To the handful of posters who enjoy discussing the non-revenue sports, I apologize that I have not had much to say this Fall. Been dealing with a lot of "off-field" issues.
Anyways, here is a quick look at how the different teams have been doing so far from worst to first. (As usual, not including Cross Country because I am just not knowledgeable enough about them)
MEN'S SOCCER:
Been a pretty blah year so far for the men's team. They are about .500, haven't been really crushed by anyone, but don't really have any big wins either. They score some, but not a lot. They defend pretty well, but don't put up many shut outs. No real superstars (although Buca did have a hat trick in the last game). Have some work to do to make the tourney. Could take a huge step forward with that today when they play at Indiana. Will be a tough upset to pull off, but if they win that one, their tournament hopes look a lot more viable.
VOLLEYBALL:
Inconsistency is the name of the game with this team. They have looked great at times (destroying a solid LSU team on the road, taking top 10 Minnesota to 5 games on the road), and not-so-great at times (losing in 3 to an unranked W. Virginia, choking away a home match to an unranked UNC).
The good: Paige Jones has been her usual outstanding self, and they have plenty of legit attacking options. Hannah Grant has solidified the Libero position. Very good serving team for the most part.
The not-so-good: Sophomore Jess Mruzik has not been as dominant as hoped after a great frosh season. The young setter needs to be more consistent. At times this team really struggles to return serve.
Looks like they are headed for their standard 7th or 8th place finish in the Big Ten while being ranked between 20-25th in the country.
WOMEN'S SOCCER:
How to describe this team in 1 sentence? This team does everything really really well...except score goals. With Beall in goal and Shepard and Martin anchoring the middle of the defense, opposing offenses just don't do much at all. Still haven't given up more than 1 goal in a game all season. They also possess the ball extremely well and have racked up sizable shot advantages in almost all of their games. Not sure why goals have been so hard to come by over the last 7 games or so, but at the end of the day their 2 forwards (Wolf and Woods) and their most offensive-minded mid (Stratagakis) just aren't scoring enough or getting enough assists. Both Wolf and Woods scored last night in a big 2-1 win on the road against a Purdue team that was 3-0 in the Big Ten, so maybe that is a sign of things to come. Huge game next week against a top-10 Rutgers team (not a typo). Win that one and a Big Ten title is a legit possibility for a team that is currently ranked #17 in the country.
FIELD HOCKEY:
Undefeated and ranked #1 in the country, so I guess things are going pretty well for them. Been a little different team this season. They are scoring more, but not posting as many shutouts as last year. Senior Sofia Southam has 13 goals in 6 games, which pretty much equals what she had in her first 3 years here. You won't find a better set of midfielders than Peterson, Apoola, Anderson and O'Neill - all 4 are really skilled and all 4 are really gritty. Helps to have Anna Spieker as well, one of the best goalies in the country. Schedule is about to get much tougher, with 5 games in the next few weeks against top 10 teams. Tough schedule aside, if Southam remains a top flight scorer, then this team has as good a chance to win it all as anyone. Really fun team to watch. Plays with as much heart and toughness as any Michigan team you'll see.
Anyways, here is a quick look at how the different teams have been doing so far from worst to first. (As usual, not including Cross Country because I am just not knowledgeable enough about them)
MEN'S SOCCER:
Been a pretty blah year so far for the men's team. They are about .500, haven't been really crushed by anyone, but don't really have any big wins either. They score some, but not a lot. They defend pretty well, but don't put up many shut outs. No real superstars (although Buca did have a hat trick in the last game). Have some work to do to make the tourney. Could take a huge step forward with that today when they play at Indiana. Will be a tough upset to pull off, but if they win that one, their tournament hopes look a lot more viable.
VOLLEYBALL:
Inconsistency is the name of the game with this team. They have looked great at times (destroying a solid LSU team on the road, taking top 10 Minnesota to 5 games on the road), and not-so-great at times (losing in 3 to an unranked W. Virginia, choking away a home match to an unranked UNC).
The good: Paige Jones has been her usual outstanding self, and they have plenty of legit attacking options. Hannah Grant has solidified the Libero position. Very good serving team for the most part.
The not-so-good: Sophomore Jess Mruzik has not been as dominant as hoped after a great frosh season. The young setter needs to be more consistent. At times this team really struggles to return serve.
Looks like they are headed for their standard 7th or 8th place finish in the Big Ten while being ranked between 20-25th in the country.
WOMEN'S SOCCER:
How to describe this team in 1 sentence? This team does everything really really well...except score goals. With Beall in goal and Shepard and Martin anchoring the middle of the defense, opposing offenses just don't do much at all. Still haven't given up more than 1 goal in a game all season. They also possess the ball extremely well and have racked up sizable shot advantages in almost all of their games. Not sure why goals have been so hard to come by over the last 7 games or so, but at the end of the day their 2 forwards (Wolf and Woods) and their most offensive-minded mid (Stratagakis) just aren't scoring enough or getting enough assists. Both Wolf and Woods scored last night in a big 2-1 win on the road against a Purdue team that was 3-0 in the Big Ten, so maybe that is a sign of things to come. Huge game next week against a top-10 Rutgers team (not a typo). Win that one and a Big Ten title is a legit possibility for a team that is currently ranked #17 in the country.
FIELD HOCKEY:
Undefeated and ranked #1 in the country, so I guess things are going pretty well for them. Been a little different team this season. They are scoring more, but not posting as many shutouts as last year. Senior Sofia Southam has 13 goals in 6 games, which pretty much equals what she had in her first 3 years here. You won't find a better set of midfielders than Peterson, Apoola, Anderson and O'Neill - all 4 are really skilled and all 4 are really gritty. Helps to have Anna Spieker as well, one of the best goalies in the country. Schedule is about to get much tougher, with 5 games in the next few weeks against top 10 teams. Tough schedule aside, if Southam remains a top flight scorer, then this team has as good a chance to win it all as anyone. Really fun team to watch. Plays with as much heart and toughness as any Michigan team you'll see.
