Michigan
North Carolina
Wolverines Return to ACC/Big Ten Challenge for 2021 Season Kickoff
8/25/2021 12:44:00 PM | Field Hockey
» Michigan kicks off the 2021 season -- its 49th of intercollegiate competition -- at the annual ACC/Big Ten Challenge this weekend in Iowa City, Iowa; U-M will face No. 1 North Carolina (1 p.m. CDT, Friday, Aug. 27) and No. 11 Wake Forest (1 p.m. CDT, Sunday, Aug. 29).
» The Wolverines own an all-time record of 22-25-1 in season openers and are 3-3 over the last six openers, including wins against UNC in 2016 and 2017.
» Michigan returns 22 letterwinners this fall and more than 90 percent of its goal production from 2020-21, including lead scorers Sarah Pyrtek and Kathryn Peterson.
THIS WEEK
Friday, Aug. 27 -- vs. North Carolina (Iowa City, Iowa), 1 p.m. CDT
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Sunday, Aug. 29 -- vs. Wake Forest (Iowa City, Iowa), 1 p.m. CDT
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The No. 2-ranked University of Michigan field hockey team (0-0) will open its 49th season of intercollegiate competition at the annual ACC/Big Ten Challenge this weekend at Grant Field in Iowa City, Iowa. The Wolverines will open the tournament against No. 1 North Carolina (0-0) -- the three-time defending NCAA champion -- at 1 p.m. CDT on Friday (Aug. 27) in a rematch of the NCAA championship game last spring. U-M will wrap the weekend with a 1 p.m. CDT slate against No. 11 Wake Forest (0-0) on Sunday (Aug. 29).
The ACC/Big Ten Challenge resumes after a one-year hiatus in 2020-21 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Now in its 19th edition, 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 46 conference titles and 24 national championships.
Host Iowa will face Wake Forest at 3:30 p.m. CDT on Friday and North Carolina at 11 a.m. CDT on Sunday to round out this weekend's ACC/Big Ten Challenge slate.
Wolverine Bites
• Michigan owns an all-time record of 22-25-1 in season openers. With the resumption of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge, U-M will open up against North Carolina for the 18th time over the last 20 years. The Wolverines have claimed two of those openers against UNC -- in 2016 and 2017.
• Fifth-year senior midfielder Halle O'Neill, senior midfielder Kathryn Peterson and senior goalkeeper Anna Spieker were named to the Big Ten Conference's 2021 preseason honors list. [ Full List ]
• Michigan returns 22 letterwinners this season, including nine players who earned double-digit starts in 2020-21. The Wolverines bring back their top six scoring leaders, notably top goal scorer Sarah Pyrtek, (seven goals, three assists, 17 points) and assist leader Kathryn Peterson (4G, 6A, 14 points), and nine players with multiple goals last season. U-M returns 91.7 percent (33 of 36) of its goal production from last year's squad.
• U-M also returns the bulk of its heralded defensive unit, including center midfield Halle O'Neill and goalkeeper Anna Spieker, who earned NFHCA All-America first team and second team honors, respectively. The Wolverine defensive unit ranked third nationally in 2020-21 with a 0.61 goals-against average, boasted 10 shutouts and held opponents to just 7.9 shots and 3.8 penalty corners per game.
• The Wolverines welcome five freshmen newcomers to the 2021 squad -- three midfielders, a back and a goalkeeper. Abby Tamer, who was part of U-M's 2020-21 roster as an early enrollee last January but as such was not eligible for game competition, was a Max Field Hockey Class of 2021 Top 10 Player, while Caylie McMahon was a Class of 2020 Top 10 Player. Alana Richardson and Emmy Tran earned Top 50 and Top 100 status for the Class of 2021.
• The Wolverines will be absent four players for their opening weekend with freshman Abby Tamer, sophomore Pilar Oliveros and seniors Kathryn Peterson and Sofia Southam participating in the Junior Pan American Championship this week in Santiago, Chile. Tamer, Peterson and Southam won their pool with Team USA and will face Oliveros' Uruguay team in the semifinals on Thursday (Aug. 26). The medal games are slated for Saturday (Aug. 28).
• Michigan posted a 3-0 record in its preseason scrimmages, defeating Miami (2-1, Aug. 18), Michigan State (2-1 SO, Aug. 20) and Ohio State (3-1, Aug. 22).
• Fifth-year senior Halle O'Neill and senior Anna Spieker will serve as the Wolverines' co-captains in 2021. It is the second straight season that O'Neill will hold the distinction.
• Head coach Marcia Pankratz enters the season with a 317-137 career record over her 21 seasons at the helm of the Michigan program (1996-2004, '09-20). She ranks 12th all-time among NCAA Division I coaches with a .698 win percentage -- seventh among active coaches -- and lists 14th in total wins.
Scouting the Opposition
North Carolina -- The Tar Heels return 20 letterwinners from last year's squad that went 19-1 and captured the program's ninth NCAA championship and third in a row. UNC returns four of its top five goal scorers from a year ago, including its leading scorer, Erin Matson, who boasted 29 goals and nine assists. The Tar Heels lost their four-year starting goalkeeper, Amanda Hendry, to graduation. She posted a 1.31 goals-against average and .779 save percentage in the cage last season. North Carolina owns a 26-5 advantage in the all-time series against Michigan, but the series has been closer of late, with UNC holding a narrow 5-2 edge since 2016. The Tar Heels claimed a 4-3 overtime decision against U-M in the NCAA championship game last spring. Michigan scored twice in the third quarter to rally and force overtime, where UNC converted on a penalty corner to score the deciding goal at the 66:39 mark.
Wake Forest -- The Demon Deacons return 17 letterwinners from last season's team that posted a 6-11 record and narrowly fell in double overtime in the ACC's NCAA automatic-qualifier game. Wake returns three of its top five scorers from last season, including goal leaders Nat Friedman and Grace Delmotte, who tallied five goals apiece. Primary goalkeeper Tori Glaister also returns; she recorded a 3.45 goals-against average and .632 save percentage last year. Wake Forest owns a 19-6 advantage in the all-time series against Michigan. The Wolverines have claimed two of the last three meetings, however, including 3-0 shutout in the 2019 ACC/Big Ten Challenge meeting.
2020-21 Season Recap
The Wolverines posted one of best campaigns in program history amid the uncertainty and adversity caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in the delayed 2020-21 season, posting a 15-3 record en route to the Big Ten Conference regular-season and tournament titles and a runner-up finish in the NCAA Tournament. After a program virus pause wiped out the slated opening weekend, U-M started the season with a 3-2 record, splitting series against Iowa and Northwestern, then did not lose again until falling in overtime to two-time defending champion UNC in the NCAA championship game. It was the Wolverines' third appearance in the national final -- first since winning it all in 2001 -- and second trip to the final four since 2017.
Halle O'Neill claimed NFHCA first team All-America honors -- the 14th different U-M player to garner first-team honors in program history and the fifth in six seasons -- while Anna Spieker and Kathryn Peterson earned second- and third-team honors, respectively. All were named All-Americans for the first time in their careers; Spieker was the second Wolverine goalkeeper to earn the distinction.
Up Next
Sun., Sept. 5 -- at Central Michigan (Mount Pleasant, Mich.), 1 p.m.
