Weekly Release #11: Michigan Goes to Big Ten Tourney

THIS WEEK

2008 Big Ten Tournament Schedule
Thursday-Sunday, Nov. 6-7
IU Field Hockey Field Bloomington, Ind.

Friday, Nov. 6 First Round
Game 1 -- #2 seed Iowa vs. #7 seed Indiana, 10 a.m.
Game 2 -- #4 seed Michigan vs. #5 seed Ohio State, 12:15 p.m.
Game 3 -- #3 seed Michigan State vs. #6 seed Northwestern, 2:30 p.m.

Saturday, Nov. 7 Semifinals
Game 4 -- #1 seed Penn State vs. Game 2 winner, 10 a.m. (Live on Big Ten Network)
Game 5 -- Game 1 winner vs. Game 3 winner, 12:15 p.m. (Live on Big Ten Network)

Sunday, Nov. 9 Championship Game
Game 6 -- Game 4 winner vs. Game 5 winner, Noon (Live on Big Ten Network)

No. 4-seeded Michigan (8-11, 3-3 Big Ten) will kick off the postseason against fifth-seeded Ohio State on Thursday (Nov. 6) in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament in Bloomington, Ind. The game is slated for a 12:15 p.m. start at the Hoosiers' IU Field Hockey Field. If the Wolverines win, they will face No. 1 seed Penn State on Friday (Nov. 7) at 10 a.m. live on the Big Ten Network.The winner of the tournament will earn an automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament.

BIG TEN TOURNAMENT NOTES
Looking for Another Trophy -- Michigan will look to reclaim the Big Ten Tournament title and capture its fifth in school history. The Wolverines won back to-back tournament crowns in 1999 and 2000, and again in 2004 and 2005. With four titles each, U-M and Penn State are tied for the most conference tournament titles since its inception in 1994. U-M has advanced to the Big Ten Tournament championship game in eight of the last 10 seasons.

Awards Week -- The Big Ten will announce its award winners for the 2008 season on Thursday (Nov. 6) at its annual awards banquet. The Wolverines have won 14 individual awards during the previous seven seasons and have boasted at least two individuals on the All-Big Ten first team in the each of the last nine seasons, including four selections in 2002.

A Senior Moment -- This weekend's Big Ten Tournament will mark the final conference appearance by members of Michigan's three-player senior class -- Stephanie Hoyer(Englewood, Colo./Cherry Creek HS), Michaela McDermott(Shaker Heights, Ohio/Shaker Heights HS) and Sarah Wilhite(Hummelstown, Pa./Hershey HS). Over their combined tenure, Michigan owns a 51-35 record, claimed a Big Ten regular-season championship and Big Ten Tournament titles and twice advanced to the NCAA Tournament quarterfinals. The trio has earned four Academic All-Big Ten citations and contributed to the field hockey program's 2005 Rachael Townsend Community Service Award.

Hoosier Host -- Indiana University will serve as the host of the Big Ten Tournament for the first time since the event's inception in 1994. Michigan holds a 4-3 record in games held in Bloomington, Ind. -- all against the Hoosiers -- and is 4-1 in Indiana since 2000.

MICHIGAN BY THE NUMBERS
NCAA Stats | Big Ten Stats | U-M Stats: Through 11/2/08

2008 Team Leaders

Name	GP	G	A	P
Meredith Way	18	12	5	29
Sarah Wilhite	19	6	16	28
Alicia Mayer	19	6	3	15

Name	GP-GS	W-L	GAA	SV%
Christi Barwick	11-6	4-4	2.39	.667

Michigan vs. the Big Ten Tournament Field
Penn State -- Michigan owns an all-time record of 11-22 against Penn State but has won nine of the last 12 meetings. PSU took this season's regular-season meeting (Nov. 2), clinching the Big Ten title with its 3-0 win in State College, Pa. The programs are split 4-4 in Big Ten Tournament play. In the last tournament meeting, U-M knocked off the Nittany Lions with a 3-2 overtime decision in the 2007 semifinal round. For more information on Penn State field hockey, please visit www.GoPSUSports.com.

Iowa -- The Wolverines trail 14-35 in the all-time series against Iowa but holds the advantage of late, winning 12 of the last 18 contests between the storied programs, including five by shutout. Michigan fell to the Hawkeyes 3-0 in last weekend's regular-season finale in Iowa City. Michigan owns a 3-2 mark against Iowa in Big Ten Tournament action. Three of the matches have come in the championship game -- Michigan earned one-goal victories in the first two meetings (1999, 2004), but Iowa claimed last season's championship meeting, 4-1. For more information on Iowa field hockey, please visit www.hawkeyesports.com.

Michigan State -- Michigan leads the all-time series with Michigan State 34-21-6, and U-M has won 14 of the last 16 meetings against the Spartans. Sophomore Zara Saydjari(Skowhegan, Maine/Skowhegan Area HS) tallied the gamewinner late in the first half to lead the Wolverines to a 1-0 victory over MSU this season in Ann Arbor (Oct. 17). Michigan and MSU have faced each other on just one occasion at the Big Ten Tournament with the Spartans taking a 3-0 win in 2002. For more information on Michigan State field hockey, please visit www.msuspartans.com.

Ohio State -- The Wolverines own a 29-22-1 record against Ohio State and have won 15 of the last 20 meetings against the Buckeyes. Earlier this season, U-M notched a 3-2 victory over the Buckeyes behind two goals from sophomore Alicia Mayer(Selinsgrove, Pa./Selinsgrove Area HS). Michigan has squared off against Ohio State eight times at the Big Ten Tournament -- more than any other school -- and owns a 5-3 record. For more information on Ohio State field hockey, please visit www.ohiostatebuckeyes.com.

