Michigan
Northwestern
Fronzoni Nets Hat Trick as U-M Advances in Tourney
11/2/2001 12:00:00 AM | Field Hockey
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Sophomore forward April Fronzoni (Larksville, Pa./Wyoming Valley West HS) scored her third career hat trick Friday (Nov. 2) as the No. 3-seeded University of Michigan field hockey team defeated No. 6 seed Northwestern for the second time in a week, dominating the Big Ten Tournament host 6-1 in a quarterfinal match at Lakeside Field. U-M, the two-time defending champion, advances to the semifinals to face No. 2 seed Ohio State.
Fronzoni kicked off the scoring for the Maize and Blue in the first half by netting an unassisted marker 5:03 into the game. Michigan's offensive attack continued with help by sophomore defender Kristi Gannon (Escondido, Calif./San Pasqual HS), who had two goals, and senior defender Catherine Foreman (Happy Valley, South Australia/Westminster School), who had two assists.
Gannon scored her first goal with 27:14 remaining in the first half with the only assist going to Foreman. Ali Balmer (Ephrata, Pa./Ephrata HS) and Foreman set up Gannon's second goal of the half on a penalty corner with 14:32 on the clock to give Michigan a commanding 3-0 lead going into halftime.
Ten minutes into the second half, Fronzoni struck again with two goals just over a minute apart to put Michigan up 5-0. The first goal came at 24:38 when a penalty corner shot by Stephanie Johnson (Houston, Texas/The Kinkaid School) was redirected into the Northwestern cage by Fronzoni. One minute and 12 seconds later Fronzoni streaked in on goal again and capped off her three-goal performance with an unassisted tally.
Northwestern was finally able to fight through the U-M defense and put one past senior goalkeeper Maureen Tasch (Ann Arbor, Mich./Pioneer HS) with 16:52 remaining as Candice Cooper scored NU's lone goal. Twenty seconds after the Northwestern goal, however, Michigan freshman midfielder Katy Moyneur (Escondido, Calif./San Pasqual HS) was able to score her first career goal and point, on a pass from redshirt freshman midfielder Erin Kopelow (River Forest, Ill./Oak Park-River Forest HS). The assist was Kopelow's first career point.
Tasch was up to her challenges as she stopped five of the six Wildcat shots on goal during the contest. Michigan outshot Northwestern by a count of 19-9. Michigan also had 11 penalty corner opportunities to Northwestern's three.
No. 5-ranked Michigan moves on to the semifinals to face No. 2-seeded and No. 9-ranked Ohio State on Saturday (Nov. 3) at 2 p.m. CST at Lakeside Field. The Buckeyes, who defeated No. 7 seed Indiana 5-0 in the quarterfinals, beat Michigan 2-1 in the regular-season matchup on Oct. 12 in Columbus, Ohio.
MATCH SUMMARY
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
| Northwestern | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Michigan | 3 | 3 | 6 |
Scoring, Time (Assist)
1st -- U-M, April Fronzoni, 5:03 (unassisted)
1st -- U-M, Kristi Gannon, 7:46 (Catherine Foreman)
1st -- U-M, Gannon, 20:28 (Ali Balmer, Foreman)
2nd -- U-M, Fronzoni, 45:22 (Stephanie Johnson)
2nd -- U-M, Fronzoni, 46:34 (unassisted)
2nd -- NU, Candice Cooper, 52:08 (unassisted)
2nd -- U-M, Katy Moyneur, 52:28 (Erin Kopelow)
Shots: U-M 19, NU 9
Saves: U-M 5 (Maureen Tasch), NU 8 (Katie Hall 6, Kendra Mesa 2)
Defensive Saves: U-M 0, NU 0
Penalty Corners: U-M 11, NU 3
Penalty Strokes: None
Q U O T E S
U-M Head Coach Marcia Pankratz
On her thoughts about the game ... "Our kids started out the game really focused and they wanted to defend our championship. They really brought their 'A' game today. Kristi Gannon played very well and so did April Fronzoni. April was coming off an injury and had not played for two weeks, but she came out and was finishing and just played a great game. Gannon had a phenomenal game and (goaltender) Maureen Tasch had a great game too. Everyone brought their best game and that's what you want and need to do in the Big Ten Tournament."
On the semifinal matchup against Ohio State ... "It will be an exciting rematch and we're really looking forward to it. They beat us in Columbus (Oct. 12) to spoil our chances at a Big Ten title so it should be a great game. They're a Top 10 team in the country and that's why the Big Ten Tournament title is so coveted and it is such a great tournament. If we play like we did today then that will help us tremendously in being successful."
On Catherine Foreman and the team ... "Catherine Foreman was as solid as always as she gave us two assists today. I think what will also help us is that we were able to get everyone in the game and that will allow us to be better rested for tomorrow."
N O T E S
The hat trick by April Fronzoni is the second by a U-M player this season. Stephanie Johnson had three goals vs. Indiana (Sept. 23). Fronzoni ties three other players -- including former Wolverines Sara Forrestel (1981) and Kelli Gannon (1999) -- for third place for most goals in a Big Ten Tournament contest.
Michigan's six goals is a school record for a Big Ten Tournament game. In their previous 12 league tourney contests, the Wolverines' high was four goals vs. Northwestern in a 4-2 win on Nov. 5, 1999, in Columbus, Ohio.
Catherine Foreman's two assists give her a total of 16 for the season and extend her Michigan career assist record to 60. It was Foreman's eighth career multiple-assist game and her third game in a row with at least one point.
Kristi Gannon is the first Michigan double-digit goal scorer of the season. Her two goals today give her 10 on the year. In addition, she added to her current point streak by scoring in her fourth consecutive game and now has four career multiple-goal games.
This is the second time Michigan has met Northwestern in the Big Ten Tournament, with the Wolverines now holding a 2-0 record against the Wildcats. The only other time the teams met was on Nov. 5, 1999, when U-M defeated NU by a score of 4-2 in the quarterfinals.
Contact: Paul Thomas (734) 763-4423
