FARGO, N.D. - North Dakota State (14-12) will finish out the non-conference schedule this weekend with a trip to College Park, Maryland for the Capital City Classic. The Bison will take on Binghamton (7-8) and host Maryland (10-11) on Friday at Maryland Softball Stadium. North Dakota State will then take on Army (5-15) and Monmouth (3-15) on Saturday before a seeded final game on Sunday morning to close out the week.
 
TICKETS AND PARKING: Seating for all games of the Capital City Classic is open to the public and free admission at Maryland Softball Stadium. Parking is also available free of charge and is available at the stadium.
 
COVERAGE: Every game at the Capital City Classic will have live coverage on the Big 10 Network, being streamed through BTN+. All games will also include live statistics. Links to the stream and stats will be available on the softball schedule page on gobison.com.
 
THE SERIES (BING): On March 18, North Dakota State and Binghamton will meet for the second time in program history. In a case of Deja Vu, the two teams will meet in the same stadium on the same day, just six years apart. North Dakota State picked up an 8-4 win over the Bearcats on March 18, 2016 in the first game of the Maryland Invitational for NDSU
 
THE SERIES (MD): Deja Vu, Part II. North Dakota State and the University of Maryland will also meet for just the second time on the softball diamond on Friday. Like the series with Binghamton, it will fall exactly six years after the first ever meeting in 2016, which also took place in College Park. In the meeting, the Bison picked up a 10-1 win in six innings over the Terrapins.
 
THE SERIES (USMA): North Dakota State and the United State Military Academy at West Point will meet for the first time on the softball diamond. It will be the first-ever head-to-head meeting for the Bison against Army West Point in a women's sport. Football lost to the Black Knights in West Point in 1932. Baseball has a 1-2 record against Army West Point with the games coming between 2013 and 2016.
 
THE SERIES (MON): North Dakota State and Monmouth will meet for the fourth time in series history on Saturday, and the first time in four years and a day. The Bison hold a 3-0 record against the Hawks, with the last meeting coming in a 5-2 win at the LMU Tournament in Los Angeles, Calif. on March 18, 2018. The Bison also had a 1-0 win against Monmouth two days earlier in the LMU Tournament and an 8-1 win over the Hawks in the first-ever meeting on March 11, 2012 at the Aggie Classic in College Station, Texas.
 
CRAB CAKES AND SOFTBALL: NDSU will return to the state of Maryland for the second time in program history, six years after the first visit, which saw the Bison go undefeated. NDSU played in the Maryland Invitational in 2016, defeating Binghamton, Maryland and Massachusetts before rain washed out the rest of the Maryland Invitational. Overall, the Bison are 3-0 all-time in the Crab Cake Capital of the World.
 
EXTRA BASES: Entering the week, the Bison are tied for 22nd in the NCAA in total extra-base hits (71) on the season. NDSU's 2.840 extra-base hits per game ranks 33rd in the NCAA. Both numbers lead the Summit League with SDSU's 46 and 2.421 the next closest. On the season, the Bison have 54 doubles, four triples and 13 home runs. The 71 extra-base hits in 25 games played is quickly approaching last season's total of 82 in 45 games.
 
GIVE ME TWO: NDSU ranks first in the NCAA in doubles and doubles per game entering the week. The Bison have 54 doubles on the year in 25 games, seven more than Boise State, who have 47 in 25 games as well. NDSU's 2.16 doubles per game ranks first, with Canisius (2.15) the next closest with 28 in 13 games. Individually, Avery Wysong has 11 doubles on the season, which is third in the nation and just two behind the national lead. Cameryn Maykut is 16th in the national rankings, sitting on nine doubles. Both players, along with Molly Gates, rank in the top 70 in the NCAA in doubles per game, with Wysong's .5 per game ranking fifth overall.
 
OTHER NOTABLE NCAA AND SUMMIT LEAGUE RANKINGS: Aside from leading the NCAA in doubles and doubles per game, NDSU also ranks 25th in the NCAA and first in the Summit League in scoring, averaging 6.28 runs per game. The Bison are also 28th in the NCAA and first in the Summit in walks (84) and 71st and first in on base percentage (.377). Bison pitchers also rank tops in the Summit and 74th in the NCAA in Strikeout-to-Walk ratio at 2.48.
 
