March 21, 2008

Event:  Men's Lacrosse

Site: Ann Arbor, Mich.  (Oosterbaan Fieldhouse)

Score:  #1 Michigan 19, Illinois 2

Records:  U-M (8-0, 2-0 CCLA), UI (1-6, 0-0 GRLC)

Next U-M Game:  Friday, April 4, 2008, 8:00pm EST - vs. Lindenwood University - Ann Arbor, Mich. (Oosterbaan Fieldhouse)

Wolverines Keep Rolling with Blowout Win Over Illinois

Event Recap I Boxscore I Notes & Quotes I Photos

Ann Arbor, Mich. - The University of Michigan men's lacrosse team put on another dominant display on Friday night (March 28) in Ann Arbor, defeating the University of Illinois by a score of 19-2 in front of 367 fans in Oosterbaan Fieldhouse.  The Wolverines jumped out to a 5-0 lead before Illinois got on the board with less than two minutes left in the second quarter to end the Wolverines' nearly two and a half game scoreless streak.  Michigan was undaunted however, and notched the next 11 goals to secure the victory.

U-M got off to a relatively slow start, notching only three first quarter goals, including two of Trevor Yealy's (Upper St. Claire, Mich./Upper St. Claire) game-high five goals. 

Yealy opened the second-quarter scoring as well before sophomore midfielder Jordan Kirshner (Ann Arbor, Mich./Huron) rocketed a shot from 15 yards out for his second of the season.  Andrew Kohl scored the Illini's first goal at the 1:38 mark before senior captain Bobby Morales (Bloomfield Hills, Mich./Brother Rice) scored with just a second remaining in the half on a transition goal to give Michigan a 6-1 lead after one half and killing any Illinois' momentum headed into the break.

The Wolverines kept the throttle down in the third quarter with Yealy adding his final two including a nifty spin move and goal on the man-down as Michigan out-scored their opponent 6-0 in the period, continuing their trend of third-quarter domination this season. 

The fourth quarter saw junior attackman Wes McGowan (Lake Forest, Ill./Lake Forest) tally three of his career high four goals, and senior captain Mark Hammitt (Madison, N.J./Delbarton - Boston College) notched three assists for a career high as well.

Statistically, the Wolverines dominated every category.  U-M outshot the Illini 47-23, and recorded 47 groundballs to the Illini' 20.  U-M was 12 of 21 on faceoffs, and finished 22 of 30 on clears, while UI cleared the ball at a rate of 18 for 23.  Michigan finished 3 for 4 on the man-up, while holding Illinois scoreless on all six attempts.

The Wolverines will be back in action next Friday, April 4, when they host another Great Rivers Lacrosse Conference opponent in #14 Lindenwood in Ann Arbor for a 8:00pm EST start at Oosterbaan Fieldhouse. 

NOTES

● Michigan has out-scored their opponents 60-2 in their last three games. 

● Senior captain and faceoff specialist Brekan Kohlitz (St. Claire Shores, Mich./Notre Dame Harper Woods) finished 12 of 21 on faceoffs, his lowest output of the season.

 ● Kohlitz paced the team with seven groundballs to add to his team-leading 60, while junior defenseman Zach Elyachar (Upper Saddle River, N.J./Northern Highlands) finished with five.

● Senior goaltender Graham Townsend (Williamsville, N.Y./Williamsville East) played three quarters and finished with nine saves, while freshman Andrew Fowler (Grosse Pointe, Mich./Hotchkiss CT) played the fourth quarter and posted a lone save. 

● With another dominant performance on special teams (3 for 4 on the man-up while holding UI to 0-6), Michigan is now 29 for 44 (.659) on the man-up and has held opponents to only six goals on 37 attempts (.162).

● With another stingy defensive performance, Michigan is holding opponents to an average of 4.88 goals per game in 2008. 

● Michigan improves to 9-2 all-time vs. Illinois in the MCLA era.

QUOTES

Head Coach John Paul

On his general impressions:  "I was very happy about the kind of intensity we came out with.  So far this year we haven't let up at all or play downed a little.  The character of this team is amazing.  Everyone is buying into what we're capable of.  In warm-ups tonight we were a little flat, but they needed to turn it on and they did, pretty quickly.  You knew Illinois was going to come into the game with a lot of emotion because of what they went through this week, and we matched them."

On how the practice regimen has helped this season:  "We've been able to structure our practices to keep them high intensity and efficient, but we've also given them time off at key points.  Having Ken (Broschart) here and having Scott (Morrison) develop into the kind of coach he's become also allows us to keep the intensity and pressure on the guys through the entire practice.  Once all the guys bought into the way we wanted to do things this year, they are now policing each other and that helps keep the focus up."

On Yealy's continued strong play:  "Once in a while he'll make a play, and we'll [the coaches] just look at each other and roll our eyes and wonder where that came from.  He's doing a lot of the little things that a lot of players don't even think to do.  It's instinctual for him."

On McGowans' effort:  "For not getting a whole lot of time, he came in and played really well and finished well.  He also rode well, which is something we're really focused on this year."

On the special teams:  "We had a point in the Central Michigan game where we were down three men, and if you look at the film it's something you'd find in a textbook on how to play three men down.  We never practice that, and it's the first time in 11 years I've seen it, but the guys couldn't have played it better.  We knew then  that the man-down was getting it.  It's a testament to Scott and his coaching and the guys as well who are just playing really well right now.  They are anticipating and making the right play.  Scott challenges them to be excellent, and we're doing the same thing on the man-up."

On the upcoming game vs. Lindenwood:  "Lindenwood is a very good team.  The past couple of weeks we've really been focusing on ourselves and what we need to work on.  Now, with this stretch of Lindenwood, followed by CSU and Colorado, we're going to get back into scouting our opponents, and putting together a more thorough game plan.  We need to get used to that kind of game where you're not just trying to focus on yourself, but you're also trying to match-up with the opposition."

Senior captain Bobby Morales

On the keys to victory:  "It was nice to play a little tougher game tonight and we were able to keep up our intensity and focus throughout.  We never let up and it's good to see us come out tonight and perform well."

On what's kept the Wolverines focus up through the last three games:  "I think a lot of it starts with practice.  We've spent a lot of time this year focusing on intense practices.  We know every Monday is going to be hard as hell, and that intensity has paid off.  It's showing on the field."

On the man-down effort:  "We've got five guys on the field who are very vocal when they're out there and our communication is great.  We're all calling out cutters, and we're all capable of making changes on the fly.  We're picking off a lot of passes as well, and burning a lot of them in their own end.  We're also limiting their shots to the outside, and Graham is always going to make those saves."

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