Weekend marred by Big Ten sweeps

The IU softball team dropped four games in conference action this past weekend as it played host to No. 13 Michigan and Michigan State. Michigan (27-7, 5-1 Big Ten) swept IU (9-19-1, 0-8) in two games Friday and Saturday. Michigan State (18-21, 3-3) also swept the Hoosiers in their doubleheader Sunday.\nIU played two contrasting games against Michigan. In Friday's game the Hoosiers committed three errors in the first four innings as the Wolverines jumped out to a 8-1 lead and didn't look back, winning the game 9-2.\nSophomore first baseman Heather Stillians and freshman outfielder Ashley Griffiths provided the Hoosier runs, as each hit solo home runs. For Stillians it was her second of the year, while Griffiths' was the first of her Hoosier career.\nIU head coach Diane Stephenson was disappointed in the Hoosiers' performance Friday.\n"It is way beyond mental," Stephenson said of the Hoosiers' errors. "I kind of felt like we were still in the game the whole game, but you aren't going to play a top 10 team in the country and make any errors, let alone the number we had and still be competitive."\nMichigan standout pitcher Marissa Young dominated in both of the Wolverines' victories. Young pitched all seven innings in Friday's match-up, allowing just four hits and striking out a career-high 15 batters in the game.\nSaturday's contest was a more competitive affair. Despite an error and three walks in the Michigan half of the second inning, senior pitcher Alison Cooke fought out of a bases-loaded jam, allowing only one run. IU knotted the game at 1-1 in the second after sophomore outfielder Abby Stark hit a lead-off double and scored on a single by Griffiths.\nCooke settled in after the first, allowing only one Michigan runner to reach base over the next three innings, that runner having reached on an error.\n"After the first I just decided to relax and play my game and not let the strike zone bother me," Cooke said. "I just wanted to go out there and give it all I had and make them earn their runs, not give them any more."\nStark gave the Hoosiers a 3-1 lead after smacking a two-run home run over the left field fence. The home run was Stark's second of the season as she went 3-for-3 in the game, with two RBIs and two runs scored.\nMichigan tied the game 3-3 in the sixth after senior third baseman Stefanie Volpe hit a two-run home run to right-center field. Wolverine junior outfielder Meghan Doe got the first Michigan hit with two outs in the inning and scored on Volpe's game-tying shot. A pair of doubles to start the sixth by Young and junior Melinda Moulden gave the Wolverines a 4-3 lead they wouldn't relinquish.\nYoung relieved freshman Nicole Motycka after Motycka gave up three Hoosier runs in three innings. Young shut down the Hoosier hitters, giving up two hits and striking out 10 batters in four innings.\nDespite the loss, Stark believed the game would give the Hoosiers confidence.\n"This was a good game to come out and be ahead for three innings," Stark said. "To battle strong with them the whole game, I have no regrets about how we played today. This was a very good game and definitely a morale booster for us."\nAgainst Michigan State, the Hoosiers fell behind early in both games and never recovered, losing 8-0 and 11-2. The Spartans put five runs on the board in the second inning of the opener, all off Stillians, who started for IU. Spartan senior pitcher Becky Gray held the Hoosiers to just two hits in four innings.\nIn the second game, Michigan State jumped on the Hoosiers with three runs in the first and didn't look back. Sophomore first baseman Natalie Furrow led the Spartans with two hits, including a three-run home run, and five RBIs. Michigan State scored six runs on three hits in the third to put the game out of reach.\nStephenson thought Michigan State just had a break-out game and dominated the Hoosiers.\n"Michigan State is a team that hadn't really had a stellar season, a lot like us," Stephenson said. "They were just waiting to bust out, and they definitely did. They had 22 hits, and it is kind of hard to do anything about that."\nCooke threw two-thirds of an inning, giving up three runs, of which only one was earned. Freshman hurler Katie Witham relieved Cooke and gave up eight earned runs in three and a third innings of work.\nStillians connected on her second homer of the weekend in the second inning, and junior third baseman Stormy Hanson hit a solo shot in the fifth to account for the Hoosier runs.