No. 3 Minnesota 2
St. Cloud State 1

Mariucci Arena
Minneapolis
Attendance: 10,088

Jake Hansen and Nick Bjugstad scored as Minnesota beat St. Cloud State 2-1 on Friday night at Mariucci Arena. Kent Patterson made 12 saves in the win as the Gophers improved to 18-9-1 overall and 14-5-0 in the WCHA. The two teams meet against Saturday night in St. Cloud.

                MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL, MN – The Minnesota Twins announced today that former pitcher and five-time All-Star Camilo Pascual has been elected to the club’s Hall of Fame. Pascual will become the 24th member of the Twins Hall of Fame when he is inducted during a special on-field pre-game ceremony July 14, when the Twins host the Oakland Athletics at Target Field.                                                        

                The Twins Hall of Fame, which honors players, managers, coaches and off-field personnel who have contributed to the organization’s growth and success since the Twin Cities broke into the Major Leagues in 1961, was created as part of the club’s 40^th Season Celebration in 2000. The inaugural class of Twins Hall of Famers — Harmon Killebrew, Rod Carew, Tony Oliva, Kent Hrbek, Kirby Puckett and Calvin Griffith — was inducted on August 12, 2000. Other inductees include pitcher Jim Kaat (2001), broadcaster Herb Carneal (2001), pitcher Bert Blyleven (2002), former manager Tom Kelly (2002), long-time public address announcer Bob Casey (2003), outfielder Bob Allison (2003), catcher Earl Battey (2004), pitcher Frank Viola (2005), owner Carl Pohlad (2005), shortstop Zoilo Versalles (2006), third baseman Gary Gaetti (2007), Farm Director Jim Rantz (2007), pitcher Rick Aguilera (2008), pitcher Brad Radke (2009), Farm and Scouting Director George Brophy (2009), shortstop Greg Gagne (2010) and pitcher Jim Perry (2011).

Pascual played 18 seasons in the Major Leagues, including 13 with the Minnesota Twins and Washington Senators franchise from 1954-66.  He was the first ever Twins All-Star in 1961 and has appeared in more All-Star games than any pitcher in franchise history since 1950, playing in five of six games from 1959-64 and in four straight from 1959-61.  He went 145-141 with a 3.66 ERA during his time with the Twins and Senators, ranking second on the franchise All-Time list in shutouts (31), third in strikeouts (1,885), fourth in innings pitched (2,465.0) and fifth in wins (145) and starts (331).  He went 88-57 with a 3.31 ERA in six seasons in a Twins uniform from 1961-66, ranking third in shutouts (18), seventh in strikeouts (994), and eighth in wins (88), innings pitched (1284.2) and starts (179).  He was the Twins first ever 20-game winner, recording 20 victories in 1962 and 21 in 1963, while leading the American League in complete games, shutouts and strikeouts in nearly every season from 1959-63. 

Pascual was named one of the “50 Greatest” players in Twins history during the team’s 50^th Season Celebration held in 2010.  Pascual, pitched in 529 games at the Major League level from 1954-71, playing for the Washington Senators, Minnesota Twins, Cincinnati Reds, Los Angeles Dodgers and Cleveland Indians.  Born in 1934, Pascual becomes the oldest living member of the Twins Hall of Fame.  The Havana-native ranks 55^th on baseball’s All-Time wins list and is a member of the Latino Baseball Hall of Fame and Cuban Baseball Hall of Fame, ranking second to only Luis Tiant in strikeouts among Cuban-born Major Leaguers.

Pascual, who was also selected to the Twins 25^th anniversary team in 1986 and the 40th anniversary team in 2000, was elected by a 55-member committee consisting of local and national media, club officials, fans and past elected members, using rules similar to those necessary for election to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y. The 55-member committee annually considers “player” personnel for induction into the Twins Hall of Fame. Pascual was the top vote getter, followed by Chuck Knoblauch, Eddie Guardado and Dan Gladden.

In addition, 10 “non-player” candidates are considered every-other-year for election by a Veteran’s Committee existing of living Twins Hall of Famers, team historians and front office leadership.

The Twins Hall of Fame membership is permanently displayed in the Hall of Fame Gallery on the Target Field Suite Level as well as on Target Plaza.

 WHITE PLAINS, N.Y., January 26, 2012 – The USTA Northern Section announced today that the Baseline Tennis Center on the University of Minnesota campus in Minneapolis will once again host the US Open National Playoffs Northern Sectional Qualifying Tournament, June 21-25, 2012. Earlier today, the USTA announced the return of the US Open National Playoffs for the third year. The US Open National Playoffs will again include both men’s and women’s singles and mixed doubles in 2012. The USTA created the US Open National Playoffs to expand the footprint of the US Open to cities nationwide by providing the opportunity for all players 14 years of age and older to earn a berth into the US Open.

The US Open National Playoffs men’s and women’s singles champions earn a wild card into the US Open Qualifying Tournament, held the week prior to the US Open. The US Open National Playoffs mixed doubles champions receive a main draw wild card into the 2012 US Open.

The US Open National Playoffs begin as a series of sectional qualifying tournaments, held in 13 USTA Sections throughout the country, including Minneapolis. The 13 men’s, women’s and mixed doubles champions from each sectional qualifying tournament will advance to the US Open National Playoffs – Men’s Singles, Women’s Singles and Mixed Doubles Championship. All three tournaments will be held in conjunction with the New Haven Open at Yale, presented by First Niagara, a US Open Series event.  The US Open National Playoffs – Men’s Singles and Women’s Singles Championship will be held August 17-20. The US Open National Playoffs – Mixed Doubles Championship will be held August 22-25. 

