The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com Sports Thursday, October 17, 2019 — 5A Blankenburg embracing physicality despite size Last January, when Penn State came to Ann Arbor, then- freshman defenseman Nick Blankenburg was on the ice for his first shift just under five minutes into the game. Within moments of taking the ice, he laid a hit that Michigan coach Mel Pearson can’t forget. Forward Liam Folkes came up through the neutral zone and lost the puck as he crossed center ice. Just as Folkes turned to look for the puck, Blankenburg stepped into a hip check that sent all 182 pounds of Folkes flying across the ice — knocking off his helmet and one of his gloves. Blankenburg, meanwhile, calmly stood up and rejoined the play. The hit set the tone for what eventually became a Michigan 5-1 win, and made it clear to everyone in the building that Blankenburg was unafraid to play physical hockey. When asked about Blankenburg’s physical play on Wednesday, Pearson brought up the hit from last year’s game against the Nittany Lions without prompting. “He’s got a little nasty streak to him,” Pearson said. “I still remember the hit last year where he popped the Liam Folkes kid from Penn State on a real good hit. But he’s a bundle of energy and a bundle of grit. You’d like about 10 to 12 guys like him on your team.” At 5-foot-9 and 160 pounds, Blankenburg is the Wolverines’ smallest defenseman by two inches and about 15 pounds — but he doesn’t play like it. In nearly every game, he finds himself at the center of chippy moments or involved in skirmishes with the other team. And sometimes, Blankenburg will hit a player hard enough that looks like it came from a player twice his size. Blankenburg credits the foundation of his scrappiness to growing up with his brother Alex, who is three years older than him. It’s a cliché that older brothers play rough on their younger brothers, but it was reality for Blankenburg as a child. “Whether playing mini sticks in the basement or just playing basketball in the driveway, he would always make sure I wasn’t … soft,” Blankenburg said. “He would always make sure that I’m tough, so I guess you could say I get that from him, and especially my dad, too.” His penchant for physical play has sent Blankenburg to the penalty box a few more times in his career that Pearson would prefer, but Pearson is clear that he’d rather have a player that goes too far at times than one that he has to constantly encourage to play with an edge. Blankenburg certainly has an edge, and now is tasked with finding a balance between playing tough and staying out of the penalty box. Last year, he took just six penalties in 36 games, but Pearson would like to see him find even more control of his emotions. “For the most part, yes (he’s composed),” Pearson said. “Every once in a while, he’ll just go off the deep end and you’re wondering where his brain went. … That’s where you have to have emotional control, and it’s hard, because of guys like that who play so hard. It can be difficult, especially when it gets physical and he’s trying to play physical, too. We just have to remind him that we need him on the ice, not in the box.” This weekend, the Wolverines host Lake Superior State, a team that’s known for playing a very physical style of hockey. It’s exactly the kind of game Blankenburg likes, and it presents a test of his work on maintaining his composure. “Guys are going to try to get under your skin, and that’s really the point of the game,” Blankenburg said. “I think you’ve just gotta keep your composure and just play hard.” Michigan finishes 10th at Crooked Stick Invite Fifty-four holes in two days is far from an easy trip on the green, no matter how skilled the golfer, and first-year Michigan coach Zach Barlow knew that his team would need to dig deep in order to find success at the Crooked Stick Tournament in Carmel, Ind. With weather against them and a tough field to go up against — No. 13 Georgia and No. 5 Vanderbilt to name a few — the Wolverines started the first day of play with a 306 through 18 holes. “It’s always tough to stay in it when you have a rough start,” Barlow said. With Michigan in 13th place and 11 of the other 14 teams in the field all scoring under 300 after the first 18 holes, it was a challenge for the Wolverines to claw back in the second round. Junior