When the Michigan field hockey schedule 

was created, it was assumed this past 
weekend’s games against Northwestern and 
Louisville would be competitive. Following 
the release of the NFHCA coaches poll earlier 
last week though, it was revealed how much of 
a gauntlet it actually was; Northwestern just 
outside of the top five, and Louisville at No. 
3. With Michigan holding ground in the No. 2 
slot, it was the kind of weekend you’d expect 
from the NCAA tournament, not a series in 
early October.

The Wolverines didn’t back down from the 

challenge, however, and cemented their place 
in the highest caliber of Division I with a 2-1 
double overtime win over the No. 6 Wildcats 
on Friday and a 2-1 win over the Cardinals on 
Sunday to sweep the weekend.

Both games were close until the final 

buzzer, in contrast to the blowouts Michigan 
racked up in early season play. While the 
double 
overtime 
nail-biter 
against 
the 

Wildcats was the most visibly contested game, 
the Wolverines were equally pushed by the 
Cardinals, who erased an early 1-0 lead in the 
third quarter and kept the game tied up into 
late in the fourth, when a penalty corner shot 
off the stick of redshirt senior midfielder Halle 
O’Neill finally broke the stalemate.

“We were playing on heavy legs after 

Friday,” Michigan coach Marcia Pankratz 
said Sunday. “The girls played as hard as they 
would with a week’s rest though. I’m super 
proud of their grittiness.”

Entering the weekend, members of the 

team confessed that nerves had been high. 
After playing two highly ranked teams in 
then-first-ranked North Carolina and then-
eleventh-ranked Wake Forest to start the 
season, the majority of games since have been 
played against unranked opponents, allowing 
few opportunities to test their game-plan. 
Coming home from a close brush with No. 
18 Ohio State, Pankratz drilled the team on 
maintaining pace and keeping a cool head 
in high pressure situations, cognizant of the 
threat to their undefeated record poised by 

the aggressive offenses of Northwestern and 
Louisville. 

On Friday, the Wildcats gave Michigan the 

scare the Wolverines had been preparing for. 
For much of the game, Northwestern dictated 
the pace and put Michigan on their heels, 
becoming the first team this season to out-
shoot the Wolverines. As the second overtime 
period headed to its end and a shootout 
loomed, Michigan found another gear, ending 
the game on a walk-off penalty corner shot by 
sophomore midfielder Anouk Veen.

“We were definitely nervous going into the 

game,” Veen said. “Being able to shake that off 
and stand on our feet was huge.”

Building on the lessons learned against 

Northwestern, Michigan was able to match 
Louisville shot for shot, and ultimately finished 
with 10 shots to the Cardinals’ seven. While 
the game was hard fought, the Wolverines 
were much more in control of the game from 
buzzer to buzzer, pushing Louisville back at 
almost every surge. 

“We’ve been playing down to our opponents 

lately,” O’Neill sa id on Sunday. “This week we 
stepped up and played at the level we want to 
be playing at”

For several members of the team, what 

mattered most in the victories was the 
ability to stay calm despite the nerves. It was 
observable in the team’s play: from warm-
ups to the final buzzer, the team danced to 
the music coming over the speakers, laughed 
with each other and tried to keep the game 
in perspective. Both game winners came off 
corners given from lengthy video reviews, in 
which the team was able to huddle together 
and take a breath.

“The music is one of our inside jokes,” 

senior goalkeeper Anna Spieker said Friday. 
“It keeps up from freaking out and getting too 
in our heads.”

Spieker provided both a brick wall in the net 

for Michigan, finishing the weekend on a near 
perfect 12-for-14 save record, as well as acting 
as a source of spirit while on the field.

“When you see Anna dancing in the goal, 

it’s hard not to smile to yourself,” senior 
midfielder Kathryn Peterson said Sunday. 
“If she’s not panicked, we can’t be panicked 
either.”

Down two sets to one, Michigan 

volleyball needed a win to keep the 
match alive. 

