Michigan
34-25
Minnesota
37-20
Big Innings Spark Minnesota to Victory Over Wolverines
5/28/2004 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. -- Minnesota scored nine runs in the fourth inning and added seven more in the sixth to take a 16-3 win over the University of Michigan baseball team in the Big Ten Tournament winners bracket final Friday night (May 28) at Siebert Field.
The Wolverines (34-25) face Oho State (34-24) in Saturday's (May 29, 3:35 p.m. CDT) first game, with the winner advancing to the first championship game to meet undefeated Minnesota (37-20) Saturday evening (7:05 p.m.). A Minnesota loss would force a second championship game between the Gophers and either Michigan or OSU on Sunday (May 30, 12:05 p.m. CDT).
With U-M leading 1-0, the first nine Gophers to bat in the fourth inning scored, and the rally started as Minnesota (37-20) loaded the bases with no outs against Wolverine starter Michael Penn (Columbus, Ohio/Worthington Christian). Minnesota 1B Andy Hunter singled to left to drive in two runs. Hunter's single was the game-winning hit.
Catcher Jake Elder walked to reload the bases on a free pass started by and charged to Penn (7-6) and finished by freshman RHP Dan Lentz (Farmington Hills, Mich./Brother Rice), who entered with the count 2-0. Following a throwing error that allowed two runs, Lentz walked the bases loaded and was replaced by junior/sophomore Ali Husain (Ypsilanti, Mich./Ypsilanti HS).
Minnesota CF Tony Leseman hit Husain's first pitch for a three-run double to make the score 7-0, and RF Sean Kommerstad followed with a two-run home run, his fourth homer of the year, and the score was 9-1.
Minnesota scored seven runs on four hits, two hit batters, two walks, a wild pitch and two Michigan errors in an ugly sixth-inning rally that really did not include a big hit. In fact Minnesota had just 11 hits while scoring the 16 runs and no player had more than two hits, although Hunter and Leseman each had three RBI.
The big story for the Gophers was LHP Jay Gagner (5-0), who limited the Wolverines to three runs on two hits. Michigan had scored 17 runs on 29 hits while beating Penn State 7-2 and Ohio State 10-4 in the first two games of the tournament. Gagner worked 7.2 innings and allowed two hits while walking five and striking out five to collect the win.
Senior DH Brandon Roberts (Arlington, Texas/Martin HS) and sophomore 2B Chris Getz (Grosse Pointe, Mich./South HS), the leading hitters in the tournament heading into the third day of action, collected the Wolverine hits.They each have seven hits in three games.
The Wolverines had threatened by putting two runners on in the bottom of the second as junior 1B Kyle Bohm (Stevens Point, Wis./Area HS) walked to lead off the inning and moved to second on a single to right by Roberts, but the potential rally stalled with a popup after two bunt attempts and two long flyouts leaving the runners on first and second.
Michigan took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the third without a hit as freshman shortstop Leif Mahler (Columbus, Ohio/St. Charles Prep) and freshman CF Eric Rose (Blissfield, Mich./Blissfield HS) reached on back-to-back walks to the start the inning and moved up on a sacrifice bunt by junior RF Matt Butler (Lombard, Ill./Driscoll Catholic). Getz hit a sac fly to center to score Mahler, but Rose was thrown out trying to advance to third for an inning-ending double play.
The Wolverines added single runs in the fifth, with Rose knocking in the first run with a grounder to short, and in the sixth, when the run scored as Getz doubled, moved to third on long fly by Bohm and scored on a sharp grounder to first by Roberts.
Michigan's starting pitcher has not been determined for Saturday's (May 29) matchup with Ohio State.
N O T E S
In Big Ten Tournament play on Friday Ohio State eliminated Michigan State 8-3 in the first game of the day and eliminated Purdue 6-4 in the second game. Ohio State with the two wins advances to Saturday's first game against Michigan. The three teams left in the tournament are the top three seeds.
Minnesota's nine-run fourth inning marked the most runs allowed in an inning by the Wolverines this season, surpassing the eighth runs Florida scored in the third inning in the second game of the year (Feb. 26).
Sophomore 2B Chris Getz was 1-for-2 with a double and a sac fly vs. Minnesota on Friday. Getz shares the team lead in doubles 17 with 1B Kyle Bohm. The hit gives Getz 85 for the season to snap the tie for sixth on Michigan's single-season hit list with Casey Close (1986) and Derek Besco (1997) for the sixth best single-season hit total for a Wolverine. Next on the hit list is Mike Cervenak's total of 87 in 1999 which ranks fifth.
Michigan's leading hitters after 59 games of overall action include: Brandon Roberts at .376 (70-for-186), Chris Getz at .362 (85-for-235), 1B Kyle Bohm at .352 (75-for-213), Eric Rose at .327 (53-for-162), Jeremy Goldschmeding (Allegan, Mich./Allegan HS) at .323 (40-for-124), catcher Jeff Kunkel (Oak Forest, Ill./Oak Forest HS) at .314 (53-for-169), Matt Butler at .310 (66-for-213) and 3B A.J. Scheidt (Bloomfield Hills, Mich./Lahser HS) at .300 (68-for-227).
Contact: Jim Schneider (734) 763-4423
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Jay Gagner (5-0)
L: Penn, Michael (7-6)
Batting:
2B: Tony Leseman 1
HR: Sean Kommerstad 1
RBI: Matt Fornasiere 1 ; Mike Mee 1 ; Andy Hunter 3 ; David Hrncirik 1 ; Jared Sanders 1 ; Tony Leseman 3 ; Sean Kommerstad 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Luke MacLean 2 ; Matt Fornasiere 2 ; Mike Mee 1 ; Andy Hunter 2 ; Jake Elder 2 ; David Hrncirik 2 ; Jared Sanders 1 ; Tony Leseman 2 ; Sean Kommerstad 2
SB: Tony Leseman 1
HBP: Jake Elder 1 ; Tony Leseman 1
Batting:
2B: Getz, Chris 1
RBI: Rose, Eric 1 ; Getz, Chris 1 ; Roberts, Brandon 1
SH: Butler, Matt 1 ; Mahler, Leif 1
SF: Getz, Chris 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Getz, Chris 1 ; Scheidt, A.J. 1 ; Mahler, Leif 1
