2B — February 23, 2015
SportsMonday
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

SPORTSMONDAY COLUMN

The house Michigan lacrosse built

T

he Michigan men’s 
lacrosse team is about 
to play the No. 2 team in 

the country, 
and for pos-
sibly the first 
time in its 
short history, 
it doesn’t feel 
like it’ll be a 
blowout.

The 

crowd files 
in early to 
Oosterbaan 
Field House, 
and for the first time in this 
program’s short history, they 
are turning away fans at the 
door. There are still 20 minutes 
before the game begins.

Dads stand in packs, arms 

crossed, previewing the match, 
while moms sit together on the 
bleachers. Kids from all over 
come to watch, some needing to 
be hoisted up on shoulders for 
a glimpse, for a chance to see 
the game. They pack the cor-
ners and the sidelines, and for 
a moment, it seems there might 
be more fans in attendance than 
the end of the football team’s 
game against Utah.

They announce teams, and 

now, for one of the rare times, 
Michigan’s starters are juniors 
and seniors. The Wolverines 
have players who have grown 
into their roles, who aren’t just 
learning them.

Before the first faceoff 

against Notre Dame, Michigan 
is 2-0 to begin the season. It’s 
the first time in the program’s 
history. And for the program 
that endured 37 losses in its first 
three years, Saturday’s game 
feels different — everything 
feels different.

***

F

or the past three years 
the Wolverines have 
started each afternoon in 

the weight room above Canham 
Natatorium. They lift for part 
of the day, then walk across 
the track at Ferry Field to their 
locker room at Ray Fisher Sta-
dium. Some days, they go to 
the Academic Center to watch 
film. Then they change and run 
around the baseball and softball 
fields to practice in Oosterbaan.

The Michigan men’s lacrosse 

team doesn’t have a home on 
campus. It shares space and 
makes do with what’s available.

The team is lucky just to 

have a place to lift, practice and 
watch film.

When the Wolverines were a 

club team, they didn’t have the 
same luxuries. So players and 
coaches haven’t complained 
about their facilities now — it’s 
better than what they had.

Legitimacy isn’t just given 

after complaining and begging. 
It’s earned. And it has a chance 
to earn it is against Notre 
Dame.

***

T

he first quarter begins 
with Notre Dame’s 
Logan Connolly barrel-

ing over players into a penalty. 
The Fighting Irish are the No. 
2 team in the country. They’re 
bigger, faster and, most impor-
tantly, they’re a program with 
many more years of experience 
than the Wolverines.

Michigan takes each hit, 

each stick check and finds a 
way to work through it. It has 
faced tough teams in the past, 
but rarely does it face a team as 
good as the Fighting Irish, who 
fell to Duke in the national title 
game last season.

Sophomore goalie Gerald 

Logan makes a save at point-
blank range, and the crowd 
erupts. He finds an outlet, and 
Michigan rushes down the field. 
It runs its offense quickly until 
a shot goes wide.

The Wolverines trail 2-1 at 

the end of the first quarter and 
somehow, it feels as if Michigan 
is still able to win the game.

***

B

uilding the Michigan 
men’s lacrosse team is 
like building a house.

Coach John Paul tells his 

team that it is building each 
part of the house with every 
week. He’s built the founda-
tion, as he says, if he can be so 
humble as to say he built the 
foundation. Really, he had to cut 
down the trees, level the land 
and build the road to get there, 
given how this team started.

The head coach of the club 

varsity lacrosse team — essen-
tially one step below varsity sta-
tus — Paul and the Wolverines 
were granted varsity status in 
late May 2011. They began prac-
tice for their first season the 
same year.

Paul never had time to 

recruit his first class to come 
play, instead using the club 
players who had come to 
Michigan for academic rea-
sons. Unlike the women’s team, 
which was given a year to build, 
Paul was thrown into the fire.

“There were a lot of culture 

changes we had to go through,” 
Paul said. “We anticipated this 
would take a while, but we 
wanted to do it the right way 
and build culture first.

