COLLEGE PARK, MD — With two outs and the bases loaded in the top of the fourth inning, sophomore right fielder Lauren Putz stepped up to the plate. Facing a one-run deficit with its best slugger up to bat, this was the chance for the Michigan softball team to instate a commanding lead.
But Putz struck out swinging on a full count, and the Wolverines left the inning with three runners stranded on base. And they wouldn’t take the lead for the rest of the afternoon.
On Thursday, this inability to bat in runners proved to be an issue for Michigan. Falling by just two runs, the nine runners left on base could have been the difference between a Big Ten Tournament quarterfinal win and heading home early.
“Our middle of our order, we had runners on base there,” Wolverines coach Bonnie Tholl said about the fourth inning. “We left the bases loaded. We had the situation that we wanted with our number two and four, five hitters up. Credit to (Nebraska right-hander Jordy Frahm), she got tougher with runners on base, and that’s what an All American pitcher does.”
Frahm was a large reason for these stranded runners — the first and third innings resulted in two and one runners left on base, respectively, and both ended with a strikeout, similar to the fourth. The seventh also saw one left on base, once again to a strikeout by redshirt junior catcher Lily Vallimont to end the game.
Particularly in early innings, Michigan came out swinging, turning over its lineup by the top of the third. This resulted in runners left on base, but it also meant runs scored, one in the first and one in the fourth. The early signs of life showed potential for a hot hitting day for the Wolverines — but unfortunately for them, it turned into a day with a couple of big hits and just two runs scored.
Of the seven innings, there was only one where Michigan didn’t end the frame with players on the basepaths. In the sixth, the Wolverines stranded no runners on base — but that was because they couldn’t get them there. A one-two-three inning meant that while Michigan didn’t let a threat die out, it never threatened to begin with. So although the stranded runners early on were potential runs taken off the board, they also meant that the Wolverines were hitting the ball.
“I liked our fight, the fact that we’re getting people on base,” Tholl said.
The seventh inning proved similar to the sixth. Leading off, Putz walked on a full count, but the next three hitters grounded out or struck out. Although only one runner was left on base, only that same one runner managed to reach base, an issue for Michigan on a day when it scored just two runs.
“We certainly had our opportunities,” Wolverines coach Bonnie Tholl said. “Just a few more squared up balls, and it’s a different game.”
But to Michigan’s dismay, it wasn’t a different game. On another day, perhaps the Wolverines score a handful of those nine runners left on base and come out with a narrow win over the Cornhuskers. But Thursday wasn’t that day, and instead of scoring runners, Michigan found itself knocked out of the Big Ten Tournament.
