MANKATO, Minn. – Minnesota State softball (32-8, 12-2 NSIC) has its second road-trip of the conference season this week. The Mavericks will play Concordia-St. Paul (30-6, 12-0 NSIC), St. Cloud State (22-16, 5-7 NSIC) and Minnesota Duluth (25-12, 6-6 NSIC) this week.
 

Schedule
Wednesday, April 10
at Concordia-St. Paul, 2 p.m.
at Concordia-St. Paul, 4 p.m.
Saturday, April 13
at St. Cloud State, 1 p.m.
at St. Cloud State, 3 p.m.
Sunday, April 14
vs Minnesota Duluth, 12 p.m.
vs Minnesota Duluth, 2 p.m.
 

About the Mavericks
After losing its first two conference games to MSU Moorhead, Minnesota State has won 12-straight games against NSIC opponents. The Mavericks had a great week of play, sweeping Sioux Falls, Bemidji State and Minnesota Crookston. Minnesota State outscored its opponents 44-21 during those six wins.
 
The team remains in third place in the NSIC with a 12-2 conference record. CSP and Augustana are first and second in the conference, with 12-0 and 13-1 conference records, respectively.

This Mavericks squad has eight players hitting above .300 this season. The team is batting .329 overall and has driven in 196 RBI while only allowing 94 runs defensively. MSU pitchers have struck out 208 batters, ranking third in the NSIC, and have allowed the lowest ERA in the conference (1.89), allowing only 71 earned runs this season.
 
After an excellent week of play, freshman Courtney Kessler takes the team lead in batting average, hitting .402 with a .970 OPS in her rookie campaign. She went 13-21 from the plate (.619 BA) last week, driving in five RBI, scoring eight runs and recording four extra-base hits. She hit her first career triple in a game against Bemidji State.
 
Ellie Tallman, the Mavericks' senior starting second baseman, is hitting well to begin conference play. She is batting .386 with a .915 OPS in the leadoff spot. She leads the team in hits with 49 and is tied for the team lead in triples with Kylie Sullivan, both with four. Sullivan is hitting .372 with an OPS of 1.038, which leads the team. She has 15 extra-base hits in 2024, along with four home runs and 28 RBI. The Kankakee, Ill. native hit a walk-off two-RBI double in the bottom of the seventh to put the team over Minnesota Crookston in the first game between the teams.
 
Gianna Lara leads the team in home runs, RBI and walks drawn. She's hit five balls over the fence and has driven in 35 RBI in the cleanup spot of the batting order. Lara has walked 18 times this season. She is hitting .345 with a .975 OPS. She was named the NSIC Player of the Week for the first time in her career earlier this season.
 
Junior outfielder, Marina Carter is second on the team in batting average, hitting .395. She leads the team in on-base percentage, reaching base about .458 of the time. The speed demon is great at laying down bunts in crucial situations or to get on base, and when she gets on, she is a serious threat to steal. She has 14 stolen bases in 2024, only being caught twice.
 
Freshmen Rhyan Fritz and Maddie Helin are having solid starts to their careers as well. Fritz, a regular starter at shortstop for the team, is hitting .341 with an OPS of .912. She has nine extra-base hits, including two home runs, 19 RBI and six games with multiple hits. Helin, who slid into the lineup due to injury, hit the first two homers of her career against Bemidji State and Minnesota Crookston. She is hitting .313 on the year.
 
Speaking of freshmen, arguably the most important freshman to this Minnesota State team is Maddie Oetzmann. The pitcher from Urbandale, Iowa, in 21 appearances in the circle, is 16-1 with an ERA of 1.22. In 86.1 innings pitched, Oetzmann has 70 strikeouts, while allowing only 67 hits and 22 runs. Hitters are batting .209 against the freshman phenom.
 
McKayla Armbruster is the Mavericks' other ace. The fifth-year pitcher has an ERA of 1.74 and a WHIP of .99. She has pitched 116.1 innings, striking out 111 batters while only walking 14. She is 14-4 in her final season in a Minnesota State jersey, and against Bemidji State, became the seventh player in program history to reach 500 strikeouts. With 514 K's in her career, Armbruster is nine away from passing Pam Stierlen for sixth in team history.
 
Minnesota State is led by legendary head coach, Lori Meyer, who returns for her 40th season at the helm of the Mavericks' dugout. She is the most winningest coach in NCAA Division II Softball history with a 1,392-732-3 record. Teams under Meyer have been to 17 NCAA Tournaments and three championships, including a win in 2017.
 

