The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
SportsMonday
October 3, 2016 — 3B
‘M’ wins second straight, tops Penn State
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
That’s the short version of
what Michigan men’s soccer
coach Chaka Daley told his
team at halftime of Sunday’s
game against Penn State. It was
scoreless at the time, but Daley
sought to convince his team
success was coming.
“If things are going the
right way, which they were the
first half, we just told them
to stay the course and keep
going, and goals will come if
we keep playing the way we’re
playing,” Daley said. “And more
importantly, keep competing
the way we’re competing.”
And the goals did come after
the half. Michigan (1-4 Big Ten,
2-6-3 overall) put away two
chances in the final 45 minutes,
notching its second straight
win and first in the Big Ten this
season by a score of 2-0.
The first goal came early
in the 63rd minute, when
freshman
forward
Jack
Hallahan scored from the top
of the box, finishing a chance
perfectly into the left corner of
the goal.
“Honestly,
it
was
overwhelming,” Hallahan said.
“We needed a goal and I knew
that we were struggling to get
a goal. We were at them all
game and it was just joy, relief,
everything in one.”
Ten minutes later, Francis
Atuahene added another to
the
Wolverines’
tally.
The
sophomore forward put up six
shots, but finally connected with
a header from senior forward
Rylee Woods’ high cross that
came from 30 yards out.
After notching its inaugural
victory
Wednesday
against
Detroit, Michigan’s momentum
carried over to Sunday. Early in
the contest, it forced a fast pace,
creating a flurry of quality shots
and — playing to the strength
of their forwards’ speed —
exploited Penn State’s (2-2-0 Big
Ten, 4-5-1 overall) weakness in
that department.
The Wolverines registered 18
shots, seven of which were on
goal, including five in the first
half alone. The
total exceeded
their
average
shots per game
of 16.2, which
ranked 14th in
the nation and
second in the
Big Ten coming
into the game.
Michigan’s
best
scoring
chance of the
first half was in the 42nd minute,
when Atuahene finished a ball
off a service from Woods, only
for the goal to be negated due to
an offside call.
The Wolverines pressured the
ball, controlling the possession
predominantly
in
their
opponents’ half. Any semblance of
a Penn State offensive stand was
quickly thwarted and converted
into a strong counterattack.
With Michigan’s offense and
defense working
cohesively,
it
took until the
81st
minute
for the Nittany
Lions
to
get
their first shot
on goal — a
testament
to
the Wolverines’
stout defensive
effort.
Senior center
back Lars Eckenrode credited
the coaching staff for assembling
an extensive scouting report
that pinpointed Penn State’s
offensive game plan.
“We listened to the coaches,
we put that into action today,
and it really showed that as long
as we listen and have trust in
our coaches with things that
they ask of us, then we’ll have a
tight defense,” Eckenrode said.
“And we followed through with
the game plan.”
Daley added that stopping
midfielder
Connor
Maloney
and forward Dayonn Harris
— coined Penn State’s “danger
guys” — was a priority that was
achieved.
Yet even with the healthy
two-goal
cushion,
the
Wolverines continued to attack,
adding three more shots in the
final minutes.
“We’ve had previous games
where we’ve been up by two and
then drew 2-2,” Hallahan said.
“We knew that we had to grind
it out and we couldn’t take our
foot off the gas.”
CLAIRE ABDO/Daily
Sophomore forward Francis Atuahene scored an insurance goal for Michigan in Sunday’s 2-0 victory.
BENJAMIN KATZ
For The Daily
Wolverines score twice in second half, beat Nittany Lions for first Big Ten win
FIELD HOCKEY
Wolverines fall twice
Coming off a home loss to
No. 4 Penn State last weekend,
things were not looking up for
the Michigan field hockey team.
Rather, things were looking east.
The ninth-ranked Wolverines
(2-2 Big Ten, 7-4 overall) traveled
to the East Coast this weekend for
a pair of games against two top-
10 teams: No. 8 Maryland (3-1 Big
Ten, 8-3 overall) and No. 2 North
Carolina (3-1 ACC, 9-2 overall).
The team was hoping to add more
quality wins to its resume, but
instead found itself disappointed
and overwhelmed.
Michigan began its weekend
Friday in College Park with a Big
Ten battle against the Terrapins.
