Page 16 - The Michigan Daily - Friday, May 16, 1986
Batsmen off to recapture Big Ten title
By SCOTT G. MILLER
If the momentum from last weekend's
four-game sweep of Ohio State carries into
this weekend's Big Ten Championship
Tournament, Michigan should win its four-
th championship in six years.
The double elimination tournament will
be held at Siebart Field on the University
of Minnesota campus. The Wolverines will
open today against Wisconsin, the second-
place finisher in the Western Division. The
host Gophers, the winners of the Western
Division and the defending Big Ten cham-
pions, will start against Purdue, the run-
ner up in the East.
EVEN THOUGH Michigan clinched the
Big Ten Eastern Division by winning the
first game in the Buckeye series, the
team's closing effort in the last game was
championship caliber.
The Wolverines trailed 4-3 in the bottom
of the seventh inning. After the first two
batters, Steve Finken and the Big Ten bat-
ting champion Casey Close, failed to
reach base, Ohio State pitcher Mike
Volkert got two quick strikes on Hal
Morris. The game seemed over, but
Morris eventually drew a walk.
The next batter, Billy St. Peter, walked
too, prompting the Buckeyes to bring in
relief pitcher Chris Durst to pitch to
freshman Darrin Campbell. Michigan
coach Bud Middaugh countered by sending
in pitcher Mike Ignasiak to pinch run for
Morris.
MIDDAUGH won the coaching battle as
Campbell singled between third base and
shortstop. Ignasiak raced home to score the
tying run as he barely slid under the cat-
cher's tag, a feat the slower Morris
couldn't have completed.
"That was a short throw. One that
should be made," said Middaugh. "But we
had been trying to force the issue all day,
and I wasn't about to give up.
"He was going, and they were going to
have to make the play to end it."
SENIOR outfielder Chris Gust, playing
in his last home game, followed Campbell
with a line drive to center field to drive in
St. Peter with the winning run.
"It has been a really fun year," said
Gust. "The seniors have been a close class.
To close it out this way is kind of special."
Indeed Michigan's season has been
special. The Wolverines were 12-2 in one-
run.games, 13-3 in the Big Ten, and 44-10
overall. Unfortunately, all this season's
accomplishments could be meaningless if
Middaugh's squad fails to win the playoff.
"WHEN YOU are playing playoffs on a
given weekend, the season statistics don't
mean anything," said the seventh-year
Michigan coach. "You are playing for who
the best team is that weekend. Sometimes
the best team wins, and more often than
not the best team doesn't win."
By winning over 40 contests, Michigan
would be the only tournament squad to
receive consideration for an at-large
-NCAA bid if it fails to win the champion-
ship. The Big Ten Title winner
automatically receives a berth.
The desire to win a title and the perser-
verance of Middaugh will guide the
Wolverines. "You play me in badminton or
4
I
U0a1y o oby ANISL-ro
Michigan's Kurt Zimmerman dives back to first in the final regular season game
Sunday. The Wolverines beat Ohio State, 5-4, with a two-out, seventh-inning rally.
4
croquet or whatever you want to play me
in, I am going to beat you," said Middaugh
when asked if his squad would play its
hardest last Sunday in a game that meant
nothing in the standings. "I don't care who
you are or where you're from. I am going
to try to beat you anyhow."
MIDDAUGH will use the leading pit-
ching staff in the conference to try to beat
this weekend's opponents. Freshman
Chris Lutz, the top pitcher in the Big Ten
with a 4-0 mark and 0.67 ERA, will battle
the Badgers.
Wisconsin will counter with sophomore
Tim Roman .(6-3 overall). Coach Steve
Ladd's starting staff consists of three
freshman and Roman.
PURDUE'S staff failed to do its work.
The Boilermakers pitching ranked ninth in
the conference.
"Our pitching has been inconsistent all
year," said coach Dave Alexander. "We
have strength in numbers but not
necessarily in quality. We have lots of guys
at the same level."
I
By D)
A 32-17 re
current sta
Celtics or th
it is certain
Well, not
Wolverine s
"Innanss
Thin offense led to softballers'fall
ARRENJASEY ting" were two words that seven-team Big Ten. This included In juniors Rogers, Alicia
ecord is not up to the Michigan coach Carol Hutchins eight one-run losses - a very Seegert, Vicki Morrow, Julie
ndards of the Boston used to describe her team's 1986 tough pill to swallow considering Clark, and Mari Foster, Michigan
e New York Mets, but season. that Michigan's nonconference did have a fine core of experienced
ly nothing to scoff at "FRUSTRATING," said second mark was 20-5. players. But their only senior was
unless you're baseman Martha Rogers, voicing Perhaps the Wolverines set their Lisa Juzysta, who walked on
oftballer. the opinion of the rest of the team. hopes too high, too soon. But with during her sophomore year. The
tent" and "disappoin- "It can all be summed up by 12 an aggressive start in California Wolverines also had three fresh-
one-run losses (actually 13) out of against some of the West Coast's men-Pam Wright, Mary Ann
our 17 total losses." top teams, and with an early num- Daviera, and Nan Payne-who
Another disappointing statistic ber-fifteen in the nation's polls figured prominently in starting
was Michigan's mediocre 12-12 who could blame them? roles throughout the season.
renr anI dfifth-nar, finish in the "AFTER coming back from that rM. tan ,.t n v
8-3 spring trip we really expected
to win the conference," said Hut-
chins. "Nobody thought we could
do it because we were a young
team, but I thought there was
enough older players to offset the
young-"
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iore Ean youn anu over-
confidence, the clear-cut reason
for Michigan's Big Ten collapse
was its inability to score runs.
Michigan scored one run or less in
30 of its 49 games and was shut out
ten times.
"WE DIDN'T execute real well
offensively," said Michigan's
fourth-place coach. "We didn't
execute bunts and we didn't get
the key hits."
Let's just say that if the
Wolverine sluggers were to form a
ladder, there would be an awful lot
of rungs missing between the top
three and all of the rest. After
Seegert (.353, 5HR, 27 RBI),
Morrow (.342, 2, 22), and Wright
(.293) you have to go down over
.100 points to find the next best
average.
"There was a lot of pressure on
Alicia (Seegert) to produce," said
Hutchins in reference to ber first-
team All-Big Ten catcher. "If she
didn't do it, then nobody did it."
THIS WAS upsetting to Hutchins
because she felt the poor hitting
overshadowed the efforts of Vicki
marrow
... 15-7 despite 0.45 ERA
Morrow and the rest of her fine
pitching staff. Indeed, over half of
Michigan's victories were
shutouts and its team ERA was a
stingy 0.79.
Morrow, whose 15-7 record was
not indicative of her 0.45 ERA, was
named Michigan's Most Outstan-
ding Pitcher, and Clark (7-1, 0.82)
was given the annual Maize and
Blue Award for outstanding at-
titude, effort, and achievement.
The past season can be seen as
one to grow on for the young
Wolverines. According to Hut-
chins, it should be seasoning
enough to prepare them for a run
ai the Big Ten crown next year.
Said Hutchins, "we know this
year could have been better than it 4
was, and if we learn from it then
we'll be that much better next
year."