JOHN ANDERSON
Game 324 | June 11, 1985 | John Anderson
In his fourth year as Gopher baseball coach, John Anderson, only 30 at the time, led the Gophers in the Big Ten championship. The Gophers that year were led by Mike Pehrson, Brian Hickerson and Jon Beckman.
Game 344 | March 10, 1987 | John Anderson, Jerry Noyce
The Dairy Queen Classic, in its third year in 1987, was becoming one of the top invitational college baseball tournaments in the nation. That year's field was one of the best with Team Cuba winning three of four games from a f!eld that included Minnesota, Maine, Michigan and UCLA. Noyce's-1986 tennis team won the Big Ten title and finished in the top 10 nationally, winning him National Coach of the Year honors.
Game 381 | March 1, 1990 | John Anderson, Chris Voelz
Dan Wilson and Brian Raabe were first-team All Americans, and Brent Gates was a second-team All American on one of Anderson's best teams. They finished 36-24-1, losing to Illinois and Ohio State in the Big Ten Tournament. Voelz, who had worked closely with Men's Athletic Director Rick Bay at Oregon, succeeded Merrily Dean Baker as Director of Women's Athletics at Minnesota in 1988 and held that position for the next 14 years.
Game 400 | March 29, 1991 | John Anderson, Visiting Coaches
Gopher baseball coach Anderson did his usual good job of assembling quality teams for his Oscar Meyer Classic. This year's field included Notre Dame, UCLA and Stanford. The Gophers lost to unranked UCLA, but defeated Notre Dame (18), and Stanford, the top-ranked team in the nation. Brent Gates was named an All-American at the end of the season in which the Gophers finished second in the Big Ten.
Game 424 | May 20, 1992 | John Anderson
The young Gopher baseball team won 12 of their final 14 Big Ten games. Led by Mark Merila and George Behr; the Gophers won the Big Ten Tournament under coach Anderson and started strong in NCAA regional play, defeating George Washington and Cal State Northridge before losing to Oklahoma State.
Game 455 | March 4, 1994 | John Anderson
Arizona, Arizona State and Ohio State joined the Gophers in the 1994 Oscar Meyer Classic. Anderson's Gophers, behind the pitching of Jim Brower and the hitting of Shane Gunderson and Charlie Nelson, finished 42-21, losing to Florida and Miami of Florida in the NCAA East Regionals.
Game 510 | February 28, 1997 | John Anderson, Hormel Classic Baseball Coaches
This year's visiting teams included Nebraska, Washington and UCLA. Coach John Anderson views the Classic each year as a way to expose his team to the best competition in the nation. His 1997 team had a rare off year, finishing 30-24, fifth in the Big Ten.
Game 527 | March 6, 1998 | John Anderson, Hormel Classic Baseball Coaches
John Anderson's invitees in l998 included Rutgers, California and Connecticut. For the season the Gophers won the Big Ten Tournament and 17th conference title. Their 45 victories were the most ever for a Gopher baseball team. They lost to Alabama and Stanford in NCAA Regional play. Robb Quinlan and Craig Selander were named to the All-Big Ten First Team.
Game 544 | March 5, 1999 | John Anderson, Hormel Classic Baseball Coaches
Number one ranked Florida State, number 12 Wichita State and the University of Washington provided one of the toughest fields in the history of this pre-season tournament. Coach John Anderson's Gophers finished the season 46-18 and lost to Baylor in NCAA post-season regional play. Four Gophers, Brad Pautz, Robb Quinlan, Matt Scanlon and Frank Wagner, were all selected in that year's Major League baseball draft.
Game 561 | March 3, 2000 | John Anderson, Hormel Classic Baseball Coaches
Teams from Georgia, Notre Dame and Wake Forest provided the early season competition for John Anderson's baseball Gophers. The team went on to win its 18th Big Ten title. The team was led by pitchers Mike Kobow and Ben Birk, along with Jack Hannahan, Josh Holthaus and Luke Appert.
Game 578 | March 2, 2001 | John Anderson, Hormel Classic Baseball Coaches
Jack Hannahan, a future major leaguer, was the Big Ten's Player of the Year for the Gophers in 2001. The Gophers lost star pitcher Ben Birk after he was struck by a line drive, but still managed to win the Big Ten Tournament. Hormel Classic teams included Arkansas, Miami and San Diego State.
Game 597 | March 1, 2002 | John Anderson, Hormel Classic Baseball Coaches
Once again John Anderson's baseball Gophers won the Big Ten title in 2002. Luke Appert was named Big Ten Player of the Year, and C.J. Woodrow was named Conference Pitcher of the Year: Dunker guests included visiting coaches from Florida Atlantic, Alabama and Tennessee.
Game 614 | February 28, 2003 | John Anderson, Dairy Queen Classic Baseball Coaches
The 2003 season was another good one for John Anderson's Gophers, who won the Big Ten championship for the second year in a row. Luke Appert became the first player to win back-to-back Big Ten Player of the Year Awards since Michigan's Barry Larkin in 1984-85. Future Twins pitcher Glen Perkins was named Big Ten Freshman Player of the Year with a 10-2 record, an ERA of 2.91 and 117 strikeouts. Early season Dairy Queen Classic opponents were Wake Forest, Notre Dame and Nebraska.
Game 650 | March 22, 2005 | John Anderson
Coach Anderson's baseball Gophers, coming off a Big Ten title the year before, slipped to a rare sixth-place finish in 2005. Dairy Queen Classic visitors this year were from New Orleans, South Carolina and Pepperdine. Third baseman David Hrncirik was named first-team All Big Ten, while shortstop Matt Fornasiere and pitcher Matt Loberg took second-team honors.
Game 669 | March 3, 2006 | John Anderson
The Gopher baseball team finished 34-26 in 2006. The Dairy Queen Classic that year featured visiting teams from Notre Dame, Nebraska and Arizona. Outfielder Matt Nohelty made the Freshman All American team.
Game 692 | March 2, 2007 | John Anderson
Coach Anderson's baseball Gophers finished 41-18. They came in second in the Big Ten and lost to Fresno State in NCCA postseason play. He was joined at Dunkers by coaches from Mississippi, Arkansas and The Citadel.
Game 711 | February 29, 2008 | John Anderson
Coach Anderson's young Gopher baseball team had a tough season in 2008, finishing with a 20-35 record. Matt Nohelty paced the team with a .397 batting average. Football star Eric Decker joined the team as an outfielder and hit .329 with three home runs and 28 RBIs.
Game 731 | March 10, 2009 | J Robinson, John Anderson
Robinson, Gopher head wrestling coach for 23 years, kept his team in the top ten in the country every year from 1997-2008. Anderson, entering his 28th season as head Gopher baseball coach, talked about improving prospects for a new, on campus, stadium and his team provided him with his 1,000th victory two months later.
Game 751 | March 5, 2010 | John Anderson
Gopher baseball coach Anderson talked about plans for a long-overdue renovation of Siebert Field and his competition at the upcoming tournament from Northwestern, Oklahoma State and Loyola Marymount. Three weeks later Anderson's Gophers played the first game at Target Field, hosting Louisiana Tech.
