Sports
6A — Thursday, March 12, 2015
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
‘M’ underdog in Big Ten Tournament
By LEV FACHER
Managing Editor
The Michigan men’s basketball
team has played Illinois twice in
the 2014-2015 season, earning
a hard-fought win on Dec. 30
in Ann Arbor but imploding in
overtime
in
Champaign
on
Feb.
12,
suffering
a
12-point loss.
The
Wolverines
(8-10 Big Ten,
15-15
overall)
get a chance
to
take
the
season
series
Thursday in the
second
round
of the Big Ten
Tournament
at the United
Center in Chicago.
Michigan, the No. 9 seed
in the tournament, is a slight
underdog against the eighth-
seeded Fighting Illini (9-9, 19-12).
The winner, regardless, has little
reason for broader optimism, as
top-seeded Wisconsin has the
luxury of resting and waiting
to take on the second-round
survivor on Friday.
For
the
Wolverines’
few
veterans, the underdog status is
unfamiliar. Senior forward Max
Bielfeldt, for instance, recalls
entering the tournament as the
No. 2 seed in 2012, No. 5 seed in
2013 and No. 1 seed in 2014.
“We just have a different
mentality going in,” Bielfeldt
said, “just knowing that to make
some noise, we have to surprise
people.
“We have to go in and beat
Illinois and beat Wisconsin,
which is the Big Ten’s best team
right now. … In the past, that’s
been us.”
The Wolverines could have
easily earned a higher seed if
it weren’t for a series of games
they struggled to close out,
including an overtime loss to
Michigan State and a double-
overtime heartbreaker last week
at Northwestern.
The Feb. 12 game at Illinois
was another example. After
holding a slight edge over Illinois
for much of regulation in the
defensive
struggle,
Michigan
ran out of gas. The Fighting Illini
finished the game on a 21-2 run —
the Wolverines’ late-game 50-43
lead vanished in the blink of an
eye, and they lost handily, 64-52.
“When we think things are
really stagnant, what are we
going to do?” Beilein said when
asked how Michigan would stand
up to similar runs in the future.
“Punch the ball inside and get to
the foul line.”
The Wolverines’ ability to
punch the ball inside is much
improved by the return of
freshman forward Ricky Doyle
from an intestinal virus. His
absence allowed Bielfeldt to take
the reigns on Senior Day — he
posted his first career double-
double in his first career start. But
Bielfeldt’s 6-foot-7 frame might
not cut it against Illinois’ Nnanna
Egwu, who stands 6-foot-11 and
wreaked havoc with Michigan’s
ability to inbound the ball in
its second matchup with the
Fighting Illini.
Doyle, Beilein said, is ready to
go, but he still isn’t a player who’s
necessarily capable of throwing
inbounds passes in critical, late-
game situations. That task is
often left to junior guard Spike
Albrecht, almost a full foot
shorter than the 6-foot-10 Doyle.
Though
the
Wolverines’
inability to execute inbound plays
has been an issue throughout
the
year,
it
was
especially
noticeable against Illinois and
Egwu, as Albrecht and freshman
guard Muhammad-Ali Abdur-
Rahkman
had
substantial
difficulty
avoiding
turnovers
and even occasional five-second
violations
during
Michigan’s
late-game collapse.
Being forced to use smaller
players on sideline inbounds
plays wasn’t the only issue,
Bielfeldt said, noting that youth
and a simple lack of repetition has
led to occasional confusion on set
inbound play calls.
“We’re
more
working
on
general press-break,” Bielfeldt
said. “I think in the past, we’ve
had difficulties with the timing
of our cuts and the spacing. You
know, you get two guys in one
area, and they don’t have to be
guarded by as many guys, and it
makes it easier on the defense.”
Even if the Wolverines can get
their inbounding issues in check
and handle the Fighting Illini in
the backcourt, they have no easy
task in front of them, especially
with the resurgence of Illinois
guard
Rayvonte
Rice.
He’s
averaging 17 points per game, but
scored just four against Michigan
on Feb. 12, his first game after
returning from a broken left
hand.
Sophomore guards Malcolm
Hill and Kendrick Nunn also
average 14.2 and 11.2 points per
game, respectively, creating a
triple-headed
scoring
threat
that could give the Wolverines
defensive fits.
Overtime blues
By LELAND MITCHINSON
Daily Sports Writer
The
Michigan
women’s
lacrosse team lost a heartbreaker
in overtime to Virginia Tech
in its first
outdoor
game
of
the season
at Michigan Stadium.
Virginia Tech climbed out
of a five-goal deficit to beat the
Wolverines, 13-12.
Sophomore
attacker
Jess
Angerman opened the scoring
for the Wolverines on a nice
pass from sophomore midfielder
Anna Schueler. The Hokies (5-4)
answered minutes later with an
unassisted goal from the nation’s
leading goal scorer, attacker
Megan Will.
