Thursday, May 14
Eugene, Ore.
4 p.m.
North Dakota State
vs
Fresno State
Photo by: Bob Nelson
No. 24/25 NDSU Set to Open Against Fresno State at NCAA Eugene Regional on Thursday
5/12/2015 9:36:00 PM | Softball
NCAA Eugene Regional Central | Watch Live | Listen Live | Live Stats
Social Media - @NDSUsoftball | #NDSUBison | #SummitSB | #d1softball
NCAA Softball Championships Interactive Bracket
NDSU Softball Release.pdf (5-12-15)
Summit League champion and No. 24/25-ranked North Dakota State University (43-9) will play Fresno State University (40-14) at 4 p.m. Central on Thursday, May 14, in the opening game of the NCAA Eugene Regional at the University of Oregon's Howe Field ... The No. 2 overall seed and Pac-12 champion Ducks (46-6) will square off with BYU (39-12) at 7 p.m. Central on Thursday ... Oregon was ranked No. 1 in the NFCA/USA Today Top 25 and No. 2 in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll.
NCAA Eugene Regional
University of Oregon's Howe Field
(all times converted to Central)
Thursday, May 13
G1–#24/25 North Dakota State (43-9) vs. Fresno State (40-14), 4 p.m.
G2–(2) #1/#2 Oregon (46-6) vs. BYU (39-12), 7 p.m.
Friday, May 14
G3–G1 Winner G1 vs. G2 Winner, 1 p.m.
G4–G1 Loser G1 vs. G2 Loser, 4 p.m.
G5–Winner G4 vs. G3 Loser, 7 p.m.
Saturday, May 15
G6–G3 Winner vs. G5 Winner, 3 p.m.
G7–G6 Winner vs. G6 Loser (if necessary), 6 p.m.
Oregon Regional winner plays James Madison Regional winner
Ticket Information
A $30 all-session pass for the NCAA Eugene Regional is for sale at GoDucks.com ... Only if the all-session passes do not sell out will single-game tickets be offered.
Bison in the NCAA Tournament
North Dakota State is making its sixth NCAA tournament appearance over the past seven years ... The Bison are 5-10 in five previous appearances ... NDSU won the 2009 NCAA Norman Regional and advanced to the Tempe Super Regional ... The five Bison tournament wins have come against Oklahoma (2009), Tulsa (2 / 2009), Hawai'i (2012) and Auburn (2014) ... NDSU is making it's 13th NCAA appearance overall and have a 29-25 record including the 2000 NCAA Division II national championship ... The softball program is playing in it's third national tournament in the Pacific Northwest ... The Bison played the 2003 NCAA Division II Elite Eight in Salem, Oregon -- placing third, and the 2010 NCAA Seattle Regional in Washington ... Five of six NCAA Division I tournament appearances have sent NDSU to Pac-12 schools -- Arizona (2012), Arizona State (2009 Super Regional, 2011), Oregon (2015) and Washington (2010) ... NDSU has played seven teams this season in the 2015 NCAA tournament field and have compiled a 5-5 record -- Tennessee (0-1), Nebraska (2-0), Minnesota (1-1), South Alabama (1-1), Indiana State (0-1), San Diego State (0-1) and Washington (1-0).
The Series
North Dakota State has played each team competing in the NCAA Eugene Regional at least once ... The Bison lost 6-1 to then No. 25 Oregon at the San Diego State tournament on Feb. 24, 2007 ... NDSU lost a 1-0 decision to Fresno State on Feb. 10, 2012, at the Fresno State Kickoff tourney ... The Bison are 1-2 against BYU. NDSU lost 6-3 in Provo on May 2, 2011, and split at Stanford's Louisville Slugger Classic -- winning 4-0 and losing 6-3 -- in March 2014.
NDSU Wins Sixth Summit League Tournament
North Dakota State won its second straight Summit League Tournament and sixth over past seven seasons on May 8-9 at the Ellig Sports Complex ... NDSU defeated South Dakota State 16-0 on May 8, and edged IUPUI 3-2 and pounded South Dakota 13-3 in five innings in the championship game on May 9 ... The Bison had five players named to the all-tournament team led by MVP pitcher Krista Menke, who earned the top honor for the second time in her career ... Menke compiled a 3-0 record with a 2.33 earned run average, striking out 23 and walking four over 15 innings pitched ... Joining Menke were first baseman Jackie Stifter, second baseman Cheyenne Garcia, shortstop Logan Moreland and catcher Alyssa Reina ... The Bison hit .463 with five doubles, three triples and five home runs, outscoring the opponents 32-5 ... NDSU committed no errors in 57 fielding chances and had a 2.06 earned run average.
Garcia, Menke, NDSU Coaching Staff Earn Summit League Honors, Eight Bison Named to All-League Teams
North Dakota State second baseman Cheyenne Garcia was named Summit League Player of the Year, Krista Menke earned her second Pitcher of the Year award, and NDSU head coaches Darren Mueller and Jamie Trachsel, assistant Brynne Dordel and graduate assistant manager Kendall Grimm were named Coaching Staff of the Year on May 5 ... Joining Garcia and Menke on the all-league first team were center fielder Alex Sobrero, third baseman Amanda Grable and left fielder Maritza Lopez-Portillo ... Named the all-league second team were catcher Alyssa Reina, first baseman Jackie Stifter and shortstop Logan Moreland.
