Ritter Whiffs 14, Merchant Leads HR Barrage in Sweep

Sunday, April 10

Minneapolis, Minn.

1:00 PM CT

Michigan

39-3, 6-1

Minnesota

18-19, 1-6

Michigan

Minnesota

4/10/2005 12:00:00 AM | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

Site: Minneapolis, Minn. (Jan Sage Cowles Stadium)
Scores: #1 Michigan 4, Minnesota 0; #1 Michigan 11, Minnesota 0 (5 innings)
Records: U-M (40-3, 7-1 Big Ten), Minnesota (18-20, 1-7 Big Ten)
Next U-M Game: Friday, Apr. 15 -- at Purdue (West Lafayette, Ind.), 3 p.m. EST/CDT

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. -- The No. 1 University of Michigan softball team rolled to a doubleheader sweep today (Sunday, April 10) over Minnesota with overwhelming pitching and a powerful lineup. Jennie Ritter (Dexter, Mich./Dexter HS) improved her record to 17-0 with a 14-strikeout effort in a 4-0 win in game one, while Jessica Merchant (Wayland, Mich./Wayland HS) matched her own single-season school record with her 15th home run to lead an offensive onslaught in an 11-0, five-inning win in the nightcap.

Lorilyn Wilson (Salem, Ore./Sprague HS) earned the win in the nightcap, while freshmen Samantha Findlay (Lockport, Ill./East HS) and Alessandra Giampaolo (Pasadena, Calif./Polytechnic HS) added home runs. The Wolverines (40-3, 7-1 Big Ten) remained one game behind Big Ten leader Northwestern (8-0 Big Ten) after the Wildcats pulled out wins of 8-7 and 3-2 at Wisconsin earlier today.

The Wolverines also hit a pair of home runs in the opener, two home runs that were actually more important than the barrage hit in the nightcap. Despite U-M's loading the bases with one out in the second inning, game one was scoreless through three after Becky Marx (St. Joseph, Mich./Stevensville-Lakeshore HS) lined into a double play to end that potential second-inning rally.

Ritter needed no such luck, striking out two in each of the first three frames and allowing only a single. Everything changed in the fourth when Grace Leutele (Sierra Vista, Ariz./Buena HS) continued a weekend theme for the Maize and Blue with more timely hitting. She connected for the first of two two-out, two-run home runs for the Maize and Blue. Ritter made sure there was no answer from Minnesota in the bottom half of the inning, taking care of business herself with two more strikeouts and a ground ball back to the circle.

Minnesota's only real threat came in the fifth when the Gophers put runners on second and third with one out, but the Michigan defense, which committed just one error in the doubleheader, came through. Merchant picked up a ground ball at short and Michigan took out the lead runner, allowing Ritter's ninth strikeout of the game to end the threat.

Michigan's bombers added to Ritter's cushion in the sixth after two were out when Findlay singled and Nicole Motycka (Sarasota, Fla./Cardinal Mooney HS) hit her ninth long ball of the season. Ritter put the difficult fifth behind her and struck out the side in the sixth and added her final two K's in the seventh.

Michigan only collected five total hits in the opener vs. Minnesota starter Lyn Peyer, but the Wolverines had her number as Peyer started the nightcap as well. The Wolverines wasted no time and would not need any two-out heroics in this one. Three straight singles with one out from Giampaolo, Merchant and Findlay gave Michigan a 1-0 lead and chased Peyer.

The Wolverines added two more in the first and exploded for six in the second. Eleven Michigan hitters came to the plate in the second with Findlay hitting her home run and Marx collecting a pair of hits, including an RBI single. Giampaolo and Merchant hit back-to-back home runs in the third to chase another Gopher hurler and make the final 11-0.

All in all, seven of the nine Michigan starters collected a hit in the game two win, with Merchant going 3-3 with four RBI and Findlay going 2-2 with three RBI to finish 4-5 for the doubleheader.

The Wolverines take the mid-week off this week and return to the diamond on Friday (April 15, 3 p.m. EST/CDT) for the first of a two-game series at Purdue. Michigan and Purdue face off again on Saturday (April 16, noon EST/CDT) before the Wolverines wrap up the weekend with a doubleheader at Indiana on Sunday (April 17, noon EST/CDT).

N O T E S

Michigan's three home runs in the nightcap matched its season best. Michigan has hit three home runs in six of its last 11 games.

The Michigan pitching staff's two shutouts today are the 21st and 22nd of the season and the third straight. Wolverine pitchers have not allowed a run in in 25 straight innings. The last run an opponent scored was in the first inning on the 3-2 win over Wisconsin on Friday. The school record for shutouts in a season is 27, which was set a year ago.

Samantha Findlay has now hit in a career-best seven straight games and is hitting .342.

Jessica Merchant went 4-6 today is now hitting a team-best .412. She also matched Tiffany Haas (Santa Ana, Calif./Foothill HS) with her 18th multi-hit game of the season in the nightcap.

Alessandra Giampaolo matched a career best with three runs scored in game two. Jessica Merchant did as well.

Grace Leutele and Nicole Motycka are tied for second on the roster with 16 two-out RBI. Samantha Findlay leads that category with 17.

Today's doubleheader sweep gave the Wolverines 40 wins on the season, making it 11 straight seasons Michigan has won at least 40 games.

Contact: Rich Marion (734) 763-4423