The Wolverines got on the
scoreboard first, when redshirt
junior Carly Bennett knocked a
loose ball into the back of the net.
Michigan continued to outshoot
Maryland the rest of the half, but
was unable to score again, and
went into halftime with a 1-0 lead.
The Terrapins came out of
halftime strong, scoring eight
minutes into the half after a penalty
gave them a corner attempt. Ten
minutes later, though, freshman
Meg Dowthwaite notched a goal,
giving the Wolverines a 2-1 lead.
The lead wouldn’t last long,
though, as Maryland’s Welma
Luus knocked the ball in from just
in front of the cage. The Terrapins
continued to sustain pressure for
the rest of the half, and outshot
Michigan 12-7 in the second
half. But neither team scored
again in the half, and the eighth-
and ninth-ranked teams in the
country went to overtime.
Overtime
began
just
as
regulation ended, with Maryland
dominating
play.
Junior
goalkeeper Sam Swenson made
three early saves in the period, but
her heroics eventually came to an
end. Three and a half minutes into
the period, the Terrapins knocked
the ball past Swenson, and the
Wolverines’ hope for another top-
10 win faded away.
Despite
the
disappointing
result of its match in College
Park, the Michigan field hockey
team realized it had another
game to play, senior midfielder
Eliza Stein said. The Wolverines
headed two states south to
Chapel Hill, N.C., to face off
against North Carolina. The two
teams previously met in August,
when Michigan defeated the
then-first-ranked Tar Heels, 1-0.
Early on, the Wolverines
showed signs of repeating their
performance
against
North
Carolina, with Stein scoring
unassisted nine minutes into
the game.
Eight minutes later, though,
the Tar Heels improved upon
their earlier performance with a
tying goal by Eva van’t Hoog. The
remainder of the half was pretty
even, with Michigan outshooting
the home team, 7-5.
“I think we got off to as good of
a start against UNC as in the first
game,” Stein said.
The Wolverines were in a good
position going into the second half
to score another quality win over
the Tar Heels. But, it wasn’t to be.
Four minutes into the half,
North Carolina struck again,
giving the Tar Heels their first
lead over Michigan this season.
Emma Bozek scored off a penalty
corner, and it didn’t stop there.
Over the next 30 minutes North
Carolina scored three more times,
including twice more off penalty
corners. A potential marquee
Wolverine victory quickly turned
into a blowout, and the Tar Heels
avenged their season-opening loss
with a 5-1 demolition.
Michigan now has a reprieve
from top-10 opponents. Its next
game is at home against Rutgers,
and even despite the results from
this weekend, the team is still
confident in the rest of the season.
“I think we can still compete for
a national championship,” Stein
said. “This doesn’t change that.”
MATTHEW KENNEDY
Daily Sports Writer
Wolverines off to historic Big Ten start
After a 3-1 win over Maryland
on
Sunday,
the
Michigan
women’s soccer team is off to
its best start in the Big Ten in
program history.
“It feels really good,” said
senior forward Nicky Waldeck.
“I’m excited about it, but we’re
gonna keep the same mentality,
focusing on the next game.”
Michigan (5-0-0 Big Ten,
9-1-1 overall) came into the game
with six straight wins and an
undefeated record at home. The
Terrapins, on the other hand,
have
struggled
considerably
this season, winning only one
game in September and just
three overall.
Michigan quickly set the
tempo for the game, dominating
possession through the first 10
minutes, and giving Maryland
few opportunities to score.
With 22 minutes left in the
first half, the Wolverines broke
the deadlock. Waldeck, who had
already generated a couple of
chances during the half, passed
the ball to sophomore midfielder
Jackie White, who scored her
first goal of the season.
With this goal Michigan also
continued its streak of scoring
the first goal in each of its
games.
“It felt really good,” White
said. “Nicky did all the hard
work ... all I had to do was to tap
it in.”
The Wolverines continued
to dominate play throughout
the half, but the Terrapins
still managed to generate a
dangerous scoring opportunity
when
forward
Chelsea
Jackson shot the ball just past
Michigan’s goal.
Two
minutes
before
the
half
ended,
the
Wolverines
managed to extend their lead to
two goals. Sophomore forward
Reilly Martin drove through
Maryland’s penalty box, passing
the ball over to junior midfielder
Emma Groffsky, who tapped the
ball into the Terrapins’ net. The
goal was also Groffsky’s first of
the season.
