Big Ten Network : Minnesota Top Stories

Iowa bolsters BCS hopes, shuts out Gophers

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 11:29:00 +0000

IOWA CITY, Iowa -- With a bronze pig on the line, No. 15 Iowa put a new twist on winning ugly -- this time by taking a game that featured more punts than points. James Vandenberg threw for 117 yards, fellow freshman Brandon Wegher ran for a touchdown and Iowa kept alive its hopes for a BCS bowl bid by beating Minnesota 12-0 on Saturday. The victory gave the Hawkeyes (10-2, 6-2 Big Ten) double-digit victories for the first time since 2004, along with Floyd of Rosedale -- the pig trophy awarded to the winner of the border rivalry -- for the eighth time in nine tries. A hog was the perfect prize for this one. Iowa and Minnesota combined for 17 punts and were only 5 of 33 on third-down conversions. But the Hawkeyes, who notched four wins this season by a total of eight points, won the battle to see which offense would be least ineffective. "We try to keep our trophies here," Iowa receiver Marvin McNutt said. "We don't like our trophies going anywhere else. It's great to have the pig with us." Iowa got field goals of 30 and 45 yards from Daniel Murray and a 1-yard TD run by Wegher, and its defense did the rest. The Hawkeyes stuffed the Gophers on four straight plays from the 2-yard line early in the fourth quarter to blank Minnesota for the second straight season. "They've played well all season long, so hats off to them. And we certainly needed a great effort out of them," Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz said of his defense. Adam Weber was 14 of 40 for 153 yards for the Gophers (6-6, 3-5), who scored just seven points in road games against Penn State, Ohio State and the Hawkeyes. The Gophers offense finally caught a break when Vandenberg fumbled a snap that was recovered at Iowa's 29-yard line with 13:40 left. They got as far as the 2 after a pass interference call in the end zone on Iowa's Shaun Prater, but the Hawkeyes stopped a pair of runs and a pass before sacking Weber on fourth down. Minnesota's final shot came on fourth-and-10 at the Iowa 22 with 6:30 left, but Adrian Clayborn forced Weber out of the pocket and his pass into heavy coverage fell incomplete. Though the Gophers outgained Iowa 201-171, they went 4 of 20 on third down, 2 of 6 on fourth down and failed to convert on two trips inside Iowa's red zone. "We had opportunities we didn't take advantage of," Minnesota coach Tim Brewster said. "In a big game like this, taking advantage of opportunities you get is the key to the game." Murray's 45-yard field goal early in the third quarter put the Hawkeyes ahead 12-0. They kept a Minnesota drive alive after being called for roughing Blake Haudan, but Iowa stuffed Jon Hoese on fourth-and-1 at the Iowa 34 late in the third quarter. "This year has been more of an up-and-down rollercoaster," Weber said. "It takes all 11 guys to score. We tried running it, we tried throwing it. They were just better than us." Minnesota committed three turnovers in the first half. Iowa wasn't much better, gaining just 129 yards, but Wegher's leaping touchdown run with 52 seconds left made it 9-0. Minnesota's first solid drive ended on a muffed snap, which Iowa's Bruce Davis recovered at his own 17 early in the second quarter. Weber followed an intentional grounding penalty with another fumble, this time at the Hawkeyes 48. The Gophers got the ball back when Vandenberg's long third-down toss was picked off in the end zone by Marcus Sherels, but MarQueis Gray threw a pick after taking a handoff from Weber with 3:44 left in the first half, and Iowa capitalized with Wegher's plunge. Minnesota called its final timeout of the half before Murray's extra-point try, a move that appeared curious until the Gophers blocked the kick. Murray's 30-yard field goal gave Iowa a 3-0 lead on the game's first series. It turned out to be the Hawkeyes longest scoring drive of the day. Robinson, who missed two games with an ankle injury, left after taking a big hit midway through the second quarter and did not return. Robinson said after the game that he simply "tweaked" his ankle and sat out as a precaution. Iowa struggled to run the ball without him, with Wegher gaining just 26 yards on 15 carries. But after drubbing Minnesota 55-0 in the Metrodome last season, the Hawkeyes leaned on a stellar defensive effort to give Ferentz his fourth 10-win season. Iowa must wait for everyone else to wrap things up. Though the Hawkeyes bowed out of the national title race with a 17-10 defeat to Northwestern and lost the Big Ten's automatic BCS bid by falling at Ohio State, they're still very much in the mix for a BCS bid. For now, Ferentz and his players will kick back and take a break. "To win 10 games in any conference is significant," Ferentz said. "I'm going to enjoy this one, I promise you."

Yohn wins title at Kaufman-Brand Open

Sun, 22 Nov 2009 10:59:00 +0000

OMAHA, Neb. - A 184-pound title for No. 19 Sonny Yohn (Alamosa, Colo.) highlighted the day for Minnesota on Saturday at the Kaufman-Brand Open, hosted by the University of Nebraska-Omaha. Yohn's title was the only Elite Division Championship for the Gophers, but Scott Glasser (Bismarck, N.D.) and No. 8 Ben Berhow (Hayward, Minn.) each notched third place tallies at 174 and heavyweight respectively. Yohn was dominant on his way to victory. In his first match of the day, he claimed a major decision with a 19-5 victory, advancing to the semifinals. The second round was his closest match of the day, but in it, he earned a 4-0 shutout over Grant Gambrall of rival Iowa. In the championship match, he again matched up with a Hawkeye, and this time tallied a fall in the second period over Vinnie Wagner. At the end of the day, Yohn had run his team long winning streak to eight straight, dating back to last season. At heavyweight, Berhow tallied a 3-1 mark in earning third place honors, falling for the first time on the season to eventual champion and seventh ranked Tucker Lane of Nebraska. Each of Berhow's first two matches went into overtime, with a 9-7 win to start the tournament, before falling to Lane 3-1 in the semifinals. Berhow gave Lane his best match of the day, and coming off the tough loss, Berhow was able to earn a 6-5 win in his next match. In final tilt of the day, Berhow tabbed a 6-2 win for third place honors. Glasser opened in impressive fashion as well, with a 20-6 major decision win in his first match, but he was tripped up 6-5 in his following match. Glasser regrouped and would not lose again on the day, including a 6-4;SV1 win in the third place match to avenge his earlier loss. Glasser claimed a decision, major decision and overtime decision in earning the berth to the third place match. Also at 174, Cody Yohn (Alamosa, Colo.) finished in fifth place as the final Gopher to close the day as a place winner. He went 6-2 when it was all said and done, and tallied a 3-1 decision in the fifth place match for the win. Along with the Elite Division, the 500-plus entrant tournament also had the Amateur Division, which saw the Gophers Kevin Steinhaus (Pennock, Minn.) and Jake Ketter (Ramsey, Minn.) each win titles, at 174 and heavyweight respectively. David Thorn (St. Michael, Minn.) at 133 and Bart Reiter (Gilbertville, Iowa) at 141 each finished as runner-up, falling in their respective title matches. Steinhaus won four matches, including a major decision in his first match, to claim champion honors. In the title match, he earned a 4-3 victory. Ketter also went 4-0, notching two falls along the way, before his 6-5 win in the title match. Thorn rattled off four wins to earn a berth in the championship, but suffered the narrow 3-2 loss. Likewise, Reiter fell by the close 3-2 score in his championship match, and ended the day with a 3-1 tally. Minnesota will get to stay home after the Thanksgiving holiday, as they host Cal State Bakersfield in their first dual meet of the season. It will be Dollar Night in Williams Arena, with all tickets to the meet just $1.00. The first match is scheduled for a 7:00 p.m. start on Nov. 28.

