The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Sports
Friday, February 8, 2019 — 7
A study in contrasts: ‘M’ packs
combo of youth and experience
Two years ago, the Michigan
baseball team had 11 players
selected in the draft, the most
by any one school. All eleven of
them signed contracts. Seven
were juniors.
A year later, the absence of
the seven would-be seniors
leaves
some
gaps
in
the
Wolverines’ lineup. And with
those gaps come opportunities
for young players to step into
bigger roles.
Michigan’s
reliance
on
younger,
less-experienced
players caused the team to
struggle at points last season.
The Wolverines got off to a
slow start, losing 11 of their
first 15 games. After that,
though, they went on a tear,
winning 20 straight games.
Ultimately, though, the team’s
collective lack of experience
caught up to them in the Big
Ten Tournament. After beating
Iowa 2-1 in extra innings to
start the tournament, their
season ended with consecutive
losses to Purdue and Ohio State.
But this year, with another
year of experience, Michigan’s
younger players look poised
for success. The team has also
taken the offseason to get
stronger and faster, and that
increased level of physicality
has already been evident in
how the team has been playing
in practice.
“It’s a little bit of an older
team, so I see a group of kids
who’ve had another birthday,
who’ve gotten stronger, who’ve
become
more
physical,
so
I would like to think we’re
capable of hitting for more
power this year,” said Michigan
coach Erik Bakich. “I like to
think some of our pitchers
are going to be stronger, more
durable.
We’ve
seen
some
bumps in velocity from some
of our pitchers, and they look
more physical on the mound as
well.”
Among those looking to make
the jump is Jesse Franklin. The
sophomore outfielder struggled
to adjust to college baseball at
the beginning of his freshman
season, hitting an average of
.095 with two hits over his first
nine games. But he soon found
his stride, hitting his first of
a team-high 10 home runs on
Mar. 20 to kick off a hot streak
that
lasted
several
weeks.
Despite his slow start, Franklin
finished the season with a solid
.327 average and 47 runs batted
in.
Franklin was part of a strong
freshman
recruiting
class
that stepped into big roles last
season. Another notable now-
sophomore is right-hander Jeff
Criswell, who “has a lightning
bolt for an arm” according to
Bakich and who will now be
in competition for a starting
role. Criswell had a 2.23 ERA
last season over 32.1 innings of
relief, pitching several scoreless
innings and one perfect inning
in the process.
Also in a position for a strong
year is senior Jimmy Kerr,
who will play at either first or
third base. Kerr made 19 starts
at third last year. In 2017, his
sophomore season, he was part
of a defensive infield that was
statistically among the best in
college baseball.
“Jimmy Kerr has been in this
program – this is his fourth
year now – and he’s earned
a starting job,” Bakich said.
“He’s put on a lot of size, a lot of
strength, a lot of explosiveness,
he’s hitting the ball with a lot
of juice in the bat, so it’s really
good to see.”
Overall,
expectations
are
high for Team 153, whose
combination
of
youth
and
experience
coupled
with
improved strength could be
enough to send the team into a
deep playoff run this spring.
“We’ve got our goals set as
high you can set them, and in
terms of how we’ve prepared
and
being
around
these
guys every day, it feels like a
championship team,” Bakich
said. “Everything feels right in
terms of what type of group this
could be. It feels like a special
group.”
ABBY SNYDER
Daily Sports Writer
Wolverines not focused on rankings
After a disappointing ending
to a season that was not up to the
Michigan softball team’s lofty
aspirations, coach Carol Hutchins
had a simple answer for the
softball team’s focus throughout
the offseason.
“Pitching, offense and defense.
You know, you catch and throw.”
With the winningest coach in
college softball at the helm, the
Wolverines recognize that any
sort of rebound from last year
starts with the fundamentals.
Ranked No. 19, according to
the USA Today, Michigan once
again is predicted to come out
victorious in the Big Ten with
No. 21 Minnesota being the only
other team from the conference
appearing in the rankings.
But winning the Big Ten isn’t
going to be enough for what the
Wolverines have their sights set
on.
“In
every
aspect
of
our
program, we are gearing up for
a chance to be a World Series
contender,”
Hutchins
said.
