St. Cloud State
University of Mary
Softball hosts Mary, Minot State in NSIC action
4/1/2022 12:00:00 PM | Softball
ST. CLOUD, MINN. - The Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) season is up and running for the St. Cloud State University softball team. After hosting Minnesota-Duluth in a site reversal on Tuesday, the Huskies continue the grind this upcoming weekend, as they host UMary and Minot State in two conference doubleheaders this weekend.
Due to weather concerns in Duluth, Minnesota, there were changes to St. Cloud State's schedule. Rather than host the Beavers first and Marauders second, the Huskies will now face UMary at 1:00 and 3:00 p.m. CT on Saturday and Minot State at 12:00 p.m. and 2:00 p.m. on Sunday. Both doubleheaders will be played in the comforts of the Husky Dome, as Selke Field is not ready for play after Tuesday's spring snowfall.
Live stats and video will be available for both doubleheaders, and score updates will be made on the team's official Twitter account (@SCSUHUSKIES_SB).
Here are the five things to know before this weekend's NSIC doubleheaders:
6 - St. Cloud State enters the weekend as one of the hottest teams in the NSIC, winning its last six games against regional and conference opponents. Thanks to their sweep of Minnesota-Duluth on Tuesday, the Huskies extended their win streak to six consecutive games and look to make it 10 with sweeps of the Marauders and Beavers this weekend. That six-game win streak is currently the longest in the NSIC, as St. Cloud State currently holds an overall record of 14-9.
.359 - A large part of the Huskies recent success is their bats. St. Cloud State hit .359 in Tuesday's NSIC opener against the Bulldogs, scoring a combined 13 runs on 23 hits with four doubles and three home runs. Jasmin Estrada (Litchfield, Minn. / Litchfield) hit a blistering .875 against Minnesota-Duluth and slugged 1.375, going 7-8 at the plate with one double, one home run and three RBI.
.514 - The Huskies may have their hands full on Sunday, though, as they are tasked with stopping the conference's top hitter Jamie Odlum. The Beavers top hitter is also best in the NSIC this season, as she leads the conference with a .514 batting average in 26 games. The junior first baseman has tallied 38 hits in 74 at bats, including 11 doubles and 58 total bases. She's also a huge threat on the bases, with 14 stolen bases in 18 attempts.
.286/7.35 - In a turn of events, the Marauders have been a better hitting team than St. Cloud State through the first two months of the 2022 season. UMary is hitting .286 in 22 games this season, which ranks tenth amongst the 16 teams in the NSIC, one place above the Huskies. However, the Marauders pitching staff has struggled a bit. As a team, UMary owns a 7.35 ERA this season, as the team has surrendered 148 earned runs in 141.0 innings of play.
7 - Raven Vanden Langenberg (Seymour, Wis. / Seymour) has been a mainstay as St. Cloud State's leadoff hitter since February, with 21 hits and seven walks this season. However, there's one stat the senior shortstop may not necessarily want to brag about. As a leadoff hitter, Vanden Langenberg has been hit seven times by pitches this season, which not only leads the Huskies, but ranks third in the NSIC. Alexandra Pinkwoski (Prior Lake, Minn. / Prior Lake) also has a tendency to get plunked, as she's been hit four times this season.
