The Gophers are two wins from reaching – and hosting – the Super Regionals. Amber Fiser struck out 12 and allowed just three hits in a complete game shutout to lead the Gopher softball team to a 3-0 victory over North Dakota State Friday night. It was the second game of the opening round of the Minneapolis Regional of the NCAA softball tournament, with Georgia defeating Drake 6-4 in eight innings in the first game. Minnesota and Georgia meet in the winner's bracket at 3 p.m. Saturday. If the Gophers win, they'll advance to the championship round and play whoever is still alive at 3 p.m. Sunday. If they lose, they'll play the winner of Drake versus NDSU at 8 p.m. Saturday. Game 1: Georgia 6, Drake 4 Game 2: Gophers 3, NDSU 0 Game 3: Gophers vs. Georgia, 3 p.m. Saturday Game 4: Drake vs. NDSU , 5:30 p.m. Saturday (elimination game) Game 5: Game 3 loser vs. Game 4 winner, 8 p.m. Saturday (elimination game) Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 5 winner, 3 p.m. Sunday Game 7 (if necessary): Game 6 winner vs. Game 6 loser, 5:30 p.m. Sunday Unfortunately, the weather on Sunday is going to be brutal, with temps struggling to reach 40 degrees and a healthy amount of rain possible in the Twin Cities. If the Gophers win the Minneapolis Regional they will host next week's Super Regional against the winner of the Baton Rouge Regional, which features LSU, Texas Tech, Monmouth and Louisiana Tech. Super Regionals are a best-of-three, with the winner advancing to the Women's College World Series in Oklahoma City.<doc-sep>The Minnesota Golden Gophers will host a regional in the NCAA Softball Championship as they received the No. 7 overall seed in in Sunday's Selection Show – the highest seed a Gopher softball team has ever received. The Gophers will open at home in Minneapolis Friday at 9:30 p.m. against North Dakota State University. The other two teams in the Minneapolis Regional are Drake (42-14) and Georgia (40-17), who will square off at 7 p.m. Friday. If the Gophers win the Minneapolis Regional, they will stay at home and host a Super Regional, which is part of the final 16 teams competing to reach the 2019 Women's College World Series. Minnesota finished third in the Big Ten regular season standings and reached the Big Ten Tournament title game Saturday where they lost 3-2 to Michigan. The Gophers built a strong case to host a regional with the No. 8 RPI in the country and a No. 12 ranking in the NFCA Coaches Poll, which was a higher final regular season ranking than Michigan and Northwestern, the two teams that finished ahead of Minnesota in the Big Ten standings.<doc-sep>The Minnesota Golden Gophers softball team will play in its first home NCAA Tournament regional since 2014 and will look to advance to its second ever NCAA Super Regional this weekend. The Gophers will begin their double elimination regional Friday night at 8:30 against North Dakota State while Drake and Georgia will face off in the first game Friday at 6PM. Minnesota is in the NCAA Tournament for the seventh consecutive season, and are the #7 overall national seed. That is the highest the Gophers have ever been seeded in the NCAA Tournament. This is the first time since 2014 that the Gophers have been selected to host a home regional, and not coincidentally Minnesota’s only regional win came in...2014. But the NCAA did not give Minnesota an easy trip to the Super Regionals. Minnesota will host the most competitive region out of the 16. The average RPI of the four teams in the Minneapolis Regional is just under 25, which is nearly ten points higher than the next toughest region. The Minneapolis regional is the only one in the country that will have all four teams with 40 wins or more. If Minnesota wants to advance to their first ever home Super Regional, they will need to prove they deserve it. Another factor all four teams will need to deal with this weekend will be the weather. Rain is forecasted later Friday evening and there is a 100% chance of rain on both Saturday and Sunday. Trying to get in at minimum six games and potentially seven over the next three days is going to be very complicated, and most likely will be very taxing on teams pitching staffs. That could be more detrimental to teams like Minnesota and Drake who rely on one ace pitcher and get by with the rest of their staffs, while teams like Georgia have multiple pitchers who have competed against top level competition and can more easily shoulder the load of tightly spaced games. Here is a preview of all four teams in the regional: Minnesota Golden Gophers— 41-12 (20-2 in the Big Ten) RPI: 9 The Gophers earned the national #7 seed by going 41-12 on the season..and playing one of the ten toughest schedules in the nation. Minnesota played non-conference games this season against the teams that enter the NCAA Tournament as the #4, #5, #6, #8, #9, #11 and #12 seeded teams. Minnesota only defeated #9 Texas twice in that schedule, but they got a lot of experience playing top teams. Additionally Minnesota play #15 seed Michigan in the Big Ten Tournament Championship game, and played #16 seed Northwestern four times this season going 3-1. The Gophers finished in third place in the Big Ten regular season one half game behind Northwestern and then took second in the Big Ten tournament with a 3-2 loss to the Wolverines in the Championship Game. Minnesota is led in the circle by Big Ten Pitcher of the Year Amber Fiser. This season Fiser is 26-7 with three saves, a 1.24 ERA and 301 strikeouts. Her ERA and strikeout numbers lead the Big Ten. She is 15th in