This is all there is for the Badgers — their season comes down to the results of this weekend’s games against Minnesota. With a win over the Gophers or a Penn State loss, Wisconsin’s softball team earns a berth in the Big Ten tournament.

With a loss and no help, the season is over.

Due to the crazy weather this spring, the Big Ten conference ranking will now be computed based on winning percentages.

Ohio State is still the leader with .833, then Michigan (.813), and Iowa (.714). For now, Wisconsin has a slight lead (.600) over Northwestern, and Minnesota rounds out the top six with a .538 winning percentage.

The weekend series will shuffle all of that.

These games will be no walk in a park either. The Gophers will bring some of the strongest hitters and pitchers in the conference to Goodman Diamond.

“This is our weekend; this is the weekend we can make a huge impact for a couple of reasons,” said Wisconsin head coach Karen Gallagher. “One, it is important to get into the tournament, but it is also pivotal to have some momentum going into the tournament. You want to be playing well. You are as good as your last game.”

Senior outfielder Tammi Hays leads the Gophers offensively with a .389 batting average, which is fourth best in the Big Ten. She also leads the team with 65 hits. Hays’ sidekick, junior Jordanne Nygren, bats .358 and has knocked in a team-leading 30 runs.

On the flip side, the Gopher pitching staff makes them no easy foe either.

Sophomore Piper Marten, with a 21-10 record, has been scorching teams all season, compiling a 1.09 earned-run average, fourth best in the Big Ten.

Not to be outdone by her teammate, junior Angie Recknor, 13-7, has complied a 1.03 ERA — third best in the Big Ten.

With such a talented pitching staff coming to town — and the Badger’s recent hitting problems — this weekend has the makings for some very exciting games.

The Badgers do not seem to be too concerned, however, and seem to be focusing on their own team.

“Piper Martin is a good pitcher; we have handled her in the past,” Gallagher said. “We have seen enough good pitching this season to be prepared for that. You don’t worry about that; you just play the game when it happens.”

Badger pitcher Andrea Kirchberg also feels the team is well prepared for Marten’s pitching.

“I think we should be able to stop her rise ball; they are used to hitting off of me, so they should know not to swing at the rise ball,” Kirchberg said.

The Badgers are not exactly weak in the pitching department either.

Kirchberg tied her own record for strikeouts Wednesday and, with Katie Layne throwing well, the Badgers may seem a little intimidating to the Gophers too.

While the Gophers are second in the Big Ten with a team ERA of 1.23, the Badgers are two slots behind at 1.51.

With postseason hopes lingering in the background and competitive talent on both teams, this is a perfect capstone weekend for UW.