Wolverines Host ACC/Big Ten Challenge to Kick Off 2019 Season

» No. 7-ranked Michigan opens the 2019 season -- its 47th of intercollegiate competition -- at home, when it hosts the annual ACC/Big Ten Challenge this weekend, taking on No. 1 North Carolina on Friday (Aug. 30) at 6 p.m. and No. 10 Wake Forest on Sunday (Sept. 1) at 11:30 a.m. at Ocker Field.
» The Wolverines own an all-time record of 21-24-1 in season openers and have won two of the last three openers against UNC at the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.
» Michigan returns 18 letterwinners this fall and nearly 65 percent of its goal production from 2018, including All-Americans Meg Dowthwaite and Guadalupe Fernandez Lacort.

THIS WEEK
Fri-Sun., Aug. 30-Sept. 1 -- host ACC/Big Ten Challenge
Friday, Aug. 30 -- vs. North Carolina (Phyllis Ocker Field), 6 p.m.
TV: BTN+ | Live Stats | Live Video
Sunday, Sept. 1 -- vs. Wake Forest (Phyllis Ocker Field), 11:30 a.m.
TV: BTN+ | Live Stats | Live Video

• Digital Program (PDF)

• Social Media: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
• Game Day Information: Phyllis Ocker Field | Free Admission

PROMOTIONS
• Aug. 30: Team poster and schedule cups giveaway, postgame shots on goal
• Sept. 1: Koozie giveaway, Kids Go Blue Club Day, Kid's Zone
• Full Promotions Schedule

The No. 7-ranked University of Michigan field hockey team (0-0) will open its 47th season of intercollegiate competition at home this weekend when it hosts the annual ACC/Big Ten Challenge at Phyllis Ocker Field. The Wolverines will open the tournament against No. 1 North Carolina (0-0) -- the defending NCAA champion -- at 6 p.m. on Friday (Aug. 29) before wrapping up with an 11:30 a.m. slate against No. 10 Wake Forest (0-0) on Sunday (Sept. 1).

Michigan hosts the ACC/Big Ten Challenge for the fifth time in the event's history and first time since 2015. Now in its 18th season, the ACC/Big Ten Challenge has proven to be the premiere early-season field hockey tournament on the collegiate slate. All four participating schools -- U-M, Iowa, North Carolina and Wake Forest -- have combined to win 43 conference titles and 22 national championships.

Iowa will face Wake Forest at 3:30 p.m. on Friday and North Carolina at 2 p.m. on Sunday to round out this weekend's ACC/Big Ten Challenge slate.

Wolverine Bites

• Michigan owns an all-time record of 21-24-1 in season openers. The Wolverines have kicked off the season against North Carolina in 16 of the last 17 seasons and have won two of the last three meetings against the Tar Heels. Last season, Michigan fell to UNC, 5-1, after it took the initial lead in its opener and also sacrificed a second-half lead to fall to Wake Forest, 3-2, the next day at the ACC/Big Ten Challenge in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

• Senior forward Meg Dowthwaite and senior midfielder Guadalupe Fernandez Lacort and sophomore goalkeeper Anna Spieker were named to the Big Ten Conference's 2019 Preseason Honors list. [ Full List ]

• The Wolverines welcome seven newcomers to the 2019 squad -- three forwards, two midfielders, a back and a goalkeeper. Freshman forward Sarah Pyrtek particularly stood out in Michigan's preseason scrimmages with two goals in the Ohio State slate on Sunday (Aug. 25).

• Michigan returns 18 letterwinners this season, including nine players who earned double-digit starts in 2018. The Wolverines lost last season's leading scorer in Emma Way but return 63.8 percent of their goal production. Senior Meg Dowthwaite enters her final season with 34 career goals, including a team-best 19 during her All-America sophomore season, while sophomores Sofia Southam and Kathryn Peterson combined for nine markers last year. Fernandez Lacort led the team with six assists as the team's primary stick stopper.

• Seniors Clare Brush, Meg Dowthwaite and Guadalupe Fernandez Lacort will serve as the Wolverines' tri-captains in 2019. It is the second straight season that Fernandez Lacort will hold the distinction; she and Dowthwaite are both returning National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) All-Americans.

• Michigan earned the No. 7 ranking in the 2019 Penn Monto/NFHCA Preseason Poll, released Tuesday (Aug. 27), and lists second among Big Ten teams. The Wolverines will face nine teams featured among the top 20 in the preseason poll this season, most notably No. 1 North Carolina, No. 2 Maryland and No. 4 UConn. [ Full NFHCA Rankings ]

• Head coach Marcia Pankratz enters the season with a 289-127 career record over her 19 seasons at the helm of the Michigan program (1996-2004, '09-18). She ranks 12th all-time among NCAA Division I coaches with a .695 win percentage --- seventh among active coaches -- and lists 19th in total wins.

• The Wolverine coaching staff will have a new -- but familiar -- look in 2019 with the return of assistant coach Kristi Gannon Fisher. A two-time All-American and Big Ten Athlete of the Year during her own Michigan career (2000-03), Gannon Fisher previously spent five years with the U-M staff, including a season as full-time assistant (2009) and two as the Wolverines' volunteer coach (2006-07).

Scouting the Opposition

North Carolina -- The Tar Heels return 20 letterwinners from last year's squad that went 23-0 and captured the program's seventh NCAA championship. UNC returns three of its top five goal scorers from a year ago, including its leading scorer, Erin Matson, who boasted 20 goals and 19 assists. The Tar Heels also return their starting goalkeeper in Amanda Hendry, who posted a 0.69 goals-against average and .787 save percentage in the cage last season. North Carolina owns a 24-5 advantage in the all-time series against Michigan, but the series has been closer of late, with UNC holding a narrow 3-2 edge since 2016. The Tar Heels took both of last season's meetings, winning 5-1 in the season opener and 5-2 in the NCAA quarterfinals.

Wake Forest -- The Demon Deacons return 12 letterwinners from last season's team that posted a 13-10 record and reached the NCAA semifinals. Wake returns three of its top five scorers from last season but lost its top two leaders due to graduation, including Jule Grashoff, who posted 24 goals in 2018. Starting goalkeeper Isla Bint also returns; she recorded a 2.11 goals-against average and .664 save percentage last year. Wake Forest owns a 19-5 advantage in the all-time series against Michigan. The Wolverines sacrificed a second-half lead in a 3-2 loss to Wake Forest in last season's ACC/Big Ten Challenge match.

2018 Season Recap

Despite losing five starters from the previous year's squad that set a program record for wins, the Wolverines were back on top in 2018. After starting the season with a 1-3 record, Michigan claimed 13 of its last 17 games and posted a 14-7 overall record with a stellar 7-1 mark in conference play -- in a year that the Big Ten qualified a record five teams to the NCAA Tournament -- to capture a share of its second straight Big Ten regular-season title. U-M qualified for its 15th NCAA Tournament appearance and advanced to the quarterfinals for the third time in four seasons.

Emma Way was named the 2018 Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year and became the 12th Wolverine player in program history to earn All-America first team honors -- third in four years -- while Guadalupe Fernandez Lacort earned third team All-America honors.

Up Next

Fri., Sept. 6 -- at Stanford (Palo Alto, Calif.), 7 p.m. PDT
Sun., Sept. 8 -- at California (Berkeley, Calif.), Noon PDT