8 — Tuesday, April 16, 2019
Sports
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
When it comes to versatility,
Natalia Rodriguez is in a class of
her own.
Now in her second season as the
Michigan softball team’s starting
shortstop, the sophomore can do
it all. She’s a switch-hitter at the
plate, speed demon on the base
paths and defensive stalwart in the
field.
But
above
all,
Rodriguez
provides
consistency.
She
appeared in 55 of last season’s 59
contests and has started all 39 of
the Wolverines’ games so far this
year.
Rodriguez’s defensive prowess
played a major role in 2018’s
seamless
shortstop
transition.
After Michigan bid farewell to
Abby Ramirez — a two-time All-
Big Ten shortstop who graduated
in 2017 — Rodriguez held her own
on defense as a freshman. Her .944
fielding percentage was only a
slight drop-off from Ramirez’s .953
clip in 2017.
At the plate, Rodriguez has
taken a massive leap forward. After
posting a .250 batting average last
season — the worst among the
Wolverines’ starters — Rodriguez
spent much of the offseason in the
batting cage. Now, as one of the
country’s only true switch-hitters,
she poses a threat regardless of the
situation. Her ability to bunt from
both sides of the plate, slap-hit
from the left side and swing away
from the right side makes her the
Big Ten’s jack of all trades.
Through 87 at-bats this season,
the
results
have
spoken
for
themselves. With the home stretch
of Michigan’s conference slate on
the horizon, Rodriguez’s batting
average is sitting at .310.
Naturally, Rodriguez’s batting
average boost has given her more
opportunity to wreak havoc on the
base paths. After swiping 10 bases
on 12 tries last season, Rodriguez
has successfully stolen seven bags
on eight attempts so far this season.
Her speed gives opposing pitchers
one more thing to worry about,
which opens up opportunities for
other Wolverines to find success at
the plate.
“(Rodriguez stealing a base)
manufactures
a
run,”
said
Michigan coach Carol Hutchins.
“You’ve got to find a way to
manufacture runs, and one of
those is to steal their bases. It puts
us in position, and it is a difference
maker.”
The synergy of Rodriguez’s
improvement at the plate and elite
speed puts Hutchins in a dilemma.
With the team’s leadoff through
cleanup hitters all batting above
.340 with at least 20 RBI, it doesn’t
make sense to insert Rodriguez’s
skillset into the heart of the order.
So instead, she bats last.
The only qualm about hitting
ninth is the fact that it takes the bat
out of Rodriguez’s hands at times.
Heading into the second half
of April, Rodriguez already has
upwards of 30 fewer at-bats than
some of her teammates.
But
for
Hutchins,
strategy
outweighs total plate appearances.
“It’s really important to have
that nine hitter be your secondary
leadoff,” Hutchins said. “It puts
base runners on — someone
with great speed — for the top of
your order. (Rodriguez) has been
outstanding in that category, and
we need her to keep it up.”
Added junior right fielder Haley
Hoogenraad: “(Rodriguez) is a
huge turnover for the start of the
lineup. She’s basically like another
number one hitter. She bats at
the top of the order but turns the
order over a lot by getting on base
a lot somehow. That’s so important
in the bottom of the order, just
finding a way to get bases. Bases
are how you win games.”
With Rodriguez holding down
the fort in the ninth spot, the
Wolverines set the top of their
order up for success.
Alexander, Hoogenraad snap slumps
Katie Alexander and Haley
Hoogenraad are no strangers to
going the extra mile.
With their struggles mounting
during the No. 21 Michigan
softball team’s first month of
Big Ten competition, the senior
catcher and junior right fielder
have spent even more time in the
batting cage before practice.
Going into the weekend series
against Ohio State, the two
returning starters were able to use
the Wolverines’ overall success
at the plate to mask their own
shortcomings.
Michigan
swept
Nebraska,
Rutgers and Indiana en route to a
9-0 record to begin Big Ten play.
During this start, the Wolverines
posted a batting average of .315
and plated more than seven runs
per game. But Hoogenraad and
Alexander — the seventh and
eighth batters in Michigan coach
Carol Hutchins’ lineup — didn’t
partake in the hit parade. The
duo posted an average of just .220,
while the first four hitters in the
lineup combined for a .396 clip.
But in Columbus, Hoogenraad
and Alexander flipped the switch.
With the scoreboard knotted
up at one run apiece in the fourth
inning of Friday’s series-opener,
Hoogenraad stepped up to the
plate while Alexander took warm-
up cuts in the on-deck circle.
Junior outfielder Thais Gonzalez,
who entered the game as a pinch
runner, represented the go-ahead
run at first base.
