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Thursday, June 16, 2016
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
SPORTS

Steinberg resigns as 
men’s tennis coach 

By ETHAN WOLFE

Summer Managing Sports Editor

Just two years after getting 

hired as the Michigan men’s 
tennis coach, Adam Steinberg 
resigned 
Wednesday 
to become the 
new head coach 
at 
Arizona 

State.

“We 

appreciate 
everything 
Adam and his 
family 
did 

for 
Michigan 

and the men’s 
tennis program 
over the last 
two 
seasons,” 

said Michigan 
Athletic 
Director Warde Manuel in a 
statement. “We wish him well 
in the future.”

The 
announcement 
came 

after a 21-8 season, in which 
the Wolverines advanced to 
the second round of the NCAA 
Regionals.

After a 7-17 finish in his first 

year at the helm of the program 
during 
the 
2014-15 
season, 

Steinberg’s 
team-oriented 

coaching style took only one 
season to come to fruition with 

a dramatic 14-win turnaround.

Before 
arriving 
in 
Ann 

Arbor, Steinberg had coached at 
Pepperdine for 10 years, where 
he won a national championship 
in 2006 behind a 36-2 overall 

record — the 
most victories 
by an NCAA 
championship 
team. 
Later, 

Steinberg 
took 
over 

for 
former 

Michigan 
men’s 
tennis 

coach 
Bruce 

Berque, 
who left the 
program 
in 

2014 after his 
team 
failed 

to 
make 
it 

past 
the 

second round of the NCAA 
Tournament.

When Steinberg spoke to The 

Daily in early April, he discussed 
his broad, yet effective goal 
to change “everything this 
program is about.” In just two 
seasons, Steinberg’s ideology 
had already left its mark.

Despite 
Steinberg’s 

departure, 
Michigan 
will 

return a bevy of its starters as it 
begins its search for a new head 
coach.

In just two 

seasons, 

Steinberg’s 
ideology had 
already left its 

mark.

By AVI SHOLKOFF 

Daily Sports Writer

For the third time in the last 

four years, the Michigan softball 
team reached the Women’s College 
World Series. Though the Wolver-
ines did not win a championship, 
Michigan has much to be proud 
of in an expectations-filled sea-
son. Senior second baseman Sierra 
Romero cemented herself as the 
greatest hitter in Wolverine histo-
ry — perhaps one of the top players 
of all time — junior right-hander 
Megan Betsa earned Big Ten pitch-
er of the year and Michigan coach 
Carol Hutchins set the record for 
most NCAA wins by a head coach.

The Daily looks at the high-

lights, gives out awards and recaps 
the other top moments of the 2016 
softball season.

Most Valuable Player: Sierra 

Romero

Through her first three seasons, 

Romero was the Wolverines’ best 
player. In 2016, she demonstrated 
that she could be one of the best 
players ever in the history of the 
softball. Romero hit at least .450 
for the third straight year, includ-
ing .500 in conference play. She 
hit 19 home runs in 59 games and 
had 79 runs batted-in. Romero 
notched her fourth straight NFCA 
All-America honors and her third 
consecutive year as a member of 
the first team. During Michigan’s 
time at the WCWS, USA softball 
named her the 2016 National Col-
legiate Player of the Year. This past 
Thursday, Romero became the first 
recipient of the NFCA D1 Player of 
the Year award.

In her four years, she played 

both second base and shortstop 
and started all but one game. She 
ranks first in the Michigan record 
book in career batting average, 
runs, home runs, RBI and slugging 
percentage. Romero will continue 
her softball career as a member of 
the USSSA Pride, which will play 
a series at Alumni Field from June 
27-29.

Breakout player: Tera Blanco
Recruited as a pitcher, Blanco 

has spent most of her two seasons 
in Ann Arbor in the right side of the 
infield at first base. The sophomore 
improved on a solid freshman year, 
hitting .404 with 12 home runs and 
66 RBI — an improvement of .113, 
five and 19 respectively. She also 
slugged .748, second-best on the 
team.

Blanco earned her first NFCA 

All-America first team honors and 
was named to the All-Big Ten sec-
ond team. Blanco moved up to the 
No. 5 spot in the batting order and 
may hit cleanup next season. The 
first baseman had a total of 318 
fielding opportunities notching 
296 putouts — best on the team — 
and finished the season with a per-
fect fielding percentage of 1.000.