Bison Reach 40 Wins For First Time Since 2004
With the 14-6 win over IUPUI on May 3, North Dakota State softball reached 40 wins for the first time since 2004 (40-11), the program's last year at Division II ... With the 8-4 victory over South Dakota State on April 11, NDSU softball reached 30-plus wins for the ninth straight season ... The 43 wins are the most since the 2003 season ... Bison softball has had nine 40-plus win seasons in program history... Here's a look:
2015--43-9
2004--40-11
2003--43-11
2002--44-10
2001--53-6
2000--68-10
1999--53-12
1998--64-17
1997--45-19
Quickly Around The Horn
North Dakota State was ranked 24th in the ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate and 25th in the USA Today/NFCA Top 25 polls released May 12 ... It is the first regular seaon ranking for NDSU softball ... The Bison finished the 2009 season ranked 18th in the final ESPN.com/USA Softball and 21st in NFCA/USA Today Top 25s ... North Dakota State has won eight of its last 20 meetings with nationally-ranked opponents, last win 5-4 at #21 South Alabama (4-24-15) ... NDSU is 3-3 this season against nationally-ranked opponents and 9-50 overall ... Krista Menke crafted her fourth no-hitter of the season and fifth career no-hitter with the seven-inning 1-0 win over IUPUI (5-2-15) ... Menke recorded her first career perfect game with the five-inning 18-0 win at Fort Wayne (4-11-15) ... She struck out 12 of 15 batters faced ... Menke also notched a no-hitter -- a 3-0 eight inning win over Purdue University (3-7-15) at the Tennessee Classic ... Menke opened the season with a five-inning gem against Green Bay (2-6-15) ... Her other career no-hitter came against Liberty in March 2013 ... North Dakota State has 29 no-hitters, including 12 at 7-plus innings, in the program's history ... NDSU has had nine perfect games ... Menke has 11 shutouts this season and 32 in her career ... Menke also has nine one-hitters and 17 two-hitters in her career ... Menke has reached double-figure strikeouts 22 times this season and 29 times in her career, including a career-high 16 vs. IUPUI (5-2-15), Bowling Green (3-14-15) and Montana (3-1-15) ... With 362 strikeouts this season, Menke broke the NDSU (342, Julie Fromm, 1999) and Summit League single-season (355, Holly Van Vlymen, Western Illinois) ... Junior first baseman Jackie Stifter hit a grand slam in the 14-6 win over IUPUI (5-3-15) ... It was NDSU's second grand slam of the season ... Redshirt sophomore catcher Alyssa Reina hit a grand slam at Fort Wayne (4-11-15) ... Reina has tied the school single-game record twice this season with two home runs against South Dakota State (5-8-15) in the Summit League tournament and again vs. South Dakota State (4-12-15) ... Earlier this season junior second baseman Cheyenne Garcia also tied the record with a pair of homers vs. Iowa (2-7-15) ... That record has been achieved 21 times by 13 athletes including current players Logan Moreland (2), Amanda Grable (2), Reina (2), Maritza Lopez-Portillo (1) and Garcia (1) ... Junior shortstop Logan Moreland is currently leading the team with .436 batting average, one of two players over .400 -- Cheyenne Garcia (.429) ... Garcia has 28 multi-hit games ... Garcia has 16 multi-RBI games ... Grable had a season and career-high 17-game hitting streak ... NDSU has 13 players with one or more RBI this season including Reina with team-high 55 ... Thirteen Bison have scored one or more runs this season led by Garcia's 65 ... The Bison are 2-1 this season and 42-28 in extra innings under head coach Darren Mueller since 2002 ... North Dakota State is 55-48 in extra innings overall ... Collectively, the Bison are hitting .337 with a 2.48 earned run average and are fielding at .972 ... NDSU opponents are hitting .193 with a 6.02 ERA and fielding at .941 ... The Bison are averaging 6.63 runs scored per game, while opponents are averaging 2.73 ... The big inning has been the fifth for North Dakota State with 65 runs scored including an 11-run fifth against South Dakota State (4-11-15).
Menke, Grable, Garcia, Reina Take Aim at Career Charts
On the NDSU career charts, senior pitcher Krista Menke is tied for 1st in saves (7), 2nd in wins (95), appearances (152), game started (127) and batters faced (3,533); 3rd in innings pitched (835.1), complete games (104), and strikeouts (909); 4th in lowest opponent batting average (.197), shutouts (32) and strikeouts per 7 IP (7.62 avg.), and 10th in lowest ERA (2.33) ... Senior third baseman Amanda Grable is 2nd in sacrifice flies (9), 4th in home runs (33) and walks (94); 5th in RBI (155), 8th in double plays turned (21), 9th in fielding assists (320), and 10th in total bases (331) ... Junior second baseman Cheyenne Garcia is 7th in slugging percentage (.582) and home runs (24); 9th in sacrifice flies (5), runs scored (145), and in double plays turned (18), and 10th in RBI (125) and stolen bases (50) ... Junior left fielder Maritza Lopez-Portillo is 4th in hit by pitch (12) and tied for 4th sacrifice flies (8) ... Sophomore catcher Alyssa Reina is 6th in slugging percentage (.602) and fielding percentage (.991), and 8th in putouts (699) ... Junior first baseman Jackie Stifter is tied for 6th in hit by pitch (10) and 9th in sacrifice flies (5) ... Junior shortstop Logan Moreland is 8th in batting average (.363) and 9th in on-base percentage (.427) ... Senior Alex Sobero is tied for 10th in doubles (38).
