February 16, 2008

Event:  Men's Lacrosse

Site:  Ann Arbor, Michigan (Oosterbaan Fieldhouse)

Score:  #8 Michigan 14, Kenyon 7

Records:  U-M (1-0, 0-0 CCLA), Kenyon (0-0, 0-0 NCAC)

Attendance: 429

Next U-M Game:  Sunday, February 24, 2008, 2:00pm MST - vs. Arizona State University - Tempe, Arizona (Sun Devil Band Field)

Michigan Strong Out of the Gates Against Kenyon

Event Recap I Boxscore I Notes & Quotes I Photos

Ann Arbor, Mich. - Ready for competition that counted, the University of Michigan men's lacrosse team opened their regular season in solid fashion Saturday night in Ann Arbor, defeating NCAA Division III Kenyon College by a score of 14-7 in front of 429 fans in Oosterbaan Fieldhouse.  Hat tricks from senior captain Mark Hammitt (Madison, N.J./Delbarton - Boston College) and freshman attackman Trevor Yealy (Upper St. Claire, Penn./Upper St. Claire) along with timely defense and goaltending were the difference as U-M opens the 2008 season 1-0.

After a sluggish start from the Maize and Blue and two quick goals from the Lords to open the contest, Michigan settled as sophomore defensive midfielder Jordan Kirshner (Ann Arbor, Mich./Huron) got the Wolverines on the board under four minutes in, followed by Yealy's first career goal, sneaking one in just over the goaltender's right shoulder. 

Kenyon rebuilt their two goal lead with two quick tallies mid-way through the quarter, but the Wolverines buckled down and notched two of their own before sophomore Josh Ein (Potomac, Md./Bullis) earned U-M their first lead just before the quarter break at 5-4. 

Under three minutes into the second, junior attackman Riley Kearns (Bloomfield Hills, Mich./Brother Rice) extended the lead on a wide-open extra-man goal created by a fake between Hammitt and senior attackman Peter Krauss (Grand Rapids, Mich./Forest Hills Central).  Yealy added his second mid-way through the quarter followed by a tally from Hammitt right before the half as the Wolverines started flexing their offensive muscle heading into the locker room for half-time.

Leading 8-4 after two quarters, Michigan continued their solid play coming out of the break, extending their lead on Yealy's third of his young career.  Kenyon finally answered at the 9:20 mark of the third quarter, but three more from U-M, including the first of the season for senior captain Bobby Morales (Bloomfield Hills, Mich./Brother Rice) along with Hammitt's final two, gave Michigan 10 of the last 11 tallies, and a 12-6 lead headed into the final frame.   

Trailing by seven goals, Kenyon notched the first two goals of the fourth quarter, both on the transition to claw within five with eight minutes left in the contest.  Sophomore transfer Alex Beltrani (Setauket, N.Y./Ward Melville - Marist) killed any Kenyon momentum however, scoring his first goal as a Wolverine with just over five minutes left in the game.  Sophomore attackman David Rogers (Wayne, N.J./Wayne) notched his first career goal to close out the scoring as Michigan walked away with the 14-7 win.       

Statistically, the Wolverines won every category, out-shooting Kenyon 41-25, while the Wolverines scooped up 39 groundballs to the Lord's 19.  The Wolverines were 20-24 at the "X", while U-M also faired better on clears, finishing 20-24, while riding Kenyon to 19-35 totals.  Kenyon finished 1-2 on the man-up, while Michigan scored on 4 out of 5 man-up attempts. 

Following a week of practice, the Wolverines head west to Arizona and Utah to take on Arizona State, Arizona, and BYU over the course the team's spring break.  Please visit MGoBlue.com for a complete break-down of the team's upcoming schedule.

NOTES

● Senior captain and faceoff specialist Brekan Kohlitz (St. Claire Shores, Mich./Notre Dame Harper Woods) finished 14-18 on faceoffs, while sophomore David Reinhard (East Lansing, Mich./East Lansing) was 5-6.

● Kohlitz also paced the team with seven groundballs. 

●  Senior Graham Townsend (Williamsville N.Y./Williamsville East) stopped 10 shots in three quarters of play, only allowing five goals overall, while shutting Kenyon out in the pivotal second quarter.  Freshman Andrew Fowler (Grosse Pointe, Mich./Hotchkiss CT) played the final quarter, registering two saves and two goals allowed. 

● Riley Kearns was the lone other Wolverine to record three points in the game with two goals and an assist.  It was also his first action since the end of his freshman campaign after suffering a season-ending knee injury during the fall of last season.    

● Nine different Wolverines scored in the contest.    

● Sophomore transfer, attackman Kevin Zorovich (Massapequa, N.Y./Massapequa - Marist) scored his first career point as a Wolverine, registering an assist on Morales' third quarter goal. 

QUOTES

Head Coach John Paul

On his general impressions:  "It was hard to know how we would respond to a real game after scrimmaging twice, and I was a little worried after we came out sluggish and allowed those two goals, but we started playing our style and dictating the tempo of the game. We all settled down and the bottom line is we played the type of game we want to play this year."

On coming out strong in the third quarter:  "We talked about that situation, especially considering what had happened in each of the last two seasons with them in the third quarter, and that was also problem in a lot of games for us last year.  That was important for us tonight."

On working out the early-season issues:  "Its coming along.  We're still trying to get the guys to learn a lot of new stuff.  There is also only so much you can learn in practice, you have to play against other teams and learn to adjust.  We're headed in the right direction and that's what I told the guys."

On the play of Yealy:  "Can't say enough right now.  He's doing all the little things we're demanding from our attackman, riding, getting groundballs.  He reminds me a lot of Jeff Hadwin who ended up being the best crease guy we ever had here.  He's showing me some of those same characteristics.  At some point in the fall he figured out he can play at this level."

On the upcoming schedule:  "We've talked about how critical this stretch is to us.  Tough games on the road require a really good week of practice.  So I told the guys to enjoy the win tonight but to be ready to come to work on Monday."

Freshman Trevor Yealy

On his first game:  "I really didn't know what to expect.  We had those two scrimmages but you knew this would be different.  We worked hard in practice and just went out there and put it together.  If we bring the intensity we brought today we can play with anyone."

On getting comfortable in his game:  "In the fall I was timid and uncomfortable out there at times, and I was always thinking about the mistakes I made.  But then something happened, something sort of clicked and I just came in and realized mistakes are going to happen and now I just feel so much more comfortable than in the fall.  That's really a testament to my teammates who have helped out along the way."

Senior captain Mark Hammitt

On getting a chance to take on real competition:  "You can only get so excited about scrimmages, but we worked out a lot of kinks and that help prepare us for today.  We came out and played well.  We worked the offense well, rode the ball effectively, and looked good most of the time."

On heading out West:  "It was nice to get this win under out belt tonight, but these next two weeks are huge for us, and will really give us an idea where we stand in the MCLA.  I'm sure there will be some things we'll try to go in and clean up next week like the rides and keeping poise during possessions."

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