Minnesota rallies to take down Michigan State

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 22:51:00 +0000

The Minnesota volleyball team (22-8, 13-5) rallied from a 2-0 deficit to defeat Michigan State (17-13, 5-13) in five sets by scores of 23-25, 21-25, 25-20, 25-19, 15-12 at Jenison Fielhouse on Saturday. Minnesota entered the third set trailing 2-0, before evening up the match at 2-2 by winning the third set 25-20 and the fourth set 25-19. The Golden Gophers jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the fifth set behind a pair of kills by Hailey Cowles (Eden Prairie, Minn.). Michigan State cut the lead to 5-3 with three of the next four points. Lauren Gibbemeyer (St. Paul, Minn.) and Taylor Carico (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) combined on a block, and the Spartans committed a pair of attack errors to make it 8-3. Michigan State answered with a 4-0 run to cut it to 8-7. Gibbemeyer, Carico and Ariana Filho (Monument, Colo.) answered with three straight kills to move the Golden Gophers ahead 11-7. The Spartans cut it to 11-9, before committing a bad set to give Minnesota a three-point lead. Michigan State scored the next two points to cut the lead to 12-11. Tabitha Love (Dauphin, Manitoba) and Cowles followed with back-to-back kills to make it match point at 14-11. The Spartans fought off the first match point, but Katherine Harms (Albertville, Minn.) responded with a kill to complete the Minnesota comeback. Harms and Cowles each had three kills in three swings in the fifth set. It marked the first time that the Golden Gophers have rallied from a 2-0 deficit since Nov. 23, 2007 when they did so at Illinois. Minnesota was led by Gibbemeyer who had 15 kills, 10 blocks, five digs, four assists and hit .406 (15-2-32). It was the second time in three matches that Gibbemeyer collected double-figure blocks. Cowles hit .462 (17-5-26) with 17 kills, nine digs and three blocks. Love had 11 kills and three digs, while Harms hit .571 (8-0-14) with four digs and two blocks. Carico had six kills, 52 assists and five blocks. Christine Tan (Safety Harbor, Fla.) had nine digs and two assists, while Megan Wilson (Lincoln, Neb.) finished with eight digs, two blocks and three kills. Filho also finished with six kills, hit .500 (6-1-10) and had a solo block. The Golden Gophers outhit Michigan State .363 to .278, despite the fact that the Spartans had 70 kills to 66 for Minnesota. After only collecting two blocks in the first two blocks in the first two sets, the Golden Gophers outblocked Michigan State 12.0-to-2.0 in the final three sets. The Spartans also entered the third set hitting .462 (35-8-66), and were limited to a .176 (35-20-85) hitting percentage the rest of the way. Minnesota hit .365 (40-9-85) after the second set. After dropping the first two sets, the Golden Gophers entered third set in need of some early momentum. The Golden Gophers fell behind 8-5, but went on a 5-0 run to take a 10-8 lead. Michigan State wrestled the lead back at 13-12, but Harms answered with a kill and Spartan setter Natalie Emro had a ballhandling error to give Minnesota the lead back at 14-13. Gibbemeyer and Cowles combined on a block to move the lead to 15-13. Michigan State cut the lead back to one point at 17-16, but Gibbemeyer and Carico followed by combining on a block, and Love delivered a kill to make it 19-16. Gibbemeyer followed with a service ace, and after a Spartan attack error Minnesota has pushed the lead to 21-16. Michigan State cut the lead to 21-18, before committing a service error. with the score at 22-19, Filho delivered consecutive kills to make it set point at 24-19. Two points later, Harms delivered a kill to give Minnesota the third set 25-20. The Golden Gophers outhit Michigan State .250 to .147 in the set, and had five blocks to one. Gibbemeyer had four blocks and a service ace in the set, while Cowles and Love each had three kills. Minnesota jumped out to a 9-7 lead in the fourth set after a Gibbemeyer kill. Michigan State cut the lead to 10-9, but Gibbemeyer delivered a kill and combined on a block to make it 12-9. The Spartans again came back to cut the lead to 12-11, but Love answered with consecutive kills, and Michigan State committed an attack error to make it 15-11. The Spartan cut the lead to 15-13, but Minnesota pushed it out to 18-14 after a Cowles' kill. Michigan State made it 18-15, but Harms and Cowles answered with consecutive kills. Minnesota stretched out its lead to 23-17 after a solo block by Carico. Gibbemeyer made it set point at 24-18, and Wilson put it away at 25-19 with a solo block to even up the match. Minnesota outhit Michigan State .429 to .146, and had 17 kills to 13 for the Spartans in the set. The Golden Gophers also outblocked Michigan State 4.0-to-0.0 in the set. Gibbemeyer and Cowles each had five kills in seven swings in the set. Michigan State was led by Kyndra Abron who hit .406 (17-4-32) with 17 kills and four blocks. Megan Schatzle also had 14 kills, while Mischelle Nelson hit .389 (10-3-18) with 10 kills and two blocks. Vanessa King also hit .588 (10-0-17) with 10 kills, four digs and two blocks. Minnesota will be back in action when it hosts Northwestern on Friday, Nov. 27 at 7 p.m. The Golden Gophers will also host No. 5 Illinois on Saturday, Nov. 28 at 7 p.m. After that match, they will have a ceremony honoring seniors Taylor Carico, Christine Tan and Megan Wilson. Both matches can be heard in the Gold Zone.

Minnesota Duluth beats Minnesota in overtime

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 22:33:00 +0000

After a late Minnesota goal forced overtime, Minnesota Duluth's Travis Oleksuk scored with 12 seconds left to give the Bulldogs a 4-3 win over the Gophers on Friday at Mariucci Arena. Following a faceoff in the Bulldogs' own end, Minnesota Duluth's Justin Fontaine skated up the ice and passed to Oleksuk at the right faceoff dot. Oleksuk fired a wrist shot that beat Gophers' goaltender Alex Kangas for the winning goal. Minnesota had tied the game on a power play goal by Nico Sacchetti with 2:19 left in the third period. Sacchetti took a pass from Jordan Schroeder at the top of the right faceoff circle and wristed a shot just inside the near post to even the game. The tie came after Minnesota had a two-goal lead and saw the Bulldogs score three straight goals to take the lead. The first two Bulldogs' goals deflected off Minnesota players in front of the net and then Jack Connolly scored his second goal of the game to put Minnesota Duluth ahead with 14:01 left in the third period. Minnesota is now 4-6-1 overall and 3-5-1 in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association, while Minnesota Duluth is now 8-4-1 overall and 5-3-1 in league play. It was another thrilling victory for the Bulldogs at Mariucci Arena after scoring an overtime goal to beat Princeton in last year's NCAA regional after tying the game in the final second of regulation. An evenly played game saw Minnesota Duluth hold a slim 32-29 edge in shots. Minnesota Duluth had a power play for the first 1:53 of overtime when Mike Hoeffel was called for interference with 6.6 seconds left in regulation for a hard hit on Cody Danberg. The Bulldogs had two shots on the power play and all four of the overtime shots. Kangas finished the night with 28 saves for Minnesota. After a scoreless first period in which each team put eight shots on goal, Minnesota opened the scoring with a highlight-reel goal by Jordan Schroeder just 43 seconds into the second period. Hoeffel had the puck behind the net and made a backhanded pass to Schroeder out front. Schroeder moved the puck from his forehand to his backhand to slip a defender and commit Bulldogs' goaltender Kenny Reiter to the opposite side. It marked the third straight game that Schroeder has scored for the Gophers. Minnesota's Jake Hansen scored for the second straight game with a goal at the five-minute mark. Ryan Flynn knocked the puck away from a Bulldogs' player and Hansen scooped up the puck just inside the blueline. He snapped a wrister from the top of the left faceoff circle that tipped off the glove of Reiter and trickled into the net. Minnesota Duluth scored just over two minutes later on a power play as Connolly swatted a rebound out of mid-air and bounced it off the skate of a Gophers' defenseman into the net at the 7:09 mark. Mike Seidel started the play with a pass to Rob Bordson, whose shot deflected off the glove of Kangas and into the air. Crashing the net, Connolly was able to get enough of the puck to create the deflection. The officials confirmed the goal after looking at video replay. Another deflection off a Gophers' player tied the game for Minnesota Duluth at 15:42 of the second period. Danberg had the puck to the right of the goal along the goalline and sent a pass into the crease that bounced off David Fischer's skate. The Bulldogs had three power plays in the second period and outshot the Gophers 12-8 in the frame, which ended tied 2-2. The Gophers had a prime chance to take the lead just over four minutes into the third period as Hansen picked up a loose puck behind the net and Reiters dove to try to knock the puck away, falling out of position. Hansen had a wide open net to shoot at, but Bulldogs' defenseman Chad Huttel recovered in time to get in position and bat away Hansen's shot with his glove. About a minute later, Connolly put Minnesota Duluth ahead with a goal at the 5:59 mark of the third period. Mike Connolly had a shot that went wide of the goal and Danberg collected the rebound behind the net before backhanding a pass to Connolly cutting down the slot for the goal. The Bulldogs, who have now scored a national-best 23 power play goals, finished one-for-six on the man-advantage. Sacchetti's game-tying power play goal allowed Minnesota to finish one-for-three on the power play. Reiter had 26 saves for Minnesota Duluth. The two teams meet again on Saturday at 7 p.m. at Mariucci Arena.

