Lacrosse Falls to #8 Hopkins, 19-9

Submitted by L'Carpetron Do… on

Lacrosse lost to Hopkins today 19-9 in Balitmore. This is the fourth consecutive blowout at the hands of a conference opponent and Michigan has now been eliminated from contention for a spot in the Big Ten tournament in two weeks.  

Hopkins is a supremely talented team but Michigan played extremely poorly. Aside from the offense which is overly patient, Michigan looked frantic and undisciplined. They just looked lost and were outplayed. A lot of Michigan's woes can be traced back to poor coaching and I think JP and Michigan will have to take a hard look at making serious changes in the offseason, even at the head coaching spot.

There was an interesting (well perplexing) moment early in the game when Hopkins received an illegal stick violation resulting in a 3 minute unreleasable penalty.  With 2+ plus minutes in the penalty, Michigan scored to make it 3-2 and on the ensuing faceoff got a loose-ball push call which gave the ball to Hopkins. Michigan didn't double the ball off the restart and then a minute or so later they didn't double again off another restartThey made a somewhat lame attempt late in the penalty but backed off. For the most part they didn't bother to even pressure the ball and basically let Hopkins sit on it to kill the penalty. The nerd-ass ESPNU announcers were even making fun of the decision not to double. There is no conceivable reason to do what they did and in the case of Michigan Lacrosse Fans vs. Defensive Coach Who Should Be Fired, that will be Exhibit A. It was an exercise in mind-blowing incompetence. 

The good news for Michigan is that this was the best season they've had at the Division 1 level. They won 8 games and notched a victory over a ranked opponent. They're much improved from last year in which they were one of the worst teams in the country. And they'll get one more chance to end their season on a high note when they host Penn State in the Big House next week.  

L'Carpetron Do…

April 22nd, 2017 at 11:12 AM ^

In terms of stats, Hopkins isn't dominant in any facet of the game.  Aside from clearing and man-up offense (they lead the country in both categories), they rank pretty similar to Michigan in a number of categories.

 In addition to having a poor scoring defense, they do not get a lot of ground balls (probably a result of being weak at faceoffs).  They are the worst team in the country at taking care of the ball and lead the country in turnovers. 

One caveat: All of these stats were accumulated against a schedule that is much tougher than Michigan's.  So they are skewed a bit.  

 

Cruzcontrol75

April 22nd, 2017 at 1:26 PM ^

Wipe out our soft nonconference, except ND, and you could probably apply those comments to the Wolverines. Our D has been routinely beat from X by B1G attack. Middies and long poles are giving up very good shooting angles and shots from close proximity. I don't see how we keep this game within 10. JP should be on the hot seat. The first half of the season could be considered smoke and mirrors. When we finally faced competition we were outclassed in all phases.

Our 1 quality win this year and in program history (#9)is against a now 5-5 Penn team. Hopkins beat Navy, Loyola, UNC, UVA, Rutgers & Penn St. All are more impressive than our key W.

ak47

April 22nd, 2017 at 2:22 PM ^

To allow Hopkins to kill off a minute of a man up advanage by literally letting them stand there is inexcusable.  He should be fired before getting back to Ann Arbor, horrendous coaching.

L'Carpetron Do…

April 22nd, 2017 at 2:29 PM ^

I was being too nice.  That truly was inexcusable. a 3 minute illegal stick penalty is a GIFT. Can't believe they did that, especially after throwing the faceoff away with a dumb violation.  We never would have done that back in the day- it makes no sense to let them kill that off.  Not to mention this is a team that leads the country in turnovers - and you're going to let them hold it for 2 + minutes when you could double?  What the hell is with this coaching staff?  Especially in a game you desperately need to win?  If yuo don't play aggressive you're not gonna win.  

L'Carpetron Do…

April 22nd, 2017 at 3:05 PM ^

9-3 Halftime.  Another uncompetitive one.  .  

I could go on and on about the numerous mistakes we've seen so far (many of which can be directly attributed to coaching) but what bothers me most about this team is that they don't play hard.  They don't play with any sense of urgency, especially when they're down.  The decision not to double with a 3 minute unreleasable penalty is the most concrete example of that to date.  Show me you want to win.  

L'Carpetron Do…

April 22nd, 2017 at 3:25 PM ^

This is even worse than I thought. They look like a bad HS team. This is the first time I've said this but they need a new coach. Or JP needs to make major changes, starting with dumping the defensive coach, Ken Broschart.

They can't keep getting embarassed like this.  

Wolverine Devotee

April 22nd, 2017 at 3:53 PM ^

18 goals allowed in back to back games. Get this guy out of here immediately after the season ends next weekend.

phjhu89

April 22nd, 2017 at 8:36 PM ^

That could have been much uglier for Michigan than it was.  Petro took his foot off the gas VERY early.  I don't think he wanted to embarrass JP by scoring 20+.  (at 20 the Hopkins crowd stops counting goals)  Hop could have put a bunch more on the board.

Michigan is an extremely undisciplined team.  As Carc kept on saying, don't foul the Jays.  Most of M's fouls were the result of poor judgement and out-of-control play.  A lot of the play just wasn't smart.  

Many of you have condemned the defensive coaching, and you are correct that there is much to be desired.  I'm actually not surprised that they didn't double the ball on the 3-minute man-up.  Doubling in lacrosse often leads to defensive breakdowns, especially for an undisciplined team.  What I found more ridiculous was deliberately putting a shortie on Marr.  Clearly, the defensive game plan was lacking,

Lack of discipline, and lack of playing with smarts is indicative of poor head coaching, not just poor defensive coaching.  It is time for Michigan to find itself a professional lacrosse coach.