For Immediate Release
Tuesday, April 7, 2026
NSIC Media Relations

NSIC Player of the Week
#17 Mitch Iliff (1B/OF, 6-1, 200, Jr., L/L, Hastings, Minn. / Hastings HS) – Sioux Falls
- Hit .579 (11-for-19) across five games
- Recorded 12 runs, 13 RBIs, five home runs, two doubles and one triple
- Posted a 1.579 slugging percentage and .654 on-base percentage
- Totaled 30 bases and recorded 26 putouts with a perfect fielding percentage
- Hit a game-tying ninth-inning home run versus Minnesota State

NSIC Pitcher of the Week
#36 Ryan Chamberlain (RHP, 6-0, 185, Sr., R/R, Laramie, Wyo. / Laramie HS) – University of Mary
- Posted a complete game win and earned a save last week
- Limited NSU to one run in 7.0 innings, striking out five while allowing six hits and no walks in an 11-1 win
- Came back to throw 3.2 innings for a save in a 7-2 victory over No. 14 Augustana
- Struck out three hitters while walking one and allowing five hits
- Over 10.2 innings in two games, struck out eight and allowed three earned runs
- Named NSIC Pitcher of the Week for the second time this season (2/10/26)

Other Top Performances - Player
Carter Heinsch – Augustana
- Hit .471 (8-for-17) in a five-game week against Wayne State and UMary
- Posted an .882 slugging percentage and .565 on-base percentage
- Scored six runs and drove in five with one home run and four doubles
- Recorded multiple hits in four of five games and reached base at least twice in every game
Nash Rubins – Bemidji State
- Hit .400 (4-for-10) against SMSU and No26 Minnesota State
- Scored two runs and drove in one while drawing a walk
- Posted an .855 OPS with a .455 on-base percentage
- Played error-free defense in 10 chances
Gus Berger – Concordia-St. Paul
- Produced a 2.029 OPS, scoring nine and driving in 12 runs in five games
- His .611/.696/1.333 (11-18) with a double and four home runs
- Was error-free in 13 chances including one outfield assist
- Hit safely in all five games with four multi-hit games
- Highlight was going 4-5 with two homers, five RBIs and three runs in a 16-13 win over Sioux Falls
- Also drove in four runs, going 2-3 with a homer in the first game of the week against Winona State
- Homered in both of CSP's wins, going 2-4 with a solo blast in game two against WSU
Marcus Butts – UMary
- Hit .412 (7-for-17) with a 1.171 OPS, scoring seven runs and driving in five
- Hit the game-winning two-run home run in the ninth inning in a 3-2 comeback win over No. 14 Augustana
- Scored the game-winning run in all three UMary victories during the week
- Recorded multiple hits in three games.
CJ Trask – Minnesota State
- Hit .563 (9-for-16) with seven runs scored, three home runs and 14 RBIs across four games
- Posted a 1.438 slugging percentage
- Recorded perfect 3-for-3 performances with four RBIs in both games of a doubleheader ver-sus Bemidji State
Cowen Meyer – Minot State
- Hit .421 (8-for-19) to help Minot State to three wins on the week
- Recorded one home run, one double and four RBIs
- Added two stolen bases
- Anchored the defense at shortstop with 18 total chances (5 putouts, 13 assists) with no errors
Dalton Kesti – Northern State
- Hit .563 (9-for-16) while leading Northern State to a 3-1 week
- Scored five runs and added four stolen bases
- Tied a program record with five hits (5-for-5) against Southwest Minnesota State
- Finished the week with two doubles, one triple and 12 putouts
Connor Davis – Southwest Minnesota State
- Hit .538 (7-for-13) with two doubles and six RBIs in four games
- Posted a .692 slugging percentage
- Collected multiple hits in three games and added three walks
- Recorded seven putouts with no errors
Nick Ibrahim – St. Cloud State
- Hit .750 (6-for-8) with a home run and four RBIs in a doubleheader sweep of Minnesota Du-luth
- Posted a 1.903 OPS
- Recorded 13 putouts and one assist with a perfect fielding percentage at first base
- Drove in four RBIs in an 18-0 win, the Huskies’ highest scoring output this season 
Garrett Hietpas – Winona State
- Hit .500 (5-for-10) across three games
- Recorded three RBIs and two walks
- Collected a career-high four hits in a 20-8 win over Concordia-StPaul
- Went 2-for-2 on stolen bases

