After a tough loss against No. 1 Akron last Tuesday, the Michigan men’s soccer team let out its frustration on another Ohio foe.
Bowling Green came into Ann Arbor Wednesday night expecting to contend in its matchup against the Wolverines — they didn’t realize, however, that they had just signed up for target practice.
As the clock ran down to zero and Michigan’s offensive onslaught came to an end, the scoreboard at the UM Soccer Complex read 5-1.
Michigan struck first, thirteen minutes into the game, with a snipe from freshman forward Soony Saad.
After a diving save from Wolverine junior goaltender Chris Blais, a quick counterattack allowed Saad to find the Falcon goalkeeper out of position. He delivered a booming shot from 60 yards away, and scored the longest goal in Michigan soccer history.
“We have seen him do it,” Michigan coach Steve Burns said after the game. “He saw the keeper out. He is a very aware player, so he went for it.”
After the shot went in, the momentum of the game instantly shifted. Just one second earlier, after all, the Falcons (5-7-2 overall) were about to score.
Within minutes, Michigan (2-2-0 Big Ten, 9-4-3 overall) scored another, an unassisted blast from senior forward Justin Meram.
“After last week, we just came in knowing we had to get the win,” Meram said.
The Wolverines added two more goals in the first half. The first was a long-range score from senior forward Alex Wood, and the second another counterattack goal from Meram.
Michigan picked up right where it left off in the second half, as Saad scored a goal off of a through ball from his brother, junior midfielder Hamoody Saad.
But then, the pace of the game changed. The second half slowed, as most of play settled into the midfield. Meanwhile, Meram and the Saad brothers watched from the bench — their work was done.
Through a counterattack offense and long shots, the Wolverines found the net, though they took fewer shots than their season average.
“We were due for a breakout game since September,” Burns said.