Weekly Release #5
3/15/2004 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Upcoming Schedule
Fri-Sun., Mar. 19-21 -- at Louisville Invitational (Louisville, Ky.)
Mar. 19 -- vs. Toledo, 4 p.m.
Mar. 20 -- vs. Saint Louis, 3 p.m.
Mar. 20 -- vs. Eastern Kentucky, 5 p.m.
Mar. 21 -- at Louisville, 2 p.m.
Wednesday, March 24 -- DH vs. Bowling Green (Alumni Field), 2 p.m.
Sunday, March 28 -- DH vs. Valparaiso (Alumni Field), 1 p.m.
First Pitch
The 11th-ranked University of Michigan softball team prepares to play in its final non-conference tournament of the season this weekend (March 19-21) at the Louisville Invitational in Louisville, Ky. Michigan (17-6) begins the five-team, round-robin tournament against Toledo on Friday (March 19, 4 p.m.) before facing Saint Louis and Eastern Kentucky on Saturday (March 20) at 3 and 5 p.m., respectively. The Wolverines close out the weekend against host Louisville on Sunday (March 21, 2 p.m.).
The Wolverines have won one of their first four tournaments, taking home the crown at the Florida Atlantic tourney on Feb. 22. Michigan did reach the Gold Bracket playoffs at both the NFCA Leadoff Classic and Florida State Invitational. Michigan has pounded out double-digit hits in four of its last five games while upping its team season average to .288. The Michigan pitching, however, has been the story all season, and the Wolverine staff boasts a team ERA of 0.66 with 164 strikeouts and only 37 walks in 149.1 innings.
The Opponents
Toledo (5-8): The Rockets have won five of their last seven after opening the season 0-6 ... Toledo's only game this season against a Big Ten team was a 3-0 loss to Iowa in the Rockets' season opener on Feb. 28. Iowa hurler Lisa Birroci tossed the shutout and struck out 13 Toledo hitters. Toledo hurler Kim Pettitt gave a solid effort in the circle, allowing just five hits and two earned runs in six innings of work. Toledo on the Internet: www.utrockets.com ... Series: Michigan leads, 19-12.
Saint Louis (8-14): The Billikens have six of their last seven after going 1-6 at the Florida State Invitational last weekend ... Saint Louis dropped a tight 4-3 decision to Penn State in pool play at the FSU Invitational in its only meeting with a Big Ten foe this season ... Saint Louis is hitting .242 as a team, led by Ashleigh Williams' mark of .338. Williams also leads the Billikens with three home runs and 14 RBI ... the Billikens team ERA is 4.85 ... Saint Louis on the Internet: www.slubillikens.com ... Series: Michigan leads, 2-0.
Eastern Kentucky (14-6): The Colonels have won eight straight ... EKU has lost close games to then-No. 6 Alabama (2-1) and Georgia Tech (2-0) ... Eastern Kentucky on the Internet: www.ekusports.com ... Series: 0-0, first meeting.
Louisville (16-7): Louisville has won six of its last seven, including two wins (3-2, 9-1) over then-No. 18 South Florida and a win over then-No. 19 Iowa (2-0) ... the Cardinals also have a 3-1 win over then-No. 4 Oklahoma to their credit this season. Overall, Louisville is 4-4 vs. ranked opposition ... Louisville has five regulars hitting over .300, including two hitting over .400, led by Audrey Rendon (.423) ... Kady Garrick (9-3, 2.19) leads a pitching staff with a team ERA of 2.27 ... Louisville on the Internet: www.uoflsports.com ... Series: Michigan leads, 2-0.
Michigan Returns to Louisville
After a one-year hiatus, the Wolverines return to the Louisville Invitational where they went 4-0 during the 2002 tournament, including wins of 1-0 and 3-0 over the Cardinals. Current rightfielder Courtney Betley (Corona, Calif./Santa Ana Mater Dei HS), then just sophomore, was one of the Wolverine offensive stars, hitting .417 (5-12). Michigan pitchers allowed only two earned runs in 28.0 innings that weekend, including a pair of wins from Nicole Motycka (Sarasota, Fla./Cardinal Mooney HS). Then just a freshman, Motycka struck out 12 and did not walk a batter while posting a 1.00 ERA in two starts.
Throwing Darts
The Michigan pitching staff, considered a bit of a concern heading into the season after losing the school's all-time strikeouts lead Marissa Young (2000-03) to graduation last season, has been as dominant as any in the country through the season's first month. Michigan hurlers Nicole Motycka, Jennie Ritter (Dexter, Mich./Dexter HS) and Lorilyn Wilson (Salem, Ore./Sprague HS) have combined for a team ERA of 0.66 and 164 strikeouts in 149.1 innings. Ritter, in first full season as a starter, has been especially impressive with a team-best 93 strikeouts in 71.0 innings and 0.79 ERA. The Michigan staff has not allowed an earned run eight of their last 10 outings and have allowed one earned run or less in 12 of their last 13. The Wolverine pitchers set a school record last season with 432 K's, but that mark could be short-lived since the current staff is on pace to strikeout 457 in the same amount of innings (416.1).
