8 — Friday, December 6, 2019 Sports The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com Nick Blankenburg maintains connection to late grandfather There’s a railing on the left side of the second floor at Yost Ice Arena, overlooking the ice. It’s in the corner, tucked away just off the staircase and next to the stands on the short side. It’s where Nick Blankenburg stands before every practice and every home game. Every single one of Michigan’s players has a particular spot for his pregame routine, whether it’s Jack Summers — who wears No. 6 — sitting on the sixth seat in the stands or Jake Slaker laying in the back hallway by the locker room with his legs up the wall. But for Blankenburg, this railing is his spot. When the sophomore defenseman played his first game at Yost last October, he wasn’t sure where he was going to stand to stretch and visualize before the game. He gravitated toward the left side of the building, and he found the railing over there. And then he looked down and realized his grandfather — Richard Orkisz, better known as Pops — had the seats just below the railing, in the corner, on the glass. Blankenburg could wave hello or send a wink down to his grandfather before each game. He knew then that he’d found his place. For as long as Blankenburg’s mom, Karin — Orkisz’s daughter — can remember, her dad was the definition of a rink rat. Any time one of his grandchildren had a hockey game or even a practice, they could count on Pops to be there. As Blankenburg got older and progressed from AAA hockey to high school hockey, his grandfather was a constant presence at the rink. Romeo High School was only about five minutes from Orkisz’s house. Sometimes, he’d get to the games even before Blankenburg did. When Blankenburg would pull into the parking lot, he’d see Orkisz’s car parked in the handicapped spot. Both Blankenburg and Karin are quick to clarify that Orkisz wasn’t handicapped in the traditional sense, but his heart wasn’t the best and walking long distances was difficult for him. “My dad would just be sitting at a table eating a hot dog and a bag of chips and a pop,” Karin said. “Waiting for Nick.” When Blankenburg moved from playing for metro Detroit- based Victory Honda to playing for the Okotoks Oilers in Alberta, Canada, Orkisz could no longer attend every practice and every game. But that didn’t stop him from keeping up with his grandson every time he stepped onto the ice. Orkisz kept Oilers’ 2017- 18 schedule at his house, painstakingly filled out after every game with the score and whether Blankenburg got any points in the game. Finding that schedule showed Karin everything she needed to know about her dad’s relationship with her son. “I don’t think I had anyone that was a bigger fan than him,” Blankenburg said. When Blankenburg came to Ann Arbor on a visit, Karin decided to tell her dad the secret that they weren’t sharing with many people — that Nick was visiting Michigan and may play hockey for the Wolverines. Orkisz’s jaw dropped. No one in the family ever expected Blankenburg to end up at Michigan, and it was a dream come true for the whole family when it happened — especially Orkisz. “He couldn’t get tickets fast enough,” Karin said. “And he was, I don’t want to say handicapped, but he was older, so it was harder for him to get up and down the stairs. So, when those glass seats were available, considered handicapped seats, that was perfect because we dropped him off right by the door, he got his hot dog, used the bathroom and then was cozy in his seat for the next three hours.” And when Blankenburg realized his grandfather sat right below the railing on the left side, he decided to stand there before each game and give Orkisz a wink or say hi. When Karin came to her first Michigan game, a few weeks into the season, her dad couldn’t wait to tell her all about their pregame moments. And in warmups, Blankenburg always made eye contact with his biggest fan — a brief shared moment for grandfather and grandson among the chaos before a game. Blankenburg was at the Mall of America on a Thursday morning in March when he got a call from his mother. He instantly knew it was about his Pops. Orkisz’s health had begun to decline in January after heart surgery and ensuing complications, and the family knew the end was coming — but Blankenburg didn’t expect to get the call so soon. Orkisz had been suffering from the flu and Karin took him to the hospital. It looked as though things were trending in a positive direction, and Karin was preparing to quit her job and move in with her dad to take care of him as he regained his strength. “The day that he died, I saw him,” Karin said. “I was there from like — I went there after work. I stayed with him from like three to five, I brought him some soup, and then I just went home. I had something to do. “And like two hours after I got home, my phone rang, and it was the hospital. I thought like, ‘Oh! They’re releasing him.’ … They told me that he was in cardiac arrest for like 45 minutes and they were trying to revive him and what did they want me to do.” Both Nick and his older brother Alex — then a goaltender for the University of Nebraska-Omaha — were on the road with their respective teams. After Orkisz passed on the Wednesday night, Karin didn’t want to call her sons and distract them. But then their oldest sister found out, and Karin knew she had to tell them before someone else did. So, standing in the middle of Nordstrom with four of his teammates, Blankenburg answered the phone and heard Karin at the other end of the connection. He told her he was at the Mall of America, hanging out with his friends. “Yeah, don’t really have good news for you,” Karin said. “What? Is it Pops?” Blankenburg replied, and his mom told him what had happened. “Pops would have never wanted you to come home or stop playing hockey or whatever,” Karin said. “Just stay where you’re at. Pops would want you to play.” The Great Lakes Invitational Tournament last December was the last time Orkisz saw Blankenburg play hockey in person. When Michigan’s first home series rolled around last January, Blankenburg looked down at the spot his grandfather always occupied and found it empty. His health wasn’t good enough for him to travel to see his grandson play. But Blankenburg stood at the railing anyway, just as he always had. And when he took the ice for warmups, he looked again at that seat in the left corner. Instead of making eye contact or throwing Orkisz a wink, he skated over and touched his knuckles to the glass in front of where his grandfather always sat. When he returned to Yost this fall for the first game of this season, Blankenburg continued his usual routine at the railing. It’s a part of his pregame preparation now, and he has no intention of changing it just because his Pops doesn’t sit underneath it anymore. “I feel like it was nice knowing that he was up in heaven with my grandma and they were both looking down on me, watching over me,” Blankenburg said. “I was happy to know that he was in a better place, and he had the best seat in the house.” Blankenburg still gives Orkisz a knuckle touch through the glass before every game. It’s his way of remaining connected to the man that was always his biggest fan and strongest supporter. Orkisz was at every game, every practice, everything he could be for Blankenburg’s entire hockey career. And Blankenburg knows he’s still there every day. Out of the blue Michigan stages comeback late in fourth quarter, tops Syracuse in overtime, 84-76, for first power-conference win Michigan’s players looked up. Two minutes remained in overtime. They led Syracuse by five. They could have dug in their heels, played drop-back defense and waited for the clock to bleed down. But there would be no waiting in this game. Senior guard Akienreh Johnson jumped on a bad pass by guard Teisha Hyman, broke to the basket and picked up an and- one. The Wolverines didn’t look back on their way to an 84-76 win over Syracuse. Even getting to overtime took a near miracle from Michigan. Midway through the fourth quarter, the Orange held a nine- point lead, and Michigan’s offense was reeling. It had only hit one field goal in the quarter. In desperate times, the Wolverines needed a spark, and it was their defense that provided it. Coach Kim Barnes Arico dialed up a full-court press in hopes of forcing turnovers, and it paid dividends. Starting with a quick bucket after a steal from sophomore forward Naz Hillmon, Michigan scored eight of the next 10 points — all of which came off Syracuse turnovers. “It was Naz at the front of that press, and (sophomore guard) Amy (Dilk) and (Johnson) right behind her,” Barnes Arico said. “They’re so long and disruptive, and they were so tough. From the beginning, it was clear the game would be a nailbiter, with both teams reaching double digits before the first TV timeout. Junior forward Hailey Brown set the tone right away, driving past the Orange defense and drawing a foul less than 15 seconds in. She sunk both free throws. Every time one team made a big play that felt like a turning point, the other side would come right back with a quick bucket of its own. Much of this came from Syracuse’s high-volume performance from beyond the arc, especially early on. In the first quarter alone, it buried 5-of- 10 triples, three of which came from Hyman, who had previously made just two 3-pointers all season. But the Wolverines’ adjustments on defense — and Hyman sitting out with foul trouble — meant Syracuse couldn’t quite maintain that same pace from downtown later in the