The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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OLYMPIC SPORTS ville, Ky.; Tallahassee, Fla.; Columbus, Ga.; and other warm-weather hosts. The Maize and Blue even went 23-17 against top-25 teams. So it should be no surprise the preseason No. 8 team nationally is off to an 8-1 start this winter, sweeping the field at the Un- conquered Invitational in Tallahassee Feb. 13-15 to earn five wins, including 6-5 and 2-1 victories over No. 6 Florida State. "We need to face the good teams to get harden and tougher, because that's what makes you better," head coach Carol Hutchins said after the Wolver- ines' tournament title. "Whether you win them or lose them, we need to learn how to play them and how to win them. "Our schedule does not let up. We go to Alabama [Feb. 20-22], then Ari- zona State [Feb. 27-March 1] and Ful- lerton [March 4-7]. It's good. "Hopefully we can learn to just keep playing every day and show up the same. We can't focus on our opponent; we just need to focus on playing. We were really good at that this weekend." The Maize and Blue posted mercy wins over Western Kentucky (8-0 af- ter five innings), Georgia Tech (10-0 after five) and the Yellow Jackets again (10-2 after five innings), but needed every last at-bat and every last out to beat the Seminoles in a Valentine's Day doubleheader. They also needed all three of their pitchers, using senior Haylie Wagner for four innings, senior Sara Driesenga for two and one-third innings and sophomore Megan Betsa for seven and two-thirds innings in the sweep. "We needed all of them, and I think what's notable is they all un- derstand. They're pretty selfless that way," said Hutchins, who let Betsa go all seven for a complete-game 2-1 win. "I did tell Betsa in the second game, 'Finish your own game. Pitch to beat them.'" Junior Sierra Romero, the two-time Big Ten Player of the Year, is again leading the charge for the Maize and Blue offense, hitting .409 with two home runs and eight RBI in nine con- tests. On the mound, Driesenga is 3-0 with a 0.67 ERA in five appearances, while Betsa is 3-0 with a save and a 1.50 ERA in her five appearances. The Wolverines' veterans are per- forming like the seniors and juniors before them once did, while a young cohort of six freshmen that has com- bined to hit .272 with 10 runs scored and 13 RBI is acclimating quickly. In other words, this looks like another strong Michigan softball team that is eager to prove its value early and build towards a Big Ten championship and a Women's College World Series berth. BASEBALL (1-2 OVERALL) Michigan picked up its first win of the season, 5-3 over Long Beach State Feb. 15 … The Wolverines posted a 3.81 team ERA in their first three games, but struggled at the plate with a collective .265 batting average while scoring just nine runs … U-M was picked to finish fifth in the preseason Big Ten poll … Ju- nior infielder/relief pitcher Jacob Cronen- worth was named a preseason first-team All-American by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association and was