Conqu'ring Heroes: Hutchins on Another B1G Crown, Seniors, NCAA Tourney
5/18/2021 8:15:00 AM | Softball, Features
In this week's edition of the Conqu'ring Heroes podcast, Jon Jansen talks with softball head coach Carol Hutchins about the challenging journey to another Big Ten championship, the growth and importance of the senior class, her impressions of the team heading into the NCAA Tournament, and her frustrations about the tournament's selection process.
By Brian Boesch
Student-athletes must adjust and adapt quickly, especially during the challenges of the last 14 months. Michigan Softball overcame the abrupt cancellation of the 2020 season and the pandemic-related hurdles of the 2021 season to become Big Ten champions.
It was a comprehensive championship in more ways than one, as the Wolverines finished the conference-only slate 36-6. Their .857 winning percentage was far and away the best in the league, with Minnesota finishing in second place at .725. Also, due to the lack of non-conference play, Michigan played every Big Ten foe and took the season series from all but one team.
"This is their year, and they shined," Michigan softball head coach Carol Hutchins said on this week's Conqu'ring Heroes podcast. "They did it through a very adverse time, when we had limitations after limitations."
"You're so much stronger than you know, and you don't learn about your ability to be resilient until you have to be resilient," Hutchins later said. "We didn't get to play last year, and we didn't get to play out of conference. We had to just go through hoop after hoop ... It's pretty darn cool. I think our kids were extraordinary."
Hours after finishing off the regular season with a win over Rutgers on Sunday (May 16), Hutchins and the Wolverines learned their NCAA Tournament draw. The hope was that, as the Big Ten's automatic qualifier, Michigan would receive a hosting opportunity for regionals.
However, the NCAA Tournament committee placed the Wolverines as the No. 2 seed in the Seattle Regional, with Washington as the No. 1 seed. Instead of a hosting opportunity, Michigan will have to travel farther than any No. 2 seed, by a significant margin.
In other words, the Wolverines, once again, needed to adapt and adjust quickly, with their NCAA Tournament opener set for this Friday (May 21) against Seattle University. Hutchins has a rule that her players cannot lament the NCAA Tournament bracket publicly. In the moments following the announcement, Hutchins has verbalized her frustrations with the process, for the good of the program and the Big Ten as a whole, but the focus on the true task at hand remains strong.
"We have to move on from that, because, at this point, we have games to play, so we have to compete on the field," Hutchins said. "It certainly can become a motivation. ... We get a chance to play, and we get a chance to win."
Michigan has won plenty this season, with Hutchins citing the first three games of the series at Minnesota two weekends ago as the team's finest stretch to this point. She appreciated her team's grit last weekend against Rutgers, as the Wolverines found ways to win despite not playing their best softball, so Hutchins likes what she sees from her group entering the most important part of the season.
"I think we have been playing, without a doubt, our best ball. I like this group. I think they jell well together, and that really does bode well for us," Hutchins said. "If we can stay internal and focus on our dugout and only the people in our bubble, because we're the only ones that matter, it doesn't matter what everybody else out there is saying. We have got to have a mindset that is one."
