Michigan
Michigan State
Top-Seeded Michigan to Open Postseason at Big Ten Tournament
4/20/2021 1:00:00 PM | Field Hockey
» Michigan, the No. 1 seed at the 2020-21 Big Ten Tournament, will open against Michigan State at 11 a.m. CDT on Wednesday (April 21) in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals in Iowa City, Iowa.
» The Wolverines posted a 6-0 Big Ten record to claim the conference championship and will seek their seventh Big Ten Tournament title in program history.
» Goalkeeper Anna Spieker leads the nation with a .900 save percentage and ranks second with a 0.42 goals-against average.
THIS WEEK
Wednesday, April 21 -- vs. Michigan State -Â Big Ten Tournament Quarterfinals (Iowa City, Iowa), 11 a.m. CDT
TV: Big Ten Network | Live Stats | Live Video | Tournament Central | Bracket | Digital Program | Tickets
Thursday, April 22Â -- vs. #4Â Iowa - Big Ten Tournament Semifinals (Iowa City, Iowa), 4 p.m. CDT
TV: Big Ten Network | Live Stats | Live Video
Saturday, April 24 -- vs. Ohio State -- Big Ten Tournament Final (Iowa City, Iowa), 11 am CDT
TV: Big Ten Network | Live Stats |Â Live Video
• Social Media: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
The No. 2-ranked University of Michigan field hockey team (10-2, 6-0 Big Ten) will begin the postseason portion of its 2020-21 schedule as the No. 1 seed at the Big Ten Conference Tournament. The Wolverines will face Michigan State (2-13, 1-7 Big Ten) in the quarterfinals at 11 a.m. CDT on Wednesday (April 21) at Grant Field in Iowa City, Iowa. The Spartans defeated Indiana, 4-2, in its first-round matchup on Tuesday (April 20). Every game of the Big Ten Tournament will be broadcast live on the Big Ten Network.
2020-21 Big Ten Tournament Schedule
Tue-Sat., April 20-24
Grant Field (Iowa City, Iowa)
Tuesday, April 20 • First Round (BTN)
Game 1 -- #8 seed Michigan State 4, #9 seed Indiana 2
Wednesday, April 21 • Quarterfinals (BTN)
Game 2 -- #1 seed Michigan vs. #8 Michigan State, 11 a.m. CDT
Game 3 -- #4 seed Iowa vs. #5 seed Maryland, 1:30 p.m. CDT
Game 4 -- #2 seed Penn State vs. #7 seed Ohio State, 4 p.m. CDT
Game 5 -- #3 seed Northwestern vs. #6 seed Rutgers, 6:30 p.m. CDT
Thursday, April 22 • Semifinals (BTN)
Game 6 --#1 seed Michigan vs. #4 seed Iowa, 4 p.m. CDT
Game 7 -- #7 seed Ohio State vs. #3 seed Northwestern, 6:30 p.m. CDT
Saturday, Nov. 24 • Championship Game (BTN)
Game 8 -- #1 seed Michigan vs. #7 seed Ohio State, 11 a.m. CDT
Big Ten Tournament Notes
• U-M will look to capture its seventh tournament crown in school history. The Wolverines won back to-back tournament crowns in 1999 and 2000, again in 2004 and 2005 and most recently won titles in 2010 and 2017. Michigan has advanced to the Big Ten Tournament championship game in 13 of the last 22 seasons.
• Four Wolverines were named to All-Big Ten teams with senior Halle O'Neill earning first team selection for the second straight year, while sophomore Sarah Pyrtek and junior Kathryn Peterson and Anna Spieker earned second team honors. Peterson and Spieker repeated their selection from 2019. At least one Wolverine has been picked for the All-Big Ten first team each year since 1995.
• Iowa will host the Big Ten Tournament for the fourth time since 1997. Michigan has reached the championship game in all three previous Iowa City turns (1997, 2005, '12). The Wolverines defeated Indiana 3-0 to capture the 2005 Big Ten Tournament title but fell to Penn State in both the 1997 (2-1) and 2012 (2-0) finals.
Michigan Against the Big Ten Tournament Field
Indiana: Michigan boasts a 20-8 advantage in the all-time series against Indiana and has won 11 of the last 12 meetings, including 2-1 and 3-0 decisions this season. Senior Kayla Reed scored a goal in each contest -- U-M's season opener and regular-season finale -- while the Wolverines held IU without a shot in the most-recent meeting. Michigan is 2-0 against Indiana in Big Ten Tournament games, most recently earning a 3-0 win in the 2012 semifinals.
Iowa: Michigan trails 44-26 in the all-time series against Iowa. U-M has claimed seven of the last nine meetings, but split the regular-season matchups this year, earning 1-0 win in the conference slate on a late game-winning goal from sophomore Sarah Pyrtek before falling 2-1 in a shootout. Head coach Marcia Pankratz was a two-time NCAA All-American during her collegiate career at Iowa (1982-85). Michigan holds a 6-5 advantage in Big Ten Tournament games against the Hawkeyes but dropped a 2-1 decision in the 2018 semifinals.
Maryland: The Terps hold an 18-5 advantage in the all-time series against Michigan, but the Wolverines have claimed each of the last three meetings -- including 2-1 and 2-0 decision on the road this season. Freshman Lora Clarke tallied the game-winning goal in the first meeting and assisted on the game-winner in the second, while junior goalkeeper Anna Spieker made nine saves in the series. U-M has faced Maryland only once in Big Ten Tournament play, falling to the Terps 5-1 in the 2015 Big Ten Tournament final.
