The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Sports
Wednesday, February 27, 2019 — 7A

Late run of goals displays Moyle’s ability to get to front of net

Until late December, Nolan 
Moyle had just two points — and 
neither were goals.
But on Dec. 30, the freshman 
forward found twine for the 
first time as a member of the 
Michigan hockey team. The 
switch didn’t flip immediately 
— Moyle added another goal 
two games later but it took him 
eight more games to get his 
third.
The next time Moyle lit the 
lamp, it was the first multi-goal 
game of his career with two 
tallies against Michigan State 
on Feb. 9.
Since 
then, 
he’s 
added 
another multi-goal outing and 
has at least one goal in three of 
the Wolverines’ last four games. 
Not bad for a freshman who 
didn’t have a goal until nearly 
the second half of the season.
“I saw (Moyle) last year score 
(in the USHL), and he has the 
potential,” said Michigan coach 
Mel Pearson on Saturday night. 
“Sometimes it just takes a while 
until you feel comfortable with 

it. Good for him. We’re gonna 
need that.”
On Friday night against No. 
7 Ohio State, Moyle’s two goals 
came at crucial times for his 
team. One tied the game with 10 
minutes left in the third period, 
and the second was the game-
winner. But for Pearson, the 
location of those goals was even 
better than the timing.
Both goals came in what 
Pearson calls the gritty area 
of the ice — the space below 
the faceoff circles and above 
the crease, just in front of the 
opposing 
goaltender. 
When 
players get to that space, scoring 
opportunities increase because 
there’s 
always 
someone 
in 
position to clean up a rebound 
and create extra chances.
“I think that’s a real good 
reminder for our players to 
watch that and see where Nolan 
got his goals from,” Pearson 
said Tuesday. “One was behind 
him, but the other two was — 
he’s going to the front of the net. 
In this day and age, with teams 
playing so well defensively and 
having good goaltending, you’ve 
gotta get there.”

Moyle did just that on his 
first goal on Friday.
Freshman forward Garrett 
Van Wyhe pushed the puck 
up the right side of the ice and 
wrapped around behind the net. 
His shot bounced off goaltender 
Sean Romeo’s pad which sent 
the puck out to Moyle, who was 
crashing down on the crease. It 
didn’t take much for Moyle to 
tap the puck home and tie the 
game.
The puck once again came 
from Van Wyhe on the game-
winning goal. This time, his 
pass from the left side of the net 
went across the crease to Moyle, 
who was waiting to shoot the 
puck into the open right side.
“Garrett made two really 
good plays, really strong plays 
to the net,” Moyle said Tuesday. 
“I just happened to be in front 
and get a stick on it. Garrett and 
(sophomore 
forward 
Dakota 
Raabe) used their speed really 
well and did all the work and 
got the puck in front of the net.”
But as much as Moyle wants 
to deflect the credit, his goals 
were still largely the result 
of intelligent positioning and 

working to get to that area in 
front of the net.
After Friday’s win, Van Wyhe 
said that Moyle getting to the 
front of the net is something 
they’ve worked hard on in 
practice throughout the season. 
The two goals from that area 
on Friday cemented that their 
work is paying off.
The myriad of drills Pearson 
puts the Wolverines through 
every day in practice largely 
focus on getting to the top of the 
crease. With four of his seven 
goals on the season coming 
from that area, Moyle is clearly 
figuring out that the system 
works.
“We have a number of drills 

where the offense — and the 
main priority is to get to the 
net,” Pearson said. “We had to 
remind a few guys today that 
sort of get to an area and they 
stop skating and they’re still a 
long way (away from the net). 
We’re trying to attack the net 
more. A lot of different drills we 
do, especially with our forwards 
to get to a certain point on the 
ice and in front of the net. … Just 
a lot of different drills that are 
structured to that point. To get 
to the net and then hang around 
the net and finish.”
This 
weekend, 
Michigan 
goes to Wisconsin, where the 
Badgers play on an Olympic-
sized ice sheet. The ice is 15 

feet 
wider 
than 
traditional 
college or NHL rinks, which 
makes getting to the net more 
of a challenge. With so much 
extra space, it’s easy to stray 
away from the crease without 
realizing it and then have to 
work even harder to get back to 
the front of the net.
That could make Moyle’s 
knack to do so all the more 
important.
The 
Wolverines 
are 
one 
win away from hosting the 
first round of the Big Ten 
Tournament. And with five 
goals in the last four games, 
Moyle’s scoring ability may be 
what Michigan needs to get 
home-ice advantage.

