The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Sports
Thursday, October 31, 2019 — 5A

Stifling defense leads Michigan 
past MSU, 2-0, to claim Big Bear

With about three minutes 
left 
to 
play, 
freshman 
goalkeeper 
Owen 
Finnerty 
dove out from 
his 
near 
post 
to 
cut 
off 
a 
low cross into 
the 
box. 
The 
crowd 
roared. 
The 
radio 
announcer’s 
voice 
grew 
excited 
as 
he 
finally 
got 
to 
commend the keeper on his 
first collegiate save.
In fact, Finnerty’s effort was 
not a save at all. 
The announcer’s misplaced 
excitement indicated the flow 
of Michigan men’s soccer’s 2-0 
win against Michigan State on 
Tuesday night, as the freshman 
had zero save opportunities in 
his collegiate debut.
Finnerty 
certainly 
performed 
well, 
as 
he 
demonstrated 
good 
kicking 
ability and a keen awareness, 
but he couldn’t have asked for 
better support from his back 
line. 
The defensive quartet of 
senior 
Abdou 
Samake 
and 
juniors Joel Harrison, Austin 
Swiech and Jackson Ragen 
played a stellar match, flowing 
as one cohesive unit en route to 
the Wolverines’ eighth clean 
sheet in 16 matches.
Michigan 
coach 
Chaka 
Daley was quick to praise his 
defense, pointing out that the 
team has only given up 12 goals 
through 16 matches, and that 
two of those goals were off 
penalty kicks and four came in 
the first match.
The 
defense 
matched 
the standard it has set for 
itself throughout the game. 
Michigan 
State 
barely 

mustered any offense in the 
whole 
match, 
repeatedly 
watching as any danger they 
created was cleared the second 
it materialized.
Such 
solid 
defensive play 
sowed benefits 
for the offense 
as well. While 
the Wolverines 
sputtered 
offensively 
at 
points 
throughout 
the match, the 
strikeforce 
benefitted 
from the freedom its defense 
permitted. Michigan enjoyed a 
substantial lead in possession 
because the defense forced 
turnovers so quickly.
“They’re rocks back there,” 
said graduate transfer Nebosja 
Popovich. 
“It 
puts 
other 
teams under pressure (when 
the defense plays very well). 
Because we’re so solid in the 
back we end up having more 
chances in games.”
Popovich 
and 
senior 
forward Jack Hallahan were 
the primary beneficiaries of 
the defense’s play. Each played 
an important role in applying 
the offensive pressure that 
resulted in Michigan hoisting 
the Big Bear Trophy after the 
final whistle blew.
Popovich took advantage of 
the few scoring chances that 
came the Wolverines’ way, 
netting the only two goals in 
the game: a goal off a chaotic 
corner in the ninth minute and 
a low, curling shot from outside 
the box 28 minutes later. 
And although Hallahan was 
ultimately left without a goal 
or assist, the senior forward 
repeatedly charged at Michigan 
State’s wingbacks, creating a 
large portion of Michigan’s 
encouraging possessions with 
quick dribbling moves and 

timely crosses and leaving his 
footprints all over Tuesday’s 
match.
In 
what 
Daley 
praised 
as 
a 
“gritty 
and 
grindy” 
performance 
in 
a 
physical 
slugfest of a game, it is only 
fitting that the two offensive 
standouts 
immediately 
credited the defense for their 
success. 
“We feel safe with them 
back there,” Hallahan said. 
“We know they can keep clean 
sheets, which is a nice feeling.”
Daley said that he told the 
offense at half that two goals 
was not enough, but even one 
gets the win when your the 
goalkeeper doesn’t face a shot.

Wolverines triumph in rivalry bout

After a sluggish game, it was the 
Michigan men’s soccer team that 
awoke from hibernation to win 
the Big Bear Trophy against rival 
Michigan State, for the first time 
since 2015. 
A physical matchup ended up 
with the Wolverines (8-4-4 overall, 
3-1-3 Big Ten) defeating Michigan 
State (3-10-3, 3-3-1), 2-0. The win 
allowed Michigan to jump three 
spots in the Big Ten standings, 
leaping over the Spartans to third 
in the conference.
“That’s a good, positive win 
for a group,” said Michigan coach 
Chaka Daley. “More importantly 
for us, to get three points in the 
league and not get distracted by 
the magnitude of the moment. And 

