AUSTIN, Texas — After back-to-back home runs put No. 6 Texas up 5-3 in the third inning Saturday, Michigan softball team coach Bonnie Tholl took a gamble.
The demanding Longhorns offense was able to line their timing up and get on the board from the jump against senior right-hander Lauren Derkowski, a rare occurrence since the start of a dominating postseason campaign from the veteran. In the wake of Texas’ third-inning assault, Tholl made a rather unorthodox change. Instead of sending in sophomore right-hander Erin Hoehn, the other half of the pitching tandem that propelled the Wolverines to the Big Ten Championship, Tholl called the number of senior right-hander Emerson Aiken.
It was a calculated and time-constrained risk, as Tholl had confidence Aiken’s differing approach would momentarily throw off the momentum Texas had so quickly gained at the tail end of Derkowski’s time in the circle…