Michigan State: Michigan leads the all-time series against Michigan State 45-25-6 and has won the last eight meetings, including a pair of 3-0 shutouts this season in East Lansing. U-M held the Spartans to just one total shot over the weekend series. Pyrtek scored the Wolverines' first and game-winning goal early in the first quarter in both contests. The teams are 1-1 in Big Ten Tournament meetings; Michigan earned a 2-1 double-overtime win in the 2016 quarterfinal, while MSU claimed a 3-0 decision in the 2002 championship game.
Northwestern: Michigan trails 34-30 in the all-time series against the Wildcats but has claimed eight of the last 12 meetings. The teams split the regular-season series this spring; the Wolverines rallied to claim a 3-2 decision in the conference matchup before Northwestern earned a 1-0 overtime decision. Michigan owns a 4-2 edge against Northwestern in Big Ten Tournament meetings and has won each of the last two, including a 3-1 decision in the 2018 quarterfinals.
Ohio State: The Wolverines own a 40-26-2 advantage in the all-time series against the Buckeyes and have won each of the last 10 meetings, dating back to 2012. The teams did not face each other in regular-season play this spring. Michigan holds an 8-4 advantage in Big Ten Tournament meetings against the Buckeyes, most recently defeating OSU 3-0 in the 2017 quarterfinals.
Penn State: Michigan trails 28-23 in the all-time series against PSU but has claimed eight of the last 11 meetings. The teams did not face each other in regular-season play this spring. PSU holds an 8-7 edge in Big Ten Tournament play, and the Wolverines and Nittany Lions have met six times in the championship game. Penn State claimed a 2-1 decision in last season's quarterfinal matchup. PSU owns a league-best seven tournament titles, while U-M ranks second with six crowns.
Rutgers: Michigan is 10-1 in the all-time series against Rutgers since 1992 after sweeping the home series, 1-0 (SO) and 1-0, in Ann Arbor this season. Junior Kathryn Peterson scored both clinching markers, including the deciding attempt in the fourth round of the shootout in the conference slate. The Wolverines are 1-0 against Rutgers in Big Ten Tournament competition, earning a 3-0 win in the 2014 first round.
Wolverine Bites
• The Wolverines captured the 2020-21 Big Ten title with its 2-1 victory at No. 11 Maryland last Saturday (April 10). With its 11 conference crowns -- 10 under head coach Marcia Pankratz -- Michigan boasts the second most of any Big Ten school behind Iowa (12). The Wolverines have claimed three of the last four Big Ten titles, previously winning in 1997, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2010, 2011, 2017, 2018. Six on their league titles have come in outright fashion.
• Michigan posted a perfect 6-0 record in Big Ten play with wins against Indiana (2-1, March 5), Iowa (1-0, March 12), Northwestern (3-2, March 20), Rutgers (1-0, March 26), Michigan State (3-0, April 2) and Maryland (2-1, April 10). The Big Ten played a conference-only regular-season schedule in 2020-21; in all two-game series this season, only the first contest counted toward the conference standings. U-M was the only unbeaten program in the standings.
• Michigan moved up one spot to No. 2 in the latest NFHCA national rankings -- its highest ranking since the 2002 season. U-M has six wins over teams currently ranked among the top 10 -- No. 4 Iowa (1-0), No. 5 Northwestern (3-2), No. 8 Rutgers (1-0, 1-0) and No. 9 Maryland (2-1, 2-0).
• Michigan has won seven straight games and earned shutout wins in six over the stretch. U-M ranks second in the nation with a .889 save percentage and second with a 0.47 team goals-against average. Junior goalkeeper Anna Spieker leads the nation with her personal .900 save percentage and lists second with a 0.42 GAA. She boasts 45 saves over just five total goals allowed. Michigan's single-season records in the categories are: .887 save percentage (Johnnie Terry, 1982) and 0.78 goals-against average (Sam Swenson, 2015).
• Sophomore Sarah Pyrtek owns Michigan's scoring lead this season with five goals, an assist and 11 points. She boasts three game-winning goals, including both against MSU with markers in the opening five minutes of each contest. Pyrtek also scored the late game-winner in the opener against Iowa and tallied the go-ahead marker in the fourth quarter against Northwestern (March 20).
• Freshman Pilar Oliveros scored her first collegiate goal -- and the game-winner -- in the second quarter against Indiana in the season finale. Senior/junior Kate Burney also tallied her first marker since 2018 in the third quarter against the Hoosiers. Eleven different Wolverine players have scored at least one goal this season. In addition to Oliveros, freshmen Anouk Veen and Lora Clarke have tallied the first collegiate goals.
• Head coach Marcia Pankratz owns a 312-136 career record over her 21 seasons at the helm of the Michigan program (1996-2004, '09-19). She ranks 12th all-time among NCAA Division I coaches with a .696 win percentage --- eighth among active coaches -- and lists 16th in total wins.
Last Time Out
The Wolverines wrapped up the regular-season portion of their 2020-21 schedule with a 3-0 shutout win against Indiana on Saturday (April 17) at Ocker Field. Freshman Pilar Oliveros netted the first and game-winning goal at the 13:54 mark -- the first collegiate marker of her career -- while senior/junior Kate Burney and senior Kayla Reed added insurance tallies in the second half. Michigan held the Hoosiers without a shot, as junior goalkeeper Anna Spieker secured her seventh shutout win of the season. [ Full Recap ]
Up Next
Saturday, April 24 -- NCAA Selection Show (NCAA.com), 10 p.m.
