Big Ten Network : Minnesota Top Stories

Minnesota advances with win over Penn State

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 12:32:00 +0000

INDIANAPOLIS (AP)—Devoe Joseph scored 15 points to help Minnesota beat Penn State 76-55 on Thursday night in the first round of the Big Ten tournament. Colton Iverson scored 12 points, Damian Johnson scored 11 and Lawrence Westbrook added 10 for the Golden Gophers (19-12), who advanced to play No. 11 Michigan State on Friday in a quarterfinal. Michigan State won both regular-season games against Minnesota by a combined eight points. The sixth-seeded Golden Gophers have won five of their last seven, including a victory over now-No. 13 Wisconsin. A win over Michigan State would strengthen Minnesota's case for an NCAA tournament bid. Talor Battle, Chris Babb, Andrew Jones and David Jackson each scored 10 points for Penn State (11-20), the tournament's 11th seed. Battle, a second-team all-conference pick, was held to 3-for-10 shooting.

Johnson, Minnesota flatten Iowa, 88-53

Sun, 7 Mar 2010 17:12:00 +0000

MINNEAPOLIS -- Lawrence Westbrook scored 20 points and Damian Johnson had 10 points and a career-high 11 assists in what could be the seniors' final game at Williams Arena to lead Minnesota to a 88-53 victory over Iowa on Sunday. Devoe Joseph added 17 points and Minnesota was 12-for-19 from 3-point range to bury the Hawkeyes. Aaron Fuller scored 16 points for Iowa, which suffered its biggest loss of the season and lost nine of its last 11 to close out the Big Ten season. The Gophers (18-12, 9-9) are the sixth seed and will face 11th-seeded Penn State in the first round of the Big Ten tournament. The Hawkeyes (10-21, 4-14) are seeded ninth and will face eighth-seeded Michigan in the first round. Iowa lost the final two games of the regular season by a combined 62 points, including a 27-point loss at Wisconsin.

Minnesota outlasts St. Thomas in 12 innings

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 23:26:00 +0000

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. -- The Minnesota Golden Gophers were down to their final out when Kurt Schlangen came to the plate against Brandon Stone on Wednesday, but he delivered a single to carry the Golden Gophers to a 5-4 win over the St. Thomas Toms (2-1) in 12 innings at Mallof America Field. After Trip Schultz was hit by a pitch and Matt Puhl walked, the game was tied when Schlangen came to the plate against Stone with two outs and runners on first and third. He singled scoring Schultz from third, which gave the Golden Gophers the lead for good. Minnesota (4-7) and St. Thomas played 12 innings. The two teams combined to have eight pitchers pitch in the game. A clutch play by Nick O'Shea in the ninth inning helped the Golden Gophers in a key moment. After Puhl singled, Schlangen walked and Michael Kvasnicka walked, the Golden Gophers were trailing by one when O'Shea came to the plate against Stone with two outs and the bases loaded. He singled scoring Puhl from third. Schultz had a good game at the plate for the Golden Gophers. He went 1-2, scored one run and drove in one run. Schultz doubled in the sixth inning. St. Thomas was unable to make good contact against Phil Isaksson. The Toms managed only no hits off of the junior pitcher. Isaksson allowed no earned runs, no walks and struck out two during his 1 1/3 innings of work. Minnesota scored in four innings to claim the victory. The Golden Gophers scored two runs in the third, one run in the sixth, one run in the ninth and one run in the twelfth. In the third, Kris Edwards gave up one run on a O'Shea single. Later that inning, a run came in when Aj Pettersen scored on an error. Reliever Brandon Stone took the loss for St. Thomas. He went 3 2/3 innings, gave up five walks, struck out six, and allowed two runs. Four relief pitchers finished off the game for Minnesota. Kevin Kray faced 11 batters in relief out of the bullpen, while Billy Soule managed to record eight outs to aid the victory. Minnesota's next game is on Friday, March 12 against Harvard in Minneapolis, MN in the Metrodome Tournament. Powered by Narrative Science Inc.

Gophers want to impress this week in Indy

Myron P. Medcalf — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 00:00:00 +0000

