Gopher Softball 2018

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This is a very talented team. Some of the best hitters in the nation and a collection of good young and experienced pitchers...and most important, they seem to have fun and hang like a family. In answer to someone else's post; yes, I'm looking forward to a LONG and FUN season. It would be almost impossible to match last year's regular season record and I don't really care. Even Oklahoma lost several games early last year before going on a run in conference.

I hope and believe the Gophies will use the NCAA debacle last year as a lesson. Regardless of the screwing by the NCAA and Umpire (AL game 1) they seemed to be overly patient at the plate in the regionals, while they got there by being aggressive all season and blasting the hell out of the ball. They will be just fine if they stay true to their talents, stay focused, and have fun.
 

Panthadad2 said:
This is a very talented team. Some of the best hitters in the nation and a collection of good young and experienced pitchers...and most important, they seem to have fun and hang like a family. In answer to someone else's post; yes, I'm looking forward to a LONG and FUN season. It would be almost impossible to match last year's regular season record and I don't really care. Even Oklahoma lost several games early last year before going on a run in conference.

I hope and believe the Gophies will use the NCAA debacle last year as a lesson. Regardless of the screwing by the NCAA and Umpire (AL game 1) they seemed to be overly patient at the plate in the regionals, while they got there by being aggressive all season and blasting the hell out of the ball. They will be just fine if they stay true to their talents, stay focused, and have fun.
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I agree with everything you say. The difference at a high level often boils down to the breaks, some good; others bad. I look, with pride, at all the great things they have accomplished. I also tried to point out the areas in which they have come up short if they are to compete against the Oklahomas, Floridas, Washingtons, etc., the national elite, there focusing my comments solely on the NCAA playoffs. Having said that, I suspect Trachsel is also looking for outstanding speed and infield defense in addition to power hitting. I'm excited about the upcoming season. The key will be superior pitching and clutch hitting. They can do it!
 

In was hoping to get 2 more season tix this year but it looks like they might have a waiting list. I am sure glad I got two seats last year.

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rugger14 said:
In was hoping to get 2 more season tix this year but it looks like they might have a waiting list. I am sure glad I got two seats last year.

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Same for us. I split season tickets with my neighbor last year, but this year we each want out own. Not sure we can get them. Neighbor is on the waiting list.
 

In January 2017 Gophers softball spent a week in Florida, for pre-season training. It seems that's not happening in 2018. Is that true? If so, why are they skipping it this year? [I suspect that week is what got them off to such a great start last year.]
 


Hrothgar said:
In January 2017 Gophers softball spent a week in Florida, for pre-season training. It seems that's not happening in 2018. Is that true? If so, why are they skipping it this year? [I suspect that week is what got them off to such a great start last year.]
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They leave this week.

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dlw4gophers said:
Same for us. I split season tickets with my neighbor last year, but this year we each want out own. Not sure we can get them. Neighbor is on the waiting list.
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I called the ticket office today and season ticket renewals should start on the 17th. I am hoping that I get an email...
 




Should be interesting games when they hook up with North Dakota State and New Mexico State, for obvious reasons. Three games against each school.
Not much longer and the season will be underway. Really curious how the pitching staff will perform. No Michigan during the regular season again this year.
 

fan of Ray Williams said:
Should be interesting games when they hook up with North Dakota State and New Mexico State, for obvious reasons. Three games against each school.
Not much longer and the season will be underway. Really curious how the pitching staff will perform. No Michigan during the regular season again this year.
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I agree about the pitching. The Gophers had Sara G. last year. This year they'll need at least 2 pitchers of Sara G.s caliber if they want to take the next step up. Here's hoping they make it.
 

First weekend opponents

Southern Utah (Big Sky Conference) 15-31 10-11 last year. Pitching was pretty rough. 432 hits in 294 inning along with 134 base on balls. Only struck out 135. Hanna Wynn, their leader in innings pitched and appearances is back this year.

Utah Valley (WAC) 16-24 7-8 last year. Again, pitching was sub par. Only recorded 85 strikeouts in 253 innings. The ace is back, Lauren Frailey Spendlove. 173 hits in 126 innings. Their big hitter (leader in batting average, home runs, runs batted in) graduated. 13 players from the state of Utah on the roster.

North Dakota State (Summit) 29-33 11-7 last year. Hit their way through the conference tournament, playing 9 games in 4 days. Next game beat eventual champion Oklahoma, in Norman Regional, 3-2. Sertic, their ace, is back. 50 appearances in the 62 games they played with 340 strikeouts. I would say it's almost a sure thing they see Sertic, since it's the first game in the morning for both teams.

