U-M Cannot Overcome Early Deficit, Falls to No. 2 WFU

Sunday, August 26

Ann Arbor, Mich.

2:00 PM

Michigan

(0-2)

Wake Forest

(1-1)

Wake Forest

Michigan

U-M Cannot Overcome Early Deficit, Falls to No. 2 WFU

8/26/2007 12:00:00 AM | Field Hockey

Box Score PDF Boxscore

By: Leah Howard

Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Phyllis Ocker Field)
Event: Big Ten/ACC Challenge
Score: #2 Wake Forest 3, #12 Michigan 2
Records: U-M (0-2), WFU (1-1)
Next U-M Match: Thursday, Aug. 30 -- vs. Temple (College Park, Md.), 7 p.m.

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The No. 12-ranked University of Michigan field hockey team fell short against No. 2 Wake Forest, losing to the Demon Deacons 3-2 Sunday (Aug. 26) on the second and final day of the Big Ten/ACC Challenge on Phyllis Ocker Field. The Wolverines could not overcome an early first-half deficit and suffered their fifth consecutive sweep at the annual tournament.

The contest opened with a largely defensive effort as play moved up and down the field and both teams were held without a shot through the first 12 minutes. The Demon Deacons, however, quickly built up a two-goal cushion, scoring back-to-back goals on their first two shots of the game. Chelsea Cipriani gave her team the first advantage -- one it would not relinquish -- at the 12:32 mark. Cipriani accepted a cross-field pass from Kim Romansky and redirected it to the bottom left corner of the U-M cage.

Wake Forest converted again less than two minutes later when Raisa Schiller blasted a hard, low shot from the top right side of the Wolverine scoring circle. The smack beat junior/sophomore goalkeeper Paige Pickett (Dallas, Texas/Episcopal School of Dallas) on the near side.

Pressuring late in the first half, the Wolverines found the scoreboard in the closing minutes to cut the Wake Forest advantage to one goal before the halftime intermission. The ball was batted toward the Demon Deacon cage out of a scramble just beyond the scoring circle, and sophomore Kelly Fitzpatrick (Hummelstown, Pa./Palmyra Area HS), who was camped out and left alone inside the circle, handled the bouncing ball and lifted it over charging WFU goalkeeper Crystal Duffield. The mark was Fitzpatrick's first goal of the season.

The Demon Deacons re-established their two-goal edge early in the second frame, scoring on a break-away play at the 39:22 mark. The ball was pushed to midfield, where Romansky corralled it behind the U-M defenders and sprinted unchallenged into the Wolverine scoring circle. Roansky pulled out Pickett on the left side and beat her low.

U-M responded several minutes later, again cutting the lead down to one goal with a successful corner conversion at 48:24. Fifth-year senior captain Kristen Tiner (Houston, Texas/The Kinkaid School), from the top of the WFU circle, rocketed the direct shot through traffic in front to beat Duffield on the ground. Senior Jillianne Whitfield (Costa Mesa, Calif./Newport Harbor HS) and junior Michaela McDermott (Shaker Heights, Ohio/Shaker Heights HS) earned assists on the stop and the push, respectively.

Michigan continued to pressure throughout the remainder of the half and had several late scoring opportunities, including back-to-back penalty corners with time expired, but could not capitalize. For the second day in a row, the Wolverines held corner advantage, 5-4, but were outshot by the Demon Deacons 15-7. Pickett earned five saves in the U-M goal, while Duffield stopped three of Michigan's five shots on goal.

The Wolverines will hit the road later this week, heading to College Park, Md., for a pair of non-conference contests in the Field Hockey & Lacrosse Complex. U-M will square off against Temple Thursday (Aug. 30) at 7 p.m., before facing host Maryland, the two-time defending NCAA champion, Sunday (Sept. 2) at noon.