BAILEY JOHNSON
Daily Sports Writer

Talent of freshman class 
apparent early in the season

As the ball crossed the middle 
of the plate and the Louisiana 
State pitcher, Shelbi Sunseri, 
swung and missed, right-hander 
Alex Storako’s changeup closed 
out the inning without any 
contact with the ball. 
Watching the pitcher throw 
four consecutive strikeouts last 
Sunday, with all the confidence 
of a veteran, you’d never guess 
Storako is one of the youngest 
players on the team.
From Storako to outfielder 
Lexie Blair to infielder Morgan 
Overaitis, the Michigan softball 
team’s (6-8) No. 14 per FloSoftball 
recruiting class features talent 
all over the field. And not all of 
the Wolverines’ freshmen have 
gotten the opportunity to show 
what they can do yet.
“We have a group of athletes,” 
said 
Michigan 
coach 
Carol 
Hutchins on Feb. 5. “They’re all 
very athletic. They’re all good 
softball 
players. 
Lexie 
Blair 
just walking in the door and 
is an outfielder and looks like 
she’s been on that outfield for 
her whole career. She makes 
everything look easy. She’s a heck 
of an athlete. You look at Morgan 
Overaitis and (infielder) Gianna 
Carosone: two good athletes who 
have just gotten better and better 
all year.”
Blair has not only proven 
herself in the outfield, but also 
as an asset in the batters’ box, 
boasting a batting average of 
.340, the second highest among 
the team’s starters. Blair’s power 
behind the plate has been a 
standout for a team that has 
struggled to get on base. Last 
Friday, Blair was responsible 
for three of six total hits for the 
Wolverines and has scored seven 
runs over the course of the season. 
“Lexie has stepped up huge,” 
said junior outfielder Madison 
Uden on Feb. 5. “She doesn’t look 

like a freshman to me. She looks 
great in the outfield and hits the 
ball well.”
Michigan 
boasts 
young 
defensive standouts as well. One 
year after left-hander Meghan 
Beaubien burst onto the scene as 
a freshman, Storako has emerged 
as a strong pitcher. Storako made 
her collegiate debut in the first 
game of the season. Since then, 
she has been vital to the rotation, 
pitching as many innings as 
Beaubien.
So far, the freshman has 
outperformed her mentor, giving 
up fewer runs and allowing fewer 
runners on base. She currently 
possesses an ERA of 2.50. 
Despite 
her 
impressive 
performance early on, Storako, 
like everyone on the team, has 
things to work on. For one, she 
has yet to pitch a full game, 
frequently being taken out after 
giving up several walks.
“Storako’s done a great job,” 
Hutchins said. “But we need her 
to sustain during the game and 
finish the game. You always do it 
one inning at a time.”
With many of their games 
being lost by one or two runs, the 
Wolverines have rarely been in a 
position to test out the fledgling 
players, leaving many freshmen 
with little-to-no time on the field. 
Among these players is catcher 

Hannah Carson, who has 10 at 
bats and stepped in for senior 
catcher Katie Alexander in two 
games.
“Hannah is an amazing player 
— she’s obviously been catching 
for a long time, and I see myself 
in her too,” Alexander said. “I’ve 
watched videos of myself hitting 
while she’s catching and I think, 
‘Am I catching? Is that me?’ She 
pays attention to detail, and I 
think that she’s going to do really 
well because she already has the 
physical stuff. Now it’s about the 
mental game and getting in there, 
getting reps and knowing the 
speed of the college game.”
The 
transition 
from 
high 
school to collegiate play can pose 
a problem for some athletes with 
stark increases in the levels of 
pitching and the sheer pace of the 
game.
The 
upperclassmen 
have 
stepped up to ease this transition, 
preparing the novice players to 
take the reigns someday. 
“They know they’re playing 
behind a veteran group and 
we’ve had some conversations,” 
Hutchins said on Feb. 5. “I just 
inspired them and you never 
know when you’re going to get 
your opportunity. You never 
know when you’re one pitch 
from being in the lineup to player 
forward every day.”

