Michigan vs. the Week's Opposition

Michigan State (30-14, 4-3 Big Ten) -- The battle for Big Ten bragging rights in the state of Michigan will be waged for the 70th and 71st times when Michigan and Michigan State meet in Ann Arbor Wednesday (April 21). . . . MSU hosts Penn State in a Monday (April 19) twinbill before traveling to U-M. . . . The Spartans won two of three vs. Ohio State last weekend (April 17-18) and moved from fourth place to second in the league standings. . . . Shealee Dunavan leads the Spartans with a .409 batting average. Erica Strutz (22-8) has a team-low 1.58 ERA. . . . MSU has been just outside of a spot among the top 25 teams in the USA Today/NFCA Coaches Poll. . . . U-M holds a 50-19 advantage in the series, winning eight of the last 10 meetings. The teams split their 1998 conference doubleheader. . . . Michigan head coach Carol Hutchins, a 1979 MSU graduate and member of the Spartans' 1976 AIAW national champion softball team, is 43-9 vs. her alma mater. . . . U-M pitchers vs. the Spartans: Marie Barda 0-0, Kate Eiland 0-0, Jamie Gillies 0-0. . . . Web site: www.msuspartans.com.

Iowa (30-16-1, 5-4 Big Ten) -- Iowa has a pair of doubleheaders scheduled -- April 20 vs. Creighton and April 21 vs. Northwestern -- before facing Michigan. . . . UI begins the week ranked No. 24 in the USA Today/NFCA Coaches Poll. . . . The two teams have already played twice in 1999, finishing 1-0-1 at the Sacramento State Capital Classic (March 20-21). The teams finished in a 2-2 tie to share the Capital Classic championship. . . . A trio of Hawkeyes are hitting better than .300, led by freshman Amber Morrow's .348 average. Kelly Zeilstra (0.75 ERA) carries a team-best 13-8 record. . . . Iowa carries a 44-29 lead in the all-time softball series vs. Michigan, with the Wolverines taking 11 wins in the 21 meetings over the past four seasons (1995-98). . . . Michigan head coach Carol Hutchins is 25-38 against Iowa. Hutchins worked as an assistant to UI head coach Gayle Blevins at Indiana University in 1981. . . . U-M pitchers vs. Iowa: Marie Barda 0-0, Kate Eiland 0-0, Jamie Gillies 4-0 (2 SHO). . . . Web site: www.hawkeyesports.com.

Wolverines Lead Conference at Season Midpoint
Just over midway through the 24-game Big Ten Conference schedule, Michigan carries an unblemished 13-0 record and is 429 percentage points ahead of second-place Michigan State (4-3, .571) with three weeks to go. The 4-2 win at Northwestern April 18 assured the Wolverines of a winning conference record, the 13th season (eighth consecutive) U-M has won more than 50 percent of its Big Ten games.

Big Ten Conference Standings (April 19)

 Place, Team         W-L   Pct.
 1. MICHIGAN        13-0  1.000
 2. Michigan State   4-3   .571
 3. Northwestern     5-4   .556
    Iowa             5-4   .556
 5. Purdue           6-6   .500
    Wisconsin        4-4   .500
 7. Penn State       5-6   .455
 8. Minnesota        4-5   .444
 9. Indiana          3-8   .273
10. Ohio State       2-11  .154

Streaks Stopped, Continued in 6-1 Mid-April Week
Two Michigan win streaks stopped while two others continued during the Wolverines' seven-game April 12-18 week. U-M opened with a sweep of Penn State April 13, winning 10-2 and 3-0. Central Michigan halted both the Wolverines' 33-game unbeaten (32-0-1) and 26-game Alumni Field regular-season win streaks with a 7-4 victory in the first game of the April 14 twinbill. U-M came back in the nightcap to post a 6-3 win over the Chippewas. The week ended with a three-game road sweep of Northwestern, 10-3, 2-0 and 4-2. Wins vs. Penn State and Northwestern extended Michigan's regular-season Big Ten win streak to 23 games and were its eighth and ninth straight conference series sweeps.

Gentile Returns to Michigan Lineup
Out of action for the first 45 games of the 1999 season, junior Melissa Gentile (O'Fallon, Mo./Wentzville HS) returned to the Michigan lineup during the April 17-18 Northwestern series. Gentile walked as a seventh-inning pinch-hitter in her first season appearance in the second game of the series. In game three, she broke into the starting lineup -- the first time since May 23, 1998 -- as designated player, stroking an RBI double, popping out to the catcher and drawing an intentional walk. A Second-Team All-American at catcher last season, Gentile underwent back surgery in late November 1998. She has been rehabilitating the injury since December and was cleared for competition before the Northwestern road trip.

