FIRST PITCH
The Southwest Minnesota State softball team will continue Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference action this week when the Mustangs host Minnesota State on Thursday afternoon (2 p.m.) before traveling to take on Minnesota Duluth and St. Cloud State on Saturday and Sunday.
SCOUTING MINNESOTA STATE
Minnesota State, who was ranked in the NCAA's preseason top 25 coaches' poll, has since dropped out of the top 25 but has a combined 20-6 record, 5-1 in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference. The Mavericks are on a four-game winning streak and have shutout their last three opponents. In the last three wins the Mavericks have collected, they have outscored their opponent 42-0. Several Mavericks rank in the top-50 nationally in several statistical categories including junior Lindsay Erickson whose .464 batting average is 26th-best in the nation, Erickson also ranks 26th in on base percentage, reaching base nearly 54% of the time, and is the ninth toughest to strike out in the Division II ranks with only one strikeout in 69 at-bats. Senior Abby Sonner averages 0.42 doubles per game, which is the 11-best average in country, while senior pitcher Courtney McKelvogue is the 14th-best in the circle in walks allowed per seven innings with 0.95.
SCOUTING MINNESOTA DULUTH
Minnesota Duluth reigns supreme in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference two weeks into the conference schedule. The Bulldogs are 22-6 overall, 2-0 in NSIC contests. The Bulldogs swept the Mustangs earlier this season in a non-conference doubleheader in the West St. Paul Dome on Feb. 27. As a team, the offense is hitting .332/.541/.396 and averaging 6.25 runs scored per game. The Bulldogs are led by Ashley Lewis and Kierra Jeffers. In 28 games, Lewis has collected 37 hits in 86 at-bats for a .430 batting average and has hit five home runs, 22 RBIs and seven doubles. Jeffers has started all 28 games for the Bulldogs, earning a .398 average in 88 at-bats. Jeffers has displayed power so far this season, hitting a team-high nine home runs and 32 RBIS. Combined, UMD has hit 36 home runs and struck out just 98 times in 790 at-bats. The pitching staff is led by Julia Nealer who has 12 wins in her 13 starts and 15 appearances. Nealer has an impressive 11 complete games, four of them going for shutouts. In 92.1 innings pitched, Nealer has allowed just 19 earned runs and struck out 89 batters. Of her 51 hits allowed, just 14 have gone for extra bases.
ST. CLOUD STATE
St. Cloud State has put together a 15-14 record so far this season, including a 0-2 record in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference. The Huskies currently ride a two-game losing skid, dropping its NSIC opening doubleheader to Minnesota Duluth 1-0, and 9-4. The Huskies are hitting .250/.372/.324 as a unit, combined to hit 21 home runs, and 188 hits in 753 at-bats. Mikayla Hogan leads the team in just about every hitting category including batting average (.323), at-bats (96), hits (31), doubles (6), home runs (7), RBIs (22), total bases (58), and slugging percentage (.604). In the circle, the Huskies are led by starting pitcher Kelly Franks, who owns a 1.41 ERA in 16 starts. Franks has made 23 appearance and earned a 11-7 record in 124.1 innings pitched. Franks has pitched 11 complete games and has allowed just 25 earned runs while striking out 154 batters. Franks has issued 63 walks and allowed 75 hits but has pinned opposing batters to a .174 batting average.
GAME NOTES | LIVE STATS (MSU)
