Weekly Release #6: Wolverines Wrap Up Four-Game Homestand
9/30/2008 12:00:00 AM | Field Hockey
THIS WEEK
Friday, Oct. 3 -- vs. Temple (Phyllis Ocker Field), 4 p.m.
Live Stats Temple Website
Sunday, Oct. 5 -- vs. Ohio State (Phyllis Ocker Field), 1 p.m.
Live Stats Ohio State Website
The University of Michigan field hockey team (4-6, 1-0 Big Ten) will wrap up its four-game homestand with a pair of weekend matches at Phyllis Ocker Field. The Wolverines will face Temple at 4 p.m. on Friday (Oct. 3) before closing the weekend on Sunday (Oct. 5) with a 1 p.m. meeting against Big Ten Conference rival and No. 19-ranked Ohio State.
With their victory over Northwestern in the Big Ten opener last Saturday (Sept. 27), the Wolverines extended their conference winning streak to eight straight games dating back to the 2006 campaign. Michigan's last Big Ten loss came against Ohio State on Oct. 29, 2006. U-M captured the 2007 Big Ten title with a perfect 6-0 conference record.
MICHIGAN BY THE NUMBERS
NCAA Stats|Big Ten Stats| U-M Stats:Through 9/28/08
| Name | GP | G | A | P |
| Sarah Wilhite | 10 | 6 | 12 | 24 |
| Meredith Way | 10 | 9 | 5 | 23 |
| Alicia Mayer | 10 | 4 | 3 | 11 |
| Name | GP-GS | W-L | GAA | SV% |
| Christi Barwick | 8-5 | 3-3 | 2.51 | .641 |
WOLVERINE TO WATCH
| Alicia Mayer, Sophomore Forward/Midfield Sophomore Alicia Mayer(Selinsgrove, Pa./Selingrove HS) has used her speed and play-making skills to add a punch to the Wolverine offense. After entering the 2008 campaign without a point, Mayer has quickly placed her name among Michigan's leading scorers with three goals and a pair of assists. She has scored in two of the last three U-M contests after netting her first collegiate tally in the Wolverines' home opener vs. Stanford (Sept. 5). |
WOLVERINE BITES
Scoring Frenzy -- Eleven different U-M players have recorded a goal this season, while 12 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(Hummelstown, Pa./Hershey HS) and sophomore Meredith Way(Newmanstown, Pa./Warwick HS), who both own career-high statistics, combine for just under half (15/33) 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(Selinsgrove, Pa./Selinsgrove HS), Zara Saydjari(Skowhegan, Maine/Skowhegan HS) and sophomore/freshman Katie Adams(Hudson, Ohio/Hudson HS) all boast multiple goals and combine for 17 of Michigan's 33 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 for nearly 63.6 percent (21/33) of Michigan's goals.
We're Going Streaking -- Senior Sarah Wilhite has tallied at least one point in each of the Wolverines' last nine games, posting team-leading 6-12-24 totals over the stretch. Last weekend, Wilhite netted the game-tying marker in the closing minutes of regulation against California (Sept. 25) before assisting on two of Michigan's three goals vs. Northwestern (Sept. 27). Entering the 2008 season with three career goals and four assists, Wilhite has bettered her single-season highs in every offensive category and has more than tripled her previous career totals.
Lending a Helping Hand -- With 12 assists already on the season, senior Sarah Wilhite has already tallied the most helpers by a Wolverine in three seasons dating back to two-time All-American Lori Hillman's 13 assists in 2005. Michigan's single-season assist record is 22, held by Courtney Reid (1999, 2000), Catherine Foreman (1999) and Shelley Johnson (1997). Wilhite has averaged 1.2 assist per game, and if she continues the torrid pace, she would end the season with 27 helpers.
It's Tricky -- Sophomore Meredith Way accounted for the entirety of Michigan's scoring against Northwestern (Sept. 27), picking up her second hat trick of the season with three goals on the U-M penalty corner. She became the first Wolverine player to register a pair of hat tricks in one season since Jessica Blake posted four-goal and three-goal efforts within a five-game window during the 2004 season. Three-time All-American April Fronzoni, who was on hand for the Northwestern contest as the Wildcats' volunteer coach, achieved the identical feat during the 2003 season.
Leading the Way -- Sophomore Meredith Way tallied at least one point in each of the Wolverines' latest contests, wrapping the weekend with three goals and an assist. Way has tallied at least one point in seven of 10 Michigan games this season, including the six of the last seven. Through just 10 games, the Wolverine midfielder already owns career highs in goals (9), assists (5) and points (23) after entering the 2008 campaign with two career markers and two career assists. She ranks as Michigan's leading goal scorer and second in total points.
She's a Keeper -- Michigan goalkeeping duo of sophomore/freshman Christi Barwick(San Diego, Calif./Torrey Pines HS) and senior/junior Paige Pickett(Dallas, Texas/Episcopal School of Dallas) each registered two saves through 35 minutes of action against Northwestern (Sept. 27) en route to the Wolverines' second shutout performance of the season. The pair posted a similar joint effort in Michigan's other shutout victory, each stopping one shot per respective half played against St. Louis (Sept. 13).
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
Temple -- Michigan and Temple will meet for the sixth time this weekend with the Wolverines holding a 4-1 advantage in the series. Ashley Lennington paced Michigan to a 2-1 victory in last season's meeting between the two programs, netting two second-half goals, including the gamewinner with just 13 seconds remaining on the regulation clock. The Owls enter the meeting with a 4-6 record on the season. In their most recent contest, they snapped a six-game losing streak with a 3-2 decision against Rider (Sept. 28). Friday's contest will bring together a U-M reunion of sorts; former Wolverine goalkeeper Beth Riley is in her second season as Temple's assistant coach. For more information on Temple, visit www.owlsports.com.
Ohio State -- The Wolverines own a 28-22-1 record against Ohio State and have won 14 of the last 19 meetings against the Buckeyes. In last season's meeting in Columbus, Ohio, U-M persevered 3-2 in overtime. The Buckeyes enter the weekend with a 7-5 record but are 0-2 in the Big Ten after falling to Michigan State (1-3, Sept. 26) and Penn State (0-1, Sept. 28) in their latest outings. For more information on Ohio State, visit www.ohiostatebuckeyes.com.
2008 STX/NFHCA DIVISION I PRESEASON POLL
The Wolverines fell out of the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) poll released Tuesday, Sept. 30, after suffering its sixth loss of the season to a ranked opponent. The next STX/NFHCA Division I National Coaches Poll will be released next Tuesday, Oct. 7, and the poll is available on theNFHCA's site.
Rank, Team (first-place votes) Record Points 1. Maryland (15) 9-1 788 2. Syracuse (20) 10-0 780 3. Wake Forest (5) 9-1 752 4. North Carolina 8-2 635 5. Iowa 8-2 631 6. Connecticut 9-1 585 7. James Madison 8-1 578 8. Michigan State 9-1 543 9. Duke 6-3 474 10. Virginia (1) 9-2 437 11. Louisville 5-4 423 12. Princeton 7-1 368 13. Boston College 6-2 340 14. Penn State 5-4 251 15. California, Berkeley 7-2 162 16. Rutgers 9-1 156 17. Massachusetts 7-3 122 18. Drexel 8-2 107 19. Ohio State 7-5 104 20. American 3-5 100
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
Sunday, Oct. 12 -- at Indiana (Bloomington, Ind.), 1 p.m.
Tuesday, Oct. 14 -- vs. Central Michigan (Phyllis Ocker Field), 3 p.m.
Contact: Leah Howard (734) 763-4423
