It's not every day that a defensive back gets the chance to
score the winning and only goal in a game of soccer. But yesterday
against Evansville, Michigan junior Kevin Taylor was handed that
opportunity when he was chosen to take a penalty kick.

"Knox (Cameron) is the guy that takes penalty kicks for us, but
we had him on the bench to save him for later in the second half,"
Burns said. " Then KT (Kevin Taylor) is the man from there."

Taylor went one-on-one with the Aces' keeper, hesitating
slightly to throw him off, then took his shot. The ball went over
the keeper's head and into the net.

"I was just thinking, 'Don't miss,' " said Taylor. "You usually
just pick a spot and stick with it."

But Taylor's perfect kick wasn't all that led Michigan to a 1-0
victory over Evansville.

Michigan's triumph came from its ability to keep possession of
the ball throughout the two halves. Much of the time, the ball was
kept in the opponent's end of the field.

During the first half, senior Mike White and juniors Knox
Cameron and Mychal Turpin worked together to set up several
promising shots on goal, but had trouble finishing, costing
Michigan the chance to score in the first half.

In the second half, the Wolverines came out with a more
high-pressure defense. This strong defense, coupled with some close
saves by junior goalkeeper Peter Dzubay kept Evansville's offense
quiet.

"This game we just tried to keep the ball on the ground - and we
got the result," Taylor said.

Hot weather and a late game start also left players from both
teams frustrated and less energetic than they could have been. But
Michigan coach Steve Burns had something Evansville didn't.

"It was a team victory in that we had a deep bench now that
we're four years into the (varsity) program," Burns said. "We were
able to get guys off the bench very effectively in order to get
some energy into the game."

Burns rotated players throughout the game, but kept senior Mike
White and sophomore Dawson Stellberger in most of the game.

"Mike White put in a great effort today as did Dawson
Stellburger," Burns said. "They were the two most effective players
- they maintained energy all game long."

Sophomore Kevin Hall started his first game of the season,
taking the usual spot of senior Joe Iding, and was kept in by Burns
up until the last few moments of the game.

"It was his first opportunity to get a start , and I said to
him, 'Play the way you think we need to play in this game. Don't
get too conservative because you're an attack-minded back,' " Burns
said. "And he took advantage of his minutes. For a freshman, it was
a great start."

In the game against Evansville, one goal was enough to leave
Michigan on top. Earlier this weekend, though, even two wasn't
enough.

On Friday, the Wolverines swallowed, but did not choke on their
first loss of the season to Dayton, 4-2. Michigan may have lost in
terms of goals scored, but White felt that the team's time of
possession and skill of play were evenly matched. He said
Michigan's main problem was that it didn't score when the chances
were presented.

"They really capitalized on their chances," White said. "They
probably only had four decent chances. We just didn't capitalize on
ours. We just didn't finish. As the season goes on, we'll get
better at it."

The Flyers scored first when they slipped a ball past the
goalkeeper Dzubay near the end of the first half. Another goal by
Dayton early in the second half left Michigan trailing 2-0, a
worrisome lead in soccer.

White and Turpin appeared to turn the game around when they each
scored a goal in the second half. But Dayton quickly countered with
goals of its own, ending the game leading by two.

"It's great to see that the team's got fight and is able to
rebound and get themselves back in the game," Burns said. "But once
you get back in the game, you've got to seize that momentum and
make it yours for as long as possible. We seemed to seize momentum,
but then give it right back to them."

Although Michigan did lose one of its first home games this
weekend, Burns doesn't think that is the hardest thing for the
players to accept.

"More so than being beaten on the field is knowing that it was
your game to win," Burns said. "That's probably the most difficult
thing for the players to come to grips with."