The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
SportsMonday
December 10, 2018 — 3B
‘M’ falls to Minnesota, 4-3, on late heartbeaker
If
the
No.
15
Michigan
hockey team thought it would
get a breather after a fourth
consecutive overtime game at
Yost Ice Arena, it took less than
ten minutes for it to realize that
was a pipe dream, and 58 minutes
for a win to become a pipe dream,
too.
As the Gophers opened up a
2-0 lead, the Wolverines found
themselves
at
an
inflection
point. Though Michigan was
outshooting Minnesota early, the
Wolverines failed to capitalize on
any breakaways or opportunities
in the crease early on.
While Michigan responded
by pulling the rug out from
underneath Minnesota, it was
eventually the Gophers who got
the final laugh, scoring a game-
winner with 1:41 left in the game
and walking out of Yost with a 4-3
win.
A minute into the first period,
both teams were playing fast-
paced, with largely crisp passing.
Then, senior forward Brendan
Warren intercepted a pass at
the blueline and had a clear
breakaway.
But
Warren
got
walled by Minnesota goaltender
Mat Robson right at the crease.
And before the Wolverines
could catch their breath, it was
the Gophers that got on the
scoreboard after a streaking
Brannon McManus went five-
hole on freshman goaltender
Strauss Mann.
Mann
seemed
to
redeem
himself three minutes later with a
contorting, cross-body save with
his right pad, but the rebound
wasn’t
cleaned
up.
Instead,
Minnesota found the puck right at
the top of the crease with Mann’s
back turned and found the back of
the net once again.
“There’s a couple of shifts
during the game where we seem
like we’re all over the place in the
zone,” said junior forward Nick
Pastujov. “I think that’s where
they get a lot of their chances.”
Then,
7:43
into
the
first
period, freshman forward Nolan
Moyle got a 2-on-0 breakaway
opportunity
with
Pastujov,
Michigan
had
another
easy
scoring opportunity. In Friday’s
game, the game went to overtime
because
of
the
Wolverines’
inability to finish those point-
blank shots, and the trend seemed
to be continuing.
With a flick of the wrist though,
Moyle passed it to Pastujov, who
went forehand, then backhand
and slotted the puck into the five-
hole to give Michigan its first
goal. Less than two minutes later,
the Wolverines struck again from
up close — as sophomore forward
Michael Pastujov snaked around
a scrum at the goal to equalize the
game from behind the left post.
Though neither team scored
for the next 16 minutes, the
Wolverines
found
a
rhythm
offensively. After trading shots
with
Minnesota
early
on,
Michigan went up 10 shots on
the Gophers early in the second
period. And by the end of it, the
Wolverines eclipsed their per-
game average of 35.9 with 40
shots and found themselves up
3-2 thanks to a screamer from
sophomore forward Josh Norris
that flew into the top right of the
goal from the left circle. For the
game, they doubled the Gophers
with 98 shot attempts to their 49.
“We’ve outshot five of the last
six games we’ve played in,” Norris
said. We outshot them both times
by a ton. It’s frustrating to not get
a win after playing so well.”
But just as fast as Michigan
seemed to be running away with
the game, Minnesota created
more chaos in the crease early in
the third period. Though Mann
again made a slew of saves in the
shadow of Gophers defenders,
Minnesota tied the score at 3-3
by again taking advantage of
Michigan’s inability to clear the
puck.
The Wolverines seemed to
have the equalizer on a scrum led
by junior forward Will Lockwood
late in the third period, but
the goal was waved off due to
interference. With Michigan’s
momentum gone, the Gophers
barreled in a shot with less than
two minutes remaining.
“We had what was it, 53
shots?,” Norris said. “I think
we did a good job there, but we
need to do a better job of getting
guys in front of the net. We had
an unfortunate call at the end
that might have been goalie
interference … but if we start to
(get in front of the net), more
pucks will come our way.”
It wasn’t another overtime,
but it was a familiar dread for the
Wolverines — another tight loss
against another team it outplayed
for the majority of the game.
“We’ve probably played well
enough to win all these games,”
said
Michigan
coach
Mel
Pearson. “Tonight more so than
any of them.”
