The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Sports
Wednesday, September 29, 2021 — 11

Front row improvements spur 
Michigan past Michigan State

The 
No. 
18 
Michigan 

women’s soccer team found 
itself in a place it has been 
three times this season: tied 
at the end of regulation. The 
Wolverines (7-1-2 overall, 1-0-1 
Big Ten) battled Wisconsin 
(7-1-3, 2-0-1) for 90 minutes, 
but 
staunch 
defense 
and 

limited offensive opportunities 
on both sides forced the game 
to overtime. 

After a lackluster first 90 

minutes, the two overtime 
periods offered both teams 
a chance to gain momentum 
and muster out a win. But the 
defensive stalemate continued, 
forcing the game to a scoreless 
tie. 

Although 
Michigan 
has 

plenty of overtime experience, 
it could not channel that into a 
win, settling for one point in a 
highly contested Big Ten. 

“Our league is really really 

difficult,” 
Michigan 
coach 

Jennifer Klein said. “Every 
team is going to be tough. Every 
game is going to be a battle and 
they’re going to push you to the 
very, very end. ... I think overall 
it’s just we’re getting a point on 
the board today which is really 
key for us within the league.” 

Michigan entered the game 

averaging over 23 shots per 
game, fifth best in the country. 
However, 
throughout 
the 

game, the Wolverines found 
themselves searching for shots 
on 
goal. 
Senior 
midfielder 

Meredith 
Haakenson 
took 

the first shot for Michigan 16 
minutes into the game. The 
Wolverines only forced the 
Badgers to make one save 
throughout the game and never 
produced any real offensive 
pressure. 

Despite 
junior 
defender 

Jayde 
Riviere’s 
breakaway 

speed 
and 
superior 
ball 

handling, she never created 
enough separation to deliver 
a 
good 
shot. 
This 
was 

emblematic of the rest of the 
team’s struggles to get good 
chances in front of the goal. 
The Wolverines had 13 shots 
and only one on goal, a far 
cry from their usual average. 
This was the second game this 
season Michigan has failed to 
score, despite notching a clean 
sheet for the fifth time. 

Given 
the 
sparing 
shots 

on both sides, neither team 
gained any real momentum 
throughout 
the 
game. 
The 

Wolverines controlled the ball 
in the midfield and in their 
offensive third for the majority 
of the game, but Wisconsin’s 
defense thwarted any offensive 
attacks.

“Wisconsin’s a gritty team,” 

fifth-year goalkeeper Hillary 
Beall said. “They’ve always 
been a gritty team. I think 
that they just bring that extra 
step when we play them. Their 
energy is pretty good.”

Michigan’s defense was a 

key part of why the Badgers 
never scored. Wisconsin also 
managed only one shot on goal, 
with 10 shots in total. The ball 
was cleared out of the Badgers’ 
offensive third quickly and 
efficiently 
throughout 
the 

game. 

“I think our centerbacks 

did 
a 
phenomenal 
job 
of 

stepping up and really getting 
in there with grit,” Beall said. 
“(Graduate 
defender) 
Alia 

Martin and (senior defender) 
Sydney Shepherd played high 
top. I’m so grateful to have 
them back there.”

The 
Wolverines 
relied 

on their depth, consistently 
rotating players in. The team 
returned all of its starters 
from last season, enabling it 
to jell quickly and get off to a 
good start thus far. This helped 
the team withstand the 110 
minutes of gritty soccer. 

“Something that we’ve been 

preaching to our team is that 
we are a team very fortunate 
with depth,” Klein said. “...
We were able to keep going, 
put players on, try to rotate. 
I think it allowed us to keep 
the momentum and push, just 
unfortunate that we didn’t get 
a goal today.”

Michigan’s depth was tested 

in the first overtime period 
when Riviere took a hard hit to 
the head. Wisconsin midfielder 
Emma Jaskaniec received a 
yellow card for the hit and 
Riviere did not return to the 
game. 

“Jayde is a player who 

is 
always 
going 
to 
bring 

something special when she’s 
on 
the 
field,” 
Klein 
said. 

“Whether it’s just her tactical 
ability or her ability within, 
speed and everything like that. 
When you lose that player it 
definitely 
takes 
something 

away, but I am still really proud 
of the players that we put on.”

The most exciting action 

came 
during 
the 
second 

overtime 
period 
when 
the 

Badgers took three consecutive 
corner 
kicks. 
Each 
time, 

the Wolverines stacked the 
box and cleared the ball out 
successfully. 

Down their best player and 

having already played 100-plus 
minutes, Michigan looked to 
have ceded the momentum. 
Still, the Wolverines held their 
ground and didn’t allow a goal 
despite three close calls. They 
took a possibly game-changing 
set of plays to force the 
momentum back to their side. 

With the offense sputtering, 

Michigan’s 
defense 
played 

a pivotal role, allowing the 
Wolverines to muster out a 
point. 

“We’re in the hunt for a Big 

Ten 
Championship,” 
Beall 

said. “We didn’t drop a game, 
we obviously got a point out 
of it. Definitely defensively 
killing it the past few games. 
Defending, we’re just doing 
great and I think if we can get 
on the board we’re going to be 
really great.”

