Michigan benefits from Maryland Ace's unpredictable fastball

Through four innings in Thursday's Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals, the Michigan softball team's offense remained silent. Maryland ace right-hander Courtney Wyche paced the Wolverines up and down the order, holding them to just two hits.

But Michigan remained confident. The Wolverines knew they could tire Wyche enough over the course of the game to eventually strike.

And in the fifth inning they finally got it. After loading the bases, Michigan spotted Wyche for three runs on three consecutive walks, forcing her out of the game.

“We wanted to wear them down,” Michigan coach Bonnie Tholl said. “That was our game plan…We expected it to be a low-scoring game. When we started drawing walks, the energy just increased.”

The flame-throwing Wyche struck out the Wolverines in the first four innings of the game, reaching over 70 mph with her fastball. But it wasn't the heat that gave Michigan problems early in the game. It was Wyche's change.

After preparing to catch up with Wyche's fastball by practicing against fast pitching machines, the Wolverines didn't let their high velocities faze them. However, like many outstanding pitchers, Wyche kept Michigan's hitters off guard by varying speeds, using her changeup almost as often as her fastball.

And it worked. In the first inning, Wyche struck out senior first baseman Keke Tholl — one of the Wolverines' most feared hitters — with a runner on and two out, thwarting Michigan's chance to strike early. In the following inning, Wyche used her changeup to strike out the next three Wolverines after a leadoff walk.

In the third round, Wyche again used her variety to get out of trouble. With runners on the corners and one out, she turned to her off-speed struggles to retire second-year third basemen Maddie Erickson and Keke — both All-Big Ten first-team honorees and get through the inning unscathed.

“(Wyche) has really developed her change over the last year,” Bonnie said. “Right now it’s a deadly change.”

But as Wyche's changeup caused Michigan's hitters to look lost at the plate, it became clear that she was having difficulty throwing her fastball for strikes. Knowing Wyche could only find her changeup, the Wolverines capitalized.

After Michigan loaded the bases in the fifth, Tholl took a 2-0 lead as Wyche couldn't find her fastball. Although Wyche used her changeup to complete the count, it was too much to overcome as she walked Tholl to score Michigan's first run of the game.

Stephenson came up to bat next and looked lost in the face of speed as she was unable to complete her swing for the first shot. But when Wyche couldn't find her fastball, Stephenson struggled. She took an outside fastball for ball two and laid a heater well outside the zone for ball four. Following Stephenson, Wyche gave freshman centerfielder Jenissa Conway a free base with a fastball over her head, giving the Wolverines another run.

Just like that, Michigan was up 3-0. And Wyche's night was over.

“We realized in the last inning that changeup was the only thing she could command and throw for a hit,” Bonnie said. “So we said, okay, we won't get anything other than the soft stuff. I think it calmed her down a bit.”

From there, the Wolverines’ offense took off. Relieved by Wyche's difficulties, they scored seven more runs in the fifth and won 10-0 under the run rule.

After a slow start, Michigan got the ball rolling as it began capitalizing on Wyche's inability to find her fastball. Once they did, the Wolverines quickly snuffed out Wyche's outing by launching an offensive barrage that routed the Terrapins.

Related Articles