University of Minnesota Athletics
Tuesday, March 1
6:00 PM
University of Minnesota
vs
St. Thomas
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RHP
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SS
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Gophers to Host UST, SDSU at U.S. Bank Stadium
2/28/2022 10:36:00 PM | Baseball
Minnesota plays UST Tuesday, SDSU Wednesday at 6 p.m.
Tuesday, March 1
Minnesota vs. St. Thomas
First Pitch: 6 p.m. CT
Location: U.S. Bank Stadium
Minnesota Starter: LHP Jack Liffrig (0-1, 19.80 ERA, 5 K)
St. Thomas Starter: LHP Graham Laubscher (0-0, 2.00 ERA, 14 K)
Stream: B1G+
Wednesday, March 2
Minnesota vs. South Dakota State
First Pitch: 6 p.m. CT
Location: U.S. Bank Stadium
Minnesota Starter: RHP Richie Holetz (0-1, 10.80 ERA, 1 K)
South Dakota State Starter: RHP Dane Toman (0-0, 0.00 ERA, 3 K)
Stream: B1G+
MINNEAPOLIS -- The Minnesota Golden Gophers (2-6) are getting set to host St. Thomas (2-5) and South Dakota State (1-6) in consecutive midweek games to open their home slate at U.S. Bank Stadium this week. The Gophers will play 12 home games at U.S. Bank Stadium in the month of March before opening up Big Ten play at Rutgers on March 31.
SERIES HISTORY
-Minnesota and St. Thomas will be meeting at the Division I level for the first time in history on Tuesday night. The Tommies joined the Summit League this season after previously playing in the MIAC conference (Division III).
-Minnesota leads the all-time series against South Dakota State, 37-13. The Jackrabbits took the last meeting in 2020, a 10-8 win at U.S. Bank Stadium.
SCOUTING ST. THOMAS
-In fall 2021 St. Thomas became the first institution to make a direct move in all sports from NCAA D-III into D-I athletics. The Tommies are in year one of a five-year provisional period as they look to establish full membership in Division I, and become the 358th D-I institution.
-Chris Olean enters his 13th year as the head coach of St. Thomas Baseball in 2021-22 and his 26th season here as a player, assistant coach and head coach. Olean established himself among the top coaches in Division III with a 338-149-1 record (.693 win %) and seven of a possible 11 conference championships.
-UST's 2021 season saw them post a 37-10 final record and No. 2 ranking in the final national poll. They went 11-5 in the postseason and made it all the way to the Division III World Series.
SCOUTING SOUTH DAKOTA STATE
-The Jackrabbits completed the 2021 season with a 15-32 overall record, including a 9-19 mark in The Summit League. SDSU claimed the fourth and final spot in the 2021 Summit League Baseball Championship and went on to record one tournament win over host Omaha.
-South Dakota State has been picked to finish fourth in the 2022 Summit League baseball race, behind defending champion Oral Roberts, North Dakota State and Nebraska-Omaha. Infielder Luke Ira was named as a Summit League Player to Watch and redshirt sophomore right-hander Nic McCay was tabbed as a Summit League Pitcher to Watch.
-SDSU (1-6) was swept in a four game series against Purdue to open the 2022 season before falling in two of three games to Incarnate Word.
FLORIDA RECAP
-The Gophers went 2-6 on their eight-game Florida trip, winning the first game of the Florida Atlantic series in addition to a 3-1 victory Friday over Northeastern.
-Minnesota started off strong, winning 9-1 on opening day over Florida Atlantic to start the season 1-0. Sam Ireland was strong through 5.0 innings, striking out five and giving up just one earned run. Freshman Seth Clausen and Tom Skoro combined to throw four shutout innings to end the game. The Gophers compiled 12 hits, getting multiple from Drew Stahl and Andrew Wilhite.
-The 'U' fell in the final three contests of the weekend, 8-2, 13-4 and 17-9. Jack Kelly (.625), Easton Bertrand (.500) and Drew Stahl (.500) paced the offense, which clubbed 18 extra-base hits, including 10 doubles and seven home runs.
-FGCU took a 13-5 decision on Wednesday night despite a grand slam from Joe Hauser. Ireland tossed 7.1 innings with 10 strikeouts to pick up his second win of the year against Northeastern on Friday. The Gophers fell to Indiana State, 16-3 and 14-8 to end the weekend.
