2005 SOW vs. Illinois -- Notes & Quotes

Q U O T E S

Michigan Head Coach Debbie Rademacher
On a possible letdown following the Penn State game ... "I did not expect a breakdown mentally because we are on such a high from [the Penn State win]. We know it's not just a one-game tournament for us in order to go on to the postseason. The only thing that was a concern was possible fatigue, but they really just stayed mentally with it and they played with a lot of heart. We are just proud of the effort for sure."

On the physical play of Illinois ... "We've faced that all season, and for us to match it when it really counts right now, we are just staying strong and that's good for us. We don't lead the conference in fouls by any means. It's just really important for us to deal with that kind of pressure."

On motivation for the championship ... "We're in the finals and we know what this tournament means. As far as being motivated and having something to motivate us, the enormity of it is motivation enough. For us, it's important just getting back to feeling good with some spring in our legs and keeping the momentum."

U-M Junior Judy Coffman
On reaching the championship final ... "Getting into the championship (game) is just an awesome accomplishment. I'm happy because we have been going through an up-and-down roller coaster. We've been working hard, keeping our heads up, and finally we get something out of our hard work. To go to the championship shows that we're ready to get into the NCAA Tournament. We're ready to take some teams to the challenge."

On the injury to senior Therese Heaton late in the game ... "She's one of our great leaders on this team, and being a senior captain it's definitely going to be a huge loss for our team, but she will just be an inspiration for us to play harder. She just brings such great leadership onto the field. When she went down I know that every one of us felt that inside of our hearts that we were going to play harder just for her. I'm extremely happy that we could actually get that win for her."

On wearing braids the last two games ... "It worked the first game and my roommate Lauren Fifield did it so I think she is going to be stuck with the job for the rest of the season if we keep winning like this. The braids will stay."

N O T E S

The Wolverines last reached the final of the Big Ten Tournament in 2003, before losing 2-0 to Illinois. The last Wolverine win in the Big Ten Tournament final came in 1999, when the Maize and Blue took down Penn State 4-2.

Michigan improved its record on Friday nights under the lights to 5-1-1 this season and its record on Friday to 6-3-1.

Therese Heaton moved into a tie with Kacy Beitel (1997-2000) and Amy Sullivant (1999-2002) for the most games played in school history with 91 in her career. She has also started the eighth most games (71) in program history.

Stephanie Boyles tallied her second assist in as many games on the game-winner. The last time she had multiple points in a season was during her freshman campaign, when she had a career-best three goals and two assists. She has two assists this season. Boyles also fired her 50th career shot in the second half.

Judy Coffman netted her team-leading third game-winning goal of the season in the second half. Her game-winner gives her six goals this season, which is the third most on the team. She had one career goal in two seasons previous to this year.

With tonight's win, Megan Tuura moved into a third-place tie with Jessica Jones (1995-98) on Michigan's career wins list with 26. Her seven saves also put the Wolverines over the century mark in saves this season (103). She also surpassed the 5,000 minute mark for her career (5,078:19).

Melissa Dobbyn scored her second goal in two games with another first-half goal. Her team-leading 12 goals are the most by any Wolverine player since Abby Crumpton (1999-2002) had 13 in 2001.

Dobbyn's 32 points (12 g, 8 a) this season are tied for the fourth most in a season in the program's history and are the most since the 2002 season when Abby Crumpton had 35 (11 g, 13 a). The sophomore also tied Marie Spaccarotella (1996-2000) for 10th place in all-time points with 52.

Dobbyn's team-high three shots give her 87 this season, which is the the third highest total by any Wolverine in school history. Her 89 shots last season as a freshman are the second highest total in school history, with Kacy Beitel's (1997-2000) 94 in 2000 being the most. Dobbyn is the only Wolverine to have a shot in every game this season.