Bison and the RPI
The eighth NCAA RPI (Ratings Percentage Index) was released May 11 ... The Bison come in at program best No. 36 ... The Summit League ranks 21st among Division I conferences ... IUPUI follows at No. 124, South Dakota is No. 132, Western Illinois at No. 184, Omaha is No. 190, South Dakota State at No. 251, and Fort Wayne is No. 274 ... The highest final NCAA RPI rankings for NDSU softball are No. 41 in 2014, No. 62 in 2013 and No. 65 in 2009.
Bison In NCAA Statistics, Active NCAA Career Leaders
In the NCAA statistics released May 11, North Dakota State University is 5th in stolen bases per game (2.31 avg), 6th in doubles per game (1.77 avg), 11th in won-loss percentage (.827), 20th in batting average (.337), 25th in scoring (6.63 avg.), 28th in earned run average (2.48) and 29th in fielding percentage (.972) ... Individually, Krista Menke is second in the nation with 362 strikeouts and 3rd in shutouts (11), 5th in wins (32), 6th in strikeouts per 7 IP (10.6 avg) and 9th in hits allowed (4.04 avg) ... Second baseman Cheyenne Garcia is 7th in runs per game (1.22 avg.) and 26th in doubles per game (0.35 avg.) ... Shortstop Logan Moreland is 26th in runs per game (1.10 avg.) ... Left fielder Maritza Lopez-Portillo is 23rd in sacrifice flies (5) ... Krista Menke also ranks in the top 25 among active career Division I leaders in eight different categories including six top 10 -- 3rd in complete games, 4th in games started and innings pitched, 5th in shutouts and wins, 7th in strikeouts, 15th in appearances and 19th in strikeouts per 7 IP ... Amanda Grable is 42nd in RBI.
Four Bison Players Earn Summit League Weekly Honors
North Dakota State senior Krista Menke was named The Summit League Pitcher of the Week for the ninth time this season and 19th time in her career on May 4 ... Menke has been also named the College Sports Madness.com Summit Player of the Week for six times ... North Dakota State centerfielder Alex Sobrero was named The Summit League Player of the Week on March 23 ... It was the second weekly honor for Sobrero ... Sobrero was named the College Sports Madness.com Summit League Player of the Week ... NDSU second baseman Cheyenne Garcia and Krista Menke were named The Summit League Player and the Pitcher of the Week on March 2 ... It was the first career weekly honor for Garcia ... NDSU catcher Alyssa Reina was named The Summit League Softball Player of the Week on Feb. 16 ... It was the first career league weekly honor for Reina ... Reina was also College Sports Madness.com's Summit League Player of the Week.
Menke Selected as Senior CLASS Award® Candidate
North Dakota State University pitcher Krista Menke was one of 30 NCAA® softball student-athletes selected as candidates for the 2015 Senior CLASS Award® ... Menke, a 5-foot-11 senior from Friend, Neb., maintains a 3.627 G.P.A. majoring in exercise science ... She is a member of the NDSU Student-Athlete Advisory Council and has been active in NDSU SAAC and softball team community projects ... To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition.
The Mueller/Trachsel File
Head coaches for North Dakota State are Darren Mueller (14th season, 21st overall) and Jamie Trachsel (5th season, 13th overall) ... Mueller has compiled a 501-265 record (.654) including 144-34 (.809) vs. Summit League competition (including tournament) ... Trachsel has compiled a 180-92 record (.662) including a 98-23 (.810) vs. Summit League competition including tournament ... Mueller recorded win No. 500 vs. IUPUI (5-9-15) in the Summit League tournament ... Trachsel earned win No. 150 vs. Northern Iowa (3-16-15) ... The Bison have had nine straight 30-plus win seasons and reached 40 wins for the first time since 2004... North Dakota State has won six Summit League tournament championships (2009-10-11-12, 2014-15) to advance to NCAA regional play ... The Bison won the NCAA Norman Regional in 2009 and advanced to the NCAA Super Regional at Arizona State ... NDSU has won five Summit League regular season crowns (2008, 2012-13-14-15) ... Rounding out the Bison staff are pitching coach Brynne Dordel and graduate assistant manager Kendall Grimm ... Mueller became the program's all-time winningest coach with the 4-1 victory at Western Illinois (4-16-11) ... The NDSU coaching staff earned the 2008, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015 Summit League Coaching Staff of the Year honors ... The NDSU staff earned 2009 National Fastpitch Coaches Association co-Midwest Coaching Staff of the Year award ... Mueller was named the 2006 and 2007 Division I Independent Coach of the Year.
