Both pitchers go the distance, but Wolverines' offense proves too much for Chippewas
No. 2 Michigan 5 | Central Michigan 2
ANN ARBOR — Facing its highest ranked opponent all season, the Central Michigan softball team was unable to generate enough offense as the team lost to in-state foe No. 2 Michigan 5-2 Wednesday night.
In a game where both starting pitchers pitched the complete game, it was the Wolverine bats that proved to be the difference.
“After a couple of times seeing the pitcher you start making adjustments,” said Head Coach Margo Jonker. “The longer you go in the game, the harder it is for the pitcher. They saw the pitcher and made their adjustments and that’s kind of what’s all about.”
After two mistake-free innings, junior pitcher Rachael Knapp (11-12, 2.79 ERA) got into trouble after back-to-back hits and a walk to load the bases. A wild pitch led to the first run of the game and gave UM the early 1-0 lead.
The Wolverine offense broke out in the fifth inning when Tera Blanco hit a solo home run followed by a RBI single from Sierra Lawrence to go up 3-0.
“I thought we competed well today. I thought Rachael Knapp competed extremely well. I thought the defense played well and I thought overall we were pretty aggressive offensively, but came up short.”
CMU (20-23-1,7-9-1 Mid-American Conference) got on the board in the sixth inning after an error by Blanco put sophomore Sarah Hansen on first base. Freshman Kayla Noch hit a single the next at-bat and gave CMU its best chance with senior CarolAnn Sexauer stepping to the plate.
After three straight foul balls, Sexauer hit a grounder to third base which took an unusual bounce and allowed Hansen to score.
Lawrence came up again in the sixth inning and hit a two-run home run to push the lead to 5-1. Lawrence finished the game 3-for-4 with three RBI.
The Chippewas had one final chance in the seventh inning. The bases were loaded for senior Chelsea DeLamielleure who hit into a fielder’s choice to bring in one run.
With runners on first and second and one out, junior Taylor Lewallen struck out and Hansen grounded out to end the game 5-2.
Michigan pitcher Sara Driesenga (18-0, 2.51 ERA) pitched a complete game for the Wolverines (38-4,15-2 Big Ten) to give the team its 11th straight win.
“She’s a good pitcher,” Jonker said. “How many loses does she have this year? We aren’t the only ones to have trouble with her.”
Despite the loss, Jonker was happy the team’s overall play, but wants her players to have the same enthusiasm every game headed down the stretch of the regular season.
“We need to play like this every game, with this energy and passion and poise and that go- get ‘em attitude,” she said.”
