The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com November 17, 2008 - 3B BRONCOS From Page 1B ing what went wrong and how to fix it. "I felt we played a very good game, but obviously we had a few letups here and there in the defen- sive zone and those obviously cost us for the end result," junior acting captain Chris Summers said. All it took was a little attitude - and anger. On Saturday, Michigan took the ice at LawsonIce Arena as a team on a mission. Fourteen seconds after the opening faceoff, the Wolverines set the tone off a goal from fresh- man David Wohlberg. The fresh- man received a pass that bounced off his skate and slid to the crease before shooting it into the open side of the net beyond Gill. It wasn't a typical goal, but it was just what Michigan needed: a little puck luck and game-changing momentum. "To get the crowd of out it early D that was huge," sophomore goalten- der Bryan Hogan said. "Every time you're on the road with a big crowd, you've got to get that first goal and get the crowd out of it." And as it turned out, Michigan wouldn't need another goal. Hogan stopped 20 shots en route to the BIG TENS From Page 1B During the Big. Ten Tourna- ment, Michigan struggled to score during regulation play. In the final three games of the regular season, the Wolverines found the back of the net six times off 14 shots on net. But in the 200 minutes they played in Madison, they were held scoreless, despite 11 quality chanc- es. Marosevic, the team's leading scorer with 12 goals, and the rest of the Michigan offense were stifled by the four-man defenses of Wis- consin and Indiana. The Wolver- ines need to improve in that area so it won't plague them during the NCAA tournament. "We are goingto work on finish- ing in practice and making sure we can put those chances away next time," Marosevic said. "As a for- Wolverines' first shutout of the season and the sophomore's first at Michigan. With the tempo set, Michigan continued firing on all cylinders. Senior forward Tim Miller scored a beautiful goal, and sophomore for- ward Louie Caporusso notched his first career hat-trick as a Wolverine on three third-period goals. "We've been kind of unlucky the past couple games," Caporusso said. "We felt nothing's going to stand in our way today. We don't care. We're not going to make the smallest mis- take or let up for the smallest little time. We've got to stay with them for all 60 minutes." Said Michigan coach Red Beren- son "We played harder, we played grittier." But Michigan's upset loss will be the one remembered by the Wolver- ine faithful despite the team's strong rebound Saturday. "The sad thing is that we come in here and have a good game, but none of the fans that watch these two teams are going to feel very good about their team," Berenson said. "We had a great crowd game (Friday), that watched us lose. They had a great crowd (Satur- day), that watched them lose. So, all the fans are disappointed, and both teams had one good game this weekend." ward, you will have those games when you score five, and you have those where you are just unlucky and it seems like you can't get any- thing into the back of the net." The underclassmen are look- ing forward to sending their seven seniors out on a high note. "Obviously, they're the heart of the team and they're feeling the urgency, and the rest of the team will rally behind them," redshirt junior Danny Gray said. With the first round of the NCAA Tournament starting Fri- day, Michigan will have a definite focus for the next week. And with something to prove after falling short of their Big Ten Championship goals, the Wolver- ines will be a dangerous opponent for anyone who has to take the field against them. "We're going to be a team that nobody wants to play," Burns said. He knows Michigan is ready to answer his three questions. SAID ALSAL AH/I Sophomore center Louie Caporusso scored a natural hat trick in the third period against Western Michigan Saturday. He leads the nation with 12 goals on the season. regains offensive touch Mi fr( KAI boxsc hocke split might. domin Friday urday' . Mic shots manag session most Riley pressu to kee But more seconc Weste man-t quentl wards in the chigan rebounds Those same Western Michigan defensemen were nowhere to be m Friday's loss found Saturday, and Michigan's offense revived. with five-goal The Wolverines continued to charge through the slot and-attack Gill within 15 feet of the crease. But this time, the defenders were By GJON JUNCAJ routinely caught out of position, Daily Sports Writer and whatever momentum the Broncos carried into Saturday LAMAZOO - While the quickly evaporated. ores from the Michigan Michigan jumped out to a 2-0 y team's weekend series lead less than seven minutes into with Western Michigan Saturday's contest. Sophomore not show it, the Wolverines forward Louie Caporusso said ated offensive play from David Wohlberg's tally 14 sec- 's opening faceoff until Sat- onds into the game left Gill visibly 's final buzzer. frustrated for the remainder of higan took twice as many the night, as the Broncos on Friday and "When we go out and take ged to maintain puck pos- those hits on the first shift, and n in the offensive zone for .then we go down and score, then of the night. Bronco goalie that confidence kicks in," Michi- Gill was consistently under gan coach Red Berenson said. "I ire and had to make 33 saves just think we played harder (than p the game close. on Friday)." Michigan only had sopho- Perhaps rattled by the sudden forward Carl Hagelin's multi-goal deficit, Western Mich- d-period goal to show for it. igan's defense seemed a step slow- rn Michigan played tight er and generally