Grand Valley defense stifles UMD’s D-2 title bid
Grand Valley State shut down Minnesota-Duluth’s vaunted rushing game, and ball-hawked the UMD passing attack with four interceptions en route to a 24-10 victory over the Bulldogs that sends the Lakers on to the NCAA Division II semifinals.
UMD drops to 11-2 after an outstanding season that might have ended with the start of a new Division II college football rivalry. Grand Valley State, which takes a 12-1 record into this weekend’s semifinals, will be favored to win its fifth national championship. Last year, it was UMD that stung Grand Valley with a 19-13 setback in double overtime. This time, however, it could be Grand Valley State, which ended the Bulldogs hopes of soaring to a second straight NCAA D-2 title Saturday (Nov. 28) with an impressive 24-10 triuimph at UMD’s James Malosky Field. Now 12-1 compared to UMD’s closing 11-2, Grand Valley State advances to next weekend’s semifinals in quest of its fifth national championship.
The Bulldogs, whose second-game loss to Central Washington was their only regular-season defeat in two seasons, took their best shots at the Lakers.. Those shots included Isaac Odim’s scintillating 91-yard return of the opening kickoff to stake UMD to a 7-0 lead, and a 59-yard kickoff return later in the first quarterto set up David Nadeau’s field goal to keep the Bulldogs within reach at 14-10. But after that, the Lakers harnessed the Bulldogs by holding Odim under100 yards rushing for the first time all season, and intercepting UMD freshman quarterback Chase Vogler four times — three in the second half.
Unable to run and unable to pass, the Bulldogs only other failing was to not get more kickoff-return opportunities. Of course, that would have required Grand Valley to score more, and UMD’s defense was not about to let that happen. The only Grand Valley touchdown by sustained drive was midway through the first quarter, after the teams had exchanged punts. Senior quarterback Brad Iciek took the Lakers on a 75-yard march in seven swift plays, culminated by his 23-yard pass to Ryan Bass for the 7-7 equalizer. Otherwise, the alert Lakers followed up interceptions for their other two touchdowns, and marched again for one field goal while taking advantage of a short field for the second.
As he has done all season, Vogler, a true freshman thrust into first-unit in the first game of the season, battled with occasional flashes of brilliance, which will undoubtedly become less occasional and more flash as he gains experience. When Odim was unable to escape the Lakers defensive focus, Vogler scrambled one time for a 23-yard gain, second only to a 29-yard run by D.J. Winfield for the Bulldogs. Odim never gained more than 18 at one time while using up18 carries for 67 total yards in a frustrating day.
In the quarterfinal matchup, however, the difference between an eager freshman quarterback going against a skilled senior was a pivotal difference in the Lakers favor.
“I figured they’d try tomake us throw the football,” said UMD coach Bob Nielson. “They’re the only team that was able to do that to us. They controlled the football, and we’re usually the one to control the ball more. It was a good match-up. I thought, coming in, the team that made more good plays at critical times would win. We made too many mistakes, and when they got a short field, they took advantage of it — and played great defense.
“It’s no reflection on Chase, but we needed to make some plays through the air and we didn’t throw the football well enough. But I think we showed we’re as good as anybody in the country.”
The big crowd of 4,211 was settling into the seats in surprisingly mild 40-degree sunshine. Whether it was a signal for what was to transpire, a chilly wind picked up in the second quarter, and the comfort level for the fans — and the chance for more Bulldog scoring — faded thereafter.
But the best metaphorical moment in the sun came at the start. UMD won the toss and elected to receive the opening kickoff, at the east end of Malosky Stadium. Odim, who in two years has become UMD’s all-time leading rusher, went back deep, and Grand Valley’s Justin Trumble ran up to kick off. Odim caught the ball, started forward, cut left and hit high gear. He turned the corner and sprinted up the left sideline, eluding Trumble, the kicker, who had the last chance but landed in a heap, suffering a separated shoulder when he hit the turf.
Odim’s 91-yard run, and David Nadeau’s placekick, put UMD ahead 7-0 after only14 seconds had ticked off the clock. Grand Valley coach Chuck Martin was as stunned as his team. Maybe moreso.
“I was still trying to get my headset adjusted, and their guy goes whizzing past me,” said Martin. “And there’s our kicker, lying upside down like a fish.”