Offense struggles to convert
Shots came easily, goals did not.
After last Saturday’s game
against Michigan State, Michigan
hockey
coach
Mel
Pearson
commented on his team’s recent
lack of “puck luck” as a big reason
for his team’s low conversion
rate on offense. The bounces
just weren’t going their way all
weekend. Shots rattled off the pipe
and trickled through the crease ––
teasing the Wolverines.
Unfortunately for the Michigan
hockey team (6-7-4 overall, 2-4-4-2
Big Ten), that trend continued this
weekend.
The Wolverines followed up
Friday’s
42-shot
performance
with 53 shots in Saturday’s 4-3 loss
against Minnesota. Junior forward
Nick Pastujov shared his team’s
frustrations.
“We were right there on a lot
of chances,” Pastujov said after
Saturday’s game. “We just gotta
finish those chances. I think the
game could’ve been 7-2 our way.”
Michigan has been getting
shots on net but has been unable to
translate those shots into goals.
Despite
outshooting
their
opponents in five of their last six
games, the Wolverines have not
emerged victorious in regulation
during that span. The team’s last
regulation win was in Happy
Valley against Penn State on Nov.
16.
During a second period power
play for Michigan on Saturday,
a scrum in front of the Gophers’
net led to a loose puck just in front
of the crease. In the chaos that
ensued, sophomore forward Jack
Becker collected the loose puck. It
appeared as though it would be a
sure goal for the Wolverines with
the goaltender out of position.
A score would give them a
commanding 4-2 lead, but, instead,
Becker’s shot hit a Minnesota
defenseman who was on all
fours in the crease. The Gophers
went on to clear the puck, killing
off the penalty and preserving
the tie heading into the second
intermission.
“We had a number of really good
scoring opportunities and we don’t
get it,” Pearson said after Saturday’s
game. “Then it becomes a one-shot
game. They go out and get a break
or a rebound and then you’re tied.
I think that’s really the story of the
game and been the story the last
three weeks. ... We’re making every
goaltender look like they’re an All-
American right now.”
Collectively outshooting your
opponent, 248-164, in your last
six games while being outscored,
12-14, will do that. The offense
is generating chances by getting
the puck in goal-scoring areas but
finishing those chances continues
to be a problem. And it is becoming
a costly problem for Michigan, as
Minnesota is now tied with the
Wolverines for fourth in Big Ten
standings despite having played
two fewer conference games.
It is not for a lack of effort on
the part of Michigan. It outplayed
Michigan State two weekends
ago and came away with only one
point. This past weekend against
Minnesota as well, shots depicted it
the better team but the Wolverines
left the weekend with just two
points.
The level of parity in the Big Ten
is keeping them afloat and within
reaching distance of the top of the
conference. A hot streak can rocket
them to the top of the standings
and secure them a spot in the
NCAA Tournament. But failing to
come out of a weekend with more
than one or two points will keep
them in the middle of the pack, or
may even send Michigan to the
bottom of the table.
Converting
on
its
scoring
opportunities will be a key to
success in the second half of
the season. The Wolverines are
heading into the break in a similar
spot as last season: hovering
around a .500 record and plagued
by inconsistent play.
“Not unlike last year at this
time,” Pearson said about the state
of the team. “Now, can we turn it
on like we did? That’s the question
that remains to be seen.”
Church, Munger lead Michigan to win
The first two of the Michigan
women’s basketball team’s 85
points came a minute into the
game on a fast break layup by
senior guard Nicole Munger.
From then on, the Wolverines
(7-3) never relinquished the lead
cruising to an 85-59 victory over
Oakland (2-8).
Munger, who led all Michigan
players with 21 points, fueled a
dominant first quarter for the
Wolverines. She scored 11 of the
team’s 27 first-quarter points on
4-for-6 shooting, including a trio
of 3-pointers.
However, Munger didn’t score
in the second quarter. Instead,
it was freshman forward Naz
Hillmon
who
controlled
the
scoring, complimenting Munger’s
high-scoring first quarter with a
10-point quarter of her own.
