Welcome to Softball Athletic Scholarship & Enhancement 2024/2025!
September, 2024
Gopher Softball Alumnae:
The seasons are changing (even if you are STILL running your air conditioning) and that means Gopher Softball is ready to start its 51st season and SASE (Softball Alumnae Scholarship and Enhancement Fund) is ready to launch its fifth season of fundraising for the softball program.
Falls game begin September 29 and run through mid-October. Admission is free.
SASE has an exciting slate of activities for the upcoming 2024-25 season INCLUDING the first annual "Amber Fiser Pitching Clinic" conducted by alumnae Amber Fiser, Autumn Pease, Gretchen Larson and Robin Bumpus Penoyer set for September 29th – www.fastpitchclinics.com
Thank you to Kelly Darrow for hosting the clinic at Simley High School!
As we have in the past, we will be hosting Zoom rallies throughout the year. With college athletics changing at warp speed, these rallies are an ideal way for SASE to inform and educate about NIL, the transfer portal, and other hot button issues. Wonder what Linda Wells has been up to lately? Would you like to hear from Coach Ritter about the team and her staff? Stay tuned…
SASE will also hold its Second Annual Silent Auction to coincide with the Gophers’ spring season. Our inaugural auction raised $6800.00 for Gopher Softball and we will be expanding our auction offerings this year. If you have an item or service that you would like to donate, please let us know by responding to this email or emailing us down the road. Simply connecting us with a sponsor is incredibly helpful. Big thanks to those alums who donated items last April! Also--check out the Maddy Ehlke update video below!
GO GOPHERS!
Thank you. Your 2024/25 SASE Committee
The seasons are changing (even if you are STILL running your air conditioning) and that means Gopher Softball is ready to start its 51st season and SASE (Softball Alumnae Scholarship and Enhancement Fund) is ready to launch its fifth season of fundraising for the softball program.
Falls game begin September 29 and run through mid-October. Admission is free.
SASE has an exciting slate of activities for the upcoming 2024-25 season INCLUDING the first annual "Amber Fiser Pitching Clinic" conducted by alumnae Amber Fiser, Autumn Pease, Gretchen Larson and Robin Bumpus Penoyer set for September 29th – www.fastpitchclinics.com
Thank you to Kelly Darrow for hosting the clinic at Simley High School!
As we have in the past, we will be hosting Zoom rallies throughout the year. With college athletics changing at warp speed, these rallies are an ideal way for SASE to inform and educate about NIL, the transfer portal, and other hot button issues. Wonder what Linda Wells has been up to lately? Would you like to hear from Coach Ritter about the team and her staff? Stay tuned…
SASE will also hold its Second Annual Silent Auction to coincide with the Gophers’ spring season. Our inaugural auction raised $6800.00 for Gopher Softball and we will be expanding our auction offerings this year. If you have an item or service that you would like to donate, please let us know by responding to this email or emailing us down the road. Simply connecting us with a sponsor is incredibly helpful. Big thanks to those alums who donated items last April! Also--check out the Maddy Ehlke update video below!
GO GOPHERS!
Thank you. Your 2024/25 SASE Committee
NOT many other softball stadiums can brag about displaying these honors!
2024 FALL Alumnae Game
Saturday, September 28, 2024
Strelow steps up to lead the batting order for the alums!
Where are they NOW?
Morgan DeBord
Autumn Pease
Amber Fiser
Sara Groenewegen
Athletes Unlimited!
University of North Florida Assistant Coach
Stanford Softball Assistant Coach
2024 Gopher Softball Alumnae Spring Weekend!
April 19-21, 2024Friday: Mary Owen and Linda Wells take center stage by throwing out the first pitch!
1999 Big Ten Tournament Championship Team! Steph Klaviter and her wonderful teammates take the field to start out Saturday's events. Order your copy of the Alumnae Weekend 2024 POSTER > > > > >
Email barghinid@gmail.com for a poster. Email me--I will send you the file and you can order through your own Photo/Poster options (Walgreens/CVS are easy options). ALSO the button below should take you to my DROPBOX where you can download photos from the weekend along with the POSTER digital file.
Golden Gopher Alumnae Weekend 2024 POSTER
2014 Big Ten Tournament Championship Team!
Kaitlyn Richardson and teammates take the field to throw out the first pitch!
Goodbye Softball SENIORS!
