.png&width=42&height=42&type=webp)
University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Drop Series Finale Versus Iowa, 7-1
5/1/2011 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
The Minnesota baseball team dropped a 7-1 decision to the Iowa Hawkeyes in the final game of its weekend series on Sunday at Target Field.
The loss snapped the Golden Gophers' five-game Big Ten winning streak, as they fell to 16-17 overall and 8-7 in the Big Ten. Iowa improved to 16-25 overall and 5-10 in the conference.
Andy Henkemeyer (Sauk Rapids, Minn.) accounted for the only run in the game for the Gophers, going 1-for-4 at the plate, while Troy Larson (Maplewood, Minn.) went 2-for-4 on the day. Larson and Henkemeyer each hit doubles for the Gophers, and Dan Olinger (Great Falls, Mont.) was 1-for-1 with a pinch-hit RBI single in the seventh inning.
Four Gopher pitchers saw action at the mound. Austin Lubinsky (La Crosse, Wis.) was tagged with the loss after he started the game and pitched 6.1 innings. Lubinsky gave up seven hits and four runs (two earned) to fall to 3-4 on the season.
Luke Rasmussen (Northfield, Minn.) came into the seventh and gave up three hits and one run. Cullen Sexton (Plover, Wis.) had a strikeout and one walk in two-thirds of an inning, before Alex Tukey (San Diego, Calif.) closed out the game by allowing two hits and two earned runs in an inning of work.
Patrick Lala picked up the win for the Hawkeyes, improving to 2-4 on the season. Lala worked 5.1 innings, allowing just two hits. He struck out a pair of Minnesota hitters, while walking three and hitting one batter. Tim Fangman came in relief in the sixth and closed out the game to record his third save of the season. Fangman entered the game with the Hawkeyes leading, 2-0, and gave up just two hits and one run in 3.2 innings.
Iowa came out right away in the top of the first. Trevor Willis slammed the first pitch up the left field line for a double. After Willis moved to third on a passed ball, Chett Ziese hit a grounder to shortstop to plate Willis and give the Hawkeyes an early 1-0 lead.
In the top of the third, Kurt Lee led off with a single up the middle to reach base. Ziese hit one just short of Larson in center field to make it first and second. Mike McQuillan brought in the second run with a hit to the outfield to make the score 2-0 in favor of the visitors.
The top of the seventh saw a lot of action, resulting in two runs to extend the Iowa lead. Lee was hit by a pitch from Lubinsky to make it first and second. With one out, bases were loaded on a single through the right side. Ziese hit one short to left field to plate Keppler who reached on a single down the third baseline and advanced on a sacrifice bunt. Lee was brought in on a fielder's choice RBI to up the score to 4-0.
Minnesota scored its lone run in the bottom of the seventh to cut the deficit to 4-1. Henkemeyer led off with his double to right field and advanced to third on a fielder's choice grounder to third by Kyle Geason (Eden Prairie, Minn.). After David Bettenburg struck out looking, Olinger pinch hit for Kurt Schlangen and hit an infield single to the Iowa shortstop to score Henkemeyer.
Tyson Blaser hit his first home run of the season to lead off the eighth and extend the Hawkeye lead to 5-1.
In the ninth, Blaser single to shortstop to load the bases with two outs, and Taylor Zeutenhorst singled to center to dive in a pair of runs and provide the Hawkeyes with the final margin of victory.
Iowa was led by McQuillan, who went 3-for-4 with one run and two RBI. Blaser had the weekend's only home run, and went 2-for-5 with one run and an RBI. Zeutenhorst and Ziese each contributed two RBI in the win.
Minnesota will travel to Fargo, N.D., for a 6:30 p.m. game at North Dakota State on Tuesday, May 3, before returning to league play next weekend (May 6-8) at Michigan.
