Michigan
19-2
Illinois State
8-17
Wolverines Shut Out Illinois State, Dayton at Louisville Classic
3/12/2016 12:00:00 AM | Softball
March 12, 2016
» RHP Megan Betsa fanned 11 in a three-hit, complete-game shutout against ISU, while RHP Tera Blanco struck six and allowed seven hits to earn the complete-game shutout against Dayton.
» Sierra Romero extended her hit streak to 14 straight games with four hits on the day, including three with two RBI against the Flyers.
• Boxscores: Illinois State | Dayton
Site: Louisville, Ky. (Ulmer Stadium)
Event: Louisville Softball Classic (Day 1 of 2)
Scores: #2 Michigan 1, Illinois State 0; #2 Michigan 7, Dayton 0
Records: U-M (20-2), ISU (8-17), UD (7-10)
Next U-M Event: Sunday, March 13 -- at Louisville - Louisville Softball Classic (Louisville, Ky.), 10 a.m.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- The No. 2-ranked University of Michigan softball team kicked off the Louisville Softball Classic with a pair of shutout wins, defeating Illinois State, 1-0, and Dayton, 7-0, on Saturday (March 12) at the Cardinals' Ulmer Stadium. The Wolverines extended their win streak to nine straight games.
Michigan's typically explosive offense proved somewhat sluggish throughout the day -- until awakening late in the Dayton game. Senior second baseman Sierra Romero posted four hits on the day, including three against Flyers, to extend her hit streak to a career-best 14 games. Senior centerfielder Sierra Lawrence also posted a three-hit effort, accounting for nearly half of U-M's production against Illinois State.
Junior RHP Megan Betsa (8-1) and sophomore RHP Tera Blanco (2-1) kept the Wolverines in both games with solid complete-games efforts from the circle. Betsa fanned 11 Redbird batters -- her second game this season with double-digit strikeouts -- and allowed just three hits. Blanco scattered seven hits and struck out six against Dayton. The duo gave up just one combined free base -- a hit-by-pitch against the Flyers -- through 14 innings pitched.
GAME 1: Michigan 1, Illinois State 0
The Wolverines posted seven hits in their opener against Illinois State but struggled to produce with runners on, matching a season high with 10 left stranded.
Michigan pushed across the game's only run in the top of the third. Lawrence led off the frame with a single through the left side -- one of her three hits in the contest -- and after advancing on a groundout and a Redbird throwing error, came home to score when senior rightfielder Kelsey Susalla lifted a sac fly to centerfield.
Betsa held up the narrow Wolverine lead with her complete-game gem from the pitching circle, allowing no free bases while striking out 11 -- her second game this season with double-digit strikeouts. She set the early tone with back-to-back punchouts to open the game and posted two strikeouts apiece in the third, fifth and sixth frames.
Illinois State's best scoring opportunity came in the fifth frame when leftfielder Payton Billups knocked a leadoff single into leftfield and advanced to third on a groundout and subsequent wild pitch. Betsa shut down the threat with a three-pitch strikeout to end the inning.
GAME 2: Michigan 7, Dayton 0
Michigan manufactured runs in four innings against Dayton, jumping out to an early lead when Romero followed back-to-back walks to open the game with a high-chop RBI single up the middle in the first inning. The Wolverines used small ball to tack on two more runs in the second, scoring on freshman third baseman Faith Canfield's bases-loaded fielder's choice and a Lawrence sac fly to rightfield.
Canfield drove in another run in the fourth, following sophomore first baseman Aidan Falk's double to the wall with one of her own, dropping a high fly into the gap in right centerfield. A new Dayton pitcher entered and promptly walked the bases loaded for Romero, who singled up the middle to plate another and pad Michigan's lead to 5-0.
The Wolverines plated two more runs in response to another Flyer pitching change to start the seventh. Blanco helped her own cause with an RBI single to the wall in right centerfielder, and in the next at-bat, Romero, who reached on a hard single off the third baseman's glove, scrambled home to score on a passed ball through the catcher's legs.
Blanco gave up leadoff hits in six of seven innings -- accounting for all but one of the Flyers' total hits -- but the Wolverine pitcher allowed just five runners to reach scoring position. Dayton's best opportunity came in the first inning when two of the game's first three batters singled and rightfielder Aspyn Novak advanced to third on a subsequent groundout. Freshman catcher Alex Sobczak made a running grab pop foul to end the threat.
Dayton threatened again with a leadoff double in the bottom of the seventh , but Blanco set down the next three batters on just eight pitches, including a three-pitch punchout to end the game.
Michigan will close out the Louisville Softball Classic tomorrow (Sunday, March 13) with a pair of games at Ulmer Stadium. The Wolverines will face host Louisville at 10 a.m. before wrapping up with a noon slate against Eastern Kentucky.
Communications Contact: Leah Howard
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Betsa, Megan (8-1)
L: Finck (4-9)
Batting:
RBI: Susalla, Kelsey 1
SH: Sobczak, Alex 2
SF: Susalla, Kelsey 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Lawrence, Sierra 1
SB: Lawrence, Sierra 1 ; Romero, Sierra 2 ; Susalla, Kelsey 1
HBP: Vargas, Amanda 1
Batting:
SH: Caliva 1
