An MGoBlog / Softball Thank You

Submitted by South Bend Wolverine on

In the wake of today's heartbreaker against FSU, I'd like if I may to extend a few "thank you"s here at the end of the 2016 softball season.

First, a massive thank you to all of the players, and especially the seniors.  They've given us so much to cheer, shout, and laugh about over the last few years, and did so during a time when not a lot else in the Athletic Department was doing so.  We just watched the final performance of Sierra Romero, the best there ever was, but there's a whole team around her as well that has been absolutely outstanding.  The magnitude of the disappointment today is 100% a factor of how much they've made us expect of them.

Second, a huge thank you from me personally to MGoBlog.  Brian, for giving me the space to publish my pieces about the team here, and Seth & Bryan Fuller for helping me out a lot with my post-season articles.  As I've mentioned before, when I was a kid it was always my dream to works in sports media (I wanted to be an announcer, and drove my parents nuts by commentating on my EA Sports video games).  My career has gone a different way, but it's been a privilege to get to play around a little with that dream from years ago.

Finally, thank you to all of you nuts who have packed the game threads from day 1 all the way up through the last out in OKC.  It's great to have a community here that share my off-beat passion for college softball.  We'll all be coming together again pretty soon come February.

Go Blue, and Hail to the Victors.

MGJS SuperKick Party

June 5th, 2016 at 3:42 PM ^

I don't watch the softball team until post season, but they have had one hell of a run.

It is disappointing that the season ended like it did, but learn from it and return for better results.

Thank you to the players who left everything out on the field this season.

Doc Brown

June 5th, 2016 at 3:42 PM ^

It was a great season and college careers for Romo, Silo, Susalla, Sbonek, Connell, and Drisenga. They worked their butts off and made us all proud. Go Blue ladies!!!

M Fanfare

June 5th, 2016 at 3:45 PM ^

It hurts to say goodbye to yet another great class of Michigan Women. Each class that comes through this great program sets the bar just a little bit higher.

Wolverine Devotee

June 5th, 2016 at 3:45 PM ^

Can't even fit all the championship shirts in the frame.

Perspective. This senior class is likely one of the greatest ever here. 

 

  • 3 NCAA Women's College World Series
  • 3 NCAA Super Regional Championships
  • 4 NCAA Regional Championships
  • 4 B1G Championships
  • 1 B1G Tournament Championship
  • 23-0 against OSU and MSU

Over 200 wins. We never ranked outside the top-2 all season long.

 

Michigan Arrogance

June 5th, 2016 at 3:47 PM ^

My family and I have grow. Together watching this team, especially over the last 4 years with these seniors. My daughter was born a few months after the national title and is now playing softball In little league, wanting to pitch like betsa and Wagner and she knows team 39s lineup like the back of here hand. I love watching these games with her and an heartbroken that it ended.




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South Bend Wolverine

June 5th, 2016 at 5:05 PM ^

Yeah, I am very much the same way, WD.  Obviously I love games with the Maize & Blue best of all, but it's just such a thrilling sport.  Take everything good about baseball, get rid of everything that sucks, and some extra good things like rise balls & slap-hitters, and you've got yourself one heck of a sport.  It'll be tough to watch the championship series this year b/c I feel so bad for our players who won't be able to be there, but in a typical year now I watch a big chunk of the WCWS and a number of other games throughout the year.  One of my favorite softball memories is watching Keilani Ricketts' glittering performance in the 2013 WCWS (except the part where she beat us, I didn't like that bit) to lead OU to the title.  Had nothing to do w/ UM specifically, it was just damn good softball.

BG Wolverine

June 5th, 2016 at 5:33 PM ^

My daughter will be a high school senior and has played softball since she was 9 (a pitcher by the way) including high level travel ball. Some of the kids she has played against are trickling into college now. It so much more fun to watch than baseball IMO. She has also played against 2018 incoming pitcher Megan Beaubian.




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reshp1

June 5th, 2016 at 3:51 PM ^

Tough way to go out, but there's nothing to hang heads about. Thanks to you South Bend Wolverine and the rest of the SB fans here for exposing me to a sport I would never have watched otherwise, it's been a ton of fun.

1VaBlue1

June 5th, 2016 at 4:03 PM ^

I don't watch a lot of softball, but made a point to watch over the last few weeks.  This was a really good team that never stopped fighting.  They were a joy to watch.  If anyone sees the girls next week, tell them 'Thanks!'

Team 101

June 5th, 2016 at 4:03 PM ^

Congratulations to the seniors and the entire softball team for another great season.  It is quite impressive for a non-revenue sport to generate the attention on the board that this team has done.  800 posts on the thread last night and 400 this afternoon.

Now I've got to find something to do with myself for the next 90 days.

