Wolverines Fall Short in Upset Bid of No. 1 Maryland

Sunday, October 3

Ann Arbor, Mich.

1:00 PM

Michigan

(7-5)

Maryland

(10-1)

Maryland

Michigan

10/3/2010 12:00:00 AM | Field Hockey

Box Score PDF Boxscore

By: Kent Reichert

Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Ocker Field)
Score: #1 Maryland 4, #19 Michigan 3
Records: U-M (7-5), Maryland (10-1)
Next U-M Match: Friday, Oct. 8 -- vs. Miami University (Ocker Field), 4 p.m.

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The No. 19-ranked University of Michigan field hockey team had its seven-game winning streak come to a halt in a 4-3 to No. 1 Maryland on Sunday afternoon (Oct. 3) at Ocker Field. The No. 19 Wolverines twice cut the deficit to one in the second half but were unable to get the equalizer.

Rachael Mack

The Terrapins took a lead 12 seconds into the game when Katie O'Donnell registered an unassisted goal. Within minutes, Michigan was awarded a penalty corner and responded with a goal of its own. Redshirt junior Katie Adams (Hudson, Ohio/Hudson) pushed the ball in play to redshirt senior Paige Laytos (Lititz, Pa./Warwick), who stick-stopped. Senior Meredith Way (Litiz, Pa./Warwick) fired a shot at the Terrapin goalkeeper and senior Alicia Mayer (Selinsgrove, Pa./Selinsgrove) finished the play, putting Way's blocked shot inside the right post.

Maryland put up two more goals in the first half as O'Donnell fired a shot from five yards away and Jemma Buckley put one in off a direct penalty corner. The Wolverines trailed 3-1 going into the intermission.

Wasting no time, the Maize and Blue decreased its goal deficit 3:50 into the second half. Junior Bryn Bain (Berlin, N.J./Eastern Regional) took control of the ball from a Terrapin defender and swept a backhanded shot, which was deflected in by senior Vanessa Sekhon (West Vancouver, B.C./Collingwood), cutting the Terrapin advantage to 3-2.

However, O'Donnell produced a hat trick, giving Maryland a temporary two-goal cushion. U-M then responded when freshman Rachael Mack (Bromsgrove, England/Bromsgrove School) scored from just inside the circle off a corner push from Adams with 2:45 left in the contest.

With 40 seconds remaining in the game, the Wolverines had a final opportunity to send the game to overtime when they were awarded a penalty corner, but U-M was unable to put in the tying goal as Mack's hit was saved by Natalie Hunter, her third block of the game.

The Wolverines look to rebound when they take on Miami University on Friday afternoon (Oct. 8) at 4 p.m. at Ocker Field.

GAME SUMMARY

By Periods	1	2	F
Maryland	3	1	4
Michigan	1	2	3

Scoring, Time (Assist)
1st -- MD, Katie O'Donnell, 0:12 (unassisted)
1st -- U-M, Alicia Mayer, 2:44 (unassisted)
1st -- MD, O'Donnell, 8:31 (Hayley Turner)
1st -- MD, Jemma Buckley, 20:35 (Janessa Pope, Harriett Tibble)
2nd -- U-M, Vanessa Sekhon, 38:50 (Bryn Bain)
2nd -- MD, O'Donnell, 42:56 (Ali McEvoy)
2nd -- U-M, Rachael Mack, 67:15 (Katie Adams)

Shots: U-M 9, MD 12
Saves: U-M 5 (Haley Jones), MD 3 (Natalie Hunter)
Defensive Saves: U-M 0, MD 0
Penalty Corners: U-M 6, MD 7

NOTES

• Freshman Rachael Mack and senior Alicia Mayer both scored in the same game for the third time this season.

• The three Wolverine goals are the most scored by the Maize and Blue against Maryland in program history. U-M had scored two goals on three separate occasions against the Terps.

• Maryland head coach Missy Meharg picked up her 400th win as a collegiate head coach.

• Redshirt freshman Haley Jones now has 23 saves in the last four games.

• Mayer now has seven goals on the season, which ties her output of last season. She now has 19 career goals.

QUOTES

Michigan Head Coach Marcia Pankratz
On Maryland's quick first goal ... "This is the first time this has ever happened to our program [being scored on in the first 12 seconds]. We've done it to a lot of other teams in the past, but this is the first time it has ever happened to us. I was really proud of our team for hanging in there and playing hard all the way to the end."

On finishing within one goal of No. 1 Maryland ... "Maryland was really competitive. It wasn't even an A game for us. It was probably a C game for us and we still battled to 4-3. That's what hockey is about and we're excited to take on the challenge here and it's going to make us better coming down the stretch."

On improvements ... "We can always get better. We can be sharper in our corners. But three goals against the number-one team in the nation are pretty darn good. We're just going to use that to move forward and get better for the Big Ten Tournament."

On looking forward to the remainder of the season ... "It's an awful lot of hockey to play, so having this in the middle to make us sharper and better is really going to help us down the stretch. There are a lot of games to be played and we're looking forward to Miami on Friday."