With Michigan’s two best offen-

sive threats graduating, Blanco 
will be looked to for dynamic and 
powerful hitting next season.

She also could see extended time 

in the circle with the departure 
of fifth-year senior right-hander 
Sara Driesenga. In a combined 37 
innings in her two years, she sports 
a 2.08 earned-run average and 22 
strikeouts.

Game of the year: Super 

Regional Game: Michigan 5, 
Missouri 4

Hutchins described her Wol-

verines’ come-from-behind, late-
game win over Missouri as “one 
of the very greatest victories ever 
in the history of Michigan soft-
ball.” Coming from a coach in her 
32nd year in Ann Arbor, it clearly 
has significance. All season long, 
Michigan was expected to advance 
to the WCWS, and it did so in an 
unbelievable fashion.

Down 4-1 heading into the sev-

enth inning, the Wolverines scored 
four runs to defeat the Tigers and 
travel to Oklahoma City for their 
third time in four years. Michigan 
had just four hits in its first six 
innings. In the seventh, it had five. 
The Wolverines loaded the bases 
for Romero — the NCAA career 
leader in grand slams — who hit 
a fly ball to center field, scoring 
pinch runner Mary Sbonek from 
third base. It was now 4-2. The 
Wolverines had a problem though: 
they were down to their last out.

Kelly Christner wasn’t affected. 

She swung at Tigers’ right-hander 
Paige Lowary’s next pitch and 
lined it down the right-field line to 
add another run. Senior outfielder 
Kelsey Susalla doubled home Sier-
ra Lawrence, and the game was 
tied at four.

Michigan again was down to 

its last out with Missouri’s 9-1-2 
hitters due up in the bottom of 
the inning. Lowary’s 1-2 pitch to 
Blanco sailed to the backstop and 
Christner came sprinting from 
third and touching home for the 
go-ahead run. Betsa would stop the 
Tigers’ bats in the bottom of the 7th 
for one final time en route to a sec-

ond consecutive WCWS berth.

Moment of the year: Honor-

ing Hutchins at Alumni Field

In Bloomington on April 2, 

Hutchins became the winningest 
coach in NCAA softball history 
with her 1,458th victory. Her Wol-
verines run-ruled Indiana, 8-0, 
that Saturday afternoon.

About two weeks later on April 

15, a sold-out crowd at Alumin 
Field watched Michigan athletic 
director Warde Manuel honor 
Hutchins with a ceremony after 
the Wolverines’ victory over rival 
Ohio State. As Hutchins stood in 
the dugout, Manuel offered praise 
for a coach who has won more 
games than anyone else in Michi-
gan’s history.

“She’s mad at us. She doesn’t 

want any of this attention,” Manuel 
said that night. “Thirty-three years 
of coaching. I hope it is the halfway 
point in her career.”

A video tribute played on the 

scoreboard in left field. In the mon-
tage, numerous Michigan coaches 
expressed their amazement with 
Hutchins’ achievements. Hockey 
coach Red Berenson, field hockey 
coach Marcia Pankratz, men’s 
basketball coach John Beilein and 
baseball coach Erik Bakich were 
among those who shared stories 
and praise for the winningest 
coach in softball history.

Hutchins thanked her coaching 

staff and the numerous fans who 
showed their support, beginning 
her address by sharing her adora-
tion with Alumni Field. 

“This isn’t about me. It’s about 

the 
University 
of 
Michigan,” 

Hutchins said that night. “Any win 
we ever get in softball is for the 
University of Michigan. I am hon-
ored and humbled to be up here 
today.”

Romero perhaps best summa-

rized the sentiments of the players 
after the game.

“She 
deserves 
everything,” 

Romero said. “I know she doesn’t 
like the attention. But, she’s the all-
time winningest coach.

“She’s a great leader for our pro-

gram, and she’s made me not only 
a better player but a better person 
and has prepared me for every-
thing after college. She’s an amaz-
ing woman.”

In a season filled with come-

back wins, long home runs and 
numerous shutouts, it was the hon-
oring of a long-time coach, now the 
winningest in NCAA softball, that 
stood out the most. 

‘M’ Softball: Season in Review

SOFTBALL

SAMII STOLOFF/Daily

Adam Steinberg compiled a 28-25 record in his two seasons at Michigan.

