Eastern Michigan Athletics
Wednesday, May 5
Ann Arbor, Mich.
5:15 p.m.
Eastern Michigan University
at
Michigan
Photo by: Walt Middleton Photography
Softball To Take On No. 2 Michigan
5/4/2010 3:58:29 PM | Softball
Washtenaw County rivals, EMU and U-M, will meet for a non-conference tilt in Ann Arbor Wednesday, May 5
Game Notes (PDF)
YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) - The Eastern Michigan University softball team will wrap up the 2010 non-conference schedule by making the short road trip to take on Washtenaw County foe and second-ranked nationally, Michigan, in a mid-week, non-conference battle at Wilpon Softball Complex on the campus of the University of Michigan this Wednesday, May 5, at 6 p.m.
The Eagles (17-28) and Wolverines (40-6) are due to meet for the 59th time dating back to 1981. This marks the third straight time that EMU will meet a U-M team that is ranked in the top-10. Last year, the Wolverines were ranked eighth at the time both teams met.
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IT ALL COMES DOWN TO THIS: As it stands now, the Eagles are on the outside looking in for a spot in the 2010 MAC Tournament, awarded to the top-eight teams at the conclusion of the regular season schedule. EMU is 6-12 in MAC play, tied with Western Michigan and Buffalo for ninth in the MAC Tournament race, and one game behind Akron and Bowling Green which hold the slight edge for the final two spots with identical 7-11 league marks. The Eagles will travel to Ann Arbor this Wednesday, May 5, for a non-conference matchup with Washtenaw County foe, the University of Michigan, before returning home to close out the regular season slate with Western Michigan and Northern Illinois.
SCOUTING THE WOLVERINES: The University of Michigan has been a mainstay among the nation's top-five teams all season long, and currently sits as the second-best team in the nation for the seventh consecutive week behind No. 1 Washington. It boasts a 40-6 overall record, a Big Ten leading 14-1 mark and is winners in 19 of their last 20 games. The Wolverines have six hitters batting over .321 for the season with Maggie Viefhaus leading the way with a .383 average. She has a team-high 28 extra base hits while her 15 home runs are tied for the team lead with Dorian Shaw. In the circle, Jordan Taylor is 22-3 with a 1.45 ERA while Nikki Nemitz is 16-3 with a 1.95 ERA. Both have combined for 396 strikeouts in 282.1 innings pitched.
SERIES AT A GLANCE: The Eagles trail the all-time series with their cross-county rivals, 50-8, dating back to the 1981 season when the Wolverines took two-of-three. U-M is currently riding a 28-game win streak over EMU with the last win for the Green and White being a 2-0 victory back in 1994. Wednesday's meeting will mark the third straight season the two teams have met with U-M carrying a top-10 ranking nationally. In 2008, the Wolverines were the No. 6 team in the country before taking a No. 8 ranking into last year's meeting.
WEEK IN REVIEW: Eastern Michigan out-scored its opponents 43-36 in going 3-3 last week including 2-2 in four Mid-American Conference road contests. After spliting a non-conference, mid-week doubleheader with IPFW, the Eagles captured a, 12-6, win in the opening game of a double-dip against MAC East Division leader Kent State Friday, April 30, before dropping game two, 6-5. Saturday, May 1, the Green and White claimed a, 13-5, run-rule victory over Buffalo in game one before dropping game two, 8-4. Senior Jenny Scherer terrorized opponent's pitching, hitting .600 on the week with three home runs, 10 RBI and eight runs scored. Junior Lauren Delapaz hit her first two long balls and added seven RBI as well.
SCHERER POWER: Considered one of, if not, the most productive power hitter in EMU history, Jenny Scherer, a career .315 hitter entering the season, struggled out of the gate despite her home run totals remaining on track. Her average, which dipped below .200 as late as March 31, has seen a significant rise as she has at least one hit in 15-of-her-last-16 games dating back to April 10. During that span, she is hitting .500 (26-of-52) with five home runs and 13 RBI. Last week alone, she raised her season average 49 points to .319. In MAC play, she is third in the league in hitting with a .421 average, first in total bases (47), second in home runs (12), and tied for third in hits (24) through 18 league games thus far.
PLYMOUTH ROCK: Junior Lauren Delapaz, slowed by a nagging shoulder injury for most of the season, has finally made it back into the EMU lineup. The native of Plymouth, Mich. was a staple in the batting order her first two seasons, tallying six multi-hit games her freshman year before starting 47 games as a sophomore, scoring 14 runs while driving in 11. She started the first 12 games this year before the injury limited her strictly to pinch running. Against IPFW April 28, she made her first start at third base in 22 games and on the four-game road trip April 30-May1, she hit .400 with two home runs and seven RBI in helping the Eagles to a 2-2 mark.