the country in ERA, tenth in wins and fifth in strikeouts. On offense Minnesota has the table setters and the big sticks to bring them home. Makenna Partain hits leadoff for the Gophers and needs just three runs in the NCAA Tournament to set the Minnesota record for most runs in a season with 66. She leads the Gophers with a .407 average and has 16 doubles, four triples, five home runs and 13 stolen bases this season. Natalie DenHartog and Hope Brander are the big bats behind her in the lineup. DenHartog is one of the ten finalists for the NCAA Freshman of the Year after beginning the season coming off the bench. This season she has hit .392 with 15 doubles, two triples and 16 home runs. Her 59 RBIs led the Big Ten and is good enough for 13th in the nation. Brandner is a transfer from Oregon State . She has stepped in at first base and filled the power void in the Gopher lineup after the transfer of two time Big Ten Player of the Year Kendyl Lindaman to Florida. Brander is batting .357 with eight doubles, 56 RBI and 18 home runs. Her 18 home runs leave her just two short of Lindaman’s single season school record set last season. North Dakota State Bison—42-14 (16-2 in the Summit League) RPI: 44 North Dakota State earned the Summit League’s berth to the NCAA Tournament. They went 16-2 in regular season play to win the regular season title and then defeated South Dakota twice to win the Summit League Tournament. They are making their 10th trip to the NCAA Tournament in the last 11 seasons. NDSU has played nine teams this season in the 2019 NCAA tournament field and have compiled a 3-8 record – #3-seed Washington (0-1), #16-seed Northwestern (0-1), Arkansas (0-1), Auburn (0-2), Chattanooga (1-0), Notre Dame (0-1), Seattle University (2-0), Southern Illinois (0-1), and Stanford (0-1). In the circle the Bison are led by KK Leddy the Summit League Pitcher of the Year. Leddy is 22-8 on the season with three saves. She has an 2.22 ERA with 174 strikeouts and has allowed just 31 earned runs on the season. Paige Vargas is the Bison’s second pitcher and was named the Summit League’s Freshman of the Year She is 17-4 on the season with a 2.27 ERA and 107 strikeouts. Offensively NDSU is led by Summit League Player of the Year Katie Shoultz. She elads the Bison with a .395 batting average and has scored a team best 40 runs. Catcher Maddie Hansen is the big bat for the Bison. She leads the team with 12 home runs, ten doubles and 45 RBI on the season. Drake Bulldogs—42-24 (24-2 in the Missouri Valley) RPI: 22 Drake ran through the Summit League regular season with a 24-2 record and then swept the MVC Tournament to earn the NCAA Tournament automatic bid. They are making their second consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament.<doc-sep>This will get you excited for this year's WCWS This will get you excited for this year's WCWS Gophers softball coach Jamie Trachsel had 20 posters made with a simple message and spread them around the softball facility this week. "Purdue or Rutgers," they read. Minnesota will face the winner of that matchup, scheduled to be played Thursday, in the Big Ten tournament quarterfinals Friday in Bloomington, Indiana. The message, of course, is that this is no time to look ahead. We hit the road to Bloomington tomorrow. The wise senior @sydlsmitty said it perfectly talking about mindset this weekend. Just looking to always be standing plus one at the end of the game: pic.twitter.com/A8THi7xYxu — Minnesota Softball (@GopherSoftball) May 9, 2019 "No one in our program right now is talking about anybody but those two teams," Trachsel said. Never mind that fellow Big Ten heavyweights Michigan or Northwestern could be next for No. 3 seed Minnesota. "We can get snake bit if we think it is about them," Trachsel said. And never mind the effect this week's performance will have on the NCAA tournament pairings. A couple of victories would almost guarantee the Gophers a home regional the following weekend. GAME TIME: These NCAA softball teams are looking to prove themselves in conference tournaments "Obviously, everyone is thinking about it, but we try to just attack it a day at a time and just go up against our next opponent," pitcher Sydney Smith said. "Because we really can't achieve that unless we beat the next (team) we're facing." Just ask the 2014-15 Gophers, who entered the Big Ten tournament believing they were in a good spot to host a regional, only to lose to Iowa in the first round. They were sent to Arizona for NCAAs. Upsets happen. The last three years, @GopherSoftball has had a great time at the Big Ten Softball Tournament. This weekend, they're shooting for four in a row. Keep up with the #Gophers this weekend: https://t.co/muqPLdbBva pic.twitter.com/vQoDDyQQyH — Minnesota Gophers (@GopherSports) May 8, 2019 "We've worked too hard to let one thing distract us for even a second to let an opportunity slip by, whether it's just that game or the tournament," Trachsel said. "We have lofty goals, and we've been really good about embracing the process and every step that comes with it." That Iowa game was Minnesota's last Big Ten tournament defeat. Since then, the Gophers have won the tournament three straight times -- and have a real shot at a fourth this weekend. 2019 NCAA SOFTBALL TOURNAMENT: Bracket, schedule, teams "We have a lot of postseason experience, and the Big Ten tournament is fun," Smith said. "This is where you can showcase that you can compete with everyone and it just gets you rolling into the postseason. ... This is when it gets tough, and this is when we show what we really can do." Minnesota has momentum on its side. The Gophers are fresh off a series victory over Northwestern, the No. 2 seed in this weekend's tournament. These are the big questions heading into selections weekend: 1️⃣ How many @SEC teams will make the tournament? 