The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Sports
Tuesday, October 1, 2019 — 7

Meet Nebojsa Popovic, Michigan’s newest star

The Michigan men’s soccer 
team has a new player this 
season who is lighting up 
opposing defenses. His name is 
Nebojsa Popovic.
The forward is a graduate 
transfer 
from 
Oakland 
University spending his last 
year of eligibility in Ann Arbor. 
Since stepping on campus, he’s 
made an immediate impact, 
notching five goals and three 
assists in eight games. 
The 
sports 
management 
program and overall academics 
at Michigan were paramount 
in his decision to play for the 
Wolverines.
“What I was looking for 
was to go to a school that had 
a higher education standard,” 
Popovic said, “and Michigan 
was the best school.”
So far, he’s happy with his 
choice, enjoying the University 
and its students — debating 
which is his favorite.
“The 
campus 
and 
the 
facilities 
are 
beautiful, 
it’s 
either that or the people,” 
Popovic said. “I got to meet 
a kid who wrestles for the 
Serbian national team, and he 
just qualified for the Olympics 
in Tokyo in 2020. To me, that’s 
crazy. I can’t believe he’s in my 
class.”
On the pitch, he’s loving the 
team and the game.
“I haven’t enjoyed my soccer 
this much in, I can’t remember,” 
Popovic said in a team video. “I 
think this is the most fun I’ve 
had in a very long time.”
The 
graduate 
student 
attributes his enjoyment to his 
teammates and their talent. 
“I’m around guys who are 
just as good as me, if not better, 
and I think that makes a big 
difference. You always want to 
be in those kind of situations 
because then you’re going to 
grow as a soccer player and 
you’re going to get to learn 
from them, and it’s going to just 

make me better overall, and 
that’s just enjoyable.” 
Popovic has connected with 
his teammates quickly, and 
fans watching the team can see 
the chemistry between the men 
up top. 
But he believes the team is 
far from its peak.
“As we’re getting to know 
each other more 
and 
getting 
to 
know 
what 
we 
each 
like,” 
Popovic 
said. 
“I 
think 
that 
it 
is 
going 
to 
get 
better 
because then the 
communication 
aspect 
comes 
into it.”
That may be a 
troubling prospect for opposing 
goalkeepers, 
with 
Popovic’s 
offensive ability emerging as a 
top weapon for the Wolverines. 
With 9 matches still on the 
schedule, Popovic is on track to 
finish the season with 10 goals 
and six assists — staggering 
numbers for any forward, and 
collegiate 
career 
highs 
for 
Popovic. 

Recognized for his combined 
two 
goals 
and 
one 
assist 
against Rutgers and Oakland, 
Popovic was awarded the Big 
Ten Offensive Player of the 
Week. It was the first of the 
season given out by the Big Ten 
— an impressive accolade to 
jumpstart his season. But the 
forward felt differently about 
the praise.
“I 
mean 
I 
think 
it’s 
great, but that 
doesn’t 
come 
without 
my 
teammates,” 
Popovic 
said. 
“I think that’s 
just a testament 
to 
how 
well 
we’re 
playing 
together and I 
think if we keep that up, a lot 
of us will be getting those kind 
of awards ... Soccer is not an 
individual sport at all. If the 
team doesn’t do well none of us 
will flourish individually”
Still, while he appreciates 
the early accolades, Popovic 
only has one thing on his mind.
“I just want to win, that’s 
all I care about,” Popovic said. 

“I don’t care how we win. I 
don’t care if I score or assist or 
make a run that’s off the ball to 
create space for us to score... I 
think that’s the biggest thing 
for us right now, just to figure 
out how we can beat every 
opponent we play.”
Michigan is currently 3-2-3 
on the season and 0-0-2 in 
Big Ten play. Despite a tough 
schedule ahead, Popovic has 
confidence in the team’s ability 
and knows what it needs to do.
“Just keep doing more of the 
same thing, getting the right 
preparation in before games, 
and then following the coach’s 
gameplans to a T,” Popovic 
said. “I think we still have a 
lot of potential that’s not yet 
fulfilled, so I think it’s only 
going to get better from here to 
be honest.”
Why does he feel that way? 
To Popovic, it’s simple. And 
it’s his favorite part about the 
team.
“The way we play,” Popovic 
said, “I love that style of play... 
I love to be a part of something 
like that, if we can keep that up, 
I’m just going to keep having 
more and more fun.”

