Gophers softball rides surge into Big Ten tournament after rough 2022

A major turnaround for the Gophers softball team started during an early April home series against Indiana.

After standout pitcher Autumn Pease fell 9-3 to the Hoosiers at Jane Sage Cowles Stadium, the Gophers had fallen to 2-5 in Big Ten play. . Things had to change to avoid going through another disappointing season like 2022.

"We knew that Indiana series was detrimental to our season," said Pease, who hasn't lost another game since falling to Hoosiers.

A 3-4 Big Ten start last year never got much better when the Gophers dropped seven of nine games in the middle of league play. They finished 27-26-1 overall and 11-12 in the Big Ten.

A year later, the Gophers (36-16, 17-6 Big Ten) surged back from a slow start to win 15 of their final 16 regular-season games, including 11 in a row heading into Thursday's Big Ten tournament opener against Ohio State, which beat Rutgers 7-4 on Wednesday in their opening round.

Northwestern won the outright Big Ten regular-season softball title. Indiana has nine straight victories. But the third-seeded Gophers are the hottest team going into the conference tournament in Champaign, Ill., after their early season wake-up call.

"We wanted to move up in the [standings], so we had to beat Indiana," Pease said. "We kind of all came out with a little fire in us. We knew it was going to be hard. … But from there everything just went up."

Last weekend's three-game series sweep against Michigan at home showcased just how much the Gophers have grown from a team basically relying on Pease's pitching to also having dynamic hitters to lean on.

Pease, who was named Big Ten Pitcher of the Year on Wednesday, improved to 25-6 with her 11th straight win Sunday on Senior Day against the Wolverines. The day before, though, the Gophers won 13-10 without Pease on the mound. Sophomore Taylor Krapf and freshman Jess Oakland combined for five hits, three home runs and 10 RBI. The team also hit 6-for-8 with runners in scoring position.

It's been a game-changer for the Gophers to have Pease recover from an arm injury earlier in her career to become their certified ace and the Big Ten's top pitcher.

She leads the Big Ten in wins, strikeouts and ERA with 17 complete games and eight shutouts this season. But in Big Ten play, the Gophers also rank second in home runs (68), second in doubles (87), second in slugging percentage (.507) and fifth in batting average (.287). Five Gophers are also batting above .300 and four have hit double digit homers this year.

"This is definitely a team sport," Gophers coach Piper Ritter said. "Sometimes you're getting hit, so it's all about your team trying to score more runs than the other team at the end of the day. Sometimes you're facing a really good pitcher or a really good offensive team. And it's up to your hitters to help you out and the pitcher do what they can to help."

On Senior Day, the Gophers honored Pease, Natalie DenHartog and Amani Bradley. A transfer from Cal, Bradley has been a starting outfielder, batting .294 and leading the team with nine stolen bases. But the impact of Pease and DenHartog goes beyond this season.

Pease, a former Idaho State transfer who joined the team three years ago, has been the program's best pitcher since All-America Amber Fiser in 2019. DenHartog, the last remaining player from the Gophers' College World Series team four years ago, ranks second in Big Ten softball history with 70 homers.

Starting Thursday in the Big Ten tournament, Ritter hopes her seniors can be part of a postseason run for the Gophers in their last year with the program.

"Whether it's your fourth or fifth year, you definitely want to go out on a good note," Ritter said. "What they've done for the program is have a sense of longevity and pride within the program. Being able to do it in Minnesota. I love their pride for it. They've helped the younger players who are just getting into their college career."