Wolverines Defeat MSU in Extras, Finish Second in B1G

Saturday, May 20

East Lansing, Mich.

1:05 PM

Michigan

42-13, 0

Michigan State

29-23, 0

Michigan

Michigan State

Wolverines Defeat MSU in Extras, Finish Second in B1G

5/20/2017 12:00:00 AM | Baseball

Box Score

May 20, 2017

» Nick Poirier picked up the game-tying RBI in the ninth, and Michael Brdar drove in the game-winning run in the top of the 10th inning.
» Jake Bivens and Brdar both went 3-for-5, while Drew Lugbauer picked up two of Michigan's 11 hits.
» Michigan will advance to the Big Ten Tournament for the fifth straight season as the No. 2 seed and face Northwestern.
» The Wolverines finished the regular season with a 42-13 overall record, including three extra-inning victories.

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Site: East Lansing, Mich. (McLane Stadium)
Score: #16 Michigan 2, Michigan State 1
Records: U-M (43-13, 16-8 B1G), MSU (29-23, 10-14 B1G)
Next U-M Event: Wednesday, May 24 -- vs. Northwestern - Big Ten Tournament (Bloomington, Ind.), 1:30 p.m.

EAST LANSING, Mich. -- After eight scoreless innings, the No. 16-ranked University of Michigan baseball team scored one run in the ninth to force extra innings and added a run in the top of the 10th to claim a 2-1 victory at Michigan State on Saturday (May 20) at McLane Stadium in the final game of the regular season.

Michigan will now advance to the Big Ten Tournament for the fifth straight season, as the Wolverines have advanced to the postseason each year under the guidance of head coach Erik Bakich. The Maize and Blue finished the 2017 regular season with a 42-13 overall record and a second-place finish in the Big Ten Conference.

Junior starting pitcher Michael Hendrickson tossed a career-high seven complete innings in the effort and retired 10 straight batters after allowing a lone run in the fourth. He scattered just four hits on the day and walked one.

Both teams put a runner on base in each of the first three innings, but no one scored until the fourth when Michigan State rallied for a run on two hits and a walk.

From there, the Wolverines did not score until the top of the ninth, when junior Drew Lugbauer led off with a single to right field. From there, Ako Thomas took his place at first base as a pinch runner but soon took second on a perfect sacrifice bunt by sophomore Miles Lewis. Thomas then stole third uncontested and scored easily on an RBI groundout by sophomore Nick Poirier.

Michigan State loaded the bases up in the bottom of the ninth, but senior reliever Jackson Lamb allowed his defense to work, and Michigan escaped the inning with no runs scored.

The momentum carried the Wolverines to the top of the 10th, which marked Michigan's first extra-inning affair since a 2-1 win over Eastern Michigan in 13 innings back in April. Junior Jake Bivens got things going with two outs in the top of the 10th with a single through the left side, and senior Johnny Slater followed with another outfield single to give Michigan two men on with two away. With runners on first and second, it was senior Michael Brdar who came up with the clutch RBI single to right field, allowing Bivens to score from second for the go-ahead run.

Leading 2-1, the Spartans put two men on in the bottom of the 10th on a walk and a hit batter, but sophomore second baseman Jimmy Kerr got the force out at second for a fielder's choice to end the game.

Sophomore William Tribucher tossed the bottom of the 10th inning for Michigan and held Michigan State scoreless en route to his second career save. He struck out one batter.

Lamb pitched the eighth and ninth innings for Michigan and improved to 3-0 on the season with the victory. He struck out one and allowed just two hits over two innings.

Overall, Michigan recorded 11 hits on the day, with both Brdar and Bivens going 3-for-5. Brdar and Poirier each registered an RBI in the effort, and Thomas picked up the Wolverines' only stolen base.

Tweet of the Day

BALL GAME

https://t.co/rTlHnKBA5s

-- Michigan Baseball (@umichbaseball) May 20, 2017

The No. 16-ranked Wolverines will return to action on Wednesday (May 24) as they face off against Northwestern in the first game of the Big Ten Conference Tournament. First pitch is set for 1:30 p.m. at Bart Kaufman Field at the University of Indiana.

Communications Contact: Katie Gwinn Hewitt