Michigan Wolverines

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- It was a season where so much of Michigan softball was an unknown.

Over the past two seasons, Michigan graduated the majority of its lineup, most of its power and saw All-American pitcher Jordan Taylor run out of eligibility after last season.

Unlike the previous two Michigan softball teams that slaughtered competition during the regular season only to have postseason failure when facing other top teams, this season’s team has had the opposite happen entering Thursday’s Super Regional at No. 3 Alabama (53-7).

For the first time since 2001, the Wolverines didn’t host a regional. They were in a race for the Big Ten championship, which they won or shared for the fifth straight season, until the last weekend of the year.

In prior seasons they relied on a litter of All-Americans in the lineup and the circle. This season has been nothing like that. While the Wolverines have a lot of talent, they rely more on contributions from every spot in the lineup.

While it was tiring during the season, those experiences helped Michigan now.

“Our defense has moved a lot and you have a freshman battery," senior first baseman Amanda Chidester said. "There’s been a lot of different changes. Our leadership roles have shifted and it was a little rough at the beginning.

“The things we were faced with at the beginning and even in the middle of the season have helped us grow and helped us work together better. We’ve been through everything. We’ve been through losses, been through wins, come back. In the past years, we had never been through everything because we just dominated everyone .”

This is Michigan-relative, of course, since the Wolverines are still 42-15. Consider, though, the Wolverines lost more than 10 games just once in the previous four seasons -- coincidentally the last time Michigan reached the Women’s College World Series. Before this season Michigan hadn’t lost 15 games in a year since 2006.

Michigan also lost two straight series in the Big Ten -- at Minnesota and at home to Illinois -- compared to the past eight seasons where the Wolverines lost four games or less in the Big Ten all year.

This season’s team, though, has embraced the message coach Carol Hutchins has preached throughout her 28 seasons at Michigan: “Everyone do her part.” To win, this season’s team has actually needed to do that.

“In previous years, we probably depended more on our All-American pitchers and big hitters and now it is spread out through the whole team and that is making us better,’ senior center fielder Bree Evans said. “We’re not dependent on just one person. Like everyone in the lineup can get a hit at that one moment."

One other thing has given Michigan confidence during this season of transition: An unlikely star freshman pitcher.

After splitting games with fellow freshman Sara Driesenga early in the season, the Wolverines have turned to Haylie Wagner for most of their big games down the stretch. She won all three games in last weekend’s Louisville regional and has won her last 10 decisions. Against Louisville in the regional final Sunday, Wagner set Michigan’s freshman record for wins, breaking the record of the pitcher she replaced, Jordan Taylor.

“We just, more than anything, try to take the pressure off her,” Hutchins said. “We are encouraging her to just do her part and that she can’t do all of it."

Michigan is looking for a new baseball coach.

After 10 seasons in charge, Rich Maloney and Michigan "mutually agreed" Tuesday that it was time for the program to go in a different direction.

"Rich had several significant accomplishments during his Michigan career, but we agreed a coaching change at this time was in the best interest of the program,” Michigan athletic director Dave Brandon said in a statement. “We appreciate Rich’s contributions and wish him well as he transitions to his next career endeavor.”

Maloney led Michigan to eight winning seasons and a 341-244 record over his time at the school. However, the Wolverines finished their second straight losing season last weekend, finishing with a 22-34 record.

Maloney took Michigan to four NCAA tournaments and was named the 2007 and 2008 Big Ten coach of the year. He also helped with getting the school's baseball stadium, Ray Fisher Stadium, renovated.

"I would like to thank all of the baseball alumni and donors that played an integral role in the stadium project,” Maloney said in a statement “This is one of the top highlights on my list of Michigan memories and I appreciate their commitment to Michigan baseball.”

Senior college football writer Ivan Maisel examines the heated rivalry between legendary coaches Fielding Yost of Michigan and Knute Rockne of Notre Dame.

There have been plenty of coaching feuds since, but this one changed the course of college football.

In their first year at the helm of the Wolverines, Michigan football coach Brady Hoke and his staff reeled in the No. 7 recruiting class in the nation. Now, in their second year, with top commits such as Shane Morris, Gareon Conley and David Dawson, the Wolverines look to be pushing for the best 2013 recruiting class in the country.

Offensive coordinator Al Borges said it’s because of one simple reason.

“It’s Michigan -- that’s the bottom line,” Borges said. “We’re going to make people understand the advantages of coming to this university, and they go way beyond playing football. We just completely embrace that concept as a staff, and I think it resonates with the kids.”

Several recruits have said that unlike other schools, there is no “sales pitch” with the Wolverines and that they appreciate that honesty from the coaching staff.

“Brady is an exceptional guy in that what you see is what you get,” Borges said. “There’s no pretense, no stuffed shirts, none of that stuff. He’s a football coach who cares about the players and the players come first. We’re going to try to win for Michigan.”

However, there are several things that have attracted top recruits. The stadium and facilities are always important (both of which have received recent upgrades), and games like last season’s Notre Dame Under the Lights game and the 2012 season opener against Alabama draw in top recruits who dream of playing in marquee matchups.

And the recent fad in college football with uniform upgrades and changes also has hit the Wolverines, who sported legacy uniforms in both the Notre Dame and Michigan State games in 2011.

Borges wasn’t sure about jersey changes being a pull for recruits, joking that his wife would have a better idea of whether those fashion choices can aid recruitment.

“I’m an old-school guy,” Borges said. “I love how we look every game. … I’ll say this, though, the uniforms we wore for Notre Dame were pretty cool. There might be something to it, but I have no idea.”

Whether it’s the uniforms, night games, campus life or other, the Wolverines continue to sell Michigan the best way they know how. And for them, that seems to be working well.

“I love recruiting here,” said Borges, who has coached at Auburn, UCLA, Indiana and Oregon, among others. “Because it’s the best sell of any place I’ve ever coached.”