“If you’d ask the guys, years 

ago, to give you an honest 
answer (about buying into the 
culture), I don’t know if that 
was the case.”

But over time, Paul has 

brought in bigger, better 
recruiting classes. Now, as 
he says, this year is different 
because they have the “frame” 
in place. You can see the house 
being built, and now, you can 
see the tangible successes after 
double-digit-loss seasons.

“You do so much work from a 

distance that it doesn’t look like 
you’re making any progress,” 
Paul said.

***

T

he second quarter, and 
really the remainder 
of the game, unraveled 

from underneath Michigan. 
Paul described his team as 
“emotional” afterward; unable 
to stay upbeat when it was 
knocked down.

Notre Dame outscored the 

Wolverines 7-1 in the second 
quarter, forcing five turnovers 
with a defense that flustered 
the Wolverines. The Fighting 
Irish offense pushed the ball 
inside to create easy scoring 
opportunities.

“I think, more than anything, 

they were disappointed in the 
way they were playing,” Paul 
said. “Our guys certainly feel 
like they could be a lot better 
than they were. And that’s what 
we want.”

This used to be a team that 

slowed down the pace of play 
so that it could limit a game 
getting out of hand, and it 
dropped players back faster to 
make sure its defense wasn’t 
exposed. And now, it’s playing 
the faster up-tempo game it 
always wanted.

“We showed what we’re 

capable of doing, and I think 
that’s a big step,” said senior 
attacker Will Meter.

The Wolverines were silent 

heading off the field after the 
final horn, because this game 
stung. But in a different way 
than it used to.

***

T

he season ahead is filled 
with even more ranked 
teams, and the ones that 

aren’t have already built their 
houses.

But this year is different 

because by now, they’ve been 
through a gauntlet schedule like 
this before.

“If we’re going to get where 

we want to get with this pro-

gram, at some point it’s got to 
stop being intimidating,” Paul 
said. “In the first three years, 
we’d approach games like this 
and say, ‘Man, I hope we can 
hang with these guys.’ And I 
don’t think that’s the case any-
more.”

But this year is different, not 

because a boy sits on his dad’s 
shoulders to watch or because 
players are older. It feels dif-
ferent because, going to any 
game, it feels as if Michigan 
has a chance. And this team 
likely won’t be in line for some 
miraculous season, but it has its 
foundation and its frame.

“We’ve turned a corner, 

and it’s visible when you see 
us every day now,” Paul said. 
“We’re a very different pro-
gram.”

That much has never been 

truer. Because a good house 
stays standing, even after it 
loses.

Garno can be reached 

at ggarno@umich.edu or 

on Twitter @G_Garno.

SAM MOUSIGIAN/Daily

Michigan men’s lacrosse coach John Paul has made his team more competitive in each of its four seasons as a program.

GREG
GARNO

Sunday, the Wolverines’ pass-

ing was crisp and quick, never 
allowing Ohio State to set up its 
defense. The Buckeyes didn’t 
go to their zone until just three 
minutes remained in the first 
half, 
when 
Michigan 
found 

Doyle for an easy layup under 
the basket. And they didn’t go 
to their full-court press until 
90 seconds into the second half, 
when Albrecht and Bielfeldt 
connected on a quick give-and-
go to get Albrecht down the 
court safely.

By that time, the Wolverines 

led by double digits and had set-
tled into a rhythm offensively. It 
was too late.

“We struggled against their 

press and how they guarded us 
in the first game when we played 
in Columbus,” Irvin said. “I just 
thought we’d be able to watch 

film and be able to counter that 
this afternoon.”

Added Ohio State coach Thad 

Matta: “It seemed like we were 
on our heels too much defen-
sively. Give them credit. They 
were able to do, especially in 
the first half, 
anything 
they 
wanted 

to do against 
us. You can’t 
do that with 
that type of 
offense.”

