Michigan
Georgia State
Wolverines Head to Tampa for Annual Kickoff at USF Invitational
2/5/2020 5:10:00 PM | Softball
» No. 17 Michigan will kick off its 43rd season of intercollegiate play at the annual USF-Rawlings Invitational with a five-game slate in Tampa, Florida.
» The Wolverines return 14 letterwinners from last season's squad, including four starting position players and two starting pitchers; among them are All-American Meghan Beaubien and all-region selections Lexie Blair, Alex Storako and Madison Uden.
» Head coach Carol Hutchins is in her 36th season at the helm of the Michigan program and, with a record of 1,616-517-5, is the winningest coach in NCAA softball history.
THIS WEEK: USF-Rawlings Invitational
Friday, Feb. 7 -- vs. Georgia State (Tampa, Fla.), 11:45 a.m.
Live Stats | WCBN Audio
Friday, Feb. 7 -- vs. Illinois State (Tampa, Fla.), 2 p.m.
Live Stats | WCBN Audio
Saturday, Feb. 8 -- vs. Florida (Tampa, Fla.), 1:45 p.m.
Live Stats | WCBN Audio
Saturday, Feb. 8 -- at South Florida (Tampa, Fla.), 4:15 p.m.
Live Stats | Live Video | WCBN Audio
Sunday, Feb. 9 -- vs. Fresno State (Tampa, Fla.), 9 a.m.
Live Stats | WCBN Audio
• Complete Game Notes (PDF)
The No. 17-ranked University of Michigan softball team (0-0) will kick off its 43rd season of intercollegiate play with the annual USF-Rawlings Invitational this weekend in Tampa, Florida. U-M will open play Friday (Feb. 7) with games against Georgia State (11:45 a.m.) and Illinois State (2 p.m.), square off against No. 7 Florida (1:45 p.m.) and host South Florida (4:15 p.m.) on Saturday (Feb. 8), and wrap play with a 9 a.m. slate against Fresno State on Sunday (Feb. 9). All games will be held at USF Softball Stadium.
• Head coach Carol Hutchins is in her 36th season at the helm of the Wolverines. She has compiled a 1,615-517-5 record over her 36 overall seasons as an NCAA head coach. Hutchins became NCAA softball's all-time coaching wins leader when she earned her 1,458th with an 8-0, five-inning win at Indiana on April 2, 2016, and, more recently, became the first to reach 1,600 wins with a 6-2 decision at Ohio State on April 13, 2019.
• U-M returns 14 players from the 2019 squad that swept the Big Ten Conference regular-season and tournament titles. The Wolverines lost five starters to graduation but return four starting field players and a pair of starting pitchers, including junior LHP Meghan Beaubien, a 2018 NFCA first team All-American, and three NCAA All-Region honorees in sophomore leftfielder Lexie Blair, sophomore RHP Alex Storako and senior third baseman Madison Uden.
• Michigan returns all three of its pitchers from 2019 in Beaubien, Storako and junior RHP Sarah Schaefer. The trio combined for a 1.98 earned run average, 16 shutouts and a .204 opponent batting average last season.
• Blair, who was named a top-10 finalist for 2019 NFCA National Freshman of the Year, led Michigan -- and ranked third in the Big Ten -- last season with a .406 batting average and similarly posted team bests with 78 hits, 22 doubles and 54 runs batted in. She was the fourth Wolverine freshman to lead the team in hitting since 1995, joining Sara Griffin (.432, 1995), Amanda Chidester (.350, 2009) and Sierra Romero (.379, 2013).
• U-M welcomes a talented group of six freshmen for the 2020 season: pitchers Chandler Dennis and Lauren Esman, infielder Julia Jimenez, outfielder Lexi Voss, catcher Jessica Garmen and utility player Audrey LeClair. The class combined for 15 All-America accolades and includes five nationally ranked prospects. Jimenez, in particular, is expected to contribute immediately in the middle infield.
• Of the 52 games on the Wolverines' 2019 schedule, 17 feature opponents that reached the NCAA Tournament a year ago, including four teams from the 2019 NCAA Women's College World Series in national champion UCLA, Florida, Minnesota and Washington.
• In sweeping the Big Ten titles last season, Michigan earned its second straight outright championship -- and 21st overall -- with a near-perfect 22-1 regular-season record and added its first Big Ten Tournament title since similarly sweeping the conference crowns in 2015. U-M also achieved the feat in 1995, '96, '99, 2002 and 2005.