SaigonBlue

June 5th, 2016 at 4:08 PM ^

Looking ahead to next year's team, any thoughts?

Clearly the team loses some huge bats and senior leadership, but who do you see filling those positions and those key roles?

Wolverine Devotee

June 5th, 2016 at 4:22 PM ^

It's hard to remember what life without Romero was like. 

Blanco is likely going to be our top hitter as this year kind of felt like a quasi-passing of the torch towards the end. 

There are two big things that need to be solved.

1. Next year CAN NOT be the Megan Betsa show. Blanco was the #1 ranked pitcher in the 2014 class according to the final Hot 100 by FloSoftball, and she has the arm to do it. I, myself liked what I saw from her when we did get to see her pitch in televised games. 

That's probably the biggest thing. Also would be nice to set Leah Crockett in since Betsa graduates after 2017. 

2. Catcher. Our concerns pre-2016 came back to bite us in the end. Aidan Falk was solid for 99% of this season in that she didn't allow many passed balls, but the downside was the threat of picking off runners not being there. 

It will be a very good thing if freshman Abby Skvarce takes the job ala Lauren Sweet when she came in, taking the job from Blanchard who moved to 1B (ironically what Falk played in HS).

Si-Lo (CF) and Susalla graduating (RF) opens up spots for talented players waiting to step in. We have some pretty good players that aren't playing because of the older and better players in front of them. 

I think Amanda (Panda) Vargas is almost a lock to start in the OF. She started the last two games at DP, so with the opening in the field, she'll come in. Natalie Peters could take the other outfield spot, as well.

2B is gonna have some massive shoes to fill. Incoming freshman Madison Uden is a middle infielder, but I'm not so sure that we don't already have someone that could do the job.

 

SpikeFan2016

June 5th, 2016 at 4:30 PM ^

Well who on the team currently do you think will move into 2B?

 

What about batting? I would assume that Ramirez will become the new lead off based on her style of hitting, base speed, and above average batting average. 

 

Any big hitters incoming/awaiting? Our offense is going to need a lot of work. 

Wolverine Devotee

June 5th, 2016 at 4:45 PM ^

Alex Sobczak has to be injured. Something is certainly going on.

The other day in that Hutch piece by MLive, an unnamed injured player was mentioned. She hasn't appeared in a long time and hasn't started since a midweek game against CMU.

Which is strange because she has a good bat. She played some catcher in HS and also played 3B. She started the season at catcher but it did not go very well, as a we lost a game to a pretty good Washington team on a walkoff passed ball. 

Faith Canfield really came on at the end of the regular season. Didn't carry over into the postseason but that's not that surprising as she's a freshman and didn't really get PT until later on. 

Katie Alexander can also slug it pretty well. She had a pinch-hit grand slam in a road game at PSU. Wouldn't be surprised if she gets in once in awhile at DP.

My theory on why Blanco didn't pitch much is this-

  • Blanco is an All-American at 1B
  • Aidan Falk came here as a 1B that could play catcher
  • Who would be our catcher if Falk played 1B while Blanco pitched?

The catcher thing kind of solves the puzzle. Abby Skvarce, from what I heard, has a cannon for an arm and can pick off runners.

charblue.

June 6th, 2016 at 12:21 PM ^

Ramirez will be a great leadoff hitter. She can actually do more than slap if given the opportunity. She has a lot of moxie at shortstop and should become a team leader. The corners will be solid with Blanco, Falk rotating at first depending on when Blanco pitfches.

The two best hitters for Michigan in terms of at-bats in the WCWS were Blanco and Falk. I thought Blanco got squeezed on the called third strike in the seventh after two consectuvie t0-pitch at-bats. Imagine Burroughs had to throw 20 pitches to retire her one time. Earlier in the game she swung and went out on the first pitch she saw. She also drove in the only runs in the win over LSU and Falk also delivered when it counted in the clutch. So those two ought to take over the middle of the order and provide the same kind of grit.

Falk, however, cannot continue catching regularly if she can't throw anyone out. That was Michigan's achillies heel heading into OKC.

Ramirez essentially served as a leadoff hitter or table-setter this year with Romero and Lawrence hitting behind them. Those two will be impossible to replace in terms of their production and leadership. Christner and Susalla were also fabulous contributors, but Michigan ought to find suitable replacements even if they can't duplicate the hitting and run production of this team.

Michigan was the best team in the country in my mind most of the seson and going into the WCWS. But good pitching and defense always stops great hitting and run-scoring. Michigan just couldn't get the hit they needed against Oklahoma, and the Sooners essentially beat Michigan twice, because they were done in by the quick turnaround on Sunday.

Megan Betsa pitched great. She is a remarkable talent, but she wasn't as sharp Saturday as the team needed her, and yesterday she was terrific, but had one bad inning.

