What a weekend for the University of Michigan athletic department!
We'll start with the men's and women's cross country teams. I don't write about them much, because I don't follow that as closely and they're never on TV. Both of those teams made their seasons special today though by taking 1st place in the conference championship. Congrats to both teams. Hopefully it is the harbinger to a top 10 finish at nationals.
Onto the team sports...
Team of the Week - MEN'S SOCCER:
Ladies and gentleman, your 2017 Big Ten Soccer Champions...the Michigan Wolverines! 1st regular season championship in history. Will be their first time returning to the tourney in 5 years. And man did they do it in style. Going on the road to beat #9 Maryland, 2-1 in Double OT in a driving rainstorm. The game winner came on a beautiful cross from Sophomore Jack Hallahan that found Junior Francis Atuahene at the far post who made a great run and then slid out his leg as far as he could to get the redirect for the game winner. Really cool moment after the game, Coach Chaka Daley was visibly in tears as the team was celebrating. Understandable, as he was probably on a bit of a hot seat heading into this season. Seems like a really good guy though, so really happy for him to have that moment.
If you're scoring at home...Michigan has 7 teams competing in the fall, and 4 of them are now Big Ten Champions. I can't ever remember having a Fall season with that kind of success. That's straight up dominance.
Field Hockey:
The field hockey team just keeps doing what they do. After an easy 4-0 win over CMU mid-week, they kicked off the Big Ten tournament today with a game against OSU. OSU fought hard and kept it scoreless most of the first half, but Michigan just had way too much talent. 2 goals late in the first half basically sealed it, as Michigan went on to win 3-0 and advance to the conference tournament semis. Special props to Freshman Kayla Reed, who got hit in the face with a stick in the first half, was gushing blood and had to be taken to the locker room for stitches. She comes back in for the 2nd half and scores the third goal for Michigan with a bandage over her eye that made her look like a boxer (they make 'em tough down in New Zealand I guess). That's the kind of heart this team has shown all year. Meanwhile Katie Trombetta is becoming one of my favorite Wolverines to watch in recent history. The senior defenseman is like Nick Lidstrom back there. Always makes the right play, virtually never gets beat. Would be a huge fan favorite if she played a major sport.
Volleyball:
The volleyball team went 1-1 this week. Started with a very solid performance at home against Iowa, winning relatively easily in 3 sets. Couldn't build on that momentum though, as Nebraska handled them just as easily in 3 sets today. No shame in losing to Nebraska, but it would be nice if Michigan would at least make these top teams sweat a little bit. Still waiting for this team to show that it has the heart and focus to put it together and finish the season strong.
Women's Soccer:
And even on a great week, there has to be a little bad news. The women lost to Rutgers 1-0, which means they won't qualify for the 8-team Big Ten tournament and that their season is over. Yeah, they had a ton of injuries, but they never really put it together even when healthy. Disappointing season. Almost everyone is back next year though...making the tourney is an absolute must in my opinion.
We'll start with the men's and women's cross country teams. I don't write about them much, because I don't follow that as closely and they're never on TV. Both of those teams made their seasons special today though by taking 1st place in the conference championship. Congrats to both teams. Hopefully it is the harbinger to a top 10 finish at nationals.
Onto the team sports...
Team of the Week - MEN'S SOCCER:
Ladies and gentleman, your 2017 Big Ten Soccer Champions...the Michigan Wolverines! 1st regular season championship in history. Will be their first time returning to the tourney in 5 years. And man did they do it in style. Going on the road to beat #9 Maryland, 2-1 in Double OT in a driving rainstorm. The game winner came on a beautiful cross from Sophomore Jack Hallahan that found Junior Francis Atuahene at the far post who made a great run and then slid out his leg as far as he could to get the redirect for the game winner. Really cool moment after the game, Coach Chaka Daley was visibly in tears as the team was celebrating. Understandable, as he was probably on a bit of a hot seat heading into this season. Seems like a really good guy though, so really happy for him to have that moment.
If you're scoring at home...Michigan has 7 teams competing in the fall, and 4 of them are now Big Ten Champions. I can't ever remember having a Fall season with that kind of success. That's straight up dominance.
Field Hockey:
The field hockey team just keeps doing what they do. After an easy 4-0 win over CMU mid-week, they kicked off the Big Ten tournament today with a game against OSU. OSU fought hard and kept it scoreless most of the first half, but Michigan just had way too much talent. 2 goals late in the first half basically sealed it, as Michigan went on to win 3-0 and advance to the conference tournament semis. Special props to Freshman Kayla Reed, who got hit in the face with a stick in the first half, was gushing blood and had to be taken to the locker room for stitches. She comes back in for the 2nd half and scores the third goal for Michigan with a bandage over her eye that made her look like a boxer (they make 'em tough down in New Zealand I guess). That's the kind of heart this team has shown all year. Meanwhile Katie Trombetta is becoming one of my favorite Wolverines to watch in recent history. The senior defenseman is like Nick Lidstrom back there. Always makes the right play, virtually never gets beat. Would be a huge fan favorite if she played a major sport.
Volleyball:
The volleyball team went 1-1 this week. Started with a very solid performance at home against Iowa, winning relatively easily in 3 sets. Couldn't build on that momentum though, as Nebraska handled them just as easily in 3 sets today. No shame in losing to Nebraska, but it would be nice if Michigan would at least make these top teams sweat a little bit. Still waiting for this team to show that it has the heart and focus to put it together and finish the season strong.
Women's Soccer:
And even on a great week, there has to be a little bad news. The women lost to Rutgers 1-0, which means they won't qualify for the 8-team Big Ten tournament and that their season is over. Yeah, they had a ton of injuries, but they never really put it together even when healthy. Disappointing season. Almost everyone is back next year though...making the tourney is an absolute must in my opinion.
