Freshman forward Soony Saad is the first to admit that there is an advantage to having his brother — sophomore Hamoody Saad — on the field with him. The duo’s offensive skills were on full display Wednesday nigh in the Wolverines’ 2-1 season-opening victory over Detroit.
The “brotherly love” between Soony and Hamoody translated into an action-packed season opener, as fans watched Soony’s debut as a Wolverine.
Soony sparked the offense by scoring Michigan’s first goal at the 28th minute mark in the first half and Hamoody ended the sudden-death overtime with a game-winning goal.
When asked if he could have scripted a better first game for himself and his brother, Soony answered “I don’t think so.”
“It was just amazing that we came together as a team, not just my brother and I,” Soony said. “For everybody… (it was an) excellent game.”
The freshman’s performance Wednesday night showed the Wolverines he’s eager to play at this level and has the skills, attitude and energy to succeed. After taking the majority of the teams’ free kicks and corners, Soony quickly became a pest for Detroit’s defense.
“(Soony is) a shooter and he’s also a scorer,” Michigan head coach Steve Burns said. “(He) is a guy that opponents do have to key on to a certain degree, which opens up our other scorers.”
But Soony isn’t the only Saad in Michigan’s starting lineup and his brother’s game-winning goal showcased that his offensive power as well. Hamoody played in all of the Wolverines’ 18 games last season, finishing last year’s run with five goals and six assists.
The brothers led the total offense for Michigan on Wednesday, posting a combined 18 shots. Hamoody finished the night with four shots on goal, and Soony followed with two of his own.
“We knew there was a connection between these two (brothers), and you don’t get that connection very often,” Burns said. “They innately know where one another are (on the field), and they know how to use one another.
“At the same time, where I’ll give them a lot of credit, they recognize how to use each other as decoys to bring the correct player into the play.”
Soony’s goal came off a free kick and was exactly the offensive lift that Michigan had been looking for, as the Wolverines struggled to convert shots into goals for much of the game. The lack of conversion remained the case through the second half and into the first eight minutes of overtime, until Hamoody’s shot cemented the Wolverines’ victory.
Hamoody’s goal was assisted by sophomore Latife Alashe and came eight minutes into the first sudden-death overtime, sending Michigan into Friday’s upcoming match against No. 14 Drake with a win under the Wolverines’ belt.
Heading into Friday’s matchup with Drake, the Saad brothers will have to keep up their offensive tempo to keep the Drake backfield on its heels.
But for tonight, the duo can rest easy knowing that they started — and ended — Michigan’s first victory.