Ellis-MIlan leads Gophers into title game

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 21:23:00 +0000

Ten Golden Gophers scored, led by Ashley Ellis-Milan with a season-high 16 points, as Minnesota cruised to a 94-58 win over Illinois-Chicago in the second game of the Subway Classic on Saturday. The Gophers (2-1) will face Colorado (2-0) on Sunday at 6 p.m. in the Classic championship game. Minnesota took it right to the Flames opening with a 30-5 run in the game's first 10 minutes. The Gophers made eight of their first nine shots in the game, including three-point field goals by Kiara Buford and China Antoine. The Gophers continued their hot shooting throughout the half to take a commanding 49-31 lead into the locker room at intermission. Ellis-Milan with 12 points and Brittany McCoy with 10 were already in double figures. The Minnesota defense made sure Illinois-Chicago (0-4) would not have a chance for a big comeback. The Gopher defenders hounded the Flames all game resulting in 29 UIC turnovers, 16 coming in the second half. McCoy led the defense attack collecting five the Gophers' 18 steals in the game and adding 13 points on the offensive end. Minnesota's reserve backcourt of China Antoine and Leah Cotton electrified the crowd with several nifty plays on both ends of the court. Antoine dished out a game-high seven assists, grabbed four steals and scored six points. Cotton tallied her first game in double figures, matching her uniform number with 11 points. She also added three steals. Buford was the fourth Gopher in double figures with a quiet 15 points in just 23 minutes of play. She was 3-of-5 from behind the arc. Minnesota finished the game shooting 59.6 percent from the floor and committing just 14 turnovers.

Gophers fall to Minnesota-Duluth in overtime

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 23:03:00 +0000

After a late Minnesota goal forced overtime, Minnesota Duluth's Travis Oleksuk scored with 12 seconds left to give the Bulldogs a 4-3 win over the Gophers on Friday at Mariucci Arena. Following a faceoff in the Bulldogs' own end, Minnesota Duluth's Justin Fontaine skated up the ice and passed to Oleksuk at the right faceoff dot. Oleksuk fired a wrist shot that beat Gophers' goaltender Alex Kangas for the winning goal. Minnesota had tied the game on a power play goal by Nico Sacchetti with 2:19 left in the third period. Sacchetti took a pass from Jordan Schroeder at the top of the right faceoff circle and wristed a shot just inside the near post to even the game. The tie came after Minnesota had a two-goal lead and saw the Bulldogs score three straight goals to take the lead. The first two Bulldogs' goals deflected off Minnesota players in front of the net and then Jack Connolly scored his second goal of the game to put Minnesota Duluth ahead with 14:01 left in the third period. Minnesota is now 4-6-1 overall and 3-5-1 in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association, while Minnesota Duluth is now 8-4-1 overall and 5-3-1 in league play. An evenly played game saw Minnesota Duluth hold a slim 32-29 edge in shots. Minnesota Duluth had a power play for the first 1:53 of overtime when Mike Hoeffel was called for interference with 6.6 seconds left in regulation for a hard hit on Cody Danberg. The Bulldogs had two shots on the power play and all four of the overtime shots. Kangas finished the night with 28 saves for Minnesota. After a scoreless first period in which each team put eight shots on goal, Minnesota opened the scoring with a highlight-reel goal by Jordan Schroeder just 43 seconds into the second period. Hoeffel had the puck behind the net and made a backhanded pass to Schroeder out front. Schroeder moved the puck from his forehand to his backhand to slip a defender and commit Bulldogs' goaltender Kenny Reiter to the opposite side. It marked the third straight game that Schroeder has scored for the Gophers. Minnesota's Jake Hansen scored for the second straight game with a goal at the five-minute mark. Ryan Flynn knocked the puck away from a Bulldogs' player and Hansen scooped up the puck just inside the blueline. He snapped a wrister from the top of the left faceoff circle that tipped off the glove of Reiter and trickled into the net. Minnesota Duluth scored just over two minutes later on a power play as Connolly swatted a rebound out of mid-air and bounced it off the skate of a Gophers' defenseman into the net at the 7:09 mark. Mike Seidel started the play with a pass to Rob Bordson, whose shot deflected off the glove of Kangas and into the air. Crashing the net, Connolly was able to get enough of the puck to create the deflection. The officials confirmed the goal after looking at video replay. Another deflection off a Gophers' player tied the game for Minnesota Duluth at 15:42 of the second period. Danberg had the puck to the right of the goal along the goalline and sent a pass into the crease that bounced off David Fischer's skate. The Bulldogs had three power plays in the second period and outshot the Gophers 12-8 in the frame, which ended tied 2-2. The Gophers had a prime chance to take the lead just over four minutes into the third period as Hansen picked up a loose puck behind the net and Reiters dove to try to knock the puck away, falling out of position. Hansen had a wide open net to shoot at, but Bulldogs' defenseman Chad Huttel recovered in time to get in position and bat away Hansen's shot with his glove. About a minute later, Connolly put Minnesota Duluth ahead with a goal at the 5:59 mark of the third period. Mike Connolly had a shot that went wide of the goal and Danberg collected the rebound behind the net before backhanding a pass to Connolly cutting down the slot for the goal. The Bulldogs, who have now scored a national-best 23 power play goals, finished one-for-six on the man-advantage. Sacchetti's game-tying power play goal allowed Minnesota to finish one-for-three on the power play. Reiter had 26 saves for Minnesota Duluth.

