University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Travel to 8th-Ranked Michigan
4/10/2009 12:00:00 AM | Softball
MINNESOTA TRAVELS TO #8 MICHIGAN
Minnesota plays its third straight series against a nationally-ranked opponent when it faces 8th-ranked Michigan for a pair of games this weekend. The Gophers are 21-22 overall and are tied for fifth in the Big Ten with a mark of 4-4 following a split with #6 Northwestern on Wednesday. Minnesota lost the first game, 6-1, but handed the Wildcats their first Big Ten loss of the season with an 8-3 win in the nightcap. Senior pitcher Briana Hassett made history in the opening game by establishing a new single-season school record for strikeouts, breaking the previous mark of 311, set in 2003 by current Gophers pitching coach Piper Marten. A right-hander from Eagan, Minn., Hassett entered the week leading Division I softball in Ks, and she struck out 18 Northwestern batters on Wednesday to increase her total to 327 in 225 1/3 innings this year.
Hassett’s total currently ranks seventh in Big Ten history. She moved past the following players during Wednesday’s games: Piper Marten, Minnesota (311 in 2003); Lisa Birocci, Iowa (313 in 2004); Lorilyn Wilson, Michigan (317 in 2007); and Marissa Young, Michigan (319 in 2000). Former Northwestern hurler Eileen Canney is sixth on the list with 383 in 2006.
Minnesota trails 68-24 in the all-time series with the Wolverines. The Gophers own a mark of 21-61 in regular season contests, and are 3-7 in non-conference or tournament games between the schools. A TOUGH STRETCH
This weekend’s games versus Michigan wrap up a stretch of six-straight contests against nationally-ranked opponents. Last weekend, Minnesota dropped a pair of 1-0 decisions at home to #17 Ohio State. In those games, Briana Hassett struck out 18 batters and held OSU without a home run. The Buckeyes feature one of the nation’s home run leaders in junior catcher Sam Marder, and had hit 40 homers as a team entering the series.
On Wednesday versus #6 Northwestern, Hassett again struck out 18, and became the first Big Ten pitcher this season to record a win against the Wildcats. She allowed just one home run to a team that entered the day with a Big Ten-leading 51 homers, and had four players with nine or more home runs.
Minnesota’s record is deceptive at 21-22. The Gophers have played a very challenging schedule, with a total of 21 contests against teams listed among this week’s Top 100 RPI. Minnesota is 2-7 versus the Top 25, 3-9 against the Top 50, and 8-13 against the Top 100.
SCOUTING MICHIGAN
The #8 Wolverines are 27-9 overall and 4-2 in the Big Ten after a 7-2 win at Central Michigan on Wednesday. Michigan swept its conference series with Purdue last Saturday. The Maize and Blue won the first game, 3-1, then escaped with a 4-3 win in nine innings in the nightcap.
Michigan enjoys the luxury of having two very reliable pitchers. Junior left-hander Nikki Nemitz is 17-5 with a 0.77 ERA, and has struck out 201 batters in 136 innings. The other starter is sophomore righty Jordan Taylor, who enters the weekend with a mark of 10-4, a 1.65 ERA, and 158 Ks in 114.2 IP.
Offensively, freshman Amanda Chidester is batting .391 (45-for-115) with 27 runs scored, 28 RBI, six doubles, three triples, and six home runs. BARNES TEARING UP BIG TEN PITCHING
Sophomore first baseman Malisa Barnes stretched her career-long hitting streak to 11 games by going 2-for-3 with an RBI in the first game against Northwestern on Wednesday, before the Wildcats snapped the streak by walking her three times (twice intentionally) in the second game.
During her streak, the native of Phoenix, Ariz., batted .500 (18-for-36) with 11 RBI, eight runs scored, three home runs, and a double, while striking out just three times.
