Postgame Notes: #17 Michigan 15, Notre Dame 12
5/13/2008 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
• Michigan defeated Notre Dame 15-12 in the annual "Baseball Bash" played at Fifth Third Ballpark in Comstock Park, Mich., evening up the "Bash" record at 6-6. The Wolverines, under head coach Rich Maloney, have won four of the last five games in the series. The "Bash" started with a 7-6 U-M win in 16 innings in a game that lasted four hours and 21 minutes on May 2, 1995. In 1996 U-M played a game at Notre Dame and the "Bash" started up again in 1997 with a 5-3 Wolverine win. The Irish won the next five (1998, 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2002) and also won in 2004. Michigan won in 2003 (8-4), 2005 (7-6) and 2006 (3-1). The 2007 game was rained out.
• Michigan holds a 77-40 lead in the all-time series against Notre Dame.
• Michigan head coach Rich Maloney has a 6-2 career record vs. Notre Dame.
• Michigan's total of 15 runs Tuesday marks the 17th time this season that the Wolverines have scored 10 runs or more. Michigan has scored 15 runs or more seven times this season, and with 22 hits it marked the third game with 20 or more hits. Michigan's top game of the season was the 27-6 win over Michigan State with 28 hits. In the last six games the Wolverines scored 15 vs. Ohio State (15-1), 15 at Ball State (15-8), 4 at Minnesota (4-1), 11 at Minnesota (11-5), 12 at Minnesota (12-8) and 15 vs. Notre Dame (15-12).
• Michigan collected a team season-high eight stolen bases Tuesday night against Notre Dame, topping the previous best of seven stolen bases in a 7-4 win over Oakland University in the home opener on March 20.
• Senior 1B/C Nate Recknagel was 3-for-6 with two homers and three RBI vs. Notre Dame. The two homers allowed Recknagel to break and extend Michigan's single-season school record for home runs in a matter of three innings. Recknagel's solo homer in the first inning was his 20th of the season, and he hit his 21st homer in the third inning to make the score 10-4. Recknagel snapped his tie with Casey Close (19 homers, 1986) to set the new home run record. It was Recknagel's second two-homer game as a Wolverine as he hit two in a game at Illinois (5/7/06).
• Recknagel has hits in 42 of U-M's 50 games this season and in 141 of the 173 games he has played in his career at U-M. For the season Recknagel leads the Wolverines in hitting at .393 (72-for-183), hits (72), home runs (21), RBI (65) and slugging (.798). Recknagel ranks sixth on U-M's career RBI list (162) and seventh in career hits (233).
• The solo homer in the first inning proved to be Recknagel's team-leading 12th game-winning RBI of the season and the 25th in his three seasons at Michigan. In his two games against Notre Dame as a Wolverine (2006 and 2008) -- both in the "Baseball Bash" -- Recknagel was 5-for-10 with a double, three homers, five RBI and both game-winners.
• The two homers by Recknagel against Notre Dame marked the third two-home run game for the Wolverines this season, with the others by sophomore DH Alan Oaks at Coastal Carolina (3/16/08) and RHP/DH Zach Putnam at Illinois #2 (4/12/08). The last previous two-homer game by a Wolverine at a neutral site was by captain Scott Tousa (1998-2001) against Purdue in the Big Ten Tournament at Columbus, Ohio, on May 17, 2001, in a 10-2 Wolverine win.
• Recknagel has 41 career homers in his three years as a Wolverine to rank second on Michigan's career homer list, trailing career home run leader Casey Close (46, 1983-86). Recknagel, who played at Oakland University as a freshman in 2005, has 46 career collegiate homers.
• Fifth-year senior Leif Mahler was 4-for-6 with four RBI as he played in the 209th game of his U-M career in Tuesday's 15-12 win over Notre Dame. It was Mahler's fourth career four-hit game and his second four-RBI game. He had four hits and four RBI earlier this season vs. Michigan State. Mahler ranks ninth on U-M's all-time games played list, trailing former teammate A.J. Scheidt (210 games, 2003-06) by one for eighth on the list.
• Junior 3B Adam Abraham was 3-for-5 with a double in the 15-12 win over Notre Dame on Tuesday. Abraham is second on the team with 18 multi-hit games, moving his career total to 50 multiple-hit games. Abraham is third on the team in hitting with a .357 (70-for-196) average for the season with 13 doubles, seven homers and 45 RBI. Abraham has 18 home runs and 121 RBI in his U-M career.
• Senior/junior RHP Michael Powers, who collected a win and a save in the series at Minnesota (May 9-11) last weekend, faced and retired the final two batters to close out the 15-12 win over Notre Dame to earn his fourth save of the season. Powers ranks third on the team with 50 strikeouts in 52 innings this season. Powers has 13 career wins and ranks 10th on U-M's all-time saves list with eight.
• The pitching appearance for Powers on Tuesday was his team-leading 23rd of the season. Powers, the active career leader with 66 appearances, moved into a tie for seventh place on Michigan's career pitching appearance list with Tyler Steketee (66 appearances, 1995-98). Next up is Phil Tognetti (69 appearances, 2002-05) in sixth place.
• Sophomore OF/DH Alan Oaks was 2-for-4 with a three-run homer vs. Notre Dame. Oaks has six homers and 19 RBI in 43 games this season.
• Junior CF Kevin Cislo was 2-for-5 with his first homer of the year and three RBI in the win over Notre Dame. Cislo collected a stolen base vs. the Irish to push his team lead to 16 stolen bases. He has two career homers.
• Junior shortstop Jason Christian was 1-for-5 vs. Notre Dame to extend his current team-leading hitting streak to a personal-best 10 games.
• Sophomore LHP Jeff DeCarlo pitched a career-best 4.1 innings and was awarded his second win (2-0) of the season as he allowed the Fighting Irish two hits, three runs -- two of which were earned -- while recording a career-best six strikeouts.
