The Michigan Daily - SportsMonday - April 19, 2004 - 5B Line of the week Derek Feldkamp Pitcher Saturday vs. Illinois (Game 1) Notable Quotable Players of the Series IP H R ER BB 7.0 5 2 1 2 FRIDAY'S GAME Illinois Fighting Illini 3 LP: Joe Ziemba (1-5) Michigan Wolverines 6 WP: Jim Brauer (2-2) K 2 "'Frustrating' is an understatement." - Michigan coach Rich Maloney on watching a potential win slip away from the Wolverines twice yesterday. SATURDAY, GAME 1 Illinois Fighting Illini 2 LP: Joe Ziemba (1-5) Michigan Wolverines 5 WP: Derek Feldkamp (4-3) Drew Davidson (Illinois) Davidson slugged two over the wall during the series. This was an impressive achievement for the junior, who bats just .252. Kyle Bohm (Michigan) Bohm improved his average to .417 thanks to his double home run perform- ance Saturday, as well as his 3-for-5 performance during the series finale. SATURDAY, GAME 2 Illinois Fighting Illini 5 WP: Tim Gorski (3-0) Michigan Wolverines 4 LP: Michael Penn (3-2) YESTERDAY'S GAME (11 INNINGS) Illinois Fighting Illini 9 WP: James Morris (2-0) Michigan Wolverines 7 LP: Michael McCormick (1-1) Illinois salvages split with win over Blue INSIDE THE NUMBERS YESTERDAY'S GAME Illinois 9, Michigan 8 (11) By Ryan Sosin Daily Sports Writer It was over - Michigan had the game in the bag. The ball was floating through the air and the Wolverines were going to put the win- ning run across. It happened twice during yes- terday's game, but when all was said and done, the Wolverines found themselves at the short end of a 9-8 contest with Illinois. In the bottom of the 11th, Michigan needed a run to tie the game. With lulNOLs 9 replacement catcher Matt Rademacher in scoring position and one out, Brad Roblin dropped a single into right-centerfield. It should have scored Rademacher, but when he tried to stop halfway, he fell on his back. He made it to third despite the fall, but was stranded. "I feel really bad that we couldn't get it done there," Michigan coach Rich Maloney said. Michigan had a chance to put Illinois away earlier in the extra-inning affair. With the bases full in the 10th, outfielder Matt Butler hit a fly ball that had sacrifice fly written all over it. Leif Mahler broke for home and Illi- nois outfielder Ryan Rogowski fired a ball to the first base side of home plate. The catcher, Chris Robinson, reached across and put the tag down on Mahler. "It (was) very frustrating," Maloney said. "Especially on a bang-bang play." Mahler got the starting nod at shortstop after Jeremy Goldschmeding went down with an ankle injury during warm-ups. It was just his third start of the year, and he turned in a good showing. The freshman walked twice and reached on an error that resulted from a hard hit ball up the middle. In the fourth, Mahler flashed the leather when he dove and snagged a Robinson line drive. "It got everybody going. Obviously with a backup-type guy you have to see what he's got," Mahler said. "It gave me more confi- dence the rest of the game." The Wolverines seemed to have Illinois' number on the basepaths. Catcher Jeff Kunkel, who started every game during the weekend, threw out two consecutive runners on pitchouts. "A couple times there I looked like a genius," Maloney said. "And then other times you want to hide your head in the dugout." Control problems plagued Wolverine pitch- ers all of Sunday. Bobby Garza - who started for Michigan - Phil Tognetti, Ali Husain, Andrew Hess and Dan Lentz each walked at least one batter apiece and combined for three hit batsmen. Mike McCormick was the only Wolverine without a walk as he pitched one and two-thirds innings of work. But he suffered the loss. "I was disappointed today with the pitching," Maloney said. "But Mike McCormick did a decent job and Dan Lentz did a good job." Michigan could consider itself lucky to have a chance in extra innings. First baseman Kyle Bohm, who drilled two home runs during Saturday's 5-4 twilight game loss, stepped into