Michigan Splits Two on First Day at NFCA Leadoff Classic

Friday, February 22

Columbus, Ga.

5:00 PM

Michigan

5-1

Connecticut

0-2

Michigan

Connecticut

Michigan Splits Two on First Day at NFCA Leadoff Classic

2/22/2002 12:00:00 AM | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

Site: Columbus, Ga. (South Commons Complex)
Event: NFCA Leadoff Classic (Day 1)
Results: #10 Michigan 9, Connecticut 1 (6 inn.);
    #24 Mississippi State 3, #10 Michigan 2
Records: U-M (5-2)
Next U-M Games: Saturday, Feb. 23 -- vs. Arizona State (12:30 p.m.), Bracket Play (5:30, 8 p.m.) at NFCA Leadoff Classic (Columbus, Ga.)

COLUMBUS, Ga. -- The 10th-ranked University of Michigan softball team split its first two games of round-robin pool play Friday (Feb. 22) at the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Leadoff Classic. The Wolverines dominated Connecticut 9-1 in six innings in their first game of the day but could not hold an early 2-0 lead in a 3-2 loss against 24th-ranked Mississippi State.

Kollen

Mississippi State leads Pool 3 with a 2-0 mark and after beating both Michigan and eighth-ranked Arizona State today has clinched first place in that pool and an automatic berth into the Gold Championship Bracket. Michigan and Arizona State stand 1-1 in Pool 3 after day one and face each other Saturday at 12:30 p.m. in both teams' final game of pool play. The winner of each of the six pools along with two at-large selections move on to the Gold Championship Bracket, which means Michigan and Arizona State could well be playing for one of those two at-large selections. The remaining four second-place teams along with four at-large teams will be placed in the Silver Championship Bracket, while the remainder of the field comprises the Bronze Championship Bracket.

Michigan opened up the 2002 NFCA Leadoff Classic with a convincing 9-1 win over Connecticut in six innings on the strength of 12 hits, including a 4-4 game from Kelsey Kollen (Cerritos, Calif./Santa Ana Mater Dei HS), who also scored a career-best four runs. Kollen was driven in three times by sophomore catcher Monica Schock (Rialto, Calif./Eisenhower HS), who was 2-2 with a career-best and Michigan season-best five RBI.

Freshman pitcher Nicole Motycka (Sarasota, Fla./Cardinal Mooney HS) again shined for the Maize and Blue as well, going the full six innings and allowing just one unearned run on four hits. Motycka had the drop ball working for her third win of the season in three starts as she forced groundball outs from 14 of the 18 batters she retired.

After a pair of single-run innings in the first and third for the Wolverines, with Schock driving in Kollen on a sacrifice fly to centerfield on both occasions, Michigan opened the game up in the fifth with three runs, including a two-run home run off the bat of junior utility player Marissa Young (Santa Ana, Calif./Santa Ana Mater Dei HS). For the third straight trip Kollen got things rolling for Michigan with a leadoff single and after a steal of second and was still standing there with two outs. Again it was Schock coming through with a run-producing hit, but this time Schock was not left stranded as Young followed her to the plate with Young's first round-tripper of the season to give Michigan a commanding 5-0 lead heading into the bottom of the fifth.

Motycka answered the Michigan offense with a quick 1-2-3 inning -- all on groundballs -- in the bottom half of the fifth to get the hot Michigan bats right back in the dugout. The Wolverines maintained the momentum from the previous inning as junior utility player Melinda Moulden (LaCrescenta, Calif./LaCrescenta HS) led off with a single to leftfield. A fielder's choice and groundout later, freshman shortstop Jessica Merchant (Wayland, Mich./Wayland HS) stood on second base with two outs, but again the Wolverines came up with the clutch hit as Kollen singled to leftfield, scoring Merchant. An error by the shortstop on a ball off the bat of Meghan Doe (Tucson, Ariz./Sabino HS) opened the floodgates. Stefanie Volpe (Plymouth, Mich./Plymouth-Salem HS) and Schock made the error hurt with back-to-back doubles, scoring three more Wolverines and pushing the lead to 9-0.

Motycka did allow a single and unearned run in the bottom of the sixth but recorded three more groundball outs to shut the door on the Huskies in six innings.

Michigan's loss to Mississippi State was a well-played game by two ranked teams early in the season, with just one error committed in the game and the outcome coming down to the final at-bat. Like it has so often already this season Michigan scored in the first inning and actually took the early 2-0 edge. Kollen continued her torrid pace with her fifth straight hit of the day to lead off the inning and moved to second on a passed ball before scoring on a Volpe single. Heads-up base running by Volpe moved her to second on the throw trying to nip Kollen at the plate, so Volpe was in scoring position two hitters later when Young helped her own cause with a single to centerfield.

Michigan's lead was cut in half in the second when Mississippi State starter Kasey Whitehead helped her own cause as well with a two-out home run. From there both pitchers settled in and were not really threatened until a single, intentional walk and wild pitch put Bulldog runners on second and third with two outs in the fifth. Designated hitter Kate Jaspers then sent a double up the gap into right center for the 3-2 Mississippi State lead.

Although the Wolverine went quietly in the fifth and sixth, catcher Lisa Mack (Saline, Mich./Saline HS) sent a one-out single down the rightfield line in the seventh. Kollen managed to move Mack up to second to set the stage for Doe with the game-tying run on second with two outs. Doe promptly drove a single back through the box but Mississippi State centerfielder Iyhia McMichael gunned Mack down at the plate for the final out, preserving a 3-2 Mississippi State victory.

N O T E S

Michigan's six-inning win over Connecticut was its third straight win by mercy rule. The Wolverines beat Utah State 9-0 last Saturday (Feb. 16) in six innings before dumping Pittsburgh 9-0 in five innings on Sunday (Feb. 17).

Kelsey Kollen's four runs scored matched the all-time Michigan single-game record. The record was also tied last week by Meghan Doe, who scored four runs in the win over Pittsburgh (Feb. 17).

Monica Schock's five-RBI game against Connecticut is a personal career best and a Michigan season best.

Michigan's loss to Mississippi State was its first in five meetings with the Bulldogs. Michigan now leads the all-time series 4-1.

Contact: Rich Marion (734) 763-4423