A Closer Look at Ritter's Start
Maybe the most impressive aspect of Jennie Ritter's performance thus far is her three losses, which have all come against teams ranked among the nation's top 20. Ritter is 6-3 on the season, but her three losses have been against No. 1 UCLA (3-1), then-No. 20 South Carolina (2-1) and No. 5 Florida State (1-0). In those games, Ritter has K'd 31, walked six, allowed just two earned runs on 10 hits in 19.1 innings. Ritter also owns wins over then-No. 23 Oregon State (2-0) and then-No. 14 Nebraska (5-1) and has a 0.57 ERA with 53 strikeouts in 36.2 innings against ranked competition.
Strikeouts Contagious
Junior Nicole Motycka, who leads the Michigan staff with an 8-3 mark and a 0.73 ERA, boasts the Wolverines best K-BB ratio at better than 6-1 (44-7) and is nearly halfway to her season-best strikeout total for a single season even though the current campaign is only a month old. Motycka struck out 100 hitters in 156.0 innings last season, but is on pace to K 120 in the same amount of innings this season.
One More Staff Note
Freshman Lorilyn Wilson has tossed 20.2 consecutive innings without allowing an earned run to open her Michigan career. Wilson is 3-0 in three starts with 27 strikeouts in 20.2 innings and leads the Wolverines with an opponents' batting average against of just .114.
Now Some Offense
It has not been all pitching this season, with the Wolverine offense now hitting a season-best .288 as a team after a 5-1 weekend at the Florida State Invitational. Leading the Wolverine power numbers is junior shortstop Jessica Merchant (Wayland, Mich./Wayland HS), who has smacked a career-best and team-leading eight home runs. Merchant's team-leading 23 RBI is already a new personal career best for a season while her eight home runs is tied for the fifth-best single-season total in school history. Merchant has upped her slugging numbers dramatically from .460 last season to .797 this season while also bettering her on-base mark from .352 a year ago to its current .411. Merchant has shown more patience as well as pop at the plate as a junior, striking out just seven times while walking six after entering the season with 70 career K's against only 30 walks.
Michigan's single-season home run leaders
| 1. | Melissa Gentile (1998) | 13 |
| Marissa Young (2003) | 13 | |
| 3. | Stefanie Volpe (2002) | 11 |
| 4. | Melinda Moulden (2003) | 9 |
| 5. | Catherine Davie (1999) | 8 |
| Jessica Merchant (2004) | 8 |
Lethal at the Top
The top four hitters in the Wolverine order beginning with leadoff hitter Tiffany Haas (Santa Ana, Calif./Foothill HS), Meghan Doe (Tucson, Ariz./Sabino HS), Jessica Merchant and clean-up hitter Jennifer Olds (North Palm Beach, Fla./Suncoast HS) are hitting a combined .348 and have accounted for 58-percent of the Wolverines' 164 hits this season.
Pitch Selection Paying Off
Sophomore leadoff hitter Tiffany Haas enjoyed her best weekend of the season, hitting .556 with seven runs scored and four RBI while the Wolverines went 5-1 at the FSU Invitational. Haas posted a .636 on-base percentage for the tournament, drawing four free passes to up her team-leading walk total to seven for the season. Haas drew just 13 walks all of last season. Haas is now hitting .338 and is tied for the team lead in hits (25) and doubles (four).
Offense Comes Alive
After totaling double digits in hits just four times through their first 18 games, the Michigan lineup did turned the trick four times at the Florida State Invitational, including a season-best 14 hits in a 10-0, five-inning win over Troy State. Michigan's offensive explosion led to three wins via the run-rule, making it six such wins already this season. The Wolverines won only nine games via the run rule all of last season.
Nearly Perfect, but Still a No-No
Jennie Ritter became just the 12th pitcher in Michigan history to record a no-hitter when she stifled Notre Dame in a 3-0 to open action at the FSU Invitational on March 12. Ritter struck out nine, did not allow a walk and carried a perfect game into the seventh with one out before hitting the Notre Dame leftfielder Nicole deFau and just missing out on what would have been the fourth perfect game in school history. The last no-hitter as well as perfect game were tossed by Marissa Young (2000-03) in a 1-0 win over Utah State on Feb. 16, 2002.
Wolverines Reach Gold Bracket Semis
The Wolverines outscored the competition 31-1 while going 4-0 in pool action at the Florida State Invitational this past weekend (March 12-14). Michigan's perfect mark in pool play placed the Wolverines as the No. 3 seed in the Gold Bracket playoffs where they defeated Florida A&M 8-0 in five innings to advance to the semifinals against host and fifth-ranked Florida State. Jennie Ritter put together another fine performance against a ranked foe, but the Michigan bats cooled off in a 1-0 loss. For the weekend, Tiffany Haas hit .556 and led a Michigan attack that hit .365. Ritter went 2-1 with 26 K's in 18.0 innings and tossed Michigan's 20th all-time no-hitter and first of the season in a 3-0 win over Notre Dame to open pool play.
Record/Milestone Watch
-- Courtney Betley's next hit will be the 75th of her career.
-- Nicole Motcyka is 11 strikeouts away from 250 for her career.
-- Jennifer Olds is two hits shy of 50 for her career.
-- Monica Schock is four RBI shy of 100 for her career.
-- Monica Schock recently moved up to third on the all-time walk list with 77 career free passes. She is four shy of matching Kari Kunnen (1990-93) for second.
-- Meghan Doe is one steal shy of moving into a tie for 10th on the all-time list with 39.
Contact: Rich Marion (734) 763-4423
