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Thursday, May 6, 2021
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
SPORTS

The No. 19 Michigan softball 

team did its job.

The Wolverines won all four 

games 
in 
the 
weekend 
slate 

against Penn State (5-26 Big Ten), 
improving to 28-5 on the season. In 
total, they outscored the Nittany 
Lions 34-6, including two run-rule 
victories on Saturday that ended 
10-0 and 12-2, respectively. The 
closest game came on Sunday with 
a 5-3 win that Michigan was in 
control of from beginning to end. 

Penn State, the bottomfeeders of 

the Big Ten, opened its season with 
15 straight losses and has only won 
a total of five games, three of which 
came against second-to-last place 
Rutgers.

So the Wolverines, who sit atop 

the conference, did exactly what 
they were expected to do: thrash 
them. 

It began in the first game. 

Michigan broke the seal in the 

third inning, scoring three runs in 
the frame: two off a double from 
senior first baseman Lou Allan and 
another off a double from senior 
third Baseman Taylor Bump.

The Wolverines struck again in 

the seventh, the first run coming 
on an error by Penn State left 
fielder 
Lilia 
Crouthamel. 
Allan 

and Bump each knocked another 

run in, followed by sophomore 
utility player Audrey LeClair, who 
knocked a single into centerfield to 
bring Bump home and stretch the 
lead to 7-0.

In the bottom of the seventh, 

the Nittany Lions managed one 
run but came nowhere close to 
engineering a comeback, and the 
game would end at 7-1.

“We 
wanted 
to 
come 
out 

swinging, come out scoring runs 
first, and that’s exactly what we 
did,” junior outfielder Lexie Blair 
said. “I think we did a great job.”

The next day, Michigan pressed 

its foot down on the gas even 
harder. 

In 
the 
first 
game 
of 
the 

doubleheader, the Wolverines put 
up 10 runs in a collective effort 
that included a homerun by Bump, 
a single by junior catcher Hannah 
Carson that scored two, a two-RBI 
double from Allan and a single 
from sophomore Jessica Garmen 
on a pinch hit in her first collegiate 
at-bat.

In the second bout of the day, 

Michigan wasted no time, putting 
up four runs in the first inning 
off of a two-RBI Allan double and 
a two-run homerun from Bump. 
In the sixth, sophomore infielder 
Julia Jimenez banged a triple 
down the line, scoring two. After 
another run scored, Blair stepped 
up to the plate with two out and 

two on. Blair proceeded to send the 
ball over the fence on a three-run 
homer, putting the Wolverines up 
12-2 and tallying Michigan’s sixth 
run of the inning.

It was the fourth RBI of the game 

for Blair, one of the Wolverines’ 
strong 
performers 
alongside 

Allan, Bump, Jimenez and senior 
infielder Natalia Rodriguez, who 
went 3-of-4 with two runs. 

After both of Saturday’s games 

ended 
in 
run-rule 
victories, 

Sunday’s matchup was a change of 
pace. Michigan came out on top, 
but by a much smaller 5-3 margin. 
The Wolverines’ runs came early, 
all five in the first three innings. 
The Nittany Lions came on later, in 
a comeback effort that amounted 
to three runs. It was shut down 
in the bottom of the seventh on 
three straight strikeouts, sending 
Michigan back to Ann Arbor with 
the sweep.

Michigan’s 
pitching 
stayed 

Eight Wolverines selected in 2021 NFL Draft

The 
Michigan 
football 
team’s 

recent NFL Draft success continued 
this week, as eight Wolverines heard 
their name called in Cleveland 
between Thursday and Saturday. 
Only four schools — Alabama, Ohio 
State, Georgia and Notre Dame 
— saw more players drafted than 
Michigan.

The Wolverines’ 11 draft-eligible 

players didn’t have to wait long 
to hear one of their names called. 
The 
Indianapolis 
Colts 
selected 

defensive end Kwity Paye with the 
No. 21 overall pick, making him 
Michigan’s 
sixth 
first-round 
pick 

since 2017. He’s also the Wolverines’ 
third first-round EDGE in that span, 
joining Taco Charlton and Rashan 
Gary.

A trio of Michigan players came 

off the board in the third round, with 
offensive lineman Jalen Mayfield 
heading to the Atlanta Falcons at 
pick No. 68, wide receiver Nico 
Collins going to the Houston Texans 
at pick No. 89 and cornerback Ambry 
Thomas heading to the San Francisco 
49ers at pick No. 102. Collins and 
Thomas opted out of the 2020 season 
amid 
COVID-19 
concerns, 
while 

Mayfield only played sparingly due 
to injury.

Linebacker Cam McGrone and 

fullback Ben Mason were each 
selected in the same eight-pick span 
during the fifth round — the former 
by the New England Patriots and 
the latter by the Baltimore Ravens. 
McGrone, the No. 177 pick, becomes 
the fourth Wolverine drafted by the 
Patriots since 2019. The previous 
three — Josh Uche, Chase Winovich 
and Michael Onwenu — have all 
made an impact early in their careers 
in Foxborough. Mason, meanwhile, 
will get a chance to impress Ravens 
coach John Harbaugh in the ways 
he dazzled Michigan coach Jim 
Harbaugh. The former team captain 
saw reps at full back and defensive 
line and emerged as a senior captain 
in Ann Arbor. He was announced as a 
tight end, though he projects to be at 
his best in short-yardage situations.

Drafted 
No. 
202 
overall 
by 

the 
Cincinnati 
Bengals, 
running 

back Chris Evans is set to join a 
dynamic young offense. He became 
the program’s first running back 
drafted since Michigan’s all-time 
leading rusher, Mike Hart, in 2008. 
After a productive beginning to his 
career, Evans served a one-year 
suspension during the 2019 season 
prior to rejoining the team in 2020. 
He worked primarily as a pass-
catching option out of the backfield 
— a role that should carry over well 

to Cincinnati.

The Wolverines’ final draft pick 

came in the sixth round, when the 
Washington Football Team selected 
long snapper Camaron Cheeseman 
at pick No. 225. It’s uncommon 
to see a specialist drafted, but 
Cheeseman entered the weekend as 
the consensus No. 1 long snapper in 
the 2021 class.

Following the draft, defensive 

tackle Carlo Kemp and tight end 
Nick Eubanks each inked free agent 
deals. Kemp became a Green Bay 
Packer, while Eubanks joined former 
Michigan teammate Sean McKeon 
in the Dallas Cowboys tight ends 
room. Kicker Quinn Nordin remains 
unsigned as of Sunday evening, 
but it would be unsurprising if that 
changed in the near future.

Despite last year’s 2-4 record, the 

Wolverines’ eight draft selections 
is a strong indication of the talent 
Harbaugh’s 
program 
continues 

to produce. Collins, Thomas and 
Cheeseman opted out of the 2020 
season, while Paye, McGrone and 
Mayfield were hampered by injuries. 
With 18 players selected in the last 
two 
NFL 
Drafts, 
Michigan 
will 

look to reload before taking the field 
again this fall.

 DANIEL DASH

Senior Sports Editor

Wolverines sweep Penn State in weekend series

NICHOLAS STOLL
Daily Sports Writer

 ALEC COHEN/Daily

Eight Wolverines were selected in the 2021 NFL Draft.

 TESS CROWLEY/Daily

Michigan’s Lexie Blair scored a 3-run homer against Penn State. 

Read more at michigandaily.com