the box during the eighth and down by two runs. Maloney flashed the signs to the three runners on base and then looked in at his hitter at the plate. Maloney felt "a lot of confidence" as his best hitter stared back at him. Bohm delivered a sharp single that drove in the two runs needed to tie the game at eight. MWchian (1814) Player AB R H Getz 2b 4 1 2 Butler rf 5 1 2 Bohm b 5 03 Scheidt 3b 6 0 0 Kunkel c 5 1 0 Schmidt pr 0 0 0 Rademacher c 1 0 0 Roberts dh 3 2 2 Rudden dh 2 1 1 Roblin If 6 1 3 Mahler ss 4 0 0 Rose cf 4 1 1 Garzap 0 0 0 Tognetti p 0 0 0 Husain p 0 0 0 Hessp 0 0 0 McCormick p 0 0 0 Lentz4p 0 0 0 Total 45 81,4 Nilinis (1219) BI Player a 1 Huisinga of 0 DiMaria rf 3 Hastingsr2b 0 Eymann ss 0 Frederickson lb 0 Rowe pr 0 Davidson If 0 Sharwarko dh 0 Roof lb 3 Robinson c 0 Raymond 3b 1 Bensko p 0 Saving p 0 Morris p 0 0 Total 0 0 8 AB R 4 0 1 0 4 0 5 0 b42 0 1 5 1 t4 1 1 0 5 2 4 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 BI 0 0 2 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 40 9 13 7 LOB- Michigan 12, Illinois 13. E - Michigan 1, Illinois 6. DP - Minnesota 3- Michigan 1, HR - Michigan 0: Illinois 1: Davidson (). HBPo- Michigan; None, Illinois 3: Eymann, Rogowski, Raymond. SB-Michigan: None, Illinois: None. S -Michigan: None, Illinois 2: Eymann (5). Rogowski (1). 020 Illinois Michigan 100 IP RKH E 004 110 01 9 13 6 220 030 00 8 14 1 H R ER BB SO Illinois Bensko 5.0 9 Saving 2.0 1 Morris (W, 2-0) 4.0 Michigan Garza 3.1 4 Tognetti 2.1 5 Husain 1.2 2 McCormick (L, 1-1) 1.2 Lentz 0.2 0 Umpires.-HP: Mike Conlin, 1B Mike Wallace At - The Fish Attendance - 917 Time - 4:15 9 1 4 5 1 2 4 1 2 1 0 5 42 2 3 5 4 4 2 2 2 1 1 1.0 0 1 1~ 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 I: Dennis Varwig, 2 1 0 2 1 1 3 2 1 3B: WILLA TRACOSAS/Daily Redshirt sophomore pitcher All Husain shows frustration during Sunday's extra-inning loss to Illinois. He allowed two runs, one earned, in an inning and two-thirds of work. SATURDAY, GAME 2 Illinois 5, Michigan 4 But Illinois took the lead for the good in the top of the eleventh when Ted Rowe scored from third after a ball popped between Rademacher's legs. By the time he got to the ball, the damage was done. The loss marked the second series split in three weeks of Big Ten play for Michigan. With Jim Brauer's fastball touching 91 miles per hour, the Wolverines took Friday's game 6-3. Derek Feldkamp turned in his second straight complete game, earning the win in Saturday's early 5-2 contest. "He kept the ball down and got a lot of ground balls," pitching coach John Lowery said. The Wolverines are tied for second place in the Big Ten heading into next weeks matchup in Columbus against Ohio State, who sits atop the standings with an 8-4 record. Mictarn(281) Player AB R Getz 2b 4 1 Butler rf 4 1 Bohml1b 3 2 Scheidt 3b 4 0 Kunkel c 2 0 Roberts dh 3 0 Ohengss3 0 Mahlerss 0 0 Roblin If 3 0 Rose cf 3 0 Penn p 0 0 Hammond p 0 0 Total 29 4 BI 0 0 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4' lliols (11-9) Player AB R Huisinga cf 4 1 Hastings 2b 3 1: Frks3b 4 1 Rogowski rf 4 0 Roofib 0 0 Frederickson 1b3 0 DiMaria ph/rf 0 0 Eymann ss 4 1: Sharwarko dh 2 0 Keys ph/dh 1 0 Robinson c 3 0 Davidson If 2 1 Total 30 5 H Bl 10 1 1 3 0 1 0 00 0 0 0 0 11 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 9 3 I I Scheidt comfortable at his new position LOB - Michigan 6, Illinois 7. E - Michigan 5, Illinois 4. DP - Minnesota 1; Michigan 3 HR - Michigan 2: Bohm 2 (6), Illinois 2: Davidson (5)Eymann (1). HBP - Michigan 1: Kunkel, Illinois: None. SB - Michigan: None, Illinois 2: Frk (4), Rogowski (7). CS - Michigan: None, Illinois: None. R H E Illinoisn310 100 0 5 9 0 Michigan 100 020 1 4 9 3 icgan Penn (W 3-1) Hammond IP H R ER BB SQ 3.1 6 5 3 1 0 Illinois Gorski(L, 1-4) 5.0 Morris 2.0 Umpires - HP: Mike Wallace, Dennis earwig At-nThe Fish Attendance - 867 Time - 2:16 8 3 3 1 0 1 1 1 0 0 1B: Mike Conlin, 3B: By Megan Kolodgy Daily Sports Writer