After defying odds, the Michigan softball team automatically qualified for the NCAA Tournament after clinching the Big Ten Tournament title. The Wolverines will head down to Austin, Texas — home of host No. 6 Texas — this weekend for the NCAA Regionals.
In a double-elimination style bracket that contains the first-seeded Longhorns, No. 2 seed University of Central Florida and No. 4 seed Eastern Illinois, the third-seeded Wolverines hope to continue their postseason success to overcome the challenges their competition may bring.
Michigan’s first matchup is against the Knights, whose strength is in their pitching. UCF has a 2.91 ERA that puts it at No. 47 in the nation. Knights right-hander Isabella Vega is No. 7 with a 1.35 ERA and the biggest threat to Michigan’s bats heating up. Unlike the Wolverines, UCF has regular season ranked wins taking down then-No. 3 Florida in a 4-0 shutout, then-No. 21 Oklahoma State and then-No. 4 Arizona.
“We are familiar with (UCF’s) style of play, which is often determined by the players in the program,” Michigan coach Bonnie Tholl said Sunday. “And so they’ve had graduation, they’ve had new players filter in, so we’re going to learn a whole bunch more about them as well. And that’s what I said to the team, ‘Our focus right now is on UCF. That’s who we’re playing.’ ”
The Wolverines will then play either the Longhorns and Panthers game, depending on the game’s outcome. Eastern Illinois was not a projected tournament team but secured its bid by winning the Ohio Valley Conference title. But, it also hasn’t played a team with as much talent as the Longhorns this season.
Texas, on the other hand, is stacked on the offensive side of the ball. It is No. 4 in batting average with a .354 record — utility player Mia Scott is No. 27 with a .438 — and is No. 27 in average home runs per game. For reference, the Wolverines are No. 42 in average. The Longhorns also have a leader in catcher Reese Atwood who is No. 22 nationally with her .855 slugging percentage.
Michigan isn’t as close to its competitors in standings as it would like. Senior right-hander Lauren Derkowski has a 2.72 ERA while second-in-command sophomore right-hander Erin Hoehn has a 2.86. On the batting side, junior second baseman Indiana Langford, who leads the Wolverines in batting average, has a .411. Though Michigan’s best don’t align with its competitors, these discrepancies mean nothing in the postseason — as that’s where the Wolverines have pulled out all the stops.
“We just beat two top-10 ranked teams,” Tholl said. “And even though Oregon was the 16th-seed overall, I think they’ve done enough to be considered a top-10 team. And so I want our kids to remember that we are playing our best ball right now. We have an opportunity ahead of us … to conquer the tournament.”
Michigan is heating up. Not only has it beat two top-ranked teams, it shut them out. So while the Wolverines are the third seed in this bracket, it can dismantle the two teams right above it. But in order to do so, Michigan must prove that the success sustained in the conference tournament can be extended to the big dance as well.