Jacie Hambrick
Delanie Cox
Sydney Strelow
Why do we love Lee Biersdorf? Here's just one reason...
Maddy Ehlke
Morgan DeBord
Bri Enter
2023 Alumnae Game Memories
Photo credit Michael Kyllo-Kittleson
Bernie Morris with a hit!
Photo credit Michael Kyllo-Kittleson
Interview with Juel Anderson & Barb Lutz
Left to Right: Val Alston, Lindsey Larson, Lauren (Pockel) Schneider, Katie (Meyer) Driscoll, Whitney Erikson, Colleen Powers, Heidi Carls Photos from 2023 game
Taylor LeMay with the only HR of the 2023 game!
Photo credit Michael Kyllo-Kittleson
Photo credit Michael Kyllo-Kittleson
2024 Softball Alumnae Scholarship Award Winner!
2024 | GRADUATE
Academic All-Big Ten
• Finished her final season with a 12-7 record
• Had 29 appearances in the circle, pitching 110.2 innings
• Picked up the win and pitched 5.0 innings against No. 10 Clemson, throwing three strikeouts (March 7)
• Opened the season with a victory over No. 24 San Diego State, going 6.0 innings, throwing three strikes and contributing to one double play (Feb. 9)
• Recorded a season high of 7.0 innings pitched against UC Santa Barbara (Feb. 10) and Stephen F. Austin (Feb. 24)
• Tossed eight strikeouts against Stephen F. Austin (Feb. 24), a career and season high
2023 | SENIOR
• Saw the circle 22 times with one start against South Dakota State (March 17)
• Finished her senior season with a 2-3 record
• Pitched a season high five innings at Michigan State (April 14)
• Tossed a season high five strikeouts at Michigan State (April 14)
2023 Softball Alumnae Scholarship Award Winner!
2024 | SENIOR
CSC Academic All-District
Academic All-Big Ten
• Had 27 starts and 50 appearances as Minnesota’s designated player
• Finished her senior season with 23 hits and 23 RBI
• Set a season high three hits against Fordham, including launching a home run and driving home five others (March 2)
• Scored three runs against Illinois (March 29)
2023 | JUNIOR
CSC Academic All-District
Big Ten Distinguished Scholar Award
Academic All-Big Ten
• Led the Gophers and the Big Ten with 16 doubles
• Two doubles shy from entering Minnesota’s top five most doubles in a season
• 20 of her 43 hits were extra bases: 16 doubles, two triples, two home runs
• Posted a .336 batting average
• Scored 17 runs with 16 RBI
• Recorded two doubles in three games this season against Idaho State (March 10), Iowa (April 23) and Wisconsin (April 25)
• Had her first career start against Western Kentucky at the Northern Lights Tournament (Feb. 10)
2022 | SOPHOMORE
Academic All-Big Ten
• Appeared in five games during her second season with the Gophers
• Drew two walks in four total plate appearances for a .500 on-base percentage, including a pinch-hit walk in the NCAA Norman Regional victory over Prairie View A&M (May 21)
• Scored the first run of her collegiate career at Texas (Mar. 13)
2021 | FRESHMAN
• Made five appearances off the bench as a true freshman
• Drew a bases-loaded walk in her first collegiate plate appearance against Ohio State Feb. 27 recording her lone RBI
• Was hit by a pitch to reach base versus Rutgers Mar. 12
RECONNECT with 50 years of incredible experience!
2021 Softball alumnae scholarship winner
Autumn Pease
2020 to 2023 Gopher Softball Pitcher
“I started my time in the transfer portal talking to schools, but one night as I was in the car going through my email, I refreshed the page and an email from the University of Minnesota sat there. To say the least I cried. The only school that I was very emotional over and extremely excited about! Now I must say I feel like this school was meant for me…”
- 2023 | FIFTH YEAR
- 2023 Big Ten Pitcher of the Year
- NFCA Second Team All-American
- D1 Softball Second Team All-American
- NFCA Great Lakes All-Region 1st Team
- All-Big Ten First Team
- All-Big Ten Tournament Team
- Academic All-Big Ten
- NFCA Pitcher of the Week (May 9)
- Big Ten Pitcher of the Week (March 13, April 24, May 1, May 8)
- Member of the 2023/2024 WPF Texas Smoke
2021 Winner AUTUMN PEASE