The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Sports
Tuesday, April 16, 2019 — 7

Sophomore attacker Caitlin 
Muir, positioned behind the 
goal, received a pass from 
sophomore midfielder Maggie 
Kane off the opening draw. She 
wrapped around and took a 
shot that found the back of the 
net, giving the No. 8 Michigan 
women’s lacrosse team (14-1 
overall, 4-1 Big Ten) the lead 
over Rutgers (5-9, 0-4) just 17 
seconds into the game en route 
to a 12-8 win on Saturday.
Coming 
off 
their first loss 
of the season to 
No. 2 Maryland, 
the 
Wolverine 
players 
aimed 
to take an early 
lead in order to 
regain some of 
the 
confidence 
from 
their 
13-game winning 
streak that was 
snapped against the Terrapins 
last week.
“I feel like it really boosted 
our morale because coming off 
Maryland we wanted to get 
up early and get going,” Muir 
said. “I think it really pushed 
everyone to go harder and 
faster and kept the trend up.”
Michigan 
took 
advantage 
of this momentum and used 
it to take a four-goal first-
half lead. Three more goals 
scored by Muir, along with 
two from junior midfielder 
Nadine 
Stewart 
and 
one 
each from junior midfielder 
Molly Garrett and freshman 
midfielder 
Kaitlyn 
Mead 
gave the Wolverines an 8-4 
advantage at halftime.
Michigan began the second 
half just as strong as it ended 
the first, with Kane scoring 
just 1:39 into the half. But the 
scoring quickly dried up as the 
Wolverines didn’t score again 
for more than 20 minutes, 

with 
Rutgers 
goalkeeper 
Kameron Halsall making five 
saves in that span. With 10:26 
remaining in the game, the 
Scarlet Knights had cut the 
Michigan lead to two.
“We were getting shots, 
but I think once a few of them 
didn’t go in, the girls played a 
little on their heels and just 
started freezing up a little bit,” 
said Michigan coach Hannah 
Nielsen. “We were making 
stop after stop defensively, 
but we were hitting pipes, 
hitting the goalie, and she had 
a great game. 
I thought we 
were 
getting 
the shots but 
it wasn’t quite 
falling 
our 
way.”
Even though 
Rutgers 
appeared 
to 
be 
gaining 
momentum 
midway 
through the second half — 
scoring three consecutive goals 
— the Wolverines kept fighting. 
They put together a strong 
offensive 
possession 
that 
resulted in Halsall saving a 
free position shot, and followed 
it up with a defensive stand.
After 
clearing 
the 
zone, 
Muir 
took 
possession 
and 
drew a foul. She then scored 
her fifth goal of the day on the 
resulting free position shot, 
giving Michigan a 10-7 lead 
with 7:37 left. Garrett and 
sophomore 
midfielder 
Erin 
Daly both scored in the next 
four minutes, securing the 
victory for the Wolverines.
“We just needed that to keep 
the momentum going,” Muir 
said. “We knew we were OK, 
but we just wanted to keep it 
going. We were missing a lot of 
shots, so that really got people’s 
confidence back up.”
Added Nielsen: “I thought 
we were getting better looks 

on cage. We weren’t taking the 
low angle shots and we were 
sharing the ball around.”
Since the Wolverines had 
not lost all season prior to 
last weekend, this was their 
first opportunity to prove that 
they could bounce back from a 
tough loss. While Rutgers is not 
a particularly strong opponent, 
Michigan’s strong start and 
continued persistence offered 
encouraging signs for this team 
going forward.
“We had a lot of fun this 
week in practice. We worked 
really 
hard,” 
Nielsen 
said. 
“We worked on some concepts 
that we put forth in the game 
today, and I thought the girls 
responded really well.”
As the regular season winds 
down, Michigan is approaching 
the most important part of its 
season. Playing aggressively 
from 
the 
opening 
whistle 
and 
persevering 
when 
the 
offense isn’t converting during 
stretches of the game like on 
Saturday will be crucial in 
hopes of beating the best teams 
in the country.

Facing their team and coaches 
with their families by their sides, 
the 11 seniors of the Michigan 
women’s lacrosse team stood 
pregame, in uniform, on their 
home turf, for the final time. 
As the PA announced each 
player’s position, name and 
hometown, the Wolverines were 
recognized for a historic season 
that is far from over, and how 
the 11 women holding bouquets 
of maize flowers helped shape 
the program into what it is today. 
And help shape the program, 
they did.
The eighth-ranked Wolverines 
put on a show for the crowd, 
defeating Rutgers, 12-8. This 
win helped secure Michigan’s 
first undefeated home season 
since the program’s inception in 
2014.
Though they didn’t play a 
perfect game by any means, the 
Wolverines defeated the Scarlet 
Knights for the first time ever 
in the U-M Lacrosse Stadium, 
propelled by sophomore Caitlin 