Michigan sweeps Minnesota, 3-0

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:53:00 +0000

The 12th-ranked Minnesota volleyball team (21-8, 12-5) lost in three sets to No. 14 Michigan (24-7, 12-6) by scores of 25-23, 25-14, 27-25 at Cliff Keen Arena on Friday, Nov. 20. Minnesota was led by Lauren Gibbemeyer (St. Paul, Minn.) who had 10 kills, four blocks and four digs. Sophomore middle blocker Ariana Filho (Monument, Colo.) had a career-high eight blocks and five kills on the night, while Hailey Cowles (Eden Prairie, Minn.) finished with six kills, nine digs, three assists and two service aces. Jessica Granquist (Blaine, Minn.) finished with a team-high 12 digs, while Megan Wilson (Lincoln, Neb.) had eight digs and four blocks. Senior setter Taylor Carico (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) had 27 assists, five kills, four digs and three blocks. Michigan outhit Minnesota .269 to .168, and had 55 kills to 35 for the Golden Gophers. Minnesota was also outdug 69 to 47 on the night. The Golden Gophers did have 14.0 blocks to eight for Michigan. In the first set Minnesota raced out to an early 10-4 lead after a kill by Tabitha Love (Dauphin, Manitoba). Michigan cut the lead to 12-10 with six of the next eight points, but Wilson and Gibbemeyer answered with consecutive kills to make it 14-10. The Wolverines answered with four of the next five points to cut the lead to 15-14. Minnesota moved its lead back out to three points at 19-16 after Filho and Wilson combined on a block. The Golden Gophers pushed it to 20-17 when Love and Filho combined on a block. Michigan scored four of the first five points to tie it at 21. Cowles delivered a kill to put Minnesota ahead 23-22, but Veronica Rood delivered a kill to tie the score at 23. Lexi Zimmerman delivered a kill to give the Wolverines their lead of the set and make it set point at 24-23. Alex Hunt and Karlee Bruck combined on a block to give Michigan the first set 25-23. Michigan outhit Minnesota .302 to .231 in the set, and had 19 kills to 14. Cowles led the Golden Gophers with four kills and five digs, while Juliana Paz had nine kills for Michigan in the set. Minnesota fell behind 11-7 in the second set, but scored three of the next four points to make it 12-10 on a kill by Love. The Wolverines responded with a 7-0 run to move ahead 19-10. Carico answered with a kill and combined on a block with Filho to make it 19-12. The Golden Gophers made it 21-14 after Wilson and Filho combined on a block. However, Michigan closed out the set by scoring the final four points to claim it 25-14. The Wolverines outhit the Golden Gophers .306 to .057 in the set, and had 15 kills to eight for Minnesota. Gibbemeyer led Minnesota with three kills in the set. Minnesota raced out to a 12-7 lead in the third set after Filho and Love combined on a block. The Golden Gophers expanded the lead to 14-8 when Filho and Love again combined on a block. Michigan answered with three straight points to make it 14-11, but Minnesota answered with a 5-0 run and went up 19-11 on a service ace by Granquist. Michigan came back with eight of the next 10 points to trim the lead to 21-19. Gibbemeyer responded with back-to-back kills to make it 23-19. After a Gopher service error, Gibbemeyer made it set point at 24-20 with a kill. The Wolverines fought off four straight set points to tie it at 24. Carico responded with a solo block to make it set point at 25-24. Rood answered with a kill to fight off a fifth Golden Gopher set point. Paz delivered a kill to make it match point, and Rood finished the match with a kill to give Michigan a three-set victory. On the night, Michigan was led by Paz who hit .450 (23-5-40) with 23 kills, nine digs and two solo blocks. Bruck hit .714 (10-0-14) with 10 kills and four blocks. Megan Bower finished with six kills and 19 digs, while Sloane Donhoff had 19 digs and a pair of service aces. Setter Lexi Zimmerman also had 48 assists and 10 digs.

Williams, No. 24 Minnesota top Utah Valley 76-51

DAVE CAMPBELL — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 21:20:00 +0000

MINNEAPOLIS(AP) Freshman Rodney Williams had 17 points, six rebounds and four steals in his first career start, helping 24th-ranked Minnesota pull away from Utah Valley in the second half of a 76-51 victory on Thursday. Missing senior leader and top scorer Lawrence Westbrook to a stomach virus, the Gophers (3-0) finished 5 for 19 from 3-point range and were outrebounded 34-29 by a team in its first year as a full-fledged Division I program. Damian Johnson had 15 points, six rebounds, three blocks and two steals, though, to lead another strong defensive effort. Minnesota had 30 points off 26 Utah Valley turnovers, and five Gophers turnovers only gave the Wolverines (1-2) two points. Jordan Swarbrick led Utah Valley with 11 points and Tyray Petty had eight points and nine rebounds, giving Minnesota plenty to work on before playing 11th-ranked Butler next week. The Wolverines, who followed a win over North Dakota State in their opener with a loss to Cal State Bakersfield on Tuesday, fell behind 41-26 early in the second half when the Gophers appeared poised to run away with the game. Utah Valley didn't wilt, though, with peppy point guard Eric Dearden rushing to the rim for layups and Petty and Swarbrick muscling for position underneath. Al Nolen's steal and wraparound pass to Williams for a fast-break dunk over the pursuing defender got the crowd going a little. Five minutes later, Williams was fouled trying use the baseline for a slam and fell hard on his side, taking a few seconds to get up. He made both free throws, though, and on his next two drives he chose layups instead as the Gophers began to exert themselves. Williams had one more dunk in him, of course, at the end of another fastbreak fueled by this active defense coach Tubby Smith pushes his teams to play. That pushed Minnesota's lead to 73-51 with 2 1/2 minutes left. Utah Valley's bold jump from junior college to Division I was finalized this summer after six years playing under the NCAA's provisional status, which made the Wolverines ineligible for postseason play. After previous iterations as a technical and a community college, the school officially gained university status last year. The Wolverines had an enthusiastic row of fans wearing their green colors sitting behind the bench, and they didn't lack energy on the court, either. Though an unfriendly rim on Minnesota's end of the court in the first half spit several on-target shots out of the cylinder, Utah Valley stayed close with hustling defense and a willingness to make quick drives to the basket against the block-hungry Gophers, who swatted 23 shots in their first two games. Jourdain Scoubes swished 3-pointers on consecutive possessions for the Wolverines, keeping them within two points with 7 minutes to go before the break, but Johnson sandwiched a spinning layup and another shortie around a Utah Valley turnover to stretch Minnesota's lead later in the half.

Gophers struggle on offense, lose at Utah

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 23:05:00 +0000

Minnesota dropped its first game of the season losing 60-59 to Utah in Salt Lake City on Tuesday. The Golden Gophers (1-1) were led by Ashley Ellis-Milan with 15 points. Despite struggling mightily on offense the entire game, Minnesota used its defense to stay in the contest. China Antoine playing for the fouled-out Brittany McCoy stole the ball with 1:32 left in the game and hit a three-pointer to bring the Gophers to within 58-55. Utah (1-1) missed a jumper on its next possession and Katie Ohm gathered in the rebound. She was later fouled and made one of two free throws with 45 seconds left (58-56). Utah rebounded the miss but turned the ball over due to the Gopher pressure defense with 29 seconds remaining. The Gopher offense was unable to convert on the biggest possession of the game as Jackie Voigt fired a pass over the head of Ellis-Milan notching a very costly turnover. The Gophers were forced to foul and leading scorer Kalee Whipple hit two important free throws to give the Utes a four-point lead at 60-56 with11 seconds left. Voigt hit a three-pointer with 1.8 seconds left. Minnesota started the game cold as ice shooting from the field and at one time was shooting just 21 percent from the floor, missing 11 of their first 14 shots. The Gophers trailed by only two points, 28-26, at the half despite finishing the half 9-of-31 from the field and 1-for-9 (11.1 percent) from three-point range. Utah lead the entire second half extending its lead to as big as nine points at 41-32 with 13:39 remaining. McCoy and Antoine both scored 10 points to join Ellis-Milan in double figures. Kiara Buford scored nine points in the first half, but went scoreless and 0-for-3 from the floor in the second half. The Gophers also came up on the short end of the rebounding battle as Utah maintained a 46-34 advantage, including a damaging 15 offensive rebounds. Minnesota returns home to host the Subway Classic this weekend.

