Michigan
Ohio State
Powers Scores Twice as U-M Ups Win Streak to Seven
9/27/2002 12:00:00 AM | Field Hockey
Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Ocker Field)
Score: #2 Michigan 4, #19 Ohio State 1
Records: U-M (8-1, 1-0 Big Ten), OSU (4-5, 0-1 Big Ten)
Next U-M Match: Saturday, Sept. 28 -- vs. Boston University (Ocker Field), 2 p.m.
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The No. 2-ranked University of Michigan field hockey team opened Big Ten Conference play in fine fashion on Friday afternoon (Sept. 27) at Ocker Field, downing No. 19 Ohio State by a 4-1 margin. Senior forward Molly Powers (Oak Park, Ill./Oak Park-River Forest HS) scored two goals in the win as the Wolverines extended their winning streak to seven games and defeated Ohio State for the first time since 2000. Last season, U-M fell to the Buckeyes in both meetings, including the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament.
Michigan held the Buckeyes to nine shots while registering 16 and limited the Buckeyes to just one penalty corner. U-M took 10 penalty corners, two of which resulted in goals.
The Wolverines took a quick lead when junior defender Stephanie Johnson (Houston, Texas/The Kinkaid School) scored on a penalty corner 13:44 into the contest. Sophomore defender Kate Dillon (Grand Rapids, Mich./Forest Hills Central HS) took the push from sophomore midfielder Katy Moyneur (Escondido, Calif./San Pasqual HS), allowed junior defender Kristi Gannon (Escondido, Calif./San Pasqual HS) to fake a shot, then fed the ball to the left for Johnson, who ripped a shot that beat OSU netminder Kara Koole on her stick side.
Michigan made it 2-0 with less than a minute to go in the first half when senior forward/midfielder Jessica Rose (Lititz, Pa./Warwick HS) swiped a shot from her stomach into the left side of the cage. Junior forward April Fronzoni (Larksville, Pa./Wyoming Valley West HS) set her up, feeding a crossing pass from the right side of the circle.
Ohio State's Jenee Doto cut the lead in half just under two minutes into the second half when she split two Michigan defenders and waited for sophomore goalkeeper Molly Maloney (Lake Bluff, Ill./Lake Forest HS) to commit before sliding the ball under Maloney's pads for the score. The Wolverines answered just under five minutes later at 41:21 when Powers netted the first of her two markers, intercepting a free hit from outside the OSU circle and flipping the ball past an unsuspecting Koole.
Powers put the game away at 66:27 when she tipped in a shot from Gannon off a Michigan penalty corner.
Maloney stopped six shots en route to her career-high eighth win, while Koole halted five of Michigan's nine shots on goal.
Michigan will continue its school-record nine-game homestand on Saturday (Sept. 28) when it hosts Boston University in a non-conference affair. Game time is slated for 2 p.m. at Ocker Field.
MATCH SUMMARY
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
| Ohio State | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Michigan | 2 | 2 | 4 |
Scoring, Time (Assist)
1st -- U-M, Stephanie Johnson, 13:44 (Kate Dillon, Katy Moyneur)
1st -- U-M, Jessica Rose, 34:06 (April Fronzoni)
2nd -- OSU, Jenee Doto, 36:51 (unassisted)
2nd -- U-M, Molly Powers, 41:21 (unassisted)
2nd -- U-M, Powers, 66:27 (Kristi Gannon)
Shots: U-M 16, OSU 9
Saves: U-M 6 (Molly Maloney), OSU 5 (Kara Koole)
Defensive Saves: U-M 0, OSU 0
Penalty Corners: U-M 10, OSU 1
Penalty Strokes: U-M 0, OSU 0
QUOTES
Michigan Head Coach Marcia Pankratz
On her thoughts on the game ... "I'm certainly happy. We came out winning our first Big Ten match against Ohio State. They beat us twice last year so it's nice to be able to rebound from that. We have some more work to do so that is something to pay attention to. Hopefully, we can elevate our game a little bit more for the game against Boston University tomorrow."
On how important each game is in Big Ten play ... "It's really important to be ready for every game. We try to take them one game at a time, so to get Ohio State as a win under our belt is really important. So we're happy for that."
On the importance of the Boston University game tomorrow ... "It's important to get some of our players rested, to work out a couple of kinks and get organized for Big Tens. Certainly, playing an outer-region team is important for us in the national rankings so we're going to try to do the best we can."
U-M Senior Forward Molly Powers
On beating OSU after going 0-2 last season against the Buckeyes ... "It feels really good. It's something that we've pretty much been thinking about for a year. It feels good to make some amends, especially with it being my senior year and beating them at home."
On her goal-scoring prowess of late ... "The first one, Katy Moyneur made a great effort in the circle to keep the ball in play. She saved the ball and got it to me on my reverse side so I just thought I'd put it on cage. The tip-in was just a matter of the ball popping free in the circle on the corner and Kristi Gannon made a good shot on it and I just tipped it past the goalie. Really, it was just a finishing touch. It was my teammates the whole way that pretty much set me up."
On the importance of winning at home, specifically in the Big Ten season ... "Being at home is a great advantage. There's nothing like play with the crowd, and when there's a big crowd you're so much more motivated and there's so much more energy. I think it's really an advantage and it's something that we should capitalize on with these three games that we have at home."
NOTES
• Michigan has won seven straight overall and is 7-0 at home this season.
• Molly Powers posted her third multi-goal game of the season and has eight goals in her last six games.
• Powers moved into sole possession of seventh place on Michigan's career goal-scoring chart with her 37th career marker, breaking the tie with Marty Maugh (1980-83), who had 35.
• Powers also moved into eighth place on U-M's career points list with her 82nd, passing Dawn Kohut (1976-77), who has 80.
• Stephanie Johnson has at least one goal in each of her last seven games. Johnson, who has nine goals during that stretch, is two markers away from matching her career high of 11, set last year.
• Jessica Rose netted her fourth goal of the season, surpassing her goal total from last year (3).
• Molly Maloney established a career high for wins in a season with her eighth victory.