Individually, Avery Wysong leads the Summit and ranks third and fifth nationally in doubles (11) and doubles per game (.50). Cameryn Maykut ranks 9th in the NCAA in RBIs (29) and 31st in RBIs per game (1.16), both of which sit atop the league. Dez Cardenas leads the Summit and ranks 56th in the nation in hits with 56 on the campaign. Molly Gates leads the league and ranks 57th overall, averaging 1.00 runs per game. In the circle, Paige Vargas ranks 43rd in the NCAA in strikeouts with 78 on the season.
 
VARGAS, SCHULZ PICK UP RECENT SHUTOUTS: Paige Vargas and Mac Schultz each contributed to shutouts in Georgia, while Schulz also added a shutout in Oregon and Vargas grabbed a shutout at Virginia. Vargas tossed a five-inning shutout against UT Martin before Schulz went 5.2 innings and Vargas recorded the final four outs in the finale at Georgia Southern. It's the first combined shutout since 2019. Schulz then tossed a five-inning shutout in a win over Portland State in Oregon. In the game against Viginia, Vargas tossed the fourth shutout of the season for NDSU. The Bison had just three shutouts in all of 2021.
 
VICTORY MILESTONES: North Dakota State is approaching several milestone victories in the 2022 season. The Bison are two wins from the program's 1200th victory. The Bison are averaging over 34 wins a year in the Division I era, which could also see Bison head coach Darren Mueller approach the 700-win milestone. He entered 2022 at 670 and currently sits at 684. The Bison are also just seven wins in Summit League play away from 200. NDSU began league play in 2008, and are averaging nearly 15 league wins in the 13 seasons when league play was competed.
 
BURINGA GOES YARD: Center fielder Emilee Buringa had a dominant day at the plate on Sunday against Portland State. The sophomore had three walks and two runs scored in her first three trips to the plate before hitting a two-run homer run to center that gave the Bison the needed margin for a run-rule victory over the Vikings. Her fourth homer of the season temporarily joined Reanna Rudd atop the team lead and also sits fourth in the Summit League. Buringa had just one extra base hit as a freshman and already has three doubles and a triple as well this season. Her .547 slugging percentage leads the Bison and is .177 points higher than 2021.
 
PADGETT HITS HOMECOMING HOME RUN: Junior infielder Skylar Padgett hit a home run against No. 11/14 Oregon on Saturday as the Grants Pass, Oregon native played her first collegiate games in her home state. Padgett hit a solo shot to left, her first home run of the season, against the Ducks. It was the third home run of her career and first homer in nearly a year with her last coming on March 19, 2021 against South Dakota.
 
LYLE MAKES FIRST START: After missing much of the season to date, Lainey Lyle made her first starts of the season this weekend in Oregon. Lyle led the Bison in era last season at 3.18. Her 2.23 strikeouts per walk and .235 batting average against were also a team best in 2021.
 
FANTASTIC FEBRUARY: The Bison had one of the best months of February in the program's 18th seasons in Division I, flipping the script from the 2021 campaign. NDSU was 10-4 this February after going 4-10 the season prior. The .714 win percentage was the fourth best in the D1 era, behind only the 2008 (.800), 2015 (.786) and 2007 (.750) seasons. It is NDSU's best February in the last seven seasons.
 
RUDD MATCHES SINGLE GAME HR RECORD: Reanna Rudd hit her second and third home runs of the season against Buffalo in New Mexico in back-to-back plate appearances. Rudd became the 18th different Bison to hit two homers in a game. It has been done 30 times overall by a Bison, including 21 times in the Division 1 era.
 
LIFE ON THE ROAD: The Bison are in the midst of playing the first eight weekends on the road or at neutral sites to begin the 2022 season, including the first two conference series. North Dakota State is slated to play 37 games (originally scheduled to play 38) away from home before opening up the home schedule on April 9 with a Summit League doubleheader against Kansas City.
 
During the non-conference portion of the schedule, the Bison are slated to fly over 15,000 miles between the six weekend invitationals, playing in the pacific time zone three times, eastern time zone twice and mountain time zone once.
 
