Wolverines Defeat Richmond on Late Penalty Corner

Friday, September 8

Norfolk, Va.

6:00 PM

Michigan

(2-4)

Richmond

(2-1)

Michigan

Richmond

9/8/2006 12:00:00 AM | Field Hockey

Box Score PDF Boxscore

By: Leah Howard

Site: Norfolk, Va. (Foreman Field)
Score: #20 Michigan 3, #19 Richmond 2
Records: U-M (2-4), Richmond (2-1)
Next U-M Match: Sunday, Sept. 10 -- at Old Dominion (Norfolk, Va.), 2 p.m.

NORFOLK, Va. -- The No. 20-ranked University of Michigan field hockey team converted on a penalty corner with less than three minutes remaining in regulation to claim a 3-2 victory against No. 19 Richmond on Friday evening (Sept. 8) at Old Dominion's Foreman Field.

Senior/junior striker Kristen Tiner (Houston, Texas/The Kinkaid School) blasted a hard shot from the top of the Spider circle to beat Richmond goalkeeper Becca Weaver low and claim her second goal in as many games off the U-M penalty corner. The tally gave the Wolverines their first advantage of the game at the 67:14 mark, and they held on to claim their second consecutive win. Senior captain Mary Fox (St. Louis, Mo./Cor Jesu Academy) extended her scoring streak to three games with the push, while junior Jillianne Whitfield (Costa Mesa, Calif./Newport Harbor HS) also earned an assist with the stop.

After Richmond scored early in the first half and early in the second, the Wolverines twice rallied from one-goal deficits to keep the contest close. Sophomore Stephanie Hoyer (Englewood, Colo./Cherry Creek HS) scored both game-tying goals -- her first and second markers of the season -- to register the third multi-point effort of her collegiate career.

The Spiders climbed onto the scoreboard just 4:12 into opening frame as Lindsey Conrad sailed a low shot past Wolverine goalkeeper Beth Riley (Palmyra, Pa./Palmyra Area HS) from the left side of the U-M striking circle. Teammate Heather Wrublesky set up the play at the top of the circle, moving around a Michigan defender before passing the ball to Conrad.

Hoyer secured her first tally midway through the first half -- at the 20:29 mark -- to knot the score at one goal apiece, where it would stand through the halftime intermission. Senior/junior captain Eleanor Martin (Anchorage, Ky./Louisville Collegiate School) drew Weaver out of position before dishing the ball to Hoyer, who was stationed near the right post and redirected it past the sprawling Spider goalkeeper.

Richmond retook the lead early in the second half when Shannon Taylor rocketed a low shot from the top of the circle at the 38:14 mark, but the Wolverines responded instantly as Hoyer scored her second tally of the contest just 39 seconds later. As U-M flurried around the Spider striking circle, junior Ashley Lennington (Carilsle, Pa./Carlisle HS) pulled the ball out of the congestion and fed it to Hoyer, who slammed it past Weaver for her second tally of the game.

Michigan outshot the Spiders 12-8 in the contest but was narrowly outcornered 9-8 as Richmond drew seven opportunities in the second half. Riley earned three saves to claim her second consecutive win in the U-M cage, while Weaver made three saves and the Spider backfield earned an additional three defensive saves.

The Wolverines will wrap up the road series on Sunday (Sept. 10) when they square off against No. 3-ranked Old Dominion in a 2 p.m. contest at the Monarchs' Foreman Field.

MATCH SUMMARY

Team	1	2	F
Michigan	1	2	3
Richmond	1	1	2

Scoring, Time (Assist)
1st -- UR, Lindsey Conrad, 4:12 (Heather Wrublesky)
1st -- U-M, Stephanie Hoyer, 20:29 (Eleanor Martin)
2nd -- UR, Shannon Taylor, 38:12 (unassisted)
2nd -- U-M, Hoyer, 38:53 (Ashley Lennington)
2nd -- U-M, Kristen Tiner, 67:14 (Mary Fox, Jillianne Whitfield)

Shots: U-M 12, UR 8
Saves: U-M 3 (Beth Riley), UR 3 (Becca Weaver)
Defensive Saves: U-M 0, UR 3
Penalty Corners: U-M 8, UR 9
Penalty Strokes: None

NOTES

• Tonight's match marked the Wolverines' first-ever meeting with Richmond. With the victory, they improved their all-time record against teams from the Atlantic 10 Conference to 14-6-1.

• Michigan has outshot its opposition in four consecutive games this season.

• Sophomore Ashley Lennington earned her first career assist when she helped with Stephanie Hoyer's second tally. Lennington owns one career goal, which she registered during her freshman season.

• Senior/junior Kristen Tiner's game-winning goal was the second of her collegiate career. Last season, she registered the game-winner against Penn State of the penalty corner as U-M upset the Nittany Lions 2-1 in the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament.

QUOTES

Michigan Head Coach Nancy Cox
On the game ... "It was an exciting game for the Wolverines tonight. It was a fun game to watch, and I'm sure the parents and fans enjoyed it. I think the take-away message from the game was the improvement in our ball speed through our backfield and our midfield. Our forwards, with their perseverance and tenacity to the ball, also markedly improved. Richmond is a good team, and tonight Michigan was better."

On the Wolverines' penalty corner ... "We're not quite where we want to be, but we're certainly moving in the right direction with our execution. Ideally we want to be 20-25 percent, but we're getting closer. The details and the specifics are coming along."

On sophomore Stephanie Hoyer ... "What impresses me most about Stephanie Hoyer is that she is taking the ball on the move at speed, and she needs to continue to do that. She has the gift of exceptional foot speed and tonight was really able to use it. She was able to trap the ball and move forward with it, and she was able to find the right spot at the right time for that second goal."

On Michigan's leaders ... "Our senior leadership really stepped up in this match. Kara Lentz played a huge role, and her corner strike hit the post twice. She was within a quarter inch on two of making that game a 5-2 match."

U-M Senior/Junior Midfielder Kristen Tiner
On the U-M penalty corner ... "We have been focusing a lot of practice time on our corners, especially working on getting the basic skills down. We devoted a lot of time this week, and we scored on one Wednesday, and we scored on one today. So, I think our flood gates are open now. By the end of last season, we really had them down and they were definitely a threat. I think we're just working back to that level with our new personnel."

On Michigan's momentum into Sunday's game at Old Dominion ... "I think these last two have been a great couple games to prepare us for the Old Dominion match. There is a great history between our teams, and we were left with a sour taste in our mouths after they ended our season last year. It will definitely be a great game on Sunday."

U-M Sophomore Forward Stephanie Hoyer
On today's victory ... "Just having a winning streak in general has really added to our confidence. You have to start somewhere, and this is a great place to start with a win over a ranked Richmond team. We definitely feel good about the win, because we played a lot better. It can only get better from here, so we're excited. One of our new themes is 'fight like a Michigan athlete and play like a Michigan athlete,' which is tenacious, never giving up and being relentless. That's one of our goals for the season. Tonight was a great game for our team, because the whole time we were relentless and just didn't give up."

On the Wolverines' strength of speed ... "We have great speed on the forward line; we also have great speed in the midfield. That definitely gives us a good edge. We're already getting used to playing with each other, so we're all really excited to see where we can go, especially with our speed."