overwhelmed. o-man defense and fre- On top of that, Michigan's for- ly tied up Wolverine for- wards were more effective estab- trying to handle the puck lishing position in front of the net slot. than on Friday, and the final num- bers reflect that. Caporrios blew the game open with three consecutive third- period goals - his first career hat trick. The feat came courtesy of a one-timer from the right circle through Gill's five-hole and two quick shots in the slot with sur- prisingly clear shooting lanes. Saturday night was arguably Michigan's best offensive perfor- mance of the season. The 5-0 win matched the Wolverines' highest margin of victory this year. Com- pared to Friday, Michigan played with a heightened sense of urgen- cy that Berenson said hasn't been there enough this season. "I think our team is slowly real- izing how hard they have to play every night to be a competitive team," Berenson said Saturday. "Maybe we didn't understand that from last year because we had a lot of success last year. You forget how hard you had to work to be successful last year. I think we're starting to get it." Berenson credited Saturday night's scoring outburst to success battling for loose pucks and con- verting on second chances near the crease. The Broncos' defensive intensity Saturday wasn't close to the level it was Friday. And they paid for it. On Michigan's fourth and fifth goals, Western Michigan was caught watching sophomore for- ward Aaron Palushaj race for a loose puck behind the net. On both occasions, Caporusso received a lightning-quick centering pass in the slot, and quickly tallied his team-leading 11th and 12th goals of the season. Michigan's loss on Friday night was probably the most surpris- ing of this season. The Broncos entered the weekend winless in their last nine games and had lost five straight to the Wolver- ines. Hagelin said Friday that the Broncos were a frustrating team to play and lamented the Wolver- ines' lack of luck around the net. But Michigan received a lit- tle more of that Saturday. Their execution in the opposing zone was vastly improved from Fri- day, while Western Michigan's lack of firepower - the Broncos rank 10th in the CCHA in scoring offense - made a potential come- back impossible. "We just made it very clear (before Saturday's game) that we had to come in here with a sense of confidence and a sense of des- peration," Berenson said. Engineering prepares Holody for calculated approach to defense s0U D O KU By ROGER SAUERHAFT Daily Sports Writer In terms of sheer workload, few academic programs are as daunt- ing as Michigan's second-ranked Industrial and Operations Engi- neering program. Imagine trying to complete an engineering degree in three-and-a- half years - as a varsity athlete. That's precisely what senior defender Mike Holody has done during his four-year career with the men's soccer team. Perhaps even more impressive, he manages to maintain a healthy sleep cycle. "It's been a lot of work," Holody said. "It's just a matter of getting the stuff done that I need that day and making sure I'm on top of things. At the worst times I try to get six hours of sleep (each night), but ide- ally I get seven or eight, catching a few naps here and there." Holody has managed to do more than just get his work done while participating in 20 hours of prac- tice a week and traveling with the team for matches. He has excelled in both areas. The Clarkstownnative is a three- time Michigan Athletic Academic Achievement honoree. The tri-cap- tain also serves as the anchor of the Wolverine defense. Michigan coach Steve Burns said Holody is the best defender in the Big Ten. Burns, who graduated with a Michigan engineering degree, said he's seen a correlation between quality defenders and engineering students. "I don't know if it's the organi- zation that appeals to the type of personality for engineering, but they naturally understand the con- cepts,"Burns said. "Ireallylike that type of personality on the field, and oftentimes they seem to be defend- ers, while the attacking players are more the artists. You can't teach that. He knows, based on angles, Senior defender Michael Holody, pictured here earlier this season, has suceeded as an engineering major and a soccer star. fL Fff Yost Ice Arena C 'r YOST - , OST with Happy's Pizza Presents BEAT OSU- SKATE Thursday, November 20th 8:00 - 9:50 pm o M-Den giveways and Happy's Pizza coupons o o $1 skate rental with Michigan outfit o Show your "Michigan Spirit" in Yost Arena umich.edu/yost * 1000 S. State St. * (734) 764-4600 based on movement and momen- tum, mass times acceleration with things coming at him, where he needs to be to make plays." Though Holody said soccer played a large part in his college decision, Michigan's strong engi- neering program helped bring him to Ann Arbor rather than Wake Forest. And coming to college with 19 credits already under his belt, Holo- dy realized he could graduate early, and train for a potential profession- al launching pad, the Major League Soccer combine, in January. Burns, who has sent five Wol- verines to the MLS, has described Holody as a lock to be drafted. Holody sounds confident, too. "I'll be going to the MLS com- bine and hopefully getting drafted," Holody said. "I've compared myself to players drafted in the past couple years, but I could go anywhere. It depends on how the rest of the sea- son goes, because when your team does well it opens the eyes of pro teams. We're focused on doing well in the NCAA Tournament and if that helps me in future draft posi- tion, then who knows?" And when his playing days are over, Holody knows he can falliback on his engineering degree and hard work in the classroom.