WINONA, Minn. - The Warriors finished the 2018 regular season in sixth place in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) with an 18-21 (17-15 NSIC) record. The Warriors will face off against the three-seed, St. Cloud State (28-13, 21-8 NSIC) Wednesday night in the opening round of the tournament. First pitch is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. from SF Stadium in Sioux Falls, S.D. 


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SEASON RECAP: The Warriors were expected to miss out on the postseason tournament, selected to finish 10th in the Preseason Coaches' Poll. By stringing together a few wins in the middle of the season and a little help from mother nature, the Warriors found themselves inside the top eight for the majority of the season and in the NSIC Tournament for the first time since the 2015 season. Winona State put together a 9-5 record from March 18-April 5, including a sweep of Minnesota Crookston that helped propel them into post season contention for the ladder part of the season. The Warriors dropped three of four to close the regular season to Northern State.
 
FIRST ROUND FOE: Winona State will face off against the Huskies for the first time this season. The two teams were scheduled to meet back in mid-April, but winter weather forced the teams to cancel their doubleheader. St. Cloud State took three games from Bemidji State in lopsided fashion on the final weekend of the regular season. SCSU's offense led the NSIC in batting average in 2018 at a .320 clip. The Huskie pitching staff sports an ERA just under four (3.95) and has held their opponents to a .263 average while only giving up 2.57 walks per nine innings, a conference low. 
 
STACKED FIELD: Of the eight-team NSIC Tournament, two teams are receiving national attention. Augustana, who finished second to Minot State in the regular season, is No. 11 on the NCBWA Poll. The Viking's pitching staff posted a conference best 2.78 ERA this season. Minnesota State enters the tournament at No. 19 in the country. Both teams are regionally ranked, the Mavericks at No. 3 and the Vikings at No. 6. Minot State won the regular season title, ending the year on a eight-game winning streak, leapfrogging Augustana who had been out front for most of the season. 
 
BY THE NUMBERS: The Warriors had a pretty good season statistically. As a team, Winona State finished fourth in batting average (.303) and fifth in fielding percentage (.962) in the NSIC. Sam Kohnle finished eighth in batting average (.381) and ninth in hits (56), Tanner Williams was fourth in on base percentage (.462), freshman Zac Stange drew 24 walks in the leadoff spot, good for sixth in the conference. Aaron Mutter completed four games for the Warriors coming up one short of the conference lead. 
 
FEARCE FOURSOME: FRESH ARMS: Rookie pitchers Austin Savary and Dillon Whittaker have had plenty of success in their freshmen seasons at Winona State. Savary (4-1) posted a 3.38 ERA to go along with 43 punchouts over 48.0 IP. Whittaker led the staff in wins (5-1) while recording a 5.60 ERA. The right-hander totaled 41 strikeouts over 45.0 IP and struck out a career-best 10 batters in his final start of the season vs. Northern State.