MANKATO, Minn. - Minnesota State Athletics is celebrating Director of Athletics Kevin Buisman's 25th year with the Mavericks by highlighting 25 outstanding student-athletes who have helped shape the department's history. The next honoree in the series is former softball All-America standout Coley Ries Welter.
 
The 25 for 25 Series recognizes 25 of the most accomplished and memorable Maverick student-athletes from the past quarter century, beginning with Buisman's arrival at Minnesota State in 2002. Over the next three months, the 25 honorees will be announced in no particular order, with ten unveiled in September-October, ten more throughout November and the final five in December prior to the Christmas holiday.

"The program hit a home run when we landed Coley Ries," Buisman said.  "She was a hometown talent who grew up in the local Peppers program and arrived at a time when Minnesota State had already established a tremendous lineage of starting pitchers. Coley took that tradition to another level. She was so dominant in the circle that you felt like you were going to be in every game when she had the ball."
 
A pitcher from Mankato, Minn., she made 178 appearances in the circle for the Minnesota State softball team during her five seasons with the Mavericks. During her final four seasons, the Mavericks won three NSIC regular season championships and an NSIC Tournament championship as the Mavericks advanced to the NCAA Tournament every season.
 
"Being a Maverick student athlete was quite literally a dream come true for a little hometown girl who idolized the Maverick athletes," Ries Welter said.  "My time here changed the trajectory of my life through the lessons I learned and who I became. This is largely because of the people behind the scenes who make being part of the 'Mavfam' what it is, namely 'THE MAVDAD' Kevin Buisman.  His success speaks for itself but who he is as a human, his foresight & his determination to continually make this the best place on earth is what's most admirable. I'm grateful to be a small part of his story and feel lucky every single day to get to continue representing this university."
 
Ries Welter finished her career with the Mavericks as the all-time leader in several categories including, appearances (178), games started (146), wins (119), innings pitched (999.1) and strikeouts (1,481). She also owned a career 2.06 ERA to go with 104 complete games and 39 shutouts, while holding opposing batters to a .178 average.
 
She was named the NSIC Pitcher of the Year three times. She would also garner two All-American honors from the NFCA, D2CCA and a CoSIDA Academic All-American honor. In 2017, Ries was named the NFCA Player of the Year and the D2CCA Pitcher of the Year. 
 
During Minnesota State's 2017 postseason run, Ries Welter started every game for the Mavericks as she went 14-1 and won the program's first NCAA Championship in program history. Ries was named the Most Outstanding Player for the NCAA Championships as she put together a 5-0 record to go with a 1.20 ERA and 50 strikeouts.  She was named Minnesota State's senior Female Athlete of the Year for the 2016-17 season.  
 
"I'll never forget the national championship game," Buisman added.  "When I arrived at the field, I was summoned to the warm-up area, only to find Coley stretched out on a bench in the dugout. She was experiencing flu-like symptoms, and at that point, it didn't look likely she would be able to pitch. After consulting with her parents and the medical staff and allowing some additional time for recovery, there was no keeping her from taking that start. Coley had her 'Michael Jordan' moment. She went out and delivered another dominating performance, helping lead us to a national championship and ending an incredible career with one more signature strikeout. It was such a fitting finish for a competitor who had given so much to our program."
 
Ries Welter currently is the assistant softball coach for the Mavericks.