During the early weeks of the season, sophomore A.J. Scheidt was the poster child for walk-on players everywhere. Before going into Big Ten play, Scheidt was batting a solid .394, and was tied for the team lead in home runs, with three. WILLA TRACOSAS/Daily Sophomore shortstop Jeremy Goldschmeding is riding a seven-game hitting streak thanks to a hit in each of the two games Saturday. He didn't play Sunday, after injuring his right ankle during a pre-game warm up drill. injury holds shortstop's hit streak By Gabe Edelson Daily Sports Writer It was a roller-coaster type of week- end for Michigan shortstop Jeremy Goldschmeding. After going 4-for-9 from the plate with three RBI in the first three games against Illinois from Friday to Saturday, Goldschmeding rolled his right ankle in a freak accident during a fielding drill just 20 minutes before yesterday's final game, leaving his future availability in doubt. In the top of the third inning of Sat- urday's early game, Goldschmeding flashed his potential. It didn't come in the form of a powerful home run. After all, he hasn't hit one since last season. Rather, the sophomore displayed what he is capable of on defense. Illinois outfielder Ryan Rogowski hit a sharp line drive up the middle, but the rangy Goldschmeding leapt up to make a spectacular grab for the second out of the inning, draw- ing raucous cheers from the crowd. "Any time a great play is made, it gives the team a little bit of a lift," Goldschmeding said. "If I can make learning on the job after starting only 25 games at his position last year. "Jeremy is still fighting consis- tency," Maloney said after Satur- day's games. "Right now, he's better than he was last year, but he's still not where he needs to be to be a championship shortstop. But he has definitely made tremendous strides from last year. He makes some plays that are major league (caliber)." Still, Goldschmeding is taking his defensive maturation day by day. "I was sitting back on the ball and not really going to get it," he said of his early-season difficulties. "Now I've started going to get (the ball) and (the errors) have gone down a little bit." All the attention being paid to Goldschmeding's erratic defense should not obscure what he has been able to accomplish at the plate this year. His .359 batting average is the second best on the team, up from a .231 mark in his freshman season. His hit in Saturday's later contest extended his hitting streak to seven games. Unfortunately, the ankle injury won't be fully known until X-rays are taken. Maloney is optimistic about Goldschmeding's recovery. "Hopefully it's just a sprained ankle," Maloney said. "We'll do everything we can to get him back as soon as possible." In the meantime, Goldschmeding attributes his hitting improvement to making adjustments in his approach and gaining valuable experience in the off-season. "I think experience is the biggest thing," he said. "(But) I've also changed my stance a little bit, and I've shortened my swing. I had a real long swing (in high school) that wasn't that conducive to hitting in college, (but) now I'm swinging at better pitches. I think summer ball made the biggest difference." Goldschmeding spent the summer on the Baseball Academy Red team in Bradenton, Fla., where he was able to get more at-bats under his belt. "I saw more pitches at the college level," Goldschmeding said of play- ing in the Florida Collegiate Instructional League. "It helped me have a better approach when I'm But lately, his game just doesn't have the same kick that it did in the opening weeks. This weekend brought more trouble for Scheidt. His batting average has slipped to .320 and his fielding percent- age is down to .888, one of the lowest in the starting lineup. Scheidt stranded seven runners in yesterday's game. Part of Scheidt's difficulties might have been due to switching positions, moving from second to third base. Although this transition proved