Martin and Grand Valley State know all about tough playoff games, because reaching the playoffs has become pretty much an annual thing for the Lakers, which led to them being surprised by upstart UMD a year ago.
“Duluth out-executed us last year,” said Martin. “This game was very physical, just like we thought it would be. We had a lot of games like this with North Dakota early in the decade, and it was the same today. Our returning players who played against Duluth last year knew what it would be like, but it was interesting to see our new guys come off the field. You could see it in their eyes, when they learned what a real tough game was going to be like.
“We won a great victory over a great team. We’ve had some great victories — but we haven’t played anyone as good as Duluth.”
Grand Valley State, from central Michigan, was ready for the rematch. The Lakers accumulated 18 first downs to 12 for UMD, but had a substantial 12-2 edge in the first half. Grand Valley State outrushed the Bulldogs 168-156, but the big difference was in the air, where Iciek was 14-27 for 225 yards, while Vogler was 8-20 for 102 yards, and he also had those four interceptions — attributable more to Grand Valley’s alert secondary than as criticism for the freshman trying to ignite his team. Again, the halftime stats told much of the story, because Grand Valley had gained 161 yards through the air to only 8 for UMD in the first two quarters.
The UMD defense played it tough, but Grand Valley did convert seven of 16 tries on third down, to 2-9 for UMD.
Still, after Isiek led the Lakers on a 75-yard scoring mission to get a 7-7 tie, a batted Vogler pass was intercepted and returned to the 3 yard line, where it took the Lakers three cracks to get the go-ahead touchdown later in the second quarter. A 34-yard field goal by UMD’s David Nadeau closed it to 14-10 before the wild first quarter ended, but then the defenses took over for both sides. The only points in the second quarter came on a 30-yard field goal by Justin Trumble to create the 17-10 halftime score, and the only points of the second half came when another interception led to an immediate 32-yard scoring pass from Iciek to Greg Gay for the 24-10 final tally.
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Martin’s post-game press conference demeanor was impressive, especially after watching him up close all game. He strode out on the field bellowing heatedly at his players almost every play. Grand Valley State uses a no-huddle offense, but it was pretty much nullified as an advantage because Martin yelled at players every play, while an assistant sent sign-language to Isieck. So the no-huddle was almost like a mini-time-out every single play. About every second or third play, Martin would scream more directions while Isieck was calling signals, commanding his quarterback to change the play and even ordering what play the audible should switch to, or else calling a late time out when necessary.
If the coach is a control freak, it might have trickled down to Grand Valley State’s cheerleaders, who did an admirable job most of the afternoon, if you don’t count sportsmanship. Whenever UMD had an important down offensively, the cheerleaders would all line up with their backs to their fans and yell as loudly as possible, with the three male members using their giant megaphones to yell a chorus of low, loud “Ooooooooooohhhs” as Vogler called signals. It may or may not have affected the UMD players, but it certainly set a new standard for rude behavior by cheerleaders. The UMD cheerleaders, always displaying “Minnesota nice,” were urging the UMD fans to join them with: “Go Bulldogs,” or “Dee-fense…dee-fense,” while the Grand Valley cheerleaders were trying their best to disrupt UMD’s signal-calling. The group’s two women supervisors one time admonished the cheerleaders to move back, because they were right up on the sideline, but otherwise they seemed to enjoy their group’s participation, which apparently meets the standards of sportsmanship in Michigan.
Martin’s coaching style notwithstanding, the results are impressive. His players won the game 24-10 and deserved the victory that helped hasten the onset of winter at the Head of the Lakes. On the other sideline, to Nielson’s credit, he never hesitated to call plays that could put the Bulldogs back within striking range. After praising Grand Valley State for being the better team on that day, Nielson talked about the pleasure he had coaching this young group. Only four offensive and five defensive starters are seniors, and only four second-unit offensive players and nary a defensive back-up was a senior. He talked about this senior group and its leadership. Then the always-composed Nielson caught himself choking up, and he had to pause at the microphone before saying, “This was a great group to coach.”
As for character, senior nose guard Tyler Johnson was one of the building blocks of the UMD football resurgence. He admitted as much when he said: “A lot of us really took the last couple of years to heart.”