I think our guys did a great job at 
settling in and grinding it out.”
Daley was right to characterize 
it a grind-it-out type of game. 
Just 10 minutes into the game, 
Michigan 
State 
defender 
Nick 
Woodruff 
illegally slid into 
Michigan junior 
midfielder Marc 
Ybarra, knocking 
him to the ground 
and 
earning 
a 
yellow 
card. 
The 
Wolverines 
and 
Spartans 
acquired 
three 
more yellow cards and totaled 25 
fouls by the end of the game.
Michigan 
senior 
forward 
Jack Hallahan could attest to 
the physicality of the game. He 

battled all game on the right 
side of the field with Spartan 
defenders. 
In the 35th minute, Hallahan 
caught up to a leading through 
ball and dribbled 
it up toward the 
corner. Michigan 
State midfielder 
Alex Shterenberg 
contested 
Hallahan 
the 
whole 
way, 
pushing 
and 
shoving 
him. 
Hallahan 
managed 
to 
create space and 
get a good cross off. 
“It’s a rivalry game,” Hallahan 
said with a chuckle. “And I kind 
of like it, honestly. If people are 
fouling you, it probably means 
you are doing something right.”
Hallahan 
created 
efficient 
plays that set up his teammates, 
which compensated for his lack 
of scoring. And despite fighting 
through an undisclosed injury, 
he looked like he was near full 
strength.
“Yeah, he was good in the first 
45 minutes,” Daley said. “Over 
the last 25 minutes, I think you 
saw what he’s all about.”
Two 
first-half 
goals 
by 
Michigan 
fifth-year 
senior 
Nebojsa Popovic helped ease 
some of the pressure in this 
sluggish 
fight 
of 
a 
game. 
However, 
the 
contact 
and 
intensity continued throughout 
the game. 
“We stayed positive and keep 
fighting to the end,” Daley said. 
In the 48th minute, Michigan 
junior 
forward 
Mohammed 
Zakyi ran directly into Michigan 
State goalkeeper Hunter Morse. 
A through ball zoomed past 
Zakyi, and he was unable to stop 
his momentum, barrelling into 
Morse. Zakyi knocked Morse 
over with ease, got up and ran 
away without looking back. 
It was the kind of moment — 
hardly pretty, but overpowering 
nonetheless — that encapsulated 
Michigan’s win.

JACOB COHEN
Daily Sports Writer

BRANDON TRACHTENBERG
Daily Sports Writer

In aftermath of loss to Western Michigan, ‘M’ focuses on intangibles

After losing the first road 
game of the season against 
then-No. 18 Western Michigan, 
the Michigan hockey team was 
quiet on the ride back from 
Kalamazoo on Saturday night.
“When do you let it go?” said 
Michigan coach Mel Pearson. 
“When do you get over it? When 
do you just say ‘OK, you know 
what, we can’t bring it back, 
we’re over and done with it?’”
Pearson believes the somber 
mood was the result of multiple 
factors — namely, the loss and 
overall fatigue from playing 
extremely physical games two 
nights in a row with travel in 
between.
“It’s not like you lost and 
you’re throwing a party or 
anything right after,” Pearson 
said. “They were subdued about 
it. They’re taking it serious, but 
at the same time they know that 
we have a good team.”
He also thinks highly of 
this group and is quick to pick 
out its strengths and areas for 
improvement. The team effort 
on the defensive end — as well 
as solid goaltending — stand out 
to him most, as these factors 
can give a team the chance 
to win any game. But on the 
other hand, the offense needs a 
spark to start capitalizing on its 
opportunities.
Pearson’s 
observations 
extend 
off 
the 
ice, 
too. 

Specifically, he’s taken note 
of 
leadership, 
chemistry, 
preparation 
and 
confidence. 
Chemistry is important to any 
team, as it can lead to a more 
competitive, 
cohesive 
effort 
on the big stage. Pearson likes 
where 
the 
chemistry is at 
right now but 
sees room for 
growth.
“The 
chemistry 
part of it takes 
time,” 
Pearson 
said. “You just 
can’t put it all 
together.”
Much 
of 
the 
responsibility 
to 
build 
chemistry goes to the veterans, 
and so far, Pearson is delighted 
with the leadership he’s seen. 
He 
recognizes 
the 
unique 
personalities 
among 
the 
Wolverines and knows different 
players prefer being treated 
and reached out to in different 
ways.
He views his leaders’ ability 
to navigate this and effectively 
manage the rest of the players 
as a major asset. The veterans 
know how to balance being 
strict on players with letting 
them cut back.
What impresses him the 
most, though, is the leaders’ 
effort to create a positive 
environment for all.
“They’re really good at that,” 
Pearson said. “As far as just 