JOHN ANDERSON'S 41st SEASON
-John Anderson is in his 41st year at the helm of Gopher Baseball and holds a 1,333-933-3 (.594) overall record. This includes a 598-382 (.610) Big Ten record. Under Anderson's watch, the Gophers have won 11 Big Ten titles and have made the NCAA Tournament 19 times. He's the winningest Big Ten coach in conference history and ranks just outside the top-20 all-time in NCAA history.
PRESEASON ACCOLADES
-Three Gophers were named as 2022 Big Ten 'Players to Watch' heading into the season. Senior catcher Chase Stanke, senior first baseman Ronnie Sweeny and junior right-handed pitcher Sam Ireland all made the list. Stanke ranked second among Gophers in batting average last year while Sweeny led the squad with nine home runs and 30 RBI. Ireland is projected to be the Friday starter in 2022. Sweeny was also named to the 2022 Bobby Bragan Collegiate Slugger Award Watch List while Stanke made the Buster Posey Award Watch List.
IRELAND BACK TO WORK
-Junior Friday starter Sam Ireland picked up the first win of his career on opening day, a 9-1 victory over FAU. He pitched 5.0 innings, striking out five and giving up just one earned run. He was even better against Northeastern on Feb. 25, striking out 10 to tie his career-high while pitching 7.1 innings.
-Ireland made it halfway through last season before missing the rest because of injury. His health and continued progression is key for the Gophers, who are happy to have their ace back.
-He became the first Gopher since Max Meyer in 2020 to strike out 15-or-more batters in his first two starts of the season.
BERTRAND EARNS PRESEASON HONORS IN OUTFIELD - STARTS OUT HOT IN 2022
-Gophers redshirt senior outfielder Easton Bertrand was named as a top-150 (No. 110) outfielder in the country by D1Baseball.com. The Illinois native led Minnesota with a .295 batting average last season while hitting five home runs with 13 RBI.
-The redshirt senior, who led the team with a .295 batting average last season, has started out the 2022 right where he left off.
-He led the Gophers offensive attack on opening weekend, hitting .500 (6-for-12) with a pair of home runs, 6 RBI and six runs scored. He hit two home runs and had 5 RBI alone in a Feb. 21 game at FAU.
HAUSER MAKES PRESENCE FELT
-Sophomore ASU transfer has started the season hitting .316 at the plate, including a monster grand slam for his first career home run on Wednesday at FGCU. He's played in seven of eight games, starting contests at both DH and shortstop.
-He was a pitcher only as a freshman Sun Devil, but will play shortstop and pitch with the Gophers.
KEY RETURNERS MIX WITH BEVY OF NEWCOMERS
-Minnesota returns 23 players, including multiple position player starters and eight pitchers who appeared in games last year. The 'U' also brought in 15 newcomers, including 10 freshmen, to make up its 37-player roster.
-Five Division I transfers : Randon Dauman (RHP; Saint Louis), Joe Hauser (SS; Arizona State), Richie Holetz (RHP; Nebraska-Omaha), Aidan Maldonado (RHP; Illinois) and Will Semb (RHP; Iowa) have all contributed immediately to Minnesota's lineup.
BATEMAN SETS THE TONE
-Sophomore center fielder Brett Bateman has a team-best six-game hitting streak entering Tuesday's game against St. Thomas. He's had multiple hits in three of the past five games, including two three-hit games in the past two.
GOPHERS HITTING THE LONG BALL
-Minnesota ranks first in the Big Ten and No. 22 in the nation with 10 home runs in eight games this season. Chase Stanke is tied for the conference lead with three while Easton Bertrand has two. Kyle Bork, Joe Hauser, Jack Kelly, Ronnie Sweeny and Andrew Wilhite have hit one each.
MINNESOTA SWIPING BASES EARLY
-The Gophers have been aggressive on the base paths through the first two weeks of the season, swiping 11 bases in 15 attempts. The 'U' ranks fifth in the conference in stolen bases and have gotten contributions from six different players. Both Bateman and Bertrand have stolen three bases each.
CAMBRIA COLLEGE CLASSIC
Minnesota will host the second ever Cambria College Classic from March 4-6 at U.S. Bank Stadium. No. 11 Notre Dame, West Virginia, Kansas, Illinois and Michigan State will come to town for the event. Each Big Ten team will play the Big XII and ACC teams in the three-day event. At the conclusion, a champion will be named in addition to the all-tournament team and MVP.
