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Photo by: Brad Rempel
'U' Readies for First UST Matchup of 2023
4/17/2023 9:07:00 PM | Baseball
The two teams competed four times in 2022
Wednesday, April 19
Minnesota vs. St. Thomas
First Pitch: 6 p.m.
Location: Minneapolis, Minn. (Siebert Field)
Minnesota Starter: Ben Shepard (1-2, 4.04 ERA, 35.2 IP, 29 K)
St. Thomas Starter: TBA
TV: B1G+
Talent: Dom Dandrea (Play-By-Play), Rob Fornasiere (Analyst) and Matthew Whitlock (Sideline)
MINNEAPOLIS -- The Minnesota Golden Gophers (10-24, 4-5 Big Ten) are set to host a crosstown opponent in the St. Thomas Tommies (5-20, 3-6 Summit) on Wednesday, April 19 at 6 p.m. Live stats will be available at GopherSports.com while B1G+ is set to provide streaming.
MARKETING AND PROMOTIONS
-'Winning Wednesday.' If the Gophers win, there will be a discounted group rate applied for all GA tickets to the next home game.
LAST TIME OUT
-Minnesota fell in two of three games to Iowa this past weekend. The 'U' won 12-3 in game one Friday before falling 7-2 in game two and 18-4 in the series finale on Saturday.
SCOUTING ST. THOMAS
-St. Thomas is led by 14th year head coach Chris Olean. UST played its first year in Division I in 2022.
-Despite losing 16 games by one or two runs, the Purple finished 16-29 and claimed a fifth-place conference finish in the Summit League.
-So far in 2023, the Tommies are 5-20 (3-6 Summit), but have won three of their past seven, including two conference wins against Northern Colorado and one over North Dakota St.
-St. Thomas was selected to finish fifth in the 2023 Summit League Preseason Coaches' Poll.
-The freshman duo of Dylan O'Connell and Nolan Kemp were selected as the UST Players to Watch.
-Bridgs Richartz leads UST with a .310 average, one home run and seven RBI this season.
SERIES HISTORY
-Minnesota is 3-1 all-time against St. Thomas. UST transitioned to Division I last year and the teams played four times, three of which came at Siebert Field.
OFFENSE ERUPTS FRIDAY VS. IOWA
-After trailing 3-0 early in game one Friday vs. Iowa, the Gophers exploded for seven runs in the fifth inning to take down the Hawkeyes.
-Minnesota would tack on four more in the eighth inning to come away with a decisive 12-3 win, breaking a six-game losing skid to Iowa.
NOVOTNY FINALLY PICKS UP FIRST WIN
-Despite five straight outings going 5.2-or-more innings with three-plus K's, Friday starter Tucker Novotny had yet to pick up his first win of 2023.
-That changed Friday vs. Iowa, when he struck out eight in 6.0 innings, giving up just three earned runs.
ROONEY RUNNING THE TABLE IN THE BULLPEN
-Minnesota left-hander Noah Rooney has been on a team out of the bullpen. In his last seven outings, Rooney has gone 18.1 innings, striking out 12 and allowing just three earned runs. His 3.67 ERA is the best of any Gophers bullpen member.
GOPHERS AT SIEBERT FIELD
-Minnesota is 62-47 when playing at Siebert Field in the last seven seasons.
-The 'U' went 2-8 in 2021, 13-7 in 2019, 12-2 in 2018, 10-9 2017, 16-7 in 2016 at Siebert Field.
-Minnesota went 7-11 at Siebert Field last season and is 3-4 at its home confines in 2023.
GOPHERS IN THE PROS
-2018 Gophers All-American shortstop Terrin Vavra was the second Gopher to make his Major League debut. He played in 40 games, hitting .258 with one home run, 12 RBI and 30 total hits. He joined the Baltimore Orioles on July 29, 2022 and played the rest of the season in the big leagues.
-Vavra has played in 10 games this year for the Orioles, totaling four hits in 20 at-bats (.200). He started in right field for the first time last week.
REACHED BASE STREAKS
-Brett Bateman and Boston Merila currently lead Minnesota with 14-game reached base streaks.
-Bateman is in the midst of a five-game hitting streak while Merila has done so twice in-a-row.
YOUTH MOVEMENT IN MINNEAPOLIS
-With an average age of just 19.9 years old, the Golden Gophers have the youngest roster in the Big Ten conference. Of the everyday starters at the 'U', two are freshmen, three are sophomores, three are juniors and there's just one senior.
BIG TEN STANDINGS UPDATE
-Minnesota (3-3) is tied for seventh in the Big Ten through two weeks. The top eight teams will make the B1G tournament in Omaha from May 23-28.
UP NEXT
Minnesota is 3-1 all-time vs. St. Thomas since the Tommies transitioned to Division I in 2022.
Minnesota vs. St. Thomas
First Pitch: 6 p.m.
