Michigan Pitching Dominates Rutgers for Series Win

Sunday, April 30

Piscataway, N.J.

11:00 AM

Michigan

33-10, 9-6

Rutgers

16-25, 5-7

Michigan

Rutgers

4/30/2017 12:00:00 AM | Baseball

Box Score

April 30, 2017

» Starter Michael Hendrickson and reliever William Tribucher combined to allow just four hits on the day.
» Jimmy Kerr and Jonathan Engelmann both recorded three hits in the effort, while Engelmann led Michigan with two RBI.
» With a 33-10 overall record, Michigan is off to its best start since 1989.

• Box Score

Site: Piscataway, N.J. (Bainton Field)
Score: #17 Michigan 8, Rutgers 3
Records: U-M (33-10, 9-6 B1G), RU (16-25, 5-7 B1G)
Next U-M Event: Friday, May 5 -- vs. Ohio State (Wilpon Complex), 6 p.m.

PISCATAWAY, N.J. -- Starting pitcher Michael Hendrickson and reliever William Tribucher combined to allow just four hits as the No. 17-ranked University of Michigan baseball team defeated Rutgers by an 8-3 score on Sunday (April 30) to clinch the series at Bainton Field.

Hendrickson hit the first Rutgers batter of the game but retired the next six in a row for a scoreless two innings.

After putting a runner in scoring position in the top of the second, Michigan got on the scoreboard in the top of the third to force a 3-0 lead. Junior Jake Bivens started the rally by drawing a one-out walk, and a base hit by sophomore Miles Lewis put two men on for the Wolverines. It was senior Michael Brdar who followed with an RBI single to center field that scored Bivens and sent Lewis to third for Michigan's first run of the game. A walk to junior Drew Lugbauer then loaded the bases, and sophomore Jonathan Engelmann kept the inning going with a sharp grounder to third that resulted in a Rutgers error and allowed two more runs to score.

Solid defense prevented the Scarlet Knights from getting on the board in the bottom of the third, and Michigan extended the offensive momentum to the top of the fourth inning to go up by seven. Sophomore Jimmy Kerr led off the inning with a double to right-center field, and a perfectly executed sacrifice bunt by senior Harrison Wenson moved Kerr up to third. From there, Bivens sent an RBI single to right-center field that scored Kerr, and back-to-back singles by Lewis and Brdar loaded the bases with one out. Lugbauer then sent the first pitch of his at bat to right field for a base hit, scoring Bivens for a 5-0 lead, and Engelmann followed with a first-pitch single up the middle to score Lewis and Brdar for a 7-0 Michigan lead.

The Scarlet Knights rallied for three runs in the bottom of the inning to close the gap, but after two scoreless innings, Michigan added a run in the top of the seventh on a single, a walk and a Rutgers error.

Hendrickson tossed six complete innings on the day, allowing just four hits and striking out six batters. He improved to 5-1 on the season with the victory.

With Michigan up by five going into the bottom of the seventh, sophomore lefty William Tribucher took the mound for the Maize and Blue. He retired the next nine batters en route to his first career save and tied his career-high with six strikeouts in the effort.

The pair of pitchers did not allow a hit for the final five innings of play.

Offensively, Michigan totaled 13 hits in the contest and walked six times. Engelmann led Michigan with two RBI on the afternoon and went three-for-five in the contest, while Kerr set a new career high with three hits.

Tweet of the Day

Tribucher slams the door for his first career save and Michigan improves to 33-10 on the season. #GoBlue pic.twitter.com/WPkMPvkwy6

-- Michigan Baseball (@umichbaseball) April 30, 2017

No. 17-ranked Michigan will return home on Friday (May 5) for a Big Ten Conference series against Ohio State. First pitch for Friday's game is set for 6 p.m. at the Wilpon Complex, home of Ray Fisher Stadium. [Tickets]

Communications Contact: Katie Gwinn Hewitt