Michigan Unable to Overcome Five-Run Second, Falls at CMU

Wednesday, April 2

Mt. Pleasant, Mich.

3:05 PM

Michigan

14-7

Central Michigan

9-15

Michigan

Central Michigan

Michigan Unable to Overcome Five-Run Second, Falls at CMU

4/2/2008 12:00:00 AM | Baseball

Box Score

Site: Mt. Pleasant, Mich. (Theunissen Stadium)
Score: Central Michigan 7, Michigan 3
Records: U-M (14-7), CMU (9-15)
Next U-M Event: Friday, April 4 -- at Penn State (State College, Pa.), 6:35 p.m.

Boxscore | Notes & Quotes

MT. PLEASANT , Mich. -- In the first of a five-game road trip this week, the University of Michigan baseball team dropped a 7-3 non-conference matchup at Central Michigan Wednesday afternoon (April 2) in Theunissen Stadium. The Wolverines (14-7) jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the second inning, but the Chippewas responded with five in the bottom half of the frame and held on for the victory.

Michigan jumped out to the three-run lead in the second inning when junior DH Zach Putnam(Ann Arbor, Mich./Pioneer HS) led off the inning with a free pass to first after he was hit by a pitch in the knee. Junior 3B Adam Abraham(Grosse Pointe Park, Mich./South HS) advanced Putnam to second with a single into right-centerfield.

With two outs and the runners still on first and second, sophomore C Chris Berset(Vienna, Va./Heights School) was hit by a pitch to load the bases, bringing up fifth-year senior SS Leif Mahler(Columbus, Ohio/St. Charles Prep). The tri-captain delivered a single into leftfield to bring Putnam and Abraham across home plate for an early 2-0 advantage. The Wolverines added a run later in the inning when Berset scored on a bases-loaded wild pitch by Chippewa starter Steve Teno to make the score 3-0.

The Chippewas answered in the bottom of the inning. Freshman RHP Matt Miller(Zionsville, Ind./Zionsville HS), who pitched a 1-2-3 first inning, walked the leadoff hitter to start the inning. James Teas, the second Chippewa hitter of the frame, reached second and moved Sean Hoorelbeke to third on a two-base error by Wolverine sophomore RF Alan Oaks(White Lake, Mich./Divine Child HS).

Billy Anderson cut the Wolverine lead to 3-1 with a single up the middle that scored Hoorelbeke and moved Teas to third. Central moved one run closer on the next at bat as a sac fly to center moved the score to 3-2 in favor of Michigan.

The game became tied at 3-3 when Chippewa catcher Dale Cornstubble singled to leftfield to score Anderson from third. Following a wild pitch and a strikeout by sophomore reliever Mike Powers(St. Clair Shores, Mich./Lake HS), CMU took a 5-3 lead with a two-out two-run single off the bat of Brendan Emmett. Each run was unearned.

Michigan put its leadoff runner on base in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings but could not produce any runs. Trailing 7-3 in the seventh inning, the Wolverines produced their best run-scoring opportunity.

Freshman CF Ryan LaMarre(Jackson, Mich./Lumen Christi HS) started things with a single to leftfield and advanced to second on a one-out hit off the bat of junior 2B Kevin Cislo(Novi, Mich./Novi HS). The two Wolverines moved up a base on senior tri-captain LF Derek VanBuskirk's (St. Clair, Mich./St. Clair HS) single to leftfield, bringing senior 1B Nate Recknagel(Lake Orion, Mich./Lake Orion HS) to the plate with the bases loaded and one out. Recknagel, who leads U-M in nearly every offensive category, pulled a hard-hit ground ball down the third baseline, but Teas, playing close the bag, was able to scoop it up, touch the base and send the ball to Hoorelbeke at first for the inning-ending double play.

Michigan will continue its five-game road trip this weekend when the Wolverines travel to State College, Pa., for a four-game Big Ten Conference series with Penn State. The series gets underway Friday evening (April 4) with the first pitch slated for 6:35 p.m. on Medlar Field.

Contact: Gene Skidmore (734) 763-4423