Michigan
(3-3)
pressured
Virginia Tech early with an
unassisted goal from sophomore
midfielder
Kim
Coughlan,
followed by free position goals
from
Shueler,
sophomore
attacker
Tess
Korten
and
sophomore midfielder Madeline
Dion.
Angerman
added
her
second of the night to complete
the Wolverines’ 5-0 scoring run.
“We got to a 6-1 lead at
the beginning of the game,”
Schueler said. “I think that’s
something we need to learn
from, is learning how to play
with a lead. You have to take the
positives from every single game
we play.”
Virginia Tech followed up
Michigan’s string of goals with
a streak of its own, scoring six
straight to end the first half,
including two more from Will.
The Hokies added a goal with 15
seconds remaining in the half,
taking a 7-6 lead.
In contrast to the streaky
scoring of the first half, the
second half was much more back
and forth between the two teams.
Unassisted goals from Coughlan
and Dion put the Wolverines
back in the lead in the beginning
of the second half. After two
more goals from Virginia Tech,
Angerman completed her hat
trick.
However,
the
Hokies
quickly added two more, putting
Michigan down, 11-9.
The
young
Wolverines
responded by scoring three
straight goals, with Coughlan
adding her second and Schueler
netting her second and third for
Michigan’s second hat trick of
the night.
“They did a great job sliding
the entire game, and I thought
we did a good job adjusting to
what their defense threw at us,”
Schueler said.
Up 12-11 with 3:31 left in the
game,
the
Wolverines
tried
to run out the clock when a
turnover followed by a cross-
checking yellow card for Korten
gave the Hokies the ball with 52
seconds remaining and a player
advantage. Virginia Tech was
able to take the opportunity and
force overtime.
In
the
two
three-minute
overtime periods, both defenses
succeeded
in
limiting
their
opponent’s shot opportunities.
And as the clock wound down, it
looked like the game would head
to sudden death when the Hokies
netted the final tally of the night
with two seconds on the clock,
ruining any hope Michigan had
of improving its record to 4-2.
“You
know,
we’re
inexperienced,
that
was
a
very experienced team,” said
Michigan coach Jennifer Ulehla.
“There are a lot of positives, but
there are little mistakes that we
made strategically that have to
be learned. Unfortunately, they
have to be learned in situations
like this. We’re gonna break
down the film, we’re gonna talk
about every aspect of the game
and learn from it and move
forward.”
Michigan
vs. Illinois
Matchup:
Michigan
15-15; Illinois
19-12
When: Thurs-
day 12 P.M.
Where: United
Center
TV/Radio:
BTN
ALLISON FARRAND/Daily
Senior forward Max Bielfeldt will look to follow up a strong Senior Day with success in the Big Ten Tournament.
Compher regaining old form
The sophomore
forward is starting
to look like his
freshman self
By JASON RUBINSTEIN
Daily Sports Editor
Michigan
hockey
coach
Red Berenson said time after
time this season that he liked
how sophomore forward JT
Compher was playing, and it
would only be a matter of time
before the goals started piling
up for the sophomore forward.
Game after game, Berenson
found himself referring to the
same mantra: It’s only a matter
of time. Prior to the Wisconsin
series two weeks ago, and last
weekend’s Penn State series,
Compher had tallied just four
goals through 26 games.
Though that would be fine for
some players, Compher entered
this
season
as
Michigan’s
reigning point leader — with 31
last season — scoring 11 goals
in
his
freshman
campaign.
Compher was expected to be
one of the Wolverines’ top
scoring options, but it didn’t
appear that way.
However, in the Wolverines’
past four games, he registered
seven goals and added an
assist. Finally, Berenson could
say something new about the
talented sophomore.
“We
thought
JT
would
continue where he left off last
year,” Berenson said. “I kind of
forgot how good he was until he
got it going again.
“… All of the sudden he’s kind
of ‘Wow.’ He’s got that little
step that maybe he was missing
when things weren’t going for
him. It’s nice to see the old JT.”
Compher’s
teammates
echoed their coach’s sentiment
that Compher’s goals would
come.
But
junior
forward
Andrew Copp tried to pinpoint
what
exactly
jumpstarted
Compher’s scoring barrage.
“A couple of empty-net goals
kind of got him going,” Copp
said.
But the junior added how
important it is that Compher is
picking up the team’s scoring
load,
especially
when
the
nation’s top-ranked offense is
starting to cool down.
Berenson
and
Compher’s
teammates
each
noted
that for the
middle
part
of the season,
the extremely
competitive
Compher
might
have
been
frustrated,
even
though
he
never showed it on the outside.
“He expects a lot of from
himself,” Copp said. “I think
he was frustrated through the
middle part of the year because
he wasn’t one of the leading
scorers, and he expects himself
to be a dominant player. This
isn’t to say he wasn’t producing
in other areas, though.