Going forward, this team needs to become faster on the bases, improve behind the plate and develop additional reliable pitchers who can offset each other. Hutch knows that. She isn't the winningest coach in the game for nothing.

She did her best to wring out the last ounce of energy and will in her team Sunday, but they just got squeezed by some iffy plate unpiring and tournament scheduling. That is part of rhe game. And you just have to deal with it. Michigan will be back.

What a chapter of softball this team gave us. Very proud of their achievements and legacy. Go Blue!

SaigonBlue

June 6th, 2016 at 2:47 PM ^

One point of note as I am not sure if you were implying that Christner is a senior or not by grouping her with Susalla, but she is only a junior this season.

From all accounts she is a great team leader. Hopefully she will get her bat back in to the full time production as she had in 2015.

South Bend Wolverine

June 5th, 2016 at 4:50 PM ^

WD sums it up pretty well here.  A few of my own thoughts:

I agree that we'll need more in the circle than just Betsa.  Blanco is going to be a huge part of this team offensively, but we'll need her or Crockett to step up & provide a legit 2nd option as well.  One of the big differences in the tourney between 2015 & 2016 was the lack of Haylie Wagner.  When we went down early in our winner's bracket game in 2015, Wagner came in & slammed the door.  This year, Betsa had to battle - she gave it her all, but it wasn't enough.

At the same time, I still think that, fundamentally, 2017 will be the year of the Betsa.  Our O will be good, but it won't put up the gonzo stats it has for the last 2 years.  We will go basically as far as Betsa's arm can take us.  If she pitches like she did against LSU & FSU, we can go very far.  If the OU performance reoccurs, we won't have the power to balance it out.  She has all the tools in her toolbox, and hopefully she'll be healthy all year long.  Question is, can she put it all together at once?

As for the other sore spot, catcher will be a pitched battle.  Falk is a very replaceable incumbent.  Sobczak had the job early on this year & lost it, so she'll be a real threat to win it back.  Skvarce could factor in as well, esp. if the "rocket arm" MGoSoftball reported translates to the D-1 level.  Inability to pick off runners was a big issue this year - we missed Sweet's rifle badly.

As for the other open spots, it's going to be a scrum.  There are a lot of players (Panda Vargas, Faith Canfield, Taylor Swearingen, the losers of the catcher battle, freshmen) who have showed potential, but none have broken through to be consistent .300+ hitters, which is sort of the benchmark for being a quality contributer to a national contender.  We've got a lot of bullets in the chamber, we just need a few to come through.

Finally, two big X factors - Kelly Christner & Aidan Falk.  Both were brilliant in 2015, both took big steps back in 2016.  Christner dropped around 75 points off her batting avg & 15 off her HR total, Falk dropped over 30 points, and hit one less long ball (#s are approximate b/c final season stats aren't posted yet).  For Falk, perhaps the weight of learning a new position caught up to her.  Christner is harder to explain.  They will both be important parts of the 2017 batting order, so it's a big question whether they'll be able to recover their 2015 #s, or if they will continue to struggle, especially with the loss of all the powerful bats around them.

I'll have more to say in a few months when it's season preview time, but basically I see us as a legit contender for a national seed & Big Ten title.  For us to be more than that, we'll need to hit on a few of these X-factor/wild card situations.  It's definitely possible, but it will not be easy.

SaigonBlue

June 5th, 2016 at 5:42 PM ^

Question: Is it "normal" to redshirt a freshman pitcher (Leah Crockett) when the pitching staff is a bit thin? I am sure many factors go in to that decision, but it seems as if I see a lot of freshman pitchers playing some role in their respective team's staff.

I agree on the Haylie Wagner point; she was huge last year and clutch in some very difficult situations.

Also, one of the reasons that we all were so confident in Team #39 is that they "only" lost Sweet and Wagner off of last year's team. On paper one may see virtually all of Team #38 back for 2016, but those two losses turned out to be just enough to create some serious weaknesses. 

In that same vein, looking ahead to Team #40, 6 of 9 starters will be back in 2017. It will be fun and interesting to watch how this team evolves and develops without the big names (the Sierras) and the leadership that they and some of the upperclassmen non-starters have brought to the program these past few years.

South Bend Wolverine

June 5th, 2016 at 7:28 PM ^

To the redshirt question, non-medical redshirts have been very rare at Michigan in my time watching softball - having a hard time thinking of even one, actually.  Certainly must have been a case where we had a clear-cut top 2 options, and the others were a significant step back.