‘M’ competes in preview

The 
Michigan 
men’s 
and 
women’s cross country teams 
faced off against some of the best 
teams in the Big Ten on Saturday 
at the Buckeye Preview. The 
women won their meet — out of 12 
teams — with a score of 41 points, 
while the men tied for second out 
of eight, with Grand Valley State 
with 69 points, losing only to Penn 
State.
Just a week after freshman 
Erika VanderLende came in fourth 
place at the John McNichols 
invite, youth was once again the 
focal point for the Wolverines. 
VanderLende won her first 6,000-
meter race — the first time the 
women have raced that distance 
this season — with a time of 20:17. 
Improving on her fourth-place 
finish at John McNichols last 
weekend.
“Erika was outstanding again, 
against a good crew of people in 
her first 6K ever, ” said Michigan 
women’s coach Mike McGuire.
The rest of the Michigan 
women had a strong outing as 
well. Junior Kathryn House came 
in sixth for the Wolverines at 
20:55, followed by junior Maddy 
Trevisan in ninth, junior Micaela 
DeGenero in 11th, and junior Jena 
Metwalli in fourteenth. 
“Jenna Metwalli and Micaela 
DeGenero had outstanding races,” 
McGuire said. “We were solid 
throughout.”
Winning shouldn’t come as 
a surprise for the Wolverines’ 
women. They’ve won the Big Ten 

three consecutive seasons and are 
expected to keep their title this 
season. The men’s team is looking 
to replicate the success of the 
women as they try and improve 
upon their fourth-place finish at 
the Big Ten meet last season. But 
for now, they remain a step behind.
Juniors Jacob Branch and 
Jacob Lee led the Michigan men, 
finishing in third and fourth 
place, respectively. Branch had the 
second-fastest time through the 
third and fifth kilometers of the 
race. They both finished strong as 
well, as Lee recorded the second-
fastest time over the final three 
kilometers and Branch had the 
third fastest time. Branch and 
Lee were followed by sophomore 
Dominic Dimambro in 20th, 
freshman James Gedris in 26th, 
and freshman Colton Yesney who 
rounded out Michigan’s top five in 
29th.
The Michigan men’s team held 
back its top lineup on Saturday — 
junior Isaac Harding, sophomore 
Christian 
Hubaker, 
and 
All-
American junior Jack Aho — and 
instead opted to go with a younger 
group.
Looking ahead, the women 
don’t race again until Oct. 19 at pre-
nationals. McGuire said they’re 
going to use this time to ramp up 
training, but to also make sure 
they properly space out workouts.
As the women move into this 
training block, the men are already 
prepping for a short turnaround as 
they race at Notre Dame on Friday. 
This will be a good opportunity for 
the men to find their stride before 
the end of the regular season.

Wolverines fall to NW

To say Sunday’s field hockey 
game 
between 
Michigan 
and 
Northwestern 
had 
humble origins would be an 
understatement.
Passes skidded across the 
Evanston turf, still wet from 
two days of rain, and past the 
outstretched sticks of their 
targets. 
Possession 
deep 
in 
enemy territory was incredibly 
rare. 
Shots 
on 
goal 
were 
nonexistent. 
But when the dust cleared, 
after 60 minutes of regulation 
and 
20 
of 
sudden-death 
overtime, 
followed 
by 
a 
penalty shootout that extended 
into 
sudden 
death, 
No. 
7 
Northwestern 
(10-2 
overall, 
3-0 Big Ten) edged out No. 
9 Michigan (6-3, 1-1), 1-0 on 
Sunday.
After the dreary defensive 
gridlock that was the first 
quarter, the game began to open 
up for both squads. Buoyed 
by a group of forwards with 
elite stick technique and ball 
security, as well as legs that 
refused to turn into jelly, the 
Wildcats became dangerous in 
transition at a moment’s notice. 
The coast to coast capabilities 
of Northwestern forward Bente 
Baekers, among others, meant 
that the Wolverines’ back three 
had their work cut out for them. 
That’s not to say Michigan 
didn’t do its own damage on 
offense. The Wolverines worked 
as a unit to gain an edge in 
time of possession and spent 
significant 
portions 
of 
the 
game with numbers in Wildcat 
territory. 
Michigan 
coach 
Marcia 
Pankratz thought the team’s 
success 
stemmed 
from 
“(focusing) on basics to keep 
possession and making good 
decisions around the ball.”
As regulation expired and 
teams shrunk from eleven to 
seven players, per the rules of 
overtime, common sense would 
have it that Northwestern and 
its talented group of attackers 
would have an advantage. 