Preview: Minnesota-Iowa

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 18:26:00 +0000

First, Iowa's national title hopes disappeared. Next, a potential Rose Bowl spot went out the window. A third consecutive loss to end the regular season might feel just as devastating. The 15th-ranked Hawkeyes look to pick up the pieces, not to mention avoid dwelling on what might have been, as they host Minnesota on Saturday. Iowa (9-2, 5-2 Big Ten) entered this month fourth in the BCS standings, having won its first nine games for the first time in school history. The Hawkeyes continued to have their doubters because only one victory was against a ranked opponent and four were by three points or less. The skeptics were proven right Nov. 7 when the Hawkeyes were knocked out of the BCS national title picture with a shocking 17-10 home loss to Northwestern. Last Saturday, their effort was considered to be a much better one but the result was the same, falling 27-24 in overtime at then-No. 10 Ohio State. While the Buckeyes grabbed the Big Ten's bid to the Rose Bowl, the Hawkeyes' fate changed so much in just two weeks. Now they must win to have any shot of making a BCS bowl or to claim a share of the conference title - Ohio State would have to lose at Michigan for the latter to happen. "This is a big game," offensive lineman Bryan Bulaga said. "We're at two losses right now, but there's still an opportunity to get to a good bowl game if we win this game. There's a lot riding on this." A loss would prevent the Hawkeyes from posting the fourth 10-win regular season in school history and first since 2002, and there's a chance it could drop them out of the AP Top 25 for the first time since September. "We have an awful lot left to play for," coach Kirk Ferentz told the school's official Web site. "We would like to finish up on a positive note." The losses coincide with the injury to starting quarterback Ricky Stanzi, who hurt his ankle in the first half against Northwestern. James Vandenberg came off the bench to go 9 of 27 for 82 yards with no touchdowns and an interception, then he was picked off three times last Saturday in his first career start. The redshirt freshman also took a third-down sack that knocked Iowa out of field-goal range in overtime, but Vandenberg did help Iowa rally from a 14-point deficit in the fourth quarter and finished 20 of 33 for 233 yards with a touchdown. "James played with great, great poise," Ferentz said. "He showed great mental toughness and hung in there and kept competing. It was a great, great effort." Vandenberg will start again Saturday, though Stanzi may return for Iowa's bowl game. Stanzi threw for 255 yards and three touchdowns as the Hawkeyes won 55-0 at Minnesota last season for their seventh victory in the last eight meetings. The Gophers have lost four in a row at Iowa City since a 25-21 win in 1999. Minnesota (6-5, 3-4) is looking to halt a 13-game skid against ranked opponents that dates to a win at Michigan on Oct. 8, 2005. Three of those defeats have come this season by a combined 93-28 score. Another blowout could be in store considering the Gophers struggled to beat a Football Championship Subdivision opponent last Saturday, needing Eric Ellestad's 25-yard field goal with 2:22 remaining to defeat South Dakota State 16-13. "Am I pleased about how the game was played? Certainly I'm not," coach Tim Brewster said after his team was held to 231 yards of offense. Minnesota has yet to hold a Big Ten foe under 20 points and has lost three of its last four conference games. The only win in that span saw Adam Weber throw for 416 yards and five touchdowns against Michigan State. In his other five outings over the past six weeks, Weber has thrown for 602 yards with one TD and seven interceptions.

Williams, Gophers roll past Stephen F. Austin

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 21:18:00 +0000

MINNEAPOLIS -- High-flying freshman Rodney Williams had three dunks and a pair of 3s, finishing with 14 points to help No. 24 Minnesota pull away from Stephen F. Austin in an 82-42 victory on Monday night. Lawrence Westbrook and Devoe Joseph led the Gophers (2-0) with 15 points apiece and Damian Johnson contributed 11 second-half points, five assists and five steals to lead the romp after a rough start. Minnesota went 11 for 19 from 3-point range. Eddie Williams scored 12 points for the Lumberjacks (0-1), who had eight shots blocked by the lanky, long-armed Gophers. Rodney Williams is one of those leapers, and his athleticism already has the attention of the home crowd at the 81-year-old arena that's coincidentally in his last name. The student section started chanting his name early in the second half shortly after Johnson tossed Williams an alley-oop pass to cap a two-on-one fastbreak with a ferocious dunk. Westbrook followed with a 3-pointer to stretch the lead to 12, and Minnesota was off from there. The Gophers used a 27-3 run -- including 18-0 -- bridging the intermission to run away with this one. The Lumberjacks, who beat Oklahoma two years ago, have two more opportunities to knock off a major-conference team. They host Texas Tech and play at Arkansas over the next month. After finishing 24-8 and appearing in the NCAA tournament for the first time in the program's 86-year history, SFA lost the heart of last season's team and suited up eight newcomers for this opener. The Lumberjacks, predicted to win the Southland Conference's East Division by league coaches in a preseason poll, have gone hard after junior college transfers under coach Danny Kaspar. They have four players from McLennan Community College in Waco alone, including 5-foot-3 starting point guard Eric Bell. Kaspar emphasizes tight defense: During the 2007-08 regular season, the Lumberjacks allowed an average of 55 points per game to rank second among all Division I teams. They had the Gophers off their game, holding a 16-15 lead when 7 minutes were left in the first half, but Westbrook, Williams and Ralph Sampson got Minnesota going before the break. The Gophers are still missing three players to indefinite suspensions while the courts, the school and coach Tubby Smith sort out various off-the-court issues. Junior forward Trevor Mbakwe again sat on the bench in a shirt and tie, but freshman forward Royce White has been told to stay away from the team until his legal situation is cleared up. Senior guard Devron Bostick, punished for an unspecified violation of Smith's rules, wasn't present, either. Smith said after Saturday's practice he was sick.

Status of Gophers' White remains unchanged

Marcus R. Fuller Pioneer Press — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0000

University of Minnesota men's basketball coach Tubby Smith said today that he hasn't changed the status of freshman forward Royce White, who is still suspended indefinitely for violating team rules. White, a former Mr. Basketball at Hopkins High School last season, wasn't on the bench for Friday night's 87-50 season opening win against Tennessee Tech at Williams Arena. Smith said after the game that he wouldn't comment until everything had been "finalized" with White. Fox 9 reported that Smith was going to announce today that White was being dismissed from school. But Smith said nothing more would be determined until after White's recent issue was resolved. He was mentioned as a possible suspect of a campus theft of a laptop last weekend. The 6-foot-8 White was the Big Ten's top freshman recruit this season, but off-court incidents derailed the start to his career at Minnesota. He was also cited for shoplifting and fifth-degree assault at Macy's at the Mall of America in Bloomington on Oct. 13. White has an arraignment scheduled Tuesday in the shoplifting case. Copyright 2009 St. Paul Pioneer PressAll Rights Reserved

Bemidji State cools off Minnesota, 6-2

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 02:42:00 +0000

Minnesota had its three-game home winning streak snapped and lost to Bemidji State for the first time in a 6-2 loss on Sunday at Mariucci Arena. The Gophers dominated the first period, but trailed 2-0 and then cut the lead to 2-1 before Bemidji State erupted for a late second period goal and three more in the first 3:04 of the third period. It was the first time the Beavers have beaten Minnesota in eight all-time meetings. The Gophers had won the first seven encounters by a combined 39-10 margin. Minnesota had won four of its last five games, but dropped to 4-5-1 overall with the loss, while seventh-ranked Bemidji State overcome its first loss of the season from Saturday and improved to 8-1-1 overall. Despite giving up a season-high for goals, the Gophers' defense surrendered a season-low 19 shots as Minnesota finished with a 27-19 advantage. Minnesota outshot Bemidji State 10-4 in the first period, but the Beavers scored both of the period's goals off a pair of Gophers' turnovers. Minnesota goaltender Alex Kangas was also removed after the first period for Kent Patterson. Patterson took the loss, having allowed the Beavers' eventual game-winning goal late in the second period. Bemidji State's Shea Walters notched the first score, picking off a pass just before the blueline and wristing a wide open shot past Kangas at the 8:02 mark. The Beavers got another with 49.7 seconds left in the period as Matt Read ripped a shot from the faceoff dot after Jordan George picked off an errant Gophers' pass. It appeared a Beavers' player may have been in the crease on Read's goal, but the officials confirmed the goal after looking at the video replay. The Gophers cashed in on their third power play chance of the game with a goal from Jordan Schroeder at the 9:19 mark of the second period. Minnesota swung the puck around the point from right to left with Cade Fairchild backhanding to Aaron Ness at the point. Ness served up a pass to Schroeder at the left faceoff dot and he one-timed a slap shot into the upper left corner. Minnesota's Zach Budish was called for a five-minute major later in the period and the Gophers nearly tallied a shorthanded goal when Tony Lucia broke free behind the defense and rang a shot off the crossbar. Lucia already has two shorthanded goals this season as the Gophers lead the country with three shorthanders as a team. One minute after Lucia's close call, Bemidji State scored a power play goal on a shot by Jamie MacQueen at the 16:11 mark of the period. It snapped Minnesota's streak at having killed 24 consecutive opponent power plays. Following the goal, the officials confirmed the replay of Lucia's goal, which would have negated the Beavers' goal and tied the game had they ruled it a goal. However, MacQueen's goal stood and Bemidji State led 3-1 after two periods, despite the Gophers holding a 19-11 advantage in shots. The Beavers jumped on the Gophers early in the third period with a three-goal outburst in a span of one minute, 26 seconds to take a 6-1 lead. Bemidji State had an early power play and got a goal from Brad Hunt at the 1:38 mark before MacQueen scored an unassisted goal just 14 seconds later. Aaron McLoed finished the flurry with a goal at the 3:04 mark on a backhanded shot through Patterson's pads. Minnesota cut the lead to 6-2 by scoring its second power play goal of the game and fourth of the weekend when Jake Hansen notched a goal at the 8:36 mark of the final period. Hansen tipped in a long shot by Kevin Wehrs for his first goal of the season and first in 20 games, dating to Jan. 30. The goal came on Minnesota's first shot on goal in nearly 15 minutes as the Gophers several minutes during that time shorthanded. The Gophers had an opportunity to continue their comeback with another power play just over a minute later, but missed their best chance of the man-advantage when Mike Hoeffel's hard shot from along the goal line bounced off the post and out. Kangas, who re-entered the game after Bemidji State's sixth goal, made a big pad save on a breakaway at the other end. Beavers' freshman goaltender Mathieu Dugas made his second career start and finished with 25 saves. Kangas allowed two goals and made seven saves for Minnesota, while Patterson had six saves on 10 shots. Kangas had another outstanding pad save with one minute left in the game on a Beavers' power play. Minnesota finished two-for-six on the power play, while Bemidji State was two-for-five. The Gophers face another in-state opponent at Mariucci Arena next weekend when they host Minnesota Duluth in a two-game series on Friday and Saturday at 7 p.m. each night.