The Gophers are about to enter the most intense one-week beauty pageant in sports. A multitude of NCAA bubble teams will try to gain the attention of the tournament's selection committee during this week's conference tournaments. If those teams impress -- by recording crucial victories in the days before Selection Sunday -- they just might make the cut. The Gophers' only sure shot of an NCAA bid requires a Big Ten tournament title, a feat that only one sixth seed (Iowa in 2001) has achieved since the tourney began in 1998. But victories against Michigan State in the quarterfinals and perhaps Purdue in the semifinals certainly would help their prospects. First, though, is an opening-round matchup against Penn State on Thursday in Indianapolis. "We have nothing to lose, take one game at a time, play with energy and whatever happens, happens," Lawrence Westbrook said after his team's victory over Iowa on Sunday. The selection committee is comprised of humans, not computers. The Gophers' bad losses to teams such as Indiana and Michigan (twice) might be too much to overcome in the eyes of the selectors, sans an automatic bid. They will need two victories to reach 20 for the season, typically the minimum requirement for at-large berths. Gophers coach Tubby Smith knows the formula for picking up steam in conference tourneys, having won five Southeastern Conference tournament titles during his 10-year tenure at Kentucky. He said his squad should worry about preparing for Penn State and not think about the NCAA tournament. "It's a long ways; we've got to do a lot of work," Smith said. "We've got to play like we played [Sunday against Iowa] ... When it comes this time of the year, if you haven't already solidified things and you're on the outside, you'd better be concentrating on one practice at a time and hoping you can win that practice." Penn State represents a prime opportunity for the Gophers (18-12, 9-9 Big Ten). They are facing the tournament's lowest seed. And they won both meetings against the Nittany Lions (11-19, 3-15) this season. But be sure to read the fine print about this matchup. "Penn State's a good team," Gophers senior Damian Johnson said Sunday. "Most of their losses were real close games. ... They're a team that you can't think is an easy win and you can't go out there playing lackadaisical.' After an 0-12 start to conference play, the Nittany Lions finished by going 3-3. In their past two games, they lost to two of the Big Ten's three co-champions, Michigan State and Purdue, by two and four points, respectively. The Gophers needed a late push in their first game against Penn State and a buzzer-beater in the second to collect the sweep. Penn State coach Ed DeChellis is concentrating on the way his squad has performed lately. "We're all 0-0 heading into Thursday," he said. "We've played better basketball over the last three weeks than we have all year." Smith wants the Gophers to focus on their opening game, expect Penn State's best. But even he can't deny that there appears potential to advance in the tournament, since even the best teams in the Big Ten haven't been invincible this year. "I'm just looking at Penn State, I don't care about anything else," Smith said. "That's all we can focus on right now, one game at a time, but it is a pretty balanced tournament. ... I don't know that there's a favorite among those four [Ohio State, Purdue, Michigan State and Wisconsin], so hopefully we can play well and go deep into the tournament." BIG TEN TOURNAMENT All games at Conseco Fieldhouse, Indianapolis Thursday's first round Game 1: No. 8 Michigan vs. No. 9 Iowa, 1:30 p.m. (ESPN2) Game 2: No. 7 Northwestern vs. No. 10 Indiana, 4 p.m. (ESPN2) Game 3: No. 6 Gophers vs. No. 11 Penn State, 6:30 p.m. (BTN) Friday's quarterfinals Game 4: No. 1 Ohio State vs. Michigan/Iowa winner, 11 a.m. (ESPN) Game 5: No. 4 Wisconsin vs. No. 5 Illinois, 1:30 p.m. (ESPN) Game 6: No. 2 Purdue vs. Northwestern/Indiana winner, 5:30 p.m. (BTN) Game 7: No. 3 Michigan State vs. Gophers/Penn State winner, 8 p.m. (BTN) Saturday's semifinals Game 8: Game 4 winner vs. Game 5 winner, 12:40 p.m. (Ch. 4) Game 9: Game 6 winner vs. Game 7 winner, 3 p.m. (Ch. 4) Sunday's championship 2:30 p.m., Ch. 4 SELECTION SUNDAY The 65-team field is announced from 5 to 6 p.m. on Ch. 4. Copyright 2010 Star TribuneAll Rights Reserved

Minnesota's Smith quells Oregon rumor

Marcus R. Fuller — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 00:00:00 +0000

University of Minnesota basketball coach Tubby Smith said Monday he has not been contacted by Oregon and is happy with the Gophers, despite reports linking him to the Oregon job. "If I ever addressed every rumor, then I wouldn't be able to do what I do," Smith said on a Big Ten conference call. "There's always talk about coaches leaving and players leaving. It's part of the business. We're happy here. Even though this year was an up-and-down year, we feel like we have the right pieces in place. We think we can be a pretty good team in the future." FoxSports.com columnist Jeff Goodman wrote over the weekend that Smith is a candidate to replace Oregon coach Ernie Kent, who reportedly was told he would be fired after this season. CBSSports.com columnist Gary Parrish wrote that Smith is a likely candidate. Smith, who left Kentucky for Minnesota in 2007, has four years left on a seven-year contract with the Gophers that pays him $1.7 million a year. But with a $200 million arena set to open -- plus backing from Nike chairman Phil Knight -- the Ducks have the resources to hire a big-name coach. Goodman and Parrish also said Gonzaga coach Mark Few, an Oregon graduate, and Texas AM coach Mark Turgeon are possibilities for the Ducks. Last year, Smith was a top candidate for the Virginia job, but the Cavaliers hired former Washington State coach Tony Bennett. Minnesota athletics director Joel Maturi, who wasn't contacted by Virginia about Smith after last season, said he probably wouldn't know about another school's interest in Smith until after a decision was made about that job. Maturi said he didn't think the Gophers were that far from winning more games. He thought they could have had three more victories this season, even without Trevor Mbakwe and Royce White, who were suspended for legal issues, and starting point guard Al Nolen, who was academically ineligible for the second semester. "I felt we played as well or better than Michigan State (at home), played as well or better than Purdue (at home) and played as well or better than Northwestern (on the road)," Maturi said of three tough losses. "You take those three games and all of a sudden, you're 12-6 (in the conference). It's not like we're miles away. You take the game that (Smith) sat some kids in Anaheim, Calif. (against Texas AM), then we have 21 or 22 wins. That's not a great year, but it's not a bad one. I truly believe we're that close." The Gophers (18-12, 9-9 Big Ten) finished the regular season with an 88-53 victory over Iowa on Sunday. They are the sixth seed in the Big Ten tournament and will play 11th-seeded Penn State on Thursday in Indianapolis. Briefly: Mbakwe's trial for a felony battery charge was rescheduled again for April 8 in Miami, according to Miami Dade state attorney's office spokeswoman Terry Chavez. Mbakwe initially had a trial set for dates in February and March. The Gophers' Lawrence Westbrook was an honorable mention selection to the All-Big Ten teams voted on by the conference coaches and the media. Ohio State's Evan Turner was voted player of the year in both polls. Copyright 2010 St. Paul Pioneer PressAll Rights Reserved

