Friday, May 2
Vermillion, S.D.
1 p.m.
North Dakota State
at
South Dakota
Photo by: Bob Nelson
Bison Softball Closes Out Regular Season at South Dakota on May 2-3
4/30/2014 11:27:00 AM | Softball
Friday, May 2 at South Dakota
Game 1, 1 p.m. - Live Stats
Game 2, 3 p.m. - Live Stats
Saturday, May 3 at South Dakota
12 p.m. - Live Stats
Social Media - @NDSUsoftball | @NDSUAthletics
North Dakota State (27-15, 8-3 Summit) is scheduled to travel to the University of South Dakota (28-17, 9-5 Summit) for a Summit League three-game series May 2-3 ... NDSU and the Coyotes will play a doubleheader starting at 1 p.m. Friday, May 2 ... The series concludes with a single-game at noon Saturday, May 3 ... The Bison are currently in first place in the league standings, while South Dakota is third entering this weekend's action ... Pairings for The Summit League Softball Championship tournament will be announced Sunday, May 4 ... NDSU will host the tournament Wednesday, May 7, through Saturday, May 10, at the Ellig Sports Complex.
The Series
North Dakota State leads 41-22 in the series with South Dakota ... The Bison won two of three games played in Fargo last season.
Summit League Softball Championship Ticket Information
Tickets (single-day) for The Summit League Softball Championship tournament on Wednesday, May 7, through Saturday, May 10, are $8 for adults, $5 student with ID, and $5 for youth 17-and-under ... Tickets are available at the Bison Sports Arena ticket office or at the Ellig Sports Complex on game day ... There are two entrances to the Ellig Sports Complex on the south and north end ... Tickets will be available at both entrances ... Gates at the Ellig Sports Complex will open 60 minutes prior to first pitch each day ... Parking is available north of the Ellig Sports Complex ... For more information, call 1-888-231-NDSU (6378).
Quickly Around The Horn
In the NCAA statistics released April 28, North Dakota State junior righthander Krista Menke ranked 13th in shutouts (8), 17th in hits allowed per 7 IP (4.38 avg) and 18th in wins (21) ... Team-wise, NDSU is 18th in fielding pct. (.973) and 38th in batting avg. (.309) ... Krista Menke has eight shutouts this season and 20 in her career ... Menke has tossed one-hitters vs. Fort Wayne (4-19-14), at South Dakota State (4-12-14) and Southeast Missouri State (3-18-14) this season, and has four in her career ... Menke has three two-hitters this season and 12 in her career ... Menke has reached double-figure strikeouts three times this season including a career-high 14 vs. Fort Wayne (4-19-14) and five times in her career ... NDSU has hit three grand slam home runs this season, the latest was by junior third baseman Amanda Grable vs. Western Illinois (4-26-14) ... Grable joins sophomore shortstop Logan Moreland vs. Columbia (2-21-14) and sophomore second baseman Cheyenne Garcia vs. Ball State (3-21-14) in the grand slam category ... Logan Moreland tied a school single-game record with two home runs at South Dakota State (Game one, 4-11-14) ... That record has been achieved 17 times by 11 athletes including Amanda Grable (2) and Maritza Lopez-Portillo vs. Nicholls State (2-22-14) ... Senior catcher Jenina Ortega set the school single-season record for hit by pitch at eight at Omaha (4-5-14) ... Ortega was plunked at South Dakota State (4-11-12) and her HBP total is currently at nine ... The old record was seven and set three times previously by Lynnae Foshag (2005, 2006, 2007) ... Foshag is also the Bison all-time "Queen of Pain" with 24 career HBP ... Junior centerfielder Alex Sobrero is currently leading the team with a .382 batting average ... Sobrero has 17 multi-hit games this season and is hitting .450 with runners in scoring position ... Sophomore DP Jackie Stifter is second on the team with a .370 batting average to go with eight doubles, a home run and 18 RBI ... Ten (10) of Stifter's 30 career hits have been for extra-bases (9 doubles, 1 home run) ... Amanda Grable has a team-high 12 two-out RBI, while Cheyenne Garcia and Maritza Lopez-Portillo are next with 10 ... Garcia has 10 multi-RBI games this season ... NDSU has nine players with 10 or more RBI this season led by Garcia's 42 ... Amanda Grable reached base safely in 14 consecutive games during one stretch this season ... Logan Moreland had a team-high 11-game hitting streak and has 16 multi-hit games this spring ... NDSU tied several team records vs. Nicholls State (2-22-14) -- total bases in a game (32) and runs scored in an inning (12) ... Nine Bison have scored 10 or more runs this season led by Garcia with 33 ... NDSU has 10 players with at least one home run led by Garcia, Moreland, Grable and Ortega each with five ... With the 11-inning 1-0 win vs. Fort Wayne on April 19, the Bison are 2-0 this season in extra innings and 40-27 under head coach Darren Mueller since 2002 ... North Dakota State is 53-47 in extra innings overall ... Collectively, the Bison are hitting .309 with a 2.81 earned run average and is fielding at .973 ... NDSU opponents are hitting .226 with a 4.90 ERA and fielding at .960 ... The Bison are averaging 5.43 runs scored per game, while opponents are averaging 3.07 ... The big inning has been the third for North Dakota State with 45 runs scored ... The Bison are 19-1 when leading or tied after six innings ... NDSU is 24-6 when scoring three (3) or more runs and 23-5 when scoring first.
