Carol Hutchins’ favorite thing to do is throw batting practice with her team. That is, as long as they’re hitting the ball.
With the Big Ten season starting Friday, the Wolverines’ bats are hitting and the Michigan softball coach is smiling wide.
The Wolverines (19-6) will see Indiana in their first conference series of the season, and while the Hoosiers’ strength is their pitching staff, Michigan is now hitting its stride at the plate.
Senior infielder Taylor Hasselbach was named Big Ten player of the week after hitting .667 with six RBI last weekend in Louisville, Ky.
Though most of her career has been defined by timely pinch-hitting and leadership, Hasselbach made the most of her chance in the lineup and will look for more opportunities this weekend.
“Once I got into the lineup, the main thing was just trusting my preparation,” she said. “I just got into the box and did what I knew how to do.”
Hasselbach’s offensive eruption came at just the right time. The Wolverines struggled to hit the ball the previous weekend but, behind the senior infielder, Michigan posted 27 runs in three games in Louisville.
Friday’s doubleheader at Alumni Field will give the Wolverines a chance to showcase their talent for a home crowd for the first time this season after Tuesday’s non-conference contest with Bowling Green was postponed one week.
“Our kids do a fantastic job transitioning from indoors to outdoors,” Hutchins said. “But to me, the biggest distraction we have is being at home now.”
In every prior game this season, Michigan has been on the road and in a hotel on game day. In those games, the Wolverines were monitored by Hutchins and the staff where they helped the team stay focused.
Now that the players are on their own schedule, Hutchins has to trust her squad to maintain that focus up until they gather three hours before game time.
Beyond the matter of focus, Michigan will be getting adjusted to its notably fast outfield after practicing inside for six weeks.
“Our goal in practice today was to not let the ball touch the fence,” Hutchins said Wednesday. “We have to make sure we’re taking deep angles on the ball.”
The Wolverines’ veteran outfield, anchored by senior center fielder Lyndsay Doyle and senior right fielder Nicole Sappingfield, will be used to the adjustment period.
Sappingfield thinks this team could be farther along going into conference play than in years past, and that bodes well for a team looking for its seventh straight Big Ten title.
The other member of the outfield, sophomore Sierra Lawrence, has been one of Michigan’s strongest presences at the plate this spring, hitting .355 with three home runs and 27 RBI.
In the circle, junior pitchers Haylie Wagner and Sara Driesenga will continue to lead the Wolverines, though freshman right-hander Megan Betsa has gotten significant innings in recent weeks as Driesenga works out some control issues.
Wagner has led the pack and has yet to be beaten this year, with a 0.93 ERA in 75 innings pitched.
While Indiana figures to be a bottom-dwelling Big Ten team, Hutchins insists that the Wolverines’ focus remains on their own performance.
“We’ve spent a lot of time seeing what kids are capable of,” Hutchins said. “But the game hasn’t changed. The game doesn’t know we’re in Big Ten season and I don’t think we’ll do much differently.”