“(They) play really fast,” said 
senior 
midfielder 
Guadalupe 
Fernandez Lacort. “On defense 
(we tried to) get to the ball first.” 
Michigan’s 
aggressiveness 
in only playing two at the back 
put the Wildcats on the ropes in 
the first overtime period. Led 
by senior midfielder Fay Keijer, 
junior midfielder Kayla Reed, 
and Lacort, the Wolverines 
tacked on four shots on target 
in the first golden goal session 
alone. Northwestern appeared 
to find their offensive footing 
in the second half of overtime, 
controlling possession thanks 
to 
their 
aforementioned 
ability to change fields on 
even the smallest of turnover 
opportunities. 
But 
when 
overtime 
was 
over, neither unit had landed a 
decisive punch. 
In the penalty shootout, four 
Wolverines and four Wildcats 
scored. The lone Michigan miss, 
originally a score by Fernandez 
Lacort, was wiped away because 
of a goalkeeper obstruction foul 
confirmed by video referral. 
With a chance to win for 
Northwestern 
on 
the 
10th 
stroke of the penalty session, 
Wildcat Kayla Blas had the ball 
knocked away by sophomore 
goalkeeper Anna Speiker at the 
last moment. 
Then it was onto sudden 
death, in which video referrals 
would haunt the Wolverines in 
a fatal way. Saar de Breij opened 
the scoring for Northwestern. 
Needing a goal to stay in the 
contest, Michigan sophomore 
Kathryn Peterson made junior 
Wildcat 
goalkeeper 
Florien 
Marcussen miss and appeared 
to score well within the eight 
allotted seconds. But when 
Northwestern asked for a replay 
review, the goal was negated 
after it was determined that the 
ball struck Peterson’s foot. 
After a long sigh, Lacort 
talked about some positives she 
and the team will take away 
from Sunday. “I think we really 
had them,” she said. “We didn’t 
get the win, so it hurts, but I 
think today we got a little bit 
better.”

NICHOLAS STOLL
For The Daily

JACK WHITTEN
For The Daily

SPENCER RAINES
For The Daily

KATELYN MULCAHY/Daily
The Michigan cross country team went to the Buckeye Preview last weekend.

MILES MACKLIN/Daily
Graduate transfer Nebojsa Popovic has given a spark to Michigan’s attack since coming over from Oakland.

I think this is 
the most fun 
I’ve had in a 
very long time.

FIELD HOCKEY
Similar but different, York is no Quinn Hughes

One hand carried his stick. 
The other rose to his lips, 
motioning outward in a big, 
exaggerated wave as he glided 
to a stop in the corner of the 
rink.
Cam York had skated down 
the ice at Yost Ice Arena 
— empty to all except the 
Michigan hockey team and a 
few spectators. The team was 
practicing a continuous two-
on-zero drill, and the freshman 
defenseman received the puck 
at the blue line. Skating toward 
the goaltender, he shot the puck 
and found the back of the net.
And then came the celebration 
— the blow of an unmistakable 
kiss to a nonexistent crowd.
He pretended to bathe in the 
limelight before continuing to 
practice.
But make no mistake. Where 
there was emptiness, there 
will soon be a crowd, shouting 
and cheering in response to his 
celebration. After all, people 
had done the very same a year 
before for Quinn Hughes — 
the player York is expected to 
replace.
And it’s hard to not compare 
the two. They were both highly-
touted defenseman who were 
products of the U.S. National 
Team Development Program. 
They were both first-round 
picks, and they were both 
similar-framed 
offensive-
minded players that everyone 
pointed to as difference makers.
But despite their similarities, 
Cam York is no Quinn Hughes.
“I don’t think there has to be 
this big ‘Oh, Cam and Quinn’ 
thing,” said senior defenseman 
Luke Martin. “Because they’re 
different players.”
Cam York, in his final year 
with USNTDP, set the record 
for amount of points tallied by a 
defenseman with 65 points. His 
skill set includes his vision and 
passing abilities, but his shot is 
also at an elite level.
“Cam? 
… 
He 
is,” 
said 
Michigan coach Mel Pearson 
when asked if York was a 
pass-first 
defenseman. 
“But 
he can score too. Like I’m just 

