The Nebraska Cornhuskers and the Michigan Wolverines have been long-time rivals in softball, much more so after the Huskers joined the Big 10. Nebraska Head Coach Rhonda Revelle and former Michigan skipper Carol Hutchins have been friends for years while maintaining the rivalry. Hutchins became the first D1 softball coach to surpass 1700 total victories and finished with a record of 1707-555-5.
As it turned out when she retired a few months later, Revelle would hand Hutchins her final Big 10 loss,
a 3-1 win in the Big 10 Tournament final.
After a break in 2025, the two teams resume hostilities in a world where conference meetings have grown more sparse due the the increased roster of 17 conference members in the sport (USC does not field a team) and logistics only allowing eight Big 10 series per season.
See below for more details on Michigan as well as current Huskers stats – and here are some weekend storylines:
– Injuries – Sam Bland is wearing a brace on her left shoulder, but showed no effects last weekend. Jesse Farrell is in the concussion protocol (see more below). Olivia DiNardo continues to rehab from off-season surgery.
– The Huskers got through Sunday’s game against UNO, a 10-2 victory (6 Inn), without a single Husker batter striking out.
– Both run-rule victories were ended in walk-off fashion by the leadoff batter – Bella Bacon on Thursday and Bland on Sunday.
– On Saturday, Jordy Frahm took a no-hitter into the 5th and a shutout into the 7th before having to settle for getting the win in a 2-hit, 1-run effort. Revelle said it was a day where “she didn’t have her best stuff”.
– Michigan will generally have a few of what I call “slappy-runny” hitters. If you’re not familiar with it, you’ll know it when you see it. You won’t see it with the Huskers because they swing away as the softball gods intended.
Did You Know We Have a HUSKERS SOFTBALL Podcast?
That’s right – every Tuesday night at 8PM.
It’s called Husker Heat and we started our 3rd season two weeks ago. With my lovely daughter Mylie as my co-host (of course I’m biased – daughter), we cover the previous weekend, preview the coming games, talk about current storylines and likely find a couple of non-softball topics to chatter about as well. We try to keep it around 45 minutes while still making sure you’re the best-informed fans in Nebraska.
There’s a section for comments, so please fire away with any thoughts or questions and if we don’t have answers on hand, we’ll try to have them for you by next week’s show. It broadcasts on Facebook Live, Twitter and YouTube Live.
Husker Heat – click the link above to check out last week’s show and join us next Tuesday!
MICHIGAN WEEKEND – THINGS TO LOOK FOR:
- Michigan is currently 19-6, but they have not played the most difficult schedule. Of their 25 games, only six games were against ranked teams and they are 1-5 in those games, the lone victory being a 9-8 win over #22 Arizona State to whom they also dropped an 8-0 decision.
- Michigan did win the 2025 Big 10 Tournament at Purdue defeating Top 10 UCLA 2-0 in the final. The two did not meet last season.
- The Huskers are 1-5 inn their last six contests against the Wolverines in 2023 and 2024. In 2022, however, they swept all three meetings with the Wolverines, the last being a 3-1 extra innings victory for the Big 10 Tourney title.
- Containing Lauren Putz and Janissa Conway will be the key this weekend. If the Frahm and Jensen can keep those two in check, a sweep is very possible. Michigan has feasted on a great deal of batting practice level pitching this season. That ends starting Friday.
HUSKER GAME INFO
Schedule: (All times CST)
March 13 – Michigan 5:30 p.m.
March 14 – Michigan 1 p.m.
March 14 – Michigan 3:30 p.m.
(Please note Sunday’s game has been moved to Saturday as part of a doubleheader)
Location: Bowlin Stadium, Lincoln, NE
Surface: Traditional Dirt “Skinned” Infield, Kentucky Bluegrass outfield
TV/Streaming: All games will be streamed on the B1G+ app. Broadcast team TBD.
Radio: Huskers Radio Network. You can listen for free at Husker Audio – University of Nebraska – Official Athletics Website huskers.com – Nate Rohr is on the call for the Nebraska Cornhuskers.
Weather: Friday’s game should be played under partly cloudy skies with temps beginning in the low 50’s and breezes of 5-10mph. Saturday’s contests will begin with temps in the mid-50’s and should finish up in the low 60’s. Skies should be mostly sunny with winds of 10-20mph.
Be grateful for Sunday’s cancellation – the outlook is for temps around freezing with 30-40mph winds.
THE OPPONENTS
MICHIGAN (19-6, 0-0 Big Ten)
Michigan is 19-6 this season with five of their six losses coming against ranked opponents. Last season, UM went 39-21 with an 11-11 mark in Big Ten play. The Wolverines won the 2025 Big Ten Tournament with wins over Wisconsin, Oregon, Purdue and UCLA.
Head coach Bonnie Tholl is in her fourth season leading Michigan. She has a 127-70 record at the helm of the Wolverine softball program. Tholl was UM’s associate head coach under Carol Hutchins for 20 years before being promoted to head coach in August of 2022.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Lauren Putz leads the the team with a .477 batting average and 21 extra-base hits (12 homers, 9 doubles). She has a slugging percentage of 1.169 with an on-base percentage of .584 for an OPS of 1.753. Putz ranks in the top 10 nationally in homers, RBI, slugging percentage and total bases.
Jenissa Conway owns a batting average of .422 and has hit five triples, five home runs and eight doubles this year. She has 23 RBI with 35 hits and 29 runs scored.
Gabby Ellis, Kat Meyers and Erin Hoehn split innings in the circle for Michigan. Ellis has thrown 45.2 innings and has a team-low ERA of 1.84 with a record of 8-1 and 32 strikeouts and 13 walks. Meyers is 5-2 with a 2.90 ERA, along with 37 strikeouts. Hoehn has a team- high 52 Ks with a 3-2 record and 3.24 ERA.
HUSKERS LINEUPS (Best Guess)
P/1B #98 JORDY FRAHM
3B #29 SAMANTHA BLAND
LF #9 HANNAH CAMENZIND
SS #7 AVA KUSZAK
C #25 JESSE FARRELL/#72 CARLIE MUHLBACH
RF #14 KACIE HOFFMANN
DP/P #72 CARLIE MUHLBACH/#4 MALIA THOMS/#99 ALEXIS JENSEN
CF #23 HANNAH COOR
1B #3 BELLA BACON (When Jordy pitches)
2B #2 LAURA CAMENZIND
STARTERS:
G1: JORDY FRAHM
G2: ALEXIS JENSEN
G3: JORDY FRAHM
Sammie Bland returned to the batting order in her old #2 spot, and did so with a vengeance showing off her aggressive base-running (6 runs scored) and a walk-off homer. Hannah Camenzind moved down to the 3-spot and hit .500 with 2 doubles and 2 HR’s. Jordy Frahm also hit .500 with a HR. And Ava Kuszak? A .500 BA also with 3 HR’s – look for her to move up a little.
Jesse Farrell hit well but took a one right between the eyes while catching in the final game and has been in the concussion protocol – we may not know her availability until just before game time. If she can’t go, Carlie Muhlbach will get the start. If not catching, Muhlbach should be in the mix with Malia Thoms and possibly Emmerson Cope for DP duties.
Look for a steady dose of Frahm and Alexis Jensen in the circle.
