Latest news with #Gophers
Winnipeg Free Press
03-06-2025
- Sport
- Winnipeg Free Press
Gopher dynasty
Four years and three championships for Jackson Thiessen and the Garden City Gophers, who won yet another MHSAA Baseball Provincial Championship this past weekend. For the Grade 12 student, Thiessen has seen his team make it to at least the semifinals four years in a row, their only provincials loss coming last year against the Garden Valley Zodiacs in a tight 3-2 game. But the Gophers can't seem to stay away from gold for long, defeating the Steinbach Regional Sabres 13-1 at Stonewall Quarry Park on Saturday. Donnie Smith Photo Grade 12 Jackson Thiessen has three championships with the Garden City Gophers. 'I wanted to end it on a good note,' said Thiessen. 'Winning it all and to actually come out on top meant a lot more to me because it's my last year there, and it just makes the win so much more memorable.' Donnie Smith, who has been coaching with the Gophers for over 15 years, attributed the depth of his team to their success. 'We could juggle the lineup if I wanted to and feel comfortable with it,' said Smith. 'There's a threat at any hitting position. And then our pitching depth was probably a little stronger than most teams.' The bats were clearly hot, looking at their dominant 13-run win against Steinbach, but Smith also credited his team's defence — which was solid all weekend — as a key factor in their championship run. 'The confidence and ability to overcome obstacles and adversity with this group, and the leadership group has been awesome,' said Smith. 'We were down in the quarterfinal against (co-op) Birtle for a little bit, and there was really no panic that set in.' Donnie Smith Photo Garden City Gophers outfielder Jacob Chaytor For Smith, a big part of the season beyond capturing the championship was seeing the players grow closer as a group. 'For me, whether we won or lost, it was more about building a bit of friendship here, and having kids be involved with the program that have never played baseball before learn from our depth guys,' he said. Thiessen echoed that sentiment, saying team chemistry this year was off the charts. 'Everyone was super close,' said Thiessen. 'Even the guys that wouldn't get as much playing time were always loud on the bench… We were never down on ourselves, we were always picking each other up.' Thursdays Keep up to date on sports with Mike McIntyre's weekly newsletter. Thiessen played a big role in the 2023 provincials, delivering a walk-off grand slam to win it all for the Gophers in his Grade 10 year, a moment he called one of his favourites with the team. Cassidy Dankochik / THE CARILLON Lincoln Carriere pitched a complete game for Garden City, allowing only two hits from the Steinbach Regional Sabres. 'Overall, as a team, I'd say my favourite part was just being able to hang out with the guys and have fun,' he added. The centre fielder will head west in the fall, committed to Okanagan College in B.C., where he'll continue his baseball career. The Gophers, who had 10 Grade 11 players this year, will hope to follow in Thiessen's footsteps and win it all in their final year next season to keep the dynasty going. Donnie Smith Photo Garden City Gophers pitcher Brennan Veldkamp
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Farm Aid to be held in Minneapolis for first time; star-studded musical lineup announced
Farm Aid, the music and food festival launched by Willie Nelson, Neil Young, and John Mellencamp, will be held in Minneapolis for the first time in its 40-year history. It was confirmed on Tuesday that the 40th anniversary of Farm Aid will take place at the home of the Gophers, Huntington Bank Stadium, on Saturday, Sept. 20. A star-studded lineup topped by Nelson, Young and Mellencamp has been confirmed for the event, which is held each year to support "family farmers, good food, soil and water, and strong communities." Other notable names on the lineup include Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds, Minnesota's own Trampled By Turtles, and indie music artist Waxahatchee, who played a packed-out gig at the Palace Theatre in St. Paul last year. Here's the lineup: Willie Nelson & Family Neil Young and the Chrome Hearts John Mellencamp Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds Trampled by Turtles Eric Burton of Black Pumas Waxahatchee Jesse Welles Madeline Edwards Billy Strings Margo Price Tickets – which will cost from $101 to $290 – go on sale this Friday at 10 a.m., but presale tickets will be available from 10 a.m. Wednesday. Click here for more. Sign up for our Minnesota Events and Concerts newsletter "Family farmers are the heart of this country, and we depend on each other for good food and strong communities,' said Willie Nelson. "For 40 years, Farm Aid and our partners have stood with farmers, supporting them to stay on their land even when corporate power, bad policies and broken promises make it harder to keep going. This year, we're proud to bring Farm Aid to Minnesota to celebrate the farmers who sustain us and to fight for a food system that works for all of us. Family farmers aren't backing down, and neither are we." As well as the music, Farm Aid will have a chance to sample a range of food "grown or raised by farmers who use ecological practices and are paid a fair price." There will also be exhibits about soil, water, energy, food, and farming.
