The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Sports
8 — Wednesday, November 17, 2021
When the Michigan women’s soccer team
took the field against Bowling Green on Friday,
its starting lineup had only one thing that it
noticeably lacked:
Underclassmen.
Of the Wolverines’ 11 starters, three were
juniors, four were seniors and another four were
either graduate students or fifth-year seniors.
And from the way Michigan dominated the
Falcons en route to a 3-0 victory, it’s clear that
this leadership is central to the team’s success.
Every facet of the Wolverines’ lineup is
anchored by experience. On offense, Michigan
was led by senior midfielder Meredith
Haakenson and fifth-year midfielder Nicki
Hernandez.
Defensively,
senior
Sydney
Shepherd and junior Jade Riviere stymied
the Falcons. Even in the net Michigan had
experience with fifth-year senior and four-year
starter Hillary Beall posting a clean sheet.
From the game’s opening kickoff, the result
never looked in doubt. Not only did the Wolverines
outshoot, out-muscle and outscore the Falcons in
what would be a physical opening to the NCAA
Tournament, they flat out out-played them as
well. Michigan was the aggressor throughout the
entire game. Offensively, it dominated possession,
playing the vast majority of the game in Bowling
Green’s territory and constantly threatening to
put the ball in the back of the net. Defensively they
were stifling, holding the Falcons to five shots,
none of which were on target.
The poise that the Wolverines played with
on Friday stems from experience, and that
experience is part of what separates this team
from past iterations of itself. They play like a team
who has been here before — because they have.
All 11 of the Wolverines’ starters were members
of the 2019 team that suffered a crushing
overtime loss in the Big Ten Championship
and made it to the third round of the NCAA
Tournament. And it is precisely the experience
that they carry with them that propels them to
victory.
“To have that experience is unbelievable,”
said Michigan coach Jennifer Klein. “It’s so
valuable to have players that know what to
expect. They’re not going to get rattled under
pressure or when dealing with adversity.”
This Michigan team isn’t one that gets
nervous, or at least it doesn’t play like it,
something that came through in Friday’s game.
Defensively, the Wolverines didn’t stutter. They
didn’t make unnecessary passes, they didn’t
cough up the ball in dangerous situations and
any time the Falcons approached the net, they
didn’t shy away from making tackles in their
own penalty box — because they have been there
before.
“Their composure has been great,” said Klein,
speaking of the defense. “They start
our play for us, and they did a very,
very good job tonight.”
Offensively, the experience and
confidence of the Wolverines was
equally apparent. On all three of
their goals, the Wolverines played
meticulously and with patience.
When
Haakenson
opened
the
scoring in the 18th minute, it was
the result of three straight crosses
into the Falcons box off of a corner.
When Hernandez stormed down
the left side of the field and into a
one-on-one situation with Bowling
Green’s goalkeeper in the 59th
minute, she took the time to cut to
the left at the last moment before
firing the ball into the top-left
corner of the net.
The Wolverines play with the confidence and
composure of veterans, and this makes every
player on their team better — underclassmen
included. In the 77th minute, Haakenson would
once again take the time to create a better
opportunity for her team, and it once again
resulted in a goal, this time for sophomore
forward Kacey Lawrence’s third goal of the
season.
With Michigan’s 3-0 victory, it keeps its title
hopes alive. As the Wolverines continue their
tournament run, experience will be necessary.
Shepherd explained it best:
“We’ve gone through this before, we know
what it’s like.”
Wolverines’ experience shows in
its 3-0 victory over Bowling Green
In old EA Sports NHL games, every
roster included a “hero line” that you
could use in close games or in tough
road environments. Each team’s best
players would all take the ice together,
and you could wreak havoc by ripping
shot after shot on goal.
Against Penn State last weekend,
the No. 1 Michigan hockey team
played with a hero line of its own.
Michigan coach Mel Pearson
broke
up
sophomore
forwards
Thomas Bordeleau and Brendan
Brisson — a duo that had struggled
to create 5-on-5 chances. Instead,
Brisson took the ice with sophomore
forwards Kent Johnson and Matty
Beniers. The trio combined for six
out of the Wolverines’ 11 goals on the
weekend against the Nittany Lions.
Most teams can’t afford to put their
best shooter with their best facilitator
and hottest hand. They might send
them out on a power play, but throwing
them into a 5-on-5 situation puts all
the offensive eggs in one proverbial
basket. If they can’t get the job done,
the offense is out of luck.
But the Wolverines aren’t like
most teams. With depth scorers
like Bordeleau, junior
forward Johnny Beecher
and freshman forward
Mackie
Samoskevich
— all valuable NHL
prospects
—
the
Wolverines can afford to
concentrate their offense
on one line.
The on-ice product
looks
astonishing,
with slick tape-to-tape
passing that utilizes all
players on the ice. It’s
like a big game of keep-
away, and Michigan’s
got the puck. A sheer
abundance of scoring options permits
that movement, and teams like Penn
State can’t just choose to shut down
one shooter.
