It was a wet day in Oxford, OH
Michigan lost a tight and rain soaked match to Miami, 24-5. The second game was won my the Maize and Blue, 10-0.
In a match scheduled for 2:00pm, lightning delayed the game until 3:15. The associated rain also moved the game to an alternative field. Both teams handled the delay well and once the game kicked off, the games continued uninterrupted.
The wet weather forced both teams to kick for territory early. Michigan was able to get into the Miami have as the RedHawks were found to be offsides. Another Miami penalty gave Joel Conzelmann a penalty shot at the 10′ mark but it was wide right. Miami eliminated some of their penalties and were able to get into the Michigan end a few times though the U of M defense held strong.
Eventually, Miami’s pressure was starting to mount. Michigan fended off a few five-meter scrums and line-outs but a handling error in the backs turned over the ball one too many times. Miami was able to scoop up the ball and break a necessary tackle to get a score in right before halftime. The conversion was missed and Miami was up 5-0 at the break.
Miami continued the pressure after halftime with a solid defensive line and quick attacks through their scrumhalf. With U of M pinned at their goal line, the clearing kick did not find touch and allowed the Miami wing to make a simple counter attack for a score. The conversion was missed and Miami was up 10-0. Shortly after, the Miami backs found another gap and put in a converted try to go up 17-0 at the 46 minute mark.
The last try came from the RedHawks 9 minutes later when pressure on the Michigan doorstep caused a mishandled pass in the in-goal that Miami easily fell on for a try, 24-0 Miami.
Both teams were using subs and Michigan finally started moving forward in the last 20 minutes. The rain let up a bit to make handling a bit easier and the U of M backs started to find space out wide. Handling errors still killed multiple movements deep into Miami territory and Michigan stayed off of the scoreboard. However, in the 77th minute, first-timer Jordan Ulmer was able to offload to fellow freshman Cole Van Harn for Michigan’s only points.
Although the result was disappointing and the weather difficult, the men in blue came off the field with their heads held high. Communication and team effort were both improved from week’s past. Michigan now looks towards a few sevens tournaments this summer before D1 league play in the fall.
1. Spencer Scolnick
2. Pete Melgren
3. Zach Kendall
4. Mike Wilinski
5. Cole Van Harn
6. Evan Rourke
7. Kenny Andutan
8. Dave Hiltzik
9. Ian Etheart
10. Jared Bosma
11. Mark Borowski
12. John Palladino
13. Evan Noon
14. CJ Stock
15. Joel Conzelmann
16. Jordan Ulmer (Van Harn 18′, Kendall 55′)
17. Ben Shapiro (Scolnick 68′)
18. Sergio Rocha (Wilinski 60′)
19. Forrest Gilfoy (Rourke 70′)
20. Oliver Gregerson (Stock 77′)
Try: Cole Van Harn 55′
Michigan-B 10 – Miami-B 0
In the second game, Michigan started out on the right foot with solid possession. Only 3 minutes in, Evan Rourke broke through for the first score to go up 5-0. The conversion by Evan Noon was missed. Michigan continued the pressure and a deep run by outside center CJ Stock got U of M on the Miami goal line where Rourke got his second try with a pick and drive. The conversion by Noon was wide right.
10-0 was the score Michigan took to halftime. Bosma came on for Borowksi as #9 and the Michigan forwards, led by Ty Waters, fixed some mistakes in the lineouts. This allowed for solid ball to the Michigan backs in the second half. Evan Noon at flyhalf led a dangerous attack but couldn’t find another score. However, defensively, the Maize and Blue were organizing well and this led to productive tackles. Miami was able to pressure through kicks but Joel Conzelmann at fullback handled them well.
A few knock-ons started to mount as the ball was still slick. The last 10 minutes were scrum heavy and the defenses were dominated the game. As the final whistle blew, Michigan ended up on top 10-0.
1. Ben Shapiro
2. Evan Rourke
3. Jordan Ulmer
4. Sergio Rocha
5. Chris Batdorf-Barnes
6. Pete Melgren
7. Cole Van Harn
8. Ty Waters
9. Mark Borowksi
10. Evan Noon
11. Brandon Gardner
12. Oliver Gregerson
13. CJ Stock
14. Forrest Gilfoy
15. Joel Conzelmann
16. Jared Bosma (Borowski 20′)
17. Mike Wilinski (Melgren 20′)
Tries: Evan Rourke 3′, 12′
