Wolverines Handed First Loss of 2013 at Butler

Sunday, September 15

Indianapolis, Ind.

1:00 PM

Michigan

6-1-0

Butler

5-1-2

Michigan

Butler

9/15/2013 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer

Box Score PDF Boxscore

By: Brad Rudner

Site: Indianapolis, Ind. (Butler Bowl)
Score: Butler 1, #11 Michigan 0
Records: U-M (6-1), Butler (5-1-2)
Next U-M Event: Sunday, Sept. 22 -- at Iowa (Iowa City, Iowa), Noon CDT (TV: Big Ten Network)

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- The No. 11-ranked University of Michigan women's soccer team suffered its first loss of the season on Sunday (Sept. 15), dropping a 1-0 decision to Butler at the Butler Bowl.

Madisson Lewis

The first 29 minutes were fairly even, but Butler changed that in the 30th minute, taking a 1-0 lead on a goal from McKenzie Muchow. The Bulldogs advanced the ball up the field, and Muchow found some space in the scoring area, slotting a shot into the lower-right corner past Michigan freshman goalkeeper Taylor Bucklin (Greenwich, Conn./Brookfield) for the 1-0 lead. Both teams had five shots in the first half, but the Wolverines failed to record a shot on goal, trailing by a goal heading into halftime.

The Wolverines had five shots on goal in the second half against just one for Butler. Michigan's best chance came in the final 90 seconds off a corner kick. Junior Christina Murillo (Ojai, Calif./Nordhoff) sent it into the box to freshman Madisson Lewis (Canton, Mich./Plymouth), who put a touch on the ball towards net, but her attempt was cleared off the line by a Butler defender for a team save, preserving the lead.

The Wolverines held the edge in shots (18-9), shots on goal (5-3) and corner kicks (8-3). Bucklin made two saves.

Michigan enters Big Ten play beginning next Sunday (Sept. 22), facing Iowa in Iowa City. The match will begin at noon CDT and will be broadcast live on the Big Ten Network.

GAME SUMMARY

By Periods	1	2	F
Michigan	0	0	0
Butler	1	0	1

Scoring, Time (Assist)
1st -- Butler, McKenzie Muchow, 29:01 (Mary Allen, Sophia Maccagnone)

Shots: U-M 18, Butler 9
Shots on Goal: U-M 5, Butler 3
Saves: U-M 2 (Taylor Bucklin), Butler 5 (Julie Burton 4, Team 1)
Corner Kicks: U-M 8, Butler 3
Cards: U-M, Meghan Toohey, 68:12 (yellow); Butler, Randi DeLong, 68:12 (yellow)

NOTES

• Sunday's match was Michigan's first road match of the season. The Wolverines played their first six matches at home.

• Michigan falls to 5-3 all-time against Butler.

• Freshman Nicky Waldeck got her first collegiate start on Sunday.

• It is Michigan's first loss since Nov. 2, 2012, against Ohio State, a span of nine matches. The Wolverines had one draw during that stretch (Nov. 18, 2012, vs. Penn State in third round of NCAA Tournament).

• It marks Michigan's first non-conference loss since Sept. 2, 2012, at Long Beach State.

• The Wolverines were shut out for the first time since Sept. 28, 2012, vs. Iowa (scoreless draw).

QUOTES

Michigan Head Coach Greg Ryan
On what went wrong in Sunday's loss ... "We came out very flat in the first half. We didn't play well and didn't connect well. You've got to give Butler credit. They packed it in and countered after they got that goal. They didn't let us get in behind them. We gave up an uncharacteristic counter-attack goal, but in the second half, I thought we dominated play and had good chances. It was just one of those days."

On what the team learned from the loss ... "You can't let down for a second. We talked about that after. If you take it easy for a half, put yourself down a goal and the other team packs it in, it's hard to get that next goal. Iowa is a very similar team. They are very hard working, defend well and don't give up many chances. Hopefully, it is a turning point for us. It's maybe been a little too easy for us, this start. We haven't had any adversity up to this point, but we found some today. Now it's a question of how this team responds to it and how our seniors push the team to take it to another level. We just weren't there in the first half today."

U-M Fifth-Year Senior Holly Hein
On the loss ... "It wasn't one of our best starts, and we realized that. The second half, I felt like it was an entirely different match for a few reasons. First, we switched our formation so we could match up better and get forward, and I think it worked for the most part. And second, I think our mentality just shifted entirely. We were down a goal. They were sitting in their final third and packing it in. We knew we needed to break them down and get even and maybe even another one. We had some good chances but just couldn't capitalize today."

On this match possibly being a turning point in the season ... "Yeah, definitely. It's one of those things. I think we learned a great lesson today. Big Ten play is starting now, and it's a whole new set of teams we're going to go up against. We need to recognize that other teams can score on us the way Butler did today. Now we know how it feels, and we'll remember that. We have to move on from this and start focusing on Iowa and the start of Big Ten play."