Michigan baseball keeps rolling, upsets Louisville, 7-3
The Michigan baseball team is peaking at the right time yet again. The Wolverines got the bats working again and upset Louisville on the Cardinals’ home field.
The 7-3 victory moves U-M within a win of capturing the regional.
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Michigan fell behind 1-0 in the first inning and started slow on offense. Cardinals pitcher Jared Poland shut down the first eight U-M batters in order before first baseman Jake Marti finally singled with two outs in the third.
That was the hit that brought the Michigan offense to life. Right fielder Clark Elliott followed by turning on an inside pitch and driving one over the right field wall to give the Wolverines a 2-1 lead. Center fielder Joe Stewart followed with the first of his three hits, a home run to center.
That made it 3-1, and the Michigan dugout was alive.
Louisville cut it to 3-2 with the help of a pair of singles in the fourth, but the Michigan bats stayed hot. Shortstop Riley Betram singled with one out and advanced to third on an error and a steal. Joey Velazquez brought him home with a sharp single to right. Marti’s groundout then scored second baseman Ted Burton, who had walked, to make it 5-2.
U-M took command in the fifth. Catcher Jimmy Obertop’s sacrifice fly and a Bertram RBI single increased the lead to 7-2.
The Cardinals threatened in the seventh and finally scored on a wild pitch. Chase Allen, however, came in for Jacob Denner and went to work. He got consecutive outs with runners on second and third to end the threat. Louisville put two runners on again in the eighth on a walk and a single against reliever Cameron Weston, but a groundout ended the threat.
Michigan threatened with two men on in the eighth but failed to score, and Weston retired the Cardinals 1-2-3 in the ninth to end the game.
The Wolverines will play the winner of Oregon vs. Louisville Sunday at 4 p.m. If they win, they advance to the super regional. A loss means a second game against the Ducks or Cardinals Monday with the super regional berth on the line.
