The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com SportsMonday September 19, 2016 — 3B ‘M’ pounds MSU, CMU By ORION SANG Daily Sports Writer It took just over one minute for the No. 8 Michigan field hockey team to get on the board against Central Michigan on Sunday. With the Wolverines on the attack, senior forward Sina Lampe fired a pass into the crease, finding the stick of senior forward Courtney Enge, who deflected it past the Chippewa goalkeeper. Enge’s goal opened the floodgates for the Wolverines (1-0 Big Ten, 6-1 overall), who displayed their offensive prowess during a 10-0 rout of Central Michigan (1-6) — Michigan’s second win of the weekend after a 4-1 triumph over Michigan State (0-1, 4-3) in the conference opener Friday night. The Chippewas hardly challenged the Wolverines, who tallied 34 shots and 12 corners. Michigan controlled possession and generated scoring opportunities at will — though it initially struggled with finishing its chances. Despite spending most of the first half threatening to score, Michigan tacked on only one other goal when redshirt junior midfielder Allie Sardo scored off a corner. “After coming in from halftime, we had to figure out what our mojo was and what our passing game was,” Enge said. “Getting it down the line and into the circle are really good things for us, and it was just going to take time to finish.” Finishing wasn’t as much of a problem in the second half — the Wolverines scored eight times to turn the game into a blowout, with four coming in the first 10 minutes of the half. “In the first half we were frantic a little bit when we were in the circle,” Enge said. “In the second half, we were able to get the ball on the stick and figure out what we were going to do with it next.” Added Michigan coach Marcia Pankratz: “It takes a little bit longer for the attack to be firing on all cylinders, so we just needed to stay patient and continue to try to execute and that was what we talked about at halftime. “We have the saying, ‘Slow is smooth and smooth is fast,’ and (I told them), ‘Make sure you just finish your chances,’ and that worked out in the second half a lot better.” With Michigan’s offense holding the ball for most of the game, the backline didn’t face much pressure. Central Michigan was unable to generate any shots or corners until the final seconds of the second half. It was a slightly different story Friday against the Spartans, but the Wolverines still emerged with a relatively easy 4-1 victory. Michigan State tallied 10 shots, scoring a goal in the first half and forcing junior goalie Sam Swenson to make five saves. Yet the Wolverines held a lead throughout the contest, avenging a 5-3 preseason loss to the Spartans. “Preseason, we (were) still working on some things, working on lineups and personnel, and I think we played with a lot more energy and organization (Friday),” Pankratz said. “We contested a lot more plays than we did in the preseason. “When we get circle penetrations, we have to be able to finish. With Sam being in our goal cage and being such an extraordinary goalie, putting in four goals is going to bode well for us.” It bodes well even more so for Michigan, considering its defense has surrendered a total of four goals in seven games, with Swenson already posting two shutouts. Still, even coming off a game in which her team scored 10 goals, Pankratz knows there’s still room for improvement in the young Wolverines — especially as their schedule increases in difficulty. “Ohio State, Penn State and the Big Ten ratchets up your ability to have to make decisions quickly,” Pankratz said. “So (we need to make) free hits quicker, (make) decisions quicker and just (do) everything we did today at a higher level.” MAZIE HYAMS/Daily Senior Sina Lampe scored one goal and added four assists to catalyze Michigan’s offense against Central Michigan. Wolverines fall again By COLE ZINGAS Daily Sports Writer EAST LANSING — Nearing the end of Sunday’s Michigan men’s soccer game against Michigan State, freshman forward Jack Hallahan sent a soaring cross into the box. The ball was knocked back and forth several times by Wolverine attackers, but eventually the Spartans cleared the ball harmlessly away — marking yet another time Michigan was close, but could not get the finishing touch it desperately needed. The lone Spartan goal came eight minutes into the game, on a deflected header that landed right at the feet of Michigan State defender Brad Centala, who did not miss the golden opportunity to smash the ball into the open