ANN ARBOR, MI — Despite the cold weather and a few late schedule changes, the Wolverines hosted the Bradley Braves in a three game series this past weekend. Spurred by a series of incredible performances by Connor O’Halloran and other Wolverine standouts, the Michigan baseball team won two of the three games and improved to 9-10 on the season. Following a six-game losing skid, Michigan baseball has now won five of their last seven games.

Here are three of our takeaways from the Wolverines’ weekend series against Bradley.

Michigan baseball gets dominant start from Connor O’Halloran

While Michigan pitching hasn’t been amazing this year, starting pitcher Connor O’Halloran is certainly doing his job. Boasting an earned run average of 1.62, the junior southpaw has dominated the mound in all five of his starts this season. In his last 21 innings, O’Halloran has struckout 34 batters.

On Friday, O’Halloran pitched six innings without allowing an earned run. He struck out 12 batters in the process. The choice to remove Connor O’Halloran in the seventh had little to do with his performance, but rather his pitch count which reached 114 before he was removed.

Each of O’Halloran’s five starts have been “quality starts,” meaning he has pitched six or more innings with three or less earned runs in each. Having a reliable arm that consistently pitches into later innings is crucial for a Michigan team with limited talent in the bullpen.

Jefferis shines on offense

Graduate transfer Cody Jefferis started the series out right with a first pitch base hit up the middle. The early count aggression didn’t let up, and Jefferis stayed hot throughout the weekend, skyrocketing his on base percentage more than 50 points. Jefferis went from a .281 OBP entering the weekend to a .337 OBP by the end.

Jefferis reached base on 61.5 percent of his plate appearances against Bradley. These came from five hits, two walks, and a hit by pitch.

Once on base, Jefferis continued to contribute. Jefferis flashed his speed going two for two on stolen bases over the weekend. On top of batting in two runners, Jefferis himself scored four times in the series. When asked about his first pitch aggression, Michigan baseball star Cody Jefferis said “If you see something in the zone, you’re going to be swinging at it. It doesn’t matter if you’re the leadoff guy or whatnot. You’re up there to hit, that’s what I’m trying to do.”

Jefferis has been starting at shortstop and batting in the leadoff spot all season, and will look to maintain his hot streak on offense as conference play approaches.

Kim settling in to starting role

Freshman outfielder Jonathan Kim began the season on the bench but has seen more playtime in the past 10 days, starting five of the past seven Michigan baseball games. While the sample size may be limited, Kim has been tearing it up at the plate. On Friday, Kim went 4-4 with a double, RBI, and Run to his name.

While he was relatively quiet on offense for the rest of the series, Kim still finished the weekend with a .500 batting average, bringing his season BA up to .435 from 23 at bats. Kim has looked comfortable in the outfield and will likely be a starter or keep a platoon role for the foreseeable future.

Head coach Tracy Smith talked about Kim’s development following a “natural progression” for freshmen, noting how not every freshman is ready to start on day one. “When guys can sit back and watch the games, I think it slows it down for them.” He added, “I’m happy for him because we probably put him in a few games ago because somebody else wasn’t doing what they were supposed to… it’s nice to see him take advantage of it and say, ‘you know what? I’m gonna go take this job.’”

Michigan baseball will return to action this Tuesday at home against the Akron Zips at 4 PM ET.

Thank you for reading Blue by Ninety. For more Michigan Athletics content from Blue by Ninety, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. You can also subscribe to our YouTube Channel. For feedback, questions, concerns, or to apply for a writing position, please email our Managing Editor at Cj@BluebyNinety.com. Also, be sure to check out our shop and our podcast, which is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and all other steaming platforms. It is because of your support that we have become one of the fastest and most influential Michigan media outlets there is!

The Big Ten Championship game is just a few short days away, and the Michigan hockey team is looking to win their second Big Ten Championship trophy in a row.

Last Saturday, Michigan hockey defeated the Ohio State Buckeyes in the Semifinal game. The Wolverines dominated the No. 10 ranked Buckeyes from start to finish; the final score was 7-3.

However, this weekend, Michigan has a much tougher matchup on its hands. They will be traveling to Minneapolis to take on the No. 1 ranked Minnesota Gophers, not to mention in a sold-out 3M Arena at Mariucci.

For both teams, this is by far the most important game of the season. Michigan has an overall record of 23-11-3 and a Big Ten record of 12-10-2. On the other side, Minnesota’s season record thus far is 26-8-1, and they are 19-4-1 in conference play.

