Michigan
8-2-1
Notre Dame
7-1-2
Wolverines Blanked by No. 3 Fighting Irish in Road Loss
10/3/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Boxscore
SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- The 16th-ranked University of Michigan men's soccer team was shut out for the first time this season in a 3-0 loss to No. 3 Notre Dame on Wednesday (Oct. 3) at Alumni Field. It was a tale of two halves as the Irish did all of their damage in the first stanza before being held scoreless by the Wolverines throughout the second half.
The Irish started scoring early when forward Ryan Miller intercepted a pass and sprinted into the defense, shooting the ball into the right corner of the goal at 6:42 to put the Irish up 1-0.
Two consecutive corner kicks by junior midfielder Jake Stacy (Grand Rapids, Mich./Forest Hills Central) were both cleared by Notre Dame around the 11-minute mark. A minute later, sophomore forward Peri Marosevic (Rockford, Ill./Edison Academy) had the ball alone while sprinting toward the goal, but an Irish defender caught up with him and cleared the opportunity.
In the middle of the first half, Notre Dame took advantage of a free kick. After junior/sophomore goalkeeper Patrick Sperry (Hinsdale, Ill./Hinsdale Central) blocked the first two shots off the set piece, the Irish got a third chance off Sperry's second stop and kicked a goal past his outstretched arms into the top right corner to put the Irish up 2-0 at 20:22.
At 28:14, Miller scored his second goal of the night with a shot to the left side of the goal.
Michigan's best chance to score during the first half occured when junior forward Steve Bonnell (St. Clair Shores/Country Day) shot the ball from the six-yard box, sending it wide right. Bonnell had another opportunity off a free kick late in the first half but the shot was blocked by an Irish defender.
The Wolverines started the second half aggressively. At 48:30, freshman defender Alex Wood (Northville, Mich./Northville) sent a perfect cross to the left side of the net, but senior/junior midfielder Steve Hecker (Portage, Mich./Portage Northern) headed the ball high. Minutes later, Mauro Fuzetti (Houston, Texas/Stratford) sent a shot off a set piece to the left of the net, but the 6-foot-6 Irish goalkeeper made a diving stop to prevent the score.
The Wolverines created plenty of opportunities in the rest of the half but were unable to cash in and failed to score for the first time all year.
Michigan will face St. John's next Wednesday (Oct. 10) in Queens, N.Y. The match will begin at 7:30 p.m.
GAME SUMMARY
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
| Michigan | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Notre Dame | 3 | 0 | 3 |
Scoring, Time (Assist)
1st -- ND, Ryan Miller, 6:42 (unassisted)
1st -- ND, Cory Rellas, 20:22 (unassisted)
1st -- ND, Miller, 28:14 (unassisted)
Shots: U-M 16, ND 17
Saves: U-M 6 (Patrick Sperry), ND 7 (Chris Cahill)
Corner Kicks: U-M 6, ND 6
Fouls: U-M 13, ND 14
Cards: ND, Michael Thomas, 42:55 (yellow); U-M, Michael Holody, 84:32 (yellow); U-M, Julian Robles, 86:24 (yellow)
N O T E S
Michigan suffered its its first non-conference loss and first away loss of the season against the Irish. The Wolverines are now 3-1-0 away from the U-M Soccer Field and 8-1-0 in non-conference action.
The 3-0 loss at Notre Dame marks the first time Michigan has been shut out since ending te 2006 season with a 1-0 loss to Ohio State in the Big Ten Tournament (Nov. 3, 2006).
The Wolverines are now 0-3 all-time against Notre Dame and have been outscored 8-0 in the series.
Q U O T E S
Michigan Head Coach Steve Burns
On what happened in the first half ... "We wanted to see if we had the mentality on our team to be a pressing team, and I think that question got answered. We got exposed when we made a couple of mistakes, and good teams make you pay for mistakes."
On being shut out ... "I think you have to give credit to Notre Dame. They're a team that is very organized, and when you have that good level of organization, it's tough to break them down."
On not playing again for a week ... "I think it's helpful. This was our fourth game in nine days. That's very difficult to do; it's the most difficult part in our schedule."
On the next game ... "It hurts to lose, but losing to good teams is part of the sport experience. Now we go and play another good team on the road. We keep at it."
Contact: Stacey Schwartz (734) 763-4423
Team Stats
MILLER, Ryan
intercepted pass, took it all the way, b
6:42
RELLAS, Cory
Assisted By: TRAYNOR, Jack , BESLER, Matt
GOAL by ND RELLAS, Cory, Assist by TRAYNOR, Jack and BESLER, Matt.
20:22
MILLER, Ryan
blasted it in the left side
28:14
