Sports
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Tuesday, February 9, 2016 — 7
‘M’ looks to retool pitching staff
By ORION SANG
Daily Sports Writer
Backed by an explosive batting
lineup and a lethal pitching staff,
the No. 2 Michigan softball team
enjoyed a magical run to the
Women’s College World Series
last season.
And though the Wolverines
graduated All-American pitcher
Haylie
Wagner,
this
year’s
pitching staff has the potential to
be just as good, if not better.
All-American and 2015 Big Ten
Pitcher of the Year Megan Betsa is
poised to anchor the staff.
The junior went 31-5 with a 1.72
ERA last year, and she believes
that her big year, along with the
experience of pitching in the
WCWS, was a big part of her
growth and development.
“Megan had a great year for
us,” said Michigan coach Carol
Hutchins. “She’s come into her
own as one of the greats.”
Now, she looks to add to an
already impressive career.
“We’ve talked a lot about not
having
expectations,”
Betsa
said. “Just because I was an All-
American doesn’t mean I need to
try any harder. I need to focus on
my preparation, and realizing that
my spin is what makes me good.”
Betsa has become more of
a leader as well. She is now an
upperclassman with two full
years of pitching experience
under her belt, and has tried to
pass on some of her wisdom to her
pitching counterparts.
“(Freshman right-hander Leah
Crockett) has been working really
hard on developing her mental
game as much as her physical
game,” Betsa said. “She has a lot
of questions, and I’ve tried to take
her under my wing because I was
in a similar situation — I had to
work on my mechanics and get
stronger mentally. I’ll be able to
help her out and get a head start
on that.”
Betsa isn’t the only experienced
pitcher on the roster, however.
Fifth-year
senior
Sara
Driesenga has pitched extensively
for the Wolverines over her
career, and was 4-0 with a 0.78
ERA in 2015 before missing the
rest of the season because of a rib
injury.
“She didn’t hesitate to come
back as a fifth-year,” Hutchins
said. “She wanted to be here and
to have her senior year. We’re
very fortunate. It was a blessing in
disguise, because she beefs up our
staff and she can help us be great.”
Driesenga has had a long hiatus
from
pitching,
but
Hutchins
believes she can continue to get
back in the groove of things as the
season gets underway.
“She still isn’t in the form I feel
she’s capable of,” Hutchins said.
“But she’s come a long way, and
pitching in games is what’s going
to help her get there.”
In
addition
to
the
two
upperclassmen, younger pitchers
will push for playing time.
Sophomore right-hander Tera
Blanco was a ballyhooed high
school recruit, ranked as the No.
1 softball recruit in the Orange
County region, and started most
games at first base her freshman
season.
Hutchins now looks to her to
bolster the pitching staff.
“I told her at the end of the
season that we need her to pitch,”
Hutchins said. “She’s improved a
lot, worked really hard and stayed
here in the summer. She couldn’t
train with us (because of NCAA
rules), but she trained with our
strength and conditioning coach
and worked with one of our local
pitching coaches.
“The big thing with Tera is she
is a gamer. She is going to get a lot
better when she gets the chance to
get on the mound and I do expect
you’ll see her.”
And while Hutchins thinks
Blanco is ready for an expanded
pitching role, she believes that
Crockett needs more seasoning
before taking a rotation spot.
“If I had my best wish, I’d
like (Crockett) not to pitch and
to
continue
getting
better,”
Hutchins said. “She comes to us
raw and physically strong.”
How the pitching staff shakes
out is currently unknown to
Hutchins.
Just
like
seasons
before, she thinks it will continue
to evolve as the season plays out.
However, she is sure of one
thing, and that is how large of
a role the pitchers will play in
her team’s push for a national
championship.
“(Betsa) can’t do it by herself,”
Hutchins said. “We need a
pitching staff. To me, how our
pitching staff evolves is the key to
our season.”
DELANEY RYAN/Daily
Junior right-hander Megan Betsa will anchor a pitching staff that should be among the Big Ten’s best in 2016.
Wolverines third
at Stanford Invite
By BILLY STAMPFL
Daily Sports Writer
On a weekend when a lot of
people asked the No. 7 Michigan
water polo team if it knew Jim
Harbaugh, the Wolverines made
a name for themselves with their
stellar play in the Bay Area.
Michigan (10-3) won three of
its four matches against ranked
opponents and claimed third at
the Stanford Invite on Sunday.
It also rebounded from a loss to
No. 1 Stanford on Saturday by
winning out for the rest of the
weekend.