Charlie Pilon did just that. After shooting a 75 for 3-over par in the first round, Pilon reeled in a 71 for 1-under par to close out the 36-hole day. His three birdies on the 5th, 9th and 12th holes helped him lead the Wolverines up one spot to 12 at the end of the first day. Sophomore Ben Dunn had a solid first day as well, tallying a 76 for 4-over par on both of his rounds. At the end of the first day, and through 36 of 54 holes, Michigan sat in 12th place. “A two-round day is mentally demanding and physically demanding,” Barlow said. “We need to learn how to just focus on the present. We need good stretches of golf to be longer and bad stretches of golf to be shorter.” The third round started off delayed one hour due to frost on the course. With winds a problem just like the day before, the Wolverines had a lot to deal with if they wanted to make it back to Ann Arbor with a successful tournament. Senior Brent Ito had a late surge on the back nine with two back-to-back birdies on the 11th and 12th holes and another on the 17th to give him a 73 for 1-over par on the day. This, combined with a solid third round performance from junior Henry Spring — 75 for 3-over par — put Michigan at 10th place to end their tournament. Pilon led all golfers with a combined 223 for 7-over par after 54 holes. Freshman Pier Francesco de Col performed well too, shooting a 76 for 4-over par in his first round, second on the team at the end of that round, and also knocking in two back-to-back birdies to start off the third round. “We have a ways to go,” Barlow said. “Our short game needs to get better, it is your insurance policy.” Even though the short game didn’t impress, Barlow attested a bright spot from the tournament, Pilon’s comeback second round, to his assistant coach Matt Hoffman. “Matt walked with him for a couple holes,” Barlow said. “(They both) got in a good rhythm.” Wolverines shut out Ball State, 6-0 Wherever the Wolverines go, their parents follow. A weekend in enemy territory was no exception, as the Michigan field hockey team earned two victories at Buckeye Turf Field, including an overtime victory over Ohio State. Michigan’s positive momentum and parental fandom earned the Wolverines an even playing field in Columbus on Sunday against Ball State. “No matter where we play, we have an unbelievable amount of support from our parents,” said redshirt sophomore midfielder Emma Tamer. “Even if we are in California playing Stanford, we still have a good amount of our fans and it kind of always feels a little neutral to me.” No. 11 Michigan’s (10-3) unwavering support paid off in its 6-0 shutout victory over the Cardinals (3-10). With under a minute to play in the first quarter, redshirt sophomore forward Kate Burney threaded a pass to sophomore forward Katie Anderson, who found the back of the cage at the 14:04 mark. After a scoreless second quarter, the Wolverines started the second half with three shots in the first 65 seconds en route to 14 total in the third quarter. “The biggest change came at halftime. I think we kind of woke up a little bit,” Tamer said. “We all know the tactics are there. It’s about the intangibles. It’s about whether we show up and work hard and whether you’re on your girl or you’re one step off. I think those are minor details that make a huge difference.” Michigan’s third quarter surge led to another late- quarter goal, this time from Tamer, assisted by senior midfielder Meg Dowthwaite, pushing the lead to 2-0. “We’re always trying to play sixty minutes no matter if it’s the first minute or the last minute,” said Michigan coach Marcia Pankratz. “We’re a very fit team and I think they can manage doing that.” Going into the fourth quarter, Ball State had not registered a single shot since the first half. The Wolverines’ smothering defense ensured that didn’t change in the final 15 minutes. “It all starts with a great defense,” Pankratz said. “We’ve had a bunch of shutouts in a row and I think our backfield players were really clamping down defensively.” Yet it was Michigan’s dynamic offense that stole the show in the fourth. Dowthwaite got things started, scoring off an assist from sophomore midfielder Sophia Southam. The final three minutes of the contest included goals from sophomore midfielder Kathryn Peterson at 57:02, junior midfielder Maya Gompper at 58:08 and Tamer less