For Immediate Release
Monday, February 5, 2024
NSIC Media Relations

NSIC Player of the Week
#28 Reese Holzhueter (C/OF, 5-7, Jr., L/R, Shakopee, Minn. / Shakopee HS) – St. Cloud State
- Hit .600 (6-for-10) in her debut with the Huskies in their 3-0 opening weekend
- Recorded three doubles, a triple and a home run
- Drove in four runs, walked once and was successful on her lone stolen base attempt
- Led the NSIC with a 1.400 slugging percentage and a 2.036 OPS
- Opened the season going 3-for-3 with two doubles and a home run, scoring three runs and driving in three runs

NSIC Pitcher of the Week
#50 Grace Glanzer (RHP, 5-3, Sr., R/R, Sioux Falls, S.D. / Roosevelt HS) - Augustana
- Pitched three complete games to a 2-1 record without giving up an earned run
- Struck out 16 batters in 20 innings
- Opponents hit just .108 against her
- In her debut, gave up two hits to No. 22 Oklahoma Baptist in the 4-0 shutout victory
- The lone record blemish was a 1-0 loss to No. 24 Mississippi College where she allowed only four hits
- Followed up with a one hitter in a 2-1 win over No. 3 Central Oklahoma

Others Top Performers  - Players
Molly Houts (Bemidji State)
- Batted .308 in four games at the Kelly Laas Memorial Tournament in St. Cloud
- Recorded four hits in 13 at bats with two doubles and drove in four runs
- Had an OPS of .819 over the weekend with a slugging percentage of .462 to lead the team and on-base percentage of .357
- Posted a 1.000 fielding percentage with five putouts and two assists
Rachel Novak (CSP)
- Tallied a team-high six hits and scored a team-high four runs in CSP’s four weekend games
- Batted a team-best .462 batting average with 3 RBIs
- Posted a .538 slugging percentage and a .462 on-base percentage
- Hit an RBI double in CSP’s 8-2 victory over Emporia State
- Scored a run in three out of four games for the Golden Bears
Julia Gronholz (Minnesota Duluth)
- Had six hits in nine at bats for a .667 batting average, and recorded three RBI
- With three doubles, has a 1.000% slugging percentage and .700 on base percentage
- Also had two put outs and six assists and a 1.000 fielding percentage
Izzy Hycnar (Minnesota State)
- Held a .462 AVG (6-13), 1.077 OPS, two doubles, three RBI
- Hit walk-off single against Lewis in the bottom of the seventh with two outs to win 1-0 in first career game
- Hit RBI double to give MSU 2-1 lead in bottom of sixth with two outs. Mavericks closed out seventh inning to beat Upper Iowa
- Closed out game against Southwest Minnesota State, hitting the clinching RBI single to beat the Mustangs 11-3 in six innings
- Held a 1.000 FLD% at shortstop
Azalya Lopez (MSU Moorhead)
- Slashed .545/.909/.500 across four wins for MSUM at the Minot State Bubble Invite.
- Hit for a .571 average in two games on Saturday with a triple, three RBIs and a run scored
- Went for a .333 average on Sunday with a pair of doubles and two more RBI
- Drove in the game-winning run on a sacrifice fly against University of Providence on Sunday
- Also had a perfect fielding percentage for the weekend with three putouts and four assists on seven chances
Abbey Kelley (Minot State)
- Was nearly unstoppable offensively, going 7-for-10 with 2 walks, a double, and 4 RBIs to lead the Beavers offense
- Was equally outstanding defensively playing error-free with 3 putouts and 7 assists for the Beavers
Lexi Chase (Northern State)
- Led the Northern State offense in their 5-1 weekend with a .571 average
- Tallied eight hits, including two triples, and one stolen base
- Added seven RBI and five runs scored
- Played perfect defense with six putouts and one assist
-Threw 13.0 innings in two contests coming away with 16 strikeouts and one win
Riley Schwisow (Sioux Falls)
- Was 6-for-17 on the weekend with two doubles and a homerun in her college debut
- Led the team with 3 runs and 4 runs batted in for USF
- Added 14 assists and six putouts on the weekend

Others Top Performers  - Pitcher
Emmy Bowne (CSP)
- Posted a 2.88 ERA in 17 innings pitched for the Golden Bears in the opening weekend
- Picked up her first win of her career in an 8-2 win against Emporia State on Saturday
- Pitched all seven innings throwing five strikeouts while only giving up two earned runs on four hits
- Recorded a save getting the last two outs in a 7-6 win over Emporia State on Friday
- Only walked a total of three batters on the weekend
- Totaled 11 strikeouts on the weekend giving up 12 hits and seven earned runs
Lauren Dixon (UMD) 
- Pitched two of UMD three wins over the weekend, including holding 2023 NCAA Tournament participant Lewis University scoreless
- Had a total of 23 strikeouts, including 14 against Emporia State in total of 14 innings pitched
McKayla Armbruster (MSU)
- Went 3-0 with 20 IP and  two shutouts
- Held a 0.35 ERA, .50 WHIP,  .154 opponent AVG
- Gave up 10 hits, one run, one earned run, 18 strikeouts, no walks allowed
- Had five strikeouts in seven-inning shutout against Lewis
- Added nine strikeouts and one earned run against Emporia State
- Had a one-hit shutout against Emporia State, four strikeouts
Azalya Lopez (MSUM)
- Pitched nine scoreless innings across four victories for MSUM at the Minot State Bubble Invite
- Twirled four scoreless innings, only surrendering two hits with two strikeouts against Valley City State on Saturday
- Tossed five scoreless innings with four hits allowed in a 2-0 win over Minot State on Sunday afternoon
- Struck out seven Beavers in the game
- Held opponents to a .193 batting average for the weekend
Reegan Floyd (Minot State)
- Started her season with a 2-hit, complete-game shutout
- Struck out 7 opposing batters without a walk
- Did not allow an opposing player to advance beyond first base
Abby Rux (NSU) 
- Opened the 2024 season with two wins and one save
- Threw 14.1 innings of work with a 1.95 ERA
-  Tallied seven strikeouts and a .200 opponent batting average
- Tossed a complete game against Sioux Falls on Friday with just one earned run and recorded the save against the Cougars on Sunday
Maddi Duncan (Sioux Falls)
- Recorded two wins in her DII weekend debut
- Threw for 16 strikeouts in 18 innings giving up just four walks
- Starts the season with a 1.94 ERA
Justyce Porter (St. Cloud State )
- Went 1-0 with two saves in three relief appearances during the Huskies 3-0 opening weekend
- Boasted a 0.00 ERA and 0.63 WHIP over 8.0 innings
- Recorded four strikeouts and limited opposing batters to a .143 average
- Only allowed four hits and one walk to the 28 batters she faced
- Tallied fifth career win and fifth (and sixth) career save
 
NSIC Softball Players of the Week
2/5/24
Player: #28 Reese Holzhueter – St. Cloud State
Pitcher: #50 Grace Glanzer - Augustana

About the NSIC
The NSIC is a 15-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 quarter century, maturing into a union of Upper Midwest colleges and universities. The NSIC has won 25 team national championships and crowned 111 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.