On Saturday afternoon, the Michigan women’s lacrosse team was nearly flawless against Butler.
The Bulldogs’ second goal came with 1:16 left in the second half, while the Wolverines’ second goal came with 13:37 in the first half. This underscores Michigan’s ability to exploit the Bulldogs defense while taking control of the entirety of the game.
“The team really played for the full 60 minutes,” said junior attacker Adriana Pendino. “I think we all definitely had great moments that we were really proud of.”
Pendino stood out above the rest, as she tallied seven points—five goals and two assists. She netted her first goal with 13:37 left to go in the first period and continued to impress throughout afternoon.
Freshman midfielder Chandler Kirby opened up scoring for the Wolverines with a fiery goal after ten minutes of play in the first half. And they never looked back.
Although Michigan played terrific throughout the game, coach Hannah Nielsen still found some flaws, offering advice to offer, so that the team can continue this level of play throughout the season.
“I was a little disappointed with the first 15 minutes of the game.” said Nielsen. “Not with the defense, but we had a few bad turnovers that should be avoided for the next game.”
The Wolverines continued the second half with the intensity that Neilen was looking for. After a thunderous start to the half, a staggering 10-0 lead showed on the scoreboard after Pendino scored her fourth goal with 27:25 left in the game.
“We wanted to make sure the team kept composure in the second half,” Nielsen said. “Even with an eight goal lead, the girls could have still lost focus.”
Foul after foul, holding penalty after holding penalty, the Bulldogs simply looked lost on the turf, and could not get things going for the remainder of the game.
The Wolverines kept their momentum going into Sunday, when they returned to the U-M lacrosse stadium, completing a two-win weekend. Nielsen saw areas for her team to improve after Friday’s game. That could still be the case now, but after Michigan’s dominant weekend, it seems it is on the right track.