Michigan Overcomes Suspensions, BYU
from press release
PROVO, Utah – The University of Michigan men's
lacrosse team wrapped up their opening-season road trip Saturday
night (March 6) in Provo, Utah, defeating Brigham Young by a score
of 13-9, improving to 3-0 on the 2010 campaign. In a see-saw
affair, the Wolverines gutted out the victory with timely runs and
a focus on possession despite the absence of six players due to
suspension.
Freshman Thomas Paras (Lakewood, Ohio/St. Ignatius) had the best
day of his young Wolverine career, netting four goals, while adding
three assists. Junior attackman Trevor Yealy (Pittsburgh,
Penn./Upper St. Claire) had another typical outing, netting four as
well, while senior midfielder Jamie Goldberg (Yorktown Heights,
N.Y./Yorktown) played out of position at attack most of the night,
but still managed to net two of his own while adding an assist.
The Wolverines won the opening faceoff and put together a lengthy
possession to kick off the game, registering two quality chances
but failing to find the back of the net. BYU responded with three
shots from the left wing with junior goaltender Mark Stone
(Greenwood Village, Colo./Cherry Creek) coming up big early on.
It was the Cougars that would score first however, on a shot from
just outside the crease to grab the early 1-0 lead. BYU made it 2-0
just over a minute later on a dodge down the left wing followed by
shot across the cage that snuck just inside the right elbow.
Michigan was awarded a man-up opportunity following a push in the
BYU zone after the ensuing faceoff but the Maize and Blue failed to
capitalize, turning the ball over early in the man-up. The turnover
resulted in a BYU possession and their third goal of the game as
the Cougars opened up a 3-0 lead late in the first quarter.
The Wolverines got on the board on their next possession as senior
captain David Rogers (Wayne, N.J./Wayne Hills) found Paras open on
the right wing after two Cougar defenders slipped on the play.
Paras fired a rocket that seemingly went through the goaltender as
Michigan clawed within two at 3-1.
Following the goal, Michigan was nailed for back to back off-sides
calls, with the latter carrying over into the second quarter. The
man-down unit was up to the task, killing off both and earning the
first solid possession of the second quarter. Michigan failed to
capitalize on that chance, but a transition attempt the next time
down resulted in Yealy’s first of the game on a feed from
Paras from the behind the cage.
Michigan was called for their third and final penalty of the game
at the 10-minute mark but UM gained possession and put the stall on
in the Cougar zone. Immediately following the end of the penalty,
senior midfielder Michael Bartomioli (Pleasantville,
N.Y./Pleasantville/Providence) cut around the left side of the cage
and fired high to knot the game up at 3-3 with 9:04 left in the
first half.
The Wolverines earned their first lead of the game on
Goldberg’s first goal of the night on another feed from
behind the cage from Paras. Michigan tallied their fifth unanswered
goal 1:20 later as Rogers added his lone goal of the contest on a
blast from the right wing after a dodge. With momentum in their
favor, Michigan kept rolling as Goldberg added his second of the
quarter just under a minute later on a dodge around the cage
followed by a low shot to give UM a 6-3 lead late in the
second.
Michigan was awarded a minute-long penalty right before the
half-time break but failed to score, and eventually turned the ball
over resulting in a late chance for the Cougars. Stone came up big
as the whistle blew, stopping a behind the back shot as the
Wolverines took a three-goal lead into the second half.
A third-quarter team throughout the two-year plus stretch of
unbeaten play, the Wolverines had a sloppy start to the second
half, and it resulted in BYU cutting the lead to 6-4 with 9:51 left
in third quarter on a low shot from straight out. The Cougars drew
within one the next time down on a high, hard one from the left
wing with 8:20 remaining in the quarter. The Cougars run continued
as they tied the game at 6:46 on a wide-open chance from 10 yards
out after a breakdown in the Wolverine “D”.
Michigan finally answered on the man-up just over a minute later as
senior midfielder Anthony Hrusovsky (Lake Forest, Ill./Lake Forest)
finished a feed from Rogers from 15 yards out on the left wing.
Michigan regained the two-goal lead on the transition at 3:39 as
Paras found a cutting Yealy who dipped and dunked for the 8-6 lead
in the third. The Wolverines put together a flurry of chances just
before the quarter break, but were unable to bury it, taking a two
goal lead into the final frame.
Paras added the first of three fourth quarter goals under a minute
into the period, picking off a pass deep in the BYU zone on a
Wolverine ride before racing towards the front of the empty cage
and firing low as Michigan rebuilt their three-goal lead at 9-6. An
off-sides call on the Cougars at 11:50 resulted in Michigan’s
largest lead of the game as Goldberg fed a cutting Yealy right in
front for his third of the game.
BYU wouldn’t go away and quickly responded to cut the lead to
10-7 with 10:37 left in the contest. Paras didn’t let them
build any momentum however, scoring from the left wing on a high
blast to help Michigan regain the four-goal lead midway through the
fourth. U-M’s next possession resulted in a nice feed from
sophomore midfielder Alex Vasileff (Birmingham, Mich./Seaholm) who
made the extra pass and found an open Yealy in right out front for
his fourth and final goal the game and the 12-7 lead with 6:25
left.
Once again, BYU failed to pack it in, answering at 6:02, but
Michigan never let the Cougars creep any closer than four as Paras
tallied his fourth and final of the game on another rocket followed
by a late, inconsequential BYU goal as Michigan improved to 3-0 on
the young season with their third win over a ranked opponent in
just seven days.
Statistically, Michigan dominated in almost every category. UM was
outshot by their opponent 37-34, but recorded 67 groundballs to the
Cougar’s 39. U-M was 17 of 25 on faceoffs, and finished 24 of
30 on clears, while riding BYU to 13-21 totals. Michigan scored
three times on eight man-up attempts with Brigham Young failing to
score on three tries. Once again however, the Wolverines committed
too many turnovers for their own taste, registering 33 in the
contest, some of which were a result of the high-pressure BYU
defense.
The Wolverines will kick off their home schedule next week, when
they host #3 Simon Fraser on Friday night (March 12) at 7:00pm EST
in Ann Arbor, Michigan at Oosterbaan Fieldhouse.
