Sometimes in sports, the final score doesn’t always tell the whole story. For the Michigan men’s lacrosse team, though, Saturday’s 17-8 loss to Ohio State was fitting for the drubbing it received at the hands of its rival.

In the second annual Battle at the Big House, the Wolverines (0-5 ECAC, 0-12 overall) came out firing and scored the first goal of the game. But their lead was short-lived, and they trailed 4-2 by the end of the first period.

Michigan was unable to keep up that initial intensity into the second period. The Wolverines trailed 8-3 at halftime and 14-5 by the end of the third, thanks in part to Buckeye attackman Logan Schuss. The preseason All American had an astounding five goals and five assists.

“The first thing their coach (Nick Myers) said to me when the game was over was, ‘We are really going to miss that guy next year’ ” said Michigan coach John Paul of Schuss.

Schuss was a standout individual performer, but the collective Ohio State offense was dominant from start to finish, outshooting the Wolverines 41-30.

The most telling statistic of the game, though, was in the faceoff circle. The Buckeyes bullied Michigan all afternoon, winning the faceoff battle 22-6.

“We got killed on faceoffs,” Paul said. “If you take faceoffs out of the equation, we beat them on groundballs.”

After going 5-15 in the faceoff circle and taking a costly unsportsmanlike conduct penalty in the first period, Paul pulled starting faceoff man Brad Lott for sophomore Kevin Wylie, who went 1-11 on his faceoffs.

Ohio State’s faceoff dominance allowed the Buckeyes to dictate the offensive tempo the entire game and maintain possession for lengthy stretches, as they wore down an outmatched and inexperienced Wolverine defense.

To make matters worse, Michigan took eight penalties, giving Ohio State six minutes of man-up play which led to three goals.

“We took some dumb penalties,” Paul said. “One of our keys today was not to take penalties. Especially in the first half, we took some not smart penalties that we could have easily avoided and had nothing to do with being physical. And they are one of the best man-up teams in the country.”

The lone bright spot for the Wolverines was senior midfielder and captain Thomas Paras, whose four goals tied both a career and program high. Paras also added an assist.

“It’s definely bittersweet,” Paras said. “I would trade the five points I had for a win in a heartbeat.”

Paras led a Michigan offense that played relatively well in the game. Freshman midfielder Kyle Jackson scored two goals, and freshman midfielder Mike Hernandez and sophomore attackman David McCormack each scored one.

Jackson’s two goals added to his team-high 15 goals on the season.

“We hit our offensive efficiency numbers today,” Paul said. “But with 50-percent efficiency on defense, it is just not going to get it done.”

Though the Wolverines were out of the game in its late stages, they finished out the game with a strong three-goal fourth quarter.

“The thing that I am going to remember about this team, no matter how we finish up, is that they never quit,” Paul said. “They will come back ready to work on Monday, and I am proud of that.”