The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
SportsMonday
March 16, 2015 — 3B
‘M’ wins rubber match
By CHRIS CROWDER
Daily Sports Writer
In Saturday’s home opener
for the Michigan softball team,
Kent
State
pitcher
Emma
Johnson dominated. She held the
Wolverines scoreless, allowing
just three hits and striking out
five in a complete-game win.
Michigan couldn’t lay off of
her tricky rise ball — which was
the Wolverines’ game plan.
“I bet you my salary that we’re
going to see Emma Johnson
again,” said Michigan coach
Carol Hutchins after Saturday’s
3-0 loss. “That kid is good as
anyone else I’ve seen. She’s legit.”
Sure
enough,
who
was
announced
as
the
Golden
Flashes’ pitcher in the pregame
introductions
Sunday?
None
other than Emma Johnson.
With a chip on their shoulder
after losing the home opener,
Hutchins said that she hoped
the Wolverines would come
back Sunday with “a bee in their
bonnet.”
It’s safe to say Michigan
delivered, led by 10 strikeouts
from
sophomore
pitcher
Megan Betsa and two RBI from
sophomore left fielder Kelly
Christner, winning 4-1.
Through
the
first
three
innings, Johnson was just as
effective as Saturday. With a
lethal rise ball, she racked up five
strikeouts and forced the third-
ranked Wolverines (24-4) to
pop out twice. Kent State (12-6)
then scored first in the top of the
fourth with a home run by right
fielder Michele Duffy — her first
of the season.
Michigan’s first hit of the
game came in the bottom of
the fourth inning by way of a
single by Christner. Two batters
later, freshman first baseman
Tera Blanco broke up Johnson’s
shutout with an RBI single,
driving in Christner and tying
the game at one. After junior
right fielder Kelsey Susalla was
hit by a pitch, a runner was in
scoring position for freshman
catcher Aidan Falk.
Senior catcher Lauren Sweet,
the usual starter behind the plate
for the Wolverines, was injured
on a play running home Saturday,
so Falk got her first career start
Sunday.
With
the
freshman
facing a full count, the Michigan
crowd roared to life, clapping
and stomping its feet in hopes
of a rally, but Johnson picked
up another strikeout with her
devastating rise ball.
In the fifth inning, sophomore
third
baseman
Lindsay
Montemarno led off the inning.
After working the count full, she
sent a charge to left field, landing
near the chalk between fair and
foul
territory.
Montemarano
ran to second, but the call was
reversed, sending the crowd and
Hutchins into a tirade.
After
Hutchins’
argument
with the third base umpire
concluded, the fans booed, and
Hutchins raised her hands up
and down in approval of the fans’
disappointment.
Montemarano
struck out on the next pitch.
Two batters later, more drama
and controversial calls unfolded.
Junior designated player Mary
Sbonek stole second and Golden
Flashes catcher Erika Warren
tried to throw her out, but the
errant throw hit the batter,
sophomore
shortstop
Abby
Ramirez, in the head, causing
the ball to go behind third base.
Warren hit Christner in the
same type of situation in game
one on Saturday. Sbonek then
advanced to third but was called
out, sending Wolverine fans into
another frenzy.
With the bases loaded and
tensions rising for Kent State
in the sixth, Betsa got out of the
jam by getting Warren to pop out.
That was when the tide started to
turn.
“I was trying to be one-pitch
tougher than they were,” Betsa
said. “If bases are loaded, I don’t
try too hard. I don’t try to get the
strikeout or to get them to swing
and miss. That’s great, but if they
put the ball in play and we throw
the ball to first to get out of the
inning, that’s just as good.”
Johnson’s effectiveness ended
in the sixth. With the Wolverines
up to bat in the subsequent half
inning, junior center fielder Sierra
Lawrence led off with a single.
Four pitches later, Christner hit
a two-run shot into the right field
bleachers, giving Michigan a 3-1
lead.
After a popout, Blanco sent
a solo home run over the left
field wall, extending the lead to
three. While she ran the bases,
she held one finger up in the air
in triumph. The Wolverines had
finally figured Johnson out, thus
ending her day in the circle.
“I thought we were trying too
much, and then we finally said,
get back to see ball, hit ball,”
Hutchins said.
When Betsa ended the game
with a strikeout, the Michigan
fans could finally breathe a sigh
of relief. Kent State came into
the series ready to win and got
one in its first opportunity. After
that, the Wolverines kicked into
gear and got their offense going.
Fans may not have expected
Kent State to be competitive,
but Michigan didn’t doubt its
abilities after Johnson’s stellar
performance.
“We always have to come out
and battle,” Blanco said. “It’s kill
or be killed out here.”
ROBERT DUNNE/Daily
Sophomore outfielder Kelly Christner knocked in two key runs Sunday in Michigan’s 4-1 victory over Kent State.
WOMEN’S TRACK AND FIELD
DMR headlines
championships
By RILEY NELSON
Daily Sports Writer
Two legs into the distance
medley
relay,
the
Michigan
women’s track and field team’s
fate was almost decided by an
opposing runner’s error.