“It’s pretty easy to play with
guys like that because they get
open well,” Beniers said. “You don’t
really have to ever call for pucks
because they know you’re there.
They’ll just pass it to you.”
Despite the trio’s success last
week, the Wolverines need to ensure
they can find opportunities four
lines deep. Teams with experienced,
skilled forwards like Notre Dame
and Minnesota will find the right
aggressive backcheckers on the ice to
shut down one good line.
That’s something that Western
Michigan exploited, stymieing the
Beniers-Johnson-Brisson unit when
they played together on the man
advantage. The Wolverines scored
once on 11 power plays over the series,
losing the first game and barely
squeaking out an overtime win at
Lawson Arena. If those three struggle
to score, it can be game over for the
offense.
Shutting down that line bodes
well for other teams, but the added
attention opens up chances for other
players to score. As a result of Penn
State’s defensive mistakes — which
came from shadowing the top line
all series — Beecher tallied a goal
and an assist this past weekend.The
Wolverines are a deep team, and
Pearson knows someone in their ranks
can step up and feed the scoresheet.
“I like to run a team where you
have 12 guys that can score,” Pearson
said. “There’s really not a bottom six
or top six even though numbers might
indicate there is.”
It’s risky to frontload an offense,
but as long as they’re scoring, it all
works out. Sending out Johnson-
Beniers-Brisson
worked
against
Penn State, and there’s little reason
to break up their chemistry if that
success continues. They’re scoring
and backchecking hard, and that’s
something opponents have to pay
attention to.
“I’m not saying no one can shut us
down,” Beniers said. “But I think it’d
be really difficult.”
Michigan showed what its top
dogs can do when they play together,
proving it can kill opponents with a
brutal offensive onslaught. In close
games down the road, the Wolverines
will likely find themselves needing a
goal.
When that time comes, Michigan
doesn’t need to make its own hero
line. It’s already on the ice.
Wolverines’ top line carries offensive weight
CHARLIE PAPPALARDO
For The Daily
CONNOR EAREGOOD
Daily Sports Writer
STATE COLLEGE — The inevitability
had set in.
After leading by eight points for more
than a full quarter of play, the No. 6
Michigan football team found itself trailing.
Moments earlier, Penn State had taken
a three-point lead after a strip sack from
defensive end Arnold Ebiketie led to a field
goal. One drive before that, the Nittany
Lions had converted on three fourth downs
as part of a 15-play, 53-yard touchdown
drive that tied the game.
As junior quarterback Cade McNamara
trotted onto the field for a comeback
attempt with just under six minutes
remaining, echoes of the Wolverines’
loss to Michigan State two weeks prior
reverberated through Beaver Stadium.
Michigan — especially Jim Harbaugh’s
Michigan — couldn’t do it. It didn’t have the
playmakers to pull out a comeback win on
the road.
And yet, it did.
Six plays into perhaps the Wolverines’
season-defining
drive,
McNamara
connected with junior tight end Erick All
on a crossing route. As All cut up the field
for what would become a 47-yard, game-
winning touchdown reception, one thing
became abundantly clear:
This
Michigan
does
have
the
playmakers.
Despite the Wolverines’ struggles to
put the game away throughout the second
half, they made big plays — on both sides
of the ball — when they most desperately
needed them. In those situations where the
Michigan teams of the last six years would
have folded under pressure, the Wolverines
found the ability to make game-changing
plays.
“I think we got the most talent in the Big
Ten,” senior edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson
said. “Guys who stepped up this game and
made a play.”
On the offensive side of the ball,
McNamara was that playmaker. Regardless
of any occasional missteps — he failed to
connect on a few deep balls throughout
the game — he made the right decisions
and threw accurate balls when the offense
needed him to.
That was true even before the game-
winning touchdown pass. Early in the
second quarter, after the Wolverines failed
to convert a single first down on their initial
two drives, McNamara orchestrated a
15-play, 90-yard drive that consumed 7:30
minutes of game clock. Seventy-eight of
those yards — including a 21-yard dart to
sophomore receiver Roman Wilson for the
touchdown — came through the air.
“He threw the ball before I was even
looking,” Wilson said. “That was probably
the best ball I’ve seen — I mean, he throws
a lot of good passes — but at least that
I’ve caught from him. I mean, that was
beautiful.”
On defense, too, Michigan’s playmakers
stepped up when they were needed most.
On Penn State’s opening possession, after
a pair of runs from quarterback Sean
Clifford and a successful fake punt put the
Nittany Lions in prime scoring position,
Hutchinson and freshman linebacker
Junior Colson sacked Clifford to force a
field goal. It was the defense’s third sack on
that drive alone.
In moments where the Wolverines’
offense continued to sputter, the defense
continued to make plays. Hutchinson
ended Penn State’s third drive with a strip
sack; junior edge rusher David Ojabo did
the same on the final possession of the first
half. After McNamara’s fourth quarter
fumble gave the Nittany Lions the ball
at Michigan’s 16, fifth-year safety Brad
Hawkins put a hit on Clifford that forced
another field goal.
