After playing a game to remember against the Minnesota Twins on Wednesday, the Gophers’ weekend started off with a few moments to forget.
After arriving in Nebraska, their first game against Creighton was postponed. The next day, their game was delayed again due to field conditions.
And when it finally was time to head to the stadium, the team’s bus wouldn’t start, forcing the team to hike two miles to the stadium on foot.
But the Gophers made their finish to the weekend memorable, with three pitchers combining to throw a no-hitter in the team’s 9-0 victory.
The victory punctuated the Gophers’ (5-7) fifth consecutive victory, after the team outlasted the Blue Jays in 12 innings the night before.
The Gophers started off slow Saturday, finding themselves down 3-0 after the first three innings.
“I feel for [starting pitcher] Ben Meyer,” head coach John Anderson said. “He didn’t get the team’s best effort. He battled his tail off. The reason we won that game is because Ben gave us a lead the first five innings with the way he competed out there. We’re fortunate he did that because we didn’t play very well.”
The team fought back to bring the deficit to one, but still found itself trailing as it stepped up to bat in the top of the 9th inning.
Sophomore Matt Fiedler singled and stole second to move into scoring position and three walks and a wild pitch moved him home.
A leadoff triple in the bottom of the inning threatened to undermine the Gophers’ comeback, but sophomore pitcher Brian Glowicki battled back for three straight outs.
The teams battled through the 10th and 11th innings scoreless, with Fiedler making a diving catch in right field to keep the game alive.
“Just a couple pitches before, [assistant head coach Rob] Fornasiere moved me up a couple steps,” Fiedler said. “I saw the ball coming my way, and I was in the right position to make a play.”
And in the 12th inning, the Gophers’ bats exploded. Four of the team’s first five batters reached base before redshirt senior Michael Handel hit a three-run home run.
The Blue Jays attempted to amount a comeback in the bottom of the inning, but the Gophers cushion was too large to overcome.
Minnesota returned Sunday to win in only nine innings this time, thanks to their pitchers blanking Creighton.
Junior Dalton Sawyer lasted seven innings in his fourth start of the season and didn’t allow a hit.
“I was just trying my best to challenge the hitters,” Sawyer said. “Mix it up; throw the breaking ball in there sometimes. [I] just kept it down and my defense played great behind me.”
Once Anderson took Sawyer out, sophomore Tyler Hanson and redshirt junior Lance Thonvold took the mound to finish off the no-hitter.
It was the Gophers’ first since Tom Windle pitched a solo no-hitter in 2013, and with seven players recording RBIs for the team, the Gophers had more than enough offense for their second straight sweep.
“I think the impressive part there is that we had three guys who pitched pretty well,” Anderson said. “That’s what we’re looking for.”
