FARGO, N.D. -  North Dakota State (20-17, 2-4 Summit League) will make their home debut for the 2022 season this weekend, as the Bison welcome in the University of Missouri - Kansas City (8-23, 4-2 Summit League) for a three-game Summit League series at Tharaldson Park.
 
WEEKEND SCHEDULE:
Game 1 | Saturday, April 9 | 12 p.m.
Game 2 | Saturday, April 9 | 2 p.m.
Game 3 | Sunday, April 10 | 11 a.m.
 
TICKETS AND PARKING: All seating is general admission and tickets can be purchased at the gate on game day. Adult General Admission tickets are $10. Youth General Admission (3-17 yrs) tickets are $5. Gates will open at Tharaldson Park 60 minutes prior to game time. No pets or outside food or beverage are allowed in the complex.
 
Sunday's game will be a $2 Sunday Special, with a $2 youth ticket deal for all kids (13 and under).
 
Parking is available in NDSU parking lot NQ to the north of Tharaldson Park on 17th Avenue. Parking is free of charge after 4:30 p.m. weekdays and all day Saturday, Sunday and holidays.
 
COVERAGE: All three games will be streamed live on NDSU All-Access. All games will also include live statistics. Links to the stream and stats will be available on the softball schedule page on gobison.com.
 
ON THE AIR: Game one of the series with Kansas City on Saturday and Sunday's series finale against the Roos will also be airing on the radio, with the games being aired on Bison 1660 AM. Keith Brake will have the call for both games from Tharaldson Park.
 
GRAND SLAM GIVEAWAY WEEKEND: The NDSU Athletic Department is hosting a Grand Slam Giveaway Weekend to kick off the home schedule for Bison Softball. Throughout the weekend series, there will be gift cards and prizes given away to fans in attendance. The 2022 Bison Softball Schedule Poster will also be available both days.
 
FREE POST GAME YOUTH CLINIC: The North Dakota State softball team will be hosting a youth clinic on Sunday at Tharaldson Park. The youth clinic will be available to all kids who are in grades six and under. The clinic, which is free, will be for 30 minutes and will begin shortly after the Bison wrap up the weekend series with game three against Kansas City that is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m.
 
THE SERIES: North Dakota State and Kansas City have met on the softball diamond 31 times heading into this weekend's Summit League series. NDSU holds a 23-8 record against the Kangaroos, with all 31 meetings coming in the Division I era, dating back to the first-ever match up in a doubleheader on April 30, 2005. That day, both games ended in eight-inning thrilling wins for NDSU, winning 1-0 in game one and 2-1 in game two in Kansas City.
 
The Bison are 15-7 against Kansas City with both teams as members of the Summit League. Last season, the two teams split a series 2-2, the only meetings since Kansas City rejoined the Summit League after leaving for the WAC in the 2014 season.
 
TAKING ON THE ROOS IN FARGO: The Bison are 9-1 all-time against Kansas City in Fargo, but have not played the Roos in the Tharaldson Park era, with the last meetings coming in 2013 when the Bison picked up a pair of wins over Kansas City in the Summit League Championship.
 
The Bison swept the first series in Fargo in 2007 with a trio of run-rule victories in five innings. The Bison swept a doubleheader in 2010 and took 2-of-3 in 2012. The only loss for North Dakota State against Kansas City in Fargo came in a 6-4 loss in 12 innings  to close out the 2012 series.
 
LAST TIME VS KANSAS CITY: The Bison met Kansas City in four games at the beginning of April last season in Missouri. The hosts would claim both games of the opening doubleheader, winning 6-3 and 2-1 as the Roos capitalized on seven Bison errors. On the second day, the Bison came back and flipped the script in the first game of the doubleheader with a 6-3 win before evening the series with a 4-2 win in the series finale.
 
Lainey Lyle and Paige Vargas each picked up complete game victories in their only appearances against the Roos. Lyle had five strikeouts and no walks in the game two win. Vargas had three strikeouts in the victory in game one. Offensively, Nicole Licea was 4-for-10 (.400) at the plate in three games with a run scored. Emilee Buringa was 5-for-13 with a double, two RBIs and three runs scored in four starts.
 
BISON IN HOME OPENERS: The Bison will play their 46th home opener on Saturday against Kansas City. In the previous 45 seasons, NDSU holds a 36-9 mark in the home opener with 13 shutouts. The Bison are 14-2 in the Div. 1 era and have won their last three, with the last loss coming to IUPUI in 2017. The Bison have opened the home schedule against Kansas City once, with NDSU winning 8-0 in five innings on April 14, 2007.
 
LIFE ON THE ROAD: The Bison officially wrapped up a stretch of playing the first eight weekends on the road or at neutral sites to begin the 2022 season, including the first two Summit League weekends. North Dakota State played 37 games (originally scheduled to play 38) away from home, wrapping up with last weekend's visit to  Omaha. During the non-conference portion of the schedule, the Bison flew 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.
 
