University of Minnesota Athletics
Gopher Softball Can't Stop Wolveries, Fall 10-0
4/11/2010 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Minneapolis - Minnesota hosted No. 2 Michigan in the second and final game of the series today (Apr. 11), and after a slow start saw the second-ranked Wolverines heat up for a 10-0 win in five-innings at Jane Sage Cowles Stadium.
The Gophers were looking to rebound after a disappointing loss yesterday, with sophomore Alissa Koch (Racine, Wis.) leading the way in the circle. Making her first appearance since Mar. 27 and her first start since Mar. 21, Koch allowed one first inning run, but worked out of the jam before any more damage was done. With two runners on and just one out, Koch got a stikeout and a ground out to end the early threat.
The Gophers went down in order in the first and after Michigan tacked on three more in the second, Whitney Erickson (San Ramon, Calif.) singled to left field to become Minnesota's first baserunner of the weekend. Kelesy Klucas (Aitkin, Minn.) came in to run for Erickson and worked all the way over to third, but was left stranded as Dannie Skrove (Zimmerman, Minn.) stuck out to end the inning.
After logging 10 stikeouts yesterday, the Gophers were able to drop the number to four today, while Koch rang up five Wolverine batters. Three of those came at the expense of the reigning Big Ten Player of the Week, Michigan's Dorian Shaw, who went down swining in her first three at-bats. Shaw, however, put the final nail in the coffin as she broke out of her mini-slump with a three-run blast in the top of the fifth to push final score to 10-0.
The Wolverines did their damage on nine hits, capitolizing on three Gopher errors. Only five were earned, and in the third, they scored three runs without an official hit. Back-to-back errors by the Minnesota infield extended the inning and led to the rally.
Koch held the Wolverines off the board in the fourth, before the Shaw homer in the fifth. Shaw's counterpart last week in Player of the Week honors was pitcher Nikki Nemitz, who allowed just the one hit and only three total baserunners in her 13th win of the season. Nemitz threw just 64 pitches on the day.
With the loss, the Gophers are now 15-25 on the season with a 1-5 record in the Big Ten. The Wolverines won for the ninth-straight time, and for the third straight time in five innings. Michigan wins their 30th game of the season against just five losses, and remains perfect in Big Ten play at 7-0.
The Gophers' will look to get back in the win column as they travel to Northwestern for a mid-week doubleheder on Apr. 14. The first pitch is set for 2:00 p.m. Next weekend they return home to host Indiana on Apr. 17 and 18, scheduled for a 1:00 p.m. start each day.
