Thursday, June 10, 2021
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com SPORTS
After
taking
a
strike,
sophomore designated hitter
Ted Burton stepped back into
the batter’s box and pulled
the second pitch of his fourth-
inning at-bat over the left-
field wall for a solo home run.
The homer, and junior second
baseman Riley Bertram’s third-
inning double, looked like signs
that the Michigan baseball team
had figured out Connecticut
starter Austin Peterson and
would begin to pile on the
offense.
Instead,
Burton’s
homer
would be the second and final
hit registered by the Wolverines
in their 6-1 loss to the Huskies.
Michigan threatened in other
ways, walking six times and
getting hit by three pitches, but
the offense completely failed
to capitalize on those scoring
opportunities, hitting 0-11 with
runners on base.
“We drew a lot of walks and
had some hit-by-pitches tonight,
but we just didn’t hit,” Michigan
coach Erik Bakich said. “It was
not a good offensive day for us,
and that was the difference.”
The Wolverines put their
first men on base in the top of
the third. After two quick outs,
Bertram’s double brought up
the top of the order, and when
sophomore right fielder Clark
Elliott followed with a walk,
Michigan threatened a two-
out rally that could change the
momentum of the game. But
sophomore
left
fielder
Tito
Flores, batting far above his
usual position in the seven-
hole, ended the inning by lining
out.
Sophomore
first
baseman
Jimmy Obertop began the top
of the fifth by getting hit by
a pitch, but his teammates
couldn’t
take
advantage
of
the leadoff baserunner. Fifth-
year center fielder Christan
Bullock and Bertram struck out
swinging and Elliott flew out.
“I think guys were trying
to do a little bit too much,”
redshirt sophomore left-hander
Steven Hajjar said.
Long swings and a lack of
plate
discipline
have
been
hallmarks of the Wolverines’
worst
defeats
this
season,
including last night’s.
When Flores and Burton both
reached base in the sixth, they
attempted a double steal of
second and third in an effort
to break the 1-1 tie. Flores was
thrown out at third. Fifth-year
catcher Griffin Mazur followed
with a walk, but the second
flyout of the inning ended the
threat.
“I liked our preparation and
I liked our approach,” Bakich
said. “We made too much weak
contact and too many outs in
the air.”
The top of the ninth opened
with yet another flyout before
Obertop
and
Bullock
drew
consecutive walks. Michigan
couldn’t punish Connecticut for
pitching around them; Bertram
and Elliott struck out swinging
to end the game, recording the
ninth and tenth strikeouts in
the process.
The offense now has the
unenviable task of rebounding
in the high-stakes, must-win
game against Central Michigan
tomorrow. The Wolverines are
confident in their ability to do
just that.
“If we play like we played
tonight, the season is going to
be over tomorrow,” Bakich said.
“If I know these guys the way I
think I know these guys, they’ll
respond.”
Added Hajjar: “I’m expecting
the bats to be getting hot right
about now. They’re warming
them up as we speak, I think,
and by tomorrow they’ll be red
hot.”
Quiet offense dooms Michigan as Wolverines fall to UConn
Graduate
transfer
catcher
Griffin Mazur swung and skied a
pop-up to center field, where it was
caught and stranded a runner in
the eighth inning. The out summed
up the evening for Michigan, as
the offense sputtered and never
got going against the Connecticut
Huskies.
The Michigan baseball team
(27-18 Big Ten) fell to the Huskies
(34-17 overall, 13-4 Big East) 6-1
in the opening game of the NCAA
tournament.
Redshirt sophomore left-hander
Steve Hajjar was on the hill for the
Wolverines and had a solid outing,
dominating early in the game before
getting touched up late. Hajjar went
six innings, allowing four runs
while picking up nine strikeouts.
Hajjar used his changeup very
well, picking up a lot of swings and
misses during his outing.
“Steve has been really good lately
and he gave us a chance to win,
which was a good game through
five innings,” Michigan coach Erik
Bakich said. “Then they scored
two runs on a little squibber. …
And that’s baseball, but if we were
doing a better job offensively that
might not have made such a big
difference.”
Bakich made two big lineup
decisions in centerfield and at
designated hitter. He elected for
the experience and defense of fifth-
year outfielder Christian Bullock
and junior infielder Riley Bertram,
who slotted in at second base and
moved sophomore infielder Ted
Burton to designated hitter.
“We decided to play the two
guys who have played in regionals
before,” Bakich said. “They bring
the best defense and they also can
handle the bat.”
Bertram proved Bakich right in
his decision to roll with experience,
coming up with a double to the gap
in the third inning for Michigan’s
first hit of the game. After a walk by
sophomore outfielder Clark Elliott,
sophomore outfielder Tito Flores
came up with two on and two out.
He pulled a line drive into the left
field corner, but a leaping catch by
the Husky outfielder prevented
Bertram and Eliott from scoring to
keep the game deadlocked at 0.
Bullock, too, delivered fantastic
defense, including a spectacular
diving catch in the eighth inning to
rob an extra-base hit. Bullock also
registered a walk in the game.
Hajjar ran into a bit of trouble in
the fourth, where UConn opened
the scoring. With a runner on
third and two outs, Flores dove for
a line drive in an attempt to save
a run. But he was unable to make
the diving catch, allowing a run to
score and giving the Huskies a 1-0
lead.
Michigan
responded
in
the
next inning, as the red-hot Burton
ripped a solo shot to left to even the
score at 1-1.
“We drew a lot of walks and had
some hit by pitches tonight but we
just didn’t hit,” Bakich said. “It was
not a good offensive day for us and
that was the difference. … We just
didn’t have anything going.”
UConn finally did real damage
to Hajjar in the sixth. A single and
a perfectly executed hit-and-run,
where the runner on first stole
second, forcing Bertram to cover
second while the batter slapped
the ball through the vacated area
between first and second, and
where Bertram was put the Huskies
in position to score. An RBI single
from the next batter gave UConn a
2-1 lead.
But the damage was not done.
After catcher’s indifference set up
second and third for UConn, an
infield single allowed both runs to
score, pushing the Husky lead to
4-1.
Hajjar exited after the sixth,
making way for graduate transfer
right-hander Will Proctor. But
Proctor did not fare better than
Hajjar. A leadoff double and a bunt
single set the table for Husky Erik
Stock— who was already 3-for-3
on the day. Stock improved his line
further, launching a double into
left field and plating both runners,
forcing Proctor out of the game
before he got any outs with the
score 6-1.
STEEL HURLEY
Daily Sports Writer
Wolverines consistently strand baserunners in loss
JACK WHITTEN
Daily Sports Writer
MADELINE HINKLEY/Daily
Michigan failed to bring it’s baserunners home in the 6-1 loss to the University of
Connecticut.
MADELINE HINKLEY/Daily
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