than a minute later— her second of the afternoon. After narrowly winning the shots battle, 3-2, in the first quarter, Michigan dominated, 28-3, the rest of the way. The Wolverines’ aggressiveness on the offensive end was paramount in their fourth- quarter scoring outburst. “No shot is a bad shot,” Tamer said. “We have amazing forwards who have their sticks down and can finish. We know that it’s a process and not every shot is going to go in, even though we strive for that. “I think it’s just trusting the process and knowing that eventually those goals will come if we continuously work hard.” Sunday, that hard work paid dividends. ‘M’ offense sputters in 1-0 loss As graduate transfer forward Nebojsa Popovic re-entered the scoreless match in the 66th minute, hope abounded that the team’s leading goal-scorer could spark a stagnant Michigan attack. Just a minute later, a goal was scored — only it was Indiana breaking the ice, not the Wolverines. Hoosiers midfielder Spencer Glass tip-toed his way past the Michigan defense down the left flank before blasting a near- post goal over the head of senior goalkeeper Andrew Verdi. The goal proved to be the difference in what was a 1-0 loss for the Wolverines (6-3-3 overall, 2-1-2 Big Ten) against No. 4 Indiana (8-1-3, 4-0-0) on Sunday in Bloomington. “We take advantage of our opportunities, and we have them,” said Michigan coach Chaka Daley. “They took one of theirs, and we were not fortunate enough to have one of ours.” In the game’s waning moments, Michigan created one last chance in an attempt to notch the elusive goal. A right- side corner resulted in a frenetic game of pinball in the box, the ball bouncing off two Wolverine heads before landing at the feet of junior defenseman Joel Harrison. Harrison unleashed a strong bottom-center shot, only for it to wind up in the hands of conveniently-positioned Indiana goalkeeper Roman Celetano. Michigan’s defense continued to serve as an anchor, limiting a potent Hoosier attack to just one goal. Junior midfielders Marc Ybarra and Carlos Tellez in particular helped set the game’s aggressive tone from the onset. “That’s a confident group,” Daley said. “You know, they haven’t conceded more than one goal since game one. So that’s a six- week period where they’re not accustomed to conceding goals. Defense is a big team effort, back to front.” The Wolverines especially embodied the definition of team defense in the 16th minute, when Verdi strayed far out of his net chasing a tailing cross from the left side. Though the ball found its way to an Indiana forward before Verdi could get it, junior defender Jackson Ragen intervened to protect the goal, denying the threat by stepping in front and absorbing the shot with his body. Verdi’s play in the net also offered the defense a firm backbone — recording four saves in the match. “That’s what we ask out of our goalies, to give us an opportunity to win the game,” Daley said. “And he did that with a good performance.” Noticeably absent in the Michigan attack was senior forward Jack Hallahan, who missed the contest due to injury. Still, without Hallahan, the Wolverines were able to generate opportunities with nine shots and three corners. Despite the loss, competing with the perennial Big Ten favorite in Indiana offers reason for optimism. “The group believes that we can play toe-to-toe with anyone in the country, even with a bit of a depleted squad,” Daley said. “So if we can get ourselves with other guys that are coming back full circle, that will be helpful. Within the group, the belief that we can do this against a tough team is there.” BRENDAN ULANCH For The Daily We have a ways to go. Our short game needs to get better. BAILEY JOHNSON Daily Sports Writer MEN’S GOLF RUCHITA IYER/Daily Sophomore defenseman Nick Blankenburg has gained a reputation for physical play despite standing 5-foot-9. (Nick Blankenburg’s) got a little nasty streak to him. ALEX WALKON Daily Sports Writer FILE PHOTO/Daily Redshirt sophomore midfielder Emma Taber scored two goals in Michigan’s 6-0 win over Ball State on Sunday. JARED GREENSPAN For The Daily MILES MACKLIN/Daily Goalkeeper Andrew Verdi gave up a near-post goal but otherwise played well in Michigan’s 1-0 loss at Indiana. The belief that we can do this against a tough team is there. Every once in a while, he’ll just go off the deep end.