Gophers snap funk, knock off Northwestern

Sun, 7 Mar 2010 18:38:00 +0000

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. -- The Minnesota Golden Gophers and the Northwestern Wildcats both had their opportunities on Sunday, but it was Minnesota that took advantage of them and pulled out an 8-4 win at HHH Metrodome. The Golden Gophers (3-7) had 10 hits compared to the Wildcats's 12 hits. Northwestern (3-7) left five runners on base. Aj Pettersen drove in two Golden Gophers runners. He went 4-5 at the plate. Pettersen doubled in the third inning scoring Drew Hanish and singled in the eighth inning scoring Hanish. Tj Oakes earned the win for Minnesota. He allowed one run over five innings. The freshman pitcher struck out three, gave up no walks and surrendered four hits. Zach Morton took the loss for Northwestern. He went 5 2/3 innings, gave up three walks, struck out four, and allowed five runs. Minnesota closer Tim Ryan got the final eight outs to pick up the save. With the victory Minnesota snapped a six game losing streak. The win was the first for Minnesota since Feb. 21 against Akron. Minnesota's next game is on Wednesday, March 10 at St. Thomas (mn) and Northwestern's next game is on Thursday, March 11 at Unlv. Powered by Narrative Science Inc.

No. 22 Washington takes down Minnesota

Sun, 7 Mar 2010 17:54:00 +0000

Phillip Arndt posted wins in singles and doubles, but Minnesota fell to 22nd-ranked Washington in a non-conference match on Sunday at the Baseline Tennis Center. Arndt won his No. 5 singles match over Tobi Obenhaus in match tiebreaker by a score of 4-6, 7-5, (10-6). He also teamed with Sebastian Gallego for an 8-3 victory at No. 1 doubles over the nation's 50th-ranked pair of Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan and Kyle McMorrow. Washington bounced back to win the other two doubles point to take a 1-0 lead and then got wins from its top three singles players to clinch the team victory. Nedunchezhiyan, ranked 56th in the country, defeated 77th-ranked Gallego 6-3, 7-6 at No. 1 singles. Washington's McMorrow downed Tobias Wernet 6-3, 6-3 at No. 2 and Derek Drabble beat Dino Bilankov 7-5, 6-0 at No. 3. Brad Bator gave the Huskies a 5-0 lead with a win at No. 6 over Brendan Ruddock 6-4, 5-7, 6-3. Arndt won his match before Washington finished off the match with a victory from Martin Kildahl at No. 4 singles. Kildahl rallied past Rok Bonin 3-6, 7-6, (10-6). Minnesota is off next weekend and returns to action on March 17 with a match at Pepperdine. #22 Washington 6, #46 Minnesota 1 Singles 1. #56 Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan (WASH) def. #77 Sebastian Gallego (MINN) 6-3, 7-6 2. Kyle McMorrow (WASH) def. #111 Tobias Wernet (MINN) 6-3, 6-3 3. Derek Drabble (WASH) def. Dino Bilankov (MINN) 7-5, 6-0 4. Martin Kildahl (WASH) def. Rok Bonin (MINN) 3-6, 7-6, 1-0 (10-6) 5. Phillip Arndt (MINN) def. Tobi Obenhaus (WASH) 4-6, 7-5, 1-0 (10-6) 6. Brad Bator (WASH) def. Brendan Ruddock (MINN) 6-4, 5-7, 6-3 Doubles 1. Phillip Arndt/Sebastian Gallego (MINN) def. #50 Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan/Kyle McMorrow (WASH) 8-3 2. Derek Drabble/Martin Kildahl (WASH) def. Rok Bonin/Tobias Wernet (MINN) 8-3 3. #58 Tobi Obenhaus/Alex Rosinski (WASH) def. Julian Dehn/Derek Peterson (MINN) 8-3

