Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern
Michigan
Wildcat Comeback Falls Short Against Wolverines, 8-7
5/8/2005 12:00:00 AM | Softball
May 8, 2005
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- No. 19 Northwestern came within four outs of wrapping up its first Big Ten Championship since 1987 Sunday afternoon at Alumni Field, but a six-run sixth inning by No. 1 Michigan proved too much for a late-inning Wildcat comeback, giving the Wolverines an 8-7 win and the Big Ten title.
Michigan will now host the Big Ten Tournament from Thursday, May 12, to Saturday, May 14, next week.
Northwestern closes its regular season with a 37-14 record, 15-3 in the Big Ten. NU's conference record is its best since the Wildcats finished the 1985 season with a 20-4 mark in the Big Ten.
Michigan improves to 52-4 overall, 15-2 in the Big Ten. Since the Wolverines played one less game than NU, they are declared champions based on winning percentage.
Northwestern junior Courtnay Foster (Tucson, Ariz./Sahuaro) struck out Michigan leadoff batter Tiffany Haas to begin the game. The whiff was only the fourth of the season for Haas, who also went down swinging yesterday against NU's Eileen Canney (Paradise, Calif./Paradise). She entered the weekend with just two strikeouts, the second-fewest total in the nation.
After Saturday's pitcher's battle that saw no runs until the fifth inning, Northwestern took it upon itself to score right away in the bottom of the first. Freshman Stephanie Churchwell (Lake Forest, Calif./El Toro) led off with a walk, then advanced to second on a single from sophomore Garland Cooper (Mission Viejo, Calif./Santa Margarita Catholic). Both runners advanced on a wild pitch.
Junior Jamie Dotson (Santa Ana, Calif./Foothill) then lifted a high fly ball into centerfield, scoring Churchwell on the sacrifice fly to give NU a 1-0 lead. The RBI was the 50th of the year for Northwestern's single-season RBI record holder.
In the bottom of the second, junior Sheila McCorkle (Costa Mesa, Calif./Mater Dei) led off with a 3-2 home run over the left-center field fence to extend NU's advantage to 2-0. The blast was her third of the season.
Michigan tied the game in the top of third inning. With a runner on following a fielding error and a fielder's choice, Alessandra Giampaolo hit a ball that bounced off the top of the fence and out for a two-run home run.
After a spinny single to second and a base hit up the middle, Canney came to relieve Foster with two outs in the inning. She whiffed Grace Leutele to end the inning and keep the score knotted at two.
In the bottom half of the inning, Churchwell led off with a single. She advanced to third when Cooper doubled into the left-center field gap. Junior Ashley Crane (Sammamish, Wash./Eastlake) entered to run for Cooper.
Dotson stepped the plate and gave NU the lead back with a single through the left side, scoring Churchwell and advancing Crane to third. Junior Kristen Amegin (Sacramento, Calif./Elk Grove) brought Crane home with a sacrifice fly to right field, making the score 4-2 in favor of the Wildcats.
One day after Jennie Ritter shut down NU's offense, the Wildcats recorded runs in each of the first three innings against her on Sunday, effectively chasing her from the game. Lorilyn Wilson came out to start the fourth frame for Michigan.
In the top of the sixth, Michigan struck back. Stephanie Bercaw drew a walk, then advanced all the way to third on a two-out, high-bouncing infield single by Rebekah Milian. Haas brought both runners home with a double to left-center to tie the score, then she gave UM a 5-4 lead after a single from Giampaolo. After an infield single, Motycka broke the game wide open with a two-run double to center that was followed by a single up the middle to make the score 8-4 in favor of Michigan.
Foster reentered the game and got a strike out to end the inning. All six of UM's runs in the inning came with two outs.
Like top teams do, Northwestern did not give up or go away. Dotson led off the bottom of the inning with a double, then advanced to second on a single from Amegin.
McCorkle stepped out and launched her second home run of the game to nearly the same spot in left-center as the first, pulling the Wildcats to within one run, 8-7.
McCorkle joins Cooper and Churchwell as Wildcats who have had multi-homer games this season.
Before McCorkle had crossed home plate, Ritter was back on the field to reenter the game for the Wolverines. She retired the next three batters in order to set the stage for the seventh frame.
Foster quickly sat down Michigan in order in the top of the inning, bringing the top of the Northwestern order to the plate with a one-run deficit.
Ritter got the first two batters to strike out swinging before Cooper was barely beaten by on a groundout to shortstop despite a headlong dive.
Canney was pegged with the loss for Northwestern, dropping her record to 18-7. Wilson (21-2) got the win while Ritter was credited with her fourth save.
