Gopher Softball 2018

[GameDay]

Honestly the team and all the fans have to stop b****** and moaning about getting screwed in the brackets. If they want greater respect nationally they have to earn it. Dominating B1G play and winning the tournament year after year is cool and all but doesn't mean too much at all if they bow out in sub-regionals every year. Gotta show up and beat some good teams if you want to be considered an elite program.

The fact is that this year they don't have much goin for them when it comes to swinging the sticks outside of the 9, 1, 2, 3 spots in the order. Hard to beat stiff competition when hitters 4-8 consistently go quiet against respectable opponents.

 

[ComoGopher]

Another of those games when MN didn't bother to show up. I expected them to come out breathing fire to start the NCAAs, as though there was something to prove, but they pretty much drifted indifferently through the Texas game. A few players showed some signs of grief, but mostly it seemed pretty blasé, like, well, oh, well..... This game reminded me of the New Mexico State loss, the first MSU loss, and the defeat against PSU, games the Gophers showed little interest in. You won't win many games with only 4 hits. Senior leadership shone in its absence.

Interesting that the 2 top BIG teams (Michigan & MN) both lost while lesser teams found a way to win (WI, OSU, NW). Even NDSU, whom MN nearly always beats, won. Uninspiring.

Great post. These ladies can light a fire and do something or just accept their B1G title and go home. This was not an inspired performance. Please get it in gear tomorrow. This is a good team.

 

[GameDay]

Next year's roster has high potential if Traschel can develop 2-3 additional bats that can produce and Fiser can continue to improve (which I think she will), but the program has to overcome the sub-regional barrier which you know is going to be on the forefront of everyone's minds going forward. A transfer bat or two would really help solidify the team going into next year.

 

[fan of Ray Williams]

I know people want the Gophers to swing big bats in these games, but many times it just isn't going to happen.
Washington 4 hits through 5 innings.
Drake beating BYU with 5 hits into the 7th.
Arizona with 2 hits through 5 against St Francis.
Houston with 5 hits in a 1-0 game against Louisiana.
Ohio State with 5 hits in a 3-1 victory.
Liberty with 6 hits in a 2-0 win.
Tennessee with 4 hits against Monmouth.
South Carolina with 5 against UNC Greensboro.
Arizona State with 4 against New Mexico State.
UCLA with 6 against Sacramento State.
And that's the winning teams.

 

[rugger14]

Next year's roster has high potential if Traschel can develop 2-3 additional bats that can produce and Fiser can continue to improve (which I think she will), but the program has to overcome the sub-regional barrier which you know is going to be on the forefront of everyone's minds going forward. A transfer bat or two would really help solidify the team going into next year.

Wow. Transfer bat. Fair enough. I think we have some bats who didn't play much this year and some bats coming in with this recruiting class. Although the bats did not look great tonight I am always a fan of more pitching. Amber has pitched far too many innings this season... We need a real #2. I love Syd but her injury has limited her and Amber pitched too many innings.

Sent from my LG-H820 using Tapatalk

 

[dlw4gophers]

Win today and tomorrow . Let's talk about next years roster when the season is over.

 

[fan of Ray Williams]

So, 6:30 tonight. They can certainly beat Boise State.
None of the 16 seeds have a loss.
Albany and BYU are sent packing.

Hindsight of course, but I wonder if coach is kicking herself a little bit for not pinch running for Lindaman in the bottom of the 4th when she had the lead off double. Wasn't able to score on the Houlihan hit to left.

Texas starts NCAA regional with a win in Seattle
https://www.hookem.com/story/texas-starts-ncaa-regional-with-a-win-in-seattle/

 

[ComoGopher]

Hindsight of course, but I wonder if coach is kicking herself a little bit for not pinch running for Lindaman in the bottom of the 4th when she had the lead off double. Wasn't able to score on the Houlihan hit to left.

[/url]

We were talking about it at the time and wondering why there wasn't a runner.