Arndt wins but Gophers fall to Washington

Sun, 7 Mar 2010 17:32:00 +0000

Minnesota upsets No. 3 Wisconsin, 6-1

Sun, 7 Mar 2010 16:36:00 +0000

Tony Lucia and Mike Carman each scored two goals as Minnesota had five power play goals and sent its senior class out in style with a 6-1 win over third-ranked Wisconsin on Sunday. Lucia had two goals and an assist, while Carman had two goals and two assists in the Gophers' regular season-ending victory and final home game at Mariucci Arena. Minnesota was already assured of the seventh seed in the upcoming Western Collegiate Hockey Association playoffs, while Wisconsin entered the day locked into the second seed. The Gophers conclude the regular season with a 17-17-2 record and a 12-14-2 league mark. Wisconsin enters the playoffs at 22-9-4 overall and 17-8-3 in the WCHA. Minnesota will play a best-of-three series at North Dakota starting on Friday, while Wisconsin will host Minnesota State. The Badgers had won four straight games and were averaging 4.03 goals per game entering Sunday's contest. Minnesota finished the day five-for-eight on the power play, marking its most power play goals in a game since scoring five against Minnesota State on Dec. 1, 2006. It was Minnesota's largest margin of victory against Wisconsin and most goals against the Badgers since an 8-1 win on Feb. 15, 2003. The Gophers scored three power play goals during a penalty-filled second period that saw Wisconsin commit seven penalties for 22 minutes. Minnesota added two more power play goals in the third period when Blake Geoffrion was called for two penalties on the same play after Wisconsin was already shorthanded, giving the Gophers a short-lived five-on-three and two more power plays. The only goal of the first period came from Carman on a scrum in front of the net at the 16:01 mark. Kevin Wehrs took a shot that Wisconsin goaltender Brett Bennett was unable to corral and Carman fought the puck away and pushed it across for a goal. Nick Larson also assisted the play. Wisconsin tied the game at 8:04 of the second period, shortly before the Badgers' barrage of penalties began. Michael Davies notched the goal with assists from Derek Stepan and Jake Gardiner. Minnesota had a flurry of three goals in a span of 2:35 that were all on the power play. The first came shortly after a five-on-three expired as Tony Lucia scored by tipping in a puck off a shot from Patrick White at the nine-minute mark. Carman also had an assist on the play. Jacob Cepis put the Gophers ahead 3-1 with an easy finish of a deflected shot by Mike Hoeffel. Cade Fairchild took a shot from the left point that Hoeffel pushed off to the right of the crease where Cepis stood wide open for the goal. Lucia finished Minnesota's three-goal outbreak with a wrister from the slot into the upper left corner of the net at 13:35 of the period. Carman and Fairchild each had assists on the play. Wisconsin had a five-on-three power play of its own for 47 seconds in the third period after a pair of overlapping penalties by the Gophers, but the Badgers were unable to score on the lengthy man-advantage. Wisconsin was 0-for-6 on the power play for the game. Nick Leddy put Minnesota ahead 5-1 at the 12:24 mark with assists from Hoeffel and Cepis. Carman added another goal just over a minute later for his first career four-point game. Aaron Ness and Lucia each assisted the play. Lucia's three points matched his career high set twice this season, including Nov. 7 at Wisconsin. Minnesota owned a 28-27 advantage in shots for the game as Alex Kangas made 26 saves for the Gophers and Bennett stopped 22 shots for Wisconsin. The Badgers entered the weekend averaging 38.2 shots per game and had 23 shots on Friday's game before their 27 on Sunday.

Sims sends Michigan to easy win over Minnesota

Tue, 2 Mar 2010 18:09:00 +0000

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- DeShawn Sims scored 23 points Tuesday night to help Michigan top Minnesota 83-55 in its home finale. Manny Harris added 22 points for the Wolverines (14-15, 7-10 Big Ten), who ended a three-game losing streak after taking control with a 14-2 run midway through the first half. Damian Johnson had 13 points and Colton Iverson 10 for Minnesota (17-12, 8-9), which was swept by Michigan. Sims and Harris did all the scoring during the decisive first-half spurt that gave the Wolverines the lead for good. Michigan, which struggled from behind the arc during its losing streak, made seven of its 15 3-point attempts in the opening half and led 43-29 at intermission. Minnesota, on the bubble for an NCAA tournament at-large berth, never got closer than 12 points in the second half. Michigan finished the game 32-for-53 (60.4 percent) from the floor, its best performance of the season.

Middlebrooks, Gophers stymie Belmont

Sun, 7 Mar 2010 12:24:00 +0000

ATHENS, Ga. -- Sunday was a great day for Minnesota's Lacey Middlebrooks. She hoisted the Minnesota Golden Gophers to a 2-0 victory over the Belmont Bruins (1-12) at UGA Softball Stadium in the Georgia Bulldog Invitational. The Bruins weren't able to score a run off of Middlebrooks during her seven innings on the mound. She struck out 10 and allowed four walks and one hit. A key to Middlebrooks's strong performance was her solid pitching with runners on base. She allowed no hits in seven at bats. Middlebrooks and Julie Harmon both pitched well. The Golden Gophers (9-13) were able to scrape together two more runs even though Harmon allowed just two hits hits over seven innings. In the end, the Golden Gophers just had a little bit more working for them. Minnesota was unable to make good contact against Harmon. The Golden Gophers managed two hits off of the junior pitcher. Harmon allowed one earned run, three walks and struck out six during her seven innings of work. A key to Harmon's strong performance was her solid pitching with runners on base. She allowed no hits in 10 at bats. Malisa Barnes helped the Golden Gophers take the lead for good in the fifth inning. The game was tied when Barnes came to the plate against Harmon with two outs and a runner on second. She reached on a fielding error by second baseman Dawn Thoni scoring Kelsey Klucas from second, which gave the Golden Gophers the lead for good. They scored again in seventh when Dannie Skrove came home on a wild pitch. The Bruins best chance to score was in the fourth inning. The game was tied when Gier came to the plate against Middlebrooks with two outs and a runner on third, but she struck out. With the victory Minnesota snapped a four game losing streak. The win was the first for Minnesota since Feb. 27 against Connecticut. Minnesota's next game is on Friday, March 12 at Creighton. Powered by Narrative Science Inc.

