Softball thrashes Spartans in fall ball finale

Michigan softball concluded fall exhibition play last night with a trip to East Lansing.  In their first fall match-up, MSU scored the only 2 runs Michigan had given up in fall play, and the Wolverines' defense was not about to let that happen again, especially with recently-graduate star pticher Haylie Wagner watching from the stands!  All three pitchers (Blanco, Driesenga, and Betsa) saw action, and they combined for a complete-game shut-out.

On offense, today was a chance for the young guns to try their hand at college ball.  Freshmen Sobczak, Alexander, Peters, and Canfield all got starts, and the inclusion of Falk & Blanco as well made it a majority-underclassmen line-up.  Birthday-girl Kelsey Susalla was the lone senior in the order, and she was without doubt the star of the day.  She hit an RBI single in the 1st, a solo HR in the 3rd, and another RBI single in the 7th, going 3-3 with 3 RBI on the day.

The offense as a whole did not completely break out until the 7th, when Michigan plated 4 runs to open up and 8-0 lead, but with the quality of Michigan's pitching, the outcome was never in doubt.  It appears from the twitter feed that a few substitutions were made along the way, not all of which were necessarily mentioned (Swearingen got in the action somewhere along the line).

One item of interest is Abby Ramirez playing the lead-off role.  Bonnie Tholl talked about this as a possibility on WTKA recently, and it's definitely something the coaches are going to play around with.  Last season, Ramirez hit in the 9-spot and did an excellent job turning over the line-up with a .446 OBP on the strength of slap-hitting and speed.  The coaches seem to think she's ready to shoulder a little more of the load & a little more of the spotlight this season.  At the end of the day her role will be similar to last year - setting the table for the murderers' row of power hitters Michigan can send to the plate.

The only sad news on the night is the fact that we have no new softball content coming until 2016!  Thankfully, Harbaugh has our full attention at the moment, and the winter sports are just about to get underway, so we should be able to make it to spring.  Even a snow-lover like myself, however, will be eagerly awaiting the warming temperatures that signal a new season of Michigan softball!