UP NEXT
Minnesota will play West Virginia on Friday night at U.S. Bank Stadium to open the Cambria College Classic. First pitch will be at 7:05 p.m. CT.
Minnesota vs. St. Thomas
First Pitch: 6 p.m. CT
Location: U.S. Bank Stadium
Minnesota Starter: LHP Jack Liffrig (0-1, 19.80 ERA, 5 K)
St. Thomas Starter: LHP Graham Laubscher (0-0, 2.00 ERA, 14 K)
Stream: B1G+
Wednesday, March 2
Minnesota vs. South Dakota State
First Pitch: 6 p.m. CT
Location: U.S. Bank Stadium
Minnesota Starter: RHP Richie Holetz (0-1, 10.80 ERA, 1 K)
South Dakota State Starter: RHP Dane Toman (0-0, 0.00 ERA, 3 K)
Stream: B1G+
MINNEAPOLIS -- The Minnesota Golden Gophers (2-6) are getting set to host St. Thomas (2-5) and South Dakota State (1-6) in consecutive midweek games to open their home slate at U.S. Bank Stadium this week. The Gophers will play 12 home games at U.S. Bank Stadium in the month of March before opening up Big Ten play at Rutgers on March 31.
SERIES HISTORY
-Minnesota and St. Thomas will be meeting at the Division I level for the first time in history on Tuesday night. The Tommies joined the Summit League this season after previously playing in the MIAC conference (Division III).
-Minnesota leads the all-time series against South Dakota State, 37-13. The Jackrabbits took the last meeting in 2020, a 10-8 win at U.S. Bank Stadium.
SCOUTING ST. THOMAS
-In fall 2021 St. Thomas became the first institution to make a direct move in all sports from NCAA D-III into D-I athletics. The Tommies are in year one of a five-year provisional period as they look to establish full membership in Division I, and become the 358th D-I institution.
-Chris Olean enters his 13th year as the head coach of St. Thomas Baseball in 2021-22 and his 26th season here as a player, assistant coach and head coach. Olean established himself among the top coaches in Division III with a 338-149-1 record (.693 win %) and seven of a possible 11 conference championships.
-UST's 2021 season saw them post a 37-10 final record and No. 2 ranking in the final national poll. They went 11-5 in the postseason and made it all the way to the Division III World Series.
SCOUTING SOUTH DAKOTA STATE
-The Jackrabbits completed the 2021 season with a 15-32 overall record, including a 9-19 mark in The Summit League. SDSU claimed the fourth and final spot in the 2021 Summit League Baseball Championship and went on to record one tournament win over host Omaha.
-South Dakota State has been picked to finish fourth in the 2022 Summit League baseball race, behind defending champion Oral Roberts, North Dakota State and Nebraska-Omaha. Infielder Luke Ira was named as a Summit League Player to Watch and redshirt sophomore right-hander Nic McCay was tabbed as a Summit League Pitcher to Watch.
-SDSU (1-6) was swept in a four game series against Purdue to open the 2022 season before falling in two of three games to Incarnate Word.
FLORIDA RECAP
-The Gophers went 2-6 on their eight-game Florida trip, winning the first game of the Florida Atlantic series in addition to a 3-1 victory Friday over Northeastern.
-Minnesota started off strong, winning 9-1 on opening day over Florida Atlantic to start the season 1-0. Sam Ireland was strong through 5.0 innings, striking out five and giving up just one earned run. Freshman Seth Clausen and Tom Skoro combined to throw four shutout innings to end the game. The Gophers compiled 12 hits, getting multiple from Drew Stahl and Andrew Wilhite.
-The 'U' fell in the final three contests of the weekend, 8-2, 13-4 and 17-9. Jack Kelly (.625), Easton Bertrand (.500) and Drew Stahl (.500) paced the offense, which clubbed 18 extra-base hits, including 10 doubles and seven home runs.
-FGCU took a 13-5 decision on Wednesday night despite a grand slam from Joe Hauser. Ireland tossed 7.1 innings with 10 strikeouts to pick up his second win of the year against Northeastern on Friday. The Gophers fell to Indiana State, 16-3 and 14-8 to end the weekend.
JOHN ANDERSON'S 41st SEASON
-John Anderson is in his 41st year at the helm of Gopher Baseball and holds a 1,333-933-3 (.594) overall record. This includes a 598-382 (.610) Big Ten record. Under Anderson's watch, the Gophers have won 11 Big Ten titles and have made the NCAA Tournament 19 times. He's the winningest Big Ten coach in conference history and ranks just outside the top-20 all-time in NCAA history.
