The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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14 THE WOLVERINE ❱ JUNE/JULY 2025 ❱ INSIDE MICHIGAN ATHLETICS ❱ Student-Athlete Of The Month Softball Senior RHP Lauren Derkowski Senior right-handed pitcher Lau- ren Derkowski has been a clutch and veteran presence within the softball program throughout her career to the point that prior to her fourth season, head coach Bonnie Tholl named her one of the team's cap- tains. Derkowski, along with Ella McVey and Ellie Sieler, have combined as the trio of player leaders within the program and fantastic representa- tives for Tholl and the Wolverines. "I am elated to have Derk, Ella and Ellie serve as our team captains and guide us through the challenges that await Team 48," Tholl said before the season. "This team recognized their value in leading us with expe- rience and passion for Michigan and great commitment to our mission as we pursue Oklahoma City. They are the right people to inspire and unite Team 48." Derkowski, a two-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree and Big Ten Distinguished Scholar, has handled her business in the classroom as well as the diamond. In addition to her academic honors, she is also a two-time All-Big Ten selection on the field, earning first-team acco- lades last season and second-team honors in 2023. The reliability of Michigan's pitching ace was on display in the first round of this year's Big Ten Tournament in a 3-2 win over No. 9 seed Wisconsin on May 7. Derkowski threw a complete game with 6 strikeouts and 2 runs allowed on 7 hits with 2 walks. The Badgers left seven baserunners on in the contest, and Derkowski ended the first, fourth and fifth innings with strikeouts that stranded two runners each on base. "She was compelled to get it done," Tholl said, via The Michigan Daily. "And she had great command of her change-up. She had great command of most of the pitches today." As of May 8, Derkowski made 38 appearances with 28 starts for the Wolver- ines with a 15-12 record and 171.1 innings pitched, striking out 155 batters and allowing 65 earned runs (2.66 ERA). Derkowski, an Elmhurst, Ill., native, is enrolled in the School of Engineer- ing, majoring in industrial and operations engineering. Prior to this season, D1 Softball named her the nation's No. 16 pitcher and No. 48 player, while Softball America rated her the No. 45 player in the Preseason Top 100. Derkowski graduated from York Community High School, and her prep career included three-time Illinois High School Association All-State honors (2018- 19, 2021). She was the No. 16 prospect in her class, per Extra Innings. — Anthony Broome MICHIGAN'S TOP PERFORMERS Women's lacrosse senior Jill Smith: The Farm- ington Hills, Mich., native was tabbed first-team All- Big Ten for the third straight season. The 5-foot-8 at- tacker led the Wolverines in the regular season with 62 points (44 goals, 18 as- sists) and won 63 draw controls. She had 12 games with 3-plus points and ended the regular season on a 33-game point and goal streak, breaking the U-M record of 32. Three other Wolverines were named first-team All-Big Ten: graduate student Ava Class, senior Erin O'Grady and junior Grace Callahan. Men's golf senior Hunter Thomson: The Cal- gary, Alberta, native was named a unanimous selec- tion to the All-Big Ten first team after leading the Wol- verines in 11 of 12 events, including the final seven tournaments. He's the fifth Wolverine to earn first- team honors more than once, with the standout having also racked up those accolades in 2024. Women's lacrosse senior Erin O'Grady: The first-team All-Big Ten hon- oree was recognized as Big Ten Goaltender of the Year for the second consecutive season, becoming the first player in U-M history to receive the honor twice in a career. The Massapequa, N.Y., native has also twice been named first-team all-conference. Through the Big Ten Tournament, O'Grady has won 10 games, leading the conference and ranking sec- ond nationally with a .540 save percentage. Women's gymnastics sophomore Kayli Boozer: The second-team All-Big Ten selection was named the College Gym News Breakout Performer of the Year, which is pre- sented to sophomores, juniors or seniors for stand- out seasons. She earned spots in the lineup on vault, beam and floor, won two beam titles and fin- ished ranked 15th on the beam in the Big Ten and 24th on the floor this season. — Clayton Sayfie Derkowski is an All-Big Ten pitcher who also earned Big Ten Distinguished Scholar honors in each of the past two seasons. PHOTO COURTESY U-M PHOTOGRAPHY