‘M’ battles to scoreless draw

LILY ISRAEL

Daily Sports Writer

Down 24-23 in the second set, 

sophomore outside hitter Jess 
Mruzik stepped up to serve. 
She took a deep breath, tossed 
the ball up and promptly hit it 
into the tape. As the ball came 
crashing down to the ground, a 
look of disappointment washed 
over the Michigan players’ 
faces. After cutting an 11-point 
deficit to one, the issues that 
had plagued the Wolverine’s 
outside hitters early in Sunday’s 
match returned to cost them. 

Plenty 
of 
hitting 
errors 

stemming 
from 
Michigan’s 

outside hitters, combined with 
inefficient blocking, constantly 
put the Wolverines behind 
early in sets. It didn’t help that 
Michigan State outside hitter 
Sarah Franklin rarely missed 

her kills early on, further 
highlighting the issues on the 
Michigan front row. 

But 
despite 
early-set 

struggles, 
the 
Wolverine’s 

front swung momentum back in 
their direction. Led by Mruzik 
and senior outside hitter Paige 
Jones, who combined for six 
kills and a service ace in the 
span of 14 points, Michigan 
nearly came back from a 21-10 
deficit 
in 
the 
second 
set, 

ultimately succumbing to a 
25-23 defeat, tying the match at 
one set apiece.

“I 
wasn’t 
swinging 

aggressively and that kind of 
got me into trouble,” Jones said. 
“(Michigan coach Mark Rosen) 
came up to us and told us that 
we need to start banging it out 
in trouble. Most of the time 
you get some good touches off 
of that ... so I just went up and 

swung away.” 

Michigan’s 
front 
row 

continued to improve in the 
later sets, building off the 
momentum 
that 
they 
had 

created on their second set run. 
Junior middle blocker May 
Pertofsky began to get more 
involved, recording eight kills 
and four blocks. 

“Late in the game May did 

a great job of coming in and 
helping block a couple times,” 
Rosen said. “Even though there 
was speed around her, she was 
able to ignore that speed and go 
get the big hit.”

The Wolverine front row 

finally brought it all together 
at the end of the fourth set. 
Tied 25-25, freshman middle 
blocker Jacque Boney showed 
her mettle. Boney got up close 
and personal with the Spartan 
attackers, earning the point 
on a powerful block. Just two 
points later, Boney did it again, 
giving Michigan a 27-26 lead. 
The Wolverines closed it out 
on the next attack, claiming 
the fourth set and the 3-1 
victory. 

“She’s a young player and 

she still has a lot of things to 
learn, but she just has an innate 
ability to block balls.” Rosen 
said. “Those were huge points 
... but she does that a lot. It’s too 
many times to be an accident.” 

Michigan’s slow start up 

front led to a dropped set and 
a heavily contested match. The 
front row’s turnaround then 
became the anchor to their 
victory. For the Wolverines 
to find success, their middle 
blockers and outside hitters 
need to begin each match at the 
level they ended it on Sunday. 
BECCA MAHON/Daily 

Paige Jones had 16 kills in Michigan’s win over Michigan State.

DOMINICK SOKOTOFF/Daily 

Michigan fifth-year goalkeeper Hillary Beall kicks the ball.

NOAH KINGSLEY

For The Daily

After a successful road trip 

to Ithaca, N.Y, the Michigan 
field hockey team (8-0 overall, 
1-0 Big Ten) enjoyed a return to 
Ocker Field as they faced No. 
25 Michigan State (6-2, 0-2) 
and No. 23 Kent State (5-3). 
The two games played vastly 
different for the Wolverines, 
but ultimately they swept the 
weekend series, beating the 
Spartans 6-1 and the Golden 
Flash 2-1, to remain undefeated 
on the year.

Against Michigan State on 

Friday, Michigan burst out 
of the gate with a familiar 
aggressiveness, scoring twice 
within the first five minutes 
of 
the 
game. 
Sophomore 

midfielder Anouk Veen added 
the second goal via a penalty 
corner shot inserted by senior 
midfielder Kathryn Peterson.

“The past few weeks I’ve 

had some frustrating misses 
off corner shots,” Veen said. “It 
was good to finally score and 
finally convert.”

Mere seconds before the 

halftime buzzer, the Spartans 
took advantage of a blocked 
shot bouncing back to their 
forward Hannah Jarvie, who 
sent it to the back of the net 
and cut the score to 2-1. That 
score would hold until Veen 
converted 
another 
penalty 

corner shot in the 40th minute 
to make it 3-1. From there, 
the 
floodgates 
opened 
for 

Michigan’s scoring, as three 
different players added goals. 
By the end of the game, a tight 
contest became a 6-1 blowout.

“We’re a very deep and 

versatile 
team,” 
Michigan 

coach Marcia Pankratz said. 
“We ask the girls to give it their 
all as long as they can because 
we have the depth to relieve 
them when they get tired.”