 

[Gopher68]

Hindsight of course, but I wonder if coach is kicking herself a little bit for not pinch running for Lindaman in the bottom of the 4th when she had the lead off double. Wasn't able to score on the Houlihan hit to left.
[/url]

The runner on second would have held to make sure the ball dropped. I doubt there would have been a run scored on that hit.

 

[Hrothgar]

We were talking about it at the time and wondering why there wasn't a runner.

Lot of interesting messages here to read. As I see it, the team needs senior leadership, but the #4, 5, & 6 in the hitting order produced nothing and have been below their ability level for the season (#5 was injured a while). Losing to a top 10 team would be understandable, but Texas is ordinary. One or two hefty hits would have given MN a 4-5 run win against Texas. I hate to moralize, but the adage is true: If you want to be big-time, you have to produce big-time when it counts. Against Texas, the pitching wasn't great, but good enough. The MN hitters need some fire in their bellies. There was a feeling from inning 1 that they weren't going to come up with anything. They didn't.

 

[fan of Ray Williams]

The runner on second would have held to make sure the ball dropped. I doubt there would have been a run scored on that hit.

I just re watched it. Even with a speedy pinch runner, don't think they would have scored. Not because of having to hold up (although Lindaman didn't read it very well), the ball wasn't even close to being caught. The left fielder got there too quickly to prevent getting two bases out of it. Left fielder was pinching Houlihan a little bit, playing slightly shallower than normal due to Houlihan being left handed.

http://www.espn.com/watch/player?id=3373358

 

[overpass]

Northwestern pitcher has been called for 5 illegal pitches in the first inning vs Georgia after getting called for 11 yesterday.

 

[overpass]

Georgia batter should’ve been out 3 times now but an illegal pitch called each time lol

 

[fan of Ray Williams]

Northwestern pitcher has been called for 5 illegal pitches in the first inning vs Georgia after getting called for 11 yesterday.

She really is jumping.

 

[overpass]

She really is jumping.

I didn’t notice it in the Big Ten Tourney, or it wasn’t called atleast. Do you know if she always does this?

 

[fan of Ray Williams]

I didn’t notice it in the Big Ten Tourney, or it wasn’t called atleast. Do you know if she always does this?

I was going to ask you that. I sure wasn't on top of it, if she was.

 

[Panthadad2]

Watching the Ohio State vs. Florida game. OS up 2-0 in bottom of 5, but FL just loaded it up on an error by Piper. Thing is, slow motion shows the batted ball bounced off the FL runner's calf which changed the ball trajectory. Should have been an out.

edit. FL gets a run the next at bat.

 

[Panthadad2]

Another Ohio State vs. Florida note. I previously thought Barnhill was being criticized for leaping with the pivot foot. But after watching more closely, she does a full replant of the pivot foot and gets way with it. That's messed up.

 

[fan of Ray Williams]

Texas with 9 more outs to get. Hanging on to that 1-0 lead over Washington.
Scratch that.....1-1

 

[rowdaboat]

Texas tied into seventh, need them to win

 

[rowdaboat]

And now need a Texas rally

 

[dlw4gophers]

2-1. Washington. Probably makes no difference, but that 2nd out was BS. 1 St base ump needs to make that call. She didn't come close to going around on that swing.

 

[fan of Ray Williams]

Whew! Need that timely hit!

 

[#2Gopher]

Got a break with the umpire on that one.

 

[rugger14]

Got a break with the umpire on that one.

Yup. I will take it!

Sent from my LG-H820 using Tapatalk

 

[fan of Ray Williams]

I'm superstitious and I've been posting too much. I gotta stop and they will start scoring.

 

[MNsoftballfan]

Those unproductive outs are killers.

 

[#2Gopher]

Crap...shortstop having a tough inning.

 

[Gopherholefan]

Question for those who follow big ten softball- Is this pitcher for Boise that much better than what the gophers have faced during the conference season? I don’t know much about softball, but she doesn’t look like she’s throwing anything special up there. Or are they really tight like the coach just said in the mid inning interview ?

 

[MNsoftballfan]

now or never