Oklahoma State outslugs Minnesota

Sat, 6 Mar 2010 23:03:00 +0000

MINNEAPOLIS -- Bats were blistered at HHH Metrodome in the Dairy Queen Classic on Saturday as the Oklahoma State Cowboys and the Minnesota Golden Gophers combined to put 25 runs on the board. The Cowboys won the offensive battle 16-9 over the Golden Gophers (2-7). The two teams combined for 30 hits. Oklahoma State (4-1) starter Andrew Heaney struggled, allowing six runs in two innings, but the bullpen allowed three runs and the offense banged out 20 hits to pick up the slack and secure the victory for the Cowboys. Even though Heaney was battered by the Golden Gophers, he still managed to survive in the end. Reliever Kevin Chambers earned the victory for Oklahoma State. He allowed two runs over four innings. The freshman pitcher struck out six, gave up one walk and surrendered six hits. Luis Uribe drove in four Cowboys runners. He went 4-5 at the plate. Uribe singled in the second inning scoring Dean Green and homered in the ninth inning scoring Dane Phillips and Green. Luke Rasmussen lasted just two innings on the mound for the Golden Gophers before being replaced. He allowed eight hits and eight runs. The game was a team effort for the Cowboys with every starter getting at least one hit. The Cowboys pummeled Golden Gophers pitching as four hitters combined for 12 hits, 12 runs batted in and 12 visits to home plate to help lead Oklahoma State to victory. The second was an important inning for the Cowboys. In addition to Uribe's single, Rasmussen gave up one run on a Dusty Harvard double. Later that inning, two runs came in when Davis Duren doubled and runs came in when Kevin David flew out and Mark Ginther doubled. Oklahoma State ran the table in the third, bringing in six runs. In the inning, Rasmussen gave up one run on a Phillips double. Later that inning, runs came in when David flew out, Tom Belza grounded out, Harvard doubled and Duren and Nico Rosthenhausler singled. The third was also a key inning for the Golden Gophers. In the inning, Heaney gave up two runs on a Kurt Schlangen double. Later that inning, runs came in when Schlangen and Aj Pettersen came home on a wild pitch and Kyle Geason and Sam Ryan singled. Minnesota is going through a rough part of the season. The Golden Gophers have now lost six games in a row. The Golden Gophers last won on Feb. 21 against Akron. Minnesota's next game is on Sunday, March 7 at Northwestern. Powered by Narrative Science Inc.

No. 4 Georiga run-rules Minnesota, 8-0

Sat, 6 Mar 2010 21:46:00 +0000

ATHENS, Ga. -- Erin Arevalo and Katie Murphy combined to throw a no-hitter for No. 4 Georgia in an 8-0 victory in a game that was ended in the fifth by the eight-run rule over Minnesota (8-13) on Saturday at UGA Softball Stadium in the Georgia Bulldog Invitational. Minnesota was unable to make good contact against Arevalo. The Golden Gophers managed no hits off of the sophomore pitcher. Arevalo allowed no earned runs, no walks and struck out six during her four innings of work. The biggest inning for the Bulldogs (16-1) was the first inning. In the inning Georgia scored five runs. Alissa Koch gave up one run on a Kristyn Sandberg single. Later that inning, two runs came in when Ashley Pauly singled and runs came in when Laura Trout flew out and Brianna Hesson came home on a throwing error. Pauly drove in three Bulldogs runners. In addition to her single in the first, Pauly hit into a fielder's choice in the third inning scoring Macie Couey. Koch took the loss for Minnesota. She went four innings, gave up five walks, struck out three, and allowed eight runs. The Bulldogs pummeled Golden Gophers pitching as four hitters combined for eight hits, four runs batted in and four visits to home plate to help lead Georgia to victory. Minnesota's next game is on Sunday, March 7 against Belmont in Athens, Ga. in the Georgia Bulldog Invitational. Powered by Narrative Science Inc.

Gophers snap skid, lay it on Elon

Sat, 6 Mar 2010 19:43:00 +0000

ATHENS, Ga. -- The Minnesota Golden Gophers jumped on the Elon Phoenix early on their way to a 9-4 win on Saturday at UGA Softball Stadium in the Georgia Bulldog Invitational. The Golden Gophers (8-12) scored four runs in the first inning. In the first, Lauren Taylor gave up one run on a Alex Davis beanball. Later that inning, runs came in when Aubrey Davis reached on a fielding error by third baseman Caitlin McGowan, Kari Dorle walked and Dannie Skrove singled. Thirteen strikeouts helped Lacey Middlebrooks get the win for Minnesota. She allowed three earned runs on four hits and four walks over seven innings. Kari Dorle was perfect at the plate for Minnesota. She went 3-3 at the dish. In addition to her walk in the first, Dorle doubled in the third and fifth innings and singled in the seventh inning. The big game came as a surprise from Dorle, who has been struggling this season with a batting average of .100. On the season she has seven hits in 43 at bats. She has driven in three runners and scored two runs. Taylor took the loss for Elon (9-2). She went five innings, gave up two walks, struck out six, and allowed seven runs. With the victory Minnesota snapped a four game losing streak. The win was the first for Minnesota since Feb. 27 against Connecticut. Powered by Narrative Science Inc.

