University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Take On Cal in Midweek Contest
3/17/2015 12:00:00 AM | Softball
| No. 15 Minnesota at No. 12/14 California | |
| Date and Time | Wednesday, March 18, 2015 • 6 p.m. CT |
| Location | Levine-Fricke Field • Berkeley, Calif. |
| Live Coverage | Gopher Softball Live | Live Stats |
| Game Notes | Minnesota |
| Official Sites | Minnesota | California |
| Social Media | @GopherSoftball | Facebook | Instagram |
BERKELEY, Calif. - The No. 15 Minnesota softball team will face one last test before opening Big Ten play as it takes on No. 12/14 California Wednesday night at 6 CT. The Gophers will then travel to Illinois for its first conference series of the season.
LAST TIME OUT
Last weekend, the Minnesota softball team's winning streak hit nine games, making it the team's longest such streak since 2008, after it defeated South Dakota State, Pacific, Fresno State, Montana and Cal Poly at the Fresno State Classic.
AGAINST THE GOLDEN BEARS
All-time, the Gophers are 2-10 against Cal, but they have not played the Golden Bears since 2004. Cal won that game, 6-2, in San Jose, Calif.
GOPHERS IN THE GOLDEN STATE
Minnesota is seeking its 100th all-time win in the state of California Wednesday. The Gophers are 99-114 in the Golden State with a mark of 15-3 under Jessica Allister, including 9-0 in 2015.
TOUGH COMPETITION
This season, the Gophers are 2-0 against top-25 ranked opponents and are 7-2 against teams receiving votes in either major poll. In those nine games, Hannah Granger has been the team's top offensive threat with a .615 batting average, .667 on-base percentage and a 1.038 slugging percentage. In the circle, Sara Groenewegen is 7-1 with a 1.56 ERA and 76 strikeouts in 49.1 innings. Minnesota is also 5-0 against teams from the Pac-12 conference.
ROAD WARRIORS
Having yet to play a home game, the Gophers have played eight road games and 19 neutral-site games. In true road games, Minnesota is 8-0 and has outscored its opponents 68-23. Danielle Parlich has thrived in such contests, hitting for a .520 average.
GETTING ON BASE AND SCORING
Minnesota's offense has aided greatly in its 23-4 start. The Gophers have hit for a .353 average, the 12th-best in NCAA Division I, and have accrued a .443 on-base percentage (17th). The team has averaged 7.30 runs per game, the 17th-best mark in the NCAA.
OFFENSIVE EXPLOSION
The Gophers made program history last Friday when they posted a 20-3 win over South Dakota State. The 20 runs were the most the team has scored in a single game in the NCAA era (dating back to 1982). Minnesota exploded for 16 runs in the first inning as its first 13 hitters reached base.
SCORING A RECORD
With two runs in a 3-1 win over Fresno State, senior Tyler Walker tied and broke Minnesota's program record for runs scored. After scoring once more Sunday, the San Jose, Calif. native upped her three-plus year total to 177.
IN THE GAME, ON THE BOARD
In the Gophers' 20-3 win over South Dakota State last weekend, 19 of 22 players on Minnesota's roster played in the game and 14 different players reach base. Freshmen Ellie Cowger and Dani Cowger each recorded her first-career hit. Cowger notched an RBI double, while Wagner had a pair of doubles and added a stolen base.
RUN RULE WINS
The Gophers have piled up eight run-rule wins in their first 27 games. Last year, 11 of the Gophers' 44 wins were by run-rule decision.
STRIKING THEM OUT
Sara Groenewegen, who led the nation with 11.6 strikeouts per seven innings last season, has kept fanning hitters in 2015. The reigning Big Ten Pitcher of the Year has 155 strikeouts in 102 innings (10.6 strikeouts per seven innings) so far. She has had seven double-digit strikeout showings and has matched her career-high with 14 strikeouts two times. She enters the weekend ranked third in the nation in batters struck out.
BEST IN THE B1G
Through six weeks of play, three Gophers have combined for six Big Ten weekly accolades. Sara Groenewegen was named the Big Ten Pitcher of the Week three times, while Danielle Parlich was the conference's top rookie in the first weekend of the season and last weekend. Erica Meyer became Minnesota's first Big Ten Player of the Week since 2013 the week of Feb. 23.
IN THE RANKINGS
After starting the season with its highest preseason ranking in program history at No. 15 (in both polls), Minnesota is back where it started after starting 23-4. The Gophers reached as high as No. 11 in the ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25 Poll, a program-best.
MILESTONE WINS
The Gophers' victory over UMass Lowell Feb. 15 was fifth-year head coach Jessica Allister's 150th win at Minnesota. Her current record with the Maroon and Gold is 165-81, good for a .671 winning percentage. The Maroon and Gold, in its 42nd season, hit the 1,200 all-time win mark with its last win over Stanford March 8.