Regarding the point about returning players, it's definitely an open question.  I pegged 2015 as a season where we would be a solid team, but unlikely to get a top-8 seed due to our massive offensive losses.  We lost a .400 hitter in Colie Sappingfield, a .369 hitter in Lindsay, and two more hitters solidly in the .300s in Taylor Hasselbach & Caitlin Blanchard.  I questioned how we would replace those numbers, and was of course delighted to have those questions answered over the course of the season.

On the one hand, you don't *replace* players like the Sierras, who were a once in a lifetime duo, and Susalla & Driesenga both brought a ton to the table as well.  On the other, we've got a lot of great young players who have been biding there time.  Who's going to be the next Kelsey Susalla or Kelly Christner to suddenly emerge into a big-time player?  Time will tell.

FlaBlue2

June 8th, 2016 at 12:22 PM ^

FWIW, I was told recently by a knowledgeable person that Leah Crockett will not be getting a redshirt.. I had assumed Leah would be getting a redshirt.  Leah's redshirt was burned when she pitched 1 inning (1 hit, 0 runs, 0 walks) against VaTech on Feb. 21, according to this knowledgeable person.  That was the only action Leah saw this past  season.  i have not seen anything to contradict this knowledgeable person's claim.

Henry Arulingverder

June 5th, 2016 at 4:28 PM ^

Sad to see the season end. As someone who doesn't watch UM Softball until the playoffs, I might not have enough context to be sure - but it feels like we got overpowered by dominant pitching, while we relied on one pitcher who was battling through a back issue & worn down due to overuse. Why do we not have more of an arsenal of capable pitchers who have earned the trust of the coaching staff? Betsa did what she could but there was no relief in sight. 

Coach Hutch is the winningest coach in the sport so we are obviously in excellent hands but this feels like we didn't have the pieces in position to help the team win. 

SDCran

June 5th, 2016 at 5:29 PM ^

The pitching is better in the tournament. But notice that UM outhit their opponent in both losses. These games come down to timely hitting and some luck. One team hits a line drive right at the CF and other gets one up the gap. One team has to make the quick turnaround from midnight to noon.



UM's offense is legit. Betsa is legit. UM's 6 and 7 hitters both had good WCWS. Betsa gave up 1 infield hit today. For whatever reason it wasn't meant to be. This team was great and it was fun to watch them all season.

ilah17

June 5th, 2016 at 4:38 PM ^

Thanks for great coverage! And ditto the thanks to the team, especially the seniors. It's hard to imagine Michigan Softball without Sierra and Sierra. Four years never feels long enough with great players!




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Ray

June 5th, 2016 at 4:40 PM ^

You fought until the very end. As a Michigan dad and grad, I am proud to have you represent the university. Best of luck to the seniors and wherever life takes all of you, Go Blue Forever.

freejs

June 5th, 2016 at 5:18 PM ^

this is going to sting for a while. 

So close to an epic comeback last night. They really had me believing. I thought we were even going to get that 8th run and walk away with the win. 

 

M and M Boys

June 5th, 2016 at 5:33 PM ^

And what a GREAT legacy this team leaves behind!
The memories are distinctive.
Hutch Is what UM best represents.
Congratulations ladies you should be proud of how you involved the M community and every single one of your accomplishments--we are!!!!!!!!

1975Blue

June 5th, 2016 at 5:40 PM ^

Too bad Romero won't be back next year, but at least we won't have to listen to Hutch comparing her to Miguel Caberea.  

Also in the 7th inning, you have two precious outs to work with, and you are going to sacrifice one of those outs with a bunt ?  

Nonetheless, a successfull season to make it to the WCWS, but it might be a while before UM is back in OK city.

 

 

 

 

Muttley

June 5th, 2016 at 10:41 PM ^

The basepaths are only 60 feet in college softball--a bunt isn't a guaranteed out.  And given that the non-Falk* hitters were 1-for-19 at that point, the bunt-for-a-hit strategy wasn't off-the-wall crazy.

 

*Damn, did Falk look good at the plate these last two games, going 5-for-6 against top-flight pitchers on great looking swings.

She finished in the 5th-8th hitter productivity pack for the year on the team (my grouping), but if she can swing like that, you've got to get her to the plate next year.

http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/mich/sports/w-softbl/auto_pdf/2015-…

 

GoBlueGoWings

June 5th, 2016 at 5:59 PM ^

Thank you for another great year! It is heart breaking for the senior class. Good luck in the future.

See the rest of you next year.

A real question. Does Michigan ever retire numbers? Could Romero be the first?

South Bend Wolverine

June 5th, 2016 at 7:14 PM ^

I'd be surprised if we ever retire numbers while Hutch is the coach.  There's an exercise she has all freshmen players go through where they write an essay about all the players who have worn their number in the past.  I think she likes the way players wearing the numbers of the greats & feeling challenged to live up to that standard.

If we ever do retire numbers, Romo would be high on the list.  Jennie Ritter as well.