Following a
12-7 defeat to
the
Cardinal
on
Saturday
morning,
Michigan
slipped
by
No. 15 Loyola
Marymount
later that day,
9-8. Backed by
strong defense
and three goals each from senior
Ali Thomason and freshman Kim
Johnson, the Wolverines downed
the
Lions
after
overcoming
what Michigan coach Marcelo
Leonardi called “the proverbial
Stanford hangover.”
“I told them, ‘We can’t allow a
team like (Stanford) to physically
push us around,’” Leonardi said.
“And I thought they responded
really well.”
Michigan, heeding the advice
of its coach, answered with a
stronger second half against
the Cardinal and, following
the aforementioned slow start
against Loyola Marymount, a
win over the Lions.
“(The
Stanford
game)
was kind of a wake-up call,”
Thomason said. “We realized we
had to push harder, and I think
that carried over to our later
games.”
The Wolverines kept their
momentum going into the next
day, beating No. 8 San Jose
State, 8-7, in a game that saw
Johnson score the winning goal
in the final seconds of the fourth
quarter.
“(Johnson)’s been able to learn
the system,” Thomason said.
“She has a great skillset — she
can post up, she can defend, she
can shoot — which is why she’s
been able to
contribute
so
much.”
Thomason
herself scored
seven
times
for
Michigan
in Palo Alto,
making her the
ninth
player
in
program
history
to
record
150
career goals. She added one goal
against No. 10 UC Irvine in the
final match Sunday afternoon.
Not just an excellent player in
the water, Thomason offers great
leadership out of it for a young,
still-growing team.
“(Thomason)’s development at
this university is second to none,”
Leonardi said. “Everybody looks
to her at the most difficult times
to lead us through challenges.”
Led
by
Thomason
and
Johnson, the Wolverines hope
to continue to play up to the
standards of top competition.
Leonardi may not be quite as
famous as Jim Harbaugh yet,
but the coaches have one thing
in common: They don’t let their
teams get pushed around.
WATER POLO
‘M’ strong on hill
By ETHAN WOLFE
Daily Sports Writer
The Michigan baseball team
lost some firepower from its
pitching staff to the MLB draft
and graduation last season, but
that hasn’t seemed to be a problem
in the 2016 preseason.
The Wolverines, who are
ranked as the No. 15 team in
the nation according to Baseball
America, are looking to improve
on the mound after finishing
79th in Division I with a 3.81
team-earned run average last
season.
To lead this charge, Michigan
will rely especially on senior left-
hander Evan Hill, who missed
the first two months of last season
recovering from anterior cruciate
ligament surgery. In the 38 innings
he was able to pitch last season,
he managed to fan 37 batters. His
most
remarkable
performance
came in the NCAA Tournament
against Bradley, allowing only
one run and striking out six in 6.2
innings.
After finishing strong last
season, but missing out on the
MLB draft, Hill pitched in the
Cape Cod Baseball League over
the summer and finished with a
5-0 record and a 1.80 ERA. Hill
is anxious to get on the mound
and be at full strength for his
final season.
“The rehab was frustrating, not
being able to get out there and help
out in the ball games,” Hill said. “I
feel comfortable now. I’m healthy
and I couldn’t be happier.”
Hill credits pitching coach
Sean Kenny for helping all of the
pitchers improve their mechanics
and watching game film with
them.
“(Kenny) is there to make
sure we are all on the same
page,” Hill said. “We take the
same approach going into every
season: Stay relaxed, throw a lot
of strikes and put the pressure on
(the batters).”
The Wolverines also return
their ace in junior left-hander
Brett Adcock, who finished last
season 10-4 with a 3.10 ERA in
17 starts. In 90 innings pitched,
Adcock struck out an impressive
95 batters. In the Big Ten, Adcock
ranked
second
in
strikeouts,
tied for third in wins and fifth in
opponent’s batting average.
Though
the
prospects
of
Adcock and Hill are promising
for Michigan, it will be difficult to
replace closer Jacob Cronenworth,
second on the Wolverines’ career
saves list, who was selected in the
seventh round in the 2015 MLB
draft by the Tampa Bay Rays.
Junior
left-hander
Carmen
Benedetti, who gave up just four
hits in 18 relief appearances last
season, hopes to help fill those
shoes.
Michigan
coach
Erik
Bakich believes he could be used
a lot more out of the bullpen this
year.
“(Benedetti’s)
growth
is
impressive in a lot of ways,” Bakich
said. “He was a hard-throwing
left-hander whose command and
secondary pitches were not as
polished. Now, not only is Carmen
throwing two pitches, but he’s
throwing three pitches. He has a
breaking ball and a changeup to go
along with fastball that’s improved
in velocity.
