Gophers Game Day
Second game of WCWS: 11 a.m. Saturday vs. Washington • Oklahoma City ESPN; 96.7-FM
Win or else for Gophers and Huskies
Preview: The season will be over for the loser of this game. The winner will remain alive in the double-elimination bracket portion of the tournament and play a second game Saturday, in the evening against the loser of Friday's late game between Oklahoma and Oklahoma State. The Gophers (46-13) lost to UCLA 7-2 in the first round on Thursday while Washington lost to Pac-12 rival Arizona 3-1 in eight innings. The Huskies (50-8) had swept a three-game series from Arizona in early May.
Players to watch: Gophers pitcher Amber Fiser suffered her first loss since May 3. Freshman Natalie DenHartog and senior Allie Arneson each drove in a run against UCLA. The Huskies have been paced by a pair of first-team All-Americas — infielder Sis Bates and pitcher Gabbie Plain. Bates, a junior, is hitting .386, while Plain, a sophomore, is 23-2 with a 1.14 ERA. She has struck out 229 in 172⅔ innings. Junior catcher Morganne Flores, a second-team All-America, is hitting .355 with 22 home runs and 60 RBI. Pitcher Taran Alvelo, a senior, is 25-5 with a 1.60 ERA. Alvelo, a third-team All-America, has struck out 279 in 193 innings.
Numbers: Washington has won the past three meetings between the two teams. The Huskies defeated the Gophers twice in the 2017 regular season and defeated the Gophers 5-2 in the Seattle Regional final last year to advance to a super regional. Plain was the winning pitcher in that game.
What if ... : If the Gophers beat Washington and also win their second game Saturday (opponent tbd; 6 p.m. start), they would face an opponent from the winner's bracket at noon Sunday and would need to beat that team twice to win a spot in the best-of-three championship series (which is played Monday, Tuesday and, if necessary, Wednesday, one game each evening). Four wins in two days? Crazier things ...
JOEL RIPPEL