Northwestern -- Michigan trails 19-28 in the all-time series with Northwestern, but U-M has won each of the last 17 meetings dating back to the 1997 campaign, including a 3-0 victory this season in Ann Arbor. U-M is 2-0 against Northwestern in the Big Ten Tournament and has not faced the Wildcats since the first round of the 2000 tournament. For more information on Northwestern field hockey, please visit www.nusports.com.

Indiana -- Michigan owns an 8-6 advantage in the all-time series against Indiana, and the Wolverines have won eight of 10 meetings since the Hoosiers reinstated their program in 2000. The Wolverines, who suffered a narrow 1-0 loss against IU on Oct. 12 in Bloomington, Ind., has faced IU just once in the Big Ten Tournament, cruising to a 3-0 victory in the 2005 Big Ten Tournament championship game. For more information on Indiana field hockey, please visit www.iuhoosiers.com.

WOLVERINE BITES

Scoring Frenzy -- Eleven different U-M players have recorded a goal this season, while 13 have tallied at least one point. The breadth of scoring is already greater than each of the last two seasons when the Wolverines received goals from 10 or fewer players. While scoring has been spread wide across the U-M team, Michigan's leading duo of senior Sarah Wilhite and sophomore Meredith Way(Lititz, Pa./Warwick HS), who both own career-high single-season statistics, combine for a little less than half (18/48) of the Wolverines' goals.

Sensational Sophomores -- The Wolverines' sophomore class has accounted for half of the Wolverines scoring this season as Meredith Way, Alicia Mayer, Zara Saydjari and sophomore/freshman Katie Adams(Hudson, Ohio/Hudson HS) all boast multiple goals and combine for 25 of Michigan's 48 markers. Factor in freshmen Jess Allen(Gibbsboro, N.J./Eastern Regional HS) and Bryn Bain(Berlin, N.J./Eastern Regional HS), and the Wolverine underclassmen account more than 60 percent (30/48) of Michigan's goals.

Tell Me What'd I Say -- Sophomore Zara Saydjari has tallied the Wolverines' last three markers, netting the game-winning goal late in the first half vs. No. 4-ranked Michigan State (Oct. 17) --her first collegiate gamewinner-- before notching a pair of goals in the opening half vs. Miami of Ohio (Oct. 31) for her first collegiate multi-goal effort. Saydjari ranks fifth among Michigan's leading scorers with five goals and two helpers.

Lending a Helping Hand -- With 16 assists already on the season, senior Sarah Wilhite has tallied the most helpers by a Wolverine in seven seasons, dating back to two-time All-American Catherine Foreman's 17 assists in 2001. Michigan's single-season assist record is 22, held by Courtney Reid (1999, 2000), Foreman (1999) and Shelley Johnson (1997). Wilhite currently lists eighth in the nation in the category and leads the Big Ten Conference, boasting four assists more than runner-up Allison Scola of Penn State.

With 20 career helpers, Wilhite sits within striking distance of Michigan's top-10 list of all-time assists leaders. She needs only three more to reach to No. 10 spot, currently held by Shelley Johnson (23, 1996-97).

U-M Career Assists Leaders
61	Catherine Foreman	1998-2001
56	Courtney Reid	1997-2000
38	Adrienne Hortillosa	2001-04
31	Jennifer Lupinski	1992-95
28	Kelli Gannon	1997-2000
28	Mary Fox	2003-06
27	Lori Hillman	2002-05
27	Sharon Cantor	1986-89
26	Kristi Gannon	2000-03
23	Shelley Johnson	1996-97

Iron Woman -- Senior captain Stephanie Hoyer has appeared in every game during her U-M career as she currently boasts 87 total games played with 42 consecutive starts. With her next appearance, Hoyer will crack Michigan's list of top-10 leaders in career games played, tying two-time All-American Lori Hillman (88, 2002-05).

U-M Career Games Played Leaders
95	Stephanie Johnson	2000-03
93	Jessica Rose	1999-2002
91	Kristi Gannon	2000-03
91	Molly Powers	1999-2002
91	Catherine Foreman	1998-2001
91	Katy Moyneur	2001-04
91	Adrienne Hortillosa	2001-04
90	April Fronzoni	2000-03
89	Courtney Reid	1997-2000
88	Lori Hillman	2002-05

Leading the Way -- Sophomore Meredith Way has tallied at least one point in nine of 18 games played this season, including in five of her last 10 contests. After entering the 2008 campaign with two career markers and two career assists, the Wolverine midfielder owns career highs in goals (12), assists (5) and points (29) and leads the U-M team in the goal and point categories. She ranks sixth in the Big Ten in the former category and shares the eighth spot in the latter.

2008 STX/NFHCA DIVISION I POLL
The Wolverines remain just outside the top 20 in the latest National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) poll (released Tuesday, Nov. 4) after falling to Miami (Ohio) and Iowa last weekend (Oct. 31-Nov. 2). The final STX/NFHCA Division I National Coaches Poll will be released next Tuesday, Nov. 11, and the poll is available on the NFHCA's site.

Rank	Team (first-place votes)	Record	Points
1.	Maryland (41)	16-2	971
2.	Wake Forest (5)	17-2	910
3.	Syracuse (3)	18-1	886
4.	James Madison	16-2	767
5.	Duke	14-4	736
6.	Connecticut	16-2	709
	North Carolina	14-4	709
8.	Iowa	13-4	598
9.	Penn State	13-5	559
10.	Michigan State	15-4	554
11.	Princeton	14-2	509
12.	Virginia	12-7	437
13.	Louisville	14-5	424
14.	Drexel	16-3	300
15.	Boston College	12-6	293
16.	California, Berkeley	12-4	187
17.	Ohio State	12-6	158
18.	Massachusetts	14-4	136
19.	American	10-7	109
20.	Kent State	15-4	105