Bison Tabbed for First in The Summit League Preseason Poll For Third Straight Season
For the third year in a row, North Dakota State was selected by the league's head coaches as the front runner for The Summit League softball title ... The Bison received six of seven first-place votes and totaled 36 points overall in the poll ... North Dakota State is the three-time defending regular season champion and have won The Summit League Tournament five of the past six seasons ... NDSU returns eight starting position players and five 2014 all-league selections, headlined by Summit League Tournament MVP pitcher Krista Menke, who led the league in wins (29) ... They also bring back third baseman Amanda Grable, centerfielder Alex Sobrero, second baseman Cheyenne Garcia and designated player/first baseman Jackie Stifter.
Five Bison Named to College Sports Madness.com Preseason All-Summit League Softball Teams
North Dakota State placed five players on the College Sports Madness.com Preseason All-Summit League team led by first team selections, pitcher Krista Menke, third baseman Amanda Grable and centerfielder Alex Sobrero ... Menke was the choice for Pitcher of the Year ... Named to the second team was the NDSU double play combo of second baseman Cheyenne Garcia and shortstop Logan Moreland.
Ex-NDSU Shortstop Rivera Member of Gold Medal USA Women's Baseball Pan Am Qualifier Team
Former North Dakota State University softball shortstop Nicole Rivera was a member of the gold medal winning USA Women's Baseball team that qualified for the Toronto 2015 Pan American Games scheduled for July 10-26 ... Rivera, who started 225 career games for the Bison from 2008-11, was a two-time all-Summit League performer for North Dakota State including first team honors in 2010 ... She was a valuable member of three Summit League tournament championship teams including the 2009 unit that went on to win the NCAA Norman Regional and advance to the NCAA Tempe Super Regional ... Rivera, who is from Lakeside, Calif., finished her NDSU career with a .313 batting average, three home runs and 55 runs batted in ... She ranks third all-time in stolen bases (95) and stolen base attempts (107); fifth in fielding assists (383) and double plays turned (31); eighth in at bats (726) and runs scored (147), and ninth in hits (147).
Bison Softball Signs Five During Early Signing Period
North Dakota State University head softball coaches Darren Mueller and Jamie Trachsel announced third baseman Vanessa Anderson (Rochester, Minn./Byron HS), pitcher Kaitlyn "KK" Leddy (Middleburg, Fla./Fleming Island HS), third/second baseman Julia Luciano (Eagan, Minn./Eastview HS), shortstop/second baseman Zoe Stavrou (Long Beach, Calif./Woodrow Wilson HS) and shortstop Lauren Reimers (Morris, Minn./Morris Area-Chokio-Alberta HS) will attend North Dakota State University and play softball beginning in the fall of 2015 ... "We are very excited and proud of this class. This is a very talented and passionate group, and it is great to have them join our program and become a Bison. I want to thank Jamie (Trachsel) for all the hard work she put into this class," Mueller said.
Against The Nationally-Ranked
North Dakota State has won seven of its last 18 meetings with nationally-ranked opponents, starting with the 5-2 win over Auburn at the 2014 NCAA Minneapolis Regional ... NDSU also won at No. 22 Stanford during the 2014 season ... The Bison won at No. 23 Georgia 3-0 and at No. 20 Nebraska 13-0 in 2013 ... 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 since beginning the transition to Division I in 2005 ... NDSU is currently 9-50 overall ... By year,
2005 (0-5) -- Lost at #21 Iowa 2-0, Lost at #25 Nebraska 7-0, Lost at #25 Nebraska 8-0, Lost at #20 Missouri 9-1, Lost at #20 Missouri 8-0;
2006 (0-5) -- Lost at #10 Oklahoma 9-0, Lost at #10 Oklahoma 7-2, Lost at #24 North Carolina 5-1, Lost at #6 Cal 10-1, Lost at #16 Nebraska 8-0;
2007 (0-1) -- Lost to #25 Oregon 6-1;
2008 (0-1) -- Lost at #9 Stanford 7-0;
2009 (1-5) -- Lost at #11 Arizona 10-0, Lost at #11 Arizona 9-2, Lost at #11 Arizona 12-0, Won at #9/10 Oklahoma 1-0 (11), Lost at #9/10 Arizona State, 3-0, Lost at #9/10 Arizona State 11-0;
2010 (0-4) -- Lost vs. #6 Arizona 6-0, Lost at #21 Texas A&M 4-0, Lost at #21 Texas A&M 5-2, Lost at #1 Washington, 3-0;
2011 (0-10) -- Lost at #1/2 UCLA 7-0, Lost at #1/2 UCLA 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 (1-6) -- 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 (2-5) — 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 (2-6)— 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), Won vs. #21 Auburn 5-2, Lost at #14 Minnesota 4-1, Lost vs. #21 Auburn 1-0;
2015 (3-3) -- Won 6-5 vs. #17 Washington, lost at #11 Tennessee 14-3 (5), #10/12 lost 8-0 (5) at Minnesota, Won 5-4 at #10/12 Minnesota, Won 7-3 at #21 South Alabama, Lost 7-6 (8) at #21 South Alabama.