Badgers beat Gophers, 3-2

Fri, 5 Mar 2010 22:44:00 +0000

Wisconsin scored a late goal and Minnesota had three goals disallowed as the Badgers pulled out a 3-2 victory on Friday at Target Center. The Badgers' Craig Smith scored his second goal of the game with 4:12 left to break a 2-2 deadlock and give Wisconsin the victory. Minnesota, meanwhile, had an apparent goal disallowed in each period. The game was played at the Target Center in Minneapolis and drew 14,422 fans. It was the first college hockey game at the venue since the 2000 Western Collegiate Hockey Association Final Five. Wisconsin, ranked third nationally, has won four of the past five meetings with the Gophers and improved to 22-8-4 overall and 17-7-3 in the WCHA. Minnesota dropped to 16-17-2 overall and 11-14-2 in the league. Minnesota spent much of the opening period shorthanded and got the game's first goal during a Wisconsin power play when Ryan Flynn notched his second goal of the season. Flynn picked off a Badgers' pass in his own zone and wristed a shot from the right faceoff circle for an unassisted goal at the 4:16 mark. Wisconsin scored a pair of power play goals in the period to take a 2-1 lead. Smith picked up his first goal at the 6:53 mark and Justin Schultz got the second at the 17:36 mark. The Badgers owned a 13-5 advantage in shots during the period and scored on two of their four power plays. Minnesota nearly had a goal late in the first period when Jacob Cepis raced down the ice and fired a shot that hit off the crossbar and landed on the goalline. Video replay confirmed that the puck did not cross the line. Replay was a major factor in the second period as well when Mike Hoeffel had an apparent goal disallowed three minutes into the stanza. The Gophers were on a five-on-three power play and Cade Fairchild launched a shot from the point that Hoeffel tipped into the net. However, a lengthy review found that Hoeffel was in the crease and took the goal away. Minnesota's defense held Wisconsin to just two shots in the second period with both coming in the final two-and-a-half minutes of the period. The Gophers held a 10-2 advantage in shots for the period. Nick Larson tied the game at the 2:13 of the third period by tipping in on a long shot from the point by Kevin Wehrs. Nico Sacchetti also assisted the play. It was Larson's fourth goal of the season and his second in three games. Smith picked up the game winner with an assist from Blake Geoffrion in the closing minutes. The Badgers had only eight shots in the third period and finished the game with 23 shots. Minnesota had 27 shots for the game as Scott Gudmanson made 25 saves for Wisconsin. Alex Kangas finished with 20 saves for Minnesota. Wisconsin finished 2-for-5 on the power play, while Minnesota did not score in six chances. The teams play again on Sunday at Mariucci Arena at 1 p.m. in the regular season finale for both teams.

Gophers can't hold onto early lead

Fri, 5 Mar 2010 22:04:00 +0000

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. -- Minnesota jumped out to an early lead, but the Golden Gophers were unable to hold on and lost 4-3 to Loyola Marymount (2-7) on Friday. Minnesota (2-6) led 3-0 after the first inning, but Loyola Marymount worked its way back and took the lead in the ninth inning on a home run by Alex Guthrie. Michael Kvasnicka drove in three Golden Gophers runners. He went 2-2 at the plate. Kvasnicka homered in the first inning scoring Matt Puhl and Aj Pettersen. Eight strikeouts helped Seth Rosin move through the Lions lineup. He allowed one earned run on two hits and no walks over six innings. Chris Eusebio got the win in relief for Loyola Marymount. The junior pitcher pitched 1 1/3 innings and allowed no runs. Loyola Marymount scored in three innings to claim the victory. The Lions scored one run in the fourth, two runs in the seventh and one run in the ninth. In the fourth, Rosin gave up one run on a Matt Koch groundout. In the seventh, reliever Scott Fern gave up one run on a Matt Lowenstein double. Later that inning, runs came in when Ryan Hawthorne doubled. Reliever Fern took the loss for Minnesota. He went three innings, gave up one walk, struck out two, and allowed three runs. Minnesota is going through a rough part of the season. The Golden Gophers have now lost five games in a row. The Golden Gophers last won on Feb. 21 against Akron. Minnesota's next game is on Saturday, March 6 against Oklahoma State in Minneapolis, Minn. in the Dairy Queen Classic. Powered by Narrative Science Inc.

Gophers men's tennis notches win

Fri, 5 Mar 2010 21:49:00 +0000

In a rematch of last season's NCAA tournament opener, Minnesota swept New Mexico 7-0 on Friday at the Baseline Tennis Center. The 46th-ranked Gophers won five of six singles matches in straight sets to improve to 5-4 overall, while 54th-ranked New Mexico dropped to 3-5 overall. Minnesota swept all three doubles matches to take a 1-0 lead as Sebastian Gallego and Phillip Arndt won 8-6 at No. 1, Tobias Wernet and Rok Bonin won 8-4 at No. 2 and Derek Peterson and Julian Dehn teamed for an 8-3 win at No. 3. Brendan Ruddock posted a 6-3, 6-1 win over Conor Berg at No. 6 singles and Bonin followed with a 6-1, 6-0 win over Phil Anderson at No. 3. The Gophers clinched the match with a 6-3, 6-2 win from Sebastian Gallego over Ben Dunbar at No. 1. Michael Sicora added a 6-1, 7-5 win over Joe Wood at No. 5 and Tobias Wernet defeated Carl Ho 6-3, 6-4 at No. 2. Dino Bilankov finished the sweep with a three-set win at No. 4, beating Jadon Phillips 6-4, 4-6, (10-7). The Gophers host 22nd-ranked Washington on Sunday at noon. New Mexico meets meet Washington on Saturday at 2 p.m. at the Baseline Tennis Center. #46 Minnesota 7, #54 New Mexico 0 Singles 1. #77 Sebastian Gallego (MINN) def. Ben Dunbar (NM) 6-3, 6-2 2. #111 Tobias Wernet (MINN) def. Carl Ho (NM) 6-3, 6-4 3. Rok Bonin (MINN) def. Phil Anderson (NM) 6-1, 6-0 4. Dino Bilankov (MINN) def. Jadon Phillips (NM) 6-4, 4-6, (10-7) 5. Michael Sicora (MINN) def. Joe Wood (NM) 6-1, 7-5 6. Brendan Ruddock (MINN) def. Conor Berg (NM) 6-3, 6-1 Order of finish: 6,3,1,5,2,4 Doubles 1. Gallego/Arndt (MINN) def. Dunbar/Phillips (NM) 8-6 2. Wernet/Bonin (MINN) def. Wood/Anderson (NM) 8-4 3. Derek Peterson/Julian Dehn (MINN) def. Ho/Berg (NM) 8-3 Order of finish: 2,3,1 Records: Minnesota: 5-4 New Mexico: 3-5