For the season, Barnes is batting .341 (46-for-135), with team-leading totals for runs scored (24), hits (46), home runs (5), runs batted in (24), on base percentage (.426), and slugging percentage (.489), all while maintaining a .983 fielding percentage. In Big Ten play, Barnes is batting a sizzling .545 (12-for-22), with five runs scored, five RBI, two home runs, an .818 slugging percentage, and a .655 on base percentage. HASSETT LEADS NATION IN STRIKEOUTS
Senior pitcher Briana Hassett continues to lead NCAA Division I softball in strikeouts, according to stats released by the NCAA Tuesday afternoon. In an updated list, through games of April 9, Hassett has struck out a career-high 327 batters to rank just ahead of Fresno State’s Morgan Melloh, who ranks second with 308 strikeouts. The remainder of the Top 10 includes Whitney Canion, Baylor (281); Danielle Lawrie, Washington (267); Ashlyn Williams, Troy (265); Danielle Spaulding, North Carolina (240); Lauren Delaney, Northwestern (235); Missy Penna, Stanford (233); Brittany Weil, Iowa (218); Stacey Nelson, Florida (205); and Kylie Reynolds, Kent State (202). Michigan’s Nikki Nemitz was 12th on the list with 201 strikeouts.
In addition, Hassett was tied for third in shutouts, tied for eighth in victories, and 10th in strikeouts per seven innings. CONWAY CONNECTING
Senior Colleen Conway, who led Minnesota with a .331 average in 2008 and has started every game of her Golden Gopher career, is second on the team with a .282 (42-for-149) batting average. Conway also has scored 22 runs and driven in seven runs, while hitting four doubles, two triples, and stealing eight bases in 10 attempts. She has started the past four games at shortstop for the Gophers. MORE ABOUT HASSETT
In 39 appearances totaling 225 1/3 innings, Hassett has struck out an eye-popping 327 batters. An impressive 48.4 percent of the outs Hassett has been responsible for this season have come via the strikeout, and she currently averages 10.16 Ks per seven-inning game.
In Big Ten games, the senior standout is 4-4 with a 1.78 ERA and 74 strikeouts in 55.0 IP. She has limited opponents to just 17 runs (14 earned) in Minnesota’s eight conference games this season.
Hassett also has 28 complete games in 35 starts this year, and has notched 12 shutouts. She ranks among the Big Ten’s leaders in the following categories (through games of April 8): Strikeouts (327, 1st); Strikeouts Looking (86, 1st); Innings Pitched (225.1, 1st); Appearances (39, 1st); Games Started (35, 1st); Wins (20, 2nd); Opponent BA (.175, 4th); ERA (1.83, 9th). KEEPING AN EYE ON THE CHARTS
With the single-season strikeout mark already in the books for this year, Hassett has the potential to make her mark on several other categories this season. Hassett needs just three more shutouts this season to break Vicki Swanson’s mark of 14, which Swanson set during the 1978 season.
In addition, Hassett is moving up several of Minnesota’s career pitching charts, currently ranking second for strikeouts (875) and shutouts (29), third for complete games (77), and fifth for both wins (58) and innings pitched (695.1). GETTING DEFENSIVE
Not surprisingly, senior catcher Shannon Stemper leads the Big Ten with 385 putouts, which is 65 more than the runner-up in the category. As a team, the Gophers lead the Big Ten with 366 Ks, to account for the vast majority of Stemper’s total.
Senior infielder Colleen Conway also leads the Big Ten in a defensive category, and by a wide margin. Conway has recorded 92 assists while playing third base and shortstop, which is 24 more the the player ranked second in the category.
In addition to her 385 putouts, Stemper has 10 assists and five errors behind the plate, which adds up to an impressive .988 fielding percentage. More impressively, Stemper has recorded 1,129 putouts, 46 assists, and just eight errors during her career, for a .993 percentage in 153 career games. BOTTOM’S UP
The bottom of Minnesota’s batting order came up huge in the 8-3 win against NU on Wednesday. Katie Dalen (1-for-4), Heidi Carls (1-for-3), Aubrey Davis (2-for-4), and Tina Watts (2-for-3) combined to go 6-for-14 with five runs scored and three RBI.
