STrib: Gophers softball on upswing
So what makes the 2014 Gophers tick?
1. They have an ace, Sara Moulton. The senior has or soon will have nearly every pitching record in program history. She recently went over 1,000 in career strikeouts. Moulton is 8-1 with a 0.92 ERA and seven shutouts this season. In 53.1 innings, she has 76 Ks, more than any other pitcher in the league.
She has 93 career wins, 98 complete games and 42 shutouts -- all program records -- and has five no-hitters, including one this season which ties another Gophers career record.
The Gophers lead Big Ten teams in strikeouts with 119 as a team and are fourth in ERA at 1.96.
2. These Gophers can hit, too, especially the batters at the top of the order. Leadoff hitter Tyler Walker, the shortstop, is hittting .439 with two doubles, three triples and a homer. She has 12 RBI and her 29 total bases put her fifth in the conference. No. 3 hitter Kaitlyn Richardson is hitting .417 with four doubles, two homers and a team-high 14 RBI. Cleanup hitter Sara Groenewegen, also the Gophers' No. 2 pitcher as a freshman, is hitting .325 with four homers and 10 RBI.
The Gophers are fifth in the conference with a .305 average and have the most homers, 14.
3. Minnesota can field. Its fielding percentage is .971, third in the Big Ten.
The Gophers have received NCAA bids only eight times: 1988, '91, '96, '98, '99, '02, '03 and '11. Their record in NCAA tournament play is a modest 8-16.
They have won Big Ten regular-season titles only three times: They were co-champions in 1986 and won outright titles in 1988 and '91. So Minnesota's golden era was about 25 years ago.
The Gophers' only Big Ten tournament title came in 1999.
In the USA Today softball rankings this week, the Gophers are No. 19, behind only two Big Ten teams, No. 6 Michigan and No.16 Nebraska.
http://www.startribune.com/sports/blogs/246831751.html
Go Gophers!!
