Gopher Softball 2018

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Panthadad2 said:
Sidebar note as I watch the Gopher/ASU game. It sure would be nice to see Gopher softball host a tournament at US Bank stadium this time of year like the baseball team did last week instead of traveling constantly. No idea if that stadium could realistically host softball with a dirt infield or have decent site lines for a softball field...but it would be nice.
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A turf infield is probably OK. I think they should do it but not sure how much it costs...

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rugger14 said:
A turf infield is probably OK. I think they should do it but not sure how much it costs...

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On the turf, they could probably pull it off. Bradley plays at the full turf Louisville Slugger complex and it's pretty darn nice...probably superior to the dirt fields in community parks that some of the big non-conference tournaments are at. Regarding cost, I'm just guessing, but it must cost the team at least $10,000 to travel for a long weekend. I have no idea what it costs to rent US Bank, but hopefully the travel savings, ticket sales, concessions, exposure, etc. would offset the rent charges.
 

Well the weekend did not work out as hoped. Three shots to get a win against ASU and it did not happen.

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rugger14 said:
Well the weekend did not work out as hoped. Three shots to get a win against ASU and it did not happen.

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To me, the question isn't what didn't happen, but WHY it didn't happen. Gophers' offense was non-existent & the infield defense a comedy of errors at crucial moments. The players seem disoriented and lacking in drive. I wonder: What's behind the inability to match up?
 

rugger14 said:
Well the weekend did not work out as hoped. Three shots to get a win against ASU and it did not happen.

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Yeah. Unfortunately, the games against ASU, UCLA and FSU have shown there's significant gap between the top contending teams and how the Gophies are playing right now. It's been a surprise. I saw a glimmer of their potential at the end of the GCU game, but it just hasn't come together against top competition. I hope they can pull it together during conference play.
 


Obviously the ship has sailed regarding hosting a regional, but the main goals remain attainable. Going to be one heck of a regional number 2 seed somewhere. And just maybe they will all peak at the right time, when it matters the most. It is still fairly early in March. Lots of time to turn this around.
 

MNsoftballfan said:
Obviously the ship has sailed regarding hosting a regional, but the main goals remain attainable. Going to be one heck of a regional number 2 seed somewhere. And just maybe they will all peak at the right time, when it matters the most. It is still fairly early in March. Lots of time to turn this around.
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Hopefully you're right. Seeing a resurgence would warm everybody's heart in this cold March weather. If they don't get some wins soon, though, the season and chances for an NCAA bid could be lost before they ever get a home game in April. Let's trust that doesn't happen.
 

Hrothgar said:
Hopefully you're right. Seeing a resurgence would warm everybody's heart in this cold March weather. If they don't get some wins soon, though, the season and chances for an NCAA bid could be lost before they ever get a home game in April. Let's trust that doesn't happen.
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Well, they have a game @ Zona and then three with NMSU. From there take care of business in the B1G. If they can't take care of business in the B1G, they don't deserve to go to a regional anyway.
 

Hrothgar said:
Hopefully you're right. Seeing a resurgence would warm everybody's heart in this cold March weather. If they don't get some wins soon, though, the season and chances for an NCAA bid could be lost before they ever get a home game in April. Let's trust that doesn't happen.
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I don't think they are in any danger of missing the tourney. Strong strength of schedule will (I think) equate to a relatively high RPI.
 




dlw4gophers said:
Don't you need to win a few of those
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Well, a win tonight vs. AZ would be helpful. Last chance for another top 25 win before at least the Big 10 tournament (Michigan). Let's hope Kentucky stays ranked for SOS purposes.

Edit: add Ohio State along with Michigan above
 

Panthadad2 said:
Well, a win tonight vs. AZ would be helpful. Last chance for another top 25 win before at least the Big 10 tournament (Michigan). Let's hope Kentucky stays ranked for SOS purposes.

Edit: add Ohio State along with Michigan above
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Actually I saw an unofficial RPI ranking today that has Nebraska at 15.

And with Iowa beating Arizona State today, combined with their earlier win over Baylor, maybe they sneak into the top 25 by the time the Gophers play them.
 

MNsoftballfan said:
Actually I saw an unofficial RPI ranking today that has Nebraska at 15.

And with Iowa beating Arizona State today, combined with their earlier win over Baylor, maybe they sneak into the top 25 by the time the Gophers play them.
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AND Illinois swept Missouri today.
 




Common theme among Gopher opponents this AZ road trip: great defense. It's been impressive.
 

Gophers beat the Wildcats 1-0 in 8 innings. Now that was a fun game to watch. Arizona has an incredible batting line-up and great team overall. Fiser pitched one of the best games I've seen a Gopher pitch. Solid defense. I'm hoping this game gives them a confidence boost going forward.
 