Minnesota plays its third straight series against a nationally-ranked opponent when it faces 8th-ranked Michigan for a pair of games this weekend. The Gophers are 21-22 overall and are tied for fifth in the Big Ten with a mark of 4-4 following a split with #6 Northwestern on Wednesday. Minnesota lost the first game, 6-1, but handed the Wildcats their first Big Ten loss of the season with an 8-3 win in the nightcap. Senior pitcher Briana Hassett made history in the opening game by establishing a new single-season school record for strikeouts, breaking the previous mark of 311, set in 2003 by current Gophers pitching coach Piper Marten. A right-hander from Eagan, Minn., Hassett entered the week leading Division I softball in Ks, and she struck out 18 Northwestern batters on Wednesday to increase her total to 327 in 225 1/3 innings this year.
Hassett’s total currently ranks seventh in Big Ten history. She moved past the following players during Wednesday’s games: Piper Marten, Minnesota (311 in 2003); Lisa Birocci, Iowa (313 in 2004); Lorilyn Wilson, Michigan (317 in 2007); and Marissa Young, Michigan (319 in 2000). Former Northwestern hurler Eileen Canney is sixth on the list with 383 in 2006.
Minnesota trails 68-24 in the all-time series with the Wolverines. The Gophers own a mark of 21-61 in regular season contests, and are 3-7 in non-conference or tournament games between the schools. A TOUGH STRETCH
This weekend’s games versus Michigan wrap up a stretch of six-straight contests against nationally-ranked opponents. Last weekend, Minnesota dropped a pair of 1-0 decisions at home to #17 Ohio State. In those games, Briana Hassett struck out 18 batters and held OSU without a home run. The Buckeyes feature one of the nation’s home run leaders in junior catcher Sam Marder, and had hit 40 homers as a team entering the series.
On Wednesday versus #6 Northwestern, Hassett again struck out 18, and became the first Big Ten pitcher this season to record a win against the Wildcats. She allowed just one home run to a team that entered the day with a Big Ten-leading 51 homers, and had four players with nine or more home runs.
Minnesota’s record is deceptive at 21-22. The Gophers have played a very challenging schedule, with a total of 21 contests against teams listed among this week’s Top 100 RPI. Minnesota is 2-7 versus the Top 25, 3-9 against the Top 50, and 8-13 against the Top 100.
SCOUTING MICHIGAN
The #8 Wolverines are 27-9 overall and 4-2 in the Big Ten after a 7-2 win at Central Michigan on Wednesday. Michigan swept its conference series with Purdue last Saturday. The Maize and Blue won the first game, 3-1, then escaped with a 4-3 win in nine innings in the nightcap.
Michigan enjoys the luxury of having two very reliable pitchers. Junior left-hander Nikki Nemitz is 17-5 with a 0.77 ERA, and has struck out 201 batters in 136 innings. The other starter is sophomore righty Jordan Taylor, who enters the weekend with a mark of 10-4, a 1.65 ERA, and 158 Ks in 114.2 IP.
Offensively, freshman Amanda Chidester is batting .391 (45-for-115) with 27 runs scored, 28 RBI, six doubles, three triples, and six home runs. BARNES TEARING UP BIG TEN PITCHING
Sophomore first baseman Malisa Barnes stretched her career-long hitting streak to 11 games by going 2-for-3 with an RBI in the first game against Northwestern on Wednesday, before the Wildcats snapped the streak by walking her three times (twice intentionally) in the second game.
During her streak, the native of Phoenix, Ariz., batted .500 (18-for-36) with 11 RBI, eight runs scored, three home runs, and a double, while striking out just three times.