Menke, Ortega, Enriquez Take Aim at Career Charts
On the NDSU career charts, junior Krista Menke is 4th in opponent batting avg. (.206); 5th in strikeouts (463) and batters faced (2,206); 6th in strikeouts/7 IP (6.24 avg.), saves (3) and shutouts (20); 7th in wins (55), appearances (98) and innings pitched (519); 8th in games started (78) and complete games (63), and 10th in earned run average (2.36) ... Senior catcher Jenina Ortega is 2nd with 54 base runners thrown out and hit by pitch (13); 6th in putouts (1,032) and fielding chances (1,178); 7th in sacrifice flies (5) and 10th with 17 home runs ... Senior first baseman Brandi Enriquez is 4th in double plays turned (32) ... Junior third baseman Amanda Grable is T6th in home runs (24), T7th in sacrifice flies (5) and T9th with 17 double plays turned ... Sophomore pitcher Tabby Bayers is 8th in strikeouts per 7 IP (5.12 avg).
Bison in The Summit League Statistics
North Dakota State leads The Summit League (league games only) in pitching (1.38 ERA) and fielding pct. (.980), and is second in batting average (.316) ... Junior righthander Krista Menke leads the league in earned average (0.91), wins (9-2), shutouts (4), complete games (9), innings pitched (69.1) and opponent batting average (.108); 2nd in strikeouts (9.09 avg.); 3rd in games started (9), and 4th in appearances (11) ... Junior center fielder Alex Sobrero is 2nd in runs scored (13) 3rd in hits (19) 4th in batting avg. (.432), 7th in total bases (28) and 9th in slugging pct. (636) ... Sophomore designated player Jackie Stifter is 10th in batting avg. (.353) and on-base pct. (.450) ... Sophomore shortstop Logan Moreland is 2nd in runs scored (13), 6th in hits (17), 7th in total bases (28), 9th in batting avg. (.378) and 10th in slugging pct. (.622) ... Sophomore second baseman Cheyenne Garcia is 2nd in RBI (13) and 3rd in doubles (5) ... Senior catcher Jenina Ortega is 7th in runs scored (12).
Menke, Grable Earn Summit League Weekly Honors
North Dakota State junior right-hander Krista Menke has earned Summit League Pitcher of the Week honors five times during the season on Feb. 24, March 3, April 7, April 14 and April 21 ... Menke has earned the honor 10 times in her career ... North Dakota State junior third baseman Amanda Grable was named Summit League co-Player of the Week on March 3 ... It was Grable's second career weekly honor.
Bison First in Preseason 2014 Summit League Poll
North Dakota State was tabbed as the favorite to win the 2014 Summit League Softball Championship in a poll of the league's seven head coaches ... The Bison tallied 33 total points and four first-place votes after winning their second-consecutive regular season title and third in the last six years ... NDSU returned 13 players from last season's team that went 33-16 and 17-1 in league play, including first team all-league honoree Jenina Ortega and second team selections Brandi Enriquez, Amanda Grable and Cheyenne Garcia.
Bison and The RPI
The fifth NCAA RPI (Ratings Percentage Index) was released April 28 ... The Summit League ranks 14th among Division I conferences ... The Bison come in at No. 61 and are one of four league teams in the top 110. Fort Wayne follows on the list at 65 while Omaha (77) and South Dakota (104) round out the list.
