast from talks with Western leaders on the eve of the war, when they were pictured seated at opposite ends of a huge table in the ornate Kremlin palace.

MARIUPOL DENOUEMENT

Moscow's nearly seven-week long incursion, the biggest attack on a European state since 1945, has seen more than 4.6 million people flee abroad, killed or injured thousands and led to Russia's near total isolation on the world stage.

Russia says it launched what it calls a "special military operation" on Feb. 24 to demilitarise and "denazify" Ukraine. Kyiv and its Western allies reject that as a false pretext.

Russian tanks pulled out of northern Ukraine after failing in what the West believes was a mission to swiftly capture the capital Kyiv.

Rescuers search for bodies under the rubble of a building destroyed by Russian shelling, amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, in Borodyanka, Kyiv region, Ukraine April 11, 2022. REUTERS/Zohra Bensemra

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Many of the towns they left behind were littered with the bodies of civilians killed in what Kyiv says was a campaign of murder, torture and rape.

Moscow denies targeting civilians or carrying out war crimes.

Russia says its campaign now aims to capture more territory on behalf of separatists in two eastern provinces, a region known as the Donbas. It includes Mariupol port, which has been reduced to a wasteland under Russian siege.

Ukraine says tens of thousands of civilians have been trapped inside that city with no way to bring in food or water, and accuses Russia of blocking aid convoys.

The battle for Mariupol appeared on Tuesday to be reaching a decisive phase, with Ukrainian marines holed up in the Azovstal industrial district. Reuters journalists accompanying Russian-backed separatists saw flames billowing from the Azovstal district.

Pavlo Kyrylenko, governor of the eastern Donetsk region, which includes Mariupol, said he had seen incident reports on possible chemical weapons use in the city but could not confirm them.

"We know that last night around midnight a drone dropped some so-far unknown explosive device, and the people that were in and around the Mariupol metal plant, there were three people, they began to feel unwell," he told CNN.

They were taken to hospital and their lives were not in danger, he said.

Late on Tuesday, Ukraine said its forces in the east had beaten off six Russian attacks, destroying two vehicles and three artillery systems as well as shooting down a helicopter and two drones. Reuters could not immediately verify the report.

NEW ASSAULT

Zelenskiy had said on Monday that Russia may resort to chemical weapons as it massed troops for a new assault. He did not say if they actually had been used. The United States and Britain said they were trying to verify the reports.

Chemical weapons production, use and stockpiling is banned under the 1997 Chemical Weapons Convention.

Russia's defence ministry has not responded to a Reuters request for comment. Russian-backed separatist forces in the east denied using chemical weapons in Mariupol, the Interfax news agency reported.

After their troops got bogged down in the face of Ukrainian resistance, the Russians abandoned their bid to capture the capital Kyiv. But they are redoubling efforts in the east, including Donetsk and the neighbouring Luhansk region, where Governor Serhiy Gaidai urged residents to evacuate.

"It's far more scary to remain and burn in your sleep from a Russian shell," he wrote on social media. "Evacuate, with every day the situation is getting worse. Take your essential items and head to the pickup point."

Zelenskiy pleaded overnight for more weapons from the West to help it end the siege of Mariupol and fend off the expected eastern offensive.

"Unfortunately we are not getting as much as we need to end this war faster ... in particular, to lift the blockade of Mariupol," he said.

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Reporting by Reuters bureausWriting by Peter Graff and Costas PitasEditing by Andrew Cawthorne and Grant McCool

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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Putin's top ally in Ukraine arrested, say authorities - Reuters

Putin and Lukashenko have a new false narrative about the atrocities in Bucha

Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) shakes hands with Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko during their meeting in Sochi on February 22, 2021.

ALEXEI DRUZHININ | AFP | Getty Images

Russian President Vladimir Putin and his closest ally, President Alexander Lukashenko of Belarus, are promoting a new false narrative about who's to blame for the murders, rapes and torture of hundreds of civilians in Bucha, Ukraine.