“He’ll be counted on heavily
at the end of the game in high-
leverage spots. If he’s in there, it’s
because it’s an important part of
the game.”
Benedetti, who also led the
Wolverines last season with a
team-high 71 runs batted in,
focused a lot on pitching this
offseason. He, like Hill, played
summer ball in the Cape Cod
Baseball League and worked with
retired Cincinnati Reds relief
pitcher Bill Bray to improve his
pitching repertoire.
“Getting (Bray’s) knowledge
about the game, what he has
experienced, and with some
pitching tips that he gave me
definitely helped me and gave
me more confidence towards the
season.”
Alongside Adcock and Hill,
sophomore right-hander Ryan
Nutof is also returning to the
rotation as the third starter.
With so many returning arms
and promise in the bullpen, the
Wolverines have a reason to feel
confident heading into the 2016
season.
BASEBALL
Wolverines set season-high score
By MATTHEW KENNEDY
Daily Sports Writer
Last Friday, the balance beam
was
the
Michigan
women’s
gymnastics
team’s
nemesis,
causing the Wolverines to drop
their first meet of this season
against Nebraska.
Monday night, in a tri-meet
against Eastern Michigan and
Maryland, the beam became the
team’s best friend.
No. 3 Michigan (3-1 Big Ten,
7-1 overall) set a season high
at the meet, easily beating the
Eagles and Terrapins, 197.425-
195.875
and
197.425-194.075,
respectively.
“What we did after the loss
to Nebraska was just sort of try
to make sure that our athletes
knew that we had not lost
any confidence in them,” said
Michigan coach Bev Plocki.
“Just tried to make sure that they
understood that we believe in
them completely and totally and
we need them to believe in each
other completely and totally.
Just go out and be aggressive
and confident and they were able
to do that tonight.”
Junior Nicole Artz, who has
been named Big Ten Gymnast of
the Week twice this season, won
the all-around title with a score
of 39.550. Sophomore Brianna
Brown, who was named Big Ten
Freshman of the Year a season
ago, finished second in the all-
around with a 39.300.
The night’s dominant tone
started off early when freshman
Emma
McLean
stuck
her
landing on the first vault of the
night, receiving a score of 9.850
and loud cheers from the crowd.
The rest of the Michigan
gymnasts had great rotation
throughout their vaults, capped
by
freshman
Olivia
Karas
getting judge-pleasing height
and almost sticking her landing,
helping Michigan to a meet-high
49.300.
The Wolverines followed up
their success on the vault with
an even better uneven bars,
an event in which Michigan is
ranked sixth nationally. The
Wolverines
consistently
had
good
extension
and
stayed
straight when perpendicular to
the floor, leading to a 449.350 on
the day.
Most surprising, though, was
Karas’s fall off the bars when
she jumped from the higher bar
to the lower bar. Karas, who
was named Big Ten Gymnast of
the Week last week, had usually
been sure-handed on the bars.
She did recover from the fall,
though, and managed to salvage
a 9.150.
“I really like that as a
freshman, she showed a lot of
maturity to be able to snap back
from a mistake and do great on
beam and floor,” Plocki said. “I’m
really proud that she came back
and did a great job on the next
two events.”
After the uneven bars, the
Wolverines had to go on the
daunting balance beam. This
time, though, the team had no
issues, performing the best on
the beam of any event on the
beam. The team began with
Karas, who quickly recovered
from her fall on the bars to score
a 9.875 — the fourth best score on
the day in the event.
Artz and junior Talia Chiarelli
capped off the beam by both
sticking
their
dismounts,
helping Michigan to conquer the
previously-disastrous beam with
a meet high 49.450.
“Beam is the event where if
there are nerves, you tend to see
them all,” Plocki said. “I thought
that they competed relaxed and
confidently and it showed.”
With one event remaining, the
Wolverines were all but assured
of winning the meet. Michigan
had just the floor event — an
event in which it is ranked first
in the nation. With great height
and powerful rotation on their
jumps, as well as multiple stuck
landings, the Wolverines were
able to best both teams by a half
point on the floor with a 49.325.
“This group of athletes loves
to perform,” Plocki said. “We
work a lot on that aspect of it.
We really try to make sure they
are having fun, and when they
are having fun, they make it look
easy and the crowd gets into it.”
“Everybody looks
to (Thomason)
at the most
difficult times.”
ZOEY HOLMSTROM/Daily
Junior Nicole Artz was part of a bounce-back day on the beam for the Michigan women’s gymnastics team against Maryland and Eastern Michigan on Monday.