The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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win," Meter said. "I think at the same time, it's an experience that I wouldn't trade for the world. There were other opportunities I could have taken, as well as a lot of other guys on the team. There were some growing pains in the first couple years, but we were part of a great team, played for a great coach, a great athletic department. "It's a great school and that's what matters at the end of the day. I think that's part of the thing: most teams at Michigan will probably tell you it's not about what you accomplish, but everyone who's an alumnus of this school is so proud of everything. It'll be a little bittersweet, but at the end I'll be so proud of the program, and I had a role in setting that foundation." In short order, the Wolverines should be building upon that founda- tion and reaching new heights for the program. WOMEN'S SQUAD ON SCHEDULE The path to a varsity program was very different for the Michigan wom- en's lacrosse team than it was for the men. Whereas U-M promoted a club team to varsity for the men — retain- ing not just the majority of the coach- ing staff, but the roster, as well — the women started from scratch. Head coach Jennifer Ulehla was hired on Sept. 8, 2011, after the Maize and Blue announced the addition of both lacrosse teams. The initial plan to was to first compete in spring 2013, but a one-year delay meant the Wol- verines didn't take the field until the 2014 season, a lead-up of two-plus years to recruit and plan for Ulehla and her assistants. "Last year was a real process in building a foundation, and I will say it took us a long time to get to where we wanted to be last year, versus this year. We're really making strides much, much faster and obviously that's be- cause we do have a year under our belt," Ulehla said. "I'm seeing a lot more confidence, and building the cli- mate and culture of the program is really starting to flourish. "With the experience, our kids are just more mature, and they're really starting to understand what it takes to be a Division I athlete, without having seniors and juniors to show them. You have to listen to the coaches and gain experience on the field, and we have a lot of athletes taking on leadership roles that we were missing last year. They're taking on the ownership of the program, and they are starting to assert control over how successful we are this year. That's really rewarding to see." It helps that the Wolverines are experiencing some success this sea- son, too, going 4-3 in their first seven games through March 15, including two wins on the road. "I'm a firm believer that you have to play the best to be the best, but there's a happy medium with your schedule, and it's nice that our athletes are start- ing to see that what we work on every day, the importance of fundamentals, and the consistency, they're seeing that pay off," Ulehla said. "When we won four games last year, they didn't see as much success, and it was a chal- lenge to keep them positive, to keep the mentality of striving for progress