Wolverines Place Six on All-Big Ten Teams
5/10/2017 12:00:00 AM | Softball
May 10, 2017
ROSEMONT, Ill. -- The University of Michigan softball team earned six total selections, including four to the first team, as the Big Ten Conference announced its 2017 all-conference softball teams and individual award winners on Wednesday afternoon (May 10).
Senior RHP Megan Betsa, junior utility player Tera Blanco, sophomore second baseman Faith Canfield and senior outfielder Kelly Christner were all named to the All-Big Ten first team. The Wolverines have boasted at least three representatives on the first team in each of the last 10 seasons and four representatives in each of the last three years.
Betsa, one of four players to earn unanimous selection to the All-Big Ten first team, is a four-time All-Big Ten selection, adding her second-team honors as a freshman, and a two-time Big Ten Pitcher of the Year (2015, '16). She posted a 14-2 mark in conference play with a 0.86 ERA and a Big Ten-best 191 strikeouts. She threw double-digit strikeouts in 10 of 16 starts, including a stretch of six in a row, and tossed a five-inning no-hitter against Penn State and combined with Blanco for another at Rutgers.
Blanco earned repeat All-Big Ten selection -- this year as a utility player after her selection as a first baseman last season -- and her first first-team nod. She split her time between pitcher and first base, posting a 6-1 record with a 1.47 ERA and batting .415 with a .717 slugging percentage and .564 on-base percentage.
Canfield, who earned All-Big Ten honors in her first year in the Michigan starting lineup, ranked second in the conference with a .468 batting average and boasted 11 doubles, three homers and 18 RBI in Big Ten play. She also posted a stellar .983 fielding percentage.
Christner returns to the All-Big Ten first team after previously earning the distinction in 2015. She batted .375 in league play this season with a .564 slugging percentage and 16 RBI and leads the Wolverines with a .419 overall batting average.
Second-team members include sophomore outfielder Natalie Peters and senior shortstop Abby Ramirez. Peters garners her first All-Big Ten nod in her first season in the Wolverine starting lineup after .403 in league play, largely from the leadoff spot, while Ramirez earned her second All-Big Ten selection, adding to her second team honors in 2015, after hitting .359 with two doubles and 15 RBI.
Junior Morgan Swift was selected as Michigan's sportsmanship honoree.
The Wolverines will kick off postseason play this weekend with the hosting of the Big Ten Tournament at the Wilpon Complex, home of Alumni Field. With the No. 2 seed, the Wolverines earn a first-round bye and will open play in the quarterfinal round at 4:30 p.m. on Friday (May 12), facing the winner of the first-round contest between No. 7-seeded Michigan State and No. 10 Indiana. [ Tournament Central ]
Communications Contact: Leah Howard
