Wolverines Wrap B1G Road Swing at Michigan State, Illinois

» Michigan will travel to East Lansing for a midweek slate against in-state rival Michigan State at 6 p.m. on Tuesday (April 16) before facing Illinois for a three-game weekend series in Champaign.
» The Wolverines have won 17 of their last 18 games, as an extra-inning loss in the series finale at Ohio State halted their 17-game win streak.
» Lexie Blair batted .500 in Michigan's series at OSU last weekend; she leads the Wolverines with a .398 average, 51 hits and 33 RBI.

THIS WEEK
Tuesday, April 16 -- at Michigan State (East Lansing, Mich), 6 p.m.
TV: BTN | Live Stats | Live Video
Friday, April 19 -- at Illinois (Champaign, Ill.), 5 p.m. CDT
Live Stats
Saturday, April 20 -- at Illinois (Champaign, Ill.), 1 p.m. CDT
Live Stats | Live Video
Sunday, April 21 -- at Illinois (Champaign, Ill.), 2 p.m. CDT
TV: BTN | Live Stats | Live Video

• Complete Game Notes (PDF)
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The No. 22-ranked University of Michigan softball team (29-11, 11-1 Big Ten) will play a quartet of Big Ten Conference away games this week, wrapping up its seven-game road swing against Michigan State (15-24, 3-8 Big Ten) and Illinois (26-16, 6-6 Big Ten).

U-M will open their road trip against the Spartans with a 6 p.m. slate on Tuesday (April 16) at Secchia Stadium in East Lansing, Michigan. The Wolverines will then travel to Champaign, Illinois, for a three-game weekend series against the Fighting Illini, opening play at 5 p.m. CDT on Friday (April 19) before taking the field at 1 p.m. CDT on Saturday (April 20) and 2 p.m. CDT on Sunday (April 21) at Eichelberger Field.

• Michigan saw its 17-game win streak halted by a 2-1, eight-inning loss in the series final at Ohio State last Saturday (April 13). Over the winning streak -- U-M's longest of the season -- the Wolverines outscored their opposition by a combined 150-27 margin. Michigan boasted a .365 team batting average over the 17-game stretch with a 1.50 combined earned-run average and .203 opposing average. Three Wolverines hit .400 or better over the stretch, most notably freshman left fielder Lexie Blair, who batted .519 (27-for-52) with 21 RBI.

• While the Wolverines sacrificed a late lead in the 2-1 loss at OSU, they had overcome early deficits -- and one late -- in four of the five games prior to Saturday's finale. U-M trailed 1-0 after the third inning and 2-0 after the first in the other two games last weekend and rallied to win, 10-3 and 6-2, respectively. Michigan also trailed 1-0 after the second inning in its 4-1 decision against Indiana in the series opener against the Hoosiers and, most dramatically, scored three runs in the seventh to secure a 7-6 walk-off win in the IU series finale.

• Head coach Carol Hutchins, already the winningest coach in NCAA softball history, became the first to 1,600 wins with the Wolverines' 6-2 decision against Ohio State in the first game of its Saturday doubleheader. She has compiled a 1,600-515-5 record over her 36 seasons as a NCAA head coach, including the last 35 at Michigan. She has held the top spot since earning her 1,458th with an 8-0, five-inning win at Indiana on April 2, 2016.

• Michigan's coaching staff of Hutchins, associate head coach Bonnie Tholl and assistant coach Jennifer Brundage reached 1,000 wins together with an 8-0, five-inning decision against Nebraska (March 23) and now boasts a stellar 1,012-252-2 record (.800) over the last 21 seasons.

• Freshman left fielder Lexie Blair led the Wolverines with a .500 batting average (6-for-12) in the Ohio State series, including a three-hit, two-run game in the Friday opener. The newcomer leads Michigan with a .398 season batting average, 51 hits, 14 doubles and 33 RBI.

• Seniors Alex Sobczak and Mackenzie Nemitz are both in the midst of breakout seasons in their final season at Michigan. Sobczak boasts a career-best .395 batting average -- a 137-point improvement over her previous best average in 2016 -- and similarly already owns career bests in runs (27), hits (32), home runs (eight) and RBI (28). Nemitz, after only earning one hit and seven total plate appearances over her first three seasons -- she missed all of 2017 with injury -- owns a .290 batting average with 18 hits, three homers and 19 RBI.

• Michigan has belted out 28 home runs over its last 18 games, including four last weekend against Ohio State and seven off the bat of Sobczak, who now leads the Wolverines with a career-best eight homers on the season. U-M posted back-to-back-to-back homers in the third inning of the Nebraska series finale (March 24) -- the first time the Wolverines posted home runs in three straight at-bats since the 2001 season. U-M also recorded three homers in the sixth inning of the KSU series finale (March 17, game two).