“That’s the expectation of the
program, so all we can do is hold
the standards of the program
in everything we do, whether
it’s working hard, whether it’s
showing up on time, whether it’s
doing the little things properly.”
Being ranked towards the
bottom of the top-20 would
be
encouraging
for
most
programs. For Michigan, it’s
uncharacteristic. However, the
players have their blinders up.
“Honestly,
we
don’t
talk
rankings in here,” said sophomore
pitcher Meghan Beaubien. “Like,
coaches don’t bring it up. I don’t
think the team has brought it up
as a group, it’s just not something
we focus on. Because ultimately,
the preseason ranking doesn’t
mean anything when you get to
the end of the year. So much time
and anyone can beat anyone, you
know.”
“We try to not pay attention
to
rankings,
what
happens
outside of us,” added junior third
baseman Madison Uden. “I mean,
we have our own little thing
where we just try keep everything
within us. You know, a lot of great
players talk about just trusting
the process and doing what you
know. And that’s what we’re kind
of working on right now.”
But questions have arisen about
whether the Wolverines’ style is
primed to defeat the Pac-12 and
SEC powerhouses that make up a
majority of the top-15 teams. With
college softball slowly shifting to
power-hitting over consistency,
Hutchins’
long-standing
(and
proven) offensive philosophy will
continue to be challenged.
Michigan trusts her, however,
and knows that 35 years of
coaching has brought some tried
and true methods to Hutchins’
name.
“I think we keep to what
(Hutchins) wants us to do, but
I think actually, it just kind of
depends on who she brings in,”
Uden said. “Obviously when
(former
Wolverines
Sierra
Romero) and Sierra Lawrence
stepped out, we became more of
a consistency team than a power
hitting, which they’ve adapted
to that great over the past couple
of years. We struggled with that,
I know, my freshman year. But I
know this year is gonna look a lot
better.
“We are a more consistent
team, not so much of a power
hitting team but who says you
can’t get the job done with
consistency?”
If Uden’s point is to hold true,
the rankings should follow suit.
Michigan gets third straight win
Heading into the final frame,
the Michigan women’s basketball
team trailed Nebraska, 49-48.
Two tense minutes went by with
neither side able to find the nylon
and break the silence.
The
Cornhuskers
(5-7
Big
Ten, 10-13 overall) spoke first
with a layup, but the Wolverines
responded with a free throw from
senior center Hallie Thome.
Then, more tension followed
— in the form of over four
more scoreless minutes — until
freshman forward Naz Hillmon
made her way to the line, making
both shots to tie the game.
Thome soon followed suit, with
two more from the charity stripe
to give her team a two-point lead.
That — coupled with the stellar
defensive effort that followed —
was enough to propel Michigan
(6-6, 15-9) to a 67-61 win Thursday
night at Crisler Center.
“Before the fourth quarter even
started, we were all kind of tensed
up — I think we could feel that,”
said junior forward Akienreh
Johnson, who finished with 14
points and six steals. “So Hallie,
she brought us in a circle and said
‘Guys, no matter what happens
just go out and have fun.’ … So after
she said that, it kind of just calmed
us down.”
With less than four minutes
left in the opening frame and the
score tied, 8-8, things took a turn
for Michigan.
Freshman guard Amy Dilk
made a contested floater but
landed awkwardly. She collapsed,
grasping her right knee, and sat
out the rest of the game. Back
in high school, Dilk injured that
same knee two times and had
surgery.
“She’s gonna get an X-ray
tomorrow,” said Michigan coach
Kim Barnes Arico, “and then we’ll
have more information about her
tomorrow.”
A
few
possessions
later,
Nebraska drained a 3-pointer
to take the lead and build some
momentum off the Wolverines’
misfortune.
But then Hillmon — who
entered the game when Dilk went
out — had her say. She notched two
layups that sparked a 7-0 run for
her team. Michigan led, 17-13, at
the end of the quarter.
“She’s my roommate. We’re
pretty close, so seeing (Dilk) go
down
wasn’t
something
that
any of us expected or wanted, of
course,” Hillmon, who scored a
team-high 18-points, said. “So that
was hard for us, but we knew we
had to adjust in that moment. Amy
wouldn’t want us to sit around and
mope and ask her about her knee
in the middle of the game.”
Within the first 80 seconds
of the second stanza, Johnson
notched a triple, two steals and
a fast break layup. Senior guard
Nicole Munger also excelled.
