Weekly Release #8

Upcoming Schedule
Wednesday, Oct. 13 -- at Central Michigan (Mt. Pleasant, Mich.), 3 p.m.
Sunday, Oct. 17 -- vs. Michigan State (Ocker Field), 1 p.m.

Quick Break From Conference Action
Michigan (10-4/4-1 Big Ten)will take a quick break from Big Ten action this week as it travels to Mount Pleasant, Mich., to face intrastate rival Central Michigan Wednesday, (Oct. 13, 3 p.m.). The Wolverines resume conference play Sunday (Oct. 17) when they host Michigan State at 1 p.m.

A Look at the Wolverines
Michigan is coached by Marcia Pankratz, who is in her fourth year as head coach of the Maize and Blue. Pankratz has a career record of 48-27 (all at Michigan) and has directed U-M to a 10-4 record on the season. Offensively, Michigan is led by Courtney Reid (South Deerfield, Mass./Northfield-Mount Hermon HS) and Kelli Gannon (Escondido, Calif./San Pasqual HS). Reid has 25 points on the season on seven goals and 11 assists, while Gannon follows closely with 23 points (nine goals, five assists).

Michigan's defensive unit is led by Ashley Reichenbach (Lititz, Pa./Warwick HS) and Jeanne Shin (Lake Forest, Ill/Lake Forest HS).

Blue to Face Chippewas With Streak on the Line
When Michigan travels to Mount Pleasant, it will be looking to keep its streak of consecutive series victories alive. The Wolverines have won nine consecutive games vs. the Chippewas, dating back to Sept. 26, 1990. In that span, the Maize and Blue have outscored the Chippewas by a count of 42-5, including six shutouts. Last season, Michigan handed CMU an 11-0 drubbing at Ocker Field. In that game, Jessie Veith (Oak Park, Ill./Oak Park-River Forest HS) scored twice for Michigan, while Kelli Gannon and Regan Wulfsberg (Moorestown, N.J./Moorestown HS) each added one goal. Kati Oakes (Lititz, Pa./Warwick HS) and Maureen Tasch (Ann Arbor, Mich./Pioneer HS) combined for the shutout in goal.

The Central Michigan Series
Despite the recent lopsided trend of the series, the all-time series is relatively close. Michigan leads 18-14-2. CMU's longest win streak is seven games (1974-1978), while Michigan's longest win streak is nine (1990-present). Michigan is unbeaten in 10 consecutive as the two schools tied, 2-2 in 1989.

Chippewa Profile
CMU is coached by Christy Freese, who is in her 14th season leading the Chippewa field hockey program. Freese has a 98-148-6 career record. This season, CMU has struggled to a 2-9 record and is 0-3 against Big Ten Conference opponents (Northwestern, Ohio State and Michigan State). Offensively, the Chippewas are led by Brianne Tallinger's six goals and 13 points on the season. Defensively, Maryann Scott paces CMU.

Rematch With Spartans is Weekend's Only Game
With the Wednesday afternoon tilt against Central Michigan, Michigan finds itself with only one game on the weekend schedule, a Sunday afternoon matineee vs. Michigan State. U-M beat the Spartans 2-1 on Sept. 22. MSU is 8-6 on the season and is coming off a 2-1 loss to No. 3 Iowa. The Spartans are led by Sanne van Nouhuys who has 21 points, including 10 goals, heading into the week. Marleen Tuip has 18 points on five goals and eight assists.

Defensively, the Spartans are led by Adrienne Miroslaw who has three points and one defensive save on the season. Mireille Evans, giving up 1.95 goals per game, is expected in goal for MSU.

Michigan State Profile
Michigan State enters the week with an 8-5 record and a No. 15 ranking. MSU is coached by Michele Madison who is in her seventh year at Michigan State and has a career record of 110-105-8 (10 years). Her record at MSU is 57-76-2.

The Michigan State Series
Michigan and Michigan State are meeting for the 49th time on Sunday, with Michigan holding a slight 22-20-6 lead. The Maize and Blue have taken the last four meetings in the series, including a 2-1 win at East Lansing Sept. 22. Six of the last seven meetings have been decided by one goal, including overtime games in 1997 and 1998 (each team won one overtime game).

Reichenbach's Stroke Downs No. 3 Iowa
In a battle between two of the nation's top defensive teams, the ninth-ranked Michigan field hockey team put on its best performance of the season, shutting out third-ranked Iowa 1-0 on Oct. 8 at Ocker Field. The win snapped Iowa's 10-game winning streak and bid for a perfect season.

The game's lone goal of the game came with 26:29 remaining in the first half as Ashley Reichenbach notched the third goal of her career and third of the season on a penalty stroke. Defensively, Michigan put on its best performance of the season, limiting Iowa to just one first-half shot and four for the game.

"Ashley is our (penalty) stroker and she came through in a pressure situation," said Michigan head coach Marcia Pankratz. "This was a very big win for our team, but the Big Ten season is a double-round robin and we have to face them again. It's a long season and this is just the beginning."

Team Completes Weekend Sweep with Win Over Northwestern
Michigan completed a weekend sweep with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Northwestern on Oct. 10.

Ali Balmer (Ephrata, Pa./Ephrata HS) scored her first career goal midway through the second half and it proved to be the game winner as Michigan's defense shutout the Wildcats in the second half.

Northwestern broke the scoreless tie with a goal from Jodie Condie with 14:09 remaining in the first half and took the 1-0 lead into halftime. Michigan's defense tightened in the second half, allowing just two shots while holding the Wildcats scoreless. Michigan scored its first goal less than eight minutes into the second half on a penalty stroke by Erica Widder (Lititz, Pa./Warwick HS) as the Wildcats committed a penalty in goal on a Michigan corner play. The goal was Widder's second of the season and Michigan's second penalty stroke goal in two games. Balmer scored the final goal of the game nine minutes later on a perfect pass from Catherine Foreman (Happy Valley, South Australia/Westminster School) from the top of the circle.

STX/NFHCA Division I National Coaches Poll (10/12/99)

 1. Connecticut (13-0) 2. Maryland (14-1) 3. Penn State (12-2) 4. North Carolina (10-2) 5. Iowa (11-1) 6. Old Dominion (10-4) 7. Wake Forest (11-1) 7. Michigan (10-4) 9. Virginia (9-3) 10. James Madison (9-4) 11. Ohio State (9-3) 12. Duke (9-5) 13. Boston University (11-2) 14. Ball State (10-3) 15. Michigan State (8-6) 16. Brown (8-1) 17. Princeton (6-3) 18. Dartmouth(6-4) 19. New Hampshire (8-4) 20. Harvard (7-3)

Contact: Brent Richards (734) 763-4423