Muir’s team-best five goals. 
Junior Lilly Grass broke the 
single-season record for assists 
behind her five on Saturday, and 
senior Mira Shane recorded her 
100th save on the season and 
ended the game with 106. 
Shane was challenged with 
a much more offensive-minded 
opponent on Saturday, forcing 
her to be much more alert and 
energized in the net at all times. 
“I think it’s a mentality thing,” 
Shane said. “I think I stay busy in 
my mind, even though I may not 
be running around. I always try 
to stay connected 
with our offense. 
You 
might 
see 
me 
doing 
some sprints as 
(the 
offensive 
players) 
score. 
But that’s only 
for me – I kind 
of get energized 
by them scoring 
and us having 
these 
great 
opportunities. I think that’s how 
we stay in the zone as a defensive 
unit.”

Rutgers took 16 shots on goal 
in Saturday’s game, something 
Shane isn’t unfamiliar with. 
Facing so many shots forces her 
to stay alert, providing an energy 
that transfers to the rest of the 
team.
“I think it just forces me and 
energizes me to pick up the level 
of my game,” Shane said. “If I’m 
seeing more shots, I definitely 
always want to come out with 
a win, and, you know, give my 
team the best performance that I 
can. ... just having a great Senior 
Day was really important to me, 
for this being 
our last regular 
season 
home 
game.”
As 
Shane, 
the 
starting 
goalkeeper 
for 
the 
2018-2019 
season, reflected 
on her four years 
in 
the 
maize 
and 
blue, 
she 
couldn’t 
help 
but get emotional. With all of 
the changes Michigan women’s 
lacrosse has gone through, from 
being a sub-.500 performance 
in Shane’s freshman year to 
nationally-ranked 
program, 
she has been a key factor in 
Michigan’s 
record-breaking 
seasons. 
“I think it was my goal today 
to play with gratitude and heart,” 
Shane said. “It’s been a heck 
of a ride for four years, playing 
a lot of different games with 
a lot of different people. And 
today to just play at home with 
my parents by my side during 
this 
Senior 
Day 
celebration 
with wonderful teammates and 
coaches that I’ve had all season.
“I don’t think it gets much 
better than that. And so I was 
just really thankful to have a 
great win today, and then to 
keep it going for the rest of our 
season. As you said – it’s not 
over, we’re not done, and this 
team is definitely going places.”

Bounce back
After Maryland spoils undefeated season, Michigan recovers with 12-8 win over Rutgers to move to 14-1 on the season

JACK KINGSLEY
Daily Sports Writer

SHIRA ZISHOLTZ
Daily Sports Writer

KATELYN MULCAHY/Daily
Senior goaltender Mira Shane recorded her 100th save of the season in a 12-8 Senior Day win over Rutgers.

I think we 
pushed 
everyone to go 
harder.

I definitely 
always want to 
come out with a 
win.

Foster charges past competition

As sophomore Chloe Foster 
approached the final stretch of 
the track and leaped over her 
final hurdle at Cardinal Park 
in Louisville, Ky., there was 
nothing but daylight behind 
her.
By the moment the second-
place 
competitor 
crossed 
the finish line, nearly three 
seconds had passed. Foster 
cruised to a runaway victory 
in the 400-meter hurdles with 
a career-best outing of 58.60 
seconds to cap off a successful 
day for the No. 21 Michigan 
women’s track and field team 
at the Louisville Invitational. 
It wasn’t just Foster who 
succeeded for the Wolverines. 
As a team, they won three 
events and placed in the top 
five in 11 total events on the 
day.
“(Foster) is a very hard 
worker,” said Michigan coach 
James Henry. “We have high 
expectation of her. We have 
a lot of confidence in her and 
it’s a matter of getting her 
confidence up.”
Foster’s 
performance 
not 
only shattered her previous 
personal 
record 
by 
nearly 
three-quarters of a second, but 

also moved her up to fifth all-
time in school history for the 
400-meter hurdles.
“It’s just the beginning of 
how good we think she can 
be as an athlete,” Henry said. 
“She’s a great student and I 
think she could be just as good 
as an athlete.”
Elsewhere on the track, 
the Wolverines posted strong 
showings from the middle-
distance group. Junior Micaela 
DeGenero 
impressed in the 
800-meter run 
with a 2:07.69 
performance, 
more 
than 
a 
second 
faster 
than 
anyone 
else in the field.
Fresh 
off 
their 
own 
wins, 
Foster 
and 
DeGenero 
joined a team of sophomores, 
Alice Hill and Jenna Reid, to 
clinch the 4x400-meter relay 
(3:43.22), 
Michigan’s 
third 
and final victory of the meet. 
Junior Julia Hall and senior 
Meg Darmofal also impressed, 
by placing third in the 400 
meters 
and 
3,000 
meters 
respectively.
“I think we had a number of 
performances to be proud of 

