U-M Uses Two Goals from Mack, Wouters to Rout No. 23 Fairfield

Sunday, September 16

Ann Arbor, Mich.

Noon

Michigan

(5-3)

Fairfield

(5-3)

Fairfield

Michigan

U-M Uses Two Goals from Mack, Wouters to Rout No. 23 Fairfield

9/16/2012 12:00:00 AM | Field Hockey

Box Score PDF Boxscore

By: Leah Howard

Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Phyllis Ocker Field)
Score: #16 Michigan 5, #23 Fairfield 0
Records: U-M (5-3), Fairfield (5-3)
Next U-M Match: Saturday, Sept. 22 -- at Bucknell (Lewisburg, Pa.), Noon

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Junior Rachael Mack (Bromsgrove, England/Bromsgrove School) and sophomore Axelle Wouters (Antwerp, Belgium/Onze Lieve Vrouwe Antwerp) scored two goals apiece to push the No. 16-ranked University of Michigan field hockey team past No. 23 Fairfield, 5-0, on Sunday afternoon (Sept. 16) at Phyllis Ocker Field. U-M improved to 4-0 at home this season.

For the second time in as many games, U-M scored its first goal late in the first half before overpowering its opposition with a big offensive second half. The Wolverines posted a season-high 20 shots -- 10 in each half -- while holding Fairfield to just three shots in the second. Michigan also outcornered the Stags, 9-3, in the contest.

After just missing on a handful of early scoring opportunities, Michigan broke through at the 28:31 mark following a flurry in the Fairfield circle. The ball was batted around in front of the cage before kicking out to the top left side of the circle, where Wouters wound up and rocketed a low shot to the nearside corner for her second goal of the season.

Michigan added a pair of quick markers after the halftime intermission to cushion its advantage early in the second half. Freshman Aisling Naughton (Goatstown, Ireland/Mount Anville Secondary) set up the first, dribbling the ball in the front before feeding a pass to Mack, who backhanded a shot into the lower left corner at 42:06. Wouters earned her second tally of the game four minutes later, at 46:07, on a rebound goal from the left side of the cage.

Naughton converted on a diving shot for her second goal of the weekend at the 55:31 mark. The play originated from the right side, where freshman Shannon Scavelli (Yorktown, N.Y./Lakeland Shrub Oak HS) dished a pass in front. Junior Michelle Roberts (Pocomoke, Md./Pocomoke HS) stopped the ball but could not control it, and Naughton lunged forward to get her stick on it, chipping it high over sprawling Fairfield goalkeeper Maddy Sposito.

Mack added a late insurance goal in the closing minutes, carrying the ball into the circle along the left-side goal line before pushing it into the far corner at 68:40. The Wolverine junior extended her goal streak to four straight games; she has posted seven goals over the four-game stretch.

Senior/junior goalkeeper Haley Jones (Ann Arbor, Mich./Pioneer HS) stopped Fairfield's lone shot on goal late in the second half to preserve her ninth career shutout, while Sposito made seven saves for the Stags. Sophomore/freshman Adrianna Crovo (Los Angeles, Calif./Harvard-Westlake HS) played the final 9:42 for the Wolverines to earn half the shutout effort; she has appeared in three games this season.

Michigan (5-3) will return to the road next weekend, traveling to Lewisburg, Pa., to face Bucknell at noon at Saturday (Sept. 22) before kicking off Big Ten Conference play against Penn State at noon on Sunday (Sept. 23) in State College, Pa.

GAME SUMMARY

By Periods	1	2	F
Fairfield	0	0	0
Michigan	1	4	5

Scoring, Time (Assist)
1st -- U-M, Axelle Wouters, 28:31 (unassisted)
2nd -- U-M, Rachael Mack, 42:06 (Aisling Naughton)
2nd -- U-M, Wouters, 46:07 (unassisted)
2nd -- U-M, Aisling Naughton, 55:31 (Michelle Roberts)
2nd -- U-M, Mack, 68:40 (unassisted)

Shots: U-M 20, Fairfield 3
Saves: U-M 1 (Haley Jones 1, Adrianna Crovo 0), Fairfield 7 (Maddy Sposito)
Defensive Saves: none
Penalty Corners: U-M 9, Fairfield 3

NOTES

• Today's meeting was the first ever between Michigan and Fairfield. U-M improved to 19-7 all-time against teams from the America East Conference.

• Michigan is 4-0 in games at Ocker Field this season. Last year, the Wolverines went 8-2 at home.

• Junior Rachael Mack upped her career goal total to 40 and moved to sixth among Michigan's all-time leaders in the category, where she is tied with Dawn Kohut (1976-77). She needs four more to reach the fifth spot, currently held by Molly Powers (44, 1999-2002).

• Mack boasts 10 multi-goal games in her career, sophomore Axelle Wouters owns three.

QUOTES

Michigan Head Coach Marcia Pankratz
On the weekend performance ... "The first half of the weekend wasn't very strong. But after the halftime talk yesterday we really pulled it together and played simpler. The structure was better, the basics were better, and we played with more intensity. I was proud of the way we played today -- the full 70 minutes. It was a good match today."

On having Axelle Wouters back in the lineup ... "She's talented, skilled, fast and most importantly, she's experienced. She brings a lot of savvy, smart play and helps the younger kids stay in the right positions. She executes when we really need her to. She plays for the Under-21 team for Belgium and just came off the Junior European Championships. She settled in pretty quickly coming off that tournament. She was a little jetlagged, but she just immediately jumped into practice and games. So, it was a tough transition, but she managed it really well."

On scoring 11 goals this weekend ... "I hope it adds a lot of confidence for the young forwards. We do have some players playing a little out of position, like Shannon Scavelli, who was an unbelievable goal scorer in high school; we have her mostly in the midfield right now due to some injuries. So, there have been some adjustments, but everyone is managing it and it's giving some players opportunities to get in and get some experience."

U-M Junior Rachael Mack
On the weekend ... "We definitely had a good weekend, especially coming off a difficult first half yesterday when we didn't play our best hockey. We all came together and picked it up. We knew we had to pick it up, and we really did that today. It was a really good team performance."

On Michigan's 11 weekend goals ... "It feels great to score lots of goals, and we had a couple good score lines this weekend. As much as I like to score goals, I want the youngsters to score some goals too. They've been stepping up, keeping up with the pace of the game and learning every day in practice and in games. They've done a great job."

U-M Sophomore Axelle Wouters
On today's game ... "I think we learned from our first half yesterday and really picked up the game from the first minute of the first half and kept it up until the end. I think we did great today. As an offense, we talked about how we should lead more and create more options. So, we're still working on adapting as the game goes on. Overall, it was a good game."

On adjusting to being back in the lineup ... "The first two games were pretty hard for me, because everything was so new. They had their preseason and first four games already, and I was pretty tired after the European Championships. But I got to know the freshmen quickly and got comfortable with how they were playing, especially this weekend. I'm doing great."