MATCH SUMMARY

Team	1	2	F
Wake Forest	2	1	3
Michigan	1	1	2

Scoring, Time (Assist)
1st -- WFU, Chelsea Cipriani, 12:32 (Kim Romansky)
1st -- WFU, Raisa Schiller, 14:12 (unassisted)
1st -- U-M, Kelly Fitzpatrick, 28:28 (unassisted)
2nd -- WFU, Romansky, 39:22 (unassisted)
2nd -- U-M, Kristen Tiner, 48:24 (Jillianne Whitfield, Michael McDermott)

Shots: U-M 7, WFU 15
Saves: U-M 5 (Paige Pickett), WFU 3 (Crystal Duffield)
Defensive Saves: U-M 0, WFU 0
Penalty Corners: U-M 5, UNC 4

NOTES

• With today's loss, Michigan falls to 2-9 in the all-time series against Wake Forest. The Wolverines also fall to 1-11 in six years of Big Ten/ACC Challenge competition.

• In tallying her second assist in as many days, junior Michaela McDermott has already registered a career high in the category. McDermott entered the 2007 campaign with one career helper.

• In today's other game of the Big Ten/ACC Challenge, North Carolina earned a 5-2 victory over Iowa.

• Both of Michigan's Big Ten/ACC Challenge contests were taped by the Big Ten Network and will be featured on the channel after its launch on Thursday (Aug. 30). Specific dates and times have not yet been announced.

QUOTES

Michigan Head Coach Nancy Cox
On today's game ... "I'm pleased with the way our group came back, but I'm not very pleased with the way we started. We were resilient and tenacious in the last 10 minutes of the second half. I want resiliency and tenacity from our student-athletes for 70 minutes. Being down 0-2 in the first 14 minutes is a challenge, and I am pleased with how responded to that challenge. But we also need to recognize that we need a sense of urgency from the first whistle to the last whistle. We didn't demonstrate that today."

On Michigan's improvements from the weekend's first to second game ... "As a coach staff, we saw improvement in our forward line and our leading, but we will certainly need to improve quite a bit more. Our young women need to demonstrate individual accountability for taking care of the ball when we're in possession of it and recognizing that in one-on-one situations that we can play with the best teams in the country and eliminate in the best players in the country. Right now, we're going to build on the momentum of today's event -- being down 0-2 and coming back to finish strong -- and the improvements we saw. It's a testimony to Lucia Belassi that we can move her from the backline to midfield to the forward line, and she can make a difference everywhere. We need other Wolverines to step into the leadership role of the program and rise to the occasion for us to excel. We need an entire team to excel."

U-M Senior Forward Lucia Belassi
On Michigan's improvement through the game ... "We just need to start sooner, from the very beginning, with that sharpness and tenacity. We can't wait until the end or until we're down 0-2 to react. I do think we improved our level of play throughout the game, especially by the end of the game, but we waited too long."

On the U-M freshmen ... "They're definitely contributing right away. Since the day Meredith Way stepped on the field, she has been a very solid player. Vanessa (Sekhon) and Zara (Saydjari) have quickly caught on up front. Alica Mayer had stepped up in the back. Tactically, they may not understand very quite yet, but they hustle and work hard. The tactics will come. They're getting there. They're hard workers, so they will get there soon."

U-M Fifth-year Senior Back Kristen Tiner
On the Wolverines' progress this weekend ... "Our defensive footwork was a lot better today. We stayed on our feet better and had better presense in the circle. Of course, we will continue to work on things, and I think, going into this next weekend, it will be a matter of how we build on the progression we saw over these past two games."

On U-M's challenge with the annual Big Ten/ACC event ... "We've lost these two games every year that I've been here. Everyone always ask us why we start with these two tough teams. But it's for this reason -- to get that kick in the pants and realize where we can be, where we are and were we need to go. With the strength of schedule that we have and the games that we force ourselves to play, it just prepares us for our Big Ten season and postseason play. I'm thrilled that we do play these games, and I'm sure that we'll see them again."