GOING GOING GONE: In the NDSU's win against Omaha last week, the Bison hit three home runs in a game for the second time this season. Emilee Buringa hit her sixth home run of the season with a two-run shot in the first of back-to-back home runs in the sixth inning. Buringa was followed up by Molly Gates, who hit her first career home run. In the seventh, Reanna Rudd joined the home run party, as she also hit her sixth of the season.
 
Earlier this year, the Bison hit three against Utah State to close out the opening weekend. Buringa and Rudd also homered in that game. The first was a grand slam from senior Cameryn Maykut in the second inning. Then in the sixth, Rudd and Buringa each hit their first collegiate home run.
 
Prior to this season, the Bison last hit three home runs in a game on April 27, 2019 when NDSU had three against Omaha in Fargo.
 
GIVE ME TWO: North Dakota State leads the NCAA in doubles, recording 75 doubles on the year in 37 games. Texas (70), Louisiana (67) and Notre Dame (67) are the next closest to the Bison. Avery Wysong and Cameryn Maykut have contributed 12 doubles each on the season, which is 10th in the nation, while Dez Cardenas is tied for 26th in the NCAA with 11.
 
EXTRA BASES: The Bison are 25th in the NCAA in total extra-base hits (99) on the season, which is 12 more than the next closest Summit League program of South Dakota State (87). North Dakota State has 75 doubles, four triples and 20 home runs. The 99 extra-base hits in 37 games this season has already surpassed last season's total of 82 in 45 games. In comparison, Summit League programs St. Thomas, North Dakota and Western Illinois have a combined total of 109 extra-base hits this season in 97 combined games.
 
OTHER NOTABLE NCAA AND SUMMIT LEAGUE RANKINGS: Aside from leading the NCAA in doubles, NDSU leads the Summit League in nine major batting categories and ranks in the top three in every major statistical batting category. NDSU leads the league and ranks 20th in the NCAA in hits (284), 24th in sacrifice flies (12), 25th in extra base hits (99), 36th in RBIs (189), 39th in walks (114) and 42nd in runs (201). The Bison also lead the league in sacrifice bunts (9).
 
Individually, Avery Wysong and Cameryn Maykut lead the Summit League and rank 10th nationally with 12 doubles. Maykut also ranks 12th in the NCAA in RBIs (42) and 26th in RBIs per game (1.14), both of which also sit atop the league. Dez Cardenas leads the league and rank 85th in the nation in hits with 40 on the campaign. Maykut is second with 38. Emilee Buringa and Molly Gates are first and second in the league with .92 and .91 runs per game.
 
In the circle, Paige Vargas is tied for second in the league lead in victories with 10. Vargas also leads the league in complete games with 14. The senior ranks second in innings pitched (112.0), second in WHIP (1.089), third in the league in strikeouts (110), third in strikeouts per seven innings (6.875), third in walks per seven innings (1.875), fourth in hits per seven innings (5.75) and fourth with a .217 batting average against.
 
MAYKUT ON PACE FOR HISTORIC SEASON: Senior Cameryn Maykut has drove in 42 RBIs through 34 games this season. The impressive start is currently 12 in the NCAA. Her 42 RBIs are currently more than a handful of teams have totaled this season. Maykut is on pace to have 59 RBIs during the regular season, which would be a new Div. 1 era record for the Bison, surpassing 59 by Melissa Chmielewski in 2010.
 
VARGAS, SCHULZ PICK UP RECENT SHUTOUTS: Paige Vargas and Mac Schultz have each contributed to shutouts  this season. In Georgia, 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 was 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 Virginia, Vargas tossed the fourth shutout of the season for NDSU. The Bison had just three shutouts in all of 2021.
 
VARGAS CRACKS TOP 10: Pitcher Paige Vargas has moved into the top 10 in career strikeouts for the Bison with 341. Her 5.51 strikeouts per seven innings also ranks 10th in Bison history.
 
VICTORY MILESTONES: North Dakota State picked up victory No. 1200 in the program's history with a 3-2 win over Maryland at the Capital City Classic on March 18. The Bison are also approaching other milestone victories in the 2022 season. NDSU is averaging over 34 wins a year in the Division I era, which could also see Bison head coach Darren Mueller reach the 700-win milestone. He entered 2022 at 670 and currently sits at 690. The Bison are also just five 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.
 
FANTASTIC FEBRUARY: The Bison had one of the best months of February in the program's 18 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.
 
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.
 
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.
 
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.
 
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.
 
EXTRA INNINGS: NDSU is 1-2 in extra innings this season and the Bison have a 42-33 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.
 
WIN STREAKS: The Bison have strung together win streaks of at least five games on 36 occasions since beginning Division I play in 2005, including twice 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, two 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.