Social Media - @NDSUsoftball | #NDSUBison | #SummitSB | #d1softball
NCAA Softball Championships Interactive Bracket
NDSU Softball Release.pdf (5-12-15)
Summit League champion and No. 24/25-ranked North Dakota State University (43-9) will play Fresno State University (40-14) at 4 p.m. Central on Thursday, May 14, in the opening game of the NCAA Eugene Regional at the University of Oregon's Howe Field ... The No. 2 overall seed and Pac-12 champion Ducks (46-6) will square off with BYU (39-12) at 7 p.m. Central on Thursday ... Oregon was ranked No. 1 in the NFCA/USA Today Top 25 and No. 2 in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll.
NCAA Eugene Regional
University of Oregon's Howe Field
(all times converted to Central)
Thursday, May 13
G1–#24/25 North Dakota State (43-9) vs. Fresno State (40-14), 4 p.m.
G2–(2) #1/#2 Oregon (46-6) vs. BYU (39-12), 7 p.m.
Friday, May 14
G3–G1 Winner G1 vs. G2 Winner, 1 p.m.
G4–G1 Loser G1 vs. G2 Loser, 4 p.m.
G5–Winner G4 vs. G3 Loser, 7 p.m.
Saturday, May 15
G6–G3 Winner vs. G5 Winner, 3 p.m.
G7–G6 Winner vs. G6 Loser (if necessary), 6 p.m.
Oregon Regional winner plays James Madison Regional winner
Ticket Information
A $30 all-session pass for the NCAA Eugene Regional is for sale at GoDucks.com ... Only if the all-session passes do not sell out will single-game tickets be offered.
Bison in the NCAA Tournament
North Dakota State is making its sixth NCAA tournament appearance over the past seven years ... The Bison are 5-10 in five previous appearances ... NDSU won the 2009 NCAA Norman Regional and advanced to the Tempe Super Regional ... The five Bison tournament wins have come against Oklahoma (2009), Tulsa (2 / 2009), Hawai'i (2012) and Auburn (2014) ... NDSU is making it's 13th NCAA appearance overall and have a 29-25 record including the 2000 NCAA Division II national championship ... The softball program is playing in it's third national tournament in the Pacific Northwest ... The Bison played the 2003 NCAA Division II Elite Eight in Salem, Oregon -- placing third, and the 2010 NCAA Seattle Regional in Washington ... Five of six NCAA Division I tournament appearances have sent NDSU to Pac-12 schools -- Arizona (2012), Arizona State (2009 Super Regional, 2011), Oregon (2015) and Washington (2010) ... NDSU has played seven teams this season in the 2015 NCAA tournament field and have compiled a 5-5 record -- Tennessee (0-1), Nebraska (2-0), Minnesota (1-1), South Alabama (1-1), Indiana State (0-1), San Diego State (0-1) and Washington (1-0).
The Series
North Dakota State has played each team competing in the NCAA Eugene Regional at least once ... The Bison lost 6-1 to then No. 25 Oregon at the San Diego State tournament on Feb. 24, 2007 ... NDSU lost a 1-0 decision to Fresno State on Feb. 10, 2012, at the Fresno State Kickoff tourney ... The Bison are 1-2 against BYU. NDSU lost 6-3 in Provo on May 2, 2011, and split at Stanford's Louisville Slugger Classic -- winning 4-0 and losing 6-3 -- in March 2014.
NDSU Wins Sixth Summit League Tournament
North Dakota State won its second straight Summit League Tournament and sixth over past seven seasons on May 8-9 at the Ellig Sports Complex ... NDSU defeated South Dakota State 16-0 on May 8, and edged IUPUI 3-2 and pounded South Dakota 13-3 in five innings in the championship game on May 9 ... The Bison had five players named to the all-tournament team led by MVP pitcher Krista Menke, who earned the top honor for the second time in her career ... Menke compiled a 3-0 record with a 2.33 earned run average, striking out 23 and walking four over 15 innings pitched ... Joining Menke were first baseman Jackie Stifter, second baseman Cheyenne Garcia, shortstop Logan Moreland and catcher Alyssa Reina ... The Bison hit .463 with five doubles, three triples and five home runs, outscoring the opponents 32-5 ... NDSU committed no errors in 57 fielding chances and had a 2.06 earned run average.
Garcia, Menke, NDSU Coaching Staff Earn Summit League Honors, Eight Bison Named to All-League Teams
North Dakota State second baseman Cheyenne Garcia was named Summit League Player of the Year, Krista Menke earned her second Pitcher of the Year award, and NDSU head coaches Darren Mueller and Jamie Trachsel, assistant Brynne Dordel and graduate assistant manager Kendall Grimm were named Coaching Staff of the Year on May 5 ... Joining Garcia and Menke on the all-league first team were center fielder Alex Sobrero, third baseman Amanda Grable and left fielder Maritza Lopez-Portillo ... Named the all-league second team were catcher Alyssa Reina, first baseman Jackie Stifter and shortstop Logan Moreland.