Gophers fall to Kennesaw State

Thu, 4 Mar 2010 17:44:00 +0000

KENNESAW, Ga. -- The Owls trailed by five in the fourth, but Kennesaw State recovered thanks to a key home run in the fifth inning from Sharon Swanson to pull out a 6-5 win over the Minnesota Golden Gophers (7-10) at Bailey Park in the Georgia Bulldog Invitational on Thursday. After a fielder's choice and a single in the fourth, the Golden Gophers were leading by five and had runners on first and second with one out. Owls starter Abbey Meixel then got Malisa Barnes to to end the threat. That moment turned the game around and set up Kennesaw State's opportunity to claim the victory in the fifth. After Hannah Graham walked the Owls (8-4) were trailing by one when Swanson came to the plate against Alissa Koch with no outs and a runner on first. She homered scoring Graham from first, which gave the Owls the lead for good. Swanson drove in two Owls runners. She went 3-4 at the plate. Jessica Cross drove in three Owls runners. She went 2-2 at the plate. Cross homered in the fourth inning scoring Klair Wells and Ashley Burkett. Meixel earned the win for Kennesaw State. She allowed five runs over seven innings. The freshman pitcher struck out five, gave up one walk and surrendered six hits. Koch took the loss for Minnesota. She went two innings, gave up two walks, struck out two, and allowed two runs. Minnesota's next game is on Friday, March 5 against Middle Tennessee State in Athens, Ga. in the Georgia Bulldog Invitational. Powered by Narrative Science Inc.

Minnesota suffers sweep in doubleheader

Sat, 6 Mar 2010 19:47:00 +0000

ATHENS, Ga. - The University of Minnesota softball team began play at the Georgia Bulldog Invitational today (Mar. 5) taking on Middle Tennessee State before a match-up with tournament host Georgia. Despite an early lead, Minnesota suffered a 10-2 setback in five innings to Middle Tennessee State. Then they had to face the No. 4 team in the country in Georgia, and saw similar results with a 7-0 loss. Game One Minnesota jumped out to a 2-0 lead over Middle Tennessee State, scoring both of their runs in the bottom of the first inning. The lead was short lived, however, as the Blue Raiders came back for five in the top of the second, as well as five more over the third and fourth innings before the game ended 10-2 in the fifth. The 10-run total marks the most runs allowed for the Gophers and season as the Blue Raiders did their damage on nine hits, five of which came in the second. There was no big blow either, as each run was scored alone. In the second inning, back-to-back run scoring singles and a stolen base led to the first three scores, while later in the inning a pair of two out hits scored the next two runs. The Gophers first inning scoring began with a lead-off single by Malisa Barnes (Phoenix, Ariz.). Two batters later, after Sammie Howard (Shoreview, Minn.) moved Barnes over, Abby Rehberger (Brainerd, Minn.) singled her home. Howard went on the score the second run of the inning when she stole home later in the inning. The Gophers went down in order in their half of the second and third as the Blue Raiders tacked on five more runs. In the fourth, Middle Tennessee State scored off of a sac fly, a walk and two run-scoring singles. The Gophers managed just one run in the fourth and fifth as the Blue Raiders closed out the win. Alissa Koch (Racine, Wis.) pitched all five innings for Minnesota, allowing all 10 runs (nine earned) while striking out four. Game Two Georgia methodically added up the runs on Minnesota in game two. The Bulldogs began with one in the first, followed by two in the second, three in the fourth and one more in the fifth for the final 7-0 margin. Georgia piled up eight hits, while stifling the Minnesota offense to just three in the shutout. The Gophers went down in order in the first and second, not collecting their first hit until the third inning. When Barnes singled to center field with two out in the third, it became the start of the Gophers best threat to score on the day. Howard followed with a single up the middle, advancing Chonquita Jones (Chicago, Ill.) to second - pinch-running for Barnes. Up next Rehberger was hit by a pitch and the Gophers has the bases loaded with Heidi Carls (Villard, Minn.) at the plate. Georgia starter Erin Arevalo was able to get Carls to ground out to second, bringing an end to the rally. A two-out hit from Carls in the fourth was the last for the Gophers who did not get a runner past second for the rest of the game. Lacey Middlebrooks (Wake Village, Texas) again went the distance, taking credit for six the Bulldog's seven runs. She struck out two and walked six in her 6.0 innings of work. Minnesota falls to 7-12 and has lost their last four since climbing to within a game of the .500 mark at 7-8. They will look to get back on track with two more games tomorrow (Mar. 6), as they face Elon at 9:00 a.m. before a rematch with Georgia at 1:30 p.m.

