The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
SportsMonday
October 9, 2017 — 3B

Wolverines split weekend in upstate New York

The 
resourcefulness 
of 

Michigan hockey’s special teams 
Friday night earned it a victory 
in its season opener against 
St. Lawrence. Finding the net 
on two of five power plays, 
the Wolverines’ performance 
mimicked last season’s dynamic 
power-play offense that finished 
17th nationally.

But just a day later, that 

same offense looked starkly 
different.

Inefficiency on the power play 

was the downfall of Michigan 
(1-1-0 overall) in its Saturday 
matchup with Clarkson. The 
Wolverines couldn’t convert on 
any of their eight special teams’ 
chances. The failure to do so 
was glaringly displayed in two 
of 
Michigan’s 
opportunities, 

which happened to be five-on-
three advantages.

“When you don’t score any 

goals, it’s hard to win a hockey 
game,” said Michigan coach Mel 
Pearson. “But it’s a process and 
it’s going to be a process with 
this team.”

Despite 
outshooting 
the 

Golden Knights (2-0-0) 29-19, 
Michigan found itself in this 
exact 
offensive 

predicament. 
Falling 
to 

Clarkson 
in 

the 
Saturday 

nightcap halted 
the Wolverines’ 
chance 
for 
a 

weekend sweep, 
and 
resulted 

in 
Michigan 

splitting 
its 
opening 

weekend.

“We’re going to have to 

continue 
working 
on 
our 

special teams, especially five-
on-threes,” Pearson said. “We 
haven’t had a lot of opportunities 

to work on those, and I think you 
could see that tonight a little bit. 
But those are huge momentum 
swings in the game, and if we 
can score one on that, then we’re 
right back in.”

While no puck found the 

back of the net Saturday, the 
Wolverines 
certainly 
didn’t 

make it an easy night for Golden 
Knight goaltender Jack Kielly. 
The 
sophomore 
netminder 

recorded 29 saves throughout 
regulation. Michigan brought 
an energized attack Friday as 
well, recording 27 shots against 
the Saints (0-2-0).

The penalty kill — a focal 

point 
during 
practices 
this 

week — was another strong 
suit for the Wolverines on their 
New York road trip. Michigan 
prevented goals on all four of St. 
Lawrence’s power plays Friday, 
and went 5-for-6 on penalty 
kills against Clarkson.

Preventing 
the 
opposition 

from scoring on power plays was 
just one asset of the Wolverines’ 
blue 
line 
this 
weekend. 

Michigan’s defense also held its 
opponents to relatively low shot 
counts.

“We definitely made some 

improvement 
defensively,” 

Pearson said. “You know, to 

only give up 18 
shots to a team 
like Clarkson … 
is a good sign for 
our defense. And 
our goaltenders 
might 
want 
a 

little more work, 
but we’re trying 
to limit the shots.

“I 
thought 

it was a good 
defensive effort 

(Saturday night). A lot of blocked 
shots, a lot of guys sacrificing 
their body to make a difference.”

As could be anticipated in 

an opening weekend, Michigan 
also had its fair share of firsts.

Pearson, who has officially 

begun his first season as head 
coach of the Michigan hockey 
team, kicked off his tenure with 
the win against St. Lawrence. 
Additionally, his first loss came 
Saturday 
against 
Clarkson, 

splitting his first weekend.

Sophomore 
goaltender 

Jack LaFontaine earned his 
first win of the season in the 
opener, racking up 24 saves 
against the Saints on Friday 
night. Sophomore netminder 
Hayden Lavigne also saw his 
first official start this season 
Saturday against the Golden 
Knights, recording 16 stops on a 
19-shot night.

On the other end of the ice, 

freshman defenseman Quinn 
Hughes and graduate forward 

Alex Roos netted their first goals 
for the Wolverines against St. 
Lawrence. Hughes notched his 
first 
collegiate 

goal on a power 
play 
early 
in 

the 
second 

period, 
while 

Roos 
scored 

Michigan’s third 
and 
final 
goal 

about 
midway 

through 
the 

third.

The 
only 

opposing 
goal 

was scored by forward Alex 
Gilmour in the second period, 
but wasn’t enough to combat 
Michigan’s two-goal lead.

Hughes 
and 
Roos, 
in 

combination 
with 
another 

power-play goal from senior 
forward Tony Calderone, led the 
Wolverines to their eventual 3-1 

triumph over the 
Saints.

Saturday’s 

results differed 
from that of the 
St. 
Lawrence 

game 
and 

weren’t 
what 

Michigan 
had 

hoped 
for. 

Clarkson scored 
two goals in the 
first period, one 

of which was the result of a 
power play from a Roos hooking 
penalty. A third and final goal 
was scored for the Golden 
Knights in the second period by 
defenseman Terrance Amorosa 

to finalize the 3-0 score early in 
the game.

However, a high shot output 

and 
resilient 
defense 
were 

positive assets in the Wolverines’ 
performance, regardless of the 
game’s outcome.

And those efforts certainly 

didn’t go unnoticed.

“We knew Clarkson was a 

good hockey team coming in 
here,” Pearson said. “You know, 
they’re ranked ahead of us … 
and it’s hard to be on the road. 
But I liked our stay with it, 
that’s one of the positives I can 
take out of this. We stayed with 
the game plan, we kept pushing, 
we kept working. We just didn’t 
get any puck luck (Saturday). 
And some nights, it’s just going 
to go that way for you.”