Against The Nationally-Ranked
North Dakota State has won four of its last 13 meetings with nationally-ranked opponents, starting with the 9-7 win over Hawai'i at the 2012 NCAA Tucson Regional ... The Bison won at No. 23 Georgia 3-0 and at No. 20 Nebraska 13-0 in 2013 ... NDSU won at No. 22 Stanford on March 7 this season ... With the dramatic 1-0 win in 11 innings over 9th/10th-ranked Oklahoma at the 2009 NCAA Norman Regional, North Dakota State softball recorded its first win over a nationally-ranked team in 16 tries since beginning the transition to Division I in 2005 ... NDSU is currently 5-46 overall ... By year, 2005 -- Lost at #21 Iowa 2-0, Lost at #25 Nebraska 7-0, 8-0, Lost at #20 Missouri 9-1, 8-0; 2006 -- Lost at #10 Oklahoma 9-0, 7-2, Lost at #24 North Carolina 5-1, Lost at #6 Cal 10-1, Lost at #16 Nebraska 8-0; 2007 -- Lost to #25 Oregon 6-1; 2008 -- Lost at #9 Stanford 7-0; 2009 -- Lost at #11 Arizona, 10-0, 9-2, 12-0, Won at #9/10 Oklahoma 1-0 (11), Lost at #9/10 Arizona State, 3-0, 11-0; 2010 -- Lost vs. #6 Arizona 6-0, Lost at #21 Texas A&M 4-0, 5-2, Lost at #1 Washington, 3-0 ; 2011 -- Lost at #1/2 UCLA 7-0, 15-2 (5), Lost at #2/4 Georgia 14-4 (5), Lost at #16/17 Stanford 12-0 (5), Lost vs. #24 Kentucky 5-4 (8), Lost at #2/3 Florida 18-0 (5), Lost at #2/3 Florida (9-0), Lost at #13/17 Missouri 4-3, Lost at #13/17 Missouri 11-2 (5), Lost at #1 Arizona State 10-1 (5); 2012 -- Lost at #2 Alabama 9-4, Lost at #2 Alabama 3-2, Lost at #5 Arizona State 10-2 (5), Lost at #21 Texas A&M 6-0, Lost at #15 Baylor 1-0 (8), Lost at #15 Arizona 11-0 (5), Won vs. #13 Hawai'i 9-7; 2013 — Lost vs. #1 Alabama 10-0 (5), Lost at #10 LSU 9-0 (5), Lost at #23 Georgia 4-1, Won at #23 Georgia 3-0, Lost at #12 UCLA 7-1, Won at #20 Nebraska 13-0, Lost at #20 Nebraska 11-0 (5); 2014 — Lost at #12 Florida State 4-1, Lost at #12 Florida State 9-0 (5), Lost at #12 Florida State 5-0, Won at #22 Stanford 4-0, Lost at #18 Missouri 11-2 (5).
Game 1, 1 p.m. - Live Stats
Game 2, 3 p.m. - Live Stats
Saturday, May 3 at South Dakota
12 p.m. - Live Stats
Social Media - @NDSUsoftball | @NDSUAthletics
North Dakota State (27-15, 8-3 Summit) is scheduled to travel to the University of South Dakota (28-17, 9-5 Summit) for a Summit League three-game series May 2-3 ... NDSU and the Coyotes will play a doubleheader starting at 1 p.m. Friday, May 2 ... The series concludes with a single-game at noon Saturday, May 3 ... The Bison are currently in first place in the league standings, while South Dakota is third entering this weekend's action ... Pairings for The Summit League Softball Championship tournament will be announced Sunday, May 4 ... NDSU will host the tournament Wednesday, May 7, through Saturday, May 10, at the Ellig Sports Complex.
The Series
North Dakota State leads 41-22 in the series with South Dakota ... The Bison won two of three games played in Fargo last season.
Summit League Softball Championship Ticket Information
Tickets (single-day) for The Summit League Softball Championship tournament on Wednesday, May 7, through Saturday, May 10, are $8 for adults, $5 student with ID, and $5 for youth 17-and-under ... Tickets are available at the Bison Sports Arena ticket office or at the Ellig Sports Complex on game day ... There are two entrances to the Ellig Sports Complex on the south and north end ... Tickets will be available at both entrances ... Gates at the Ellig Sports Complex will open 60 minutes prior to first pitch each day ... Parking is available north of the Ellig Sports Complex ... For more information, call 1-888-231-NDSU (6378).
