2004 WPW hosts Division Championship -- Day 1 Notes & Quotes
4/17/2004 12:00:00 AM | Water Polo
Q U O T E S
Michigan Head Coach Matt Anderson
On the first day of the tournament ... "The only negative thing is that the two teams we played today did not give us the same kind of test that the Top 10 team we play tomorrow will. On the flip side, Indiana had to play a couple of teams that didn't really push them either. It is a little bit of a lull situation. Our team doesn't want to overdo it to the point that the other team gets frustrated and we get hurt by a cheap shot. We want to make sure we don't do too much and spread the wealth a little. Finding our groove is just a little bit harder."
On preparing for Indiana having faced the Hoosiers twice already ... "We knew we would face Indiana. It is one of those things where we prepared all week for Indiana for what we were going to do. I am not the type of coach that is going to try and break down the other team. We are just going to do what we do well and we are going to be ready for what they may try to do differently from what they did in the past."
On the goaltending situation ... "Right now our goaltending situation is the best in the nation. Our future is bright because we have Betsey (Armstrong) coming back next year. This is also the type of seasoning that Sharon (Warner) needs to do to be ready to take over the reins as Betsey finishes her career."
On the offense today ... "Shana (Welch) had a hat trick in three minutes, maybe the fastest hat trick in Michigan history. She totaled maybe 11 minutes of playing time today and was six-for-six on shooting and could have had more. The is just phenomenal. She still needs to improve on defense, but other than that, she is coming along."
On facing an tougher Indiana defense ... "We know we can score. Our biggest concern is not how many goals we score but how we play defense. We want to make sure that we don't get so focused on scoring the ball that we don't give it up on the defensive end. We are confident that if we score four goals we can win the game."
Michigan Freshman Driver Shana Welch
On Michigan's two games ... "I think it went really great today. We came in here with a good attitude and expected to have a great day and to get ready for tomorrow's championship game. We were really focused coming in today. We knew what we wanted to do and now we are ready for tomorrow."
On if there was anything negative about the games today ... "I think it was pretty a positive experience. Everyone did what they were supposed to. There were maybe times when we might have had a problem here or there, but we fixed them. We got in there and cleared up everything that we are going to have to do for tomorrow, and I think we are really ready."
On facing Indiana in a playoff atmosphere ... "Obviously we have improved over the season. There are different things that Indiana does that we have been watching all year. We are ready tomorrow to do what we usually do. We are just really focused to go in tomorrow and take all the experiences that we have had this year and we are going to use them tomorrow to our benefit."
On the season so far ... "We are really excited. We have had a great season. I believe today we broke our team record for having the most wins in a season with 27. It has been a really great year. We are looking to have some great wins in the next couple of weeks. The program has definitely improved in the last couple of years, and this program has only been around for four years. I think it is a great program and it is only going to improve more. We are looking to win our next couple of games in the next week and hopefully make it to the Final Four and maybe win some games there."
N O T E S
With a pair of wins today, Michigan boosted their season win total to 27 to set a school record. The previous record was 25 wins, which the Wolverines posted in 2002 when they went to the NCAA Final Four.
Shana Welch scored six goals today to set a Michigan record with 49 goals this season. Welch scored a hat trick in each of the Wolverines' games today and now has 10 hat tricks this season.
Melissa Goldberg tied a Michigan record with five steals against Washington & Jefferson.
Julie Nisbet drew one ejection against Washington & Jefferson to reach 200 drawn ejections in her career. Nisbet, the Wolverines' career leader in drawn ejections, is just one drawn kick-out shy of tying her own Michigan season record with 56 drawn ejections.
Jo Antonsen scored her first hat trick of the season with three goals against Washington & Jefferson. Antonsen now has five hat tricks in her career.
Betsey Armstrong posted her 18th game this season with 10 or more saves with 12 stops against Washington & Jefferson, including the 900th save of her career. Armstrong now has 50 games in her career with 10 or more saves.
Erin Brown tied a career high with four assists against Salem International. Brown finished the day with five assists to become the first Michigan player to hand out 40 assists in a season.
Stephanie Rupp had her the first multi-assist game of her career with two helpers against Salem International.