UNLV (Mountain West) 25-27 8-16 last year. Looks like their ace is gone and difficult to say about the returners. Okay numbers, but not many innings. Not much power from the bats, an Iowa transfer led with 8 home runs. Only 23 as a team last year.

Creighton (Big East) 18-32 8-13 last year. 10 times scored 1 or less runs. Shutout 7 times. No power as a team, top hitter for average returns. Bryana Clark, their ace, is back. 145 innings with 95 strikeouts.
 




Hrothgar said:
I agree about the pitching. The Gophers had Sara G. last year. This year they'll need at least 2 pitchers of Sara G.s caliber if they want to take the next step up. Here's hoping they make it.
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I'm actually excited about the pitching potential this year and for the next couple years. They are young, but still have more experience, depth and flexibility than last year. Keep in mind that Sara didn't emerge as a dominant pitcher until her senior year, and I've been told that she got there by working hard on her own. Hopefully, Sidney, Amber and Carlie have been doing the same. I haven't heard how Hannah has been doing or how Rachel has recovered from shoulder surgery.
Defense will certainly be a focus for Jamie this year, which is good, because it wasn't really their strength last year. I'm really looking forward to watching them in Vegas and AZ. Florida State, Arizona and ASU will be the big tests early in the season.


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GopherSBdad said:
I'm actually excited about the pitching potential this year and for the next couple years. They are young, but still have more experience, depth and flexibility than last year. Keep in mind that Sara didn't emerge as a dominant pitcher until her senior year, and I've been told that she got there by working hard on her own. Hopefully, Sidney, Amber and Carlie have been doing the same. I haven't heard how Hannah has been doing or how Rachel has recovered from shoulder surgery.
Defense will certainly be a focus for Jamie this year, which is good, because it wasn't really their strength last year. I'm really looking forward to watching them in Vegas and AZ. Florida State, Arizona and ASU will be the big tests early in the season.


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I don't know, my friend.


2014 • FRESHMAN SEASON:
Became Minnesota's first Big Ten Pitcher of the Year and also won the Big Ten Freshman of the Year Award
http://www.gophersports.com/sports/w-softbl/mtt/sara_groenewegen_867978.html
 


GopherSBdad said:
I'm actually excited about the pitching potential this year and for the next couple years. They are young, but still have more experience, depth and flexibility than last year. Keep in mind that Sara didn't emerge as a dominant pitcher until her senior year, and I've been told that she got there by working hard on her own. Hopefully, Sidney, Amber and Carlie have been doing the same. I haven't heard how Hannah has been doing or how Rachel has recovered from shoulder surgery.
Defense will certainly be a focus for Jamie this year, which is good, because it wasn't really their strength last year. I'm really looking forward to watching them in Vegas and AZ. Florida State, Arizona and ASU will be the big tests early in the season.


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By the way, welcome to the board SBdad. Thanks for stopping by and posting.

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rugger14 said:
You beat me to it. SG was very good right away. Her freshman year when Moulton was a Senior was a very impressive staff.

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Groenewegen ERA 2014-2017: 2.23, 1.67, 2.03, .63
By comparison:
Moulton ERA 2011-2014: 2.06, 1.52, 1.57, 1.97

Amber Fiser ERA 2017: 1.68 (87 IP)
Carlie Brandt ERA 2017: .84 (33 IP)
Sydney Smith ERA 2016-2017: 1.16, 2.08

Two observations. Sara G was very good her first three years but especially dominant her senior year...hard to match that. Second, there are multiple pitchers on the current staff that had similar 1st year ERAs as Groenewegen and Moulton. Let's hope they all can continue to develop.
 

Panthadad2 said:
Groenewegen ERA 2014-2017: 2.23, 1.67, 2.03, .63
By comparison:
Moulton ERA 2011-2014: 2.06, 1.52, 1.57, 1.97

Amber Fiser ERA 2017: 1.68 (87 IP)
Carlie Brandt ERA 2017: .84 (33 IP)
Sydney Smith ERA 2016-2017: 1.16, 2.08

Two observations. Sara G was very good her first three years but especially dominant her senior year...hard to match that. Second, there are at multiple pitchers on the current staff that had similar 1st year ERAs as Groenewaegen and Moulton. Let's hope they all can continue to develop.
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Oh yeah. I agree that this staff has a lot of potential. Two aces on that 2014 staff but not the amount of depth that the 2017 staff had. 2018 and forward does look good if someone can establish themselves as the Ace with an Ace2 right behind and then a lot of depth. Our offense should be better than 2014 as well.

