After struggling through the first month of Big Ten play, sophomore pitcher Jordan Taylor spent last week pitching to Strike Out — a piece of tarp with a hole in the middle.

Yesterday, she was back to racking up strikeouts.

Taylor twirled a three-hit shutout as the Michigan softball team defeated Minnesota 7-0 to complete a two-game sweep at Alumni Field. The Wolverines topped the Golden Gophers 4-1 on Saturday.

In her previous five appearances, Taylor had tallied a disappointing 3.81 ERA and thrown just one complete game.

“Everything was a little bit off,” she said. “Timing, spin, you name it. What wasn’t I struggling with?”

But last week, Taylor spent some extra time with Strike Out. The tarp, which hangs in the team’s practice batting cages, lends itself to a simple drill — throw the ball through the hole. Retrive. Repeat.

When a pitcher’s mechanics or timing is off, that hole can seem awfully small. Last Sunday, when Taylor came to the practice facility by herself for some extra work, Strike Out looked like a pinhole.

“It was basically punishment,” Taylor said.

Last Wednesday, Taylor held Central Michigan to two runs in seven innings of work. She called the game a “step in the right direction” but still didn’t feel back in her pitching rhythm.

So on Thursday, she spent another session throwing at the hole in the tarp.

The extra work paid off yesterday as Taylor tossed seven strong innings, fanning 12 Minnesota batters and allowing just five baserunners.

“I was smoother,” she said. “I was thinking a lot less about pitches. I was just throwing.”

Taylor cruised through yesterday’s first three innings, striking out at least two batters in each frame before running into trouble in the fourth.

With the contest still scoreless, the Gophers’ leadoff batter reached base on an infield single. The next batter, first baseman Malisa Barnes, smashed a two-hopper to the left side of the infield. Junior third baseman Maggie Viefhaus, ranging to her left, couldn't corral the ball as it caromed into short left field for another single.

With runners on first and second and no outs, Minnesota (4-6 Big Ten, 21-24 overall) was primed for a big inning. Taylor had little margin for error. Just like pitching to Strike Out, she had to hit her spots.

Showing pinpoint control and overpowering movement, she did just that, striking out the next three batters to extinguish the threat.

“Usually when runners get on base, I go into a different mode,” Taylor said. “I really focus on shutting down the batters.”

The performance also served notice to Michigan's offense. With Taylor keeping the Wolverines in the game, the onus shifted to the lineup to push a few runs across the plate.

Junior catcher Roya St. Clair’s leadoff home run jump-started a four-run barrage in the bottom of the fourth inning, and Michigan (6-2, 29-9) added three more runs in the seventh. But Taylor didn't need the insurance. She didn’t allow a hit or walk in the final three innings. The win ran her season record to 12-4.

Michigan coach Carol Hutchins said that she was pleased with Taylor’s performance but cautioned that it will take more than just a couple games for Taylor to fully regain the form that made her an All-American last year.

Michigan's lineup is potent at times, but the Wolverines' chances for a deep postseason run rely on a dominant one-two combination of Taylor and junior pitcher Nikki Nemitz.

While honing her motion with Strike Out is a part of reestablishing that dominance, there is also a mental aspect to her technique.

“Mindset and confidence is what’s going to make the difference,” Hutchins said. “It’s going to make the difference for Jordan for the rest of the year.”