University of Minnesota Athletics
Minnesota Dominates Utah in Season Opener
2/19/2016 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Box Score: Minnesota 6, Utah 1 
The 2016 season started on a high note for the Minnesota baseball team as the Gophers defeated Utah, 6-1, in Surprise, Ariz. Minnesota (1-0) got a solid outing from starting pitcher Matt Fiedler and hits from eight different players to highlight the win.
Fiedler went 5.2 innings and allowed only two hits and one earned run, while adding three strikeouts on the mound. He also helped his own cause at the plate with a 3-for-4 performance that included an RBI single.
Sophomore Toby Hanson provided the pop in the lineup as the Delano, Minn. native blasted a home run, while also going 3-for-4 at the dish.
As a team, the Gophers notched 12 hits with eight different players having at least one each.
The Utes (0-1) got on the board first in the third inning after Dallas Carroll laced a shot off of Fiedler to score the runner from third. Fiedler was able to recover and did not allow a hit the rest of the outing.
Minnesota responded in the fourth frame when Connor Schaefbauer worked his way around the bases after reaching on an infield error. The senior swiped second and advanced to third on a wild pitch before crossing the plate on a Micah Coffey double down the right field line.
When the game knotted at 1-1, Hanson led off the fifth stanza with a blast over the 350-foot right field wall on the first pitch. Luke Pettersen and Schaefbauer followed with singles and Fiedler brought in Pettersen with a hit to left and gave the Gophers a 3-1 lead.
Heading into the sixth, the right-hander from Eagan, Minn. retired back-to-back hitters before being replaced by Fred Manke, who forced a lineout to conclude the inning.
The Gophers raised their cushion in the home half of the seventh with an efficient, 3-run, 3-hit inning. Pettersen drew a walk and was brought home by a double off the wall from Dan Motl. After a balk and passed ball, Motl scampered across the plate. Austin Athmann capped the scoring when he launched a double in centerfield that scored Fiedler, who singled the previous at-bat.
Manke and Brian Glowicki slammed the door shut in the final two frames without allowing a single baserunner.
Minnesota has a quick turnaround and will face Utah Valley tomorrow at 11 a.m. The Gophers then conclude the trip to the desert with a rematch against Utah and a contest with No. 5 Oregon State.