“I
think
Nicole’s
playing
with a tremendous amount of
confidence,”
said
Michigan
coach Kim Barnes Arico in a
post-game interview. “Being a
senior, her leadership role, her
confidence (and) her experience
(are) shining through and tonight
was another example of that. I
think her teammates are doing a
great job now of really finding her
and getting her some open shots,
and she’s just able to knock them
down. She’s prepared herself her
whole life to make these shots,
and I’m really proud of her having
these opportunities.”
While it was Munger and
Hillmon who led the Wolverines
in their scoring efforts, it was
sophomore guard Deja Church
who facilitated the offense and
took charge on defense.
Church ended the game with a
career-high nine assists, including
seven in the first half, and was
tasked with guarding the Golden
Grizzlies’ leading scorer, guard
Taylor Jones (15 points per game).
Even though Jones did finish the
game with 15 points, Barnes Arico
was more focused on the fact that
it took her 20 shots to get there.
“Deja
Church
was
outstanding,”
Barnes
Arico
said. “I thought she had a great
game on both the offensive and
defensive ends. … So Deja really
did a great job on the defensive
end and then I think that sparked
her offense. She ran point for us,
the wing for us.
“She
distributed
the
ball
exceptionally well, she made
some free throws, she made some
shots. She just all-around had
a great high energy and a great
game. I was really happy for her.”
Yet,
despite
the
overall
dominant
performance
for
Michigan, in which Munger,
Hillmon and Church excelled,
others struggled — specifically,
freshman guard Amy Dilk and
senior center Hallie Thome.
Dilk, who finished with a 1:1
assist-to-turnover ratio and shot
2-for-12 from the field, has hit
just five of her last 31 shots and
has an assist-to-turnover ratio
of 16:13 during a frustrating last
four games. Still, the freshman
has shown flashes of why she was
named Miss Basketball in Indiana
last year after very promising
performances
against
two
formidable opponents, Texas and
Washington, earlier this season.
“We have two big off-days
right now, so I think it will be big
for her to get back in the gym and
take easy shots and be able to get a
high volume of shots up,” Munger
said. “That’s what I did and it
seemed to help. I’ll definitely be
in her ear because she’s a great
listener and she just wants to get
better. She’ll respond and she’ll be
good.”
Thome, meanwhile, did not
necessarily
struggle
against
Oakland, but rather was unable
to leave her mark on the game due
to back spasms; she played just 12
minutes and scored six points.
Aside from the back spasms,
though, Thome has been relatively
quiet in her past few games. After
taking at least nine shots in all but
one of the Wolverines’ first six
games, she has not reached that
shot total in any of her last four.
“We work really well together,”
Munger said. “We live together
too, so we’re able to talk about
(her struggles) whenever we need
to. But Hallie will be fine. She had
a really, really good workout. She
knows what she needs to do, so
she’s gotten back in the gym to get
her touch back. She’ll be fine.”
Michigan will take on Morgan
State on Saturday, Dec. 15 and
play two more non-conference
games before Big Ten play begins
Dec. 28.
Michigan dominates Indiana, 32-7
Jackson
Striggow
has
something to celebrate going
into finals week. Entering the
second period of his match tied
2-2 in a defensive standoff, the
redshirt junior left Sunday’s
contest
with
both
fists
in
the air, a smile
across
his
face
and
an
automatic
win
from a 15-point
pin.
The Michigan
wrestling team
(3-0) dominated
Indiana
(2-3),
32-7, in a contest
riddled with bonus points, near
falls and strong performances by
several Wolverines. With high-
scoring wins from Striggow,
fifth-year senior Malik Amine,
redshirt junior Myles Amine
and redshirt freshman Jelani
Embree, Michigan will leave
for the holidays with a big win
and momentum for its next dual
meet versus Illinois.
Starting
the
meet
well,
sophomore Drew Mattin and
redshirt junior Stevan Micic
delivered wins in the 125 and
133-pound
weight
classes,
respectively.
Mattin,
ranked
tenth
in
his
weight
class
nationally, and Micic, ranked
second
in
the
133-pound
division, both faced unranked
opponents.