net. From that point on, the Wolverines (0-3-0 Big Ten, 0-4-3 overall) played catch-up. They won the time of possession battle handily, controlling the ball for the majority of the game, tactically seeking their opportunity for the equalizer. But to the displeasure of the Michigan faithful who made the trek to East Lansing, that moment never came, and Michigan State (2-0-0, 5-1-0) took the game, 1-0. The Wolverines showed patience in their style of play, which was countered by a fast-break style offense for the Spartans, who got most of their chances on quick rushes. However, junior goaltender Evan Louro handled the rest of the Spartan attacks, with the help of a shot off the post and a save by sophomore defender Marcello Borges. It was up to Michigan’s controlled style of offense to strike back. The first half came and went with only one quality chance for the Wolverines, which came on a cross from redshirt junior midfielder Michael Kapitula with less than a minute remaining. Sophomore midfielder Robbie Mertz headed the ball on goal, but the Michigan State goalkeeper made his best save of the game, sliding to keep the Wolverines off the board. “Down 1-0 early is always tough and you never plan for that,” said senior midfielder Brett Nason. “We had to be more attack- oriented and try to push numbers forward, and we’re going to give up a little defensively of course, but we have to get that goal back.” To open the second half, the Spartans slowed down as Michigan pushed its offense. However, Michigan coach Chaka Daley points to at least five opportunities where the Wolverines could have scored, but didn’t break through. Within the last 10 minutes, the Wolverines put forth a last- ditch effort to tie the game, but even moving a defender up and subbing in fresh legs didn’t help them convert. “Margins in college soccer are so slim,” Daley said. “You have situations where the ball is bouncing around the box, theirs goes in, ours doesn’t — that’s college soccer.” Added Nason: “It’s not like we’re doing anything wrong. It’s just that luck hasn’t been on our side.” On the final play of the game, with 15 seconds remaining, senior defender Lars Eckenrode found himself alone in the box as he juggled the ball to himself, and booted the ball on the net. The shot soared just high of the goal, and his impassioned scream of agony was echoed by the rest of his Michigan teammates as they watched the Spartans celebrate with the Big Bear trophy for the first time since 2013. But the winless Wolverines still have faith in their abilities. “Honestly, I don’t think we played poorly, so you can’t put your head down,” Nason said. “You can’t hide from it — you just have to come out next game stronger.” MEN’S SOCCER MICHIGAN MICH. ST. 0 1 Michigan 2-0 in Big Ten Michigan goes on road for first conference weekend, tops Iowa, Nebraska By ROBERT HEFTER Daily Sports Writer The Michigan women’s soccer team made its Big Ten debut this weekend at Iowa on Friday and Nebraska on Sunday, swiftly prevailing over both teams to increase its conference record to 2-0 (2-0 Big Ten, 6-1-1 overall). The Wolverines put their stout defense on display yet again, allowing only one goal in the past two games. At Iowa, Michigan outshot the Hawkeyes, 16-5, in the first half, but failed to convert any of those chances into goals. At the beginning of the second half, though, sophomore midfielder Abby Kastroll buried the ball through a scrum off of a free kick to give the Wolverines a 1-0 lead. “We utilize free kicks because we work on them every day,” said sophomore forward Reilly Martin. “We try to execute and get our heads on each cross.” Iowa gained momentum in the second half, though, letting seven shots fly opposed to Michigan’s five. Sophomore goalkeeper Sarah Jackson amassed five saves, maintaining the clean sheet. The Wolverines would go on to win the match 1-0. “We’re taking every game day by day,” said junior midfielder and captain Ani Sarkisian. “This weekend was a hard road trip with a quick multi-state turnaround.” Michigan continued its conference play at Nebraska, hoping to increase its shutout streak to five in a row. “Nebraska and Iowa play very different games. Nebraska is aggressive,” said Michigan coach Greg Ryan. “Our focus was defending well as a group, and we did a great job of limiting Nebraska’s chances to score.” After 28 minutes of play in the first half, Martin was fouled in the box, giving the Wolverines a penalty kick chance to take the lead. Martin capitalized on it, firing it into the left corner of