SENIOR SWAGGER: Senior Jessica Patterson has turned in the best season of her career thus far, batting a team-high .320 (32-for-100) in 43 games this season. Her previous season-high batting average had been just south of .200. This season, she has more than doubled her career hits and RBI totals with 32 and eight, respectively, while also setting career-high's in stolen bases (7) and at-bats (100).
YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) - The Eastern Michigan University softball team will wrap up the 2010 non-conference schedule by making the short road trip to take on Washtenaw County foe and second-ranked nationally, Michigan, in a mid-week, non-conference battle at Wilpon Softball Complex on the campus of the University of Michigan this Wednesday, May 5, at 6 p.m.
The Eagles (17-28) and Wolverines (40-6) are due to meet for the 59th time dating back to 1981. This marks the third straight time that EMU will meet a U-M team that is ranked in the top-10. Last year, the Wolverines were ranked eighth at the time both teams met.
--
IT ALL COMES DOWN TO THIS: As it stands now, the Eagles are on the outside looking in for a spot in the 2010 MAC Tournament, awarded to the top-eight teams at the conclusion of the regular season schedule. EMU is 6-12 in MAC play, tied with Western Michigan and Buffalo for ninth in the MAC Tournament race, and one game behind Akron and Bowling Green which hold the slight edge for the final two spots with identical 7-11 league marks. The Eagles will travel to Ann Arbor this Wednesday, May 5, for a non-conference matchup with Washtenaw County foe, the University of Michigan, before returning home to close out the regular season slate with Western Michigan and Northern Illinois.
SCOUTING THE WOLVERINES: The University of Michigan has been a mainstay among the nation's top-five teams all season long, and currently sits as the second-best team in the nation for the seventh consecutive week behind No. 1 Washington. It boasts a 40-6 overall record, a Big Ten leading 14-1 mark and is winners in 19 of their last 20 games. The Wolverines have six hitters batting over .321 for the season with Maggie Viefhaus leading the way with a .383 average. She has a team-high 28 extra base hits while her 15 home runs are tied for the team lead with Dorian Shaw. In the circle, Jordan Taylor is 22-3 with a 1.45 ERA while Nikki Nemitz is 16-3 with a 1.95 ERA. Both have combined for 396 strikeouts in 282.1 innings pitched.
SERIES AT A GLANCE: The Eagles trail the all-time series with their cross-county rivals, 50-8, dating back to the 1981 season when the Wolverines took two-of-three. U-M is currently riding a 28-game win streak over EMU with the last win for the Green and White being a 2-0 victory back in 1994. Wednesday's meeting will mark the third straight season the two teams have met with U-M carrying a top-10 ranking nationally. In 2008, the Wolverines were the No. 6 team in the country before taking a No. 8 ranking into last year's meeting.
WEEK IN REVIEW: Eastern Michigan out-scored its opponents 43-36 in going 3-3 last week including 2-2 in four Mid-American Conference road contests. After spliting a non-conference, mid-week doubleheader with IPFW, the Eagles captured a, 12-6, win in the opening game of a double-dip against MAC East Division leader Kent State Friday, April 30, before dropping game two, 6-5. Saturday, May 1, the Green and White claimed a, 13-5, run-rule victory over Buffalo in game one before dropping game two, 8-4. Senior Jenny Scherer terrorized opponent's pitching, hitting .600 on the week with three home runs, 10 RBI and eight runs scored. Junior Lauren Delapaz hit her first two long balls and added seven RBI as well.
SCHERER POWER: Considered one of, if not, the most productive power hitter in EMU history, Jenny Scherer, a career .315 hitter entering the season, struggled out of the gate despite her home run totals remaining on track. Her average, which dipped below .200 as late as March 31, has seen a significant rise as she has at least one hit in 15-of-her-last-16 games dating back to April 10. During that span, she is hitting .500 (26-of-52) with five home runs and 13 RBI. Last week alone, she raised her season average 49 points to .319. In MAC play, she is third in the league in hitting with a .421 average, first in total bases (47), second in home runs (12), and tied for third in hits (24) through 18 league games thus far.
PLYMOUTH ROCK: Junior Lauren Delapaz, slowed by a nagging shoulder injury for most of the season, has finally made it back into the EMU lineup. The native of Plymouth, Mich. was a staple in the batting order her first two seasons, tallying six multi-hit games her freshman year before starting 47 games as a sophomore, scoring 14 runs while driving in 11. She started the first 12 games this year before the injury limited her strictly to pinch running. Against IPFW April 28, she made her first start at third base in 22 games and on the four-game road trip April 30-May1, she hit .400 with two home runs and seven RBI in helping the Eagles to a 2-2 mark.
SENIOR SWAGGER: Senior Jessica Patterson has turned in the best season of her career thus far, batting a team-high .320 (32-for-100) in 43 games this season. Her previous season-high batting average had been just south of .200. This season, she has more than doubled her career hits and RBI totals with 32 and eight, respectively, while also setting career-high's in stolen bases (7) and at-bats (100).
Thank You, Team 38
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