In contrast to the offensive 

performance that won out 
against Michigan State, the 
Wolverines 
seemed 
unable 

to find a consistent posture 
against the Golden Flashes. 
Michigan was held out of 
the goal column the entire 
first half, a first in the young 
season.

“They played tough, and we 

knew they would,” Pankratz 
said. “We had to stay patient 
when we weren’t getting the 
opportunities we wanted.”

Kent State dominated the 

second quarter’s possessions, 
holding 
Michigan 
to 
zero 

shots 
while 
adding 
four 

unsuccessful shots of their 
own. Ultimately though, it was 
the third quarter that provided 
the majority of the game’s 
scoring, 
with 
a 
Michigan 

penalty corner from senior 
midfielder 
Sofia 
Southam 

being quickly answered by 
a Kent State equalizer. The 
game was finally put away on 
a 52nd minute penalty corner, 
converted again off the stick of 
Southam.

Southam 
finished 
the 

weekend at 13 total season 
goals, tied with North Carolina 
forward Erin Matson for the 
most in Division I.

“Most of my goals have 

come off great team work and 
team passing,” Southam said. 
“Having that team dynamic is 
huge for us.”

Wolverines sweep weekend on 

Championship anniverary

DAVID WOELKERS

For The Daily

ANNA FUDER/Daily 

Michigan Anouk Veen scored two goals in Michigan’s two weekend wins.

The Michigan hockey team 

has learned to take nothing for 
granted. 

Six months ago, on the eve 

of the beginning of NCAA 
tournament play in Fargo, N.D., 
its season abruptly ended due 
to COVID-19 concerns within 
the program. The cancelation 
was a devastating blow for 
the Wolverines, who had a 
promising season and overcame 
multiple 
pandemic-related 

pauses to make it to that point. 

Eyeing the start to what is 

expected to be its first full 
season in over two years, 
Michigan isn’t looking back. 
The team is controlling what 
it can control, starting with 
practice. 

“The practices that we’ve had 

have been very competitive,” 
Michigan coach Mel Pearson 
said. “Very high paced, very 
high spirited, right off the get 
go. This (is my) 40th year now 
at the Division 1 level coaching 
… and I can say that this year, 
it’s been as competitive on the 
ice as any of them.” 

For a team loaded with 

NHL talent — including five 
2021 first round picks — but 
lacking postseason experience, 
intense practices are vital to 
preparing the team for the 
demands of the season ahead. 
Given that the previous two 

NCAA 
tournaments 
were 

canceled 
due 
to 
COVID-19 

and the Wolverines failed to 
qualify in 2019, a vast majority 
of Michigan’s roster has never 
partaken in NCAA tournament 
action. 

Moreover, the Wolverines’ 

young 
core 
— 
featuring 

sophomore defenseman Owen 
Power, 
sophomore 
forward 

Matty 
Beniers, 
freshman 

defenseman 
Luke 
Hughes 

and sophomore forward Kent 
Johnson — have yet to play a 
college game in front of fans.

To 
compensate, 
Michigan 

has relied on its leadership to 
set the tone throughout the 
preseason.

“You have so many guys who 

just want to get better every 
day,” senior defenseman and 
captain Nick Blankenburg said. 
“That’s huge just coming into 
practice because you see how 
hard guys are working and how 
hard guys are trying to earn 
spots on the roster and you love 
to see it every day.”

With such a deep roster, 

Pearson will have to make 
difficult decisions each game 
as to who to dress. Players 
further in the depth chart are 
hyperaware of that and are 
spurring improvement amongst 
the star-studded first lines in 
the process. 

“I 
think 
tensions 
might 

get a little high sometimes,” 
Blankenburg said. “Just because 
guys are so competitive, but 

that’s a good problem to have.”

Seemingly 
secure 
roster 

positions, such as the goalie 
position, 
remain 
a 
daily 

competition at practice and are 
exasperated by the heightened 
competitive nature. Although 
sophomore Erik Portillo is the 
expected starter, sophomore 
Noah West and senior Jack 
Leavy are both capable players 
vying for playing time.

Michigan will battle Bowling 

Green 
on 
Saturday 
in 
an 

exhibition, with the regular 
season beginning the following 
weekend in a series versus Lake 
Superior State. The Wolverines 
look 
to 
balance 
intense 

practice sessions with tactful 
management of their bodies as 
the first full season nears for 
many members of the roster. 

“Our biggest concern right 

now is to just make sure we stay 
focused on the task at hand, 
and control all we can control,” 
Pearson said. 

At least for the immediate 

future, the task at hand for 
Michigan 
is 
practice. 
As 

preparations wrap-up for the 
Wolverines, their added edge 
leads the way.

“I’ve seen it the last few 

weeks,” Beniers said. “We’ve 
been going hard. … We were 
going off the ice one day and 
some of the guys were like, ‘I 
think our practices are harder 
than some of the games we play,’ 
which is kind of just a testament 
to how it’s been going so far.”

Added edge at practice fuels 
Michigan as season looms

PAUL NASR

Daily Sports Writer

JULIA SCHACHINGER/Daily 

Michigan sophomore forward Matty Beniers has 24 points in the 2020-21 hockey season.