watching today, and he’s so 
smooth. He’s got a really good 
stick. I think Yorkie set the all-
time record (at the USNTDP) as 
far as points. There’s a reason 
for that.”
His ability to create on 
offense is one of his strong 
suits, and subsequently, people 
expected him to fill the role 
left by Hughes. But there are 
differences in their approach.
Whereas 
Hughes 
would 
be a puck-centric 
top-tier 
skater, 
preferring 
to 
bring the puck 
through 
the 
zones 
himself, 
York 
likes 
to 
pass the puck 
around in give-
and-go 
type 
fashion and then 
push forward without the puck. 
“Cam will pass and follow up 
ice,” Pearson said. “Cam’s not 
afraid to just move it up and 
then join the rush but Quinn 
liked to have it on his stick, 
maybe leading the rush.”
And the different styles of 
bringing 
the 
puck 
forward 
furthers their differences as 
players.
As a result of carrying the 
puck through the zone, Hughes 
jeopardizes 
his 
defensive 

positioning 
in 
ways 
York 
doesn’t.
“Yorkie’s a little different 
though,” Pearson said. “I don’t 
think he’s as — I don’t want to 
say high-risk, that’s not the 
right way to put it, but (not) 
looking to get up the ice as 
much. Cam will join, but he’s 
not leading.” 
Hughes 
would 
dominate 
the puck and lead the offense. 
Players 
and 
coaches 
alike 
knew 
that, 
leading them to 
pair him with 
someone 
who 
knew the way 
Hughes 
liked 
to 
play 
and 
cover 
for 
his 
displacement — 
a player who was 
more defensive-
minded and didn’t like to push 
up. And as a result of his far-up 
positioning, Hughes’ defense 
was spotty, ending the season 
with a plus/minus of negative-
two despite leading the team in 
points.
On the other hand, York has 
the option to sit at the blue line 
and watch the play develop. It 
prevents him from jeopardizing 
his positioning as someone who 
doesn’t push with the puck. 
“Cam 
is 
really 
strong 

defensively,” Martin said. “I’m 
playing on him in practice right 
now. And we were working 
really well together on the blue 
line.”
York’s role is to support, and 
not spearhead the offense.
“I think the main thing that 
(differentiates them) is Quinn 
was more the skater,” Pearson 
said. “And where York’s more, 
‘Well, I’m going to give you that 
pass even if it’s a short pass I’m 
going to give it to you.’ ”
And even though he’s pitted 
to take on the responsibilities 
that Hughes once held, Pearson 
thinks it will take time for 
York to transition into that 
spot. After all, Hughes was a 
second-year defenseman with 
collegiate experience under his 
belt. But Martin doesn’t see it 
that way.
“For him, I don’t think he 
has to be focused on replacing 
anyone,” Martin said. “I think 
you know, he’s a great player, 
and he does things really well. 
And I think he needs to continue 
to do those really well, for us.
“But I think for him, just, you 
know, not really listening to any 
of this outside noise.”
It’s not the outside noise he’s 
trying to hear, but the noise 
inside of Yost. And with every 
goal scored and kiss blown, it’ll 
come.

TIEN LE
Daily Sports Editor

COURTESY OF RENA LAVERTY/USA HOCKEY PHOTOS
Freshman defenseman Cam York has an offensive-minded skillset but with subtle differences to Quinn Hughes’ game.

He’s just so 
smooth. He’s 
got a really 
good stick.