Location: Minneapolis, Minn. (Siebert Field)
Minnesota Starter: Ben Shepard (1-2, 4.04 ERA, 35.2 IP, 29 K)
St. Thomas Starter: TBA
TV: B1G+
Talent: Dom Dandrea (Play-By-Play), Rob Fornasiere (Analyst) and Matthew Whitlock (Sideline)
MINNEAPOLIS -- The Minnesota Golden Gophers (10-24, 4-5 Big Ten) are set to host a crosstown opponent in the St. Thomas Tommies (5-20, 3-6 Summit) on Wednesday, April 19 at 6 p.m. Live stats will be available at GopherSports.com while B1G+ is set to provide streaming.
MARKETING AND PROMOTIONS
-'Winning Wednesday.' If the Gophers win, there will be a discounted group rate applied for all GA tickets to the next home game.
LAST TIME OUT
-Minnesota fell in two of three games to Iowa this past weekend. The 'U' won 12-3 in game one Friday before falling 7-2 in game two and 18-4 in the series finale on Saturday.
SCOUTING ST. THOMAS
-St. Thomas is led by 14th year head coach Chris Olean. UST played its first year in Division I in 2022.
-Despite losing 16 games by one or two runs, the Purple finished 16-29 and claimed a fifth-place conference finish in the Summit League.
-So far in 2023, the Tommies are 5-20 (3-6 Summit), but have won three of their past seven, including two conference wins against Northern Colorado and one over North Dakota St.
-St. Thomas was selected to finish fifth in the 2023 Summit League Preseason Coaches' Poll.
-The freshman duo of Dylan O'Connell and Nolan Kemp were selected as the UST Players to Watch.
-Bridgs Richartz leads UST with a .310 average, one home run and seven RBI this season.
SERIES HISTORY
-Minnesota is 3-1 all-time against St. Thomas. UST transitioned to Division I last year and the teams played four times, three of which came at Siebert Field.
OFFENSE ERUPTS FRIDAY VS. IOWA
-After trailing 3-0 early in game one Friday vs. Iowa, the Gophers exploded for seven runs in the fifth inning to take down the Hawkeyes.
-Minnesota would tack on four more in the eighth inning to come away with a decisive 12-3 win, breaking a six-game losing skid to Iowa.
NOVOTNY FINALLY PICKS UP FIRST WIN
-Despite five straight outings going 5.2-or-more innings with three-plus K's, Friday starter Tucker Novotny had yet to pick up his first win of 2023.
-That changed Friday vs. Iowa, when he struck out eight in 6.0 innings, giving up just three earned runs.
ROONEY RUNNING THE TABLE IN THE BULLPEN
-Minnesota left-hander Noah Rooney has been on a team out of the bullpen. In his last seven outings, Rooney has gone 18.1 innings, striking out 12 and allowing just three earned runs. His 3.67 ERA is the best of any Gophers bullpen member.
GOPHERS AT SIEBERT FIELD
-Minnesota is 62-47 when playing at Siebert Field in the last seven seasons.
-The 'U' went 2-8 in 2021, 13-7 in 2019, 12-2 in 2018, 10-9 2017, 16-7 in 2016 at Siebert Field.
-Minnesota went 7-11 at Siebert Field last season and is 3-4 at its home confines in 2023.
GOPHERS IN THE PROS
-2018 Gophers All-American shortstop Terrin Vavra was the second Gopher to make his Major League debut. He played in 40 games, hitting .258 with one home run, 12 RBI and 30 total hits. He joined the Baltimore Orioles on July 29, 2022 and played the rest of the season in the big leagues.
-Vavra has played in 10 games this year for the Orioles, totaling four hits in 20 at-bats (.200). He started in right field for the first time last week.
REACHED BASE STREAKS
-Brett Bateman and Boston Merila currently lead Minnesota with 14-game reached base streaks.
-Bateman is in the midst of a five-game hitting streak while Merila has done so twice in-a-row.
YOUTH MOVEMENT IN MINNEAPOLIS
-With an average age of just 19.9 years old, the Golden Gophers have the youngest roster in the Big Ten conference. Of the everyday starters at the 'U', two are freshmen, three are sophomores, three are juniors and there's just one senior.
BIG TEN STANDINGS UPDATE
-Minnesota (3-3) is tied for seventh in the Big Ten through two weeks. The top eight teams will make the B1G tournament in Omaha from May 23-28.
UP NEXT
Minnesota is 3-1 all-time vs. St. Thomas since the Tommies transitioned to Division I in 2022.
Highlights: Gophers 12, NDSU 3
Tuesday, April 21
Driven to the Diamond: Jonathan Dobis
Tuesday, April 14
Highlights: Gophers 5, Washington 4
Saturday, April 11
Highlights: Gophers 12, Washington 6
Friday, April 10