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Published Jun 5, 2021
Michigan Baseball's Season Ends With 8-2 NCAA Tournament Loss To CMU
Clayton Sayfie  •  Maize&BlueReview
Staff Writer
Twitter
@CSayf23

Michigan Wolverines baseball's run is over.

The Maize and Blue were one of the last four teams in the NCAA Tournament, a No. 3 seed, but fell in two-straight games in the South Bend Regional — Friday versus UConn and Saturday against Central Michigan — to end the season.

Michigan finished the season with a 27-19 overall record and a second-straight berth into the NCAA Tournament (fourth under head coach Erik Bakich). One of three teams from the Big Ten to make the postseason, the Wolverines finished third in the conference standings behind Nebraska (31-12) and Maryland (28-16).

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Friday's game against the Huskies was a pitcher's duel for the first five innings, with the Wolverines leading 1-0, before the UConn bats woke up. The Huskies scored three runs in the fifth and two in the sixth to take a 5-1 lead.

Michigan redshirt sophomore left-hander Steven Hajjar allowed four earned runs and struck out nine batters in six innings of work.

Michigan's offense started slow and ended that way, notching just two hits to UConn's 11. Sophomore designated hitter Ted Burton, who hit a solo home run in the fourth inning, and junior second baseman Riley Bertran were the only two Wolverines who recorded hits.

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The Wolverines jumped on the Chippewas on Saturday afternoon, with sophomore left fielder Tito Flores having hit a solo shot in the first inning.

But CMU's bats came alive, and Michigan reverted back into a slump.

Michigan sophomore right-handed starting pitcher Cameron Weston had a tough outing, going 4.2 innings and allowing eight hits and five earned runs.

The Chippewas had an 8-1 run heading into the ninth, and Michigan needed to rally. With one out, sophomore first baseman Jimmy Obertop hit a solo homer into left field, giving the Maize and Blue some life in the final frame.

A ground out and a fly out, however, ended the game, with the Wolverines' offense just not able to muster enough up. All told, Michigan notched nine hits to CMU's 11, and the Maize and Blue stranded seven base runners in the loss.

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