March 20, 2004                                                                      

Event:  Men’s Lacrosse

Site: Ann Arbor, Michigan (Oosterbaan Fieldhouse)

Score: #5 Michigan 16, Oakland 7

Records: UM (6-1, 2-0 CCLA), Oakland (2-3, 1-1 CCLA)

Next U-M Game: Saturday, March 27 -- vs. Pittsburgh (Charles L. Cost Center - Pittsburgh, Penn.), 3:00 p.m. EST

Hanna's Seven Goals Pace Victory Over Oakland

Event Recap I Boxscore I Notes & Quotes

Ann Arbor, Mich. – The #5 ranked University of Michigan men’s lacrosse team defeated CCLA rival Oakland University 16-7, in front of roughly 512 fans at Oosterbaan Fieldhouse, Saturday (March 20).  Attackman Jeff Hanna (Fayetteville, N.Y./Fayetteville-Manilus) notched seven goals (7-0-7 totals), and freshman Matt Hudson (Libertyville, Ill./Libertyville), stepping in for an injured junior Ryan Clark (Summit, N.J./Summit) - lost for the season last week to a torn ACL, earned the team’s game-ball by scoring two goals and two assists for four total points.  Sophomore Jim Constantine (Troy, Mich./Seaholm) also stepped up, notching a season-high two goals of his own.. 

Hudson had his best day as a Wolverine, scoring 2 goals and adding 2 assists.

The Wolverines started off the game slowly and soon found themselves down by two goals at the end of the first period.  2003 CCLA Offensive Player of the Year Billy Binge notched two goals in the first period for Oakland, one just under a minute into the game, and the second with only 13 seconds left in the first quarter.  After Binge’s second goal however, the fire was lit under the Wolverines who scored just 11 seconds later, with only two seconds remaining in the period on a goal right in front of the cage from Hanna.  Hanna was assisted on the play by junior long-stick midfielder Dave Silverman (Potomac, Md./Churchill) who notched his second assist of the season and only the fourth of his career.  The goal appeared to deflate the Grizzlies right before the end of the quarter as the Wolverines would come out in the second and notch seven unanswered goals.  

Amongst the seven goals scored in the second quarter, it was two from Hanna that stood out the most.  With the score tied at two, Dave Silverman scooped up a ball in the Wolverine zone, carried it across midfield and sent a 30-yard bounce pass to the opposite side of the field where Hanna put a spin move on a defender, broke in on the goal, and beat Oakland goaltender Chris Wood right inside the near-side post.  Hanna’s second goal of the period might have been even prettier however.  After receiving a pass on the left side of the goal, Hanna brought the ball across the middle of the cage, bringing the goaltender along for the ride across the mouth of the goal.  Instead of trying to slide the ball in on the far-side however, Hanna reversed the play, and shot the ball behind his back to the empty side where the goalie had stood. 

The third quarter saw each team trade goals twice, with Hudson and Constantine helping the Wolverines keep pace notching a goal apiece.  Hudson’s goal came on a wrap around as he worked his way behind the goal, and came around the far-side, unguarded and buried a shot, low on the near post.  Constantine kept the Wolverines’ lead comfortable by receiving a pass to the left of the cage, spinning and releasing a shot along the ground to beat Wood.

The fourth quarter saw much of the same, with the Wolverines keeping their lead comfortable for the remainder of the game, and playing reserves towards the contest’s end.  Freshman Ryan Kaufman (Olney, Md./Magruder) relieved junior goaltender Dan Webber (Weston, Mass./Weston) with just over four minutes left in the game.  Early on, Webber played solid, making three of his four saves in the first quarter while Michigan was working itself into the game.  Webber’s best save came with Oakland holding a 1-0 lead and looking to extend it.  An Oakland attacker was able to work his way right to the front of the cage with an open look, and only Webber to beat.  As soon as the attacker received the pass however, Webber jumped out on the play, denying the shooter any angle, and took the shot square in the chest, keeping the Wolverines in the game early.

Michigan won every key statistical category, registering 47 shots compared to OU’s 18, collecting 38 groundballs vs. 21, going 14-26 on faceoffs, and clearing the ball 15-17, while holding the Grizzlies to 10-17.  Michigan finished the game 3-8 on the extra-man, while denying Oakland on each of their eight chances (0-8).  For the first time this season, someone other than Dave Silverman led the team in groundballs as senior captain Justin Gal (Amherst, Mass./Milton Academy) notched six.  Silverman registered four.

NOTES

●  Michigan once again dominated in the second half, notching eight goals to Oakland’s five.  Michigan has tallied 57 goals compared to their opponents’ 21 in the second half this season.

●  The Wolverines scored their second man-down goal of the season, with freshman Joe Williamson (Romeo, Mich./Romeo) notching Michigan’s last goal of the game at the 2:20 mark of the fourth quarter.

●  Matt Hudson’s two goals and two assists put him in first place among freshman in goals, assists, and points with 5-3-8 totals.  Hudson ranks fifth on the team with eight overall points.   

●  Jeff Hanna’s seven goal performance marks a season-high in goals for the senior attacker. 

●  Jim Constantine’s two-goal night marked a season-high in goals in a game. 

●  With the victory, the Wolverines keep alive their now 52-game CCLA winning streak.  Michigan will defend the streak next weekend vs. Pittsburgh (March 27 in Pittsburgh, Penn.).

●  For the first time this season, someone other than Dave Silverman led the team in groundballs as senior captain Justin Gal notched six.  Silverman registered four.

QUOTES

UM Head Coach John Paul

On the game itself:  “I think we played well overall.  We came out a little flat, but once we got going a little, got a little emotion we started playing much better.  We also started playing smarter, making the right passes and remaining patient.  Once we start playing harder, we also play smarter, with more focus.” 

On trailing early, 2-0:  “We weren’t too concerned.  Both of their goals came on a couple of defensive mistakes.  We knew what we had to do and how to fix the problems.   The looks were also there on the offensive end, we just weren’t getting our goals.  I was happy the team remained patient.  We knew the goals would eventually come.”

On the difference in the game and the offensive play:  “I think the offense moved the ball around very well.  Our motion offense really did the job.  They like to move the ball and work the transition game.  We weren’t trying to slow the game down at all – we scored 16 goals – but we knew if we played patiently and waited for our chances the game would follow the right course.  They like to run, and instead of just firing the ball and falling into the game, we remained patient and when the shot wasn’t there we just reset the offense and went again.”

On the play of the defense and slowing Billy Binge:  “The defense had their game together all night.  We know Billy (Binge) is going to get his chances so we just wanted to slow him down a little.  We know if we slow him down we have a good chance of beating this team.  We didn’t shadow him but we just tried to contain him and not let him get to where he wanted on the field.  Controlling the tempo of the game was also important.  We never let them get out and run.”

Contact: Joe Hennessy (734) 276-8493, jjhennes@umich.edu