What's on Tap: #12 Minnesota State (35-8, 12-4 NSIC) hits the road this week for Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference action. Thursday the Mavericks take on the Golden Bears of Concordia at 2 p.m. MSU will heads to SMSU Friday in a showdown in Marshall, Minn. First pitch is slated for 2 p.m., each day.

In the Ranks: The Mavericks are ranked #2 in the fourth NCAA Central Region rankings released Wednesday. MSU followed Augustana, while the Mavericks stood ahead of Winona State one spot. Minnesota State was ranked #1 in the previous three NCAA Central Region Rankings. Seven of the ten teams in the regional poll are NSIC schools. In the National Fastpitch Coaches Association poll, Minnesota State dropped from sixth to tied in 12th with Augustana this week, as Winona State moved up to sixth.

The Golden Bear’s Cave: Concordia University (23-15, 6-8 NSIC) enters Thursday on a five-game skid. As a team, CU is batting .306 from the plate, averaging 4.79 runs and 8.34 hits a game offensively. Junior Brynn Larsen is batting .391 this season, totaling for 50 hits. Senior Sami Mattson has hit 15 home runs this year and tallied 37 runs batted in on the season. Junior Katie Anderson has 23 stolen bases and 34 runs for CU.
Defensively, the Golden Bears own a .948 fielding percentage and hold opponents to an average of 3.18 runs per game. Sophomore pitcher Ashley Kluever is 13-7 on the season, owning a 3.07 ERA in her 125.1 innings pitched. Senior pitcher Cassye McMahon owns a 2.47 earned run average, collecting a 5-3 record. Concordia is coached by seven-year man Bob Bartel.

Roaming with the Mustangs: SMSU (22-13, 10-5 NSIC) comes into the weekend on a two-game winning streak and one game below the Mavericks in the NSIC standings. As a team, Southwest Minnesota State is batting .278 from the plate, averaging 4.42 runs and 7.45 hits per game this year. Krista Steen is leading the team from the dish, hitting .391 on 43 hits. The team delivers a .956 fielding percentage on the season. Junior Christine Borowiak is batting .374, launching seven home runs.
The pitching staff accumulates a 2.14 earned run average in its 238.2 innings pitched. Senior Ali Honken leads the pitching staff with a 13-6 record and 0.98 ERA. The Mustangs are coached by Shawn Semler, who is in his eighth season.

Freshy Fresh: Minnesota State freshmen sluggers Lindsay Erickson and Kelly Wood are leading the team from the dish. Erickson is batting .446 from the left side of the plate and Wood is batting .430 from the right side of the plate. Erickson has 15 doubles and 58 hits in her 130 at bats, meanwhile, Wood has seven home runs, computing a .790 slugging percentage on the season.

Seniors, Seniors: The two seniors, Natalie Spicer and Julie O'Neal, hold down the corners of the infield. The duo has composed 78 of the 250 runs batted in on the season for MSU. Spicer played in her 200th career game Monday, hitting .389 on the season with nine home runs. O’Neal is batting .421, delivering 51 hits for the Mavericks.

For the Books: Natalie Spicer has engineered 100 career walks, which lands her first in school history. In the MSU record books, Spicer is second in career home runs (28), one away from the top spot in career home runs and two is runs batted in away from first in career RBI. Melanie Upchurch broke the school record for stolen bases in a season as she has compiled 25 this season. Pitcher Kendra Huettl and Courtney McKelvogue rank in the top five in career wins and games started and currently charting in the top ten in career strikeouts and career innings pitched.
In the Distance: Minnesota State will return to action next Wednesday for a doubleheader against St. Cloud State at 1 p.m., in St. Cloud, Minn.