For Immediate Release
Tuesday, March 1, 2022
NSIC Media Relations

NSIC Player of the Week
#13 Sydney Trees (IF, 5-8, Sr., R/R, Prior Lake, Minn. / Prior Lake HS) – St. Cloud State
- Led the Huskies to a 3-1 weekend at the Washburn Invite with wins over Newman, Pittsburg State and Emporia State
- Hit .429 (6-of-14), including three home runs, while slugging 1.071 at the plate 
- Tallied five runs and a team-leading 11 RBI over the weekend
- Led St. Cloud State to a 5-0 win over Emporia State with a three-run homer in the bottom of the first for a 3-0 lead
- Then hit a two-run home run in the bottom of the third
- Went 3-4 in St. Cloud State's 15-6 win over Pittsburg State
- Hit a grand slam in the top of the first to give the Huskies an early 4-0 lead
- Tallied six RBI, which ranks second all-time in single-game RBI, and scored three runs
- Closed the weekend by going 1-4 at the plate in an 8-1 win over Emporia State
- Tallied 24 putouts as the Huskies starting catcher

NSIC Pitcher of the Week
#15 Trinity Junker (RHP, 5-8, Jr., R/R, Lindstrom, Minn. / Chisago Lakes HS) – St. Cloud State
- Went 2-0 in the circle at the Washburn Invite over the weekend
- Surrendered one run in 14.0 innings pitched with 18 total strikeouts
- Held opponents to a .180 batting average and nine hits
- Threw a complete game shutout in the Huskies 5-0 win over Newman
- Struck out 10 batters and gave up just five hits
- Pitched her second complete game of the weekend in a 8-1 victory over Emporia State
- Allowed just one earned run on four hits and struck out eight

Other Top Performances - Players
 Jordey Smith (MSUM) hit .455 for the week in four games at the Rosemont Dome Tournament. She had five hits in 11 at bats, including two doubles and a .538 on base percentage.
Kait Van Der Zwaag (USF) helped hit and pitch USF Softball to a 4-2 record at the Washburn Invitational. Van Der Zwaag hit .462 across six games with two home runs and five RBI plus 14 total bases and a 1.077 slugging mark. She also had a pair of doubles and scored five runs in 13 at bats. She finished with a .667 on base percentage and had a perfect 1.000 fielding mark with 33 putouts and six assists. She was also 2-1 on the mound with three starts and a shutout (7-0 over Pitt State). She registered 14 strikeouts in three appearances. Van Der Zwaag, who is hitting a team-best .417 with a .917 slugging and .611 OBP, had two multi-hit and multi-RBI games in the tournament.

Katie Crogan (UIU) hit 4-of-12 (.333) with four RBI, two runs, one home run, and a double as UIU went 2-2 at the Dome Invite. She went 2-4 with an RBI that put UIU up 1-0 in a 4-3 win over Wisconsin-Parkside, the first win on the season. She hit 2-3 with three RBI, two runs, a double, a walk, and a two RBI homer in a 10-3 win over Ursuline, including the game-tying double and her third multi-run long ball of the season.

Sam Keller (WSU) delivered key hits at clutch times for the Winona State softball team and helped the Warriors to a 4-1 outing at the Lewis University Dome Invitational. She went 4-4 vs. Ursuline College including two doubles and was 10-for-17 overall on the weekend. She collected three RBI over the five games. She had a walk-off double to drive in game winning run vs. William Jewell.

 
Other Top Performances - Pitcher
Hanna Cress (USF)  had a 2-0 record with a 1.21 earned run average in three starts, including a complete game, to help lead USF Softball to a 4-2 record at the Washburn Invitational which concluded Monday in Topeka, Kan. Cress, who has a 2.31 earned run average and 3-3 record this season, had a shutout (1-0 over Central Missouri) with 14 strikeouts against four walks and three earned runs in 17.1 innings in the tourney.
Sydney Wilcox (UIU) went 2-1 in three complete games with a 2.33 ERA and seven strikeouts at the Dome Invitational. She pitched 14 consecutive innings in a doubleheader sweep while allowing just five earned runs and helping UIU pick up wins of 4-3 and 10-3 for their first victories of the season. She threw a complete game on Feb. 24 while giving up just two earned runs and striking out four in a 2-1 loss. She hit 1-4 (.250) and scored a run in UIU's 10-3 win in game two on Feb. 25.
Liz Pautz (WSU) was dominant in the Warriors' trip to Lewis University this past weekend.  She registered 45 strikeouts and two shutouts across three starts and one relief appearance. She went 3-0 in starts and 3-1 overall, coming on in relief vs. #9 GVSU. She racked up 18 strikeouts against William Jewell College, matching the top single-game strikeout mark in the NCAA so far this year. She led WSU to a 4-1 record at the Lewis Dome Invitational.

NSIC Softball Players of the Week
2/8/22
Player: #12 Jordyn Thomas - Minnesota Duluth
Pitcher: #20 Sam Pederson - Minnesota Duluth
2/15/22
Player: #10 Jamie Odlum - Minot State
Pitcher: #9 Meghan Anderson - Northern State
2/22/22
Player: #8 Kiana Bender - Minnesota Duluth 
Pitcher: #24 Liz Pautz - Winona State
3/1/22
Player: #13 Sydney Trees  – St. Cloud State
Pitcher: #15 Trinity Junker – St. Cloud State

About the NSIC
The NSIC is a 16-team, 18-sport, NCAA Division II conference with institutions located in Iowa, 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 quarter century, maturing into a 16-team union of Upper Midwest colleges and universities. The NSIC has won 24 team national championships and crowned 81 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.