She tallied a jumper and then a
3-pointer midway through the
frame to give her team a 10-point
advantage — its biggest of the half.
The
Cornhuskers
battled
with more pressure on defense
though, while having their own
success from beyond the arc. They
made two 3-pointers that fueled
a 13-4 run, and at the half, the
Wolverines’ lead shrunk to three
points, 35-32.
After
the
break,
things
remained
close.
Michigan
retained the upper-hand for much
of the third frame but Nebraska
kept chipping away. With less
than three minutes to go in the
third, the Cornhuskers grabbed
the lead and soon added some
security
with
another
triple.
However, Michigan had the final
say, squeaking out a win and
improving its NCAA Tournament
hopes.
“It feels awesome,” Barnes
Arico said about winning her third
consecutive game. “I wish we were
healthy, but way for everybody else
to find a way to grind it out and pull
away a victory tonight.”
Johnson steals show in women’s
basketball victory over Hawkeyes
With just over two minutes
remaining in the fourth quarter,
Nebraska inbounded the ball
down
by
two.
As
Hannah
Whitish tried to push the ball
up the court, however, Akienreh
Johnson intercepted the pass and
sprinted down the floor for a lay-
in that would put the Michigan
women’s basketball team up by
four points.
The play was one of the game’s
biggest moments, and it’s only
fitting that Johnson was the one
to initiate it. In the Wolverines’
67-61 victory, the junior guard
scored 14 points on five-for-seven
shooting, dished out three assists
and recorded a whopping six
steals. It was an absolute clinic
that cemented Johnson’s role
as one of Michigan’s key pieces
going forward, especially with
questions surrounding freshman
guard Amy Dilk’s availability
after she suffered a gruesome-
looking injury in the first quarter
after finishing a layup in traffic.
While
the
loss
of
Dilk
appeared to be cause for concern,
the Wolverines found their spark
in Johnson, who stole the show
on the defensive side of the ball.
Johnson picked off a Nebraska
pass on her first possession of the
game, making her presence felt
almost immediately. She then
opened the second quarter with a
three from the top of the key and
proceeded to follow that up with
two consecutive steals and a layup
in transition. Her preparation
in practice and ability to read
plays on the fly helped her crack
the
Cornhuskers’
pass-heavy
offense.
“I knew that they were gonna
go ball fake and then pass it
opposite,” Johnson said.
While it was the defensive
side
where
Johnson
shined
brightest on Thursday night,
she provided one of the night’s
highlight plays on the offensive
end as well. With six seconds
left
in
the
second
quarter,
Johnson received a pass on the
right wing from senior forward
Nicole Munger and proceeded to
nail a tough fadeaway jumper as
time expired. It was a shot that
Johnson practiced routinely. She
said that Munger trusting her to
take the shot helped encourage
her to be aggressive with time
winding down.
“Her giving the ball to me gave
me the confidence to take that
shot,” Johnson said.
After breaking her left hand
this past fall and missing over
30 practices, Johnson has been
slowly working her way back
to full strength. After showing
flashes on occasion, Johnson’s
19-point
outing
last
Friday
against
Iowa
and
defensive
showcase
against
Nebraska
on Thursday seemed to finally
indicate that she is back at full
strength. Michigan head coach
Kim Barnes Arico has always
known that the talent was
present, and now she’s thrilled
that the rest of the nation is
beginning to see it too.
“She’s a kid that can do so
many things for your team, and I
think everybody’s starting to see
that now,” Barnes Arico said.
FILE PHOTO/Daily
Sophomore outfielder Jesse Franklin is a candidate for a breakout season.
AKUL VIJAYVARGIYA
Daily Sports Writer
ALEC COHEN/Daily
Junior third baseman Madison Uden believes her team can win with an offensive approach focused on consistency.
ROHAN KUMAR
Daily Sports Writer
KATELYN MULCAHY/Daily
Freshman foward Naz Hillmon helped lead a 7-0 run at the end of the first quarter to guide Michigan to an early lead.
TEDDY GUTKIN
Daily Sports Writer
KATELYN MULCAHY/Daily
Junior guard Akienreh Johnson shined brightest on the defensive end Thursday night, sparking Michigan’s win.