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Thursday, May 4, 2017
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

In its 10th annual “Pink Game” 

to raise awareness for breast 
cancer, the Michigan softball 
team capped off an undefeated 
regular season home record with 
an 8-0 run-rule victory over 
Western Michigan Tuesday. 

The win gave the Wolverines 

(38-10-1 overall, 17-3 Big Ten) a 
perfect home record of 17-0 to 
end the season, a feat it hasn’t 
accomplished since 2009.

Western Michigan (21-26, 9-12 

Mid-American) entered the game 
hoping to play spoiler, as winners 
of five of its last six. But in a swift, 
one hour and sixteen minute 
affair, 
Michigan 
emphatically 

took care of its business against 
its MAC foe, pairing 11 hits and 
five extra-base hits with a shutout 
start from Tera Blanco. The 
junior right-hander shut down 
the Broncos in efficient fashion, 
allowing just four baserunners 
and needing to throw just 63 
pitches to put the Broncos away.

Sophomore second baseman 

Faith 
Canfield 
sparked 
the 

blowout early with her seventh 
home run of the season in the 
bottom of the first. With the first 
two runners on base, Canfield 
took an 0-2 pitch on the outside 
corner and shot the ball to right-
centerfield on a line, just clearing 

the fence. 

And it was off to the races 

for a Michigan offense that has 
barely left the track in nearly two 
weeks.

In the bottom of the 3rd inning, 

senior third baseman Lindsay 
Montemarano skied a high fly 
ball down the left field line which 
landed in the bullpen just right of 
the foul pole. The power could be 
a welcome sign for Montemarano, 
who is now hitting .500 in her last 
nine starts after hitting .226 prior 
to that stretch.

The senior attributes that 

improvement to her emphasis on 
the lower body. 

“I’ve been working on getting 

some whip in, using my legs 
a lot more than I had been in 
the beginning of the season,” 
Montemarano said. “I was using 
way too much upper body, I 
formed a couple of bad habits due 
to a couple of things going on.

“But I feel really loose and 

really strong in my lower half, 
and I’ve been working really hard 
on getting some whip back. I’m 
seeing the ball well and trusting 
the work that I’m putting into it.”

Added Michigan coach Carol 

Hutchins: 
“(Montemarano’s) 

working. She’s coming in early, 
and she’s accepting constructive 
criticism, and she’s accepting 
ideas. She’s had better energy, 
and I think as you play better, 

you get better energy. Hopefully 
hitting her stride. Good time to 
hit it.”

Sophomore 
catcher 
Alex 

Sobczak capped the game off 
with a solo home run to right-
centerfield in the bottom of the 
fifth. The sophomore has forced 
her way back into the lineup 
after losing the catcher battle to 
start the season to sophomore 
Katie Alexander.

“Alex is another one who 

just 
stayed 
on 
course 
even 

though things didn’t go her way 
throughout a good period of the 
year,” said Michigan coach Carol 
Hutchins. “I’m happy some of her 
hard work is paying off, because 
she’s worked hard.”

With 
three 
more 
home 

runs Tuesday, the Wolverines 
have now hit 11 in their past 4 
games, and 14 over the past six 
games, with production coming 
throughout the lineup.

The next time Michigan will 

play at Alumni Field will be the 
end of next week, for the Big 
Ten Tournament. And for the 
first time possibly all season, 
Hutchins thinks her team is 
ready.

“I want consistency in our 

offense,” Hutchins said. 

“And I don’t want to get ahead 

of myself, but I sure feel like 
I’ve seen it these past couple of 
weeks.”

Wolverines beat Western Michigan

ALEXIS RANKIN/Daily

The Michigan softball team tallied 11 hits and five extra-base hits in a 8-0 run-rule defeat of Western Michigan.

MAX MARCOVITCH

Daily Sports Writer

Michigan run-rules Broncos in final regular season home game
Michigan falls in Big 
Ten Championships

After a long rally, freshman Chiara 

Lommer changed the direction of the 
ball and hit an inside-out forehand 
across the court. But the ball landed 
just wide, ending the Michigan 
women’s tennis team’s chance of 
winning the Big Ten Tournament 
Championship.