The Villanova runner fumbled
a
baton
exchange,
hitting
Michigan junior Maya Long’s
hand. Long was able to compose
herself, however, helping the
Wolverines’ relay team to a third-
place finish at the NCAA Indoor
Track and Field Champi
The
time
of
10:58
in
Fayetteville, Arkansas is more
than four seconds faster than its
previous best time this season.
“We were pretty fired up,”
said
Michigan
coach
Mike
McGuire. “I thought we raced to
our potential. We were ranked
seventh or eighth, so we came out
and finished third in the nation.
That’s a great effort by four
people.”
The distance medley relay is
a four-part relay race consisting
of
1,200-,
400-,
800-
and
1,600-meter legs. The runners
representing
Michigan
were
juniors Shannon Osika, Long,
Danielle
Pfeifer
and
senior
co-captain Brooke Handler, in
that order.
“We put together four much
more solid legs than we had in
the previous weeks,” Handler
said. “We were happy with our
time as well.”
Stanford
came
in
second
at 10:53, while Arkansas set a
facility and meet record with
a time of 10:51. This was more
than five seconds faster than
the previous record, which was
set by Michigan’s 2013 NCAA
Championship relay team.
Michigan was also represented
in Fayetteville by junior Cindy
Ofili in the 60-meter hurdles.
Coming
off
of
her
second
straight win at the Big Ten
Championships, Ofili hit a hurdle
and fell during the preliminaries,
failing to advance to the finals.
“It
was
obviously
a
big
disappointment
for
her,”
McGuire said. “It was not in a
lack of effort. It was one of those
things that can unfortunately
happen.”
One point of discussion prior
to this weekend was whether
Pfeifer would compete in the
individual
800-meter
race,
which she also qualified for.
After lengthy discussions with
McGuire, Pfeifer chose not to
compete individually in order to
be fresh for the distance medley.
“We wanted to see what we
could do as a team when we were
all fresh,” Pfeifer said, “so after
talking about that we decided that
it was best for me to scratch the
individual 800-meter. I’m pretty
happy with my decision because
of what we did yesterday.”
In the distance medley relay,
Pfeifer had the fastest split of any
800-meter runner in the race.
“I think that’s attributed to
the fact that she’s a really good
athlete and was running fresh,”
McGuire said. “Next year she’ll
be a senior, so we could decide on
something different, but I think
it was something we mutually
agreed upon.”
For Handler, the weekend
was particularly special because
it was the last indoor race of her
collegiate career.
“I wanted to go out with one of
my best collegiate races,” Handler
said. “It was definitely my best
race of the indoor season.”
She ran a personal best with a
time of 4:35.
The
Wolverines
had
a
successful indoor season, taking
second at the Big Ten Indoor
Championships. This is also
the 12th consecutive year that
Michigan has had All-Americans
in the distance medley. All four
members of the 2015 team were
awarded that honor.
“I thought we made progress,
getting second in the Big Ten
and what we did this weekend,”
McGuire said. “We’re going a
step in the right direction.”
MEN’S TRACK AND FIELD
Bastien an All-American in heptathlon
By MATTHEW KIPNIS
Daily Sports Writer
At the Akron Invitational last
month, junior Steven Bastien
broke a record that had gone
untouched for seven years.
When Bastien topped Frank
Shotwell’s score with a 5,576 point
total in that heptathlon, it seemed
that his new record could stay
at the top of the record book for
nearly as long as its predecessor.
In reality, it lasted a total of 35
days.
At
the
NCAA
Indoor
Championships
this
past
weekend, Bastien earned 5,664
points to finish in eighth place
overall,
becoming
Michigan’s
first-ever All-American in the
heptathlon. In the process, he
set four new personal records
in seven events and entered
Michigan’s all-time top 10 with a
long jump of 24 feet, 7.25 inches.
“I feel really honored just to
add to the tradition that Michigan
had,” Bastien said.
Added Michigan coach Jerry
Clayton: “Anytime you come into
the national championship and
your athletes finish higher then
where they were ranked coming
in, that’s a positive step. With
Steven Bastien ending up as an
All-American and scoring in the
top eight (nationally), that’s even
greater.”
Redshirt junior Derek Sievers
joined Bastien in Arkansas for
his first trip to the NCAA Indoor
Championships. Sievers finished
11th to earn second team All-
America honors. Even with a
throw of 60 feet, 5.75 inches —
sixth-best all-time for Michigan
indoor throwers — it was Bastien
making his debut that stole the
show.
Entering the tournament as
the 14th seed in the field, Bastien
surpassed
almost
everyone’s
expectations, except his and his
coaches’.
Just hours after having set the
previous record, Bastien knew
he could do better. Immediately
following the Akron Invitational,
Bastien worked with Michigan
coach Jerry Clayton and assistant
coach Steven Rajewsky to create
a plan of attack for the Big Ten
Indoor
Championships
and
NCAA Indoor Championships.
“As a decathlete, compared
to people that do just the one
event, you don’t get a lot of reps,”
Bastien said. “There is a lot of
room for improvement because
you don’t have the time to spend
on one or two events. Even after
the first meet, Coach Clayton said
there was more there, more to
improve on.”