Michigan is 1-3 against the Gophers this season. But these teams are more evenly matched than the record makes it out to be. In the first series, Michigan was severely depleted due to sickness throughout the team, so much so that Michigan’s third string goalie went into the game as a forward. The second series was split between the teams, with both games going into overtime.

How will Michigan win a Big Ten Championship?

Controlling and limiting Minnesota’s potent offense will be vital to winning the game. Their top line on offense is the best in the country. Matthew Knies, Logan Cooley and Jimmy Snuggerud won’t be easy to contain, but if the Wolverines can, they should be able to win this game.

Not only that, but we saw how successful the Wolverines were last weekend when limiting penalties. Michigan’s biggest weakness is penalties, and if they remain disciplined, they can play their best hockey.

What a Big Ten Championship will mean for Michigan

While both teams are ranked top five in the country, the rankings no longer matter. Their previous records on the season mean nothing now. Whoever wins this game will have ultimate bragging rights until next season, being the reigning Big Ten Tournament champions.

This would be a huge win against an insanely talented team and put the Wolverines in a phenomenal position heading into the NCAA tournament.

Where to Watch

On Saturday, you can watch the Michigan Wolverines play the Minnesota Gophers in the Big Ten Championship. The game will air on Big Ten Network at 8:00 p.m. EST.

Thank you for reading Blue by Ninety. For more Michigan Athletics content from Blue by Ninety, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. You can also subscribe to our YouTube Channel. For feedback, questions, concerns, or to apply for a writing position, please email our Managing Editor at Cj@BluebyNinety.com. Also, be sure to check out our shop and our podcast, which is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and all other steaming platforms. It is because of your support that we have become one of the fastest and most influential Michigan media outlets there is!

ANN ARBOR, MI — The Michigan hockey team had a dominant 7-3 win in the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament. With this win over Ohio State, the Wolverines will be headed to the championship game. Michigan will be looking to win their second consecutive Big Ten Tournament title after defeating Minnesota for last year’s championship.

Heading into this single elimination game, the overall record of this series for Michigan vs. Ohio State was 1-2-1. Michigan had a 22-11-3 overall record and were 12-10-2 in Big Ten play; meanwhile, the Buckeyes were 20-13-3 overall with a 11-10-2 conference record.

Most were unsure on how this matchup was going to go — this was one of the most evenly matched up games all season. No one really knew what the result was going to be, and it could have gone either way; however, Michigan hockey played its best game of the season, and took down the highly-ranked Buckeyes.

Inside the Semifinals Win

Michigan hockey started out with a bang. 23 seconds into the game, Freshman forward Gavin Brindley scored on Jakub Dobeš; that goal was the first shot on goal from the Wolverines.

From there, the Wolverines played lights out the entire first period, scoring two more goals in the first alone. The other two goals in the first period were from Seamus Casey and Mackie Samoskevich.

The second period was sloppy, and Michigan let off the gas a bit. However, with a sloppy period, the Wolverines still managed to score with a goal from Freshman standout, Adam Fantilli. The Buckeyes scored one on a power play about halfway through the second. 

The third period was a goal frenzy. Ohio State would score, and Michigan would respond right back. There were five total goals in the third period alone. Ohio State tried to make a comeback, however with the momentum Michigan was carrying, they were not letting the Buckeyes get past them.

With two empty net goals, Michigan won the hard fought battle with a final score of 7-3 and advanced onto the next round.

What Did This Win Prove?

This win for Michigan Hockey in the semifinals truly showcased the immense talent on this team. It was the definition of a statement win. The type of hockey they played tonight wins championships and that is the ultimate goal with this Michigan team.

This was Michigan’s toughest test yet and they passed it. Not only did they win, they won convincingly against a very talented Ohio State team.

They played a complete game of hockey in all aspects. They remained disciplined and took limited penalties. Each player put pressure on goaltender Jakub Dobeš. And the defense played one of their best games all season.

If this team continues playing physical, dominant, and disciplined hockey like they did in the semifinals, they are going to achieve remarkable things.

What Comes Next:

With this semifinals win, Michigan will be playing in the championship game next Saturday, March 18th. They will be playing Minnesota on the road in Minneapolis. This team is coming for it all, and are ready to make a run for a national championship. But first, they have to win the Big Ten Tournament.

Thank you for reading Blue by Ninety. For more Michigan Athletics content from Blue by Ninety, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. You can also subscribe to our YouTube Channel. For feedback, questions, concerns, or to apply for a writing position, please email our Managing Editor at Cj@BluebyNinety.com. Also, be sure to check out our shop and our podcast, which is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and all other steaming platforms. It is because of your support that we have become one of the fastest and most influential Michigan media outlets there is!