Top-Seeded Bison Ready for Summit League Championship

Thursday, May 26

Tulsa, Okla.

3:05 p.m.

North Dakota State Athletics

Omaha

Photo by: Zachary Lucy

Top-Seeded Bison Ready for Summit League Championship

5/24/2022 1:57:00 PM | Baseball

Tournament Central NDSU Notes

THIS WEEK
The top-seeded North Dakota State baseball team is set to face fourth-seeded Omaha in the first round of the Summit League Championship on Wednesday in Tulsa, Okla. First pitch is set for 12:05 p.m. at J.L. Johnson Stadium.

TOURNAMENT COVERAGE
Radio: All three games will be available on Bison 1660 with Jeff Culhane (play-by-play) on the call.

Watch: All games will be streamed live on the Midco Sports Plus app (subscription required) and televised on Midco Sports Network. Adam Hildebrandt and Eric Folmar will be on the call.

GoBison.com: Live statistics, audio and video links are available on GoBison.com.

SUMMIT LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP
NDSU earned the top seed in the Summit League Championship for the first time in program history and will face fourth-seeded Omaha. The Bison, who won the tournament last season, earned their first regular season Summit League championship after sweeping a doubleheader against Western Illinois last week. Oral Roberts earned the second seed in the tournament and will face third-seeded South Dakota State on Wednesday at 6:05 p.m.

BISON AT THE SUMMIT LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP
NDSU boasts a 14-13 overall record at the Summit League Championship. Last season, the Bison went 3-1 at the tournament, including two wins over Oral Roberts and one over Omaha. This season will mark the second straight year NDSU will face Omaha in the first round of the tournament. The Bison have won the tournament twice in program history (2021, 2014).

STACKING UP WINS
The Bison finished the season with a 30-17 (17-5 Summit) overall record and reached the 30-win mark for only the seventh time in program history. It also marked the first time NDSU has won 30 or more games in back-to-back seasons in program history after the Bison won a program record 42 games last year. NDSU has also reached the 15-win mark for the second straight season and sixth time overall in conference play since joining the Summit League in 2008.

SUMMIT LEAGUE COACH OF THE YEAR
Head coach Tyler Oakes guided NDSU to its first Summit League regular season title in program history after assembling a 30-17 (17-5 Summit) overall record in his first season. It marked only the seventh time in program history the Bison have reached the 30-win mark. NDSU began the season playing each of its first 37 games on the road and were the last Division I team to play a home game this season. Oakes becomes the first coach in NDSU baseball history to earn Summit League Coach of the Year honors.

EIGHT BISON EARN All-SUMMIT LEAGUE HONORS
Calen Schwabe and Logan Williams each earned All-Summit League First Team honors for the first time in their careers. Will Busch, Brock Anderson, Druw Sackett, Peter Brookshaw, Jack Simonsen and Evan Sankey were also named to the All-Summit League Second Team.

LOOKIN' TO RUN
The Bison have set the program record for stolen bases in a single-season with 82 this season. Cadyn Schwabe is slotted fourth in the Summit League and has totaled a team-high 17 stolen bases on 21 attempts, which ranks ninth on the NDSU single-season list.

HITTING THE LONG BALL
The Bison have connected on 46 home runs, which ranks second in the Summit League and seventh on the NDSU single-season list. Logan Williams is tied for first in the conference with 11 home runs, while Peter Brookshaw has added a career-high seven this season.

LIGHTS OUT
The Bison pitching staff has earned 17 saves this season, which ranks tied for second on the NDSU single-season list and leads the Summit League. Four different pitchers have contributed at least one save this season. Last season, NDSU set a program record with 27 total saves.

NCBWA STOPPER OF THE YEAR MIDSEASON WATCH LIST
Senior right-handed pitcher Jake Drew and junior right-handed pitcher Tristen Roehrich have been named to the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) Stopper of the Year Midseason Watch List. NDSU is one of only four schools in the nation with multiple players selected joining Michigan, Arizona and UCLA.

Drew has made 17 appearances on the mound this season with a 3-0 overall record. He boasts a 0.00 ERA over 22.0 innings pitched. The Alexandria, Minn., native has notched a career-high eight saves this season, which is tied for third on the NDSU all-time single-season list. He has contributed 12 saves over five seasons, which ranks tied for sixth on the NDSU all-time saves list.

Drew assembled a streak of seven straight appearances from April 2 at Western Illinois to May 13 against Northern Colorado (7.5 innings) without allowing a hit. Additionally, he hasn't allowed a run in his last 13 appearances dating back to March 8 at Minnesota (17.0 innings).

Roehrich has made 14 appearances this season with a 5-2 overall record. He has registered a 2.98 ERA over 45.1 innings. The West Fargo, N.D., native has fired a career-high 49 total strikeouts and has limited opponents to .237 batting average. Roehrich, who was named Summit League Pitcher of the Week on March 21, has also contributed a career-high six saves this season, which ranks tied for 10th all-time in NDSU history.

ON HISTORIC PACE
Logan Williams has connected on a team-high 11 home runs this season. His 11 home runs are the most in the NDSU Division I era in a single-season and tied for 11th overall on the NDSU all-time single season list.

Williams assembled a streak of seven games with a home run from March 15-March 27. The NCAA record for consecutive games with a with a home run is nine, which was set by Nevada's Tyler Bosetti in 2021 from April 24-May 9.

Williams had a performance to remember at Northern Colorado with two grand slams and a career-high eight RBI to help the Bison to a 15-1 win. His eight RBI were the most in the NDSU Division I era and one shy of the program record of nine.

LOVEN CLIMBS THE RANKS
Max Loven has made 14 starts on the hill this season, which ranks 13th in the nation and leads the Summit League. His 14 starts position him tied for 10th place on the NDSU single-season list. Loven has also contributed a team-high and career-best seven wins, which ranks tied for seventh on the all-time NDSU single-season list.

Loven has fired 55 total strikeouts to increase his career total to 199, which positions him in fifth place on the NDSU all-time strikeout list. Loven has also totaled 247.0 innings pitched and is slotted in fifth place on the NDSU all-time innings pitched list. He's one of only nine players in program history to pitch in 200 innings or more.

THE SERIES VS. OMAHA
The Bison are 51-44 all-time when facing Omaha dating back to 1978. Earlier this season, NDSU won the series at Omaha after grinding out a 1-0 win in game one and a 2-0 win in the series finale. This will mark the second straight season the Bison will open the tournament against the Mavericks after picking up the 3-1 win last season in Omaha, Neb.

THE SERIES VS. SOUTH DAKOTA STATE
NDSU is 76-124 all-time when facing South Dakota State dating back to 1956. Earlier this season, the Bison scored five runs in the fifth inning to down the Jackrabbits, 8-3. It was the only matchup in the regular season after the final two games were canceled due to weather. NDSU hasn't faced South Dakota State in the Summit League Tournament since 2018 when the Jackrabbits topped the Bison, 13-7, in Tulsa, Okla.

THE SERIES VS. ORAL ROBERTS
The Bison are 21-46 all-time against Oral Roberts dating back to 2008. NDSU won the series earlier this season after dropping the first game, 10-4, before bouncing back to win the final two games, 2-1, and, 10-2. NDSU also topped Oral Roberts in the Summit League Championship game last season, 11-6, to win its second Summit League Tournament title in program history.

UP NEXT
The winner of the Summit League Championship will advance to the NCAA Regionals next week.