RYAN MCLOUGHLIN/Daily

Fifth-year senior forward Alex Roos netted his first career goal for the Wolverines to lead them to a 3-1 victory over St. Lawrence on Friday night. 

ANNA MARCUS
Daily Sports Writer

We definitely 
made some 
improvement 
defensively

Michigan’s power play unit excelled Friday, leading to a win. But the next day, the unit sputtered.

Some nights, 

it’s just going to 
go that way for 

you

Michigan overpowers Rutgers in dominant win

Coming 
off 
a 
nail-biting 

win against Penn State last 
Sunday, the Michigan men’s 
soccer team had a more routine 
Friday night, overpowering a 
struggling Rutgers team, 3-1. 

Michigan (4-1-1 Big Ten, 

7-3-2 overall) came out strong, 
creating 
opportunities 
early 

and often. Rutgers (0-6-0 Big 
Ten, 
2-9-1 

overall) 
gave 
way 

to 
the 

Wolverines’ persistence, as the 
deadlock broke after just seven 
minutes. 
Junior 
midfielder 

Robbie Mertz dribbled into 
the box before sliding the ball 
to find junior midfielder Ivo 
Cerda for the tap-in finish.

Michigan continued to push 

numbers forward and carve 
out scoring chances. Twelve 
minutes after Cerda scored, 
freshman forward Mohammed 
Zakyi played a perfect ball 
junior 
forward 
Francis 

Atuahene, who fired a shot back 
across the goalkeeper to extend 
the Wolverines’ lead to two.

“It was good. It set the bar 

high, and gave the defenders 
a little bit of relief,” Atuahene 
said. “The earlier you score 
goals the more confidence you 
gain.”

Added 
Michigan 
coach 

Chaka Daley: “Any time you 
score two goals early at home 
you want to ride the wave. 
We had a great crowd and the 
Ultras were here. We had to 
battle some minor elements, but 
they were here in full voice and 
it certainly pushes our team on 
when the Ultras are here.”

Toward the end of the first 

half, momentum shifted in 
favor of the Scarlet Knights. 
Michigan 
looked 
a 
bit 

complacent and was sloppy in 
possession. A foul near midfield 
gave Rutgers a set piece, of 
which they took full advantage. 
Rutgers forward Ryan Peterson 
beat sophomore goalie Andrew 

Verdi with a well-placed header 
off a cross from 40 yards out.

Michigan went into the half 

up 2-1, outshooting Rutgers 
12-6 in the first 45 minutes. 
But 
the 
Wolverines 
knew 

adjustments still had to be made 
in 
the 
second 

half 
to 
regain 

momentum.

“It was a soft 

goal from our 
standards,” 
Daley said. “We 
talked 
about 

at 
halftime 

how we set the 
standard, 
not 

the opponent. If 
you don’t live up 
to it, it has to change.” 

The 
Wolverines 
certainly 

responded 
to 
their 
coach’s 

challenge.

Rutgers 
had 
just 
three 

shots in the second half, and 
Michigan was able to tally 
another eight. The Wolverines 
pressed 
forward 
and 
both 

Zakyi and Atuahene had good 
chances, but it was the junior 
forward who put Michigan up 
by two just 11 minutes into the 
second half.

Atuahene 
was 
the 
best 

player on the field for the 
entire game. He tallied seven 
shots, including three shots on 
goal, and two goals in attack. 
His speed on the wing caused 
Rutgers problems all night.

“Both guys were really sharp. 

They 
started 
really 
lively,” 

Daley said. “They were deadly. 
They were effective, and they 
held the ball well.” 

Added Atuahene: “We have 

a game plan every 24 hours 
before the game. We all relax 
and try to stay away from any 
distractions on campus. We 
focus and come back to the field 
and try to execute our game 
plan.” 

Daley was pleased with the 

way his front three played all 
night, and he attributed that 
success to recovery from recent 
injury problems.

“We’re healthy in the front. 

All four guys were healthy,” 
Daley said. “I think those four 
guys on their day individually 
can 
carry 
the 
group, 
but 

collectively they’re certainly a 
handful. We were just too much 
tonight for Rutgers to handle.” 

Michigan 

improved 
upon 

its 
best 
Big 

Ten start since 
2013, 
moving 

into 
second 

and 
only 
one 

point back from 
conference-
leader 
Maryland.

And 
as 
the 

pieces continue 

to fall into place only one year 
after a disastrous season, the 
Wolverines can’t help but enjoy 
it.

“It feels really good. It’s been 

awhile since we’ve been 4-1-1,” 
Atuahene said. “It’s good for 
the team, and it’s good for the 
fans. It’s exciting.” 

RUTGERS
MICHIGAN 

1
3

AMIR ALI
For the Daily

BY THE NUMBERS

Michigan vs. Rutgers

2

Goals scored by Francis Atuahene

3

Assists from Mohammed Zakyi

6

Amount of losses Rutgers now has in 

the Big Ten

20

Total shots for Michigan

It’s good for 
the team, and 
it’s good for the 

fans

ZOEY HOLMSTROM/Daily

Junior forward Francis Atuahene extended the Wolverines’ lead to two to give them breathing room against Rutgers.

The Wolverines continue the strong start to their Big Ten campaign with their fourth conference victory