PRESEASON ACCOLADES
-Three Gophers were named as 2022 Big Ten 'Players to Watch' heading into the season. Senior catcher Chase Stanke, senior first baseman Ronnie Sweeny and junior right-handed pitcher Sam Ireland all made the list. Stanke ranked second among Gophers in batting average last year while Sweeny led the squad with nine home runs and 30 RBI. Ireland is projected to be the Friday starter in 2022. Sweeny was also named to the 2022 Bobby Bragan Collegiate Slugger Award Watch List while Stanke made the Buster Posey Award Watch List.
IRELAND BACK TO WORK
-Junior Friday starter Sam Ireland picked up the first win of his career on opening day, a 9-1 victory over FAU. He pitched 5.0 innings, striking out five and giving up just one earned run. He was even better against Northeastern on Feb. 25, striking out 10 to tie his career-high while pitching 7.1 innings.
-Ireland made it halfway through last season before missing the rest because of injury. His health and continued progression is key for the Gophers, who are happy to have their ace back.
-He became the first Gopher since Max Meyer in 2020 to strike out 15-or-more batters in his first two starts of the season.
BERTRAND EARNS PRESEASON HONORS IN OUTFIELD - STARTS OUT HOT IN 2022
-Gophers redshirt senior outfielder Easton Bertrand was named as a top-150 (No. 110) outfielder in the country by D1Baseball.com. The Illinois native led Minnesota with a .295 batting average last season while hitting five home runs with 13 RBI.
-The redshirt senior, who led the team with a .295 batting average last season, has started out the 2022 right where he left off.
-He led the Gophers offensive attack on opening weekend, hitting .500 (6-for-12) with a pair of home runs, 6 RBI and six runs scored. He hit two home runs and had 5 RBI alone in a Feb. 21 game at FAU.
HAUSER MAKES PRESENCE FELT
-Sophomore ASU transfer has started the season hitting .316 at the plate, including a monster grand slam for his first career home run on Wednesday at FGCU. He's played in seven of eight games, starting contests at both DH and shortstop.
-He was a pitcher only as a freshman Sun Devil, but will play shortstop and pitch with the Gophers.
KEY RETURNERS MIX WITH BEVY OF NEWCOMERS
-Minnesota returns 23 players, including multiple position player starters and eight pitchers who appeared in games last year. The 'U' also brought in 15 newcomers, including 10 freshmen, to make up its 37-player roster.
-Five Division I transfers : Randon Dauman (RHP; Saint Louis), Joe Hauser (SS; Arizona State), Richie Holetz (RHP; Nebraska-Omaha), Aidan Maldonado (RHP; Illinois) and Will Semb (RHP; Iowa) have all contributed immediately to Minnesota's lineup.
BATEMAN SETS THE TONE
-Sophomore center fielder Brett Bateman has a team-best six-game hitting streak entering Tuesday's game against St. Thomas. He's had multiple hits in three of the past five games, including two three-hit games in the past two.
GOPHERS HITTING THE LONG BALL
-Minnesota ranks first in the Big Ten and No. 22 in the nation with 10 home runs in eight games this season. Chase Stanke is tied for the conference lead with three while Easton Bertrand has two. Kyle Bork, Joe Hauser, Jack Kelly, Ronnie Sweeny and Andrew Wilhite have hit one each.
MINNESOTA SWIPING BASES EARLY
-The Gophers have been aggressive on the base paths through the first two weeks of the season, swiping 11 bases in 15 attempts. The 'U' ranks fifth in the conference in stolen bases and have gotten contributions from six different players. Both Bateman and Bertrand have stolen three bases each.
CAMBRIA COLLEGE CLASSIC
Minnesota will host the second ever Cambria College Classic from March 4-6 at U.S. Bank Stadium. No. 11 Notre Dame, West Virginia, Kansas, Illinois and Michigan State will come to town for the event. Each Big Ten team will play the Big XII and ACC teams in the three-day event. At the conclusion, a champion will be named in addition to the all-tournament team and MVP.
UP NEXT
Minnesota will play West Virginia on Friday night at U.S. Bank Stadium to open the Cambria College Classic. First pitch will be at 7:05 p.m. CT.
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