ABERDEEN, S.D. The Winona State University softball team will conclude their regular season in the next two days beginning with a doubleheader at Northern State University today, with the first game starting at noon.
The Warriors (33-13,19-5 NSIC) are looking to open their final weekend of play with a pair of wins over Northern State (11-35, 3-21 NSIC). WSU bounced back after dropping two games to nationally ranked Minnesota State on Tuesday to sweep Upper Iowa in two close contests on Thursday this past week.
During the opener against the Peacocks, senior pitcher
Liz Pautz eclipsed the 750 career strikeout mark, and added two wins to reach 54 victories in her career.
Abby Smith has started the second contest in the last four WSU doubleheaders.
Two Warriors are hitting over the .400 mark, with
Abbie Hlas (.465) and
Sam Keller (.421) creating offense with both timely hitting and power. Hlas and Keller each have racked up double-digit doubles, with Keller's 21 and Hlas' 14 leading the team.
Rylee Stout has nine home runs heading into today's contest and
Marissa Mullen leads the team in RBIs with 35.
Last season, the Warriors and Wolves split the doubleheader with Winona State winning game one, 10-9, and Northern State taking the second game by a score of 10-3. Prior to the loss in the back half of last year's twin bill, WSU had won eight-straight games against NSU dating back to 2017.
After today's games, the Warriors will head to MSU Moorhead for their final doubleheader of the season before the NSIC Tournament begins on May 5 in Rochester, Minn.
For the most up-to-date news in Warrior Athletics, please visit:
www.WINONASTATEWARRIORS.com and
@WinonaStateATH.
About Winona State University Athletics:
The Winona State University Department of Intercollegiate Athletics, as an integral part of the educational mission of the institution, is committed to offering opportunities to experience academic and athletic excellence for our student-athletes through two simple words:
Graduate Champions.
Fourteen Warrior programs compete at the NCAA Division II level within the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC). Winona State University competes as an affiliate member of the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) in the sport of women's gymnastics.