Kollen Consistent at the Plate
Five multiple-hit games and a .462 batting average (12-for-26) pushed freshman Kelsey Kollen (Cerritos, Calif./Mater Dei HS) into third place on the Wolverines' season hitting list with a .386 average. Four times the second baseman tallied two hits, with her best game a 3-for-4 showing vs. Penn State in the April 13 opener. Heading into the final three weeks of the regular season, Kollen has a team-high 20 multiple-hit games, including two games with four hits. She leads Michigan with 14 stolen bases.

Hot Mid-April Tune
The mid-April stretch has been a good one for Rebecca Tune (Aloha, Ore./Jesuit HS), who hit .350 (7-for-20) over seven games from April 12-18. Among her seven hits were three doubles, including the game-winning, three-run double to give the Wolverines a 3-0 shutout in game two of the April 13 Penn State doubleheader. The sophomore heads into the last three weeks of the regular season batting .272. Tune has 14 doubles over her 111-game collegiate career.

Gillies Wins Twice vs. Wildcats
In the weekend battle between the top two teams in the Big Ten Conference, pitcher Jamie Gillies (Saugus, Calif./Saugus HS) came up big for the Wolverines. Gillies recorded two of Michigan's three wins vs. Northwestern (April 17-18), the 2-0 complete game shutout in the April 17 nightcap and a 4-2 victory in relief on April 18. She is 13-2 with a 1.76 ERA for the season. The shutout was the junior's sixth of the season and 13th of her career. . . . . Gillies is 37-10 over her U-M career, making 74 appearances in the circle.

Conrad Posts Explosive Week
Two-time All-American Traci Conrad (Frankfort, Ill./Lincoln-Way HS) has shown her offensive explosiveness over the last seven games (April 12-18). The senior first baseman hit .370 (10-for-27) with three doubles, four RBIs and six runs scored over the week, taking her season batting average to .391. Conrad opened with a 4-for-4 showing in the Penn State opener (April 13). She posted her 17th multiple-hit game of the season with a 3-for-5 performance in game one of the Northwestern series (April 17). . . . The three doubles improved Conrad's career total to 53.

RBI Time for Volpe
Freshman Stefanie Volpe (Plymouth, Mich./Plymouth-Salem HS) recorded a pair of three-RBI games in the Wolverines' last two Big Ten series. A sacrifice fly and two singles (2-for-3) in the opening game of the April 13 Penn State doubleheader produced three RBIs. Volpe opened the Northwestern series with a triple, sacrifice fly and walk (2-for-2) in addition to her three RBIs. She finished the seven-game week with seven RBIs, moving her season total to 23. She is hitting .308 (37-for-120). . . . The first-year player has started at catcher in the last seven Michigan games.

Davie Inches Closer to Home Run Record
A two-homer week moved Catherine Davie (Westlake Village, Calif./Westlake HS) within one long hit of tying the Michigan career record. The leftfielder sent a solo shot to right field in the first game of the Central Michigan doubleheader (April 14) and put a two-run home run to the same spot vs. Northwestern in that series' closer (April 18). Davie has 18 home runs for her career, one shy of the school record 19 by teammate Melissa Gentile, and seven for the 1999 season. . . . A solid week at the plate moved Davie back into the top spot on the Michigan season batting average list at .399.

Barda Extends Wins
Sophomore pitcher Marie Barda (Darien, Ill./Hinsdale South HS) has proven to be a tough starter for the Wolverines, notching wins in each of her last 14 starting assignments. With three more wins to her season record over the April 12-18 week, Barda improved to 17-1 for the year. She opened with a 10-2 win against Penn State (April 13), followed with a 6-3 victory vs. Central Michigan, and closed with a 10-3 decision at Northwestern (April 17). . . . Barda is 22-3 for her Michigan career.

Maize & Blue Diamond Gems

• Michigan's 4-2 win vs. Northwestern on April 18 marked the 50th U-M victory in the 70-game softball series between the two conference teams.

• Wolverine head coach Carol Hutchins coached her 900th career game on April 18. The Wolverines posted a 4-2 win at Northwestern in Hutchins' milestone game. In her 16th season as a collegiate head coach (one at Ferris State, 15 at U-M), Hutchins has a 629-269-2 record and a .700 winning percentage.

