Four-Goal Second Half Boosts Michigan Past Penn State

Friday, October 4

Ann Arbor, Mich.

4:00 PM

Michigan

9-2-0 (4-1-0)

Penn State

7-2-1 (3-1-0)

Penn State

Michigan

Four-Goal Second Half Boosts Michigan Past Penn State

10/4/2002 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer

Box Score

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The University of Michigan women's soccer team scored four goals in the second half to earn a 4-0 victory over Penn State on Friday (Oct. 4) at the U-M Soccer Field. The No. 13-ranked Wolverines (9-2, 4-1 Big Ten) received goals from senior defender Andrea Kayal (Wayne, N.J./Wayne Hills HS), freshman forward Therese Heaton (Wheaton, Ill./Wheaton Warrenville South HS), junior forward Stephanie Chavez (Shorewood, Wis./Shorewood HS) and senior forward Abby Crumpton (Rochester Hills, Mich./Rochester Adams HS). Junior goalkeeper Suzie Grech (Narberth, Pa./The Shipley School) posted the shutout against No. 12 Penn State (7-2, 3-1 Big Ten) to hand the Nittany Lions their first conference loss.

Grech

Penn State controlled the ball for the majority of the first half, but Michigan was the first to notch a scoring opportunity. Just over five minutes into the match, Heaton was able to beat Amanda Brown, the Nittany Lions' goalkeeper, off the dribble but was unable to notch the goal. Three minutes later in the ninth minute, U-M was caught without a goalkeeper as Grech misplayed a ball in the corner, giving Penn State an open-net opportunity. The Michigan defense was up to the challenge, however, as it held the Lions without a shot.

Penn State had another scoring opportunity with 29:10 to go in the half when Christie Welsh's shot was blocked by a diving save by Grech but the rebound went directly to Heidi Drummond for Penn State. Drummond immediately took another shot but Grech leaped up from the ground to make another save and preserve the 0-0 tie. For the remainder of the half, Penn State continued to keep the ball in Michigan's end of the field but was unable to come up with a score and the game remained scoreless heading into intermission. The first half was also marked by very physical play as Michigan racked up 11 fouls and Penn State was called six times.

The Wolverines struck quickly to open the second half. Amy Sullivant (Utica, Mich./Eisenhower HS) took a dead-ball kick for the Maize and Blue and found Kayal on the left side of the goal for the header and the first Michigan goal at the 46:23 mark. Fifty-six seconds later Heaton connected for the Wolverines' second goal when she sent the ball into the lower right corner off a breakaway. Assists were awarded to Chavez and Crumpton.

The physical play continued in the second half as both teams picked up the intensity following the two Michigan goals. However, the intensity was put on hold as the match was suspended for 15 minutes due to lightning with just under 21 minutes to go.

Following the suspension, Penn State went on the attack, allowing Michigan numerous breakaway opportunities. The Wolverines finally connected when Crumpton found herself one-on-one with Brown. The Penn State goalkeeper was able to make a play on the ball but Chavez was there to score the open-net goal with nine minutes to go in the game. Crumpton tallied her second assist of game and Erika Kleinholz (North Ridgeville, Ohio/Elyria Catholic HS) was also credited with a helper.

Three minutes later, Crumpton had another one-on-one with the Nittany Lions' keeper. This time Crumpton lofted the ball over the goalkeeper's head for the fourth Michigan goal of the game. The assist was by Stephanie Boyles (Arvada, Colo./Pomona HS).

With the game in hand, Michigan's shutout was on the line when Penn State was awarded a penalty shot at the 87:25 mark. Welsh took the kick for Penn State but Grech choose correctly and made a diving save to her left to preserve the shutout.

The Wolverines now prepare for Sunday's (Oct. 6) Big Ten game against Ohio State at the U-M Soccer Field. The contest is set for a 2 p.m. kickoff.

GAME SUMMARY

Team	1	2	F
Penn State	0	0	0
Michigan	0	4	4

Scoring, Time (Assist)
2nd -- U-M, Andrea Kayal, 46:23 (Amy Sullivant)
2nd -- U-M, Therese Heaton, 47:19 (Stephanie Chavez, Abby Crumpton)
2nd -- U-M, Chavez, 81:00 (Crumpton, Erika Kleinholz)
2nd -- U-M, Crumpton, 84:24 (Stephanie Boyles)

Shots: U-M 15, PSU 15
Saves: U-M 5 (Suzie Grech), PSU 4 (Amanda Brown)
Corner Kicks: U-M 2, PSU 5
Fouls: U-M 21, PSU 15
Cards: U-M, Carly Williamson, 71:16 (yellow); U-M, Amy Sullivant, 85:11 (yellow); PSU, Natalie Jacobs, 85:23 (yellow)

Q U O T E S

U-M Head Coach Debbie Rademacher
On the game ... "We said at halftime if we can get one goal then the other one always comes. And that is what happened here today. We needed to clean up our game entering the second the half. It was a chippy first half and we were playing good defense, we just weren't possessing the ball. We changed that in the second half. We challenged them early and once that first goal scored we told the girls others will come."

On the way Michigan scored ... "We have been creating nice goals, not just cheap goals, all year. We like to have three passes behind the defense and we had that happen today. Those final three goals were quality possession-type goals."

On goalkeeper Suzie Grech ... "This was her best game by far and this is what we expect from her every game. There is nothing better then a goalkeeper saving a penalty kick. It's a great confidence booster for her and the team."

On the win ... "This was huge for the program. We were feeling really low and disappointed with our performance last weekend after the loss to Minnesota. Then having to bounce back and play a team like Penn State, this was a great win for us. It means a lot."

Junior Goalkeeper Suzie Grech
On the penalty-kick save ... "Andrea Kayal told me she was a left-footed kicker, which I knew but I wasn't sure because (Christie) Welsh is great with both feet. I knew that most left-legged kickers swing across their bodies, but it was just a reaction save. I just didn't want that ball in the back of my net."

On her performance ... "At the beginning of the season I was coming off an injury and my teammates have been boosting my confidence in each game and each game I have been getting better. This was the best match I've played. It was the last straw and now I am back and ready for the rest of the Big Ten season."

On the win ... "It was huge. It was critical for our confidence going into the rest of the Big Ten season. We took this game as the beginning of the rest of the season. We wanted this win very bad. They beat us last year and went on the Big Ten regular-season title; we didn't want that to happen again this year."

N O T E S

Michigan posted its first regular-season victory over Penn State. U-M is now 1-4-3 against the Nittany Lions in the regular season. Michigan has, however, beaten Penn State in both of the teams' meetings in the Big Ten Tournament. In 1994 U-M won 1-1 by beating PSU 3-1 on penalty kicks and in 1999 Michigan won 4-2 in the championship game.

Today's game marked the first time Penn State has given up four goals in a game since the Wolverines defeated Penn State 4-2 in the Big Ten Tournament championship game on Nov. 7, 1999, in Bloomington, Ind.

Through 11 games, Abby Crumpton has tallied a team-leading 26 points (nine goals, eight assists). The 26 points tie her with Jessica Limauro (1995-98) for 10th on U-M's single-season points list. Limauro recorded 26 points in 1997 and also holds ninth place on the list with 27 points in 1998. Crumpton led the team last season with 30 points (13 goals, four assists) in 20 games.

Suzie Grech, who posted her 18th career shutout, recorded the first penalty-kick save of her career. It was the first penalty-kick save for the Wolverines since 1996.

Contact: Andrew Ladd (734) 763-4423