“I think he’s gotten a monkey
off his back right now and has
a lot of confidence right now,
and that’s how he should always
feel.”
Compher
noted he might
have
been
somewhat
frustrated,
but never to
a
magnitude
where
his
game
was
being adversely
affected.
He knew his
goals
would
come and knew he needed to
contribute in other areas if goals
weren’t going to come his way.
And that’s exactly what he did.
Compher headlined a strong
penalty-killing unit, and his
grit and competitive nature
made the game tougher on his
opponents.
“I kept my work ethic up; that
never faltered,” Compher said.
“I tried to just continue to keep
confidence in my game, because
I know that I can make plays
and be an effective player. I just
tried to stay within my game,
and coach said to continue
playing defense first and to do
the rights things and it will fall
in place.
“Right now it is, but it’s time
to keep it going, though.”
For someone who is coming
off two hat tricks in his last
four games, Compher still isn’t
satisfied. Put bluntly, Compher
knows a hat trick doesn’t matter
if his team ends up losing.
For now, Berenson is happy
to have one of his best players
turning it up a notch at this
crucial juncture, with Michigan
controlling its destiny to win
a Big Ten championship this
weekend.
“I think JT has gone from
a good player to a great player
over the last three weeks,”
Berenson said.
RITA MORRIS/Daily
JT Compher has scored seven goals in his last four games after struggling to find the net for much of the season.
“I kind of forgot
how good he
was until he got
it going again.”
Stability behind
plate very Sweet
By TED JANES
Daily Sports Writer
Year after year, Michigan
softball coach Carol Hutchins
has made a habit of swapping
players in and out of the starting
lineup. But there is one position
that has always been set.
Since
her
freshman
year,
Lauren Sweet has been the
Wolverines’ go-to catcher. Sweet,
now a senior, is just seven games
shy of her 200th start.
When she’s not behind the
plate, Sweet is one of the team’s
strongest power hitters. When
she is behind the plate, she’s
the solid, reliable catcher that
Michigan needs. Since 2012, the
starting lineup has seen pitchers,
infielders and outfielders come
and go, but at catcher, it has
always been Sweet.
A vocal leader both on and
off the field, it didn’t take long
for Sweet to earn Hutchins’
approval. In 2012, in just her
second
career
game,
Sweet
belted a home run against then-
No. 22 LSU. Along with her
deadly arm, her bat has secured
her starting spot.
And this season has shown
why she’s maintained it. Through
25 games this season, Sweet has
stacked up six home runs, 27 RBI,
a .333 batting average and a .682
slugging percentage.
On defense, Sweet has caught
nearly half of opponents trying
to steal bases, a statistic that
has been on the rise since her
freshman season. The numbers
speak for themselves, but her
coach and teammates all attested
to the fact that some of Sweet’s
greatest contributions come from
her experience.
“She’s caught four years behind
the plate, so her experience is
instinctive,” Hutchins said. “She
has a gun for an arm with such
a quick release, but she’s also a
calming force for the pitchers
and the coaches. She keeps things
under control; never gets too
high, never too low. Overall, she’s
a pretty even-keel kid.”
Sweet has embraced this role,
especially in keeping a good
relationship and understanding
with pitchers. Whenever one of
the pitchers is struggling in the
circle, Sweet will get up to talk to
her. But not all the conversations
are serious.
“A lot of the times it’s just to
give them time to relax,” Sweet
said. “Sometimes it’s serious,
sometimes it’s just to make
them laugh. As a pitcher, you
are going and going, and say you
just walked somebody, you don’t
have a second to forget about
that one and move on. In those
situations, I go out there and
tell them to breathe and take a
second.”
Added
sophomore
pitcher
Megan Betsa: “Sweet always
knows the perfect thing to say.
She knows when you need to be
talked to nicely and she knows
when you need to be picked up.
That’s a really good quality to
have as a catcher.”
The
relationship
she
has
with the pitching staff grows
stronger each year. For senior
lefthander Haylie Wagner, the
connection began before coming
to Michigan.
“I’ve known her even longer
than college and she’s just
improved so much,” Wagner
said. “Before, she was always
very calm, not caught up and
just had fun with it. Now, she
still is having fun, but I think
she’s even more determined on
getting better and better. She’s
a lot more vocal and able to fix
things on the spot. Throughout
the years, she’s really learned to
trust herself and trust the whole
team.”
Sweet knows the starting
spot belongs to her, but she’s
still not content. One day a week,
she arrives late to practice due
to class, so she stays an hour
afterwards to hit. While some
go-to starters might be content
with their game, Sweet is putting
in the extra work.
SOFTBALL
WOMEN’S LACROSSE
VIRGINIA
MICHIGAN
13
12