Weekly Release #8
4/3/2007 12:00:00 AM | Water Polo
Upcoming Schedule Michelle Keeley needs two more goals to surpass her single-season, career high set last season (24).
Saturday, April 7 -- CWPA League Game at Indiana (Bloomington, Ind.), 2 p.m.
Sat-Sun., April 21-22 -- Western Division Championship (Canham Natatorium)
Sat-Sun., April 28-29 -- Eastern Championship (Princeton, N.J.)
This Week
The No. 17-ranked University of Michigan women's water polo team (20-13) heads to Bloomington, Ind., Saturday (April 7) for a CWPA League match against Indiana at the Hoosiers' Counsilman-Billingsley Aquatic Center. The winner of the contest will earn the top seed at the Western Division Championship Saturday and Sunday, April 21-22, hosted at Canham Natatorium.
Scouting the Opponent
Indiana -- The Hoosiers (14-12) are coming off a 6-0 CWPA League Tournament performance two weeks ago. In 2006, IU placed fifth in the CWPA and runner-up in the Western Division, completing the campaign 24-11 (7-0, Western Division). IU returns 13 letterwinners from that squad, including the team's leading goal scorer, Melissa Soria, who tallied 61 scores and 11 assists. First team CWPA Western Division member Brooke Zimmerman also returns after netting 53 goals and earning 43 helpers last season. Barry King is in his 10th season as head coach of the varsity program and gathered his 200th career victory in a 10-8 win against Brown in the fifth-place game of the 2006 Eastern Championship. Zimmerman and Soria lead the Indiana offense again this season; Zimmerman is ranked 20th in the nation in goals (45) and Soria ranks 22nd (44). U-M won its 20th game in the all-time series with IU at the Michigan Kick-Off on Jan. 27-28, downing the Hoosiers 12-7 to improve to 20-4-1 in meetings between the two schools.
Indiana on the Web: iuhoosiers.com.
Welch Still Atop Wolverines in Scoring
Senior Shana Welch (Larksville, Pa./Wyoming Valley West) scored eight goals at the ASU Invitational (March 31-April 1) to lead the Wolverines in scoring for the second straight weekend. She also earned four assists in those four games. As a result, Welch, who ranks second on U-M in assists (37), upped her 2007 point total to 109 and goal total to 72 -- both of which are tops on the squad. Her 109 points are also the most in any season by a Wolverine in school history, besting her own previous school-record mark of 102 from last season.
Hyrne is Unstoppable in Sophomore Season
Sophomore Julie Hyrne (Sunnyvale, Calif./Archbishop Mitty), who is currently riding a season-best 19-game goal streak, has scored 67 goals this season after netting 38 in 38 games during her rookie season. Hyrne has nearly doubled her point total of 57 from last season, tallying 96 points in 33 games this season. That point total ranks second on the team.
Welch, Hyrne as Consistent as They Come
Shana Welch and Julie Hyrne have each earned points in every game they have played in this season. Each athlete has also scored in all but one game in 2007. Hyrne has played in 33 games, while Welch has played in 32.
Ellison Saves Best for Last
Senior Wesley Ellison (Portola Valley, Calif./Palo Alto) has tallied 31 points on 20 goals and 11 helpers thus far in her senior season. All three of those totals are single-season career highs. Meanwhile, Ellison needs just four more points to reach 100 for her career.
Chatigny Lending Helping Hand, Continues to Shine
Sophomore Mary Chatigny (Palm Springs, Calif./Palm Springs) continues to work her way up the record books with her team-leading 39 assists. She currently ranks third for the most assists in a season by a U-M player, and Chatigny is six assists shy of tying Erin Brown (2002-05) for second on the list (43, 2004).
Robertson Tops Among Freshman in Points
Freshman Leah Robertson (Newport Beach, Calif./Newport Harbor) surpassed the 50-point mark on the season after earning an assist in every game at the ASU Invitational (March 31-April 1). Robertson's 53 points (21 g, 32 a) are tops among U-M rookies and ranks fourth on the team; her 32 helpers rank third.
Best Ever Offense for 2007 Wolverines
Michigan has netted 363 goals this season, putting the team within striking distance of the program record of 399 for a season set in 2006. U-M broke the points assists record during the ASU Invitational (March 31-April 1). Michigan has 706 points and 343 assists on the season, breaking the 2006 records of 700 points and 341 assists.
U-M Loves First and Third Stanzas
The Wolverines hold a plus-38 (100-62) scoring advantage in the opening period of play this season and fare even better to start the second half, compiling a plus-39 (105-66) margin in the third period. U-M has a plus-10 (79-69) margin in the second and plus-18 (79-61) in the fourth.
