June 1, 2007
Box Score | Notes/Quotes | NCAA Central
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – In a matchup of two high-octane offenses, No. 2-seed Michigan outlasted No. 3-seed Memphis 10-7 Friday in the first game of the Nashville Regional at Vanderbilt’s Hawkins Field.
Playing in their straight year, the Wolverines (40-16) received a solid performance from righthander Zach Putnam, who gave up seven runs, all earned, on nine hits while striking out seven and walking three in eight-plus innings of work.
“It was a battle. I was real proud of the way our kids competed,” said Michigan coach Rich Maloney. “We had some good energy and we hit the baseball real well, and then Zach gave us a big lift by giving us eight innings.”
Asked if he expected his team to win with his ace giving up seven runs, Maloney said he never would have expected it. But, with the offense rolling, that’s exactly what the Wolverines were able to do.
“Zach was a warrior today. Even though he may not have had his absolute best stuff in that he did give up some runs, he gave us what we needed to win,” Maloney said. “We didn’t have to use a lot of pitching, and that was huge to have a chance in this tournament.”
Michigan will play the winner of the Vanderbilt-Austin Peay contest Saturday at 7 p.m. CDT in Nashville. Memphis moves into the elimination bracket, and will play the loser of that contest Saturday at 2 p.m.
Putnam had plenty of run support from a Michigan lineup that saw each starter record at least one hit. First baseman Nate Racknagel led the way, finishing 2-for-4 with three runs and three RBI. Catcher Doug Pickens was 2-for-5 with three RBI and one run scored, and Putnam helped his own cause with two hits, one RBI and a run scored.
Memphis (36-26), playing in its first regional appearance since 1994, received a stellar performance from first baseman Adam Amar, who hit two home runs and finished with three RBI. Amar came to the plate in the ninth with runners on first and second and two outs, but lined out to centerfield to end it.
Memphis jumped to a 1-0 lead in the second when Amar hit a towering home run over the 35-foot wall in left field that landed on top of the nearby Memorial Gymnasium roof. The Tigers added another in the third on a RBI single from Michael Murphy.
In the bottom of the third, the Wolverines came back with three runs of their own. With one out and runners on second and third after a double steal, Recknagel hit a sacrifice fly. Putnam followed with a RBI single and later scored on a base hit from Adam Abraham.
“I thought the difference in the game was the three-run inning,” said Memphis coach Daron Schoenrock. “I’d like to have about four pitches back from that inning.”
The Wolverines scored two more runs in the fifth on a RBI triple by Recknagel and run-scoring single from Doug Pickens. In the sixth, Joey Lieberman hit a two-run homer down the line in leftfield to bring the Tigers within one, 5-4. Lieberman turned on Putnam’s offering and hit the leftfield foul pole for his 14th long ball of the season.
However, the Wolverines quickly responded with four runs in the seventh. Pickens had a two-run double off the left-field wall, Kevin Cislo executed a suicide squeeze and later scored on a single by Brad Roblin.
“What I like about our guys is that they did battle back,” Schoenrock said. “We talked a lot this year about `answer-back’ innings and really what the story was today was we didn’t get enough `hold’ innings. They answered when we scored.”
Memphis scored twice in the eighth when Bill Moss singled and Amar followed with his second homer, a shot that easily cleared the 375-foot sign in left-center.
After Amar’s second blast, Putnam settled down, retiring the next three hitters in order. Michigan went up 10-6 when Recknagel hit a towering home run to left field with one out in the bottom of the eighth. After Putnam gave up a leadoff single in the ninth, Mike Powers came on to seal the victory.
For Memphis, McGregor gave up five runs, all earned, on eight hits while striking out two and walking one in five innings of work. Dusty Davis came on in relief, giving up four runs, just one earned, on three hits while striking out four and walking two in two innings. Righthander Dylan Cupples pitched the eighth, surrendering one run.