As 
junior 
outside 
hitter 
May 

Pertofsky rose up to serve, the crowd 
went silent. The Minnesota defense 
responded, sending the ball back over 
the net, requiring sophomore libero 
Hannah Grant to do the splits to keep 
the rally alive. Sophomore setter 
Scottie 
Johnson 

set 
the 
ball, 

and 
sophomore 

outside hitter Jess 
Mruzik 
walked 

on air, delivering 
a vicious spike. 
The Gophers tried 
to track the ball 
down, but it hit off 
of the chest of the 
outside hitter, and 
the ball trickled 
to the score table. 
Point Michigan. 

The 

Wolverines 
took 

this 
momentum 

and 
knocked 

out No. 8 ranked 
Minnesota in five 
sets, their first 
match against a ranked opponent this 
season, and their first win against a top 
ten opponent since November of 2018. 

After Michigan took a commanding 

lead in the first set, the Gophers fought 
back to make it 2-1 going into the fourth 
set. The Wolverines knew they needed 
to win the next set if they had any 
chance of winning the match, so they 
kicked it into gear. 

“We got more kills. That was big,” 

Michigan coach Mark Rosen said. “We 

use the term ‘dig to kill.’ When we dig a 
ball, we got to turn that ball into a kill 
if we can. If we’re just putting the ball 
back in play, at this level in the Big Ten, 
they’re gonna get a kill, so you’ve got to 
be able to dig to kill, and I thought we 
did that really well.”

Michigan got a lot of help in the 

fourth set from players who typically 
aren’t relied upon to get kills. Junior 
middleback Jess Robinson started the 
set off with two block assists, including 
a solo block. Freshman middleback 
Jaque Boney followed Robinson up 

with three solo blocks. Even sophomore 
opposite hitter Kendall Murray got into 
the mix with a kill of her own.

“Once we get those middles involved 

and our setters, it’s almost impossible 
for blockers to pick up on things and 
defend us,” Mruzik said. “Our middles 
did a great job today. That’s something 
we’ve been working a lot on in practice 
and throughout the preseason, and 
the beginning of this season is getting 
those middles involved and making 

sure that their presence is known. Once 
they start going, it opens our whole 
offense.”

Although Mruzik heaped praise 

on her teammates, she was the one 
leading the charge in the fourth set that 
ultimately won the match. With six 
kills in the fourth set alone, including 
the match point, Mruzik put the team 
on her back and was the sparkplug for 
the Wolverines. 

Mruzik 
was 
dominant 
as 
she 

attacked the backline and the sidelines. 
But 
with 
Minnesota 
focused 
on 

preventing 
the 

easy 
kills 
and 

getting its blocks, 
holes opened up 
and Mruzik took 
advantage. 

“When 
we 

played 
them 

the first time, I 
went 
back 
and 

watched 
what 

happened in that 
match,” 
Mruzik 

said. 
“I 
picked 

out 
some 
spots 

that they weren’t 
necessarily 
picking up on so 
I really tried to 
highlight that in 
this match.” 

Added 
Rosen: 

“They just kept plugging away. I 
thought Jess Mruzik was great in that 
situation. Scottie was great in that 
situation, you know, just a lot of kids 
stepping up. We’re seeing some really 
good development with this team and 
character.”

The momentum the Wolverines 

gained in the fourth set was too much 
for the Gophers to handle as Michigan 
carried it over to the fifth set to win the 
match. 

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com 
Sports
10 — Wednesday, October 13, 2021

BECCA MAHON/Daily 

Michigan junior middleback Jess Robinson keyed its big fourth set.

As the first overall pick of the 

2021 NHL draft, Owen Power faces 
high expectations each night he 
plays. In the No. 3 Michigan hockey 
team’s sweep of Lake Superior State 
last weekend, he delivered. 

The 
sophomore 
defenseman 

totaled one goal and four assists 
in the two-game series, leaving 
his mark in every facet of play and 
proving too much for the Lakers to 
handle all weekend long. 

“He’s taken another step this 

year obviously with his offense,” 
Michigan coach Mel Pearson said. 
“… He’s gained knowledge and some 
wisdom and he’s smarter with the 
puck.” 

On 
Friday’s 
season 
opener, 

Power recorded the first four-point 
performance of his collegiate career, 
netting a goal and three assists. 
From the blue line, he orchestrated 
the 
offensive 
onslaught 
that 

drowned Lake Superior State early, 
putting his talent on full display.