When 
the 

going 
got 

tough, 
the 

Wolverines’ 
composure 
never wavered. They, not Ohio 
State, looked like the team with 
three seniors in its rotation. 
In the end, Albrecht and Irvin 
roared with delight after finally 
finishing off a win in February 
on their sixth try.

“It was just a lot of frustra-

tion let out in the last couple 
minutes,” Albrecht said. “We’ve 
had a tough stretch here these 
past five games, so to be able 
to finally get a win, it was awe-
some.”

Michigan 
used 
a 
classic 

Beilein offen-
sive 
game 

to 
generate 

all 
kinds 
of 

opportunities. 
After 
Doyle’s 

screen on Rus-
sell in the first 
two 
minutes, 

he leaked out 
from the paint 
and 
drained 

an open base-

line jumper. A moment later, 
freshman guard Muhammad-Ali 
Abdur-Rahkman drove down 
the baseline and kicked out to an 
open Irvin for a 3-pointer.

That passing continued for 

most of the first half as the Wol-
verines built their lead, bringing 

to mind some of their perfor-
mances of the past two years.

“We had 13 assists. We haven’t 

had 13 assists in a long time (only 
once since Jan. 6),” Beilein said. 
“I know that’s a stat a lot of you 
don’t value probably as much as 
I do, but it means you made two 
people guard you and you got 
somebody open.”

In the last seven minutes, 

Ohio State had a 20-point defi-
cit trimmed down to three after 
blocking a shot near the end of 
the shot clock and scoring at the 
other end.

But the Wolverines’ motion 

on offense worked to perfection 
again, giving Irvin an open tri-
ple from the corner.

Then it was just a matter of 

Michigan making the plays it 
hasn’t all month. This time, the 
Wolverines put themselves in 
position to finish the game.

“I wasn’t going to let us lose 

that game,” Albrecht said. “I did 
not want to lose that game.”

The Wolverines’ lead bal-

looned to as many as 20 points 
in the first half before Ohio State 
whittled it to three in the sec-
ond. But Michigan has struggled 
to hold late leads and close out 
tight games in recent weeks, most 
notably in overtime losses to 
Michigan State and Illinois.

That wasn’t the issue on Jan. 

13, when the Wolverines were, 
by and large, run out of the gym 
against the Buckeyes’ 71-52 Ohio 
State victory.

The Wolverines were deter-

mined to flip both narratives 
on their heads in their rematch 
with the Buckeyes (8-6, 19-8). 
Albrecht, Irvin and senior for-
ward Max Bielfeldt, especially, 
made sure Michigan didn’t suc-
cumb to its late-game malaise of 
weeks past. Irvin made a critical 
layup following a steal by fresh-
man guard Aubrey Dawkins with 
1:01 left in the game, and Albrecht 
drained an equally important 
pair of free throws with 55 sec-
onds left to push Michigan’s lead 
to 60-50 and eventually seal the 
Wolverines’ victory.

“I don’t think it was as much 

relief as it was just excitement,” 
Bielfeldt said of finally getting 

over the hump. “We hadn’t had 
a good win like that in a while. 
It reminded me a little bit of the 
day where we had those big wins 
more often.”

Albrecht 
finished 
with 
16 

points, five assists and four 
rebounds. Irvin, who has strug-
gled periodically throughout the 
season, put together a complete 
game Sunday, finishing with 15 
points, seven rebounds and four 

assists.

Freshman 
guard 
Muham-

mad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman was 
impressive early as well, breaking 
through the Buckeyes’ front line 
multiple times. The penetration 
left sophomore forward Zak Irvin 
and junior guard Spike Albrecht 
with open looks at 3-pointers on 
multiple occasions — the pair col-
lectively shot 4-for-7 from beyond 
the arc in the first half.

Sunday’s win, Beilein said, was 

a case study in playing college 
basketball the right way.