On the first day, Bastien looked
ready to prove doubters wrong
straight out of the gates. In the
first event, the 60-meter dash,
Bastien finished in sixth place
with a time of 7.037 seconds,
fractions off his personal best.
Bastien then jumped three
places up the leaderboard to
third in the second event with his
record-breaking long jump of 24
feet, 7.25 inches, but didn’t even
know it.
“When I landed, I looked at
the notches for each footmark
and I misread it,” Bastien said. “I
thought it wasn’t that good but
then I saw the number and was
really happy. Doing well in the
(60-meter dash), then the long
jump really helped me carry the
momentum through.”
Eventually,
after
throwing
a career best in shot put and a
six feet, 2.25 inches high jump,
Bastien fell back to eighth, where
he ended the first day.
Bastien started the second
day to with a personal-best time
of 8.51 seconds in the 60-meter
hurdles, and followed that up
by breaking his previous best
mark as a Wolverine in the pole
vault, clearing 14 feet, 11 inches.
Despite
the
result,
Bastien
dropped to ninth, and needed a
solid performance on the final
event to finish as a first team All-
American.
Bastien did that and more,
running the fastest 1,000 meters
of his career finishing second
in the 14-man field, by clocking
2:36.85 and beating his previous
mark
by
more
than
seven
seconds. With the runner-up
finish, Bastien jumped back into
eighth and finalized his spot on
the All-American first team.
“We need to bring more people
like him to our program to take
us to the next level,” Clayton said.
“This is the type of athlete we
need. He has made great strides
(since coming to Michigan). I saw
the athletic ability, but it was just
putting it together in a heptathlon
which is what we have been able
to do.”
Since transferring to Michigan
from
Samford
this
season,
Bastien has broken two Michigan
records in his seven events. When
he is on the track, no record is
safe. Not even his own.
BASEBALL
Hits don’t fall as
‘M’ drops series
By DANNY VARGOVICK
Daily Sports Writer
To win baseball games, you
need to hit the baseball and the
ball has to find a hole. Against
Kansas (8-12) this weekend,
Michigan (11-8) did only one of
those two things, as it dropped
two of its three games in its
weekend series in Lawrence,
Kansas.
“Today (we had) some of the
best at-bats we’ve had all season,”
said Michigan coach Erik Bakich.
“We hit some of the hardest balls
we’ve hit all season.”
But two Jayhawk outfielders
made leaping catches at the wall
to rob the Wolverines of extra
bases and countless line drives
were roped straight into Kansas
mitts.
The highlight of the weekend
for the Michigan offense was the
eighth inning of Saturday’s game
when it scored three runs to take
a 4-2 lead that it would not relin-
quish.
Junior left fielder Cody Brud-
er reached on an error to start
the inning before being brought
home by senior catcher Kend-
all Patrick’s single. Patrick and
right fielder Johnny Slater then
scored off the bat of senior Eric
Jacobson, who has impressed
after moving over to shortstop as
junior shortstop Travis Maezes
deals with an injury.
Junior
first
baseman
and
junior closer Jacob Cronenworth
threw the final two innings Sat-
urday to ensure the Wolverines
stayed ahead for good.
The main difference between
the Wolverines’ win on Satur-
day and their two losses — 6-5 on
Friday and 8-4 on Sunday — may
have been the starting pitching.
Friday, sophomore left-hander
Brett Adcock needed 87 pitches
to make it through four frames,
allowing five earned runs in the
process. Adcock walked just two
batters while striking out three,
but the Jayhawks had his num-
ber, tagging him for seven hits.
“Brett’s had one bad outing,”
Bakich said. “They capitalized on
an inning where they had two-
out RBIs. Brett’s been lights out
for us these past few weeks.”
Saturday,
freshman
right-
hander Ryan Nutof had one of his
best starts in his young career,
throwing six strong innings
while allowing just two earned
runs and seven total base run-
ners.
“He’s a good pitcher,” Bakich
said. “When he’s throwing his
fastball and breaking ball and
change-up all for strikes, he’s got
pretty good stuff. He gives us a
chance to win games.”
In the rubber match Sun-
day, the Wolverines had their
best pitcher so far this season,
sophomore right-hander Keith
Lehmann, on the mound, but he
lasted just two innings. While he
didn’t allow a single free pass, he
was hit hard for six hits and four
earned runs.
“Keith
made
some
qual-
ity pitches,” Bakich said. “Every-
thing they hit found a hole. They
didn’t strike out and found a way
to put the barrel on the ball. You
have to give them credit for com-
ing out and making contact.”
The weather in Kansas also
seemed to favor the homestand-
ing Jayhawks.
“There was a jet stream going
out to right,” Bakich said. “They
hit a couple balls that way, and we
hit a lot of balls the wrong direc-
tion.”
After putting together an
eight-game winning streak over
Spring Break, the Wolverines
will try not to let one series that
got away get them down. They’ll
attempt to learn from the nega-
tives, try to focus on the positives
and move on.