chal- lenging, Scheidt believes he is growing more accustomed to his new role. "I feel very comfortable at third," Scheidt said. "That's something that I've tried to do better at is to really bring defense to the field every single day. Because there are days that I'm not going to hit, but every day I need to play good defense." One might also think that hitting behind Kyle Bohm, one of the strongest batters on the team, might make step- ping up to the plate even more psycho- logically stressful. For Scheidt, however, this is not the case. "Hitting behind Kyle is a great thing, because usually it'll take the pressure off me," Scheidt said. "He'll drive the runs in, he'll get on base, he'll allow me to drive him in - so whatever the case, it's great batting behind him." Scheidt does not feel that focus- ing too much on the adjustment is what led to his lackluster hitting. "There are two heads to the game," the sophomore said. "When I'm in the dugout, I'm thinking about hitting, and when I'm in the field, I'm thinking about defense." Inconsistency has not only plagued Scheidt in recent weeks - it has been a problem for the entire team. This was evidenced by this weekend's series split against Illinois, a squad that was sitting at the bottom of the Big Ten and one that, statistically, Michigan should have been able to sweep. "I think it just takes consistency in all aspects of the game," Scheidt said of the how he thinks the Wolverines can turn their play around. "I myself got left on base (yesterday), and other guys picked me up, but I think we just need a consis- tency throughout the lineup. We just need everyone to show up." OucH: A number of mid-season injuries also create challenges for the Wolverines. Not only are pitcher Drew Taylor and shortstop Jeremy Gold- schmeding out with injuries, but pitch- er Jim Brauer has also been playing through maladies. Brauer startled the crowd on Friday when he requested additional warm-up pitches. He went on to throw 7.2 innings with just eight hits. "I think it was just cramps," pitching coach John Lowery said of the extra pitches. "He was still throwing 91 or 92 (miles per hour). I think it was one of his best games." ON THE RECORD: With his double yes- terday, junior Kyle Bohm is on pace to get 23 doubles by the end of the season. Bryan Besco set Michigan's current record in 1997, when he pounded out 26 two-baggers. Bohm's two long balls on Saturday also put him on pace to make an appearance on the single-season home run list. With his six, he needs to slug four more over the wall this season to join a tie for ninth with the likes of for- mer Wolverines and Cincinnati Reds Chris Sabo and Hal Morris, among oth- ers who wore the maize and blue. Yesterday's results: Illinois 9, MICHIGAN 8 (11) Penn State 4, MINNESOTA 3 INDIANA 25, Iowa 9 Ohio State 12, MICHIGAN STATE 10 Purdue 11, NORTHWESTERN 4 Saturday's results: MIcHIGAN 5, Illinois 2 INDIANA 5, Iowa 4 Ohio State 8, MICHIGAN STATE 7 MINNESOTA 6, Penn State 3 NORTHWESTERN 3, Purdue 1 Illinois 5, MICHIGAN 4 Iowa 12, INDIANA 7 Ohio State 19, MICHIGAN STATE 2 Penn State 8, MINNESOTA 4 Purdue 9, NORTHWESTERN 3 Friday's results: Iowa 7, INDIANA 3 MICHIGAN STATE 10, Ohio State 7 MINNESOTA 7, Penn State 2 MICHIGAN 6, Illinois 3 NORTHWESTERN 7, Purdue 6 SCOUTING REPORT CLERAND STATE WEDNESDAY The Cleveland State Vikings (5-3 Horizon League, 7-17 overall) will travel to Ann Arbor for a midweek showdown with the Wolverines. Cleveland State is fresh off a four- game split with Wright State, win- ning the first and last games of the series last weekend. The Vikings are in a second-place tie in their confer- ence behind just Illinois-Chicago. s r C~-~'A r Team W Ohio State 8 Michigan 7 Minnesota 7 Penn State 7 Michigan State 7 Purdue 6 Indiana 5 Northwestern 5 Illinois 5 Iowa 3 L 4 5 5 5 5 6 7 7 7 9 BIG TEN STANDINGS Conference Overall W 17 18 18 18 18 15 21 15 12 10 L 14 14 14 14 15 17 14 16 19 22 :: : .: ; ... .:.;. ,.