Bison Reach 40 Wins For First Time Since 2004
With the 14-6 win over IUPUI on May 3, North Dakota State softball reached 40 wins for the first time since 2004 (40-11), the program's last year at Division II ... With the 8-4 victory over South Dakota State on April 11, NDSU softball reached 30-plus wins for the ninth straight season ... The 43 wins are the most since the 2003 season ... Bison softball has had nine 40-plus win seasons in program history... Here's a look:
2015--43-9
2004--40-11
2003--43-11
2002--44-10
2001--53-6
2000--68-10
1999--53-12
1998--64-17
1997--45-19
Quickly Around The Horn
North Dakota State was ranked 24th in the ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate and 25th in the USA Today/NFCA Top 25 polls released May 12 ... It is the first regular seaon ranking for NDSU softball ... The Bison finished the 2009 season ranked 18th in the final ESPN.com/USA Softball and 21st in NFCA/USA Today Top 25s ... North Dakota State has won eight of its last 20 meetings with nationally-ranked opponents, last win 5-4 at #21 South Alabama (4-24-15) ... NDSU is 3-3 this season against nationally-ranked opponents and 9-50 overall ... Krista Menke crafted her fourth no-hitter of the season and fifth career no-hitter with the seven-inning 1-0 win over IUPUI (5-2-15) ... Menke recorded her first career perfect game with the five-inning 18-0 win at Fort Wayne (4-11-15) ... She struck out 12 of 15 batters faced ... Menke also notched a no-hitter -- a 3-0 eight inning win over Purdue University (3-7-15) at the Tennessee Classic ... Menke opened the season with a five-inning gem against Green Bay (2-6-15) ... Her other career no-hitter came against Liberty in March 2013 ... North Dakota State has 29 no-hitters, including 12 at 7-plus innings, in the program's history ... NDSU has had nine perfect games ... Menke has 11 shutouts this season and 32 in her career ... Menke also has nine one-hitters and 17 two-hitters in her career ... Menke has reached double-figure strikeouts 22 times this season and 29 times in her career, including a career-high 16 vs. IUPUI (5-2-15), Bowling Green (3-14-15) and Montana (3-1-15) ... With 362 strikeouts this season, Menke broke the NDSU (342, Julie Fromm, 1999) and Summit League single-season (355, Holly Van Vlymen, Western Illinois) ... Junior first baseman Jackie Stifter hit a grand slam in the 14-6 win over IUPUI (5-3-15) ... It was NDSU's second grand slam of the season ... Redshirt sophomore catcher Alyssa Reina hit a grand slam at Fort Wayne (4-11-15) ... Reina has tied the school single-game record twice this season with two home runs against South Dakota State (5-8-15) in the Summit League tournament and again vs. South Dakota State (4-12-15) ... Earlier this season junior second baseman Cheyenne Garcia also tied the record with a pair of homers vs. Iowa (2-7-15) ... That record has been achieved 21 times by 13 athletes including current players Logan Moreland (2), Amanda Grable (2), Reina (2), Maritza Lopez-Portillo (1) and Garcia (1) ... Junior shortstop Logan Moreland is currently leading the team with .436 batting average, one of two players over .400 -- Cheyenne Garcia (.429) ... Garcia has 28 multi-hit games ... Garcia has 16 multi-RBI games ... Grable had a season and career-high 17-game hitting streak ... NDSU has 13 players with one or more RBI this season including Reina with team-high 55 ... Thirteen Bison have scored one or more runs this season led by Garcia's 65 ... The Bison are 2-1 this season and 42-28 in extra innings under head coach Darren Mueller since 2002 ... North Dakota State is 55-48 in extra innings overall ... Collectively, the Bison are hitting .337 with a 2.48 earned run average and are fielding at .972 ... NDSU opponents are hitting .193 with a 6.02 ERA and fielding at .941 ... The Bison are averaging 6.63 runs scored per game, while opponents are averaging 2.73 ... The big inning has been the fifth for North Dakota State with 65 runs scored including an 11-run fifth against South Dakota State (4-11-15).
Menke, Grable, Garcia, Reina Take Aim at Career Charts
On the NDSU career charts, senior pitcher Krista Menke is tied for 1st in saves (7), 2nd in wins (95), appearances (152), game started (127) and batters faced (3,533); 3rd in innings pitched (835.1), complete games (104), and strikeouts (909); 4th in lowest opponent batting average (.197), shutouts (32) and strikeouts per 7 IP (7.62 avg.), and 10th in lowest ERA (2.33) ... Senior third baseman Amanda Grable is 2nd in sacrifice flies (9), 4th in home runs (33) and walks (94); 5th in RBI (155), 8th in double plays turned (21), 9th in fielding assists (320), and 10th in total bases (331) ... Junior second baseman Cheyenne Garcia is 7th in slugging percentage (.582) and home runs (24); 9th in sacrifice flies (5), runs scored (145), and in double plays turned (18), and 10th in RBI (125) and stolen bases (50) ... Junior left fielder Maritza Lopez-Portillo is 4th in hit by pitch (12) and tied for 4th sacrifice flies (8) ... Sophomore catcher Alyssa Reina is 6th in slugging percentage (.602) and fielding percentage (.991), and 8th in putouts (699) ... Junior first baseman Jackie Stifter is tied for 6th in hit by pitch (10) and 9th in sacrifice flies (5) ... Junior shortstop Logan Moreland is 8th in batting average (.363) and 9th in on-base percentage (.427) ... Senior Alex Sobero is tied for 10th in doubles (38).
