The Gophers lost seven seniors at the end of last year, but the losses are quickly being made up.
Minnesota’s six seniors are off to an impactful start nine games into the season, on and off the field.
“They’re doing a great job, and it’s not just with the start of the season, but even the start of the year going back into the summer,” head coach Jessica Allister said. “They’ve done a great job of being prepared and setting the tone for the work ethic and demonstrating hard work and having fun at the same time.”
Minnesota’s seniors have begun to make a statement through two weekends of play.
Senior outfielder Kayla Wenner started in all nine games and is third on the team with a .360 batting average and second on the team with nine total hits.
Outfielder Paige Palkovich is second for total RBIs with seven and recorded eight hits in 28 at-bats for the team.
Outfielder Sydney Fabian started in seven games for the Gophers and posted a batting average of .375.
Catcher Taylor LeMay has been a solid contributor for Minnesota as well, recording eight hits in 25 at-bats.
The success of the seniors has been a long time coming, and part of a strong work ethic, Palkovich said.
“I don’t think any of it is luck,” Palkovich said. “We’ve been fortunate enough to have teammates and coaches who push us every day, and I think we work harder than any team I’ve ever been a part of.”
The hard work has paid off for the Gophers, as they’ve gone 5-4 in what Allister said is one of the toughest schedules the team has opened with in recent years.
“As a team, I think we’re doing a great job of getting one percent better in practice every day and working hard,” Fabian said. “We’re all pushing through it.”