PSU advances to play Iowa

Thu, 4 Mar 2010 14:58:00 +0000

INDIANAPOLIS, IND. March 4, 2010 — The sixth-seeded Penn State Lady Lions (17-12, 8-10) found their defensive and transition games on the way to a 63-52 victory over No. 11 seed Minnesota (13-17, 6-12) in the Big Ten Tournament at Conseco Fieldhouse Thursday afternoon. The Lady Lions, who won a Big Ten Tournament game for the first time since the 2006-07 season, will now face No. 3 seed Iowa (17-12, 10-8) in the quarterfinals at approximately 2 p.m. tomorrow. The Iowa game can be seen on the Big Ten Network. After being shutout in the first half, senior Tyra Grant (Youngstown, Ohio) and freshman Nikki Greene (Diboll, Texas) combined for 27 points in the second frame with 15 and 12 tallies, respectively. Grant also added four rebounds, two blocks and a pair of steals. She now needs 11 points to become the fourth player in school history to reach the 2,000-point plateau. Greene, who tied her career scoring high for the seventh time this season, accounted for six rebounds and three rejections. Junior Julia Trogele (Devon, Pa.) was outstanding for the Lady Lions Thursday with five points, six rebounds, a career-best seven assists and two steals, while senior Meredith Monroe (Olney, Md.) knocked down all four shots she took en route to eight points and a team-best seven rebounds. Freshman Alex Bentley (Indianapolis, Ind.) tallied nine points, three assists and a career high tying four steals in her first game in front of her hometown crowd. The Lady Lions struck quickly as Trogele found Bentley off of the tip for an easy bucket just five seconds into the game. The Golden Gophers scored three consecutive points, but Janessa Wolff (Park Rapids, Minn.) and Bentley connected on the game's next two baskets to give the Lions a 6-3 lead with less than 17 minutes to play. The Golden Gophers, who started the game 6-for-8 from the field, reeled off a 13-0 run to take a 16-6 lead with 12 minutes remaining. Monroe snapped Penn State's five-minute scoreless drought with a pair of jumpers to start an 11-0 run for the Lady Lions. Trogele netted a three-pointer in transition and Gizelle Studevent (La Jolla, Calif.) converted on a floater during the run, while Monroe capped the run with a rebound and putback to give PSU a 17-16 lead with seven minutes to play in the frame. Minnesota responded to the Penn State run by scoring seven the of the game's next nine points to established a 23-19 lead with five minutes remaining. After an exchange of possessions, Bentley drained a jumper as the shot clock expired to cut the deficit to two points (23-13), but the Gophers made a pair of free throws on their next opportunity to stretch the lead back to four with 3:43 on the clock. Bentley continued her solid half with another jumper and Marisa Wolfe (Ford City, Pa.) and Studevent added two free throws apiece to give the Lions a 27-25 lead with two minutes left. Minnesota capped the first half scoring with a layup by Ashley Ellis-Milan to even the score at 27-27. Bentley and Monroe paced Penn State in the opening half with eight points each. Bentley also added a pair of steals. Trogele had a solid first half with three points, four rebounds and four assists. China Antoine connected on three three-pointers to lead Minnesota with nine tallies. The Lady Lions registered seven steals off of 12 Golden Gopher turnovers in the first period. Minnesota started the scoring in the second half with a layup by Ellis-Milan, but Grant responded with her first bucket of the game on Penn State's initial possession of the second half. Following a Golden Gopher score by Jackie Voigt, Greene kick-started a 10-0 run with a layup. Trogele had a great dribble-drive and Grant scored five consecutive points during the run to pace the Lions. Brittany McCoy ended a four-minute drought for the Gophers with a layup, but Greene made a strong move to the basket on a Trogele pass and Wolff converted on a pass from Grant to stretch the Penn State lead to 10 points (43-33) with 13 minutes left in the game. The Lady Lions maintained their 10-point lead for the remainder of the game. The closest that the Gophers could get in the final 13 minutes was six points on two occasions, but the Lions responded both times. Penn State is 21-16 all-time against Iowa, including a season sweep of the Hawkeyes with a 77-73 overtime win and a 68-62 victory. The Lady Lions have won both Big Ten Tournament games between the squads (2005 and 1995). The Lady Lions are 10-2 all-time in Big Ten Tournament quarterfinal games. GAME NOTES: The Lady Lions win a Big Ten Tournament game for the first time since the 2006-07 when they defeated #4 seed Illinois, 73-71, in the quarterfinals…Junior Julia Trogele tied her career high with seven assists…Freshman Nikki Greene tied her career high with 12 points for the seventh time this season…Senior Tyra Grant is now 11 points away from becoming the fourth player in school history to reach 2,000 points…Penn State defeats Minnesota for the first time since Feb.15, 2007, a string of six games…This was the first time that the teams met in the Big Ten Tournament…The Lady Lions are 10-2 all-time in Big Ten Tournament quarterfinal games. The Lady Lions hold several camps throughout the summer. There is a Lady Lion Basketball Camp available for girls of all ages, ranging from shooting camp to elite camp. The 2010 Lady Lion Basketball Camp schedule is as follows: Shooting Camp (June 13-15), Elite Camp (June 20-22), Skills Camp (June 20-23), Total Package Team Camp (June 24-26) and Games Galore Team Camp (August 6-8). For more information on Lady Lion Basketball Camps, please visit psusportscamps.com and click on Lady Lion Basketball Camp. The Lady Lions are on Twitter. Follow head coach Coquese Washington (@psucoachquese), sports information contact Kris Petersen (@ladylionsid) and the Lady Lions and assistant coaches (@pennstatewbb) to get the inside scoop. The Lady Lions are also on Facebook. Search Lady Lion Basketball and become a fan.