MANKATO, Minn. --- Minnesota State begins NSIC action this week as it takes on Concordia-St. Paul on Tuesday, Wayne State on Saturday and Augustana on Sunday. The doubleheader against the Golden Bears will begin at 11:00 a.m., at the Maverick All-Sports Dome. The road doubleheaders against both WSC and AU will begin at 12:00 p.m.

Tuesday, March 28th Schedule (CSP will be the home team in the box scores)
vs. Concordia-St. Paul, 11:00 a.m.
vs. Concordia-St. Paul, 1:00 p.m.            

Saturday, April 1st Schedule
at Wayne State, 12:00 p.m.
at Wayne State, 2:00 p.m.

Sunday, April 2nd Schedule
at Augustana, 12:00 p.m.
at Augustana, 2:00 p.m.

Concerning the Mavericks: Minnesota State enters the week the owner of an 11-7 record. In their last outings, MSU went 5-5 in the trip to Florida, including a pair of wins against Franklin Pierce (12-0) and Lynn (2-0) in its most recent outings.

Junior Ellie Tallman leads the Maverick hitters with a .412 batting average as she has tallied 21 hits and 12 RBI. Junior Kylie Sullivan is batting .352 with 19 hits and a team-best four home runs. Freshman Ava Smithson is batting .311 wuth 10 runs scored and eight stolen bases.

Junior McKayla Armbruster leads the Mavericks in the circle this season with a 7-4 record and a 1.03 ERA. Armbruster has struck out 54 batters and has held opposing hitters to a .237 batting average. Sophomore Sophia Del Vecchio has put together a 4-1 record, to go along with a 1.06 ERA also. 

Lori Meyer is in her 39th season as head coach at Minnesota State. She owns a 1,346-721-3 record. 

Concerning the Golden Bears: Concordia-St. Paul enters the week the owner of a 14-11 record. CSP has won its last three games, including a pair of nonconference wins vs. Bemidji State (9-2 & 12-4) in St. Cloud, Minn.

Annalise Scamehorn is batting .327 with 17 hits and eight RBI this season. Clara Heislen is batting .284 and leads CSP with six home runs and 20 RBI. Sydney Pelzer is batting .309 with 21 hits and 15 runs scored also.

Bryanna Olson owns a 9-6 record in the circle, to go along with a 3.58 ERA and 86 strikeouts. Erica McCullough is 4-2 on the season with a 2.92 ERA and 31 strikeouts.

Bob Bartel is in his 19th season as head coach of the Golden Bears. He owns a 513-425 record.

Concerning the Wildcats: Wayne State enters the week the owner of a 5-18 record. In its most recent outings, WSC fell to Grand Valley State 3-0, before defeating Kentucky Wesleyan 8-0.

Riley Holmberg is batting .413 with 31 hits and 12 runs scored. Kim Vidlak is batting .389 and has driven in a team-leading 17 RBI. 

Grace Lucka owns a 2-7 record, to go along with  a 4.00 ERA. Samantha Felt is 2-9 on the season witrh a 4.53 ERA and 26 strikeouts.

Christy Warnock is in her first season as head coach of the Wildcats. She owns a 5-18 record.

Concerning the Vikings: Augustana enters the week the owner of a 13-8 record, including wins in its last five games. AU defeated Nebraska-Kearney 7-0 and 2-1 in its most recent outings.

Gracey Brink is batting .431 with 28 hits and 23 RBI. Liz Dierks is batting .389 with 16 runs scored and five stolen bases. Kennedy Buckman is batting .316 with nine home runs and 21 RBI also. 

Hailey Houston has posted a 6-2 record and a 2.96 ERA to go along with 39 strikeouts. Lexi Lander owns a 5-4 record and a 5.10 ERA also.

Gretta Melsted is in her 17th season as head coach of the Vikings. She owns a 656-250 record at Augustana.

Minnesota State History: The 2023 season marks the 50th season of Maverick softball. MSU owns an all-time record of 1,435-811-7 (.638) in 2,243 games, and has four North Central Conference (NCC) titles (1984, 1987, 1989, 2007), five  NSIC titles (2012, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017) and 19 appearances in the NCAA Division II National Tournament (1984, 1987, 1989, 1995, 1997, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2021, 2022) to its credit. The Mavericks claimed their first National Championship in 2017 after defeating No. 1 Angelo State, 5-1, on May 29, 2017, in Salem, Va. 

For the Record Books: With Minnesota State's 5-0 win over Emporia State on Feb. 19, 2023 head coach Lori Meyer picked up her 1,341 career win. In doing so she became the all-time winningest coach in NCAA Division II history passing the previous record of 1,340 wins set by Gary Bryce at Wayne State University (1982-21)  

Looking Ahead: Minnesota State begins an eight-game homestand on Wednesday, April 5, as it takes on the Southwest Minnesota State Mustangs. First pitch is scheduled for 2:00 p.m.