The Wolverines overcame Indiana 

and Northwestern in the early rounds 
of the tournament, winning 4-0 and 
4-1, respectively. However, Michigan 
fell in the final to Ohio State, 4-0.

Michigan had its best results when 

it got out to an early lead. Against 
both the Hoosiers and the Wildcats, 
the Wolverines clinched the doubles 
point easily.

Lommer and sophomore Brienne 

Minor handily took care of their 
Indiana opponents, dusting them 
6-0. But it was the No. 3 doubles 
pair of junior Mira Ruder-Hook 
and freshman Valeria Patiuk who 
clinched the point for the Wolverines. 
After losing the first two games, the 
duo rallied to win five straight games, 
eventually taking the match, 6-3.

Ruder-Hook and Patiuk were 

the first off the court against 
Northwestern, but it was sophomore 
Kate Fahey and junior Alex Najarian’s 
turn to win the doubles point against 
the Wildcats. Fahey and Najarian 
charged the net, forcing the Wildcats 
to sail the ball long.

When it came to singles play, 

Michigan didn’t slow down. Najarian 
dropped the Wolverines’ lone singles 
match, but she still managed to force 
it to three sets. Fortunately for the 
Wolverines, Minor and Fahey battled 
to win their three-set matches to 
send Michigan to the finals.

Earlier in the year, the Wolverines 

faced the Buckeyes as part of their 
non-conference slate. Ohio State 
came out in top form, winning the 
matchup 5-1, and Sunday’s final was 
no different.

After taking the No. 3 and No. 

2 doubles matches, 6-2 and 6-3, 
respectively, Michigan was in an 
early hole.

“We knew the doubles point 

was going to be important and we 
unfortunately came out on the wrong 
side of it,” said Michigan coach Ronni 
Bernstein. “There was a big deuce 
point at No. 2 that we didn’t win that 
could have gotten that match back on 
track. With the way doubles works 

now, you have to get a good start and 
we came out of the gates a little slow.”

The Buckeyes continued their 

domination into singles play by 
winning all six first sets.

Perhaps the most anticipated 

match of the day was the No. 1 singles 
contest between Fahey and top-
ranked Francesca Di Lorenzo. The 
pair kept the match close, exchanging 
breaks back and forth. But it was 
eventually Di Lorenzo who claimed 
the first set, 7-5.

The 
match 
was 
abandoned, 

however, after Lommer’s loss gave 
Ohio State their fourth point. 

The second point came against 

Patiuk, who dropped the first set, 6-0, 
and fell into a 5-1 hole in the second, 
but still managed to fight off two 
match points. But a driving forehand 
down the line from the Buckeyes’ 
Ferny Angeles Paz sealed the match.

The next Wolverine off the court 

was Najarian. She approached the net 
and attempted to hit her opponents’ 
return cross court, but sent it into the 
bottom of the net to put Ohio State 
within one point of the championship.

At the conclusion of the contest, 

the three remaining matches were 
abandoned. Ruder-Hook had just 
won the second set, Minor managed 
to force a third set, and Fahey was in a 
3-0 hole in the second set. Things may 
have turned around for Michigan, 
but it was all too little too late.

“We had our work cut out for us in 

singles and we weren’t able to get it 
done,” Bernstein said. “(Fahey) hung 
in there at No. 1 and played a great 
match. (Minor) and (Ruder-Hook) 
were able to stay on court with wins 
in their second sets. 

“We played well in some spots 

and not so great at some others, but 
it is a team sport and you need to 
win at multiple spots.”

While the Wolverines didn’t 

manage to win the Tournament, 
they will likely still have a chance 
to continue their season in the 
NCAA Tournament. They will 
learn their fate on May 2 and can 
hopefully learn from the loss to the 
Buckeyes.

“As much as this hurts, we still 

have a lot of tennis left this season,” 
Bernstein said. “We have a really 
good chance of hosting the first 
and second rounds of the NCAA 
Tournament and we are looking 
forward to that. We will get back 
to practice this week and get ready 
for the rest of the postseason.” 

PAIGE VOEFFRAY

Daily Sports Writer

WOMEN’S TENNIS
SPORTS