Despite
the
2-0
lead,
Michigan coach Greg Ryan did
not want to change his team’s
style of play in the second half.
“We wanted to go after them
in the second half,” Ryan said.
And a mere five minutes into
the second half, the Wolverines
would
capitalize
on
their
coach’s words. Martin, who
had assisted on the second
goal, managed to shoot the ball
past
Maryland’s
goalkeeper,
extending Michigan’s lead to
three goals.
While it did seem that the
Wolverines settled down their
offensive attack to maintain
their lead after that point, the
team still generated a handful
of chances, including a standout
attempt toward the end of
the half by freshman forward
Brooke DeSantis.
Not until the Wolverines
changed goalkeepers did the
Terrapins finally dent their score
line. After redshirt sophomore
Sarah Jackson went off, junior
Megan Hinz gave up a goal on a
corner kick in the 79th minute.
Despite
some
last-
minute
opportunities
for
the Wolverines, neither side
was able to further alter the
scoreline, keeping the game at
3-1 in Michigan’s favor.
The Wolverines have now
won seven straight games this
season, something that Ryan
attributed to team chemistry.
“This is a team that is very
positive, and they’re outlooking,
has a lot of fun playing,” Ryan
said. “It’s as good as it’s been
since I’ve been here.”
MARINA ROSS/Daily
Senior forward Nicky Waldeck helped Michigan control the game and topple Maryland, 3-1, on Sunday at U-M Soccer Stadium.
‘M’ performs well
at Ohio exhibition
The Michigan rowing team
set out on the water in Columbus
this weekend with Olympians
in the spotlight. With Rio de
Janerio
experience
behind
both teams in contention, the
Wolverines scrimmaged Ohio
State on Sunday, helping them
to assess their abilities in the
fall season.
The
Wolverines
had
Olympians to sport, with three
former
team
members
joining
the
coaching staff
following
their
return
from
the
2016 Olympic
Games.
In
the water, the
Wolverines
faced
off
in
pairs
rowing
against 2016 Olympian and Ohio
State athlete Elodie Ravera-
Scaramozzino in her Olympic
event — women’s doubles skulls
rowing.
Michigan
competed
well
against the Buckeyes, with
strong performances in the
race’s 2x4.5-kilometer format
carrying the team’s momentum
following last week’s successful
performance against Eastern
Michigan.
Since the team’s primary
competitive season is in the
spring, this scrimmage allowed
the Wolverines to gauge their
performances in a more relaxed
environment.
While the team’s major races
in the spring are in boats of
four to eight athletes, Sunday’s
scrimmage featured six boats
with two rowers each and
three boats of eight rowers.
The isolated nature of the pairs
rowing allowed the athletes
to assess their performances
closely, allowing for growth
and
targeted
practices
to
improve their performances as
they approach more significant
meets.
The boats were released in a
staggered fashion, also known
as head-style. Because of this,
the boats could not visually
compare themselves to each
other in order to gauge their
performance and were left to
race against the clock.
Sunday’s
conditions
were
favorable to the
Wolverines, as
they remained
successful
under
sunny
skies in Upper
Arlington,
Ohio,
as
the
duo of Katie
Wright
and
Kendall Brewer
finished
first
overall in the
pairs races with a combined
time of 35:52 in the two
4.5-kilometer races.
While they finished the first
race with an 18-second lead
over the Buckeyes’ leading boat,
their second race finished with
a closer gap of only six seconds,
with Ohio State taking second
again.
Michigan also raced three
eights
boats
against
one
Buckeye eights team. Ohio State
came out on top in the first
eights race with a time of 15:14,
but Michigan senior Alexis
Jones coxed the Wolverines to
the front of the pack with a time
of 15:57, finishing eight seconds
ahead of the Buckeyes’ second
place boat.
“I thought it went well,” said
head coach Mark Rothstein.
“It’s the beginning of the
season, so it’s early, and there’s
a lot of development happening
right now.”
ROWING
“We were at them
all game and it
was just joy, relief,
everything in one.”
CHRISTIAN NEUBACHER
For the Daily
JENNIFER KUSCH
For the Daily
In fall scrimmage, Wolverines assess
abilities for upcoming spring season
“It’s early, and
there’s a lot of
development
happening now.”