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Gophers Host Annual Awards Banquet
9/27/2018 11:23:00 PM | Softball
MINNEAPOLIS – The University of Minnesota softball team celebrated another great year of Gopher softball with their annual team awards banquet this past weekend. The night honored individual team award winners, All-conference honorees and All-American accolades from the 2018 season.
A Look Back at 2018
For the third consecutive season the Gophers took home the Big Ten Tournament title. The Gophers went into the tournament as the No. 2 seed after posting a 13-3 Big Ten record in the regular season. Minnesota made their sixth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance playing in the Seattle Regional before falling to the eventual national runner-up Washington Huskies in the regional final. The Gophers also added on to a 32 game home winning streak at Jane Sage Cowles Stadium which is the longest home winning streak in program history.
The Gophers were strong in the circle behind the arms of Amber Fiser, Sydney Smith, Carlie Brandt, Hannah Branch and Rachel Lowary. The Gopher pitching staff recorded a 1.90 ERA which was the second lowest in the Big Ten and 14th lowest in the NCAA.
At the plate, Minnesota held the fourth best average in the conference with a .289 mark. The 55 long balls was the second highest in the conference as well as the 293 runs batted in. Scoring 5.69 runs/game the Gophers ranked third in the Big Ten and 26th in the NCAA.
Most Outstanding Player: Kendyl Lindaman
Now an upperclassman, Kendyl Lindaman followed up a stellar freshman season with an even better sophomore season. Starting in all 58 games as the Gophers catcher the Ankeny, Iowa native ranked eighth in the NCAA and led the Big Ten with 20 home runs. That home run mark tied the program's single-season record which she set last season. For the second-straight season Lindaman was named Big Ten Player of the Year after posting a .512 batting average in Big Ten play along with a 1.279 slugging percentage.
A Second Team NFCA All-American, Lindaman was also named to the First Team All-Big Ten and was named to the USA Softball Player of the Year Top 50 Watch List. She was also a Google cloud Academic All-America, Academic All-Big Ten, Big Ten Distinguished Scholar Award recipient and NFCA All-America Scholar Athlete.
Most Outstanding Pitcher: Amber Fiser
Taking on a new role as the Gophers ace, Fiser posted a 27-10 record with a 1.68 ERA. In conference play she was 13-3 with a Big Ten leading 0.85 conference ERA. Her nine shutouts ranked 17th in the NCAA and second in the Big Ten while her 237 strikeouts ranked 24th in the NCAA and second in the Big Ten. She threw her first collegiate no-hitter against Illinois in the Gophers home opener only to follow up a few weeks later with the program's sixth perfect game in the series opener at Purdue. Fiser picked up the win in the Gophers biggest win of the season at No. 9 Arizona while also collecting a career-high 11 strikeouts at Arizona State. She was named to the First Team All-Great Lakes Region, First Team All-Big Ten, earned Academic All-Big Ten honors and was a Big Ten Distinguished Scholar Award Recipient.
Rookie of the Year: Ellee Jensen
It was nothing short of an incredible rookie season for outfielder Ellee Jensen. The Watertown, Wis. native led the team in batting average with a mark of .401 to become just the third freshman in program history to hit .400 or better in their rookie season. The .401 mark was also the third highest season average among Big Ten players to accompany a .390 batting average in conference play. Hitting in the nine hole for 51 games and the leadoff spot in seven, Jensen recorded 18 multi-hit games. Jensen most notably scored the game-winning run in the Gophers upset win over No. 9 Arizona while also putting on a big performance in the Big Ten Tournament going 5-for-9 with four runs and a double. She was named to the Second Team All-Great Lakes Region, Second Team All-Big Ten and to the inaugural All-Big Ten Freshman Team.
Gold Bar Award: Dani Wagner
A senior leader in centerfield, Wagner played a pivotal role in the Gophers lineup. Facing injury midway through the season, Wagner battled back to appear in conference play aiding Minnesota to another Big Ten Tournament title. Hitting .283 in her final season for the Maroon and Gold, Wagner finishes her Gophers career with a .303 mark. During the 2018 season, she scored 32 runs, recorded eight doubles, one triple, launched seven home runs and brought in 29 runs. 16 of those 29 RBI came during Big Ten play. Wagner was named an Academic All-Big Ten honoree.
Teammate of the Year: Ellie Cowger
Passionate. One of many words to describe Ellie Cowger. A constant vocal leader from the dugout there was no doubt that that Cowger would be the teammate of the year. Battling a leg injury in her senior season, Cowger did not let it affect her ability to encourage others. A highlight in her senior season was making a plate appearance against Penn State just a few short weeks after she was fully cleared to play. In her first at bat of the season she roped a RBI single as the Gophers picked up the win over Penn State. Cowger was an Academic All-Big Ten honoree, Big Ten Distinguished Award winner and NFCA All-America Scholar Athlete.
