NDSU Opens Home Slate with Altered Schedule Against Western Illinois

Friday, April 9

Fargo, N.D.

5 p.m.

North Dakota State Athletics

Western Illinois

NDSU Opens Home Slate with Altered Schedule Against Western Illinois

4/8/2021 1:13:00 PM | Baseball

NDSU Notes - Western Illinois Live Streams

Scene Setter
After 693 days, the North Dakota State baseball team is set to return to Newman Outdoor Field for a four-game Summit League series against Western Illinois. With weather conditions dicey for the weekend, the schedule has been altered for the first two days. The two teams will play the series opener at 5 p.m. on Friday, April 9. First pitch of a doubleheader on Saturday is scheduled for 2 p.m., with a nine inning game being followed by a seven inning game at approximately 5:30 p.m. The series finale set for a 1 p.m. first pitch on Sunday.

Media Coverage
Live video for all four games will be available at GoBison.com/allaccess, while live stats for all four games can be found at BisonStats.com. Bison 1660 will have the radio call for the second game of the doubleheader on Friday, as well as the series finale on Sunday. The broadcast on Sunday will be joined in progress following the NDSU softball game against South Dakota, which airs at 11 a.m.

Tickets & Parking
All seating is general admission and tickets may be purchased at the gate on game day. Tickets are $8 for adults and $5 for youth ages 3-17. Parking is available in NDSU parking lots HR and R to the south and east of the stadium on 15th Avenue. Parking is free of charge after 4:30 p.m. weekdays and all day Saturday, Sunday and holidays. Attendees are strongly encouraged to wear masks.

Series History
NDSU leads the all-time series 40-38. The series started in 2005, as the Leathernecks won the first nine meetings between the two schools. NDSU is 7-3 in the last 10 meetings, while scoring an average of 5.53 runs over the 78 meetings. NDSU is 17-7 all-time against the Leathernecks in Fargo. The Bison opened the Summit League season at Western Illinois, taking three of the four games in Macomb.

Scouting the Leathernecks
Western Illinois is 9-16 overall and 5-7 in the Summit League, sitting in fourth in the league standings through three weekends of league play. The Leathernecks are 4-9 on the road this season, with this weekend being the first time the Leathernecks have been on the road since beating Southern Illinois Edwardsville on March 16. Trenton Bauer leads Western Illinois with a .337 batting average in 95 at-bats. Bauer also has a team-best 20 RBI, 32 hits and seven doubles. Kevin Raisbeck is also over .300 with a .319 batting average with a .413 on-base percentage. Raisbeck is 9-for-9 in stolen base attempts this year. Jace Warkentien leads the Leatherneck pitching staff with a 4.50 ERA in six starts. Warkentien is 0-2 on the year with 20 strikeouts and 22 walks in 32 innings. Jack Carberry has a team-best 10 appearances, with all coming in relief. Carberry is 1-3 on the year with a 6.41 ERA in 19.2 innings. Austin Edwards has three saves in eight appearances with an 8.22 ERA and 1-2 record in 7.2 innings.

Road Warriors
In 2019, NDSU was the last NCAA Division I baseball team to play a home game. The Bison played 26-straight games away from Newman Outdoor Field to start the season in 2019. In 2020, the Bison were scheduled to play the first 27 games away from home before the season was cut short due to Covid-19. This season, the Bison played 26-straight road games entering this weekend. With 26 road games to start the year, the Bison played the most games on the road before having a home game of any team in the country. NDSU has the most road wins in the nation at 18, with no one else having more than 14. There are six teams in the nation that haven't played a home game yet this year, with three of them scheduled to play at home on Friday.

Get on and Steal it
Senior Bennett Hostetler ranks 11th in the nation with a .559 on-base percentage. He also ranks 10th in stolen bases with 14 and 26th in the country with .54 stolen bases per game. He is the only player in the country to have an on-base percentage over .517 with double digit stolen bases.

Turnin' Two
The Bison have turned 21 double plays in 26 games this season, ranking 26th in the country in double plays. The .81 double plays per game ranks 48th in the nation.

Best Batting Average in Summit League
North Dakota State has a .275 batting average as a team, ranking 91st in the nation. It is also the best in the Summit League. Senior Bennett Hostetler has the top average in the league at .409, while also ranking 40th in the country.

Leave The Guy Alone
Senior Bennett Hostetler has been hit by a pitch 12 times this season, ranking fourth in the country. He ranks 14th among active NCAA Division I players with 42 career hit by pitches.

