Michigan basketball coach Dusty May swings for the fences
Michigan basketball coach Dusty May swings for the fences in U-M softball’s charity fundraiser
Michigan softball is hot at the right time heading into the NCAA tournament.
The Wolverines were a No. 8 seed in the Big Ten tournament but made a run all the way to the conference championship, beating UCLA 2-0 to win their second consecutive conference title. The win put them as a 2-seed in the Austin Regional, hosted by No. 6 Texas.
The historic program — now led by Bonnie Tholl after legendary coach Carol Huggins retired at the end of her 38th season with the team — might’ve been a bubble team before the Big Ten tournament run. Michigan was 11-11 in conference play this season without a win against a ranked team before the postseason started.
Here’s a look at how the Wolverines won the Big Ten tournament, reaching the NCAA tournament as a 2-seed in the Austin Regional:
Michigan’s path to NCAA softball tournament
Michigan played its way into the NCAA softball tournament with its performance at the Big Ten tournament, winning the conference title despite opening the bracket as an 8 seed.
The Wolverines were likely not a tournament team until winning four consecutive games at the conference tournament. The resumes aren’t exact duplicates, but Wisconsin — which was the No. 9 seed in the Big Ten tournament after going 11-11 in conference play during the regular season — failed to reach the NCAA tournament.
Michigan’s pitching was sensational in bracket play, allowing only four runs in four games, shutting out eventual national seeds and regional hosts UCLA (No. 9) and Oregon (No. 16). The Wolverines defeated the Badgers 3-2 in their first game before upsetting Oregon 5-0 in the quarterfinals and beating Purdue 4-2 in the semifinals. Michigan then earned another upset win after defeating UCLA 2-0 in the Big Ten title game.
Even more impressive was that Michigan was swept by Oregon and UCLA in both of its three-game series against the top two finishers in the conference this season.
Pitcher Lauren Derkowski found a new level in Michigan’s four wins, pitching multiple innings in each game. She threw a combined 19 innings in the four wins, allowing two runs on 16 hits with 12 strikeouts. Derkowski’s efforts landed her the Big Ten Tournament Most Outstanding Player nod.
Michigan and UCLA were tied at 0-0 in the sixth inning, before Jenissa Conway and Ella Stephenson knocked in two runs off Bruins starter Addisen Fisher. The Wolverines rose to No. 40 in RPI after the conference tournament.
While Texas is a tough draw for the Wolverines, they proved they can show up to the task against other elite teams across the country in the Big Ten tournament.
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Michigan softball regional
Michigan is the 2 seed of the Austin Regional, hosted by No. 6 national seed Texas. Here’s the full bracket for a spot in the super regionals against the winner of the Clemson Regional, hosted by No. 11 Arizona.
- Game 1: Michigan (2) vs. UCF (3) | 1 p.m. ET | Friday, May 16 | ESPN2 (Fubo)
- Game 2: Texas (1) vs. Eastern Illinois (4) | 4:30 p.m. ET | Friday, May 16 | ESPN+
- Game 3: Winner of Game 1 vs. Winner of Game 2 | 1 p.m. ET| Saturday, May 17 | TBD
- Game 4: Loser of Game 1 vs. Loser of Game 2 | 3:30 p.m. ET | Saturday, May 17 | TBD
- Game 5: Loser of Game 3 vs. Winner of Game 4 | 6 p.m. ET | Saturday, May 17 |TBD
- Game 6: Winner of Game 3 vs. Winner of Game 5 | 1 p.m. ET | Sunday, May 18 | TBD
- Game 7 (if necessary): TBD vs. TBD | 3:30 p.m. ET | Sunday, May 18 | TBD
