Wolverines Run Rule Northern Colorado, Fall to Sacramento State

Friday, February 23

Santa Barbara, Calif.

11:30 AM PT

Michigan

7-3

Northern Colorado

3-9

Northern Colorado

Michigan

(Michigan Photography)

Wolverines Run Rule Northern Colorado, Fall to Sacramento State

2/23/2024 8:44:00 PM | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2 Photo Gallery Photo Gallery 2

By: Leah Howard

» Michigan split its first two games at the UC Santa Barbara Tournament, defeating Northern Colorado 9-1 in five innings before falling to Sacramento State 6-1.
» Lilly Vallimont and Avery Fantucci both tallied their first collegiate homers against UNC; Maddie Erickson posted four hits on the day, including three against the Bears.
» Erin Hoehn threw a complete-game one-hitter against Northern Colorado with four strikeouts.

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. -- The University of Michigan softball team split its first two games of its spring-break trip at the UC Santa Barbara Tournament, rolling to a 9-1, five-inning win against Northern Colorado before falling to Sacramento State, 6-1, on Friday afternoon (Feb. 23) at Campus Diamond.

It was a tale of two games for the Wolverines. Michigan put up some of its best offensive numbers of the season, including a pair of home runs, while holding Northern Colorado to just one hit. In game two, however, U-M was hampered by early miscues and free bases and couldn't carry any momentum at the plate to rally.

Michigan built its lead slowly then all at once against UNC, using a six-run fifth to break a sudden end to the contest and earn its second run-rule victory of the season. Sophomore/freshman first baseman Lilly Vallimont belted her first collegiate home run to break through in the second inning and give U-M the only lead it needed, hammering a two-out, two-run laser deep down the leftfield line.

The Bears answered with a solo homer in the third, but Michigan got the run back in the fourth, stringing together three straight singles to load the bases for sophomore shortstop Avery Fantucci, who won an extended at-bat, fouling four, to draw the RBI walk.

Michigan earned four RBI hits in the fifth, including three in a row on a single from sophomore third baseman Maddie Erickson, a triple from freshman Jenissa Conway and a double from freshman pitcher Erin Hoehn to pad the Wolverines' lead to 6-1 before Fantucci ended the game with one swing. With two on and two outs, she drove a no-doubter deep over the left centerfield wall for her first collegiate home run.

Erickson posted a career-high three hits, while Vallimont earned her first collegiate multi-hit game and Fantucci tallied a career-high four RBI -- the most for a Wolverine this season.

Hoehn (3-0) earned the complete-game win in the circle, striking out four while allowing one run on one hit and no walks. She was perfect but for the third-inning solo homer.

The Wolverines were unable to recover from a slow start against Sacramento State in the second game. The Hornets scored on a fielding error with two outs in the first inning and on a bases-loaded walk and RBI single after another error extended the second.

Sac State surged again late with a solo homer in the fifth and a pair of runs on three singles in the sixth inning.

Michigan scored its run in the bottom of the sixth on an RBI double to centerfield from Erickson for her fourth hit on the day and rallied with a pair of one-out base runners in the seventh but could not advance them past second base.

Junior RHP Lauren Derkowski (3-2) took the loss, allowing four runs -- two earned -- on six hits and two walks through five innings. She struck out four.

The Wolverines (7-4) will face the same two teams tomorrow (Saturday, Feb. 24), taking on Sacramento State at 9 a.m. PST and Northern Colorado at 11:30 a.m. PST on the second day of action at the UC Santa Barbara Tournament at Campus Diamond.