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What the heck? I watch this thread all the time and nothing. Then I watch the Vikes for 3 quarters and we have several new posts and a new poster who made his first post today! I agree that this pitching staff has POTENTIAL. Nothing more and nothing less. We lost a lot of ELITE innings from last year to this year. Nobody on the staff has proven they can do it every day and be the #1 pitcher. We do have almost all our firepower on offense back so I see no reason why these ladies won't be able to hit the ball around and out of the park in the B1G.
 

ComoGopher said:
What the heck? I watch this thread all the time and nothing. Then I watch the Vikes for 3 quarters and we have several new posts and a new poster who made his first post today! I agree that this pitching staff has POTENTIAL. Nothing more and nothing less. We lost a lot of ELITE innings from last year to this year. Nobody on the staff has proven they can do it every day and be the #1 pitcher. We do have almost all our firepower on offense back so I see no reason why these ladies won't be able to hit the ball around and out of the park in the B1G.
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Gopher softball is fresh on my mind because I follow their Twitter page (among others) and they've been posting some good stuff with their Florida trip this week. I'm sure a lot of us sat down to watch the Vikes game yesterday at the same time and posted away!
https://twitter.com/GopherSoftball
 

GopherSBdad said:
I'm actually excited about the pitching potential this year and for the next couple years. They are young, but still have more experience, depth and flexibility than last year. Keep in mind that Sara didn't emerge as a dominant pitcher until her senior year, and I've been told that she got there by working hard on her own. Hopefully, Sidney, Amber and Carlie have been doing the same. I haven't heard how Hannah has been doing or how Rachel has recovered from shoulder surgery.
Defense will certainly be a focus for Jamie this year, which is good, because it wasn't really their strength last year. I'm really looking forward to watching them in Vegas and AZ. Florida State, Arizona and ASU will be the big tests early in the season.


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I'm not saying the Gophers' current pitchers are anything but good. They're very good, but it remains to be seen if they can match up against the very elite top-ten NCAA teams. In the NCAAs they will need to have at least 2 pitchers of Sara G's 2017 caliber. The most likely candidates are Amber and Sidney. As one knowledgeable fan told me last year, "MN has Groenewegen. Florida has three Groenewegens." I sincerely hope the Gophers can pull that off.
 

Sure, maybe not "elite" this year. Last year, rode one elite senior and mixed in a couple good freshmen who seemingly beat out Finucane later in the season. This year, a junior, two sophomores (last year's good fresmen) and two freshmen. For what it's worth, Rachel Lowery started throwing in Florida for the first time since her shoulder surgery last year, and I was told that "she looked really good". I see them mixing it up a lot in the preseason to both assess the pitchers and limit the looks per game that batters see each pitcher.

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GopherSBdad said:
Sure, maybe not "elite" this year. Last year, rode one elite senior and mixed in a couple good freshmen who seemingly beat out Finucane later in the season. This year, a junior, two sophomores (last year's good fresmen) and two freshmen. For what it's worth, Rachel Lowery started throwing in Florida for the first time since her shoulder surgery last year, and I was told that "she looked really good". I see them mixing it up a lot in the preseason to both assess the pitchers and limit the looks per game that batters see each pitcher.

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Did you hear anything about how the players are responding to the new coach? (I'm not in any way, shape or form privy to any inside info on the team.) Assuming it will be a smooth transition.
 

Was looking up some stats from last season's Cyclone team.

They attempted 118 stolen bases and were successful 99 times.
Gophers ran 54 times and were successful 44 times. (Houlihan 14-16)

Sac bunts for the Cyclones 41.
Sac bunts for the Gophers 16.

She split the starts closely between 3 pitchers, 22, 19, 17
Same with appearances, 36, 34, 31

Some stats from her 2016 Bison team
They attempted 121 stolen bases and were successful 106
Sac bunts were at 19

2015 Bison stats
Stolen base attempts 152 and successful 121
Sac bunts were at 36

She had Menke and Sertic at NDSU, both strikeout pitchers. Menke with a high of 390 in 2015 and Sertic with 216 in 2016

Meaningless stats for the most part except for the base stealing and she might bunt runners over more than Allister did. Allister disdained giving up outs.
 

fan of Ray Williams said:
Did you hear anything about how the players are responding to the new coach? (I'm not in any way, shape or form privy to any inside info on the team.) Assuming it will be a smooth transition.
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I haven't heard anything negative. I'm sure they like how approachable Coach Trachsel is compared to Allister. She likes to interact with the players and has an open door. Allister was pretty private.

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fan of Ray Williams said:
Meaningless stats for the most part except for the base stealing and she might bunt runners over more than Allister did. Allister disdained giving up outs.
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I think the bunting and running has to do with the makeup of the team. Minnesota had a bunch of .300 hitters, and a lot of power.
 

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