The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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APRIL 2021 THE WOLVERINE 17 INSIDE MICHIGAN ATHLETICS MICHIGAN'S TOP PERFORMERS Ice hockey freshman forward Matty Beniers: He was tabbed as the Big Ten Third Star of the Week March 2 after tallying his first career hat trick in Michigan's 4-1 triumph over Ari- zona State Feb. 26. It was the first three-goal game by a Wolverine this season, and the only one as of March 16. Beniers' 10 goals through the first 24 games led the Maize and Blue, while his 23 points checked in third on the club and his 13 assists deadlocked for fourth. Men's gymnastics senior Cameron Bock: He was named Big Ten Co-Gymnast of the Week two consecutive times March 1 and 8. Bock's initial ac- colade came after he took home the all-around victory with a score of 84.150 at the Winter Cup Chal- lenge in Indianapolis Feb. 26-28. His second honor came after he earned a trio of event titles in U- M's March 6 win over Iowa, including pommel horse (14.55), still rings (14.40) and parallel bars (14.40). The senior's March 8 recognition marked the sixth time he'd won the award in his career. Women's lacrosse fifth-year senior midfielder Molly Garrett: She put together an outstanding performance in Michigan's 12-11 overtime victory over No. 14 Rutgers March 5. Gar- rett netted four goals on five shots, including the game-winner in the extra period to lead U-M to its first win of the season (it had been 0-3 prior to the triumph). The Winter Springs, Fla., native ended the game by taking her Scarlet Knight defender one-on-one toward the goal before launching the dagger into the bottom right corner of the net. Men's basketball senior forward Isaiah Livers: He was pegged as one of five fi- nalists for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame's Julius Erv- ing Award Feb. 24, which is given every year to the nation's top small forward. At the end of the regu- lar season, Livers' 13.7 points per game ranked second on the roster, while his 6.1 rebounds checked in third. He was also connecting on 44.6 percent of his three-pointers, leading all Wolverines with at least 20 attempts. The four other finalists for the award were Rutgers' Ron Harper Jr., Virginia's Sam Hauser, Gonzaga's Corey Kispert and Texas Tech's Terrance Shannon Jr. Voting will end March 19, thought the date for the announcement of the accolade's recipi- ent has not yet been revealed. — Austin Fox Five Years Ago, 2016: Michigan underscored its softball dominance on April 30, sweeping Penn State on the road in a doubleheader, 12-0 and 13-3. The double dip boosted the nation's No. 2-ranked team to 41-4 overall and 18-2 in the Big Ten. The Wolverines rolled over the Nittany Lions in the opener, needing only five innings to score a dozen runs in a no-mercy, mercy-rule win. Sophomore catcher Aidan Falk hammered a first-inning grand slam to open the rout, while freshman catcher Katie Alexander bombed another grand slam to close it out. Senior pitcher Sara Driesenga (19-0) breezed to the shutout victory in the opener, handing it off to junior Megan Betsa (20-3) for the win in the second game. The Wolverines would later go on to win an NCAA Regional and play in the Women's College World Series. 10 Years Ago, 2011: Michigan netminder Shawn Hunwick proved in- vincible in the penultimate game of the college hockey season, shutting out No. 1 North Dakota 2-0 in the Frozen Four semifinals. The Wolverines clawed to within a game of the national championship in the April 7 victory at St. Paul's Xcel Energy Center. Hunwick turned aside 40 shots, making an early first-period goal by forward Ben Winnett enough for the win. U-M's Scooter Vaughan scored a dag- ger into an empty net with time draining away in the third period. "Well, if we could have planned a road game like this, this is how you'd plan it," Michigan head coach Red Berenson said. "… The one thing that we didn't plan was taking as many penalties as we took against their power play, and I thought we were lucky, and ob- viously our goalie has to be our best penalty killer. But our team hung on. And who would have thought that the first goal of the game would be the deciding goal? "You saw one goal scored in 59 minutes. So it was that kind of a game. You never know. Our team is used to playing in close games, and I thought we were on our heels. We had to play in our own zone a lot." U-M suffered a 3-2 overtime loss at the hands of Minnesota-Duluth in the national title game two nights later. 25 Years Ago, 1996: Michigan's Women's College World Series-bound Wolverines knocked off Ohio State 3-2 on April 28. The win completed a three-game sweep over the Buckeyes, moving U-M into position to win the Big Ten championship. The Wolverines were driven to the sweep by super rookie Traci Conrad, who earned Big Ten Freshman of the Year honors. She went on to win three straight All-Big Ten designations and became an All-American. The victory over the Buckeyes extended Michigan's win streak to five straight. The Wolverines dominated the first two games against OSU, 3-0 and 15-2. — John Borton THIS MONTH IN MICHIGAN ATHLETICS HISTORY Senior goaltender Shawn Hunwick helped the Wolverines pitch a 2-0 shut- out against No. 1 North Dakota in the 2011 Frozen Four. PHOTO COURTESY MICHIGAN ATHLETICS