Northwestern University Athletics
Pivotal Big Ten Series on Tap at No. 15 Minnesota
4/9/2015 12:00:00 AM | Softball
| 2015 Northwestern Softball -- Minnesota Series |
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| Game Notes | Northwestern's Weekly Release |
| Game One: Northwestern (20-11, 8-0 B1G) at No. 15 Minnesota (30-7, 6-3 B1G) |
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| Date | Friday, April 10 | 6 p.m. CT |
| Location | Jane Sage Cowles Stadium | Minneapolis, Minn. |
| Live Coverage | BTN Plus on BTN2GO | Gametracker | @NU_SportsLIVE  |
| Game Two: Northwestern (20-11, 8-0 B1G) at No. 15 Minnesota (30-7, 6-3 B1G) |
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| Date | Saturday, April 11 | 1 p.m. CT |
| Location | Jane Sage Cowles Stadium | Minneapolis, Minn. |
| Live Coverage | BTN Plus on BTN2GO | Gametracker | @NU_SportsLIVE |
| Game Three: Northwestern (20-11, 8-0 B1G) at No. 15 Minnesota (30-7, 6-3 B1G) |
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| Date | Sunday, April 12 | Noon CT |
| Location | Jane Sage Cowles Stadium | Minneapolis, Minn. |
| Live Coverage | BTN Plus on BTN2GO | Gametracker | @NU_SportsLIVE |
EVANSTON, Ill. -- As the 2015 Big Ten season reaches its midpoint this weekend, Northwestern travels to No. 15 Minnesota for a huge series in the race atop the conference.
The Wildcats remain the B1G's lone unbeaten team at 8-0 while the Golden Gophers are 6-3 and currently in fifth after dropping two of three at home last week against fourth-ranked Michigan.
Now it is Northwestern's turn to enter Jane Sage Cowles Stadium for a three-game set. Friday's opener starts at 6 p.m. CT with Saturday's first pitch at 1 p.m. and Sunday's at noon. All games will be streamed live by Minnesota on BTN Plus on BTN2GO in addition to having Northwestern's live audio available for free on U-Stream to get the Wildcats' perspective.
Much has been made of Northwestern's offensive output during its 8-0 start, though offense has been a common refrain among the Big Ten this year. League teams have combined to average a mind boggling 7.6 runs per game so far, helped by things like Rutgers and Michigan State playing a 22-17 game last week.
Pitching has been the bigger story, led by two-time Big Ten Pitcher of the Week Kristen Wood and Amy Letourneau. Wood is 5-0 with a save while leading the league with a 1.32 ERA and a .173 opponent's batting average while ranking second with 11.9 Ks per seven innings. Letourneau is 3-0 and also ranks among the top-10 in the league in strikeouts.
Pitching duels ruled the day in Northwestern's sweep of Purdue last week when the Wildcats pitchers went up against Boilermakers' ace Lilly Fecho, and good pitching will again be a factor this week as Northwestern takes on Minnesota's ace Sara Groenwegen. She was a big part of the Golden Gophers' Big Ten Tournament championship and NCAA Regional title one year ago.
In the batter's box, Northwestern senior Olivia Duehr continues to lead the Big Ten with a 1.286 slugging percentage. She and Andrea DiPrima have combined to hit 11 home runs in the Wildcats last 10 total games. On the base paths, freshman Sabrina Rabin leads the league with seven stolen bases in eight B1G contests.
Minnesota enters this weekend with a 30-7 overall record and is facing its third-straight top flight conference opponent in a row. Minnesota won two-of-three at Nebraska two weeks ago before hosting Michigan last week. The Golden Gophers offense has been strong all season, hitting .337 with 56 home runs and an average of 7.2 runs per game.
There's quite the coaching connection this weekend, as well. Northwestern volunteer assistant Brittini Merchant will go up against not just one, but two of her sisters who are on the Minnesota staff. Jessica Merchant is in her fifth season as an assistant in Minneapolis while Macy Merchant is the Minnesota volunteer assistant--a position Brittini herself previously held with the Gophers.
NORTHWESTERN NAMED A TOP COLLEGE FOR DIVISION I SOFTBALL
.@UCLASoftball @NUSBcats @NDsoftball named top colleges for women's DI softball http://t.co/qYKcDNND9i
📱💻✅ #SBFam pic.twitter.com/Vy3d2LOxep
— SportsBoard (@SportsBoard) April 8, 2015For a complete preview and notes on this weekend's Minnesota series, download the Northwestern weekly release available in the chart at the top of this page.
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