Bison and the RPI
The eighth NCAA RPI (Ratings Percentage Index) was released May 11 ... The Bison come in at program best No. 36 ... The Summit League ranks 21st among Division I conferences ... IUPUI follows at No. 124, South Dakota is No. 132, Western Illinois at No. 184, Omaha is No. 190, South Dakota State at No. 251, and Fort Wayne is No. 274 ... The highest final NCAA RPI rankings for NDSU softball are No. 41 in 2014, No. 62 in 2013 and No. 65 in 2009.
Bison In NCAA Statistics, Active NCAA Career Leaders
In the NCAA statistics released May 11, North Dakota State University is 5th in stolen bases per game (2.31 avg), 6th in doubles per game (1.77 avg), 11th in won-loss percentage (.827), 20th in batting average (.337), 25th in scoring (6.63 avg.), 28th in earned run average (2.48) and 29th in fielding percentage (.972) ... Individually, Krista Menke is second in the nation with 362 strikeouts and 3rd in shutouts (11), 5th in wins (32), 6th in strikeouts per 7 IP (10.6 avg) and 9th in hits allowed (4.04 avg) ... Second baseman Cheyenne Garcia is 7th in runs per game (1.22 avg.) and 26th in doubles per game (0.35 avg.) ... Shortstop Logan Moreland is 26th in runs per game (1.10 avg.) ... Left fielder Maritza Lopez-Portillo is 23rd in sacrifice flies (5) ... Krista Menke also ranks in the top 25 among active career Division I leaders in eight different categories including six top 10 -- 3rd in complete games, 4th in games started and innings pitched, 5th in shutouts and wins, 7th in strikeouts, 15th in appearances and 19th in strikeouts per 7 IP ... Amanda Grable is 42nd in RBI.
Four Bison Players Earn Summit League Weekly Honors
North Dakota State senior Krista Menke was named The Summit League Pitcher of the Week for the ninth time this season and 19th time in her career on May 4 ... Menke has been also named the College Sports Madness.com Summit Player of the Week for six times ... North Dakota State centerfielder Alex Sobrero was named The Summit League Player of the Week on March 23 ... It was the second weekly honor for Sobrero ... Sobrero was named the College Sports Madness.com Summit League Player of the Week ... NDSU second baseman Cheyenne Garcia and Krista Menke were named The Summit League Player and the Pitcher of the Week on March 2 ... It was the first career weekly honor for Garcia ... NDSU catcher Alyssa Reina was named The Summit League Softball Player of the Week on Feb. 16 ... It was the first career league weekly honor for Reina ... Reina was also College Sports Madness.com's Summit League Player of the Week.
Menke Selected as Senior CLASS Award® Candidate
North Dakota State University pitcher Krista Menke was one of 30 NCAA® softball student-athletes selected as candidates for the 2015 Senior CLASS Award® ... Menke, a 5-foot-11 senior from Friend, Neb., maintains a 3.627 G.P.A. majoring in exercise science ... She is a member of the NDSU Student-Athlete Advisory Council and has been active in NDSU SAAC and softball team community projects ... To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition.
The Mueller/Trachsel File
Head coaches for North Dakota State are Darren Mueller (14th season, 21st overall) and Jamie Trachsel (5th season, 13th overall) ... Mueller has compiled a 501-265 record (.654) including 144-34 (.809) vs. Summit League competition (including tournament) ... Trachsel has compiled a 180-92 record (.662) including a 98-23 (.810) vs. Summit League competition including tournament ... Mueller recorded win No. 500 vs. IUPUI (5-9-15) in the Summit League tournament ... Trachsel earned win No. 150 vs. Northern Iowa (3-16-15) ... The Bison have had nine straight 30-plus win seasons and reached 40 wins for the first time since 2004... North Dakota State has won six Summit League tournament championships (2009-10-11-12, 2014-15) to advance to NCAA regional play ... The Bison won the NCAA Norman Regional in 2009 and advanced to the NCAA Super Regional at Arizona State ... NDSU has won five Summit League regular season crowns (2008, 2012-13-14-15) ... Rounding out the Bison staff are pitching coach Brynne Dordel and graduate assistant manager Kendall Grimm ... Mueller became the program's all-time winningest coach with the 4-1 victory at Western Illinois (4-16-11) ... The NDSU coaching staff earned the 2008, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015 Summit League Coaching Staff of the Year honors ... The NDSU staff earned 2009 National Fastpitch Coaches Association co-Midwest Coaching Staff of the Year award ... Mueller was named the 2006 and 2007 Division I Independent Coach of the Year.