They insist it was not Russian soldiers who went on a month-long rampage of looting and killing, even as witnesses, satellite imagery and forensic evidence have suggested otherwise.

The real culprits are British operatives who conducted a "psychological special operation" in the leafy suburb of Kyiv, Lukashenko claims without evidence.

Lukashenko and Putin spoke at a space launch facility in Vostochny, in Russia's Far East. It was Putin's first public appearance outside of Moscow since Russia launched its brutal Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine.

The British Embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Chelsea Ong

A "trade rupture" between Germany and Russia could set off a macro financial shock, S&P Global's chief economist said.

German manufacturing one of three global manufacturing centers besides the U.S. and China could be dented as a result of the rupture, Paul Gruenwald told CNBC's "Squawk Box Asia."

"Looking at a downside scenario there's kind of several different ways to play that but we think the one that would really move the macro needle is some sort of trade rupture between Russia and Europe,"

"That would feed through to ... lower GDP, lower employment, lower confidence and then we would get a kind of a macro financial shock out of that. So that's the sort of scenario we're worried about that could move the needle," he warned.

Weizhen Tan

U.S. President Joe Biden boards Air Force One on travel to Iowa at the Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, April 12, 2022.

Alexander Drago | Reuters

President Joe Biden says the mounting evidence of atrocities committed by Russian soldiers in Ukraine is starting to look to him like something worse than isolated war crimes. It looks like genocide, the president said.

"I called it genocide because it has become clearer and clearer that Putin is just trying to wipe out the idea of even being able to be Ukrainian," Biden said late Tuesday evening.

"The evidence is mounting. It looks different than last week. More evidence is coming out literally of the horrible things that the Russians have done in Ukraine," he said.

Hours earlier, Biden had shocked the world by calling Putin's war a "genocide" for the first time.

Speaking at an event about inflation in Iowa, Biden said to the audience, "Your family budget, your ability to fill up your tank, none of it should hinge on whether a dictator declares war and commits genocide a half a world away."

A White House adviser quickly went on TV to clarify that Biden's words did not reflect a change in U.S. policy towards Ukraine.

Biden acknowledged that the legal definition of "genocide" was separate from his impression of what's going on in Ukraine.

Nonetheless, the president did not revise his initial assessment. "We're going to only learn more and more about the devastation, and we'll let the lawyers decide internationally whether or not it qualifies" as a genocide under international law. "But it sure seems that way to me," said Biden.

The statement drew immediate praise from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who tweeted at Biden moments after he spoke on the tarmac.

Christina Wilkie

U.S. President Joe Biden addresses the North Americas Building Trades Unions (NABTU) Legislative Conference in Washington, U.S., Aprl 6, 2022. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

Kevin Lamarque | Reuters

PresidentJoe Bidenon Tuesday called Russian President Vladimir Putin's actions inUkraine"genocide."

In remarks in Iowa, the president blamed Putin for recentprice hikesat the pump. "Your family budget, your ability to fill up your tank, none of it should hinge on whether a dictator declares war and commits genocide half a world away," said Biden.

The president had stopped short on April 5 of calling the atrocities in Bucha a genocide, when asked by reporters whether Russian actions there fit that definition. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said then that the killings documented so far in Ukraine did not rise to the level of "genocide" as defined by the U.S. government.

The State Department has a lengthy internal process for determining if mass killing amounts to genocide, including collecting evidence over a period of time.

NBC News

Russian soldiers patrol the Mariupol Drama Theatre, which was hit by an airstrike on March 16.

Editor's note: These pictures was taken during a trip organized by the Russian military.

A Russian soldier patrols the Mariupol Drama Theatre, which was hit March 16 by an airstrike, on April 12, 2022 in Mariupol, as Russian troops intensify a campaign to take the strategic port city, part of an anticipated massive onslaught across eastern Ukraine. Editor's note: This picture was taken during a trip organized by the Russian military.