Buford's career day lifts Minnesota past Lamar

Sun, 15 Nov 2009 16:49:00 +0000

Kiara Buford scored a career-high 23 points and added her first career double-double with 11 rebounds to lead Minnesota to a season-opening 84-45 victory over Lamar on Sunday in Williams Arena. Buford was one of three Golden Gophers in double figures as Katie Ohm added 13 and Ashley Ellis-Milan 11. "I think we're happy with the start of our season and how the game played out," said Pam Borton, who is 7-1 in season-opening games at Minnesota. "When we play with that type of effort and intensity, there's not anyone in the country that we can't beat."" The Gophers could not have scripted a better start to the game. Minnesota, behind 10 early points by Buford, blitzed to a 20-0 lead. During the run, Ellis-Milan gathered in an offensive rebound and banked in a short putback to become the 19th 1,000-point career scorer in Minnesota history. "I enjoyed the moment," said Ellis-Milan, who now has 1,009 career points. "It seemed fitting for me to get my 1,000th point off an offensive rebound." The Lady Cardinals finally broke into the scoring column with 13:34 left in the first half. Lamar found its stride briefly working their way back into the ball game with a 14-2 run to make the score 22-14. The teams exchanged baskets before two Ellis-Milan free throws at the 7:29 mark returned the Minnesota lead to double digits for good. Minnesota held a 40-23 lead at the half. Lamar (0-1) shot just 17.1 percent in the second half and the Gopher lead swelled to as big as 39 points when Kristen Dockery hit a free throw with 1:13 remaining to cap off the scoring. Coach Borton was able to spread out the minutes played with nine Gophers seeing seven or more minutes of action in the second half. Ohm scored 10 of her 13 points in the second half. Minnesota finished the game with a 66-42 advantage on the boards with Zoe Harper and Buford sharing game honors with 11 rebounds apiece. China Antoine came off the bench to lead the Gophers in assists with four. The Gophers head west to play Utah on Tuesday in their next action. Minnesota will play its first seven games of the season in a two-week span.

Gophers tally road sweep over Badgers

Sun, 15 Nov 2009 15:53:00 +0000

The Minnesota volleyball team (21-7, 12-4) won for the seventh time in nine matches as it defeated Wisconsin (11-14, 6-10) in three sets by scores of 25-11, 25-21, 25-22 at the Wisconsin Fieldhouse on Sunday. It marked the 12th time in 16 meetings that the Golden Gophers have defeated Wisconsin. During that span, Minnesota has won at the Wisconsin Fieldhouse in five of the eight meetings. Minnesota was led by Lauren Gibbemeyer (St. Paul, Minn.) who hit .480 (14-2-25) with a team-high 14 kills, a career-high 12 blocks and tied a team-best with six digs. Sophomore middle blocker Ariana Filho (Monument, Colo.) had seven kills, hit .357 (7-2-14) and had four blocks. Freshman Katherine Harms (Albertville, Minn.) had five kills and four blocks, while Hailey Cowles (Eden Prairie, Minn.) had a career-best five blocks. Cowles, Gibbemeyer, Megan Wilson (Lincoln, Neb.) and Christine Tan (Safety Harbor, Fla.) all tied with a team-high six digs. Tan also collected two service aces. Senior setter Taylor Carico (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) finished with 30 assists, four blocks and three kills. Minnesota outhit Wisconsin .207 to .026, despite the fact that the Badgers had one more kill (36-to-35). The Golden Gophers tied a season-high with 16.0 blocks as a team, and for the second straight match did not give up a service ace. The Golden Gophers ran out to a 6-0 lead in the first set after a service ace by Tan. Wisconsin trimmed the lead to 10-3, but Minnesota moved ahead 13-5 on a kill by Filho. After the Badgers cut it to 13-7, the Golden Gophers answered with eight of the next nine points and moved ahead 21-8 when Cowles and Gibbemeyer combined on a block. Minnesota pushed it to 23-9 on a kill by Gibbemeyer, and eventually claimed the set 25-11 on a kill by Filho. In the set, Minnesota outhit Wisconsin .320 to -.081, and had 11 kills to eight for the Badgers. The Golden Gophers also outblocked wisconsin 7.0-to-0.0 in the set. Gibbemeyer paced Minnesota with six kills and six blocks in the set. The Golden Gophers jumped out to a 12-9 lead in the second set after Cowles and Filho combined on a block, however Wisconsin answered with three straight points to tie the set at 12. Minnesota pushed it to 15-13 on a kill by Gibbemeyer. With the score at 17-16, the Golden Gophers went on a 4-0 run that featured a Filho kill and three Badger errors. Harms helped the Golden Gophers finish off the last part of the set by delivering a kill to move the score to 22-18. She continued with a kill that made it set point at 24-20, and then delivered a kill to give Minnesota a 25-21 victory in the second set. Minnesota outhit Wisconsin .133 to .026 in the set. The Badgers had 14 kills to 10 for the Golden Gophers, but also committed 13 attack errors to six for Minnesota. The Golden Gophers also outblocked Wisconsin 5.0-to-3.0 in the set. Harms and Gibbemeyer each had four kills in the set. The Golden Gophers jumped out to a 16-10 lead in the third set following a kill by Tabitha Love (Dauphin, Manitoba). Wisconsin answered with five of the next six points to cut the lead to 17-15. After a Badger service error, Tan followed with a service ace and Cowles and Gibbemeyer combined on a block to make it 20-15. Wisconsin answered with four straight points to make it 20-19. Minnesota led by two points at 23-21, before the Badgers cut the lead to 23-22. Carico responded with a kill to make it match points, and Love finished the match with a kill. The Badgers were led by Allison Wack who had 11 kills, 10 digs and two blocks. Brittney Dolgner also had 10 kills, while Kim Kuzma finished with nine digs. Minnesota will be back in action on when it travels to No. 14 Michigan on Friday, Nov. 20 at 6 p.m. (CT). The Golden Gophers will also face Michigan State on the road on Saturday, Nov. 21 at 6 p.m (CT).