Junior linebacker Robbie Aurich took the torch, defending Vogler on his toughest day. “Chase has done a great job for us all year, especially at his age. You can say this was the toughest team we’ve faced, because our only other loss was to Central Washington. But you can’t make excuses. They made some adjustments in the second half. After the game I congratulated them, and I said we’d see them in 364 days. We’ll be back.”
Odim gained only 67 rugged yards rushing and left the Lakers impressed by adding 175 more on four kickoff returns. The junior standout didn’t make excuses, either. “Our group of seniors wasn’t big, but they led all the way,” Odim said. “After we lost to Central Washington, they got us together and said we can still get to where we want to be.”
This game, on this day, on this field, was where the Bulldogs wanted to be. When they fell short in the biggest game of this season, it hurt, but not because of a lack of effort. “They just played real well on defense,” Odim said. “They tackled really well, and they were moving off the blocks well. When the only touchdown you get is on a kickoff return, you’re not going to win much.”
And then Odim put the obvious pain the Bulldogs were suffering into perspective. “One thing about the playoffs,” he said. “Unless you win the national championship, you go away with a loss.”
Tech’s unlikely duo derails explosive Bulldog offense
It’s never to late to become a “scoring machine,” and it’s never too early to become a standout goaltender. Both theories were proven by Michigan Tech’s resilient young Huskies, when senior center Eli Vlaisavljevich and freshman goaltender Kevin Genoe collaborated to hand Minnesota-Duluth its most surprising loss of a strong first half.
The Huskies had a weekend off before resuming their quest to move up in the WCHA standings on Thanksgiving weekend, but they Genoe and Vlaisavljevich were reason enough for Tech to be thankful, upsetting Minnesota-Duluth for a split of their series in Duluth.
Not that it was easy. Nothing has come easy to the Huskies, whose lineup includes eight freshmen as coach Jamie Russell continues to shuffle and make up for gaps here and there. The first game at Duluth was a perfect ambush, put together mainly by Genoe, who was supurb to backstop a 3-2 Tech victory, even while UMD outshot the Huskies 50-19.
Genoe, who is from Qualicum Beach, a town on scenic Vancouver Island, 30 minutes from Nanaimo, is a youthful 19 after playing two years of junior hockey in Prince George, British Columbia. “I played both games against North Dakota, and had 40-some shots the first game,” Genoe said. “But this was the most shots I’ve faced. I don’t know if I ever had this many shots, anywhere. This is definitely one of the best games I’ve ever played.
“Our team did a fabulous job of blocking shots, and a couple of times I didn’t even see the shot. They had my back, and I had theirs.”
The DECC crowd, same as all WCHA arenas, can be tough on visiting players, especially goaltenders. And they were giving Genoe the usual heckles. But over in the corner, at the lower level, a cluster of Michigan Tech fans were seated together at the end where Genoe tended goal in the first and third periods. Genoe has a little ritual when time is out. He skated over to the left corner, circles, and comes back across the crease, careful to slide the back of his catching glove along the goal’s crossbar as he passes, then he skates to the right corner, circles and returns, sliding his goal stick along the crossbar as he heads back to the left corner — where the Tech fans were — in a long and loopy figure-8.
“It’s just something I do to keep relaxed,” said Genoe. “Having our fans right there was fantastic. They made me feel right at home.”
If being relaxed is responsible for his 48 saves and the 3-2 victory, Russell and the Huskies will take it.
Tech led 1-0 after one period, as senior Malcolm Gwilliam notched his sixth goal of the season on a power play. UMD gained a 1-1 tie on Jack Connolly’s goal in the second period, also on a power play, and Mike Seidel lifted UMD to a 2-1 lead in the third period, and it appeared Genoe’s gymnastics would go for naught.
However, Steven Seigo, a freshman defenseman who had been chipping in assists in recent weeks, connected for his first goal to tie the game 2-2. Then, with only 5:03 remaining, Vlaisavljevich scored a goal of opportunity after a dazzling 3-on-0 rush, and Tech had claimed its 3-2 lead. Genoe and the scrambling Tech defenders took over then and weathered UMD’s charge to the finish of the first victory for Michigan Tech in Duluth in four years.