being welcoming to all our 
freshmen and then making 
sure they know that they’re a 
big part of this team, that we 
don’t have cliques and things 
like that, because it’s easy to 
get in those groups. I mean, 
the two Swedish 
guys 
can 
just 
sit in the corner 
and talk Swedish 
all the time if 
they 
wanted, 
but we have to 
pull 
everybody 
together, 
and 
that’s one of my 
biggest 
things, 
is to make sure 
that we’re in it 
together and we lose together, 
we win together. 
“... It’s just how they’re able 
to draw everybody and make 
everybody feel welcome, and 
that’s so important. Even some 
returning guys who maybe 
don’t have big roles or whatnot, 
we try to stress the importance 
of everybody on the team. 
There’s a reason everybody is 
here.”
But while the chemistry is 
coming along, Pearson would 
like to see better preparation — 
specifically, mental preparation 
in the moments before a game.
Pearson was displeased with 
the group’s preparation leading 
into Saturday’s loss. He notes 
that it’s clear ahead of time 
when a team is casual instead 
of mentally focused. Freshman 
forward Eric Ciccolini offered a 
similar sentiment.
“Just coming off a win Friday 
night I think that you got to be 
more prepared, obviously, and 
not take (the opponent) too 
lightly,” Ciccolini said. “We 
beat them 4-0 and then they 
came back at us hard, which we 
knew they were gonna, but we 
didn’t react good enough to.”
To Pearson, a central part of 
preparation is about balance. 
He doesn’t want his players to 
be too tight or scared to play, 
but at the same time needs 
them to be in the zone and 
ready to go right away. Finding 
that balance, or “sweet spot,” as 

he calls it, can instill valuable 
confidence 
when 
the 
puck 
drops.
“You can have all these things 
and then you got to sprinkle in 
some confidence, but you can’t 
go to the corner store,” Pearson 

said. “I can go to the corner 
store and buy some eggs, and 
some flour and whatever water 
I gotta to start making the cake 
and icing, but I can’t go and 
sprinkle in confidence. You 
can’t. You have to go out and 

earn that and acquire that and 
develop that.”
If Michigan can continue 
its strides with the intangibles 
then Pearson might get what 
he’s looking for when the oven 
sounds.

ALLISON ENGKVIST/Daily
The Michigan hockey team is moving on from its 4-1 defeat to WMU.

ROHAN KUMAR
Daily Sports Writer

MILES MACKLIN/Daily
Senior forward Jack Hallahan created scoring opportunities for his teammates in Michigan’s 2-0 win over MSU.

I think our guys 
did a great job 
at ... grinding it 
out.

We know they 
can keep clean 
sheets, which is 
a nice feeling.

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BIOCHEM 212
TUTOR WANTED
Text Judy

(312)-678-6736

By David Alfred Bywaters
©2019 Tribune Content Agency, LLC
10/31/19

Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle

Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis

10/31/19

ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE:

Release Date: Thursday, October 31, 2019

ACROSS
1 Spot for a salt 
scrub
4 Aromatic 
evergreen
10 Wind with nearly 
a three-octave 
range
14 Fresh from the 
oven
15 Collection of 
hives
16 Sullen look
17 Track
18 Halloween feeling 
in a warren?
20 Buffalo lake
22 Like the vb. “go”
23 Belly laugh 
syllable
24 Halloween feeling 
near a water 
supply?
27 Valleys
31 “Take Care” 
Grammy winner
32 “We’ve waited 
long enough”
34 Bebe’s “Frasier” 
role
38 Overlook
39 Halloween feeling 
in the office?
44 Enjoy privileged 
status
45 Poise
46 It may get the ball 
rolling
48 Trio in “To be, or 
not to be”
53 “Borstal Boy” 
author Brendan
54 Halloween feeling 
in the yard?
58 Angel dust, 
initially
60 “You wish, 
laddie!”
61 Put out
62 Halloween feeling 
in the loo?
67 Summer hrs. in 
Denver
68 Stood
69 Paparazzo’s gear
70 Mature
71 Lumberjacks’ 
tools
72 Gave it more gas
73 Finch family 
creator

DOWN
1 Astute
2 Bartender, often

3 Fifth-century 
conqueror
4 Soap unit
5 Two (of)
6 Cuba __
7 Brand of 
hummus and 
guacamole
8 Actor Millen of 
“Orphan Black”
9 Folk story
10 Wheeler-dealer
11 Feathery 
neckwear
12 CSNY’s “__ 
House”
13 Many 
“Guardians of 
the Galaxy” 
characters
19 Latest things
21 Rockies bugler
25 Sandwich source
26 “Same here”
28 Vehicle with a 
partition
29 Mideast 
potentate
30 Slowly sinks from 
the sky
33 Those folks
35 Confident words
36 Suit part 
sometimes 
grabbed

37 Unhealthy
39 Nursery piece
40 Narrow way
41 Engrave
42 Backslides
43 Hitting stat
47 Advance slowly
49 Big club
50 Koala, for 
example
51 Game based on 
whist
52 Living room 
piece

55 Japanese art 
genre
56 Carried on
57 Big name in 
Indian politics
59 Some GIs
62 Monk’s address
63 Cured salmon
64 Employ
65 31-Across 
genre
66 Covert 
information 
source

HELP WANTED

When do you 
let it go? When 
do you get over 
with it?