Quickly Around The Horn
In the NCAA statistics released April 28, North Dakota State junior righthander Krista Menke ranked 13th in shutouts (8), 17th in hits allowed per 7 IP (4.38 avg) and 18th in wins (21) ... Team-wise, NDSU is 18th in fielding pct. (.973) and 38th in batting avg. (.309) ... Krista Menke has eight shutouts this season and 20 in her career ... Menke has tossed one-hitters vs. Fort Wayne (4-19-14), at South Dakota State (4-12-14) and Southeast Missouri State (3-18-14) this season, and has four in her career ... Menke has three two-hitters this season and 12 in her career ... Menke has reached double-figure strikeouts three times this season including a career-high 14 vs. Fort Wayne (4-19-14) and five times in her career ... NDSU has hit three grand slam home runs this season, the latest was by junior third baseman Amanda Grable vs. Western Illinois (4-26-14) ... Grable joins sophomore shortstop Logan Moreland vs. Columbia (2-21-14) and sophomore second baseman Cheyenne Garcia vs. Ball State (3-21-14) in the grand slam category ... Logan Moreland tied a school single-game record with two home runs at South Dakota State (Game one, 4-11-14) ... That record has been achieved 17 times by 11 athletes including Amanda Grable (2) and Maritza Lopez-Portillo vs. Nicholls State (2-22-14) ... Senior catcher Jenina Ortega set the school single-season record for hit by pitch at eight at Omaha (4-5-14) ... Ortega was plunked at South Dakota State (4-11-12) and her HBP total is currently at nine ... The old record was seven and set three times previously by Lynnae Foshag (2005, 2006, 2007) ... Foshag is also the Bison all-time "Queen of Pain" with 24 career HBP ... Junior centerfielder Alex Sobrero is currently leading the team with a .382 batting average ... Sobrero has 17 multi-hit games this season and is hitting .450 with runners in scoring position ... Sophomore DP Jackie Stifter is second on the team with a .370 batting average to go with eight doubles, a home run and 18 RBI ... Ten (10) of Stifter's 30 career hits have been for extra-bases (9 doubles, 1 home run) ... Amanda Grable has a team-high 12 two-out RBI, while Cheyenne Garcia and Maritza Lopez-Portillo are next with 10 ... Garcia has 10 multi-RBI games this season ... NDSU has nine players with 10 or more RBI this season led by Garcia's 42 ... Amanda Grable reached base safely in 14 consecutive games during one stretch this season ... Logan Moreland had a team-high 11-game hitting streak and has 16 multi-hit games this spring ... NDSU tied several team records vs. Nicholls State (2-22-14) -- total bases in a game (32) and runs scored in an inning (12) ... Nine Bison have scored 10 or more runs this season led by Garcia with 33 ... NDSU has 10 players with at least one home run led by Garcia, Moreland, Grable and Ortega each with five ... With the 11-inning 1-0 win vs. Fort Wayne on April 19, the Bison are 2-0 this season in extra innings and 40-27 under head coach Darren Mueller since 2002 ... North Dakota State is 53-47 in extra innings overall ... Collectively, the Bison are hitting .309 with a 2.81 earned run average and is fielding at .973 ... NDSU opponents are hitting .226 with a 4.90 ERA and fielding at .960 ... The Bison are averaging 5.43 runs scored per game, while opponents are averaging 3.07 ... The big inning has been the third for North Dakota State with 45 runs scored ... The Bison are 19-1 when leading or tied after six innings ... NDSU is 24-6 when scoring three (3) or more runs and 23-5 when scoring first.
Menke, Ortega, Enriquez Take Aim at Career Charts
On the NDSU career charts, junior Krista Menke is 4th in opponent batting avg. (.206); 5th in strikeouts (463) and batters faced (2,206); 6th in strikeouts/7 IP (6.24 avg.), saves (3) and shutouts (20); 7th in wins (55), appearances (98) and innings pitched (519); 8th in games started (78) and complete games (63), and 10th in earned run average (2.36) ... Senior catcher Jenina Ortega is 2nd with 54 base runners thrown out and hit by pitch (13); 6th in putouts (1,032) and fielding chances (1,178); 7th in sacrifice flies (5) and 10th with 17 home runs ... Senior first baseman Brandi Enriquez is 4th in double plays turned (32) ... Junior third baseman Amanda Grable is T6th in home runs (24), T7th in sacrifice flies (5) and T9th with 17 double plays turned ... Sophomore pitcher Tabby Bayers is 8th in strikeouts per 7 IP (5.12 avg).
Bison in The Summit League Statistics
North Dakota State leads The Summit League (league games only) in pitching (1.38 ERA) and fielding pct. (.980), and is second in batting average (.316) ... Junior righthander Krista Menke leads the league in earned average (0.91), wins (9-2), shutouts (4), complete games (9), innings pitched (69.1) and opponent batting average (.108); 2nd in strikeouts (9.09 avg.); 3rd in games started (9), and 4th in appearances (11) ... Junior center fielder Alex Sobrero is 2nd in runs scored (13) 3rd in hits (19) 4th in batting avg. (.432), 7th in total bases (28) and 9th in slugging pct. (636) ... Sophomore designated player Jackie Stifter is 10th in batting avg. (.353) and on-base pct. (.450) ... Sophomore shortstop Logan Moreland is 2nd in runs scored (13), 6th in hits (17), 7th in total bases (28), 9th in batting avg. (.378) and 10th in slugging pct. (.622) ... Sophomore second baseman Cheyenne Garcia is 2nd in RBI (13) and 3rd in doubles (5) ... Senior catcher Jenina Ortega is 7th in runs scored (12).