Alexander Nemenov | AFP | Getty Images

A Russian soldier patrols the Mariupol Drama Theatre, which was hit March 16 by an airstrike, on April 12, 2022 in Mariupol. Editor's note: This picture was taken during a trip organized by the Russian military.

Alexander Nemenov | AFP | Getty Images

A Russian soldier collects weapons found while patrolling at the Mariupol drama theatre, hit last March 16 by an airstrike, on April 12, 2022 in Mariupol. Editor's note: This picture was taken during a trip organized by the Russian military.

Alexander Nemenov | AFP | Getty Images

A Russian soldier patrols the Mariupol drama theatre, hit March 16 by an airstrike, on April 12, 2022 in Mariupol, as Russian troops intensify a campaign to take the strategic port city. Editor's note: This picture was taken during a trip organized by the Russian military.

Alexander Nemenov | AFP | Getty Images

The Russian flag displayed on a laptop screen with binary code code overlaying.

Nurphoto | Getty Images

Russian military hackers tried and failed to attack Ukraine's energy infrastructure last week, the country's government and a major cybersecurity company said Tuesday.

The attack was designed to infiltrate computers connected to multiple substations, then delete all files, which would shut that infrastructure down, according to Ukraine'ssummaryof the incident.

ESET, a Slovakia-based cybersecurity company working to help secure Ukrainian infrastructure, said in asummary of the attackthat it was conducted by the same arm of Russia's military intelligence agency, GRU, that had previously successfully executed similar attacks in 2014 and 2015.

In both of those incidents, some residents of Kyivtemporarily lost power.

NBC News

President Zelenskyy posted on social media a photo of Viktor Medvedchuk with "A special operation was carried out thanks to the SBU. Well done! Details later. Glory to Ukraine!" Written underneath.

Courtesy: Office of Presidency of Ukraine

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced the apparent capture of Viktor Medvedchuk, a pro-Kremlin politician who was living in Ukraine under house arrest on treason charges but allegedly escaped shortly after Russia launched its invasion.

"A special operation was carried out thanks to the SBU," Zelenskyy wrote in Russian on his verified account on the social media platform Telegram, referencing Ukraine's Security Service. "Well done! Details later. Glory to Ukraine!"

Above that caption, Zelenskyy posted a photo showing a disheveled Medvedchuk seated by a radiator with his hands clasped in handcuffs.

Medvedchuk was the leader of a pro-Russian opposition party in Ukraine and a staunch opponent of Kyiv's appeals to join NATO.

Kevin Breuninger

A satellite image shows armoured vehicles at the northern end of a military convoy moving south through the Ukrainian town of Velykyi Burluk, Ukraine, April 8, 2022.

Maxar Technologies | Reuters

A senior U.S. Defense official told reporters on a call that a new convoy of Russian vehicles is approximately 37 miles north of Izyum, in eastern Ukraine.

The town of Izyum lies on a major road between Kharkiv and the Russian-separatists areas of Luhansk and Donetsk in eastern Ukraine.

The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity in order to share new details from U.S. intelligence reports, said the Pentagon believes the miles-longconvoy is working to resupply Russian forces.

Satellite images of the convoy emerged as the Kremlin appears to reorient its war in Ukraine to the east after failing to seize Kyiv.

A satellite image shows armoured vehicles and trucks at the southern end of a military convoy moving south through the Ukrainian town of Velykyi Burluk, Ukraine, April 8, 2022. Picture taken April 8, 2022.

Maxar Technologies | Reuters

"We do assess that it's moving but not at breakneck speed," the official said, adding that it was not clear how many vehicles are in the convoy and how fast it is traveling.

The official added that is not entirely clear where the convoy is going but reiterated that Western intelligence reports assess Russia will soon intensify its military campaign in eastern and southern Ukraine.

