University of Minnesota Athletics
University of Minnesota
0-1
Utah
1-0
Gopher Softball Falls Twice on Opening Day
2/7/2025 12:52:00 PM | Softball
Gopher Softball Falls Twice on Opening Day
GAME 1 | Utah 2, Minnesota 0
TEMPE, AZ --Sophomore Brooklyn Carreon and sophomore Shelbee Jones combined to throw a shutout on Friday as the Utah Utes blanked the Minnesota Golden Gophers 2-0.
Junior Sydney Schwartz (0-1) took the loss in the circle for Minnesota (0-1). Junior Presley Hosick started the ballgame and went five shutout innings while allowing one hit.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Minnesota managed two chances with runners on third in the shutout, going a total of 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position. The Golden Gophers last got a runner on third in the fourth, when Schwartz made it 60 feet away from scoring with two outs.
GAME NOTES
» The Golden Gophers out-hit the Utes at a 4-3 clip.
» Minnesota pitchers limited Utah to just 1-for-7 (.143) with runners in scoring position.
» Minnesota pitchers faced 25 Utah hitters in the game, allowing 11 ground balls and five fly balls while striking out two.
» Senior Margaret Tobias led the Gophers at the plate, going 0-for-2 with 2 walks
» Utah was led offensively by senior Kaylah Nelsen, who went 2-for-3 with a double and an RBI.
» Jones led the Utes pitching staff, throwing three scoreless innings.
GAME 2 | Cal 9, Minnesota 4
TEMPE, AZ --Freshman Tinley Easton racked up four RBIs, but the Minnesota Golden Gophers fell to the Cal Golden Bears 9-4.
Junior Sydney Schwartz (0-2) started and took the loss in the circle for Minnesota (0-2).
Easton went 1-for-1 with a home run in addition to her four RBIs for the Gophers. Senior Nani Valencia compiled a solid performance at the plate as well, going 1-for-2 with a double and a walk. Junior Breezy Burnett also contributed for Minnesota, putting together one hit in three trips to the plate while adding a double.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Golden Gophers were trailing 8-0 in the fourth inning when they first put runs on the board. Minnesota got a grand slam from Easton off of freshman Miranda De, scoring all four of their runs in the inning. The Golden Gophers were unable to get any closer, as Cal added one run to their tally on the way to a 9-4 final.
GAME NOTES
» Easton drove in all four runs for the Golden Gophers.
» Minnesota pitchers faced 34 Cal hitters in the game, allowing nine ground balls and four fly balls while striking out five.
» Cal was led offensively by freshman Mia Phillips, who went 2-for-4 with a triple, a home run and two RBI.
» De led the Golden Bears pitching staff, throwing 3.2 innings of one-run ball.
UP NEXT
The Gophers will take on Miami (OH) tomorrow at 4:45pm. Then they will take on Arizona State at 9:15pm. All games are a part of the Kajikawa Classic which is being hosted by Arizona State.
For more information about Gopher Softball, fans can continue to use GopherSports.com, as well as follow along on X, Instagram, and Facebook.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Jones, Shelbee (1-0)
L: Schwartz, Sydney (0-1)
Base Running:
CS: Tobias, Margaret 1
HBP: Schwartz, Sydney 1
Batting:
2B: Nelsen, Kaylah 1
RBI: Nelsen, Kaylah 1 ; Lundberg, Kendall 1
Base Running:
RUNS: White, Hailee 1 ; Nelsen, Kaylah 1
SB: Passi, Shonty 1
