Michigan Fends Off Oregon in Overtime
from press release
DALLAS, Texas – In frigid temperatures, wind, and a
sideways snowfall, the #1 ranked University of Michigan men's
lacrosse team gutted out another tough win on Saturday night (March
20) in Dallas, Texas, defeating #7 Oregon by a score of 5-4 in
overtime. Playing in the marquee and final game of the Patriot Cup,
the Wolverines gave up a goal with just five seconds left in
regulation before banging home the game-winner under a minute into
the over-time period to remain unbeaten on the season while also
maintaining their now 46-game winning streak.
Michigan won the opening faceoff but following a turnover in the
Duck's zone, a breakdown in the Wolverines' ride gave Oregon a
great shot on the transition. A chance on a wide-open goal was
missed wide however as the Duck's failed to convert the golden
opportunity early on.
Oregon eventually got on the board first at the nine-minute mark on
a shot from tight in on the right wing for the early lead. The
teams traded possessions for the majority of the first quarter, but
Michigan was able to answer just before the quarter break on a
man-up goal from senior midfielder Jamison Goldberg (Yorktown
Heights, N.Y./Yorktown). Goldberg took a feed from senior
midfielder Anthony Hrusovsky (Lake Forest, Ill./Lake Forest) on the
left wing and waited for the goaltender to commit before bouncing
one into the cage to knot the game at 1-1 as the teams entered the
second quarter.
The defensive struggle continued as neither team could find the
back of the net through the first 11:18 of the quarter. Michigan
finally capitalized as senior midfielder Svet Tintchev (Rockville,
Md./Bullis) took a feed from Hrusovsky on the right wing and fired
a low screamer that found its way through traffic for U-M's first
lead of the game at 2-1 late in the first half.
Michigan kept the pressure on during the end of the second quarter,
earning a man-up with 1:43 left. The Wolverines failed to score
however, and an Oregon save turned into a successful clear. The
Ducks quickly turned the ball over though, and Michigan raced up
field for a final chance of their own before the half-break. The
Maize and Blue failed to capitalize once again however with the
Wolverines holding on tight to the one-goal lead heading into the
second half.
Oregon tied the game up four minutes into the third quarter on a
dodge from the left wing, but Michigan answered at the 7:13 mark on
a quick stick goal from junior attackman Trevor Yealy (Pittsburgh,
Penn./Upper St. Claire) after he took a feed from senior attackman
Clark McIntyre (Little Silver, N.J./Rumson – Fair Haven).
Oregon didn't back down and converted a Wolverine turnover at 4:16
to tie the game at 3-3. The Ducks picked off a pass on a Michigan
clear and took it in one on one on junior goaltender Mark Stone
(Greenwood Village, Colo./Cherry Creek) before firing low.
After possessions for both teams, Michigan earned a man-up chance
late in the third quarter and senior attackman Josh Ein (Potomac,
Md./Bullis) capitalized for Michigan, taking a feed from Goldberg
on the left wing and firing low to high for the 4-3 lead at the end
of the third quarter.
Michigan kept up the pressure at the start of the fourth quarter,
with Yealy catching a pipe at 9:25 as the Wolverines continued to
struggle finding the back of the net. U-M maintained possession
over the next five minutes and earned a minute-long man-up
following a Duck slash at 4:26. The Wolverines failed to
capitalize, turning the ball over twice on the man-up as Oregon
killed the opportunity and earned a possession with just under a
minute left in the game. As soon as Oregon got into the Wolverines'
box, the Ducks called a timeout with 52 seconds left to set up
their last push.
Michigan's defense was initially up to the task, as Oregon turned
the ball over with just :19 seconds left. The Wolverines couldn't
clear the ball however, and the Ducks were able to sneak one in
just inside the left pipe from the left wing to tie the game at 4-4
and force overtime.
Oregon won the opening faceoff of the OT period, but turned the
ball over on a missed feed in front. Michigan was able to clear the
ball as Goldberg took it up the right wing before finding senior
attackman Kevin Zorovich (Massapequa, N.Y./Massapequa) just below
the right GLE. Zorovich quickly hit a cutting Yealy who fired low
and away from the right wing for the game-winning goal as the
Wolverines' contingent rushed the field following the win.
Statistically, Michigan won every category. U-M outshot the Ducks
41-26, and scooped up 46 groundballs compared to 22 by U-O. U-M was
7 of 12 on faceoffs, and cleared the ball at a of 21-30 while
riding Oregon to 16-27 totals. The Maize and Blue scored twice on
six man-up attempts with the Ducks scoring failing to score on two
attempts.
The Wolverines will be right back on the road next weekend when
they head to downtown Milwaukee to take on Minnesota-Duluth on the
Marquette campus on Saturday, March 27 at 1:00pm MST. For all of
your Michigan men's lacrosse needs, please visit
mgobluelacrosse.com.
NOTES
- Yealy was the only multi-goal scorer with two,
while Goldberg and Hrusovsky tied Yealy for the team lead in points
with two apiece.
- Senior faceoff specialist David Reinhard (East Lansing,
Mich./East Lansing) finished 7 of 12 at the "X".
- Senior midfielder Jordan Kirshner (Ann Arbor, Mich./Huron)
and junior defenseman Harrison Freid (Needham, Mass./Needham) both
led the team with six groundballs.
