Gopher Softball 2020

[Holy Man]

I will always remember this tweet on the topic of intense parental involvement in their softball playing children:

This might be one of the best Tweets I have ever read! Good for you MaKenna. Encouraging a bit of grown up activity in future recruits says a lot about her, too. Sadly, parents lugging the bags for their kids says, perhaps, more about the parents than the kid.

 

[rowdaboat]

As an observer to my beloved program, from 900 miles to the south of Dinkytown, I guess what I don’t understand reading all these comments is if objectively Trachsel is the tyrant to the extent described, why the hell did Kate Reitcovich Browser leave with her?

Katie is from a coaching family. She is considered by some in the relatively small softball community to be a rising star I think. Why would she attach herself to an emotionally unstable sinking ship. Somebody probably knows. Educate me. Is she just like Trachsel in temperment too?

From her gophersports bio-

Katie Rietkovich was named to the Gopher softball staff on July 3, 2018 following a three year stint as a volunteer coach and camp coordinator at Ole Miss. She just finished her second season after helping lead the Gophers to new heights in 2019.

 

[MplsGopher]

I wonder if that's how Ole Miss contacted her, then.

Three years as a volunteer coach? That must not pay very well ...

 

[Citiesgophfan]

Volunteers in the SEC get more than you think! The NCAA only gets a certain amount of paid assistant coaches, it’s always a debate topic. But I know a volunteer that makes roughly 65k paid out of clinics. Yes you have to pay for your own insurance etc, but for a young healthy person trying to build a career, it’s not a bad gig.

 

[MNsoftballfan]

When Mike White left Oregon for Texas, the Oregon players were furious with the Oregon athletic department for not offering White a competitive contract, and obviously many of those players ultimately transferred. I was worried that the same would happen here. But has there been ANY love shown to Jamie by current or former players? I admit I'm not up to speed on twitter or instagram, but I suspect many of you are and to date nobody has posted anything from the players in support of the coach or against the athletic department for not retaining her. If true, the silence speaks volumes.

 

[Citiesgophfan]

Saw Josey White is in the portal as of now. Anyone know for sure if Reitkovich is going or any new details so far? How about Reina as she has been with Trachsel awhile?

Hope a great coach is hired soon and the girls can rally and have an amazing year!

 

[ClassOf98Gopher]

When Mike White left Oregon for Texas, the Oregon players were furious with the Oregon athletic department for not offering White a competitive contract, and obviously many of those players ultimately transferred. I was worried that the same would happen here. But has there been ANY love shown to Jamie by current or former players? I admit I'm not up to speed on twitter or instagram, but I suspect many of you are and to date nobody has posted anything from the players in support of the coach or against the athletic department for not retaining her. If true, the silence speaks volumes.

The 6 months to a year after Mike White left Oregon was a straight up 4 alarm fire of disaster for that storied softball program. Maybe their 4 best players transferred and the team was, by Oregon (Phil Knight) University standards, horrible the year after he left.

The year after Jess Allister left, from an fanatical observer at a distance perspective, Minnesota was the epitome of continuity. I am hoping this situation more resembles Minnesota’s past experience with this and less the Oregon/White model. That is worst case scenario stuff.

This next month through year will be so important for Minnesota softball as there is nothing written in stone that Minnesota must be a top of the BiG Ten type team. For a vast majority of the last 30 plus years they have been middle of the BigTen. It is the last 7 years or so that have been the aberration.

 

[Hrothgar]

When Mike White left Oregon for Texas, the Oregon players were furious with the Oregon athletic department for not offering White a competitive contract, and obviously many of those players ultimately transferred. I was worried that the same would happen here. But has there been ANY love shown to Jamie by current or former players? I admit I'm not up to speed on twitter or instagram, but I suspect many of you are and to date nobody has posted anything from the players in support of the coach or against the athletic department for not retaining her. If true, the silence speaks volumes.

My impression is that the true workings of women's sports at the U are cloaked in silence to the public, by design or accident is hard to know. Re 2020 softball: 1) Hope Brandner, arguably their best all-around player, disappears from the team w/ only vague announcements about medical clearance denied & she's barely mentioned in print again, as though disappearing from the face of the earth (at least IMO). 2) Then the HC leaves. Did she quit? Was she maneuvered out? Was she told to leave? Was she good? Was she a detriment? As far as I can tell, no comment from the U Admin. A vague announcement from the AD. A few words from the departing HC (apparently none at all to her players). No incisive, investigative articles from the local media (to my knowledge). That leaves posters, like us on this site, who take one stance or another, often feeling strongly & sometimes claiming to know much, but giving no incontrovertible, conclusive, documented details to support the arguments. Despite reading everything I can find, I know no more now for certain than I did before. There is behind the words a silence that speaks nothing to me, not volumes, in all respect to MNsoftballfan.

 

[newtogopherland]

Saw Josey White is in the portal as of now. Anyone know for sure if Reitkovich is going or any new details so far? How about Reina as she has been with Trachsel awhile?

Hope a great coach is hired soon and the girls can rally and have an amazing year!

 

[Panthadad2]

Thanks.

Where are the Twitter sleuths reporting on Gopher softball?

 

[bisonation]

I mentioned this in the 2021 thread, but Sara G has expressed an interest in coming back in some capacity following the Olympics. In fact, she stated that it would be "a dream come true."