Three Bags at Once
With three triples this season, senior Jake Malec leads the Summit League and ranks seventh in the nation.

Making the Sacrifice
Bennett Hostetler has 12 career sacrifice flies, tied for the most in school history and the 19th most among active NCAA Division I players. Calen Schwabe ranks sixth in the nation with six sacrifices this year and 26th with .23 sacrifices per game.

Get On and Drive Them In
Leadoff hitter Jake Malec ranks 61st in the nation in runs scored with 27, while Bennett Hostetler, in the three hole, ranks 101st in the nation with 25 runs batted in. Malec leads the Summit League in runs, while Hostetler is second in runs batted in. Peter Brookshaw, hitting in the two spot, ranks 126th in the nation in RBI with 24.

Summit League Honors
Through seven weeks of play, North Dakota State has earned four of the seven Summit League Player of the Week awards. Senior Bennett Hostetler has earned the honor three times, while fellow senior Jake Malec earned the honor once.

Strikeout Sankey
Evan Sankey ranks 62nd in the nation in strikeout-to-walk ratio at 6.43, while also ranking 107th in strikeouts per nine innings at 11.68. He ranks 90th in the nation with 45 strikeouts, while ranking 55th in WHIP at .92 and 125th in walks allowed per nine innings at 1.82. His 1.82 ERA ranks 48th in the country.

Harm Not Allowing Hits
Senior Parker Harm has allowed just 6.51 hits per nine innings over the course of his career. That ranks 41st overall among active players at all NCAA levels and the 21st best among NCAA Division I players. Harm also ranks 22nd among NCAA Division I active players and 29th overall among all NCAA levels with 88 career walks allowed.

Summit League Preseason Poll
The North Dakota State baseball team has been picked to finish third in the Summit League preseason poll. Omaha was picked first in the poll with 15 points, holding a one point edge over Oral Roberts. The Mavericks received three first place votes, while the Golden Eagles earned the remaining two. NDSU was third in the poll with 10 points, while South Dakota State (seven points) and Western Illinois (four points) rounded out the poll. North Dakota State finished the 2020 season with an 8-9 record that was shortened due to Covid-19. Omaha won the 2019 Summit League regular season and tournament titles. Senior shortstop Bennett Hostetler and senior pitcher Parker Harm were named to the Summit League Players to Watch list. Hostetler started all 17 games last year at shortstop. He finished with a .216 average and led the team with two home runs. Harm made five appearances out of the bullpen, finishing with a 1-0 record and a 3.00 ERA in nine innings of work. He struck out 11, while walking just four.

Bison Earn ABCA Team Academic Excellence Award:
The North Dakota State University baseball team earned the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) Team Academic Excellence Award for the third-straight season last year. NDSU was the only Summit League school to earn the honor. The ABCA Team Academic Excellence Award honors high school and college programs coached by ABCA members that post a GPA over 3.0 on a 4.0 scale for the current academic year. The Bison had a 3.522 cumulative GPA for the 2019-20 school year, including a record 3.61 GPA in the spring semester.

Brown Joins 300 Club
North Dakota State Head Coach Tod Brown earned his 300th career win on Feb. 22 during the first game of the doubleheader at Western Kentucky. Brown is the third coach in Summit League history to earn 300 career wins. Brown joins Mitch McLeod as the only Bison coaches with over 300 wins, as McLeod has a school record 347. Brown ranks third in Summit League history with 317 wins. Brown is one of three coaches in Summit League history to have coached 300 or more league games. Last year, he became the third coach in Summit League history to coach in 600 or more games, joining Valparaiso's Paul Twenge and Illinois-Chicago's Dean Refakes.

Opening Day Streak Snapped
With a 10-4 loss in the season opener at Western Kentucky, the Bison had a streak of five-straight wins in season openers snapped. Last season, the Bison beat Hawaii 3-1 to start the 2020 campaign. In 2019, the Bison beat Sacramento State 9-1. NDSU beat Incarnate Word 8-2 in 2018, Mississippi Valley State 10-4 in 2017 and Arkansas-Pine Bluff 2-0 in 2016.

Up Next:
The Bison will be at home again next weekend, facing Oral Roberts in a four-game series. First pitch for Friday is set for 3 p.m. and is a doubleheader. The two teams will face each other again Saturday and Sunday, with first pitch set for 2 p.m. on Saturday and 1 p.m. on Sunday.