About the Golden Bears
Concordia-St. Paul is having a terrific season. The Golden Bears, like Minnesota State, have won 12-straight games. The team is undefeated in conference play, winning all 12 of its NSIC matchups. CSP is first in the NSIC standings.
 
The Golden Bears are the best offense in the NSIC, hitting .355 as a team and driving in 233 base runners through 36 games. Concordia pitchers have a combined 3.38 ERA, striking out 130 opponents and allowing 142 runs as a squad. The team has six players with 25+ RBI this season.
 
CSP has the best hitter in the conference, Alexis Monty, on its roster. Monty is batting an astounding .528 in 2024, with an OPS of 1.282, both statistics ranking first in the NSIC. She has 17 extra-base hits this season, with 14 doubles and one home run. She has driven in 29 RBI and collected 86 total bases in 36 games. The freshman has only struck out twice.
 
Erica McCullough, the Bears' ace, has an ERA of 3.00 and a WHIP of 1.49. She is 18-2 in 25 appearances. In 126 innings of work, she has 86 strikeouts and 72 runs allowed. Opponents are batting .278 against her.
 
20-year head coach, Bob Bartel, has Concordia set for a first-place finish for the first time in his tenure. He has taken the Bears to four NCAA Tournament appearances and has a 529-442-1 overall record.
 
MSU is 59-21-2 all-time against the Golden Bears. The Mavericks won the last matchup, 5-4, last season. Minnesota State is 16-8 at CSP.
 
 
About the Huskies
The St. Cloud State Huskies are 25-12 this season, with a 5-7 conference record. The team has lost four consecutive games and ranks 10^th in the NSIC.
 
The Huskies are hitting .268 this season with the second-highest home run total in the conference, with 36. The team has three players with eight or more homers in 2024. SCSU pitchers have a 3.57 ERA and 141 strikeouts. The Huskies have struck out 155 times in 2024.
 
St. Cloud State's best hitter is Reese Holzhueter. The junior is batting .359 this year with an OPS of 1.055. She has 46 base hits, eight doubles, three triples and eight home runs. Maggie Fitzgerald, the team's best power-hitter, has nine home runs and 32 RBI this season, despite leading the team in strikeouts, with 24.
 
With a record of 9-3, an ERA of 2.23 and a WHIP of 1.23, SCSU's best pitcher is Justyce Porter. In 94 innings pitched, she has allowed 86 hits and 38 runs and has struck out 51 batters this season. Emma Eickhoff leads the team with 61 strikeouts.
 
Mitch Roberts is in his second season as the head coach of the St. Cloud State softball team. In his first season with the team, he led the Huskies to a program record 23 conference wins in 2023.
 
Minnesota State is 84-61 in games against St. Cloud State. The Huskies bested the Mavericks in the last matchup, winning in a 4-0 shutout.
 
 
About the Bulldogs
Minnesota Duluth has been a streaky team in 2024. The Bulldogs are 25-12 and 6-6 in NSIC play. The team has lost two straight. These losses against Concordia come after a six-game winning streak, which was proceeded by a five-game losing streak.
 
The Bulldogs are hitting .292 as a team, with 165 RBI and 17 homers. The team has six players batting over .300 and six with 15+ RBI. UMD has a 2.06 ERA in 2024, with 224 strikeouts and 104 runs allowed.
 
Julia Gronholz is the Bulldogs' leading hitter. She is hitting .374 at the plate with an OPS of .888. She has 40 hits, two home runs and 21 RBI. Kat Burkhardt is another good hitter for UMD, batting .363 with 1.048 OPS. She leads the team with four home runs and 22 RBI.
 
Minnesota Duluth's ace is Lauren Dixon. Dixon has an ERA of 1.33 and a WHIP of .96. In 121 innings of work, she has 144 strikeouts while allowing just 70 hits and 33 runs. Her strikeout total is the best in the NSIC. Opponents only bat .161 when facing her.
 
Lynn Anderson is the Bulldogs' third-year head coach. Anderson accumulated the most wins by a UMD coach in their first two years, finishing with 79 wins in two seasons. Last season, the Bulldogs won the NSIC Tournament, giving them a berth in the NCAA Tournament.
 
Minnesota State is 55-43 against Minnesota Duluth in all-time matchups. The Mavericks won the last game against the Bulldogs, shutting them out 3-0 in April of last year. MSU is 13-9 in road games against UMD.