Amanda Macias

A Russian national flag flies by destroyed buildings in Mariupol on April 12, 2022, as Russian troops intensify a campaign to take the strategic port city, part of an anticipated massive onslaught across eastern Ukraine, while Russia's President makes a defiant case for the war on Russia's neighbour. - *EDITOR'S NOTE: This picture was taken during a trip organized by the Russian military.*

Alexander Nemenov | AFP | Getty Images

The coastal Ukrainian city of Mariupol is taking the brunt of Russia's ongoing siege as Western security officials warn thatthe Kremlin will soon intensify its military campaign there.

"It's obvious that the Russians want Mariupol because of its strategic location," Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said, noting that it's a major port city that gives them "unfettered and unhindered land access between the Donbas and Crimea." The two territories are held by Russia and Russian-back separatists.

Kirby said the Pentagon has observed Russian forces focus a lot of their strikes on Mariupol and on the Donbas area.

"I don't have perfect knowledge of every missile or long-range fire that the Russians are firing into Mariupol. It continues to be under attack from airstrikes," Kirby added. Earlier in the day, a senior U.S. Defense official told reporters on a call that since the Kremlin's Feb. 24 invasion, Russian forces have launched more than 1,540 missiles into Ukraine.

Ukrainian officials claimed on Monday that Russian forces have used chemical weapons in Mariupol.

Amanda Macias

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson shake hands before a meeting, as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues, in Kyiv, Ukraine April 9, 2022.

Ukrainian Presidential Press Service | Reuters

President Joe Biden held a secure 45-minute call with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson this morning, just days after Johnson returned from a surprise trip to Ukraine.

Johnson told Biden he was "humbled" by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's "strength and resolve" after meeting the unlikely war hero in Kyiv, according to a Downing Street spokesman.

Johnson also updated the president on Britain's latest package of weapons for Ukraine, which includes the Harpoon anti-ship missile that experts say Ukraine could use to break Russia's blockade of its Black Sea ports.

A White House statement on the call said Biden and Johnson, "welcomed ongoing cooperation with allies and partners to impose severe costs on Russia for its unprovoked and unjustified war."

--- Christina Wilkie

Residential buildings that were damaged during the Ukraine-Russia conflict in the southern port city of Mariupol, Ukraine, on April 3, 2022.

Pavel Klimov | Reuters

The Pentagon is not yet able to confirm reports of Russian forces using chemical weapons in the Ukrainian city of Mariupol.

"We are not on the ground. We don't have perfect visibility. And so we're doing the best we can to try to get get to some better conclusion. We are still actively looking at this," a senior U.S. Defense official said on a call with reporters.

"We know that the Russians have a history of using chemical agents and they have shown a propensity in the past and so we're taking it seriously," the official said, referencing Russian use of chemical weapons in Syria.

On Monday, Pentagon press secretary John Kirby described the reports of a potential chemical munition in Mariupol as "deeply concerning."

"These reports, if true, are deeply concerning and reflective of concerns that we have had about Russia's potential to use a variety of riot control agents, including tear gas mixed with chemical agents, in Ukraine," Kirby wrote in a statement.

Amanda Macias

Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak, asked about comments by Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier on Tuesday that peace talks between the two countries were at a dead-end, said negotiations were very hard but they were continuing.

Podolyak also told Reuters that Russia was trying to put pressure on the talks with its public statements and that negotiations were continuing at the level of working sub-groups.

Reuters

Vehicles of the US army are seen at a temporary base installed close to the Rzeszow-Jasionka Airport, south eastern Poland, February 16, 2022.

Wojtek Radwanski | AFP | Getty Images

The $800 million U.S. weapons package approved by the Biden administration last month for the fight in Ukraine is nearly complete, a senior U.S. Defense official confirmed.

"We're very close to finishing it out. We believe we'll be done by the middle of the month and that should, that should close it out. We're also working on the next one, which you know is $100 million for the Javelins," the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said on a call with reporters.

AeroVironment Switchblade 600 Drone

Courtesy: AeroVironment

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Biden calls Putin's actions in Ukraine 'genocide'; Putin warns Russia cannot be isolated from the West - CNBC

DUNEDIN, Fla. From the opposing dugout last year, Matt Chapman saw something special in the Blue Jays.