Wolverines Love Gettin' Tricky
Michigan has tallied 32 hat tricks in 2007, including 18 performances of four or more goals. U-M hat trick totals: Julie Hyrne 10, Shana Welch 9, Mary Chatigny 3, Leah Robertson 2, Carrie Frost 2, Farren Rixter 2, Casie Kelly 1, Sarah Davila 1, Michelle Keeley 1, Allison Gorine 1. Welch owns a program-best 58 career hat tricks.
Did You Know
Freshman Terri Bukofzer (Vernon Hills, Ill./Stevenson), sophomores Mary Chatigny and Julie Hyrne and junior Michelle Keeley (Rockford, Mich./Rockford) are the only Wolverines to have seen time in every game this season.
Wolverine Streaks
Point Streaks
Mary Chatigny -- three games (one goal and three assists)
Julie Hyrne -- 33 games (67 goals and 29 assists)
Leah Robertson -- six games (one goal and six assists)
Shana Welch -- 32 games (72 goals and 37 assists)
Goal Streaks
Julie Hyrne -- 19 games (44 goals)
Shana Welch -- 10 games (29 goals)
Assist Streaks
Leah Robertson -- four games (four assists)
Milestone Watch
Shana Welch needs one assist to take over sole possession of third place on U-M's career assists list. She is currently tied with Megan Hausmann (2003-06) for third with 91 career helpers.
Wesley Ellison is four points from 100 in her career.
Mary Chatigny is 10 helpers shy of tying the program record of 49 held by Jo Antonsen (2002-05).
Julie Hyrne is four points from 100 on the season, which would place her third all-time for points in a season and two within Welch's 2006 total of 102.
Hyrne needs five goals to crack the top five in career goals. After scoring 38 times as a freshman and netting 67 this season, Hyrne has posted 105 scores in her career, which is four shy of Erin Brown (2002-05) for fifth on the career goals list at Michigan.
Welch Breaks Own School Record as U-M Earns Fourth at ASU Invite
The Maize and Blue placed fourth this past weekend at the ASU Invitational (March 31-April 1). U-M opened the weekend with a 7-5 win over Cal Baptist on Saturday behind a hat trick from senior Shana Welch. After a one-game rest, Michigan built a 2-0 lead against No. 4 San Diego State, but began to feel the ill effects of the short rest, allowing nine straight goals in a 13-5 loss. In Sunday's championship round, Michigan fell in two close matches. In the semifinal game against No. 11 Arizona State, the Wolverines let a 4-2 lead slip away in a 5-4 loss to the host Sun Devils. In the final game of the weekend against No. 12 UC Santa Barbara, Michigan fought back from an early deficit, but ran out of time in a 9-7 loss. Sophomore goalkeeper Kristen Davis (Villa Park, Calif./Villa Park) kept U-M in the game versus the Gauchos, tying a career high with 11 saves.
Welch led the team on the weekend with eight goals and four assists to increase her point total for the year to 109, breaking her own school record for points in a season, which she set last year (102).
The Anderson Files
Head coach Matt Anderson is in his fifth season at the helm of the University of Michigan water polo program. In his five seasons at Michigan, Anderson has brought a hard-nosed playing philosophy and a defensive intensity to the Wolverines that have led to a 130-58 (.691) record and a quartet of CWPA Division titles. In his first season as the head coach of Michigan water polo, Anderson led the program to a 22-10 record, a third-place finish at the Eastern Championships and its second straight Southern Division crown. In 2004, Anderson guided Michigan to a school-record 30 victories as well as setting records in points (665), assists (291) and goals against average (4.61). Anderson also coached U-M to its third consecutive CWPA Division Championship crown, earning CWPA Western Division Coach of the Year honors. In 2005, Anderson led U-M to Western Division Championship and Eastern Championship titles and the program's first NCAA Championship win. He also was named Eastern Championship Coach of the Year in 2005.
Last season, Anderson coached U-M to its third straight Eastern Championship final and a 29-12 record, marking his third straight season with 29 or more wins. He also earned his 100th career win at Michigan in a 15-6 win against Slippery Rock on March 19. Anderson was named CWPA Western Division Coach of the Year for the third year in a row after winning the program's fifth straight division title in a thrilling 4-3 win over Indiana in the finals of the Western Division Championship.
On the Horizon ...
Michigan will take a week off after the regular-season finale versus IU and will return to the pool April 21-22 to host the CWPA Western Division Championship at Canham Natatorium.
Contact: Matt Baumer (734) 763-4423