“I told our freshmen today, 

‘Watch Spike Albrecht.’ That’s 
what college basketball is gravi-
tating to,” Beilein said. “Diving on 
the floor, playing at high speed, 
playing so hard that you can’t 
breathe sometimes — that is what 
the great players do, and we’re 
learning that.”

Michigan upset bid 
falls short vs. Irish

By TAHMEED TUREEN

For the Daily 

Fans walked into Oosterbaan 

Field House hoping to get a 
glimpse of the Michigan men’s 
lacrosse 
team’s 
match 
against No. 
2 Notre Dame. But not all fans 
were able to watch the game 
firsthand, as the game sold out, 
resulting in fans being turned 
away.

But the Fighting Irish made 

sure those who couldn’t get 
in didn’t miss a major upset, 
topping Michigan 17-8.

The game started off with 

both teams fighting for ground 
balls and goals. Sophomore 
attackman Ian King started off 
the scoring with 9:38 left in the 
first quarter, while sophomore 
goalie Gerald Logan backed 
up the team with six saves. 
Notre Dame (2-0) responded 
with just two goals to end the 
first quarter. The atmosphere 
promised a thrilling game for 
both fan bases.

However, 
the 
momentum 

changed when the Fighting 
Irish began to dominate from 
the X with consecutive face-
off wins. With much more 
possession than the Wolverines, 
the Fighting Irish netted seven 
goals in the second quarter 
while Michigan was only able 
to score once from the stick of 
senior attackman Mike Francia. 
The seven Irish goals came from 
six different players.

Michigan’s 
second-quarter 

offense wasn’t able to settle 
down due to constant pressure 
from the Fighting Irish defense, 
as they also kept the Michigan 
offense from entering into their 
territory.

The transition game was 

key during this game, which 
ultimately gave the Fighting 
Irish the upper hand until the 
final whistle.

“(Notre Dame is) a very 

strong transition (team) with 

big shooters and nifty inside 
attackmen,” 
said 
freshman 

midfielder 
Parker 
McKee. 

“They definitely, definitely got 
their chances (off transitions).”

The 
third 
and 
fourth 

quarters were a much better 
representation of the game 
in comparison to the second 
quarter. Notre Dame was held 
to eight goals by the Michigan 
defense 
while 
the 
offense 

rattled the Irish net six times. 
King scored his third tally 
with 9:37 left in the third 
quarter, and junior midfielder 
Mike Hernandez and senior 
midfielder Will Meter followed 
King with a goal apiece.

However, 
Notre 
Dame 

outscored the Wolverines once 
again, scoring five unanswered 
goals to pull ahead 17-6. Meter 
would tally one more goal, and 
King added another with 23 
seconds left in the game.

King had a total of four goals 

and two assists while Logan 
had 16 saves between the pipes. 
Hernandez also scored his first 
goal of the season in the second 
half.

On the other side of the field, 

Matt Kavanaugh, known as the 
face of the Irish attack, scored 
three goals and three assists. 
Brother Rice (Michigan) High 
School graduate Sergio Perkovic 
also scored two goals in his 
return to his home state.

While it was a tough loss 

for the fourth-year program, 
Michigan 
can 
take 
some 

positives from the experience 
going forward. The Wolverines 
still have to face lacrosse 
powerhouses Johns Hopkins 
and Maryland during Big Ten 
play.

“Thankfully, we have a game 

like this to prepare before we get 
into the Big Ten,” said Michigan 
coach John Paul. “I’m really glad 
we scheduled this game.”

But the season goes on for 

the Wolverines, and they’ll 
have to move past the tough 
loss, especially with Canisius 
coming to town in a week.

MEN’S LACROSSE

NOTRE DAME
MICHIGAN 

17
8

JAMES COLLER/Daily

Sophomore forward Zak Irvin totaled 15 points, seven rebounds, three 3-pointers and a career-high four assists Sunday.

MICHIGAN
From Page 1B

BEILEIN
From Page 1B

“It seemed like 
we were on our 
heels too much 

defensively.”