I noticed that they had a lot of fun together. It seemed like all of them really pulled for each other, said Chapman, now standing outside the Blue Jays clubhouse at TD Ballpark as a member of the team. You see guys that are really talented and have a lot of individual success.

At the same time, rooting just as hard for their teammates and theyre watching their at-bats, theyre paying attention, theyre excited for their teammates. I picked up on that, I picked up on their energy.

From the West Coast, Yusei Kikuchi, while suiting up for the Seattle Mariners, noticed the Blue Jays unique celebrations. The thing that they had with the suit after the home runs, that looked like a lot of fun, he said through his translator Kevin Ando after finishing a spring training start.

Even after just being around the team for a few weeks, Kevin Gausman picked up on how the Blue Jays carried themselves. Theyre all pretty close and nobody takes themselves too seriously, he said while at his locker in the Blue Jays spring training complex. It makes for a fun environment.

Across the industry, fun is the word often used to describe these Blue Jays. Its understandable why.

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How the Blue Jays created their good vibes and good chemistry: 'We're just going to keep balling' - The Athletic

(Adds separatists' denial, Mariupol city council)

KYIV, April 12 (Reuters) - Ukraine is checking unverified information that Russia may have used chemical weapons while besieging the southern Ukrainian port city of Mariupol, Ukraine's Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Malyar said on Tuesday.

"There is a theory that these could be phosphorous munitions," Malyar said in televised comments, adding: "Official information will come later."

Russia's defence ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Russia-backed separatist forces trying to wrest complete control of Mariupol denied using chemical weapons in comments carried by Russian news agency Interfax.

Mariupol's city council wrote on the Telegram messaging service that it was not yet possible to examine the area where the poisonous substance had allegedly been used because of enemy fire. It added that the city's civilian population had minimal contact with the unspecified poison but that Ukrainian soldiers had come into closer contact with it and were now being observed for possible symptoms.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy warned on Monday that Russia could use chemical weapons in Ukraine.

Britain and the United States have said they are aware of reports that Russia may have already used chemical agents in Mariupol. Britain said it was working with partners to verify the reports.

Russia has previously accused Ukraine of preparing to use chemical weapons, without providing evidence.

Last month the Kremlin said U.S. talk of Russia using such weapons was a tactic to divert attention away from awkward questions for Washington.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine has killed thousands and displaced millions. Moscow calls its actions in Ukraine a "special operation" to destroy Ukraine's military capabilities and capture what it views as dangerous nationalists, but Ukraine and the West say Russia launched an unprovoked war of aggression.

(Reporting by Pavel Polityuk in Kyiv and Guy Faulconbridge in London Writing by Alexander Winning Editing by Gareth Jones)

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UPDATE 1-Ukraine says checking unverified information that Russia used chemical weapons in Mariupol - Yahoo Finance

Chemistry is a branch of natural science that deals principally with the properties of substances, the changes they undergo, and the natural laws that describe these changes.

The study of chemistry spans the range from qualitative in focus to quantitative. The more qualitative chemist might work on synthesizing a new compound used in medicine, for example, while the more quantitative work can seem much like physics applied to the microscopic level of atoms and molecules.

Chemicals are everywhere and are everything. Anything you can touch or smell or see contains one or more chemicals. Many occur naturally but some are man made.

Chemists discover naturally occurring chemicals and also make new ones never seen before. Chemists study the properties of the natural and man made chemicals. This information is used to understand how some chemicals may be modified to make them more useful and they develop the methods to make the modifications.

Chemists seek to study the natural world but also seek to improve it by modification on a molecular level. Because everything is a chemical, chemistry is one of the foundations of modern industrial economies.

Advancements in the field of chemistry have brought about major improvements in our world. Improvements range from new medicines that cure disease, to new materials that make us safer and stronger, to new sources of energy that enable new activities.

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What is Chemistry? - Dept of Chemistry - University of Idaho