Menke, Grable Earn Summit League Weekly Honors
North Dakota State junior right-hander Krista Menke has earned Summit League Pitcher of the Week honors five times during the season on Feb. 24, March 3, April 7, April 14 and April 21 ... Menke has earned the honor 10 times in her career ... North Dakota State junior third baseman Amanda Grable was named Summit League co-Player of the Week on March 3 ... It was Grable's second career weekly honor.
Bison First in Preseason 2014 Summit League Poll
North Dakota State was tabbed as the favorite to win the 2014 Summit League Softball Championship in a poll of the league's seven head coaches ... The Bison tallied 33 total points and four first-place votes after winning their second-consecutive regular season title and third in the last six years ... NDSU returned 13 players from last season's team that went 33-16 and 17-1 in league play, including first team all-league honoree Jenina Ortega and second team selections Brandi Enriquez, Amanda Grable and Cheyenne Garcia.
Bison and The RPI
The fifth NCAA RPI (Ratings Percentage Index) was released April 28 ... The Summit League ranks 14th among Division I conferences ... The Bison come in at No. 61 and are one of four league teams in the top 110. Fort Wayne follows on the list at 65 while Omaha (77) and South Dakota (104) round out the list.
Against The Nationally-Ranked
North Dakota State has won four of its last 13 meetings with nationally-ranked opponents, starting with the 9-7 win over Hawai'i at the 2012 NCAA Tucson Regional ... The Bison won at No. 23 Georgia 3-0 and at No. 20 Nebraska 13-0 in 2013 ... NDSU won at No. 22 Stanford on March 7 this season ... With the dramatic 1-0 win in 11 innings over 9th/10th-ranked Oklahoma at the 2009 NCAA Norman Regional, North Dakota State softball recorded its first win over a nationally-ranked team in 16 tries since beginning the transition to Division I in 2005 ... NDSU is currently 5-46 overall ... By year, 2005 -- Lost at #21 Iowa 2-0, Lost at #25 Nebraska 7-0, 8-0, Lost at #20 Missouri 9-1, 8-0; 2006 -- Lost at #10 Oklahoma 9-0, 7-2, Lost at #24 North Carolina 5-1, Lost at #6 Cal 10-1, Lost at #16 Nebraska 8-0; 2007 -- Lost to #25 Oregon 6-1; 2008 -- Lost at #9 Stanford 7-0; 2009 -- Lost at #11 Arizona, 10-0, 9-2, 12-0, Won at #9/10 Oklahoma 1-0 (11), Lost at #9/10 Arizona State, 3-0, 11-0; 2010 -- Lost vs. #6 Arizona 6-0, Lost at #21 Texas A&M 4-0, 5-2, Lost at #1 Washington, 3-0 ; 2011 -- Lost at #1/2 UCLA 7-0, 15-2 (5), Lost at #2/4 Georgia 14-4 (5), Lost at #16/17 Stanford 12-0 (5), Lost vs. #24 Kentucky 5-4 (8), Lost at #2/3 Florida 18-0 (5), Lost at #2/3 Florida (9-0), Lost at #13/17 Missouri 4-3, Lost at #13/17 Missouri 11-2 (5), Lost at #1 Arizona State 10-1 (5); 2012 -- Lost at #2 Alabama 9-4, Lost at #2 Alabama 3-2, Lost at #5 Arizona State 10-2 (5), Lost at #21 Texas A&M 6-0, Lost at #15 Baylor 1-0 (8), Lost at #15 Arizona 11-0 (5), Won vs. #13 Hawai'i 9-7; 2013 — Lost vs. #1 Alabama 10-0 (5), Lost at #10 LSU 9-0 (5), Lost at #23 Georgia 4-1, Won at #23 Georgia 3-0, Lost at #12 UCLA 7-1, Won at #20 Nebraska 13-0, Lost at #20 Nebraska 11-0 (5); 2014 — Lost at #12 Florida State 4-1, Lost at #12 Florida State 9-0 (5), Lost at #12 Florida State 5-0, Won at #22 Stanford 4-0, Lost at #18 Missouri 11-2 (5).
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