Panthadad2 said:
Gophers beat the Wildcats 1-0 in 8 innings. Now that was a fun game to watch. Arizona has an incredible batting line-up and great team overall. Fiser pitched one of the best games I've seen a Gopher pitch. Solid defense. I'm hoping this game gives them a confidence boost going forward.
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That game was awesome! Glad we came out on top!

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I thought the Arizona baseball announcers were highly entertaining. For those of you who didnt watch the live stream, two members of the AZ baseball team handled the broadcast and they were very colorful, to say the least. One of the players mentioned that they were just in Minneapolis playing the Gopher baseball team not too long ago. AGAIN, if Gopher baseball can host teams from Arizona, why can't Gopher softball??!!!
 

Mike Candrea might be my favorite D1 college coach. But jeez, he did the Gophers a favor by replacing Alyssa Denham with McQuillan in the 8th. Denham was pitching lights-out. Last year game 3 of the Super Regionals against Baylor, Candrea replaced all-world Daniel O'Toole with McQuillan in the 7th with a 2 run lead with the same results -- Baylor won in the 7th (granted O'Toole was shaky that game). Thank you Mr. Candrea.
 

Panthadad2 said:
Mike Candrea might be my favorite D1 college coach. But jeez, he did the Gophers a favor by replacing Alyssa Denham with McQuillan in the 8th. Denham was pitching lights-out. Last year game 3 of the Super Regionals against Baylor, Candrea replaced all-world Daniel O'Toole with McQuillan in the 7th with a 2 run lead with the same results -- Baylor won in the 7th (granted O'Toole was shaky that game). Thank you Mr. Candrea.
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Hmm. I cant really agree with that. McQuillan has been lights out this year. Plus what did she give up? A passed ball, a grounder to second that went under the player's glove, a pop fly? What else?
 

MNsoftballfan said:
I thought the Arizona baseball announcers were highly entertaining. For those of you who didnt watch the live stream, two members of the AZ baseball team handled the broadcast and they were very colorful, to say the least. One of the players mentioned that they were just in Minneapolis playing the Gopher baseball team not too long ago. AGAIN, if Gopher baseball can host teams from Arizona, why can't Gopher softball??!!!
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Yes, I love watching Arizona softball on livestream. My teenage daughter has an Arizona crush and got me to watch Arizona games last year. They routinely use their baseball players to announce the softball games. It's awesome. Totally rough, unprofessional, etc. but really cool. Minnesota should do the same.
 

MNsoftballfan said:
Hmm. I cant really agree with that. McQuillan has been lights out this year. Plus what did she give up? A passed ball, a grounder to second that went under the player's glove, a pop fly? What else?
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A run :)
 


Minnesota
Player IP H R ER BB SO WP BK HBP IBB AB BF FO GO NP
Amber Fiser (W, 10-5) 8.0 5 0 0 3 8 1 0 0 1 27 33 6 10 129
TOTALS 5 0 0 3 8 1 0 0 1 27 33 6 10 129
Arizona
Player IP H R ER BB SO WP BK HBP IBB AB BF FO GO NP
Denham, Alyssa (L, 3-1) 7.0 4 1 0 1 7 0 0 0 0 25 27 4 10 109
McQuillin, Taylor 1.0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 4 4 1 1 23
TOTALS 4 1 0 1 8 0 0 0 0 29 31 5 11 132
Win: Amber Fiser (10-5)
Loss: Denham, Alyssa (3-1)
 

MNsoftballfan said:
I thought the Arizona baseball announcers were highly entertaining. For those of you who didnt watch the live stream, two members of the AZ baseball team handled the broadcast and they were very colorful, to say the least. One of the players mentioned that they were just in Minneapolis playing the Gopher baseball team not too long ago. AGAIN, if Gopher baseball can host teams from Arizona, why can't Gopher softball??!!!
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Regarding your last comment, I would LOVE to see a big non-conference matchup at US Bank for softball. A B1G/ACC matchup or something similar would be awesome...just like baseball. I personally would buy tickets, concessions, high priced beer...the whole nine yards. The atmosphere and natural sunlight there are soooo much better than most indoor stadiums. All that extra outfield space could maybe be filled up with vendor demos and other softball stuff to juice excitement and revenue....just dreaming here.
 


rugger14 said:
The Zona win is a big one!

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Mentally it has to be good to get the monkey off their backs. I am greedy and want to see some hitting. The bats still concern me.
 

ComoGopher said:
Mentally it has to be good to get the monkey off their backs. I am greedy and want to see some hitting. The bats still concern me.
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I agree. It was encouraging to see the win. And to see Fiser carrying the team; with some team defense and hitting, she'd be undefeated. And to see Jensen "steal" a run. But the passive team performances at the plate are concerning. Batting avg. up & down the lineup are concerning to say the least.
 

Gophers strand 7 runners in the 1st 3 innings vs. NMSU. I wonder how frustrating it is for these young ladies so far this year; like running in thick mud. Sooooo close to breaking through. I almost feel like it would benefit them to take a couple weeks off to regroup. Some home games will hopefully help.
 

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