Michigan Succumbs to Spartans' Wild Ninth-Inning Rally

Sunday, April 21

Ann Arbor, Mich.

1:00 PM

Michigan

12-22, 7-9

Michigan State

26-9, 9-6

Michigan State

Michigan

Michigan Succumbs to Spartans' Wild Ninth-Inning Rally

4/21/2002 12:00:00 AM | Baseball

Box Score

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Michigan State took advantage of seven wild pitches in a five-run rally in the top of the ninth inning to beat the University of Michigan 5-3 in the baseball series finale Sunday afternoon (April 21) at Ray Fisher Stadium.

Wolverine senior LHP Jeff Trzos (Farmington Hills, Mich./North Farmington HS) entered the ninth inning working on a seven-hit shutout but gave up a pair of singles and a one-out walk that loaded the bases. Freshman RHP Matt Collins (Bloomfield Village, Mich./Country Day), who entered the game as the hottest pitcher on the team with a 3-0 mark and wins at Minnesota and Illinois, struggled as he threw five wild pitches to the two batters (both walks) he faced, producing four runs for the Spartans (26-9, 9-6 Big Ten).

Michigan State RF Bob Malek, the eighth batter of the inning, collected the lone RBI of the rally with a two-out single for an insurance run. MSU's Kyle Geswein (2-1) got the win, working the final 2.2 innings and facing the minimum eight batters.

Michigan (12-22, 7-9 Big Ten) scored its three runs in the second inning off Spartan starter Tim Day as sophomore RF Brandon Roberts (Arlington, Texas/Martin HS) led off the frame with a double to center. Sophomore DH Jake Fox (Greenfield, Ind./Indianapolis Cathedral HS) dropped a sacrifice bunt down the third-base line and he reached first on a throwing error. Senior/junior 1B Mike Sokol (Sterling Heights, Mich./DeLaSalle HS) singled to right to drive in Roberts from third base for the lead. A passed ball moved Fox and Sokol to second and third, and freshman CF Matt Butler (Glendale Heights, Ill./Driscoll Catholic HS) singled to center to drived in both runners.

Day, who pitched 6.1 innings and allowed just five hits and one earned run, settled down after the second inning, allowing just three more baserunners, including Fox (HBP in the fourth), a single by junior 3B Brock Koman (Pueblo, Colo./South HS) in the sixth and a leadoff double by Sokol in the seventh. Sokol was the lone Wolverine with two hits in the game.

With Sokol on second Day fanned junior 2B Jordan Cantalamessa (Englewood, Colo./Cherry Creek HS) for the first out, and then Geswein entered the game and used a grounder and a strikeout to leave pinch runner Blake Rutkowski (Glenview. Ill./Glenbrook South HS) stranded at third base.

Trzos fanned a season-high seven and struck out the side in the seventh inning. He allowed two hits in the sixth inning and senior LF Bobby Korecky (Saline, Mich./Saline HS) made a catch off the wall in left to keep MSU 3B James Moreno from getting his third hit of the game.

In the eighth MSU had a pair of singles, but senior/junior Nate Wright (Tinley Park, Ill./Andrew HS), who had replaced Sokol at first base, teamed up with freshman SS Nick Rudden (Englewood, Colo./Cherry Creek HS) to turn a nifty 3-6-3 double play between the singles.

The loss cost Michigan a an opportunity to hang on to the sixth and final playoff position at the halfway point in the season as the Wolverines dropped to 7-9 (.438) and Illinois, rained out at Minnesota on Sunday, is now sixth alone with a 7-8 (.467) record. MSU at 9-6 is third alone as Minnesota stayed at 8-6 with the rainout.

Michigan has four weekends of conference play remaining vs. Penn State (April 26-28), Ohio State (May 3-5), Northwestern (May 10-12) and Purdue (May 17-19). The OSU and Purdue series are at Ray Fisher Stadium.

Michigan is idle during finals week until playing Big Ten action at Penn State on Friday (April 26) with senior RHP Korecky expected to pitch in the series opener. Korecky is 2-5 with a 4.53 ERA and all four of his Big Ten starts have ended as shutouts with a win and three losses. He opened the season by blanking Iowa but has been shut out three times, at Minnesota, at Illinois and against Michigan State.

N O T E S

• Senior RHP/2B/DH/LF Bobby Korecky, who became the first Wolverine to start at four different positions (2B, P, DH and LF) this season, is leading the Wolverines in Big Ten play with a .389 batting average and he owns a 1.61 Big Ten ERA.

• Junior SS Brock Koman, who ranks eighth on Michigan's career doubles list (45), has hits in 29 of the 34 games played this season and in 71 of the 86 Wolverine games the last two seasons. Koman is two doubles shy of seventh place, currently held by Jim Paciorek (47, 1979-82).

• Michigan's hitting leaders after 34 games (25 at-bat minimum) include: junior 3B/SS Brock Koman (.369, 45-for-122), senior/junior DH Mike Sokol (Sterling Heights, Mich./DeLaSalle HS) at .311 (33-for-106), senior RHP/OF Bobby Korecky (.311, 14-for-45), sophomore LF Brandon Roberts (.306, 34-for-111), junior OF Gino Lollio (Cape Coral, Fla./Mariner HS) at .298 (34-for-114) and junior catcher Jason Wuerfel (.282, 11-for-39).

• Michigan's hitting leaders in Big Ten play after 16 games are: senior OF/P Bobby Korecky (.389, 7-for-18), senior/junior DH/1B Mike Sokol (.382, 13-for-34), junior 3B/SS Brock Koman (.373, 19-for-51), freshman CF Matt Butler (.345, 10-for-29) and sophomore C/DH Jake Fox (.294, 10-for-34).

Big Ten Standings (after Sunday's Games)

 1. Ohio State        11-4    .733
 2. Indiana            9-6    .600
    Michigan State     9-6    .600
 4. Minnesota          8-6    .571
 5. Purdue             9-7    .563
 6. Illinois           7-8    .467
 7. MICHIGAN           7-9    .438
 8. Northwestern       6-9    .400
 9. Iowa               6-10   .375
10. Penn State         4-11   .267

Sunday Scores
Michigan State 5, Michigan 3
Northwestern 4, Penn State 2
Iowa 3, Purdue 2
Illinois at Minnesota -- rained out
Ohio State at Indiana -- rained out

Contact: Jim Schneider (734) 763-4423