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The Michigan Wolverines (15-7) powered through the final two games of the three-game series with the Ohio State Buckeyes (13-9), winning by a score of 7-0 on Saturday and 16-7 in Sunday’s finale. They let a win slip away on Friday afternoon due to a late-inning error and responded with two big victories.
Here is a recap of what went down in the two wins.
Saturday — Michigan 7, Ohio State 0
Second baseman Riley Bertram was the hero of the day for Michigan, going 3-for-4 at the plate with three RBI, a double and a pair of runs scored. Shortstop Benjamin Sems joined him with a multiple-hit game of his own, going 2-for-3 and adding a pair of stole bases. Third baseman Christian Molfetta had a two-run home run in the sixth inning.
Cameron Weston got the start on the mound for the Wolverines, allowing five hits and three walks in 6.2 innings of shutout baseball. He would finish the day with five strikeouts.
Michigan got its scoring going in the second inning on an RBI single from Bertram, who would also go on to knock in a pair of runs and score on a wild pitch in the bottom of the fourth. Molfetta’s two-run shot gave the Wolverines a 6-0 lead in the sixth before an RBI single from Tito Flores stretched out the lead to 7-0 in the seventh.
The Wolverine bullpen duo of Will Proctor and Blake Beers combined for 2.1 innings of work to close out the victory, allowing one hit and three walks between the two of them.
Sunday — Michigan 16, Ohio State 7
Fireworks were in order for Michigan offensively on a rainy Sunday afternoon. The Wolverines rode four runs in the fifth inning and nine runs in the eighth and a total of 17 hits to a blowout victory.
Danny Zimmerman and Molfetta had the two Michigan home runs in the game, while catcher Griffin Mazur had three RBI of his own. Six Wolverines finished the afternoon with multi-hit games.
Jacob Denner got the start and the win for the Wolverines with 5.2 innings of work. He allowed five hits, two earned runs, walked three and struck out four Buckeyes. Joe Pace and Willie Weiss combined for 2.1 innings out of the bullpen, allowing a combined one hit.
Ohio State jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the second inning, which would be its final lead of the afternoon. Michigan scored the next seven runs to take a 7-1 lead heading to the sixth inning. OSU was able to get a pair of runs back, but Michigan scored the next nine — all in the eighth inning — and went into the top of the ninth with a 16-3 lead. Freshman Connor O’Halloran was touched up for four runs in the ninth, but manager Erik Bakich let him work through it to close out the win.
Next up for Michigan is a three-game series at Minnesota next weekend, starting on Friday. The Golden Gophers currently sit at 4-17 on the year and in last place in the Big Ten, so it provides an opportunity to keep the good vibes of this past weekend rolling. Friday’s game is set for a 5 p.m. ET first pitch and will be broadcast via ESPNU. Saturday and Sunday’s games will begin at 2 p.m. ET.