Volpe Homer Ignites Michigan Comeback Win at Indiana

Saturday, April 6

Bloomington, Ind.

12:00 PM

Michigan

27-7, 5-1

Indiana

9-17-1, 0-6

Indiana

Michigan

4/6/2002 12:00:00 AM | Softball

Box Score

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- The 13th-ranked University of Michigan softball team needed a late-inning comeback against Indiana to earn a 4-3 victory -- its sixth straight win overall and fifth in conference action -- this afternoon (Saturday, April 6) at the IU Softball Field.

Volpe

Senior third baseman Stefanie Volpe (Plymouth, Mich./Plymouth-Salem HS) hit her team-best fourth home run of the season, driving a two-run shot over the rightfield fence on the bottom of the fifth to tie the game at three. Volpe's shot set the stage for Melinda Moulden's (LaCrescenta, Calif./Crescenta Valley HS) game-winning RBI double in the bottom of the sixth that gave Marissa Young (Santa Ana, Calif./Mater Dei HS), who threw four scoreless innings of relief, her 15th win of the season.

The Wolverines got on the board first in the bottom of the first without doing much work of their own. Kelsey Kollen (Cerritos, Calif./Santa Ana Mater Dei HS) reached on an error by the shortstop to lead off the inning and came around to score after three straight walks, the last of which was drawn by Young for the RBI. However, Moulden struck out and Jessica Merchant (Wayland, Mich./Wayland HS) popped up with the bases loaded to prevent the Wolverines from opening up a big lead.

The Hoosiers answered right back with a run in the second on a double and single and then with two more runs in the third on a two-run home run by Abby Stark off of Michigan starter Nicole Motycka (Sarasota, Fla./Cardinal Mooney HS). The Hoosiers roughed up Motycka for five hits and three runs through three innings, prompting Michigan coach Carol Hutchins to put staff ace Young in the circle to start the fourth inning.

Young was dominant over the final four innings, allowing just two hits and striking out 10 without a walk and keeping the Wolverines in the contest until the big blow from Volpe in the fifth. Indiana starter Alison Cooke had no-hit the Wolverines and set down the last nine Michigan hitters before a two-out single by Meghan Doe (Tucson, Ariz./Sabino HS) brought the tying run to the plate in the form of Volpe, and the senior responded with her fourth dinger of the season to tie the game at three.

Volpe's shot sparked the Michigan offense as Young then led off the sixth with a double to left-center and Moulden followed with her own double up the gap in right-center to score pinch-runner Michelle Teschler (Casco, Mich./Richmond HS) from second to give Michigan a 4-3 lead. That was all the runs Young would need as she struck out the side in order in the seventh to cement Michigan's fifth straight Big Ten win.

Michigan steps out of conference action in its next contests as the Wolverines travel to Mount Pleasant, Mich., for a doubleheader against Central Michigan on Wednesday (April 10, 2 p.m.) before returning to Alumni Field for four games Friday through Sunday (April 12-14). Michigan hosts Minnesota in single games on Friday (4 p.m.) and Saturday (2 p.m.) and then closes out the weekend with a doubleheader against Wisconsin on Sunday (noon).

N O T E S

Stefanie Volpe's home run is the 13th of her career. Her four home runs this season are one shy of previous single-season best of five, which she set as a sophomore in 2000.

Michigan's current six-game win streak is its second longest of the season. The Wolverines won eight straight from Feb. 23 (vs. then-No. 4 Oklahoma) through March 2 (vs. Central Michigan).

Marissa Young's 10 strikeouts today give her 182 K's for the season, which is the second-best single-season total in school history. Young set the record last season with 184

Contact: Rich Marion (734) 763-4423