as a team,” Henry said. “Our 
athletes stepped up and had 
better competitions and better 
performances we were happy 
with.”
Senior Jeryne Fish set the 
tone for the Wolverines on the 
field with a personal record of 
5.08 meters in the long jump. 
Her showing was particularly 
encouraging, as it came after 
her return from surgery that 
sidelined her for all of last 
season.
Junior 
Katt 
Miner 
continued 
Michigan’s 
stellar play on 
the 
field 
by 
posting a fifth-
place finish in 
the high jump 
after a season-
best 1.70 meter 
performance.
Health 
remains 
the 
key 
question for the Wolverines, 
as they head into the Big Ten 
Championships and the rest of 
postseason play.
“We have to stay healthy and 
we’re always as good as we are 
healthy,” Henry said. “We’re 
just starting to get the health 
under 
our 
athletic 
ability 
and that’s where we need to 
improve.”

‘M’ gets mixed results in Columbus

Settle in two ... one ... two ...
Settle. 
On junior coxswain Erik 
Yasuda’s call, the 2V8 made a 
dramatic shift. At the settle, 
the rowers elongated their 
stroke in unison from the quick, 
choppy catches of the starting 
sequence to a more sustainable 
racing pace against Ohio State. 
By the end of the day Saturday 
— facing the Buckeyes and 
Rutgers at the Big Ten Double 
Dual — the No. 5 Michigan 
rowing team had finished first 
in 11 of the 14 total races.
Through 
the 
starting 
sequence and the following 
high strokes, the Wolverines 
battled Ohio State to get out in 
front with neither team able to 
take a commanding lead. 
With 
this 
settle 
stroke, 
the boat found its rhythm. 
Michigan jumped up two seats 
at the 500-meter mark and 
never let up, something senior 
Shayla Lamb credits to the 
boat’s single-minded focus.
“It had to do with our base 
pace,” 
Lamb 
said. 
“That’s 
something we’ve been working 
on: getting into our rhythm and 
staying internal. I think that’s 

something we’ll keep working 
on to get better.”
Michigan increased its lead 
by inches with every stroke, 
taking a decisive lead by the 
time the boat crossed the 
1,250-meter 
mark. 
Taking 
control of the race gave the 
Wolverines the confidence and 
control they needed to keep 
walking away into the second 
1,000 meters. 
As the last 500 meters 
came up, 2V8 got ready to 
take another move to seal the 
victory. 
“We worked on sprinting 
quite a lot — well, no not quite 
a lot — but we’ve worked on 
making those moves at the 
end,” 
Lamb 
said. 
“That’s 
something we (have) gotten 
more experience with in the 
past couple of weeks. It’s nice to 
have that in our back pocket.”
While they knew they had 
this skill at their disposal, they 
didn’t have to rely on it. Despite 
Ohio 
State’s 
best 
efforts, 
Michigan only increased its 
lead in the sprint, finishing the 
race half a boat length up on its 
competition. 
The 2V8 boat went on to beat 
Rutgers by over 10 seconds, 
though other boats experienced 
mixed results. 

The 1V8 was edged out 
by the Buckeyes, but found 
redemption against the Scarlet 
Knights 
later 
in 
the 
day. 
Despite the loss — its first of 
the season — Michigan coach 
Mark Rothstein was content 
with the race. 
“Our boat raced really hard 
and showed a lot of toughness,” 
Rothstein said. 
That boat — led by freshman 
Jessica Schoonbee in stroke 
seat — fell short by a mere .96 
seconds and finished in 6:22.04 
minutes. 
Other freshmen prevailed in 
the 1N8 which beat out both of 
its opponents. 
The first two fours also 
found success against Rutgers. 
The 1V4 lost to Ohio State while 
the 2V4 beat them by eight 
seconds. 
Despite the overall success 
of the weekend, Michigan has 
some room for improvement — 
especially as the 1V8 will have a 
chance to redeem itself against 
Ohio State next weekend at 
Lake Las Vegas. 
Lamb hinted she may know 
the key to success. 
“We need to keep finding our 
rhythm early on and making 
that middle one (kilometer) 
ours.”

LANE KIZZIAH
Daily Sports Writer

KATELYN MULCAHY/Daily
The Michigan rowing team finished first in 11 of 14 races at the Big Ten Double Duo against Ohio State and Rutgers.

CHRIS SULLIVAN
For the Daily

KATELYN MULCAHY/Daily
Sophomore Chloe Foster ran away with the 400-meter hurdles with a career-best time of 58.60 seconds.

It’s just the 
beginning of 
how good we 
think she can be.