GATES HIT TOP 5 WITH 14-GAME HIT STREAK: Gates recorded a 14-game hit streak to begin the season, which tied for the fifth longest hitting streak in NDSU's Division 1 era and the longest streak for an NDSU player to begin the season. The 14-game streak by the sophomore also tied the longest by a non-senior Bison, matching a 14-game streak by Logan Moreland as a junior in 2015.
 
LICEA REACHES BASE 10-STRAIGHT PLATE APPEARANCES: Senior infielder Nicole Licea hit a new milestone in Albuquerque, as the Corona, California native reached base safely in 10-straight plate appearances over three games. Licea had five hits, four walks and a hit by pitch during the span. She also drove in two runs and scored four more as a result of reaching safely in 10-straight at bats.
 
BURINGA SNAGS FIRST SUMMIT LEAGUE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Emilee Buringa was named the Summit League Softball Player of the Week on February 21. Buringa hit .636 (7-for-11), with a home run, a double, seven RBIs, and five runs scored. Buringa is the only Bison to earn Summit League softball honors this season and the first Bison to earn player of the week honors since Maddie Hansen won on April 8, 2019.
 
GOING GOING GONE: In the NDSU's win against Utah State to close out the opening weekend, the Bison hit three home runs, the most in a game since April 27, 2019 when NDSU had three against Omaha. The first was a grand slam from senior Cameryn Maykut in the second inning. Then in the sixth, Reanna Rudd and Emilee Buringa each hit their first collegiate home run.
 
BISON PICKED RUNNERS UP IN SUMMIT: North Dakota State was picked to finish in a tie as the runners up in The Summit League in 2022 in a preseason poll of the league's eight head coaches. The Bison have won two of the last three regular season crowns and six of the last seven league tournament titles. NDSU had one first-place vote and finished tied for second on 38 points with Kansas City. South Dakota State was a unanimous first-place selection. Omaha, South Dakota, North Dakota, Western Illinois and St. Thomas rounded out the poll.
 
PLAYERS TO WATCH: North Dakota State junior right-handed pitcher Lainey Lyle and senior catcher Avery Wysong were among the Summit League preseason players to watch. Lyle, a 2021 All-Summit League Second Team selection, made 14 appearances last season with a 3.18 ERA. The Middleton, Idaho native tossed a no hitter against South Dakota and recorded six wins in 19.1 innings pitched. Wysong, also a 2021 All-Summit League Second Team selection, started 39 games last year, hitting .278 with a team high eight doubles and eight home runs. She also led the Bison with 27 RBIs.
 
WHO'S BACK: North Dakota State returns 14 of 21 players from last season, including eight of the 12 regular starters from a squad that finished third in the Summit League regular season. The Bison return four of their top seven bats from last season, including sophomore Emilee Buringa, who led the team with a .348 batting average. Senior Avery Wysong, who led the Bison in doubles, home runs, RBIs, and slugging percentage, also returns and provides consistency behind the plate for an experienced pitching staff that includes the return of Lainey Lyle (3.18 era, 79.1 IP) and Paige Vargas (3.84 era, 100.1 IP), who have run the circle a majority of the 2020 and 2021 seasons.
 
NEW FACES: NDSU welcomed four new comers to the team this season, including three true freshman and a transfer. Carley Goetschius, originally from Sioux Falls, S.D., transferred to the Bison from Northern Illinois. Goetschius played three seasons with NIU and enters 2022 with a .282 career batting average with seven doubles and nine home runs. Faith Daehlin, from Lakeville, Minn., and Chloe Woldruff, from Lispon, Iowa, join the Bison as freshman and will contribute in the field and at the plate. Savy Williams, from McKinney, Texas, is the final freshman and joins the pitching staff.
 
GRABLE, KOEHN JOIN STAFF: North Dakota State added two new staff members heading into this season with Kayti Grable joining the staff as an assistant coach and former Bison Sam Koehn as a graduate assistant. Grable joins the Bison after her most recent stop as an assistant coach with Valparaiso, where she spent three seasons. Koehn remains in Fargo and joins the staff after wrapping up her three-year career with the Bison, starting 122 of 123 games played at third base.
 
EXTRA INNINGS: NDSU is 0-2 in extra innings this season and the Bison have a 41-33 record in extras since beginning Division I play in 2005, including three 12-inning games against Colorado State in 2006 (W, 3-2); Kansas City in 2012 (L, 4-6) and Georgia Tech in 2017 (W, 8-6). The Bison are 7-2 in games that go at least 11 innings in the Division I era.
 