“The Baseline Tennis Center is thrilled to once again be hosting the 2012 US Open Northern Sectional Qualifying Tournament,” John Pratt, Baseline Tennis Center Director, said. “This once-in-a-lifetime chance is something many players have spent entire careers striving for and it is really exciting to be a part of helping someone reach that next level.”

Registration opens on March 15 at www.usta.com/tennislink. The entry fee is $100 for singles and $120 for each mixed doubles team ($60 per player).  All players competing must have a current USTA membership valid through August 27, 2012. Participants can be of any playing level, from aspiring novice to seasoned professional, giving everyone an equal opportunity to advance. Additional information can be found at www.USOpen.org/NationalPlayoffs.

“For the third year, we again expect strong singles and mixed doubles competition among top junior players, collegians, teaching professionals, ‘weekend warriors,’ and recreational players to earn their way into the US Open,” said Jeff Ryan, US Open National Playoffs Tournament Director. “The New Haven Open at Yale will also again serve as an ideal host for the championships, as it is a wonderful setting, never mind extremely convenient, for those winning players to travel to New York for the US Open.”

In all, 1,380 players (690 in men’s singles, 306 in women’s singles, and 384 in mixed doubles) competed in the 2011 US Open National Playoffs, ranging from experienced professionals (including former doubles world No. 2 and 2001 Australian Open mixed doubles champion Ellis Ferreira, two-time ATP singles champion Jeff Tarango, and former NCAA singles champions Amanda McDowell and Bea Bielik) to recreational players of all talents and walks of life (including ESPN’s Mike Greenberg, who teamed with six-time US Open champion Chris Evert in mixed doubles, jewelry store owner and young-adult fiction writer Shawn Cormier of East Brookfield, Conn., 65-year-old senior USTA League player Glenn Baxter, of Granbury, Texas, and the teenage brother-sister team of Samantha and Harrison Adams, who won the USTA Texas Sectional Qualifying Tournament).

In the end, former University of Arkansas All-American Blake Strode, who deferred Harvard Law School to pursue a pro tennis career, won the US Open National Playoffs men’s title for a second straight year to earn a wild card into the US Open Qualifying Tournament, where he reached the second round (also for a second straight year). Teenager Robin Anderson won the US Open National Playoffs women’s singles title, prevailing over a series of more experienced opponents. Anderson was a girls’ singles quarterfinalist at the 2010 US Open and now plays for UCLA.

The winners of the inaugural mixed doubles title were Christina Fusano and David Martin, who between them have won 34 USTA Pro Circuit doubles titles. The duo faced No. 5 seeds Daniela Hantuchova and Mark Knowles in the first round of the 2011 US Open mixed doubles tournament.

The US Open Qualifying Tournament will be held August 21-24 and the US Open Mixed Doubles Championship begins August 29 at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing, N.Y. The 2012 US Open begins on August 27.

Will Become Seventh Twins Player To Have Number Retired

Tom Kelly Day Set For September 8

                    Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN – The Minnesota Twins announced today that they will honor two-time World Championship Manager Tom Kelly by retiring his uniform number 10 during a pre-game celebration as part of Tom Kelly Day, when the Twins host the Cleveland Indians on September 8.

                    Kelly, 61, joins Harmon Killebrew (No. 3 — 1975), Rod Carew (No. 29 — 1987), Tony Oliva (No. 6 — 1991), Kent Hrbek (No. 14 — 1995), Kirby Puckett (No. 34 — 1997) and Bert Blyleven (No. 28 – 2011) as the seventh Twin to have his number retired by the organization. The Twins, in conjunction with all of Major League Baseball, retired Jackie Robinson’s No. 42 in 1997.

                    Kelly is the Twins All-Time leader and ranks 43^rd on Major League’s Baseball All-Time list with 1140 managerial wins.  He also had a postseason record of 16-8, winning the 1987 World Series and the 1991 World Series.

                    “Few, if any individuals have had as much direct impact on the success of the Twins franchise as Tom Kelly,” said Twins CEO Jim Pohlad. “Over a 41-year career with the Twins organization, Tom has helped ensure high standards on and off the field and has always demonstrated the utmost respect for the game.  It is our honor to celebrate Tom’s remarkable career by forever retiring his famed No. 10.”

                    Kelly was originally drafted by the Seattle Pilots in the fifth round of the 1968 First-Year Player Draft.  He has been a part of the Twins organization for 41 years, after signing as a free agent in April of 1971.  Kelly, who was born in Graceville, MN, became the 12^th native Minnesotan to play for the Twins when he made his Major League debut on May 11, 1975.

                    He began his coaching career as a player/manager for Tacoma in 1977, before managing Single-A Visalia (1979-80) and Double-A Orlando (1981-82).  In 1983 he was named the Twins third base coach, a position he held until being named manager on September 12.  Kelly became the fifth person to be a Twins player, coach and manager, joining Billy Gardner, Johnny Goryl, Billy Martin and Frank Quilici.

                    In 1987, Kelly was named American League Manager of the Year by the UPI, when he became the youngest manager (37) to lead his club into the American League Championship Series. That year he went on to become the 18^th rookie manager to guide his team to the World Series, and the fifth rookie manager to win it.

                    In 1991, Kelly became the third manager in history to win two-or-more World Series without a defeat.  In addition, he was named the American League Manager of the Year by the Baseball Writers Association of America. 

                    Kelly continues to provide instruction in the Twins organization, serving as a special assistant to Executive Vice President/General Manager Terry Ryan.        

Minneapolis/St. Paul – The Minnesota Timberwolves today announced that the team has signed forward Kevin Love to a four-year contract extension.