Friday's college baseball: Michigan stays alive in Big Ten tournament
Omaha, Neb. — Jesse Franklin went 2-for-4 with two walks and an RBI double, one of four Michigan batters with multiple hits in a 10-4 victory to eliminate Maryland from the Big Ten tournament Friday.
Jimmy Kerr went 3-for-5, and Jack Blomgren and Blake Nelson each drove in two runs for the second-seeded Wolverines (40-17), who on Thursday used a two-run double with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning to beat Illinois, 5-4, and stave off elimination and enhance their chance of at least an at-large bid for the NCAA Tournament.
Left-hander Tommy Henry picked up his ninth win of the season with seven strikeouts over six innings for Michigan, which advanced to the semifinals today to face fifth-seeded Nebraska.
A.J. Lee had one of three home runs by the Terrapins (29-29) among his four hits. Maxwell Costes and Randy Bednar also went deep for Maryland, which lost 3-2 earlier in the day to Ohio State. That was the completion of a game suspended by a rainstorm in the bottom of the eighth inning the night before.
More Big Ten
Nebraska 11, Iowa 1: Nate Fisher scattered four hits over seven innings and Nebraska pounded Iowa to reach the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament.
Cam Chick had four RBIs for the Huskers (30-20), who finished off the Hawkeyes (31-23) in eight innings with the run rule.
Fisher (7-3) escaped a bases loaded jam in the top of the second inning down 1-0, and his offense responded with four runs in the bottom of the frame. Nebraska scored four more in the fifth, a stretch capped by a home run from Spencer Schwellenbach. Fisher had seven strikeouts.
Mid-American Conference
Central Michigan 8, Ball State 2: Central Michigan (45-12) took control with a seven-run rally in the seventh inning, erasing a 2-1 deficit. The Chippewas advance to the final and will play at 6 p.m. Saturday against Northern Illinois or Ball State.
Big Ten tournament
At TD Ameritrade Park, Omaha, Neb.
All games on Big Ten Network
Wednesday
Game 1: No. 6 Maryland 6, No. 3 Illinois 2
Game 2: No. 7 Ohio State 2, No. 2 Michigan 1
Game 3: No. 8 Iowa 4, No. 1 Indiana 2
Game 4: No. 5 Nebraska 8, No. 4 Minnesota 2
Thursday
Game 5: Michigan 5, Illinois 4
Game 6: Minnesota 9, Indiana 4
Game 7: Maryland vs. Ohio State, suspended
Game 8: Iowa vs. Nebraska, postponed
Friday
Game 7: Ohio State 3, Maryland 2
Game 8: Nebraska 11, Iowa 1
Game 9: Michigan 10, Maryland 4
Game 10: Minnesota 3, Iowa 0
Saturday
Game 11: Michigan vs. Nebraska, 10 a.m.
Game 12: Minnesota vs. Ohio State, 2 p.m.
Game 13: Michigan vs. Nebraska, 6 p.m. (if necessary)
Game 14: Minnesota vs. Ohio State, 10 p.m. (if necessary)
Sunday
Game 15: Championship, 2 p.m.