Rowing comes in
second at Big Ten’s
By ALEX KHALIFEH
Daily Sports Writer
Don’t look too far into the simi-
larities between this group and last
year’s.
Though the No. 11 Michigan
women’s rowing team finished with
the same overall result as it did in
last year’s Big Ten Tournament — a
second-place finish to top-ranked
Ohio State — the end results in the
particular races had different, and in
some cases better, outcomes.
Take the Wolverines’ second var-
sity eight, for example.
Unlike last year, when Michigan’s
crew finished in second place behind
Ohio State, the Wolverines bested
the Buckeyes this time around, win-
ning the Big Ten title for the second
varsity eight.
“I just know all of the hard work
the girls in that boat have put in,” said
senior Alex Spaulding.
“They were down nine seconds to
Ohio State, and then up on them four.
… It was just super motivating and I
think it really set the tone that any-
thing is possible. … I was so excited
for them, and it was a really special
win for them and the team.”
The second varsity eight title is the
first for the Wolverines since 2012.
In the first varsity eight, Michigan
placed second behind Ohio State,
separated by a mere 2.782 seconds.
Though the Wolverines played a
neck-and-neck race, Indiana put a
scare into Michigan, as the Hoosiers
conjured up a late rally in the final
500 meters before the Wolverines
were able to hold Indiana off and
secure second place.
Despite not being able to take
home the Big Ten title in their
respective event, the first varsity
eight crew were pleased to notice the
improvements against the Buckeyes
since their previous matchup just
last month.
“We’re really excited going into
nationals,” said Spaulding. “The
margin (Ohio State) had on us a few
weeks ago was cut in half. We know
we have another chance at them at
NCAAs, so we’re excited about it.”
The first novice eight faced a dif-
ficult time during its event, finishing
fifth overall, while the second varsi-
ty four and third varsity four placed
third and fourth, respectively.
After the tournament ended,
Spaulding along with seniors Jes-
sica Eiffert and Hannah Sherman
were honored with All-Big Ten team
recognition. Senior Allison Boss was
also recognized for the Sportsman-
ship Award.
“It’s actually incredible,” said
Spaulding. “It’s super humbling and
kind of surreal. It was something
that I kind of dreamt of (along with)
being in the (first varsity eight). It’s
a super big honor and I’m really
happy about it.”
Softball ready for Bulldogs
By CHRIS CROWDER
Daily Sports Writer
Last year, the Michigan soft-
ball failed to make the Women’s
College World Series. It lost in
the Super Regionals — the round
the Wolverines are heading into
Thursday. But this is a different
team. This is a different year, a
different opponent.
No. 3 Michigan (54-6 overall)
isn’t worried or thinking about
last season’s shortcoming. It
replaces the fear that could be
there with confidence.
“We might be facing better
talent (this week compared to
previous weeks) and everything,”
said freshman first baseman Tera
Blanco. “But if we stick to us and
stick to what we do, I think we’re
going to be fine.”
Added sophomore right-hand-
er Megan Betsa: “We’re stick-
ing to our normal routine. We’re
doing everything the exact same
that we would do if it was some-
one else.”
This year’s Super Regional
opponent is the No. 14 seed of the
NCAA Division 1 Softball Tour-
nament, Georgia (44-15). The
Bulldogs finished sixth in the
loaded SEC Conference, but lead
it in batting average (.346) and
stolen bases (122). Georgia’s posi-
tion at both categories proves its
proficiency at contact hitting and
running well on the base paths.
“Their
offense
is
pretty
strong,” said Michigan coach
Carol Hutchins. “They’ve got
great hitters, they’ve got team
speed. You know they’re going to
be dangerous and they’re going to
be really aggressive.”
Hutchins
emphasized
how
the top two hitters of the lineup,
right fielder Sydni Emanuel and
second baseman Alex Hugo, are
threats with their skills at the
plate. Emanuel and Hugo are in
the top 15 in their conference
in batting average with .429
and .403 marks, respectively.
Hugo leads the SEC in slugging
percentage by a wide margin,
maintaining a .918 clip.
The Bulldogs’ pitching staff
is not too shabby either, hold-
ing a 2.04 earned-run average.
Taking over most of the starts
is right-hander Chelsea Wilkin-
son. Wilkinson has a 1.95 ERA
and leads her conference with 28
wins and 262 strikeouts. Being
a strikeout artist like Betsa, the
matchup between the two right-
handers will be a highly antici-
pated one.
“(Coach
Brundage)
wants
me to shoot for 21 strikeouts,
so that’s what I’m gonna do
this weekend,” Betsa said. “I’m
gonna try to strike out 21 people.
But it may not happen, and that’s
something I’m gonna have to be
okay with if it doesn’t happen.
My mentality is going to stay the
same. I’m a strikeout pitcher and
that’s what I’m going to do.”
Hutchins wants Betsa to have
this attitude, stressing that the
pitching staff will be of high
importance this round.
“We have to attack them
because they’re going to attack
us,” Hutchins said. “We can’t
pitch around them and we can’t
be tentative. Because if the
pitchers are tentative, our team
will be tentative.”
But the Wolverines are any-
thing but tentative at this point.
They’re ready to punch their tick-
et to Oklahoma City. Hutchins
said that there are 16 teams
left out of around 300. And she
emphasized that these 16 are not
necessarily the best, but are play-
ing the best right now. This spot
is earned and couldn’t have been
earned with tentativeness.
“This is the bottom line, I don’t
know if this is proper to say, but
it’s kill or be killed,” Hutchins
said. “You show up and play,
you show up and attack, or be
attacked. So you’re either going to
win, or you’re going to lose. You
can’t be afraid of it. The minute
you’re afraid you might not go to
Oklahoma City, I guarantee you
won’t go.”
Michigan isn’t scared. It isn’t
worried about how fast Wilkin-
son’s fastball is going to be, or if
Hugo will take a pitch deep. The
Wolverines are rather confident
in how their own pitching staff
is going to throw well, and how
everyone in the lineup will con-
tribute when called upon.
Team 38 isn’t Team 37. That
doesn’t mean that this year’s team
is better or more confident than
the one before it. It just means that
the teams are different. Each team
has faced different obstacles. For
Team 38, there’s no fear that last
year’s history will be repeated.
“We’re not going to be afraid,”
Hutchins said. “That’s something
we have to control. Fear creeps
into everybody’s mind, and that’s
something you have to throw out
the window and start slugging.”
LUNA ANNA ARCHEY/Daily
Seniors Jessica Eiffert and Hannah Sherman were named All-Big Ten on Sunday.
AMANDA ALLEN/Daily
The No. 3 Michigan softball team takes its nation-leading 112 home runs up against the Georgia Bulldogs Thursday at 9.
10
Thursday, May 21, 2015
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
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