Four pitches into the at-bat,
Hoogenraad put a swing on the
fifth. She drove the ball down the
right field line, and it tailed away
from the diving Buckeye outfielder
just enough to ricochet off her
glove. As Hoogenraad pulled into
third base with a triple, she took
a moment to reflect on her first
extra-base hit of the month.
“The best feeling is when you
get to third base and look back
into the dugout, and everyone
in the dugout is really excited,”
Hoogenraad said. “That is the
best feeling, knowing you did it for
everyone else.”
When Alexander made her way
to the plate, she didn’t give the
dugout much time to rest before
the crack of her bat sent another
wave of jubilation its way. Just
two pitches after Hoogenraad’s
triple,
Alexander
launched
a
no-doubt home run to deep right-
center field. This time, the entire
Michigan dugout emptied as it
celebrated the end of its captain’s
coldspell.
Alexander’s
next
at-bat
provided an equally exciting
sequel. After working the count
full, she fouled off a pair of payoff
pitches before getting ahold of
the third. When Alexander made
contact on the sweet spot, she
began her home run trot for the
second time in as many plate
appearances. The long ball gave
the Wolverines a 6-3 advantage in
the sixth frame.
An inning later, Hoogenraad
made her way to the batter’s box
with the bases loaded and two
outs. She seized her chance to
break the game open, belting a
grand slam over the left-center
field wall to give Michigan a 10-3
lead.
“We really needed the (number)
six through nine hitters to pick up
their production, and they did an
outstanding job,” Hutchins said.
“… (Hoogenraad and Alexander)
connected on pitches. That’s what
we’re striving for, and it doesn’t
happen every time.”
In the first game of Saturday’s
doubleheader, the tandem led yet
another comeback win.
After
seeing
Ohio
State
take
freshman
right-hander
Alex Storako deep twice in the
first inning, Hoogenraad and
Alexander helped the Wolverines
claw back in the second frame.
Hoogenraad’s opposite-field RBI
single cut the Buckeyes’ lead in
half, and she made her way into
scoring position with a stolen base
just moments later.
In the ensuing at-bat, Alexander
laced an RBI single through the
left side to tie the game. When
Hoogenraad scored on a sacrifice
bunt later in the inning, Michigan
took the lead for good. Alexander’s
crucial hit clinched the series win
and brought her batting average to
.214 — its highest mark since Feb.
22.
“No matter how (Alexander’s)
season is going, she’s always in
there working hard and going the
extra mile to try to make herself
better,” Hoogenraad said. “That
just goes to show perseverance,
even when things aren’t going
your way, you’re always in there
putting in more work and doing
extra to try to make yourself better
and that really is a true showing of
perseverance.”
When
the
dust
settled,
Hoogenraad
and
Alexander
tallied eight hits across 16 at-bats,
10 RBI and five runs scored in the
series.
If Hoogenraad and Alexander
can permanently break their
slumps, that extra mile in the
batting cage could add coveted
length to the lineup — a key
ingredient in the Wolverines’
pursuit of their 11th Big Ten
championship in 12 years.
DANIEL DASH
Daily Sports Writer
KATELYN MULCAHY/Daily
Sophomore shortstop Natalia Rodriguez has taken a massive leap forward at the plate this season.
DANIEL DASH
Daily Sports Writer
KATELYN MULCAHY/Daily
Junior right fielder Haley Hoogenraad hit a grand slam on Friday.
Pitching, defense lead to series loss
Friday night’s game hung in
the balance. Buckeye catcher
Dillon Dingler stepped to the
plate with his team leading 2-1.
Dingler attempted a bunt that
went straight back at junior left-
hander Tommy Henry. The ball
slipped out of Henry’s hand,
and his throw went wayward,
allowing Dingler to advance all
the way to second base.
After
that
inauspicious
start to the fifth inning, Henry
imploded. He proceeded to give
up three runs on a sacrifice fly
and three singles, as Ohio State
eventually pulled away to a
10-5 victory over the Michigan
baseball team on its way to two
wins out of three games.
“When you play good defense
you minimize the opponent’s
opportunities,” said Michigan
coach Erik Bakich. “If you make
that difficult play, that’s what
I’m talking about. Being able to
make the difficult play to take
away the hits.
“Those difficult plays end up
being a difference-maker in a
team scoring zero or maybe only
scoring one or two versus not
making those plays and what
could’ve been a one or two run
inning turns into a three or a
four or five or a six-run inning.”
Henry didn’t just struggle on
defense — he had difficulties
on the mound, too. He gave up
eight hits and seven earned
runs in just four innings while
striking out two. Henry didn’t
get much help from his relief
pitchers, either. Freshman left-
hander Walker Cleveland and
sophomore right-hander Blake
Beers combined to give up three
additional runs in 2.2 innings of
work.
