FARGO, N.D. - North Dakota State softball will open up the home schedule on Tuesday and Wednesday, as the Bison take on St. Thomas in Summit League play in a make-up series from earlier this month. The Bison will host St. Thomas in a single game on Tuesday at 3 p.m. at Tharaldson Park before a 2 p.m. doubleheader on Wednesday.
 
Game Coverage
All three games of the series will be streamed live on The Summit League Network. A subscription to the Summit League Network, on the Midco Sports Plus App, is needed to view all games. All games will also include live statistics. Game coverage links are available on the softball schedule page on gobison.com.
 
Series History
NDSU and St. Thomas have met 14 times in series history, with the Bison leading the series 10-4. The Tommies won two of the three meetings last season at St. Thomas, with the Bison sweeping the series in 2023 in St. Paul and in 2024 in Fargo. NDSU is 5-2 all time in Fargo and 9-3 in the D1 era.
 
On The Xtra
Wednesday's doubleheader with the Tommies will be televised live on WDAY Xtra. Check GoBison.com for full channel listings and coverage areas.
 
Ticket & Parking Information
Single-game ticket prices are $11 for adults and $6 for youth (3-17 yrs). All seating is general admission and tickets can be purchased at the gate on game day.
 
Gates open 60 minutes prior to game time. No pets or outside food or beverage are allowed in the complex.
 
Free parking is available in Lot N north of Tharaldson Park, and on 17th Ave, with overflow parking in Lot RP.
 
Spring on the Road, the Bison Way
Last weekend, NDSU wrapped up a 37-game stretch on the road to begin the season. The Bison traveled to tournaments in Florida, Minneapolis, North Carolina, and Las Vegas, along with midweek games and non-conference trips to California Baptist Alabama. NDSU also opened Summit League play at Omaha, and after the St. Thomas series was postponed, also played a series at South Dakota.
 
NDSU Produces Most Runs In Last Decade
NDSU's 35 runs at South Dakota is the most for NDSU in a Summit League series since scoring 41 when the Bison swept Fort Wayne 18-0, 10-0 and 13-0 on April 18-19, 2015.
 
Bison Seeing Double
NDSU hit 10 doubles in South Dakota and has 62 doubles this season after just 44 doubles in 2025. All 13 Bison to have a hit this season have at least one double, with Bella Dean leading with 13, which is 49th nationally and first in the Summit League.
 
Swiping Bags
NDSU leads the Summit League in stolen bases (53) and stolen bases per game (1.43). The Bison are 15-for-15 in stolen base attempts in Summit League play and have successfully stolen 30 of the last 31 overall. The Bison led the Summit League in both last season, swiping 43 bags and averaging .86 per contest.
 
Star is Shining Bright
Junior Star Cortez has started every game in center field over the last two seasons, reaching 87-consecutive starts entering the week. Cortez is hitting a team-best .390 with 24 walks, posting a team high .493 obp.
 
She has already set career highs with 46 hits, four doubles, three triples, 16 RBI, 31 runs, 15 stolen bases and 24 walks. At UC Riverside, Cortez hit her first career home run. She is on pace to smash her career best in slugging, currently at .500 with an ops of .993.
 
She has recorded six assists and has 75 putouts. Cortez has 14 career outfield assists including 10 since becoming the every-game starter in center field.
 
Nieto Cementing Place in Left Field
In her first season as an every-game starter in left field, Lileigh Nieto has started all 37 games and is hitting .325 on the season, with 37 hits, 10 doubles and one home run.  The Billings, Montana native has 16 RBIs and 26 runs. She also has 17 walks, for a .417 on base percentage. Nieto has six stolen bases and also has 64 putouts and an assist at Alabama with no errors in the field.
 
In spot starts and appearances as a freshman, Nieto had seven hits, one double, five RBIs and five runs, finishing the year with a .152 average and a .939 fielding percentage.
 
Sophomore Surge for Hanta
Amai Hanta has seen her production at the plate greatly improve in her sophomore season, hitting .373 through 32 games after hitting .246 as a freshman last year in 47 appearances.
 
The Honolulu, Hawaii native has already matched or surpassed her totals from last season, with 38 hits, six doubles, four triples and two home runs this season after 30, four, four and one in 2025. On the bases, Hanta leads NDSU with 17 stolen bases this season, after 20 in her freshman campaign.
 
Wihlm Growing into Key Role in Circle
Entering the season, Madison Wihlm had tossed 68 innings in her career. The junior surpassed that mark in Omaha, and has thrown 78.1 innings pitched this season in 13 starts and 21 appearances.
 
Wihlm has become a steady arm for NDSU, posting seven wins already in 2026, entering the year with three for her career. Her era has also dropped almost three runs this season and she has already reached a career best 63 strikeouts after 50 over the first two years.
 
Wihlm has also been key in relief in clutch situations, as she has yet to allow an inherited runner to score, stranding all 12 she has entered with.
 
Dean Saving Best for Last
Bella Dean is on pace to break many of her career marks, serving as one of the leading Bison at the plate in her senior season. Dean is hitting a career best .336 and surpassed her personal best with her 41st hit at South Dakota. She leads the team with 13 doubles, six homers and 35 RBIs in just 37 games.
 
Dean has nine multi-hit games already this season, matching her career high set as a sophomore. She is also two games shy of her career best multi-RBI games of 11 as a freshman, also sitting at nine.
 
Rounding the Bases
The Bison have 23 home runs this season after having just 13 home runs in all of 2025. Bella Dean leads NDSU with six home runs, with Mya Boos, Jessica Delatorre, Amai Hanta and Zoe King also having multiple home runs.
 
Five Bison have hit their first career home runs this season, including Boos, Star Cortez, Macy Fry, Lileigh Nieto and Morgan Zimmerman.
 
At South Dakota, Jessica Delatorre hit home runs in back-to-back games and Amai Hanta also added her second of the season.
 
In total, 11 different Bison have homers on the year.
 
Series Sweeps
Since joining the Summit League in 2008, NDSU has 44 series sweeps of at least three games. The last sweep came at South Dakota from April 10-12, 2026, claiming 4-1, 21-2 and 10-5 victories.
 
NDSU's last Summit League sweep at home came against St. Thomas, March 29-30, 2024, recording 4-0, 13-4 and 12-9 victories.
 
Home Sweet Home
NDSU has a 350-177-1 (.664) all-time record at home, including a 173-60 (.742) record under Mueller. The Bison have called Tharaldson Park home since its dedication in September of 2018.
 
NDSU's top attendance at Tharaldson Park is 453 vs. North Dakota on May 4, 2019. The record attendance is 507 vs. South Dakota State on May 12, 2018.
 
Last Week
After a week off due to weather postponing the original series dates with St. Thomas, the Bison jumped back into Summit League play and picked up a series sweep at South Dakota.
 
The Bison opened up the series with a 4-1 win in the opener, snapping a four-game losing skid to the Coyotes in Vermillion. On Saturday, the Bison scored a program best 21 runs in a Summit League game, erasing an early 2-0 deficit to take the series. NDSU completed the sweep on Sunday in come-from-behind fashion, erasing a 5-1 deficit with nine unanswered runs over the final three innings to win 10-5.
 
Next Up
The Bison continue the six-game home stand, welcoming in Kansas City for a three-game weekend series. NDSU will open up the series with the Roos on Friday at Tharaldson Park, before scheduled games on Saturday and Sunday. Friday's game will be televised on WDAY Xtra.