Wolverines to Open Home Slate against Kent State

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Update (March 18, 12:15 p.m.): Michigan and Kent State will play one game Saturday (March 18) starting at 1:30 p.m. and two games Sunday (March 19) beginning at noon. Scheduled below is updated. The March 15 Bowling Green game has been rescheduled for Tuesday (March 21) at 4 p.m.

• Complete Game Notes (PDF)

The No. 19-ranked University of Michigan softball team (14-7-1) will kick off the home portion of its 2017 schedule this weekend, hosting Bowling Green (14-12) in a rescheduled game at 4 p.m. on Thursday (March 16) before welcoming Kent State (8-10) for a three-game set this weekend. U-M will play a 1 p.m. doubleheader against the Golden Flashes on Saturday (March 18) before closing out the series at 1 p.m. on Sunday (March 19). All four games will be held at the Wilpon Complex, home of Alumni Field.

• Michigan owns an impressive 531-133-1 record Alumni Field since its opening in 1982 and is 144-19 since the Wilpon Complex renovations in 2008. The Wolverines went 20-1 at Alumni Field last season. U-M dropped its third home game before winning each of its final 18 appearances at home.

• The Wolverines are set to face Kent State for the second straight weekend after earning a 5-1 victory on the second day of John Cropp Classic last Sunday (March 12) in Lexington, Kentucky. U-M rallied from an initial deficit, scoring three runs -- off a bases-loaded hit-by-pitch, walk and groundout -- in the fourth inning before adding two more in the fifth.

• Junior RHP Tera Blanco netted her first ever Big Ten Pitcher of the Week honor after throwing the best game of her collegiate career to date against the Golden Flashes last weekend, striking out a career-high 13 while allowing one unearned run on just two hits and no walks. Blanco struck out the side in the first, third and seventh innings; she fanned five of the last six batters faced. Blanco also helped her cause with three RBI in the contest.

• Sophomore rightfielder Natalie Peters returned last weekend after missing five games with injury and batted .400 from the leadoff spot, posting a run scored and two RBI over U-M's three games at the John Cropp Classic. Senior shortstop Abby Ramirez also hit .400 from the No. 2 spot in the order.

• Senior centerfielder Kelly Christner continues to lead the Wolverines -- and rank fifth among the Big Ten leaders -- with a .476 batting average on the season. She went 3-for-3 against Evansville last weekend at the John Cropp Classic -- her team-best 10th multi-hit game this season and fourth of three hits.

• Senior RHP Megan Betsa ranks third nationally with 134 strikeouts on the season and fourth with 12.1 strikeouts per seven innings. Betsa fanned 19 through 11 innings pitched at the John Cropp Classic last weekend, including 12 in the opener against Evansville -- her seventh game this season with double-digit strikeouts. With 923 career strikeouts, Betsa is just four shy of the third spot on Michigan's career leaderboard, currently held by three-time All-American Marissa Young (927, 2000-03).