- Junior goaltender Mark Stone (Greenwood Village,
Colo./Cherry Creek) was impressive in net, especially in the first
period. Stone finished with nine saves, including five in the first
quarter.
- With the win, Michigan extends their winning streak to 46
games.
- The Wolverines had their lowest scoring output since their
MCLA Tournament first-round loss to Northeastern (15-4) in May of
2007.
- Michigan improves to 4-0 all-time vs. Oregon. Michigan's
last game vs. the Ducks resulted in an over-time win at Oosterbaan
in 2005.
- The contest between the two squads was the final game of the
2010 Patriot Cup. Over the course of the week, Dallas hosted
numerous games and scrimmages between high schools and colleges
from around the country to help support the Wounded Warrior
Project. The WWP provides programs and services to severely injured
service members during the time between active duty and transition
to civilian life. Visit patriotcup.com and
woundedwarriorproject.org for more info.
QUOTES
Head Coach John Paul
On his general impressions: "Well, we gutted that one out.
Overall I'm proud of the guys for doing what they need to do to win
a game. We certainly almost let that slip away there though. The
conditions were tough and I think both teams probably played a lot
sloppier than they are accustomed to. Oregon is a very good team
and they came in with a good game-plan. Their defense played
outstanding and I thought our defense really limited their
opportunities as well. It turned into one of those games that went
possession to possession and you were just waiting for one of the
teams to break through. I thought we had taken that lead near the
end of the game, but we just couldn't put it away at the end of
regulation and we lost focus for a split second. Hopefully we will
learn some lessons from today."
On the team's mindset going into OT: "We are prepared for those
type of situations because we work on those times during practice.
And although we've put together this impressive win streak, we've
certainly had our share of tight games over the past three years,
including a couple this year. This is nothing new to us, and we've
built a lot of confidence, even when things aren't going our way. I
looked at the guys going into overtime and you could get a sense
that they were thinking 'So what? We've got to win this in
overtime.'"
On the team's inability to put together a complete game: "I think
we are still our own worst enemy. We haven't played even close to
our potential for more than five or 10-minute stretches in a game.
I think there are some things we need to look at as coaches in what
we're doing and how we're doing it. We need to get through next
week and then I think we need to reassess some things with this
team and figure out why we're not clicking. We certainly have
moments, and we certainly have talent, and in the end it's working
because we're winning, but we all know we're not playing up to our
potential. Somehow we have to fix that."
On where the problems lie: "I think some of it is strategic stuff,
and I'm not sure we're putting these guys in the best possible
position. I also think there are certain guys that need to fix some
things personally that they can fix. We have some focus issues
where guys resort to bad habits and they aren't taking the next
step and playing at the level they are capable of. I think it's a
combination of the two."
On the upcoming week: "We certainly don't shy away from tough
competition and we love playing Minnesota-Duluth. They are
well-coached, hard-working team and we love to play those type of
squads. This is another opportunity to play a great MCLA team, and
it's also another opportunity to improve, and if we don't improve
we're going to have to keep clawing and scratching out these wins
and we really don't want to be in that position any more."
Junior defenseman Harrison Freid
On his general impressions: "The conditions were kind of
crazy and it was tough to see the ball at times, but we just
weren't playing the way we could of in all aspects. I think we gave
them momentum early on, and once their goalie started making some
saves it became more of a dogfight than we had hoped."
On clearing the ball: "I think some of the long-sticks, myself
included were having trouble getting a real feel for the stick and
I think guys were over-compensating a little and we sailed some
passes. They were playing a soft ride, and we just needed to
execute better and make some better decisions."
On the defense: "I think we felt good about ourselves in settled
situations. We had a good feel for them and we had some good
matchups going. We dodged a bullet on their possession in overtime,
but overall I think we played pretty well back there. We were
talking a lot and making the right calls. It's also easier for a
defense to stay focused in a game like that. In a tight-game like
that we start to get into a rhythm and we were playing some very
good team orientated defense."
On looking forward: "We need to keep practicing with more intensity
and really get to work this week. The Minnesota-Duluth game is
going to be another tough matchup and I think we just need to use
this week to put a stronger effort into practice and go full out
more consistently."
Junior goaltender Mark Stone
On staying focused: "I thought the defense played
extremely well and I didn't see a ton of shots. As a goalie, all
you can do is watch the ball and stay focused. I was trying to stay
composed the entire game and I knew this team has out-worked
everyone in the league and I knew we could pull it out no matter
what. I was disappointed in myself after allowing the late goal,
but that went away in about five seconds once I reached the
sideline and everyone had a sense that we still going to win this
game."
On prepping for those situations in practice: "We work so hard in
the situational scrimmages, and the coaches have us prepared for
moments like that. We do that week after week after week and the
only difference is that it's against another team. I have to give
Coach Paul a lot of credit for having us ready for situations like
that. We were prepared for that overtime and it showed."
On the team's character: "The type of person that goes to Michigan
is a unique kind of kid. They have a different mindset and outlook
and they're extremely competitive in all facets of life. Champions
are made through adversity, and no matter what position we're in, I
know we have the confidence in ourselves to pull it out. That was
the difference tonight."