Power’s three assists set the tone 

early to help the Wolverines bust 
open a lead. The increased attention 
he attracts from the defense 
continually opened up scoring 
opportunities. 

That magnetic effect on opposing 

defenders was evident in his third 
assist of the night. As he controlled 
the puck in front of the left faceoff 
circle, all eyes were on him. After 
zipping a pass across the ice to 
sophomore 
forward 
Brendan 

Brisson, the defense struggled to 
recalibrate after placing such a 

heavy emphasis on Power, leaving 
sophomore forward Kent Johnson 
with space in front of the crease. 
Brisson fired the puck into the 
middle of the ice, and Johnson 
redirected it into the top-left corner 
of the goal. 

Later in the matchup, Power 

flexed his shooting strength and 
accuracy when he extended the 
Wolverines’ lead to 6-1. After 
receiving the puck from senior 
forward Nolan Moyle near the 
blue line, Power drifted to his right 
before propelling a wrist shot at the 
net. The wrist shot had the strength 
of a slap shot, deflecting off the 
goaltender’s blocker and floating 
into the net for the goal. 

“He’s really put in a lot of work 

between last year and the start of 
this year as far as driving the offense 
and creating offense,” Pearson said. 
“Not only from the offensive blue 
line or in the offensive zone but 
coming up the ice.” 

Power’s single assist on Saturday 

night barely scratched the surface 
on the influence he had over 
Michigan’s win. 

When facing the same team on 

back-to-back nights, it’s important 
to give teams new looks. Power 
did so early in the first period after 
gaining possession of the puck at his 
usual position near the blue line. 

Instead of initiating a pass 

sequence or firing at the net, Power 
skated at the goal with a burst of 
speed, shooting at goaltender Ethan 
Langenegger from close range. 
Caught off guard, Langenegger sold 
out to stop the shot, leaving the net 
wide open with the puck loose in 
front. Michigan failed to cash in on 

the opportunity, but Power’s antics 
had the defense off balance early. 

Later, six minutes into the game, 

Lake Superior State pressured 
on the Wolverines’ net. Power 
responded with his striking speed, 
dangling through the opposition 
and bringing the puck deep into 
the Michigan attack zone all by 
himself — singlehandedly flipping 
the game script from a Laker attack 
to Wolverine offense. 

“He’s 
really 
improved 
his 

skating,” Pearson said. “...Power’s 
got more power.”

Power’s game awareness and 

multi-dimensional skill set came 
through when Michigan needed 
it most in the third period. The 
Wolverines had just clawed back 
from a two goal deficit to tie the 
game, and Lake Superior State 
looked to take momentum back 
with a key penalty kill. A Laker 
skater interfered with Michigan’s 
fine-tuned power play passing and 
launched the puck for a clear.

Standing at the blue line, Power 

said no. 

He caught the puck out of the 

air and dropped it onto his stick. 
Instead of being forced to chase the 
puck down and lose crucial power 
play time, the Wolverines were 
in position and back in business. 
Shortly thereafter, Brisson launched 
his signature power-play one-timer 
into the net, giving Michigan a lead 
it wouldn’t relinquish. 

Power living up to his limitless 

potential will be key for the 
Wolverines 
moving 
forward. 

If he maintains his high-level 
performance, they’ll always be on 
the Power play.

Power takes the reins and leads 

Michigan to opening weekend sweep

After Saturday, the Wolverines’ refusal 

to flinch is more than just a mantra

DAVID WOELKERS
Daily Sports Writer

BECCA MAHON/Daily 

The Michigan football team has a new identity, one where it doesn’t flinch in the face of adversity. 

PAUL NASR

Daily Sports Writer

LINCOLN 
— 
When 
the 

Michigan football team took a 
double-digit lead into the fourth 
quarter at Wisconsin last week, 
the Wolverines’ sideline joined 
the party for the Badgers’ famed 
“Jump 
Around” 
tradition. 
It 

set the tone from an energy 
standpoint, and Michigan cruised 
to a 38-17 win thereafter.