Other names being bandied about are Jessica Merchant, Darren Mueller and Katie Richardson, but that's all just speculation.

Bottom line is it's a very attractive job for obvious reasons and Coyle has done pretty well with his hires thus far.

Just have to have faith and let the process play out.

NDSU board says Darren Mueller has turned down Gophers before (remember Trashchel (my name for her) was NDSU Asst Coach when she went down to DInkytown.

I'd love to see Darren at U of Minnesota, he would kill it, but he gets paid well at NDSU, goes to the Tourney every year and they've won some games and he controls the entire program up there.

 

[rugger14]

NDSU board says Darren Mueller has turned down Gophers before (remember Trashchel (my name for her) was NDSU Asst Coach when she went down to DInkytown.

I'd love to see Darren at U of Minnesota, he would kill it, but he gets paid well at NDSU, goes to the Tourney every year and they've won some games and he controls the entire program up there.

A few days late and a few dollars short? This post is relevant how? Also Jamie was the HC at ISU before she came here.

 

[MRJ]

A few days late and a few dollars short? This post is relevant how? Also Jamie was the HC at ISU before she came here.

Yeah, reminds me of someone showing up to a party a week late and wonders where all the people are.

I'm guessing news travels rather slowly in Fargo.

 

[bisonation]

LOL sorry, they said this thread was pretty harsh, so I finally saw it.

Yea she was at ISU after NDSU.

sorry! my point was Mueller turned down Gophers before, doubt Gophers would ask him again

 

[MRJ]

LOL sorry, they said this thread was pretty harsh, so I finally saw it.

Yea she was at ISU after NDSU.

sorry! my point was Mueller turned down Gophers before, doubt Gophers would ask him again

Actually, the bigger point is that Piper Ritter had been hired two days before you chimed in, so your entire premise was useless. It's therefore pretty obvious Coyle and the program wanted nothing to do with Mueller.

Like I said, news travels pretty slowly in Bison Nation apparently.

 

[rowdaboat]

Actually, the bigger point is that Piper Ritter had been hired two days before you chimed in, so your entire premise was useless. It's therefore pretty obvious Coyle and the program wanted nothing to do with Mueller.

Like I said, news travels pretty slowly in Bison Nation apparently.

The pigeons have a long flight from civilized areas to get the news there

 

[Hrothgar]

Strange. On my computer at least all the posts from April 28 to June 5 are suddenly missing.

 

[ComoGopher]

Allister has all the off-the-diamond social skills and personal visibility that made her a hit in the public eye and, I've heard, with recruits' families, too. Trachsel was never visible to the public, it seemed. She never let the fans know who she was. Even after 3 years of watching her with her teams on the field I wouldn't recognize her in person if we met on the street. On my way to the U, I sometimes walked by Cowles stadium from parking. If the softball team was practicing, Allister, her coaches, or the players would say a casual hello. Once I passed by the stadium under Trachsel. The team seemed to be practicing, but the gates were locked and a student assistant was sent out to ask me what I was doing there and where I was going. Unwelcome was the message. Very anecdotal, but stuff like that's why Allister would've gotten an extension even if she had a losing W/L record.

Allister and Trachsel are two very different personalities. Camps were like that as well. Allister was far more interactive with the campers. It will be interesting to see how Piper interacts with fans, softball alums, and boosters in her role as the head coach. I think she will be very warm and engaging based on what I have seen of her in the past.

 

[Gopher68]

Allister and Trachsel are two very different personalities. Camps were like that as well. Allister was far more interactive with the campers. It will be interesting to see how Piper interacts with fans, softball alums, and boosters in her role as the head coach. I think she will be very warm and engaging based on what I have seen of her in the past.

I agree. The times that I have met Piper she is very cordial. She is also very open in her answers to your questions. She will be great!

 

[goherfan48]

I agree. The times that I have met Piper she is very cordial. She is also very open in her answers to your questions. She will be great!

I agree totally, I am a big fan of Piper, she appears as she stated very intense and a technician of the game, This can be seen by her approach to pitching and game management. She appears to be able to accomplish this and still relate to her pitchers in a warm and caring way as shown by her past pitchers comments about her. I have a hunch that if you asked the rest of the team you would get the same answer. I feel that once she applies this to the rest of the game, thru her assistant coaches, which I feel will be excellent, the skill level of the players as well as the team culture will be very apparent, for the good. I to have met Piper and also found to be very cordial and approachable. I am beyond excited about the future of gopher softball. My only concern is with the U freeze on hiring, I hope this does not effect Piper's hiring of her assistants. She is going to need them.

 

[LarBear]

Its a fantastic day when all five seniors have decided to return

 

[Rich9]

Disappointed in big 10 coverage. Lets see how they cover men's baseball this week.

 

[Rich9]

I have noticed a huge difference between how baseball is covered over softball.

Base ball
Announcer and color person
Cameras that follow the action
balls and strikes up to date.

softball
No announcer or one that leaves during the middle of the game. No lineup card for the teams.
Very bad camera work. Kinch's homerun was a good shot of the gopher dugout. Half the hits were not seen. Could not see players numbers. (pony tails don't help) I can see the big 10 solving this one not allowing pony tails.
Balls and strikes were either not on or incorrect.
Anyone know where I can complain about this sexist problem.