UMich Sports Recap

The Football Team entered the second season of the Jim Harbaugh era with high expectations and the hope of reliving former football glory. The Wolverines finished their season ranked #6 in the country, sporting a 10-2 (7-2 Big Ten) record with impressive wins over Colorado, Wisconsin, and Penn State. The team stumbled near the end of the season losing a close game to Iowa in Iowa City and a double overtime thriller to Ohio State in Columbus. The team missed the cut for the four-team college football playoff, but will face #11 Florida State in the Orange Bowl on December 30 at 8:00 pm [student ticket information]. On a positive note, Michigan’s football renaissance man, Jabrill Peppers, was a finalist for the Heisman Trophy, college football’s most elite honor. Results were revealed Saturday December 10, where he fell short to QB Lamar Jackson from Louisville.

The Women’s Volleyball Team has also found great success this season. They finished the season 23-10 (11-9 Big Ten) in a highly competitive conference. The Wolverines entered the NCAA tournament as the 12th seed and hosted their first two tournament games against American and Oregon which they won in convincing fashion.Unfortunately, the Wolverines lost in the third round to Creighton on Friday Dec. 9 in Austin, TX. The game went all the way to the fifth set, but Michigan couldn’t pull out the victory.  The semifinals features Nebraska vs. Texas and Stanford vs. Minnesota on December 15.

As football, volleyball, men’s soccer, and women’s soccer seasons finish up, we now look forward to an exciting slate of Winter Competitions.

The Men’s Basketball Team record is 7-3 consisting of strong wins against Marquette, SMU, and Texas. In the offseason, Michigan-man Spike Albrecht among others departed for new schools, leaving many concerned about the team’s future. Seniors Derrick Walton Jr. and Zak Irvin have led the team this year, but look for players like Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman, D.J. Wilson, and Moritz Wagner to step up. Read about one student's opinion on the upcoming season!

The Women’s Basketball Team is off to an impressive 8-3 start following a loss on Sunday December 11 to No. 9 UCLA. The team is led by junior guard Katelynn Flaherty - she averages 20.0 points per game and shoots 50% from the floor. She was named to the preseason All-Big Ten team and is on the watch list for the Wade Trophy, the highest individual award in women’s college basketball. Senior guard Siera Thompson and sophomore center Hallie Thome will help Flaherty lead the way against Big Ten competitors Maryland, Northwestern, and Michigan State to name a few.

Michigan Ice Hockey is looking to build on their incredible 2015-16 season in which they won the Big Ten Tournament, but lost in the quarterfinals of the Frozen Four to eventual champion North Dakota. This season has started slowly at 9-8-1, but the Wolverines have a lot of hockey left to play, especially against conference leaders Penn State, Ohio State, and Minnesota. Head coach Red Berenson is now in his 32nd season.

The Women’s Gymnastics Team opened their season with a non-scoring exhibition against Eastern Michigan on Saturday December 10 at the Crisler Center. The exhibition will help the team continue last year’s success in which they won the Big Ten Title and finished ranked #7 in the nation.

The Wrestling Team also hopes to expand on last year’s accomplishments. They have started the season 3-1, following a loss on Sunday December 11 to No. 18 Minnesota. UM is currently ranked #10, but will be challenged by Big Ten rivals Ohio State and Penn State.

If you are interested in buying tickets to support any of the Michigan teams, you can buy tickets online. There are also several university sports teams that have free admission, including Men’s Gymnastics and Water Polo! Beyond the Diag wishes student-athletes from all sports the best of luck this season. Go Blue!

 

Contributed By: Jake Silver, Beyond the Diag Program Assistant