Other Top Performances - Pitcher
Josiah Petersen – Augustana
- Threw 5.2 innings of one-run ball across two appearances
- Allowed just three hits while striking out four
- Held opponents to a .150 batting average
- Earned the win with five strong innings versus Wayne State
Evan Newlander – Concordia-St. Paul
- Pitched five shutout innings, allowing just two hits with six strikeouts
- Held opponents to a .125 batting average
- Started the front end of a three-hit shutout victory
Isaac Hanson – Jamestown
- Earned a win with 8.0 innings of work in a 3-2 victory over Minot State
- Allowed two runs on five hits with nine strikeouts and one walk
Gannon Reidinger – Minnesota State
- Tossed four scoreless innings in a 16-0 win over Bemidji State
- Allowed just two hits with four strikeouts and one walk
Colton Bagshaw – Minot State
- Earned the win with eight innings pitched without allowing an earned run against Wayne State
- Allowed five hits and struck out two
Ethan Price – Northern State
- Pitched 2.2 hitless and scoreless innings in relief
- Struck out three batters and earned the win after entering with the game tied 5-5
- Helped secure a 6-5 victory over SMSU
Ryan Bell – Southwest Minnesota State
- Threw 8.0 innings, allowing one run on five hits in a win over Bemidji State
- Struck out a career-high seven batters
Tyler Albert – Wayne State
- Tossed a complete-game victory with nine strikeouts against Minot State
- Allowed three runs on seven hits with no walks
Hunter Guenther – Winona State
- Threw five shutout innings in a 10-0 win over Jamestown
- Allowed four hits while striking out six
NSIC Baseball Players of the Week
2/10/26
Player: #1 Troy Berg - Augustana
Pitcher: #36 Ryan Chamberlain – University of Mary
2/17/26
Player: #2 Jake Berkland  – Minnesota State
Pitcher: #77 Brady Baur - Sioux Falls
2/25/26
Player: #23 Jackson Fliflet  - Minnesota Crookston
Pitcher:  #24 Cody Wichmann – SMSU
3/3/26
Player: #27 Liam Moreno – St. Cloud State
Pitcher:  #10 Colton Bagshaw - Minot State
3/9/26
Player: #3 Bjorn Lind - Augustana
Pitcher: #23 Nolan McCaffery - Jamestown
3/16/26
Player: #20 Nate Cunningham – Wayne State
Pitcher: #33 Justin Benjamin – Concordia-St. Paul
3/23/26
Player: #14 Carter Heinsch  – Augustana
Pitcher: #24 Lucas Burgum – University of Mary
3/30/26
Player: #33 Paul Schuyler – Wayne State
Pitcher: #26 Drew Ball – Augustana
4/7/26
Player: #17 Mitch Iliff – Sioux Falls
Pitcher: #36 Ryan Chamberlain – University of Mary (2)

About the NSIC
The NSIC is a 16-team, 18-sport, NCAA Division II conference with institutions located in Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota. The NSIC is a model Division II conference that uses high-level athletics competition to develop champions in the classroom and community while empowering student-athletes to be impactful and positive leaders. Formed in 1992 by the merger of the Northern Intercollegiate Conference (men’s league) and the Northern Sun Conference (women’s league), the NSIC has flourished over the past three decades, maturing into a union of Upper Midwest colleges and universities. The NSIC has won 27 team national championships and crowned 126 individual national champions. For additional information, visit NorthernSun.org.

About NCAA Division II
The NCAA, the national governing body for college athletics, is a volunteer association of more than 1,000 colleges and universities that classify their athletics programs in one of three membership divisions. The 300+ institutions in NCAA Division II support a balanced approach in which student-athletes can earn scholarships based on their athletic ability, pursue their desired academic degree, and participate in all the campus and surrounding community have to offer. Division II student-athletes annually graduate at rates higher than their student body peers, and they have access to the best championships-participant ratio among the NCAA’s three divisions. Division II gives student-athletes the unique opportunity to compete in the classroom, on the field, in their career, for their causes, and on their terms. For additional information, visit NCAA.org.