Gophers claim seven titles at Bison Open

Sun, 15 Nov 2009 10:33:00 +0000

FARGO, N.D. - The Minnesota wrestling team opened their season today at the Bison Open, and did so in dominating fashion, winning titles in seven weight classes with 14 wrestlers making it to the championship round. Five Gopher wrestlers defended titles led by Jayson Ness (Bloomington, Minn.) at 133 who is now a three-time Bison Open Champion. Ness' only Bison Open loss came in his freshman season in the championship round. As a senior in 2009 he tallied three first period falls before matching up with teammate David Thorn (St. Michael, Minn.) in the finals where the two shared the title. In the first action of his college career, Thorn won three matches by two decisions and one third period tech fall to advance to the finals. At the top of the line-up, Zach Sanders (Wabasha, Minn.) claimed the 125-pound title for the second consecutive season, again beating Trent Sprenkle of host North Dakota State in the finals. Sanders won his first two matches by fall before a 13-6 decision in the semifinals and 17-7 major decision in the finals for the title. At 141 pounds, Mike Thorn (St. Michael, Minn.) also repeated as champion, beating teammate Bart Reiter (Gilbertville, Iowa) to do so. As was the case for the Gophers throughout the day, Thorn was dominant, winning two matches by fall and one by major decision before a tech fall in the finals. Reiter, in his first collegiate action, earned two wins by decision and a third by major decision en route to his appearance in the finals. A year ago Mario Mason (Moorestown, N.J.) shared the title at 149, but this season it was all his as he went 5-0 in the tournament. Mason won his first match by tech fall and also tallied a major decision on his way to the championship round. His opponent was Gopher rookie Danny Zilverberg (Wayzata, Minn.) who won his first career match by fall in the first period before making his way to the finals. In the championship match Mason tabbed a 7-4 decision for the win. The final Gopher to defend a title was heavyweight Ben Berhow (Hayward, Minn.), who shared champion honors with freshman Tony Nelson (Cambridge, Minn.). Berhow ended his first match with a pin in less than two minutes and then added a 15-4 major decision for a berth in the championship. On the other side of the bracket, Nelson earned a close 2-1 decision for his first career win and then notched a 7-0 win over fellow freshman Jake Kettler (Ramsey, Minn.) in the semifinals. Continuing in dominating fashion, the Gopher boasted three of the four heavyweights competing in the semifinals. One-upping the heavyweights, however, were the 174-pounders who claimed all four semifinal spots in their class. Scott Glasser (Bismarck, N.D.) earned a 5-2 win over Kevin Steinhaus (Pennock, Minn.) for a berth in the finals and Nate Matousek (Glencoe, Minn.) tallied a tight 2-1 win over Matt Everson (Mitchell, S.D.) in the other semifinal. Glasser would go on to win the 174 title with a 14-1 win. The last all-Gopher final was at 197 where Sonny Yohn (Alamosa, Colo.) met up with Joe Nord (Waconia, Minn.). Yohn tallied two tech falls and one major decision in advancing to the championship round while Nord notched a fall and two major decisions on his way to the finals. In the championship, Yohn was able to score a 10-2 victory. The final Gopher to appear in the finals was Alec Ortiz (Grand Ronde, Ore.) at 165, who got there via major decision, fall and decision. In the championship, Ortiz came up just short of a title, falling 9-7. The Gophers also claimed three third place finishes on the day for a very successful season opener. "There was a lot of good," head coach J Robinson said. "I think we learned a lot, and got a good look at where we're at. I think our young recruiting class showed a lot. We had a lot of freshman in the finals, and they really went out and got after people. Overall our guys went out at battled and it was really good to see." The Golden Gophers will return to the mat in one week when the head to Nebraska-Omaha and the Kaufman-Brand Open on Nov. 21. Always highly competitive, Minnesota won two titles at the Kaufman-Brand in 2008, and they will look to continue their early season success as they build towards their first dual meet on Nov. 28 at Williams Arena, when they host Cal State-Bakersfield.

Gophers beat SDSU, become bowl eligible

Sat, 14 Nov 2009 11:41:00 +0000

MINNEAPOLIS -- Eric Ellestad's 25-yard field goal with 2:22 remaining gave Minnesota the lead, and the struggling Gophers hung on for an ugly 16-13 victory over lower-division South Dakota State on Saturday. Minnesota (6-5) settled for a pair of short kicks by Ellestad in the first quarter after driving to the 3- and 8-yard line, respectively. Adam Weber went 10 for 21 for 94 yards and an interception that was returned for a touchdown by Derek Domino. D.L. Wilhite jogged in for a 3-yard touchdown after a fumble forced by blitzing cornerback Michael Carter, the only time the Gophers reached the end zone. Early misfires by freshman quarterback Thomas O'Brien were too much for the Jackrabbits (7-3) to overcome in just their second game against a Football Bowl Subdivision foe since moving to the Football Championship Subdivision level in 2004. Peter Reifenrath missed a 25-yard attempt in the third quarter, one of several lost opportunities on a frustrating afternoon for SDSU. The Jackrabbits, ranked 12th in the latest FCS poll, need to win at Western Illinois next week and hope for an at-large invitation to the playoffs out of the Missouri Valley Conference. Despite two interceptions and the lost fumble in the first half by O'Brien, who got the start over senior Ryan Crawford, SDSU led 10-6 early in the second quarter, forced the Gophers to punt eight times, and nearly duplicated what conference rival North Dakota State did in 2007 with a 27-21 win over Minnesota at the Metrodome. After a breakout game in a thrilling 42-34 win over Michigan State two weeks ago, Weber and the Minnesota offense have reverted to their season-long woes. Ranked 106th out of 120 FBS teams in total yards entering the game, the Gophers are missing injured wide receiver Eric Decker badly and not giving Weber any time to throw. The junior quarterback can't shake the blame, though. For the second straight week, Weber produced the dreaded pick six. Trying to avoid a sack early in the second quarter, Weber rolled to his right, then made a dangerous throw across the field. Domino, one of 10 Jackrabbits players who grew up in Minnesota, jumped in front of the pass and returned it 22 yards for an easy touchdown. O'Brien was sharper after halftime and finished 15 for 39 for 183 yards. The Gophers played their final home game of the season at sparkling TCF Bank Stadium, proving again that new buildings don't make teams better. They became bowl eligible with this win, but continue to be stuck in mediocrity under coach Tim Brewster in his third season. One fan was spotted in the crowd with a sign, "Got Dungy?," a snarky suggestion that athletics director Joel Maturi should fire Brewster and try to hire the Super Bowl-winning former Indianapolis Colts coach Tony Dungy, who played for the Gophers in the 1970s.