ALEXANDRIA POMPEI/Daily
Freshman forward Nolan Moyle has scored in three of his last four games, providing a spark late in the year.

LANE KIZZIAH
Daily Sports Writer

ALEC COHEN/Daily
Michigan coach Carol Hutchins has provided major roles to some freshmen.

Weiss adjusting to life in spotlight

Freshman 
right-hander 
Willie Weiss was thrown into 
the fray in the second inning on 
Sunday against The Citadel. The 
Michigan baseball team turned 
to Weiss after the first inning 
struggles of redshirt junior 
pitcher Benjamin Keizer had put 
it down 2-0.
Three batters, eight pitches 
and three outs later, Weiss 
walked off the mound with the 
ship righted. The Wolverines 
never looked back.
Weiss 
calmly 
struck 
out 
the first batter swinging. The 
second struck out looking. The 
third was retired after a pop-
up to first base on the opening 
pitch.
The right hander was not 
fazed throughout his 2.2 innings, 
only his second regular season 
appearance for the Wolverines. 
Weiss got the first two batters 
he faced out in the third inning 
before he faced a mini-jam with 
runners on second and first 
after a single, wild pitch and a 
walk. Weiss escaped the inning 
unscathed after a line-drive out 

by Bulldogs junior infielder Ben 
Peden.
“When 
you 
have 
some 
hitters that are facing really 
good pitchers and pitchers that 
are facing really good hitters 
on your own team, then the 
learning curve can get sped up 
a little bit,” said Michigan coach 
Erik Bakich. “And be improved 
once 
you 
get 
into 
outside 
competition.”
Weiss has made a name for 
himself as the only freshman to 
have an early season impact for 
the Wolverines.
He was named the Gatorade 
Player of the Year for baseball in 
the state of Oregon for the 2017-
18 high school season. Weiss 
was one of the most sought-after 
recruits in the nation and was 
a highlight of Michigan’s 2018 
recruiting class. He was ranked 
the 22nd right-handed pitcher 
by Perfect Game’s recruiting 
service.
Bakich was high on Weiss 
prior to the season.
“He’s a guy that — he’s a strong 
physical specimen. 6-foot-3, 220 
lbs., throws hard, has a good 
slider, a good breaking ball. He’s 
got a chance to be a starter or a 

closer for us. He’s really had a 
nice fall, a nice preseason, one 
of those freshmen that had a 
chance to make an impact no 
matter where he went.”
So far this season, he’s made 
that impact felt.
Weiss finished Sunday with 
no hits, no earned runs and 
four strikeouts after facing 10 
batters. He also was awarded 
the first win of his career.
Weiss showed resilience after 
easing into his first start in which 
he lasted a single inning against 
Binghamton on Feb. 16th. Weiss 
provided a steady hand on the 
road when the Wolverines were 
down a run, which allowed the 
offense to kick into gear.
“Now, it’s a long season and 
we got a long way to go, he’s got 
a long way to go,” Bakich said. 
“But, so far through the fall, 
through the preseason in the 
early goings of this season he 
certainly seems to have adjusted 
well and is pitching well. And 
that’ll be the challenge, like 
many of the freshmen before 
him, is to be able to be consistent 
and maintain that throughout 
the course of the next four 
months.”

AVI RAJENDRA-NICOLUCCI
Daily Sports Writer

KATELYN MULCAHY/Daily
Michigan coach Erik Bakich has led the Wolverines to an unbeaten 6-0 start in the early going this season.

