University of Minnesota Athletics
Friday, May 24
Omaha, NE
7:30 PM
University of Minnesota
28-26
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Iowa
31-24
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Minnesota
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Iowa
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Photo by: Steven Branscombe
Minnesota Shuts Out Iowa to Advance to B1G Semifinals
5/25/2019 1:37:00 AM | Baseball
OMAHA, Neb. – In another must-win game, the Gopher Baseball team leaned on its pitching yet again to shut out Iowa 3-0 and advance to the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament at T.D. Ameritrade Park on Friday night.
With Minnesota (28-26) taking a 1-0 lead to the ninth inning, Easton Bertrand led off with a bunt single and stole second before Jordan Kozicky knocked him home to add insurance. Eli Wilson once again came up big for the Gophers with a two-out double to tack on another run. Brett Schulze entered with a runner on and continued the Maroon & Gold bullpen's dominance with a hitless inning for his ninth save of the season.
Each team threatened early, putting base runners on in both the first and second innings. Minnesota finally broke through in the third. After a lead-off walk by Ben Mezzenga, one of three free passes on the day for the outfielder and a bunt single by Zack Raabe, Wilson lined a single to center to bring home a run.
Cam Baumann (4-5) allowed just one run on three hits, but walked five batters in 4.0 innings before turning it over to the Iowa bullpen. Joshua Culliver worked in and out of trouble himself and saw his day end before he could claim a victory as well. He left with a runner on, finishing with 4.1 innings pitched, scattering four hits while striking out four. Ryan Duffy (1-2) relieved Culliver in the fifth, inducing an inning-ending double play to keep Iowa (31-23) off the board. He would finish with 3.2 innings pitched, allowing three runs while striking out four himself.
NOTABLE
Iowa was the lone team in the tournament field that Minnesota did not face during the regular season … Raabe extended his hitting streak to a team season-long 12 games with his single in the third … Mezzenga and Cole McDevitt each tied the Big Ten Tournament record with their three walks in the game … the Gopher bullpen has now thrown 17.0 shutout innings, allowing four hits and one unearned run this postseason.
Minnesota will need two victories Saturday against seventh-seed Ohio State (33-24) in order to advance to Sunday's Big Ten Championship game. The Maroon & Gold swept a three-game series against the Buckeyes in Minneapolis on May 4-5. First pitch of what the Gophers hope will be two games is set for 1 p.m. broadcasting live on Big Ten Network and streaming on BTN2Go.
With Minnesota (28-26) taking a 1-0 lead to the ninth inning, Easton Bertrand led off with a bunt single and stole second before Jordan Kozicky knocked him home to add insurance. Eli Wilson once again came up big for the Gophers with a two-out double to tack on another run. Brett Schulze entered with a runner on and continued the Maroon & Gold bullpen's dominance with a hitless inning for his ninth save of the season.
Each team threatened early, putting base runners on in both the first and second innings. Minnesota finally broke through in the third. After a lead-off walk by Ben Mezzenga, one of three free passes on the day for the outfielder and a bunt single by Zack Raabe, Wilson lined a single to center to bring home a run.
Cam Baumann (4-5) allowed just one run on three hits, but walked five batters in 4.0 innings before turning it over to the Iowa bullpen. Joshua Culliver worked in and out of trouble himself and saw his day end before he could claim a victory as well. He left with a runner on, finishing with 4.1 innings pitched, scattering four hits while striking out four. Ryan Duffy (1-2) relieved Culliver in the fifth, inducing an inning-ending double play to keep Iowa (31-23) off the board. He would finish with 3.2 innings pitched, allowing three runs while striking out four himself.
The Gophers had at least a base runner in every inning until the seventh, but Duncan Davitt continued to put zeroes on the board for the Hawkeyes. He allowed just two hits and a walk through his first 3.0 innings of work, but left with two on in the eighth after a Cole McDevitt walk and Jack Wassel single. Closer Grant Leonard shut the door in the eighth for Iowa, but could not keep Minnesota off the board in the ninth.A single for Wilson, and the #Gophers lead! pic.twitter.com/QtZyL0izYY
— Minnesota Baseball (@GopherBaseball) May 25, 2019
NOTABLE
Iowa was the lone team in the tournament field that Minnesota did not face during the regular season … Raabe extended his hitting streak to a team season-long 12 games with his single in the third … Mezzenga and Cole McDevitt each tied the Big Ten Tournament record with their three walks in the game … the Gopher bullpen has now thrown 17.0 shutout innings, allowing four hits and one unearned run this postseason.
UP NEXT😱 @JKozicky pic.twitter.com/cSApHLWapE
— Minnesota Baseball (@GopherBaseball) May 25, 2019
Minnesota will need two victories Saturday against seventh-seed Ohio State (33-24) in order to advance to Sunday's Big Ten Championship game. The Maroon & Gold swept a three-game series against the Buckeyes in Minneapolis on May 4-5. First pitch of what the Gophers hope will be two games is set for 1 p.m. broadcasting live on Big Ten Network and streaming on BTN2Go.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Duffy, Ryan (1-2)
L: Baumann (4-5)
S: Schulze, Brett (9)
Batting:
2B: Kozicky, Jordan 1 ; Wilson, Eli 1 ; Smith, Riley 1
RBI: Kozicky, Jordan 1 ; Wilson, Eli 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Mezzenga, Ben 1 ; Kozicky, Jordan 1 ; Bertrand, Easton 1
SB: Bertrand, Easton 1
CS: McDevitt, Cole 1
PO: McDevitt, Cole 1
Batting:
SH: Sher 1
Base Running:
SB: B. Norman 1
HBP: Adreon 1 ; Wetrich 2
Game Leaders
AB
5
R
1
H
2
RBI
1
AB
5
R
0
H
2
RBI
2
AB
4
R
0
H
2
RBI
0
AB
5
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
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LHP
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