For the season, Barnes is batting .341 (46-for-135), with team-leading totals for runs scored (24), hits (46), home runs (5), runs batted in (24), on base percentage (.426), and slugging percentage (.489), all while maintaining a .983 fielding percentage. In Big Ten play, Barnes is batting a sizzling .545 (12-for-22), with five runs scored, five RBI, two home runs, an .818 slugging percentage, and a .655 on base percentage. HASSETT LEADS NATION IN STRIKEOUTS
Senior pitcher Briana Hassett continues to lead NCAA Division I softball in strikeouts, according to stats released by the NCAA Tuesday afternoon. In an updated list, through games of April 9, Hassett has struck out a career-high 327 batters to rank just ahead of Fresno State’s Morgan Melloh, who ranks second with 308 strikeouts. The remainder of the Top 10 includes Whitney Canion, Baylor (281); Danielle Lawrie, Washington (267); Ashlyn Williams, Troy (265); Danielle Spaulding, North Carolina (240); Lauren Delaney, Northwestern (235); Missy Penna, Stanford (233); Brittany Weil, Iowa (218); Stacey Nelson, Florida (205); and Kylie Reynolds, Kent State (202). Michigan’s Nikki Nemitz was 12th on the list with 201 strikeouts.
In addition, Hassett was tied for third in shutouts, tied for eighth in victories, and 10th in strikeouts per seven innings. CONWAY CONNECTING
Senior Colleen Conway, who led Minnesota with a .331 average in 2008 and has started every game of her Golden Gopher career, is second on the team with a .282 (42-for-149) batting average. Conway also has scored 22 runs and driven in seven runs, while hitting four doubles, two triples, and stealing eight bases in 10 attempts. She has started the past four games at shortstop for the Gophers. MORE ABOUT HASSETT
In 39 appearances totaling 225 1/3 innings, Hassett has struck out an eye-popping 327 batters. An impressive 48.4 percent of the outs Hassett has been responsible for this season have come via the strikeout, and she currently averages 10.16 Ks per seven-inning game.
In Big Ten games, the senior standout is 4-4 with a 1.78 ERA and 74 strikeouts in 55.0 IP. She has limited opponents to just 17 runs (14 earned) in Minnesota’s eight conference games this season.
Hassett also has 28 complete games in 35 starts this year, and has notched 12 shutouts. She ranks among the Big Ten’s leaders in the following categories (through games of April 8): Strikeouts (327, 1st); Strikeouts Looking (86, 1st); Innings Pitched (225.1, 1st); Appearances (39, 1st); Games Started (35, 1st); Wins (20, 2nd); Opponent BA (.175, 4th); ERA (1.83, 9th). KEEPING AN EYE ON THE CHARTS
With the single-season strikeout mark already in the books for this year, Hassett has the potential to make her mark on several other categories this season. Hassett needs just three more shutouts this season to break Vicki Swanson’s mark of 14, which Swanson set during the 1978 season.
In addition, Hassett is moving up several of Minnesota’s career pitching charts, currently ranking second for strikeouts (875) and shutouts (29), third for complete games (77), and fifth for both wins (58) and innings pitched (695.1). GETTING DEFENSIVE
Not surprisingly, senior catcher Shannon Stemper leads the Big Ten with 385 putouts, which is 65 more than the runner-up in the category. As a team, the Gophers lead the Big Ten with 366 Ks, to account for the vast majority of Stemper’s total.
Senior infielder Colleen Conway also leads the Big Ten in a defensive category, and by a wide margin. Conway has recorded 92 assists while playing third base and shortstop, which is 24 more the the player ranked second in the category.
In addition to her 385 putouts, Stemper has 10 assists and five errors behind the plate, which adds up to an impressive .988 fielding percentage. More impressively, Stemper has recorded 1,129 putouts, 46 assists, and just eight errors during her career, for a .993 percentage in 153 career games. BOTTOM’S UP
The bottom of Minnesota’s batting order came up huge in the 8-3 win against NU on Wednesday. Katie Dalen (1-for-4), Heidi Carls (1-for-3), Aubrey Davis (2-for-4), and Tina Watts (2-for-3) combined to go 6-for-14 with five runs scored and three RBI.
Players Mentioned
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/ SoftballHighlights: Gophers 6, Central Michigan 1
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