Minnesota hands Bemidji St. first loss

Sat, 14 Nov 2009 23:06:00 +0000

Minnesota handed college hockey's last remaining undefeated team its first loss on Saturday with a 4-1 victory over Bemidji State at Mariucci Arena. The Beavers entered the game ranked seventh in the country with a 7-0-1 record, but Minnesota limited them to just 22 shots on goal and scored four unanswered goals after an early Beavers' tally for the win. The Gophers have now won all seven meetings with Bemidji State as the teams met for the first time since 2004. Minnesota has now won four of its last five games to run its record to 4-4-1 overall. The Gophers got a goal and assist from Hoeffel and Sacchetti and two assists from Ness in the victory. Minnesota outshot the Beavers 29-22 for the game. The Beavers took advantage of a fortunate bounce to score their early goal just 3:03 into the game. Minnesota was pushing up the ice out of its own zone when Tony Lucia attempted a cross-ice pass that bounced off the skate of a teammate and free to Bemidji State's Jordan George, who skated in all alone on Gophers' netminder Alex Kangas and scored on a backhanded shot. Minnesota needed less than two minutes to tie the game as Sacchetti scored his first goal of the season at the 4:29 mark. The play started with a shot from Aaron Ness at the point and the rebound bounced free. Beavers' goaltender Dan Bakala thought he had the puck covered up, but Sacchetti stayed with the loose puck and poked it into the net. Mike Hoeffel also got a stick on the puck during the scrum and gained an assist. Hoeffel nearly put the Gophers ahead early in the second period when he took a pass from Sacchetti behind the defense for an open chance that hit off the crossbar. However, minutes later, he converted a five-on-three power play goal that gave the Gophers the lead at the 15:23 mark. Minnesota passed the puck crisply during the two-man advantage with Aaron Ness going cross-ice to Cade Fairchild, who found Hoeffel open in the slot for his fifth goal of the year. It was Minnesota's third power play goal of the season. Bemidji State had a prime opportunity to tie the game when Minnesota was whistled for four penalties during a span of 57 seconds in the second period. Both teams were called for coincidental minors, setting up a four-on-four situation where just 12 seconds later, the Gophers were called for two penalties on the same play. Another Minnesota penalty gave Bemidji State a power play that lasted for a total of four minutes, including two minutes, 12 seconds of a five-on-three. For all but 12 seconds of the power play Minnesota had just three players on the ice. Kangas made five saves during the Beavers' power play and got a fortunate bounce off the pipe to keep the Gophers' one-goal lead intact. Neither team mounted many third period scoring chances until the Gophers' Jordan Schroeder notched a power play goal at the 13:35 mark of the period. Sacchetti took the initial shot that bounced out to the far side to Schroeder, who blasted in the rebound from the faceoff dot to put Minnesota ahead 3-1. It was Schroeder's first goal of the year and his first since Feb. 27. Mike Carman also broke a long scoring drought with a blast from the opposite faceoff dot just 54 seconds later. Zach Budish assisted the goal, which was Carman's first in 18 games since Feb. 6. Minnesota's two power play goals matched its total for the season through the first eight games as the Gophers went two-for-seven for the game. The Gophers also killed off all four Bemidji State power plays and have killed 23 consecutive penalties. Kangas, who was last week's Western Collegiate Hockey Association Defensive Player of the Week, made 21 saves in the victory, while Bakala finished with 25 saves for the Beavers. The two teams play again Sunday at 6 p.m. at Mariucci Arena.

Mead defends MIdwest Regional Championship

Sat, 14 Nov 2009 20:08:00 +0000

Junior Hassan Mead cruised to his second consecutive NCAA Midwest Region Championships title on Saturday in Springfield, Mo., crossing the finish line 28 seconds ahead of his nearest competitor. Minnesota finished fourth as a team and will have to wait until Monday to see if the Golden Gophers' season of work warrants an at-large berth in the NCAA Championships. Mead is the first back-to-back regional champion in Gopher history (Andrew Carlson won in 2002 and again in 2004). The Minneapolis native covered the 10-kilometer Missouri State University course in a time of 30 minutes, 21.9 seconds. Mead and Iowa State's Guor Marial took the lead early and quickly distanced themselves from the pack. Mead made a second push around the 4-kilometer mark and soon found himself alone at the front. The Gophers' standout had built such a big lead that he was able to even ease up a bit in the final kilometer, important since the national championship race is just nine days away. Southern Illinois senior Jeff Schirmer was second in 30:49.9. ""Hassan really was the class of the field out there today,"" said Golden Gopher head coach Steve Plasencia. ""We went in with a plan today and Hassan executed it perfectly."" Senior Matt Barrett picked up his second career all-region honor by placing 15th overall, second for the Gophers, in a time of 31:05.0. Oklahoma State, ranked third in the nation, captured the Midwest Region title with a team score of 50 points and collected one of the region's automatic qualifiers for the NCAA Championships. Oklahoma earned the second automatic bid by placing second with 71 points. Iowa State finished third with 104 points ahead of the Gophers' tally of 125. The Gophers were unable to close the gap between their top two finishers (Mead and Barrett) and the remainder of their scoring runners. Ben Blankenship finished 28th in a time of 31:48.3, followed by Pieter Gagnon in 38th (32:02.8) and Mike McFarland in 51st (32:32.9). Other Gophers competing were Derek Storkel (66th, 33:01.7) and Paul Hilsen (117th, 34:27.7). Gagnon, Storkel and Hilsen ran their first NCAA 10-kilometer races of their collegiate careers. A distance of 8 kilometers is contested during the regular season. The regional and national meets are run at 10 kilometers. With 18 teams having punched their tickets to the NCAA Championships, another 13 at-large bids will be awarded to teams on Monday. Mead will compete at the Championships regardless of whether Minnesota advances as a team or not. The NCAA Championships is Monday, Nov. 23, in Terre Haute, Ind. ""We are certainly a bubble team,"" said Plasencia. ""All we can do is wait and hope.""

Gophers sweep Hawkeyes

Fri, 13 Nov 2009 21:23:00 +0000

The 13th-ranked Minnesota volleyball team (20-7, 11-4) defeated Iowa (12-16, 4-12) in three sets by scores of 25-13, 25-13, 28-26 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Friday, Nov. 13. With the Minnesota win and an Illinois loss to Penn State, the Golden Gophers moved to within one match of second place at 11-4. Minnesota was led by freshman Tabitha Love (Dauphin, Manitoba) who hit .500 (15-2-26) with 15 kills and two blocks. Junior middle blocker Lauren Gibbemeyer (St. Paul, Minn.) hit .364 (10-2-22) with 10 kills and three blocks. Gibbemeyer became the 21st player in school history to collect 1,000 career kills at 4-1 in the first set. She also became the sixth player in school history to have 1,000 career kills and over 400 blocks. Junior outside hitter Hailey Cowles (Eden Prairie, Minn.) also had eight kills, seven digs, a career-high four service aces and two blocks. Freshman Katherine Harms (Albertville, Minn.) also had a career-high eight kills. Senior setter Taylor Carico (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) collected 39 assists, four kills and eight digs, while senior libero Christine Tan (Safety Harbor, Fla.) had a match-high 16 digs and four assists. Megan Wilson (Lincoln, Neb.) had 10 digs, two assists and a service ace, while Jessica Granquist (Blaine, Minn.) had eight digs and an assist. Minnesota jumped out to a 6-1 lead in the first set after Carico finished a 5-0 run with a kill. The Golden Gophers expanded it to 10-3 on a kill by Love. After the score moved to 12-5, Minnesota scored five of the next seven points to take a 17-7 lead. Iowa scored two straight points to cut the lead to 17-9, but the Golden Gophers ripped off four straight points, and moved ahead 21-9 on back-to-back service aces by Cowles. Love eventually moved it to set point at 24-13 with a kill, and the Golden Gophers won the first set after a Hawkeye attack error. The Golden Gophers outhit Iowa .387 to .077, and had 16 kills to seven. Love led the way with five kills in the set. Minnesota jumped out to a 4-1 lead in the second set after a kill by Cowles. With the score at 12-8, the Golden Gophers went on a 5-0 run and expanded their lead to 17-8 on a kill by Gibbemeyer. Minnesota pushed it 21-10 after a service ace by Carico. That closed out an extended 9-2 run for the Golden Gophers. Harms delivered a kill to make it set point at 24-12, and closed out the set with a kill to give Minnesota a 25-13 victory in second set. The Golden Gophers outhit Iowa .389 to .053 in the second set, and had 17 kills to seven. Cowles, Love and Gibbemeyer each collected four kills in the set. Iowa jumped out to a six-point lead in third set at 14-8, and kept a five-point lead at 18-13. Minnesota responded with kills from Gibbemeyer and Love, and a service ace by Cowles to make it 18-16. Love and Carico followed with consecutive kills to tie the set at 18. The Hawkeyes stayed ahead at 19-18 and 20-19, before a service error and a Harms kill gave the Golden Gophers their first lead of the set at 21-20. Ariana Filho (Monument, Colo.) and Love built that lead to 23-20 with consecutive solo blocks. Love delivered a kill to make it match point at 24-22, however Iowa responded with back-to-back points to tie the set at 24. Filho delivered a kill by Iowa's Mallory Husz answered with a kill to tie it at 25. With the score tied at 26, Gibbemeyer delivered a kill and had a solo block to close out the match. Iowa was led by Husz who had 10 kills and three blocks, while setter Paige Stevens had 23 assists and 11 digs.