WINONA, Minn. – No. 7 Winona State University returns to Maynard R. Johnson Field for the final time during the regular season with a four-game homestand against UMary and Minot State. First pitch of Friday's twinbill against UMary is set for 3 p.m. with Alumni/Senior Day to commence on Sunday at 12 p.m.
The Warriors enter the final weekend of the regular season riding a program-record 26-game winning streak that commenced when the conference slate began on March 27th. WSU needs three wins over its final four ballgames to secure the outright 2019 NSIC Championship which would mark back-to-back regular season crowns for the first time in program history.
Notes
REGIONAL ROUND-UP: Winona State ascended to No. 2 in this week's NCAA Division II Softball Regional Rankings that features five NSIC teams in the Top 10. The top two teams in each region host the NCAA Regional Tournament on May 9-11. A host bid would bring the Regional Tournament to Winona for the third time in the last six years.
SCOUTING UMARY: The Marauders (21-25, 12-14 NSIC) will look to play spoiler in Winona while also securing a spot in next week's NSIC Tournament as UMary is currently clinging to the 10th and final postseason seed. The Marauders enter the weekend on a three-game winning streak and do own a win over regionally-ranked Mankato this season. UMary ranks eighth in the league with a .299 batting average and is 14th with a 5.41 ERA. Opponents are batting .320 against Marauder pitching and have drawn 148 walks. Kaitlyn Alvarado leads the offense with a .370 batting average and is among the league leaders in OBP (.460) and doubles (13). Rebekkah Keller is sixth in the NSIC in stolen bases (23).
SCOUTING MINOT: The Beavers (24-19, 13-13 NSIC) travel to Upper Iowa Friday before Sunday's final doubleheader in Winona. Minot has played all of the NSIC's regionally-ranked teams tight this season and scored a 3-1 win over St. Cloud State earlier this month. The Beavers rank fifth in the league with a .310 team batting average, but play a lot of small ball as they are last in the conference in homers (15). The Beaver pitching staff owns a 4.96 ERA with a .330 opponent batting average. Minot ranks fifth in the league in stolen bases (53). Karlee Coughlin ranks fifth in the NSIC in RBI (50) and is eighth in batting average (.407). Lauren Cowden leads the league with seven triples and is eighth in OBP (.462).
STREAK STATS: The Warriors' 26-game winning streak is the longest active streak among all Division II teams in the country. The University of Oklahoma currently owns a 31-game winning streak and is the No. 1-ranked team in Division I. The streak began after a rough patch that saw the Warriors drop three of five games in late March. During WSU's torrid stretch, the Warriors are outscoring opponents, 176-42, while batting .357 and slugging .547 to go along with a 1.56 ERA. Last week, the Warriors needed three walk-off wins to extend the streak, including once when trailing 5-0 after five innings and another in 10 innings against UMD. WSU has been pushed to extra innings three times, posted eight run-rule victories and twirled 12 shutouts in the streak.
UNHITTABLE: Junior Jordyn Kleman has thrown two no-hitters over the last two weeks, adding to her Warrior program record of seven. The right-hander also became just the third member of the WSU 500-K club earlier this month. Kleman enters the weekend ranked sixth in the nation in wins (22) and is eight in Division II in hits allowed/7-inn. (3.83). She also leads the NSIC in opponent batting average (.159). The Warriors' other ace, Liz Pautz, ranks second in the country with a minuscule 0.80 ERA and is third in strikeouts/7-inn. (10.3).
FLEX ON 'EM: The Warriors have played in 18 games decided by two runs or less this year and have showcased the ability to play small ball successfully, but Winona State has been flat out mashing over the past month. Over their 26-game winning streak since NSIC play began, the Warriors have launched 31 of their cumulative 39 homers. Alison Nowak (12) leads the way and has been joined in the long ball barrage by Alexis Kelsey (8), Van Zyl (6), Ann Smolenski (2), Jen Giesey (2) and Rylee Stout (1). The heart of the order in Van Zyl, Nowak and Kelsey have combined for 59 extra-base hits and 135 RBI this season. Nowak leads the NSIC in slugging (.800), home runs (13) and RBI (54).
WEB GEMS: It may not capture the headlines, but Winona State's defense has been an underrated aspect of the team's success. The Warriors enter the weekend ranked second in the country in fielding percentage (.980) and have committed an NSIC-low 25 errors. WSU has committed just one defensive miscue over its last 12 games and played error-free softball in 30 of its 46 tilts. Sound defense coupled with dominant pitching and clutch hitting is a formidable formula as the Warriors continue to roll toward the postseason.
THANK YOU SENIORS: If you've watched a Winona State softball game at any point over the last four years, there's two things that have undoubtably caught your attention – the sweet swing of Lani Van Zyl and the infectious personality of Katie Schlegel. And, while these two seniors, and the rest of the Warriors, hope to return to their home field for the Regional Tournament, WSU will honor Lani and Katie between Sunday's doubleheader. Van Zyl ranks in the top five in program history in batting average (.400), hits (263), doubles (55), homers (31) and RBI (164). She was named the 2018 NSIC Player of the Year and an All-American by three different publications last season. Schlegel has a career record of 4-1 with a 2.70 ERA in the circle. Winona State's Hometown Hero Award Winner in 2017-18, Schlegel spent this year serving as the SAAC President in her time off the diamond while excelling in the classroom as a three-time NSIC All-Academic recipient.
BEST OF THE BEST: On Thursday, both Jordyn Kleman and Lani Van Zyl were named to the 2019 Schutt Sports/NFC Division II National Player & Pitcher of the Year Top 25 "Watch List". Both Warriors earned All-American honors in 2018 and were last season's NSIC Pitcher and Player of the Year, respectively. Winona State is one of just two teams (West Florida) with two players represented on the prestigious list.
A DECADE OF DOMINANCE: Along with Sunday's Senior Day ceremony, WSU welcomes back members of its 2009 World Series Team. The '09 squad won the NSIC Tournament, was the first 50-win team in program history and won the first sub-regional and super regional tournaments in program history. Since 2009, Winona State has continued its tradition of excellence with three more NSIC Tournament titles and eight NCAA Regional appearances.