A Look Back at 2018
For the third consecutive season the Gophers took home the Big Ten Tournament title. The Gophers went into the tournament as the No. 2 seed after posting a 13-3 Big Ten record in the regular season. Minnesota made their sixth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance playing in the Seattle Regional before falling to the eventual national runner-up Washington Huskies in the regional final. The Gophers also added on to a 32 game home winning streak at Jane Sage Cowles Stadium which is the longest home winning streak in program history.
The Gophers were strong in the circle behind the arms of Amber Fiser, Sydney Smith, Carlie Brandt, Hannah Branch and Rachel Lowary. The Gopher pitching staff recorded a 1.90 ERA which was the second lowest in the Big Ten and 14th lowest in the NCAA.
At the plate, Minnesota held the fourth best average in the conference with a .289 mark. The 55 long balls was the second highest in the conference as well as the 293 runs batted in. Scoring 5.69 runs/game the Gophers ranked third in the Big Ten and 26th in the NCAA.
Most Outstanding Player: Kendyl Lindaman
Now an upperclassman, Kendyl Lindaman followed up a stellar freshman season with an even better sophomore season. Starting in all 58 games as the Gophers catcher the Ankeny, Iowa native ranked eighth in the NCAA and led the Big Ten with 20 home runs. That home run mark tied the program's single-season record which she set last season. For the second-straight season Lindaman was named Big Ten Player of the Year after posting a .512 batting average in Big Ten play along with a 1.279 slugging percentage.
A Second Team NFCA All-American, Lindaman was also named to the First Team All-Big Ten and was named to the USA Softball Player of the Year Top 50 Watch List. She was also a Google cloud Academic All-America, Academic All-Big Ten, Big Ten Distinguished Scholar Award recipient and NFCA All-America Scholar Athlete.
Most Outstanding Pitcher: Amber Fiser
Taking on a new role as the Gophers ace, Fiser posted a 27-10 record with a 1.68 ERA. In conference play she was 13-3 with a Big Ten leading 0.85 conference ERA. Her nine shutouts ranked 17th in the NCAA and second in the Big Ten while her 237 strikeouts ranked 24th in the NCAA and second in the Big Ten. She threw her first collegiate no-hitter against Illinois in the Gophers home opener only to follow up a few weeks later with the program's sixth perfect game in the series opener at Purdue. Fiser picked up the win in the Gophers biggest win of the season at No. 9 Arizona while also collecting a career-high 11 strikeouts at Arizona State. She was named to the First Team All-Great Lakes Region, First Team All-Big Ten, earned Academic All-Big Ten honors and was a Big Ten Distinguished Scholar Award Recipient.
Rookie of the Year: Ellee Jensen
It was nothing short of an incredible rookie season for outfielder Ellee Jensen. The Watertown, Wis. native led the team in batting average with a mark of .401 to become just the third freshman in program history to hit .400 or better in their rookie season. The .401 mark was also the third highest season average among Big Ten players to accompany a .390 batting average in conference play. Hitting in the nine hole for 51 games and the leadoff spot in seven, Jensen recorded 18 multi-hit games. Jensen most notably scored the game-winning run in the Gophers upset win over No. 9 Arizona while also putting on a big performance in the Big Ten Tournament going 5-for-9 with four runs and a double. She was named to the Second Team All-Great Lakes Region, Second Team All-Big Ten and to the inaugural All-Big Ten Freshman Team.
Gold Bar Award: Dani Wagner
A senior leader in centerfield, Wagner played a pivotal role in the Gophers lineup. Facing injury midway through the season, Wagner battled back to appear in conference play aiding Minnesota to another Big Ten Tournament title. Hitting .283 in her final season for the Maroon and Gold, Wagner finishes her Gophers career with a .303 mark. During the 2018 season, she scored 32 runs, recorded eight doubles, one triple, launched seven home runs and brought in 29 runs. 16 of those 29 RBI came during Big Ten play. Wagner was named an Academic All-Big Ten honoree.
Teammate of the Year: Ellie Cowger
Passionate. One of many words to describe Ellie Cowger. A constant vocal leader from the dugout there was no doubt that that Cowger would be the teammate of the year. Battling a leg injury in her senior season, Cowger did not let it affect her ability to encourage others. A highlight in her senior season was making a plate appearance against Penn State just a few short weeks after she was fully cleared to play. In her first at bat of the season she roped a RBI single as the Gophers picked up the win over Penn State. Cowger was an Academic All-Big Ten honoree, Big Ten Distinguished Award winner and NFCA All-America Scholar Athlete.
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