Bison Tabbed for First in The Summit League Preseason Poll For Third Straight Season
For the third year in a row, North Dakota State was selected by the league's head coaches as the front runner for The Summit League softball title ... The Bison received six of seven first-place votes and totaled 36 points overall in the poll ... North Dakota State is the three-time defending regular season champion and have won The Summit League Tournament five of the past six seasons ... NDSU returns eight starting position players and five 2014 all-league selections, headlined by Summit League Tournament MVP pitcher Krista Menke, who led the league in wins (29) ... They also bring back third baseman Amanda Grable, centerfielder Alex Sobrero, second baseman Cheyenne Garcia and designated player/first baseman Jackie Stifter.
Five Bison Named to College Sports Madness.com Preseason All-Summit League Softball Teams
North Dakota State placed five players on the College Sports Madness.com Preseason All-Summit League team led by first team selections, pitcher Krista Menke, third baseman Amanda Grable and centerfielder Alex Sobrero ... Menke was the choice for Pitcher of the Year ... Named to the second team was the NDSU double play combo of second baseman Cheyenne Garcia and shortstop Logan Moreland.
Ex-NDSU Shortstop Rivera Member of Gold Medal USA Women's Baseball Pan Am Qualifier Team
Former North Dakota State University softball shortstop Nicole Rivera was a member of the gold medal winning USA Women's Baseball team that qualified for the Toronto 2015 Pan American Games scheduled for July 10-26 ... Rivera, who started 225 career games for the Bison from 2008-11, was a two-time all-Summit League performer for North Dakota State including first team honors in 2010 ... She was a valuable member of three Summit League tournament championship teams including the 2009 unit that went on to win the NCAA Norman Regional and advance to the NCAA Tempe Super Regional ... Rivera, who is from Lakeside, Calif., finished her NDSU career with a .313 batting average, three home runs and 55 runs batted in ... She ranks third all-time in stolen bases (95) and stolen base attempts (107); fifth in fielding assists (383) and double plays turned (31); eighth in at bats (726) and runs scored (147), and ninth in hits (147).
Bison Softball Signs Five During Early Signing Period
North Dakota State University head softball coaches Darren Mueller and Jamie Trachsel announced third baseman Vanessa Anderson (Rochester, Minn./Byron HS), pitcher Kaitlyn "KK" Leddy (Middleburg, Fla./Fleming Island HS), third/second baseman Julia Luciano (Eagan, Minn./Eastview HS), shortstop/second baseman Zoe Stavrou (Long Beach, Calif./Woodrow Wilson HS) and shortstop Lauren Reimers (Morris, Minn./Morris Area-Chokio-Alberta HS) will attend North Dakota State University and play softball beginning in the fall of 2015 ... "We are very excited and proud of this class. This is a very talented and passionate group, and it is great to have them join our program and become a Bison. I want to thank Jamie (Trachsel) for all the hard work she put into this class," Mueller said.
Against The Nationally-Ranked
North Dakota State has won seven of its last 18 meetings with nationally-ranked opponents, starting with the 5-2 win over Auburn at the 2014 NCAA Minneapolis Regional ... NDSU also won at No. 22 Stanford during the 2014 season ... The Bison won at No. 23 Georgia 3-0 and at No. 20 Nebraska 13-0 in 2013 ... 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 since beginning the transition to Division I in 2005 ... NDSU is currently 9-50 overall ... By year,
2005 (0-5) -- Lost at #21 Iowa 2-0, Lost at #25 Nebraska 7-0, Lost at #25 Nebraska 8-0, Lost at #20 Missouri 9-1, Lost at #20 Missouri 8-0;
2006 (0-5) -- Lost at #10 Oklahoma 9-0, Lost at #10 Oklahoma 7-2, Lost at #24 North Carolina 5-1, Lost at #6 Cal 10-1, Lost at #16 Nebraska 8-0;
2007 (0-1) -- Lost to #25 Oregon 6-1;
2008 (0-1) -- Lost at #9 Stanford 7-0;
2009 (1-5) -- Lost at #11 Arizona 10-0, Lost at #11 Arizona 9-2, Lost at #11 Arizona 12-0, Won at #9/10 Oklahoma 1-0 (11), Lost at #9/10 Arizona State, 3-0, Lost at #9/10 Arizona State 11-0;
2010 (0-4) -- Lost vs. #6 Arizona 6-0, Lost at #21 Texas A&M 4-0, Lost at #21 Texas A&M 5-2, Lost at #1 Washington, 3-0;
2011 (0-10) -- Lost at #1/2 UCLA 7-0, Lost at #1/2 UCLA 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 (1-6) -- 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 (2-5) — 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 (2-6)— 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), Won vs. #21 Auburn 5-2, Lost at #14 Minnesota 4-1, Lost vs. #21 Auburn 1-0;
2015 (3-3) -- Won 6-5 vs. #17 Washington, lost at #11 Tennessee 14-3 (5), #10/12 lost 8-0 (5) at Minnesota, Won 5-4 at #10/12 Minnesota, Won 7-3 at #21 South Alabama, Lost 7-6 (8) at #21 South Alabama.
Players Mentioned
INF
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
RHP
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
C
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
INF
/ SoftballWednesday, November 12
Saturday, April 26
Monday, April 14
Saturday, April 12