• Pam Kosanke (Chesterfield, Mo./Parkway Central HS) hit her first home run of the season -- a two-run line shot to leftfield -- in the first game of the Northwestern series (April 17). The junior has three home runs for her career. . . . Kosanke recorded the 75th RBI of her career against Central Michigan (April 14).

• Tammy Mika (Brighton, Mich./Brighton HS) reached three career milestones during the April 17-18 Northwestern series. The centerfielder played her 200th Michigan game and tallied her 25th career double in the April 17 nightcap. She earned her 150th career start in the final game of the series (April 18).

• Mary Conner (Lake Orion, Mich./Lake Orion HS) saw action as a pinch hitter in game one of the Penn State series (April 13), drawing a walk. The freshman entered as a pinch runner in the last five U-M games.

• Chrissy Garza (Southgate, Mich./Anderson HS) earned starts in rightfield in two of the three Northwestern games. The sophomore, who subbed in at rightfield in series game one, had a sacrifice fly against the Wildcats in game two (April 17).

• Michigan hit a collective .382 against Penn State in the April 13 doubleheader, including a red-hot .500 (12-for-24) and 10 RBIs in day's first game. . . . Michigan has seven players hitting better than .300 and boasts a team batting average of .328.

 Poll  Date         Rank   Pts.
 Pre   Jan. 27       5th   498
  1    March 3      14th   280
  2    March 10     T9th   383
  3    March 17     10th   393
  4    March 24      8th   433
  5    March 31      7th   438
  6    April 7       6th   478
  7    April 14      6th   501

 324* TRACI CONRAD, 1996-present
 275  Sara Griffin, 1995-98
 272  Kellyn Tate, 1995-98
 244  Patti Benedict, 1990-93
 240  Alicia Seegert, 184-87

* also Big Ten Career Record

 184  Sara Griffin, 1995-98
 162  CATHERINE DAVIE, 1996-present
 131  Tracy Carr, 1993-96
 131  TRACI CONRAD, 1996-present
 124  Patti Benedict, 1990-93

  19  MELISSA GENTILE, 1997-present
  18  CATHERINE DAVIE, 1996-present
  14  Sara Griffin, 1995-98
  11  Alicia Seegert, 1984-87
   7  Jessica Lang, 1994-97

  58  Sara Griffin, 1995-98
  56  CATHERINE DAVIE, 1996-present
  53  TRACI CONRAD, 1996-present
  40  Traci Carr, 1993-96
  37  Jenny Allard, 1987-90

 210  TRACI CONRAD, 1996-present
 160  Kellyn Tate, 1995-98
 148  Sara Griffin, 1995-98
 134  CATHERINE DAVIE, 1996-present
 126  Michelle Silver, 1992-95

.391  TRACI CONRAD, 1996-present
.384  Sara Griffin, 1995-98
.360  Alicia Seegert, 1984-87
.357  Kellyn Tate, 1995-98
.352  MELISSA GENTILE, 1997-present

  63  Diane Hatch, 1979-82
  59  TRACI CONRAD, 1996-present
  50  Patti Benedict, 1990-93
  45  Kellyn Tate, 1995-98
  44  Michelle Silver, 1992-95

At home                           6-1
On road                          10-0
Neutral                          25-5-1
Tournament                       23-5-1
Vs. Ranked (season)              11-3-1
On Monday                         0-0
On Tuesday                        4-0
On Wednesday                      5-1
On Thursday                       3-0
On Friday                         6-3
On Saturday                      15-1
On Sunday                         8-1-1
Scoring first                    27-5-1
Opponent scores first            14-1
U-M scores in 1st inning         17-3
Opponent scores in 1st inning     7-1
U-M leading after 3 innings      28-3
U-M tied/trail after 3 innings   13-3-1
U-M leading after 6 innings      32-1-1
U-M tied/trail after 6 innings    7-5
Extra-inning games                6-1-1
Shutouts                         14-1
One-run games                     7-2
Two-run games                     6-0
Five+-run games                  17-1
Scoring less than 3 runs          5-2-1
Scoring 3 or more runs           36-4
Getting less than 6 hits          4-2-1
Getting 6 or more hits           37-4
Team steals 2 or more bases      11-3

Inning      1   2   3   4   5   6   7  Ex  Total
Michigan   50  38  40  23  37  36  21  17   262
Opponent   12   8  10  17  22   8  16   7   100

Last updated: Monday, 19-Apr-1999 20:28:06 EDT