Michigan baseball coach Rich Maloney describes his team as a bunch of dirtbags.

Respectfully.

“(It’s) someone who is willing for the good of the team to do whatever it takes to get it done," Maloney said. "Diving for a ball, taking it off the chest, getting hit by the pitch and running to first base … doing whatever it takes to lay his body in front for the good of the team – that kind of an attitude."

And this weekend, as the team opened its home slate at Ray Fisher Stadium, the Wolverines' dirtbag attitude was on full display. Michigan swept away visiting Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne in a three-game series.

Michigan improved throughout the weekend, winning 4-2, 4-1 and 9-2.

But yesterday, the IPFW Mastodons (15-10) took an early 1-0 lead over the Wolverines in the top of the third inning before Michigan junior first baseman Mike Dufek connected on a two-run home run to put the Wolverines (14-5) on the board.

Dufek shined in the spotlight during the series, hitting 5-for-10, tallying two home runs and six RBI.

“Mike’s a special player and he’s been waiting in the wings,” Maloney said. “He’s been groomed for this moment. So it’s not by surprise. I thought that he’d hit really well.”

But batting was just one of the areas in which Michigan excelled during the series. Behind starting pitchers senior Chris Fetter, junior Eric Katzman and senior Mike Wilson, Michigan slowed down IPFW and allowed just five runs during the series.

Despite allowing numerous Mastodon baserunners, the Michigan defense stifled IPFW scoring threats.

“(The pitchers) battled through some tough situations,” Maloney said. “They kind of did the ‘bend, don’t break.’ They had runners on and (IPFW) could have had a big inning, but we didn’t allow it. They came up with a big pitch when they had to.”

Maloney relied on three sophomore relief pitchers — Tyler Burgoon, Matt Miller and Travis Smith — to pitch three innings in each game. And despite their inexperience on the mound, the trio only gave up combined one run in Michigan’s first home appearance.

With Friday’s win, Maloney improved to 7-0 in home openers as Michigan's skipper.

“One thing we take pride in is protecting this house,” senior Mike Wilson said. “We’ve been able to do a good job of that over the years. We’re a very tough team to beat in general, especially at home.”

The Wolverines found themselves down early in two of the three games this weekend. The Mastodons scored two runs Friday before Dufek hit a long double to bring in senior Kevin Cislo and sophomore Ryan LaMarre.

But it was a familiar situation for the Wolverines. They have let themselves fall behind several times this season, only to post comeback victories. In Michigan’s first game of the season, on Feb. 20, it trailed South Florida 3-0 before coming back to win 6-5. The very next day, the Wolverines spotted Purdue a 2-0 lead before surging late to win 4-3.

“We have found ourselves behind many times … but we’ve had some success in coming back,” Maloney said. “It’s certainly better if we had a big lead early, it would certainly make me sleep better. Nevertheless, that’s a good characteristic of a team that they have a lot of fight in their battle, with a never-say-die attitude.”

And with only one game between now and the Big Ten season opener against Iowa next Friday, Maloney is confident that his dirtbags will answer the call.

On Wednesday, Michigan hosts Eastern Michigan, a team that will be looking for revenge from last week when the Wolverines beat the Eagles 11-5 in Ypsilanti.

“We know that we are supposed to win,” Dufek said. “It’s only a matter of us focusing and playing well and we should be able to win the game.”