2️⃣ What seed will @UCLASoftball earn? 3️⃣ Which cinderella team will head to supers?#NCAASoftball https://t.co/IikOIG5OTg — NCAA Softball (@NCAAsoftball) May 9, 2019 "I think that's going to help us get ready for postseason, as well," said Amber Fiser, who was named Big Ten Pitcher of the Year on Wednesday. "Just being able to have that experience should help us going into the Big Ten, and hopefully a few weeks after that." The ultimate goal for the Gophers is that those ensuing postseason games are played in the Twin Cities. After the 2017 season, the tournament committee snubbed Minnesota for a home regional despite its 54 wins. HIGHLIGHTS: Check out these plays of the week "I know we all refer back to two years ago a lot," Fiser said. "But just knowing the team we are now, I think we've grown so much since then and I think we really deserve to host. But, like I said, this weekend kind of makes that decision, so we have to do it this weekend." This article is written by Jace Frederick from St. Paul Pioneer Press and was legally licensed via the Tribune Content Agency through the NewsCred publisher network. Please direct all licensing questions to legal@newscred.com.<doc-sep>
The Minnesota Golden Gophers softball team heads into the 2019 Big Ten Softball Tournament on a roll and tyring to lock up a home NCAA Regional next weekend. The Gophers have one the last three Big Ten Tournaments and will try and make it four in a row in Bloomington, Indiana. They kick off play in the quarterfinals on Friday night against Purdue. Minnesota comes into the Big Ten Tournament with the #3 seed. The Gophers finished with a Big Ten record of 20-2 on the season, behind regular season champion Michigan who went 22-1, and #2 seed Northwestern who despite losing two of three games in the last weekend of the regular season to the Gophers ended the season as 21-2. Minnesota lost out on one game earlier in the season to last place Michigan State due to weather, and a win in that game would have vaulted them over the Wildcats into the #2 seed. The real number that matters for the Gophers is #8. That is Minnesota’s current RPI. If the Gophers can make it through the Big Ten Tournament relatively unscathed, that number should stay pretty steady, which should in theory lock up at minimum a home NCAA Regional at Jane Sage Cowles Stadium next weekend. The Gophers hosted in 2015 and advanced through to the NCAA Super Regional where they lost to the Washington Huskies. If, and it’s a big if given the knowledge of how the NCAA likes to seed teams and reward western and southern teams, but if Minnesota can stay at that #8 slot or above, they would have the potential to host their first ever home Super Regional as well. We will all find out how that ends up during the NCAA Softball Tournament Selection Show in ESPN 2 at 8 PM Sunday night. If the Gophers want to get to that point, they need to win their initial game Friday night against Purdue. Minnesota swept a three game series from the Boilermakers in late March by scores of 5-1, 5-1 and 8-2. The #11 seed Boilermakers upset #6 seed Rutgers in a first round game that did not start until nearly 10:30 CDT Thursday night due to a rain delay. It will be interesting to see how Gopher head coach Jamie Trachsel plays their game against the Boilermakers. She would most likely love to start Sydney Smith and try to avoid needing to use Amber Fiser at all on Friday night. Assuming the Gophers win they would either play Northwestern or host Indiana at 1:30 on Saturday afternoon in the semifinal, with the championship game against either Wisconsin, Michigan , or Illinois immediately following. If you can save as many Fiser bullets for Saturday as possible, you need to do it. Offensively the Gophers will have a question of if second baseman and First Team All-Big Ten player Makenna Partain can go. She has been battling injuries and has both an injured shoulder and was seen wearing a boot on her foot earlier this week. It’s expected she will play, but if not Minnesota will have a rather large hole in it’s leadoff spot. The Gophers still have two of the best power treats in the country in their three and four holes. Hope Brandner led the conference in home runs in 2019 and has the second highest single season total in Gopher history. In the cleanup spot Natalie DenHartong continues to shine, and she was just named one of ten finalists for the Schutt Sports/NFCA Freshman of the Year award. DenHartog leads the conference in RBIs, is second in slugging percentage, third in home runs and sixth in batting average. She is 11th in the country in RBIs and 15th in slugging percentage. We have seen that the Gophers can match up against the best of the Big Ten. They took two of three from previously undefeated Northwestern last week. Michigan who won the regular season championship did not have to play the #2, #3, or #4 seeds in the regular season due to the Big Ten’s unbalanced schedule. But Minnesota has been in this position before. In 2018 the #2 seeded Gophers won the tournament defeating #3 seed Indiana and #4 seed Northwestern. #1 Michigan lost their quarterfinal game. In 2017 the Gophers ran the table as the #1 seed, but missed #2 Michigan as they....once again lost in their first round game.