game. Michigan’s press continued to fluster the Orange’s shooters, forcing poor passes and hurried shots. They made just five 3-pointers in the second half. “We tried to keep switching defenses on them,” Barnes Arico said. “We tried not to stay in the same thing so they couldn’t get comfortable.” Offensively, senior forward Kayla Robbins was the biggest difference-maker for the Wolverines. She led the team with 23 points, including a layup with just over a minute left that gave Michigan a one-point lead. Once overtime started, it was all Wolverines. They outscored Syracuse, 13-5, in the extra period, making almost no mistakes and sinking a number of crucial free throws to seal the victory. Going in, Michigan knew that Syracuse’s zone defense could cause problems — especially with the turnover woes that the Wolverines have endured this year. But they took care of the ball, found holes in the zone and picked up a signature win along the way. “We focused on worrying about ourselves, because as much as we focused in on their defense and their offense, they have to also worry about us,” Hillmon said. “So we just played our game. We knew that something would come to us.” Down by 10 with eight minutes left, Syracuse had all the momentum. Two straight 3-pointers appeared to put daggers in Michigan’s hopes as the game slipped out of reach. Then a shooting foul gave freshman guard Michelle Sidor a chance at the line. She sank both of them. A scramble for the ball 30 seconds later in the backcourt gave sophomore forward Naz Hillmon an easy layup to bring the game within seven. “When we got down 10, we knew we were gonna have to turn it up,” said Michigan coach Kim Barnes Arico after a game her team came back to win, 84-76, over Syracuse in overtime. “I think you just saw the spark in Hillmon, and Hillmon coming alive in the front of the press. Nobody wants to face that. Her (6-foot-7) wingspan, and that’s really what she has, was really tough for their point guard.” Never mind that, the Orange would do what they did every time the Wolverines attempted to claw themselves back into the game — hit threes. Instead, a trap from sophomore guard Amy Dilk on the far side of the court gave Michigan the ball back. Senior forward Kayla Robbins, playing with four fouls, forced a turnover and put up a layup. It was a five-point game. Syracuse made it halfway up the court before senior guard Akienreh Johnson forced a turnover, found Robbins streaking down the court for an easy layup — the deficit now three. The Orange scored again. They turned the ball over again, the Wolverines scored again. For once, Michigan wasn’t the team giving up possessions. There was no room for Syracuse to breathe as the Wolverines executed a nasty press. The Orange committed seven turnovers in the fourth quarter and five in overtime. They gave up 31 points off turnovers — 21 in the fourth quarter and overtime. “It’s all with the top line,” Robbins said. “When you have (Hillmon’s) length up top, with her length in the press when we’re down, she’s done it plenty of times before — no one can stop it. No one can get through our first-line defense when we’re down.” Added Hillmon: “But it doesn’t work without the second line being there with the traps, so that’s another thing of everybody working together, knowing what spots they’re supposed to be in and even when it did break down a couple times we didn’t put our head down, we got right back into it and still tried to get those stops.” For a minute, the game looked to sit back into the normal rhythm. Like it did in the third quarter when the Wolverines forced an abundance of turnovers to bring the game within three, only to lose it just as soon as it began. There were two minutes where Michigan dominated the glass, gained rebounds, forced turnovers, only to miss its shot. But Syracuse was impotent and turned the ball over again. The Wolverines worked their way into a one-point lead off a Robbins layup with just a minute left. Michigan calmed down, and when it was unable to trap the Orange in the backcourt, it swarmed the arc — Hillmon and junior forward Hailey Brown a brick wall in the paint. To start overtime, Syracuse committed a turnover. And then another. The Wolverines were up by four in a flash while the Orange were drowning. Up by 10 with a minute left in overtime, the momentum was all with Michigan. Two free throws put a dagger in the heart of Syracuse. BAILEY JOHNSON Daily Sports Writer COURTESY OF KARIN BLANKENBURG Nick Blankenburg started standing over a second-floor railing at Yost because his grandfather would sit below. BRENDAN ROOSE Daily Sports Writer KENT SCHWARTZ Daily Sports Writer OLIVIA CELL/Daily Senior forward Kayla Robbins led Michigan with 23 points against Syracuse in the Wolverines’ 84-76 win on Thursday.