Against Nebraska (3-4 overall, 

1-2 Big Ten) on Saturday night, 
the 
ninth-ranked 
Wolverines’ 

situation from a week ago was 
flipped on its head. Rather than 
winning big, they had just blown 
a double-digit lead in the third 
quarter.

This time, the momentum 

wasn’t 
on 
Michigan’s 
side. 

Memorial Stadium knew it. But 
as the stadium lights dimmed, 
replaced by a red glow and 
cell 
phones 
while 
ACDC’s 

“Thunderstruck” 
blared, 
the 

Wolverines (6-0, 3-0) once again 
partook in the dance party. Then 
they went out and made the key 
plays necessary to secure a crucial 
32-29 comeback win.

“Keep the same energy when 

you get punched in the mouth,” 
junior 
defensive 
tackle 
Mazi 

Smith said. “Everybody’s got a 
plan until you get punched in the 
mouth. But when we get punched, 
we’ve still got that plan. And 
there’s still another quarter to 
play.” 

Over the last two weeks, 

Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh 

has lauded his team for not 
flinching in the face of adversity. 
It’s become a team mantra of 
sorts. Players have picked up on 
it, too, as junior quarterback Cade 
McNamara, senior running back 
Hassan Haskins and fifth-year 
safety Brad Hawkins all alluded to 
it after the game.

Hawkins, in particular, has 

been around Michigan teams 
that have flinched in past years. 
But through the first five weeks 
of his final season, this year’s 
Wolverines had no reason to 
unravel. By Saturday night, they 
were the only Power Five team in 
the country that hadn’t trailed yet 
in 2021.

Until they weren’t.
After leading 13-0 at the half, 

Michigan was outscored 22-6 
during an underwhelming third 
quarter. That didn’t stop the 
Wolverines from dancing their 
way into the fourth quarter the 
same as last week, though.

“We didn’t flinch,” Hawkins 

said. 
“We 
stayed 
composed 

throughout the whole game. We 
knew adversity was going to hit. 
It hit, and we didn’t flinch. I love 
this team, I love this defense and 
I love that we’re fighters. We went 
out there, we fought today and we 
didn’t flinch.”

Added 
Harbaugh: 
“Not 
to 

flinch, that’s what I’m talking 
about — that kind of grit, that kind 
of determination not to be denied. 
Just staying after it until you make 
one more better, sensational, 
incredible play than they do.”

As Michigan’s defense struggled 

to stop Nebraska’s option offense, 

McNamara appeared especially 
unfazed. A game that began as a 
slugfest evolved into a shootout, 
and the junior quarterback was 
more than ready for it. He led a 
10-play, 91-yard touchdown drive 
to give the Wolverines’ another 
possession of breathing room after 
the Cornhuskers got on the board.

And when Michigan began 

trailing, McNamara spearheaded 
three consecutive scoring drives 
— a touchdown and two field 
goals — to help the Wolverines 
escape victorious. Through the 
bumpy second half, he overcame 
his first career interception and 
maintained the poise of a veteran 
rather than a quarterback making 
his second-ever start in front of 
opposing fans.

All told, McNamara completed 

22 of his 38 pass attempts for 
255 yards. What won’t show up 
in a box score, however, is the 
leadership he brought to the table.

“The way he’s seeing the field, 

just cold-blooded back there in 
the pocket,” Harbaugh said. “You 
know someone’s about to hit you 
and you’re still throwing it to the 
right spot. Not flinching, that says 
a lot.”

McNamara wasn’t the only 

Wolverine who didn’t flinch on 
Saturday night. In the process, 
Michigan showed it’s more than 
just talk. For proof, look no further 
than the sideline before the fourth 
quarter.

“That was a huge scenario for 

our team to be in,” McNamara 
said. “We’re not going to blow 
everyone out. This game showed 
a lot.”

DANIEL DASH

Daily Sports Editor

Big fourth set powers victory over eighth-
ranked Minnesota in biggest win of season

MADELINE HINKLEY/Daily 

Sophomore defensman Owen Power has added several skills to overpower opposing teams and contribute offensively. 

‘M’ sweeps challenging weekend

JAKE SINGER
For The Daily