Yahoo
05-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Weekend Schedule and Streaming
The end to the Minnesota Golden Gophers 2024-25 athletic season is rapidly approaching. The Gopher softball team finishes their season this weekend after being eliminated from contention for the Big Ten Tournament last weekend. The Gopher baseball team has a huge road series in Lincoln this weekend if they want to win their way back into their Big Ten Tournament field. And the Gopher Track and Field Team will compete against some of the nation's best deep in SEC Country. Here is the schedule for the weekend and how you can keep up with all the action. Gopher Softball: Minnesota closes out the regular season with a three-game series against the Michigan Wolverines at Jane Sage Cowles Stadium this weekend. Minnesota went 4-0 last weekend sweeping a pair of non-conference games each from Pitt and North Dakota at home. Unfortunately, the Gophers were officially eliminated from Big Ten Tournament considerations after last weekend's conference action guaranteed that Minnesota would finish lower than 12th place in the conference standings. Advertisement Minnesota heads into the final weekend of the year with an overall record of 19-28 and a 4-15 record in conference play. It's not been a great season for the Gophers, but hopefully they can send their seniors put with at least one more home win. Michigan enters the weekend with a record of 32-18 and a 9-10 Big Ten record. They still have plenty to play for this weekend as while they are guaranteed to be in the Big Ten Tournament field, they would move anywhere between seeds 7-12 depending on this weekend's results. First pitch is scheduled for 6 Pm Friday, 1 PM Saturday and Noon Sunday, and all will be streamed on B1G+. Gopher Baseball: The Gopher baseball team heads to Lincoln for a massive road series against the Nebraska Cornhuskers this weekend. Minnesota fell to a tie for 14th place in the Big Ten after being swept by USC at Siebert Field last weekend. The Top 12 teams advance to play in the Big Ten Tournament, Minnesota has nine games left in the regular season, and all are against teams in the bottom half of the conference. Nebraska is 9-12 in Big Ten play, two games ahead of the 7-14 Gophers. The Cornhuskers are one of four teams tied at 9-12 sitting in spots 10-13 in the Big Ten standings. Michigan State who the Gophers end their season at is also one of the four teams. Advertisement The Gophers split their midweek games this week losing 6-3 to NDSU on Tuesday and defeating St. Thomas 11-0 on Wednesday both at Siebert Field. First pitch is schedule for 6 PM Friday, 2 PM Saturday and 1 PM Sunday and will all stream on B1G+. Gopher Track and Field: The Gophers head down south to the LSU Invitational in Baton Rouge, Louisiana on Saturday for their final meet of the regular season. The meet will begin as early as 10 a.m. with the women's hammer throw while track events are scheduled to begin at 12:10 p.m. CT. The tentative schedule has the meet concluding at around 4:20 p.m. CT. LSU's meet is not scheduled to be live streamed but live results will be made available on Advertisement The Gopher men continue their early success and are ranked 6th in the nation in the most recent rankings anchored by their incredble Greek duo of hammer throwers. On Wednesday at the Meet of the UnSaintly held at Hamline University, they both went off yet again. Gopher sophomore Angelos Mantzouranis threw the farthest throw in the nation for a collegian this season and the #3 throw all time by a collegiate athlete . His teammate, 5th year senior Kostas Zaltos was right behind. More from
Yahoo
27-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Men's basketball: Gophers add veteran point guard via transfer portal
The Gophers men's basketball program has added to its backcourt in consecutive days. Western Michigan point guard Chansey Willis committed to the U on Monday, following combo guard Langston Reynolds from Northern Colorado on Sunday. Advertisement 'Chansey is a great playmaker who makes others around him better,' U head coach Niko Medved said in a statement. 'He is a dynamic scorer who can use his speed to his advantage. In addition, he's a great two-way player and we're excited to have him on our team.' Willis, who is listed at 6-foot-2 and 190 pounds, averaged 16.8 points and 5.8 assists in 24 games last season. He shot 43% from the field, 28% from 3-point range and 72% from the free-throw line. Willis might have two years of eligibility remaining for Minnesota, following the start of his college career at Saginaw Valley State (Division II) as a freshman and Henry Ford College (a junior college) as a sophomore. Within the last year, current college players have not had years spent at junior college count against their NCAA eligibility. Willis, a Detroit native, was the state of Michigan's Gatorade Player of the Year in 2022. Advertisement The program officially announced Reynolds' addition on Monday. 'We're excited to add Langston to our team,' Medved said in a release. 'Langston is a physical, athletic guard who plays well in transition, can get downhill and has good rebounding ability. He also has a great personality and we're thrilled to have him in the Maroon and Gold.' The Gophers now have four scholarship spots still available for next season. Related Articles
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Gophers add 6-foot-10 transfer center from Central Arkansas
The Gophers men's basketball program added more front court help in the NCAA transfer portal on Wednesday. Six-foot-10, 265-pound center Nehemiah Turner left Central Arkansas and committed to Minnesota with three years of eligibility remaining. Advertisement During his freshman season, he averaged 8.5 points, 4.2 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 18 minutes across 33 games in the Atlantic Sun Conference. The Auburndale, Fla., native improved as the season ended. In the final 10 games, he averaged 18.5 points and 6.1 rebounds His best outing was a 37-point, 11-rebound game in a ASun Conference Tournament win over Stetson on March 2. The Gophers have added seven players via the portal since Niko Medved was hired in March, including 6-foot-8 center Robert Vaihola from San Jose State on April 9. Minnesota currently has three vacant scholarship spots for next season. Related Articles