GRAND SLAMS: The Bison have hit 13 grand slams in the Division I era, including one Cameryn Maykut against Utah State earlier this season. Fellow current Bison Avery Wysong hit a grand slam last season at Kansas City. Former Bison Melissa Chmielewski holds the lead for NDSU with four grand slams from 2007-10. Maritza Lopez-Portillo and Vanessa Anderson are the only other Bison with multiple grand slams in their career. NDSU has just one grand slam at home, Alyssa Reina against Fort Wayne on April 9, 2016. The Bison have three on the road and nine in neutral site games.
 
WIN STREAKS: The Bison have strung together win streaks of at least five games on 35 occasions since beginning Division I play in 2005, including one this season. North Dakota State had a 20-game win streak during the 2019 season that stands as the program's division I era record. NDSU has reached 10-game win streaks six times (2007, 2009, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2019), with the streaks in 2013 (15 games) and 2019 being the longest. Over the program's history, the Bison have eight win streaks of at least 15 games and four that reached 20, including the program record of 27 wins in April of 2000 when the Bison went on to claim the NCAA DII National Championship.
 
STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE: North Dakota State historically plays The Summit League's toughest non-conference schedule in preparation for league play. The Bison have another tough schedule lined up in 2022 that includes six tournaments, three hosted by Power 5 programs, and seven games against NCAA Tournament teams from last season.
 
NATIONALLY RANKED OPPONENTS: North Dakota State beat at least one nationally ranked opponent in seven straight seasons from 2012 to 2018 with the most recent Top 25 victory coming in 2018 over 10th-ranked LSU by a 1-0 score in nine innings. That is one of five Bison wins over Top 10 opponents including a 2-1 victory at No. 2 Alabama in 2016, the highest-ranked opponent NDSU has beaten. NDSU's first win over a nationally ranked Division I program came in 2009 with an 11-inning 1-0 victory at No. 9/10 Oklahoma en route to the NCAA regional championship.
 
NO-HITTERS: North Dakota State pitchers have thrown 31 no-hitters including 14 against Division I opponents with Lainey Lyle's April 10 no-no last season being the first since 2019 when KK Leddy blanked South Dakota State 5-0. There have been eight perfect games by NDSU pitchers with the last one in 2015 by Krista Menke at Purdue Fort Wayne. There have been six no-hitters pitched against NDSU in Division I play since 2005. Illinois State's Morgan Day struck out 16 and walked one in the last no-hitter against North Dakota State in the championship game of the Middle Tennessee State University Invitational on March 14, 2021.
 
SERIES SWEEPS: Since beginning Summit League play in 2008, NDSU has swept 39 three-game series including 26 away from Fargo. The Bison have been swept only three times in league play with all three coming on the road against Purdue Fort Wayne (2010), Kansas City (2011) and South Dakota State (four games, 2021).
 
FIELD OF THE YEAR: Tharaldson Park, the on-campus home softball stadium for North Dakota State, was named the NCAA Division I winner of the 2020 Netting Professionals NFCA Field of the Year award, which recognizes the top fields/stadiums in the nation for their flawless grounds maintenance and exceptional playing surfaces. Tharaldson Park was dedicated in 2018 after a $2 million renovation including installation of a FieldTurf playing surface and seating for 735 spectators.
 
TOURNEY TOWN: North Dakota State has hosted the Summit League softball tournament nine times since becoming eligible for the NCAA Division I postseason in 2009. Western Illinois (2009, 2011) and Kansas City (2012) are the only other teams to have hosted the tournament over those 12 seasons. NDSU has won seven of the nine tournaments held in Fargo. Fort Wayne in 2013 and South Dakota State in 2021 are the only teams to have won the tournament in Fargo.
 
NCAA TOURNAMENT HISTORY: North Dakota State has advanced to NCAA regional play 10 of the past 12 seasons as the Summit League tournament champion. NDSU qualified for its first NCAA Division I tournament in 2009, the school's first year of Division I postseason eligibility, and the Bison swept through the Norman Regional that year to advance to Super Regional play at Arizona State. NDSU made seven NCAA Division II postseason appearances from 1998-2004 including a national championship in 2000.