With two clean wins and
a six-point lead over Indiana,
eighth-ranked
redshirt
sophomore Kanen Storr entered
the only ranked matchup of the
day versus 15th-ranked Cole
Weaver, a fifth-year senior from
Hudson, Mich. Both three-time
Michigan high school state
champions at 141 pounds, Storr
and Weaver trained in the same
gym in high school. But their
familiarity didn’t faze Storr, he
said.
After a scoreless defensive
struggle in the first period,
Storr delivered a key near
fall, bringing the score to 2-1.
Though Weaver escaped to
his feet to earn a point, Storr
responded with an escape in
the third period, securing the
win and a 9-0 team score for
Michigan.
“There’s a little bit of pressure
because he’s like an older
brother figure to me: always
trains
with
me, he’s older
than
me,
he’s
from Michigan,
(three)-time
state
champ.
I
know
he’s
gonna be a great
opponent,”
Storr
said.
“I
kind of had a
down week, but
overall, I came
out here, I gutted out a win. I
didn’t feel my best, so there’s a
lot to be proud of there but a lot
to build off of also.”
Following Storr’s close win,
Malik Amine put on a booming
performance in the 149-pound
division, winning his match
18-0 and generating a five-point
technical fall for the Wolverines.
Amine’s
momentum
largely
manifested in the third period,
when he pushed the score from
4-0 to 18-0 with three four-
point near falls and one two-
point near fall.
Despite
redshirt
freshman Layne
Van
Anrooy’s
loss in the 157-
pound
weight
class,
seventh-
ranked redshirt
junior
Logan
Massa
quickly
reestablished
Michigan’s
success and won his match
at 165 pounds, ushering in
another bonus-point win in the
174-pound division by third-
ranked
Myles
Amine,
who
won 19-1 in the second period
with three near falls and three
takedowns. Combined, Malik
and Myles Amine outscored
their opponents 37-1 for the day.
Embree, ranked 19th, piled
on that success, beating his
opponent
14-2
in
a
major
decision and increasing the
Wolverines’ team score to 26-4.
Massa, Myles Amine and
Embree’s successful outings,
though,
culminated
in
Striggow’s 197-pound matchup.
After a difficult first period,
tied 2-2, Striggow delivered a
dramatic pin to win his match
and drive the team score up
further.
“I think some guys, including
me especially, could’ve done a
little better at the beginning
coming out with a little more
momentum,
carrying
the
momentum from each match,
but overall I think we had a
pretty good day,” Striggow said.
“I’ve kind of struggled in that
position in a couple matches
this year and it’s cost me one
or two matches already, so I’ve
really been working on it in the
practice room and to finally get
it, I was pretty pumped up to
have it finally work out for me.”
Despite Indiana’s win in the
final
heavyweight
matchup
against
redshirt
freshman
Luke
Ready,
Michigan
still
won the meet handily due to
several standout matchups. The
Wolverines
emphasize
those
bonus-point wins, said Striggow,
partially with a hammer trophy
that one player
earns each week
by scoring the
most
points
in
that
meet.
Sunday,
the
contest
was
a
tight one with
multiple
high-
scoring matches.
“I was super
pleased with the
way we wrestled
on the mat,” said Michigan
coach Sean Bormet. “After I
congratulated those guys on a
good performance today, the
first thing we talked about as a
staff was that it’s an important
week to really dig in and focus
on school work (and) rest,
because we’re still gonna have a
good, hard eight days of training
ahead. We have some work to
do.”
RIAN RATNAVALE
Daily Sports Writer
KATELYN MULCAHY/Daily
Sophomore forward Josh Norris scored the Wolverines’ overtime winner on Friday night against Minnesota.
BENNETT BRAMSON
Daily Sports Writer
MILES MACKLIN/Daily
Senior guard Nicole Munger led Michigan with 21 points on Sunday night.
LILY FRIEDMAN
For the Daily
“... I was pretty
pumped to have
it finally work
out for me.”
“I was super
pleased with
the way we
wrestled ...”
WRESTLING
ICE HOCKEY
JORGE CAZARES
Daily Sports Writer