“Pitching can
go
into
little
slumps, too, now
just like hitters
can,”
Bakich
said.
“Tommy
Henry has just
had a little bit
of a two-week
slump here. We
haven’t won on
a Friday night
in conference in a few weeks.
He maybe hasn’t been quite as
crisp or as sharp as he has been
in the past. But, we all have full
confidence in the pitcher that
he is and the pitcher that he’s
gonna be from here on out.”
Saturday
afternoon,
the
Wolverines’ hurlers struggled
in
pivotal
moments.
Junior
right-hander
Karl
Kauffman
appeared to have better control
on the mound, but his periods
of solid pitching were mixed in
with crucial mistakes. In the
second inning, a two-run home
run opened the scoring for the
Buckeyes. In the third inning,
Kauffman gave up a solo home
run and later a three-run shot to
blow the game open.
But
Kauffman
remained
resilient.
He
posted
nine
strikeouts and after Ohio State’s
big third inning, had consecutive
1-2-3
innings,
allowing
his
offense
to
stage
a
mini-
comeback.
But
unfortunately
for
the
Wolverines,
the early deficit
was too much
to
overcome
in a 10-4 loss
that
clinched
the
weekend
series
for
the
Buckeyes.
“The thing Ohio State did is
they hit mistakes,” Bakich said.
“And we made some mistakes
with some pitches, especially in
some two strike counts where
we were ahead and they hit some
home runs and they got some big
hits in those moments. So Karl
actually had pretty good stuff,
he just made some mistakes
with some of his pitches and
they got hit and we got down to
the early deficit.”
MILES MACKLIN/Daily
Junior left-hander Tommy Henry gave up three runs in the fifth inning on Friday as Michigan lost, 10-5.
AVI RAJENDRA-NICOLUCCI
Daily Sports Writer
Pitching can
go into little
slumps, too,
now.
Wolverines drop seventh-straight
game, 17-7, against Nittany Lions
Despite
reaching
two
milestones, there was little for
the Michigan men’s lacrosse
team to be excited about after
the clock hit zero.
A
matchup
against
the
nation’s No. 1 team in Penn
State
(3-0
Big
Ten,
10-1
overall), proved to be too much
for the Wolverines (0-3, 3-8),
as they dropped their seventh
game in a row in a 17-7 defeat.
While Michigan looked to
be in control during the game’s
opening minutes, the Nittany
Lions struck first with a man-
up goal following a penalty
on senior defenseman Nick
DeCaprio.
The
Wolverines
surrendered
another
goal
from close range 30 seconds
later, though they managed
to slice the deficit in half on
a transition goal from junior
midfielder Avery Myers. Penn
State barely flinched, finishing
the quarter by scoring five
consecutive goals, including
four in the span of a minute
and a half.
“We
knew
Penn
State
(would
come)
out
firing,”
said Michigan coach Kevin
Conry. “They’ve pretty much
outscored their opponents in
the first quarter by a significant
margin. …We knew we had to
handle their pressure early and
didn’t.”
While
the
Wolverines
proved
unable
to
handle
Penn
State’s
pressure in the
game’s opening
frame,
they
strung together
a
run
in
the
second quarter,
outscoring
the
Nittany
Lions,
4-2, and heading into the
locker room trailing just 9-5.
Myers notched an assist and
scored two goals in the period,
including one with ten seconds
remaining
after
DeCaprio
found him following a steal.
The steal was one of eight
forced turnovers by DeCaprio,
who set the program’s single-
game
record
for
forced
turnovers
and
enabled
Michigan to earn a bevy of
transition opportunities in the
quarter.
“(He’s) great at pushing the
tempo and getting upfield,”
Myers said.
With 8:42 remaining in the
third quarter, senior midfielder
Decker Curran
scored off a feed
from freshman
attacker Bryce
Clay to register
his
100th
career
point,
becoming
just
the
fourth
player
in
program
history
to
accomplish
the feat. Penn State quickly
rebounded — finishing the
game on a run that saw it score
seven consecutive goals and
dominate time of possession
—
overshadowing
Curran’s
accomplishment.
“I’m not thinking about the
accomplishment,” Curran said.
“I’m thinking about how we
can win these next two games.”
ALLISON ENGKVIST/Daily
Junior midfielder Avery Myers picked up a goal in Michigan’s 17-7 loss to Penn State on Saturday afternoon.
TEDDY GUTKIN
Daily Sports Writer
(DeCaprio’s)
great at pushing
the tempo and
getting upfield.
Rodriguez does it all for Michigan