Michigan
34-12, 12-5
Rutgers
23-25, 6-12
Wolverines Sweep Rutgers on Senior Day
5/8/2016 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
May 8, 2016
» Junior Carmen Benedetti hit his ninth career home run while going 3-for-5 at the plate with three RBI and one run scored.
» Sophomore Jake Bivens extended his hitting streak to 14 games and his reached-base streak to 43 games with a leadoff triple in the bottom of the first.
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Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Wilpon Complex)
Score: #21 Michigan 12, Rutgers 5
Records: U-M (34-12, 12-5 Big Ten), RU (23-25, 6-12 Big Ten)
Next U-M Event: Wednesday, May 11 -- at Central Michigan (Mount Pleasant, Mich.), 4 p.m.
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Every Michigan player either scored or knocked in a run on Sunday (May 8) as the No. 21-ranked University of Michigan baseball team forced a 12-5 victory over the visiting Rutgers Scarlet Knights at the Wilpon Complex, home of Ray Fisher Stadium. The win in the series finale marks Michigan's fifth series sweep on the season.
Unlike the past two games in the series, the Wolverines got on the scoreboard early, as sophomore Jake Bivens started Michigan off with a triple and was driven in on an RBI single from junior Carmen Benedetti in the bottom of the first.
Up by one after the first inning, the Wolverines then scored two more runs in the bottom of the second for a 3-0 lead. Senior Cody Bruder led off with a double, and sophomore Drew Lugbauer followed with an outfield single to put runners on the corners. A sac fly from senior Dominic Jamett then scored Bruder, and the following single from freshman Ako Thomas and hit-by-pitch to Bivens loaded the bases. The scoring ended on the next play -- an RBI hit-by-pitch from senior Matt Ramsay.
Despite trailing early, Rutgers responded to in the top of the third with two runs of its own by forcing two Michigan errors.
Michigan responded with three more runs in the bottom of the same inning, forcing a four-run lead. Bruder got things going with a one-out walk, and back-to-back singles from Lugbauer and Jamett loaded the bases. Freshman Jonathan Engelmann then came up with the RBI groundout, forcing a play at first base so that Bruder could score. With runners still on second and third, Thomas reached on a Rutgers error that allowed both Lugbauer and Jamett to beat the throw home.
Armed with a 6-2 lead, the Wolverines tacked on two more runs in the fourth. Ramsay jumpstarted the inning with one-out walk, and Benedetti followed with a two-run shot over the right-field wall, marking his second homer of the season and the ninth of his career.
Rutgers answered back in the top of the fifth with three runs on four hits and a Michigan error. Despite the momentum swing, the Maize and Blue added three runs of its own in the bottom of the inning and another insurance run in the bottom of the sixth.
With a 12-5 lead going into the seventh inning, neither team scored for the remainder of the game, and Michigan took home its fifth series sweep of the season.
Overall, the Wolverines tallied 15 hits and five walks to fuel the 12 runs scored. On the weekend, Michigan outscored Rutgers 39 runs to seven, and with two additional midweek wins, the Wolverines wrapped up the week with a total of 63 runs scored.
Led by lefty starter Evan Hill and five different relievers, the Michigan pitching staff combined for 13 strikeouts, and sophomore Ryan Nutof earned the win for the Wolverines. Nutof had five strikeouts in 2.1 innings pitched.
Raise your hand if you swept the weekend #GoBlue pic.twitter.com/rDIX2XoiHw
-- Michigan Baseball (@umichbaseball) May 8, 2016
After two days off, the No. 21-ranked Wolverines will return to action on Wednseday (May 11) with a midweek contest at Central Michigan. First pitch of the non-conference contest is slated for 4 p.m. in Mount Pleasant.
Communications Contact: Katie Gwinn Hewitt
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Nutof, Ryan (6-1)
L: Brito, Serafino (5-4)
Batting:
2B: Rosa, Gaby 1
3B: Marcinczyk, Tom 1
RBI: Rosa, Gaby 2 ; Suseck, Chris 1
SH: Matera, Nick 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Devish, R.J. 2 ; Rosa, Gaby 1 ; Suseck, Chris 1 ; Bowerbank, Luke 1
SB: Bowerbank, Luke 1
Batting:
2B: Benedetti, Carmen 1 ; Bruder, Cody 1
3B: Bivens, Jake 1
HR: Benedetti, Carmen 1
RBI: Bivens, Jake 2 ; Ramsay, Matt 1 ; Benedetti, Carmen 3 ; Wenson, Harrison 1 ; Jamett, Dominic 1 ; Engelmann, Jonathan 1
SH: Thomas, Ako 1
SF: Bivens, Jake 1 ; Wenson, Harrison 1 ; Jamett, Dominic 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Bivens, Jake 2 ; Ramsay, Matt 1 ; Benedetti, Carmen 1 ; Bruder, Cody 2 ; Lugbauer, Drew 2 ; Jamett, Dominic 2 ; Engelmann, Jonathan 1 ; Thomas, Ako 1
HBP: Bivens, Jake 1 ; Ramsay, Matt 1