the net. With a one-goal lead, the Wolverines focused on their defense, something they set out to achieve considering Nebraska’s aggressive attack, which averages 10.1 shots per game. Nebraska nearly converted during the beginning of the second half as junior goalkeeper Megan Hinz tipped a potential equalizer over the net. However, just four minutes later, Kastroll netted an insurance goal off of a pass through the center of the defense from Sarkisian to put the Wolverines up by two. Just as the prospect of five straight shutouts was in sight, Nebraska scored a header from a corner kick with eight seconds remaining in regulation. The Wolverines went on to win, 2-1. The Cornhuskers outshot the Wolverines, 13-6, but the Michigan defense dominated the game, and the coaches awarded the whole unit the Player of the Game award. Michigan looks to continue its Big Ten win streak against Michigan State at home next Saturday. WOMEN’S SOCCER ‘M’ wins home invite By ETHAN WOLFE Daily Sports Writer Mark Rosen had never seen anything like it in his 18 years as Michigan’s coach. According to the Michigan volleyball team’s coach, Friday night’s packed and energetic crowd at Cliff Keen Arena reached a decibel level that set the tone for the Wolverines (11- 1) throughout the three matches of the Michigan Challenge. No. 23 Michigan swept the tournament, claiming victories in all three matchups and dropping only one set — the first set against Colgate (4-7) on Saturday night. On Friday night against Auburn (6-7), the Wolverines downed the Tigers handily and held an advantage in almost every facet of the game, especially on the offensive side. Spearheaded by senior middle blocker Abby Cole, who had 13 kills, Michigan won the kills battle, 48-33, in a 3-0 sweep. Michigan’s front row for most of the match, composed of Cole and middle blockers Cori Crocker and Claire Kieffer- Wright, were in complete harmony and accounted for more than half the team’s kills. Saturday’s early matchup against Eastern Michigan (5-8) was much of the same as the previous contest. The Wolverines took control from the get-go to take their second 3-0 victory. Rosen dug deep into the depth chart against the Eagles to give his typical starters a breather before the third game later on Saturday. But evidenced by the score, Michigan didn’t skip a beat. “It was to get some people some experience, to see some people in different situations,” Rosen said. “If there’s only six or seven players who can play at a high level, you’re not going at a level that’s going to make you better.” Freshman outside hitter Sydney Wetterstrom and fifth- year senior outside hitters Kelly Murphy and Ally Davis combined for 19 kills against Eastern Michigan. Saturday’s nightcap against Colgate began much differently than the previous two matchups for Michigan. The Raiders took control of the first set, winning 25-22, to jump out to an early lead. But the set quickly became an outlier of an impressive weekend for the Wolverines, as they managed to control the tempo for the rest of the match. Michigan roared back, trouncing Colgate in the third set, 25-9. Cole, once again, was the star of the match, tallying an impressive 19 kills. “I thought the difference was in the third and fourth set,” Rosen said. “Our defensive level took a big jump, our blockers finally made the adjustments, we started to cap on their hitters and then it changed the game. They hit -.187 in the third set, and that’s exactly what we were hoping to do.” The sweep at the Michigan Challenge capped off an impressive 11-1 start for the Wolverines in non-conference play. In all three games, freshmen MacKenzi Welsh and Tiffany Clark made promising contributions on an already young team, but for Rosen, it was the seniors who impressed him the most. “(The freshmen) are good, but I think I’m most proud of the three seniors,” Rosen said. “Those older kids have put a lot of time and work in, and I think they’re doing a great job of the volleyball side of it, but also the leadership and the intangibles.” While the Wolverines have reason to celebrate after their dominant non-conference play, they also know that games in the Big Ten — which boasts eight teams in the top 25 — will pose a much greater challenge. “We feel really good,” Cole said. “It’s definitely a confidence booster, but at the same time we understand it’s not going to be much like this (against the Big Ten). We have a lot to work on this week in practice.” SINDU KILARU/Daily Mark Rosen’s team won three matches this weekend to move to 11-1.