The defense rarely gave Clifford the time
to make plays of his own. When the dust
settled, the Wolverines had tallied seven
sacks.
“It gives us confidence,” McNamara
said. “It makes us want to do well for them
even more. We know it’s our job to go down
the field and score points, but when they
give us that extra momentum, it just gives
us more confidence to go do it even more.”
That playmaking on both sides reflects
a message that Michigan has preached all
year: complementary football. Time and
again this season, the defense has picked
up the offense in moments where it has
struggled. In most scenarios, the offense has
been there to do the same for the defense.
It’s been visible throughout the season.
It was most visible in Saturday’s game. It
was even visible after the postgame press
conference, when Hutchinson expressed
his faith in McNamara as the two stood up
to leave:
“That’s my quarterback!”
In crucial moments, Michigan finds its playmakers
BRENDAN ROOSE
Daily Sports Editor
Sitting in the visiting media room
at Beaver Stadium following the
Michigan football team’s comeback,
Jim Harbaugh was asked about the
Wolverines’ performance in familiar
territory.
Saturday had the makings of a
textbook example of a game Michigan
would lose in years past. Hell, even
in weeks past. The sixth-ranked
Wolverines blew an eight-point lead
over Penn State midway through the
fourth quarter and found themselves
trailing less than a minute later. But
instead of wilting the way Michigan
did under similar duress in East
Lansing two weeks prior when the
Wolverines blew a 16-point second-
half lead, they responded with a game-
winning knockout blow on the next
drive.
In doing so, they showed just
how
far
they’ve
come.
More
importantly,
Saturday’s
outcome
revealed something important about
Michigan’s makeup.
“This is a great win,” Harbaugh
said on Saturday. “No doubt this team
is full of all the championship qualities
in guys, in football players. They were
born to do this. They approach it like,
‘We’re born for these kinds of days.
Let’s go have at it.’ ”
Asked
about
his
team’s
championship qualities again on
Monday
afternoon,
Harbaugh
doubled down:
“I do believe they have those
traits,” Harbaugh said. “I think
they’re developing them. I know
when I’m there on the sidelines, just
the togetherness that our football
team has. They’re for each other, and
I’m sure it probably comes through
on the TV, at least (for) people that
watch the game. They saw the same
thing coming through the TV: the
excitement our team has and the
togetherness.”
That wasn’t the case against
Michigan State, but Michigan used
its loss to the Spartans as a learning
experience. The Wolverines met
for a players-only meeting 48 hours
after returning from East Lansing,
determined
to
prevent
similar
downfalls in the future.
Michigan’s 12-player leadership
council, which is responsible for
communication between the team and
coaches, called the meeting. All season
long, it has allowed certain players to
emerge as prominent voices within
Schembechler Hall.
“We have a lot of great leaders,”
senior linebacker Michael Barrett said
Monday. “We have a lot of guys trying
to win. We have a lot of guys trying to
win. We have a lot of guys that like to
play together, and just like (Harbaugh)
said, that togetherness and having
all those guys coming together,
buying in and locking into it, that’s a
championship team to me.”
Since Harbaugh’s winter staff
overhaul, the program has become
increasingly player-driven by design.
According to Barrett, players made a
pact during January workouts to hold
each other accountable this season.
Last year’s frustrating 2-4 campaign
taught players there’s a big difference
between saying they’re buying in and
actually buying in.
“You can feel it, just with all the new
changes,” Barrett said. “Everybody’s
coming together. I feel like a lot of guys
feel like it’s a brotherhood. It’s a little
different than it has been before.”
Regardless of age or position, the
Wolverines agreed to take a new
approach this season. So far, the
results are showing. Michigan could
control its own destiny atop the Big
Ten standings by Thanksgiving,
though a looming showdown against
No. 3 Ohio State still stands between
the Wolverines and Harbaugh’s first
trip to the conference title game in
Indianapolis — let alone a College
Football Playoff berth.
But with both still on the table,
Michigan plans to ride its self-
proclaimed “championship qualities”
as far as it will take them.
“(We have) our ability to handle
adversity, and we definitely have
enough talent,” junior quarterback
Cade McNamara said. “I think overall,
our mentality as a team has shifted.
This team is ready to finish this season,
and by the end of it, we should be
competing for a championship if we do
what we’re supposed to do.”
Why Jim Harbaugh sees ‘championship qualities’ in his Michigan team
DANIEL DASH
Daily Sports Editor
EMMA MATI/Daily
The Michigan women’s soccer team has no shortage of experi-
ence, which could fuel a deep NCAA Tournament run.
ALLISON ENGKVIST/Daily
With a game saving fourth quarter touchdown, Erick All and Cade McNamara proved that Michigan does have playmakers.
TESS CROWLEY/Daily
Michigan’s offense hinges on the ability for its
‘hero line’ to create goals.
ALLISON ENGKVIST/Daily
After preventing a comeback win at
Penn State, the Wolverines believe they
have what it takes to compete for a
championship