Tech’s inability to generate much offense at Duluth didn’t matter, as long as Genoe kept the explosive Bulldogs harnessed. After Seigo’s goal tied it 2-2, the Huskies still held their discipline and didn’t mount any pressure. With six minutes left, the puck went back to the UMD defensemen, who backed into their zone as they prepared to attack against Tech’s fourth line.
Brady Lamb, a solid sophomore, suddenly fell as he backed up with the puck. He landed with a thud, and as the puck squirted loose, Vlaisavljevich hopped over him and gained possession. “I was coming up the ice and I saw the bobble,” Vlaisavljevich said. “I jumped over him and as I moved in, I heard Ryan Bunger calling, so I gave the puck back to him and went for the net. He made a great pass up ahead to Seth Soley.”
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Soley, deep on the right side, one-timed a relay across the goal-mouth, and Vlaisavljevich had an easy tap in at the left edge for the winning goal. Vlaisavljevich, who could visit a daytime TV game show to buy a couple of vowels, grew up in suburban Shoreview, Minn., the son of a hockey-playing dad from Eveleth’s Iron Range hotbed of decades past. Eli, as his teammates are quick to call him, played at Lincoln in the USHL before coming to Tech.
He got a kick out of being accused of turning into a scoring machine. When he came to Tech, he scored a goal at Vermont on the Huskies first road trip. During the ensuing three years, he had remained a steady, consistent worker who didn’t score, but was a valuable worker-bee at Tech. As a senior, he scored a goal against North Dakota on November 6, and Tech’s next series was in Duluth, when he scored undoubtedly the biggest goal of his college career.
“A scoring machine?” he laughed. Well, it was explained, it may have taken four years, but that goal meant he had scored at a goal-per-weekend clip. And, all humor aside, for having not gotten a shot for what seemed like hours, the fourth line executed that 3-on-0 with perfect precision and three tic-tac-toe passes. The shots at that moment were 47-18, but Tech led 3-2. The final shots read 50-19, but Tech held on for the 3-2 victory, thanks to Genoe. “On the smaller rinks, you’ve got to be able to make plays in close quarters,” said Vlaisavljevich. “When our goalie is playing that well, you’ve got to find a way to win.”
The next night, things didn’t go Tech’s way. Lamb made up for his inadvertent turnover the night before by scoring a pair of goals, the second of which made it 3-0 for UMD early in the second period, and Russell pulled Genoe, who had been nicked for three goals on 19 shots, for Josh Robinson, who didn’t fare much better, giving up the last five goals on 29 shots. Justin Fontaine scored four goals himself for UMD to take over the national scoring lead with 11. UMD outshot the Huskies 48-18 in that one and UMD had all eight on the board before Brett Olson, a sophomore from across the bay in Superior, Wis., scored to make it 8-1. .
“We played a game that really showed our youth,” Russell said after the second game. “We lost Bunger with a concussion on what I thought was a hit from behind.”
There was no call on Cody Danberg’s heavy hit, but when Tech’s Ricky Doriott slammed into Danberg a few minutes later, Doriott was calledfor a major and DQ for a hit from behind. Russell wasn’t complaining about the officiating, but as it happened, he lost two regulars, and already had three defensemen skating at forward.
“Our goaltending wasn’t as stellar [in the second game],” Russell said. “But I really liked our first period tonight. We’re young and making progress each week. A split on the road is good for us, but obviously when you win Friday, you know you could be going home with a sweep.”
“Vlaisavljevich does a lot of things for us, and we were able to roll four lines against a good team that plays an aggressive style.”
As the rebuilding process continues, freshmen like Genoe and Seigo give hope for the future, and seniors like Gwilliam and Vlaisavljevich offer some veteran stability.
Besides, Vlaisavljevich not only is a good influence on his teammates, but the “scoring machine” just needs one more goal to get up to an average of a goal per year. As hot hands go, it’s better to be late than never.
About the Author
John Gilbert is a lifetime Minnesotan and career journalist, specializing in cars and sports during and since spending 30 years at the Minneapolis Tribune, now the Star Tribune. More recently, he has continued translating the high-tech world of autos and sharing his passionate insights as a freelance writer/photographer/broadcaster. A member of the prestigious North American Car and Truck of the Year jury since 1993. John can be heard Monday-Friday from 9-11am on 610 KDAL(www.kdal610.com) on the "John Gilbert Show," and writes a column in the Duluth Reader.
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