For Immediate Release
Monday, April 15, 2024
NSIC Media Relations

NSIC Player of the Week
#25 Kennedy Buckman (IF, 5-9, Sr., R/R, New Prague, Minn. / New Prague HS) – Augustana
- Batted .455 with 5 home runs and 15 RBI as Augustana extended its win streak to 16
- Held a slugging percentage of 1.182 and an on-base percentage of .478
- Recorded 10 hits and drew a walk
- Stole a base
- Went 3-for-3 with four RBI in a game two win over Sioux Falls
- Went 2-for-3 with two home runs in a game one win over UMC
- Garnered two more home runs in the game two win at UMC

NSIC Pitcher of the Week
#50 Grace Glanzer (RHP, 5-3, Sr., R/R, Sioux Falls, S.D. / Roosevelt HS) – Augustana
- Tossed a perfect game in a win over Sioux Falls
- Went 3-0 with 16 strikeouts and 16 innings pitched
- Allowed seven total hits over the three games
- Totaled two shutouts in the three games
- Opponents hit just .127 off of her
- Walked just one batter over the three games
- Ranks fourth in the nation for ERA, ranks sixth in the nation for shutouts
- Leads the nation in WHIP
- Named NSIC Pitcher of the Week for the fourth time this season (2/5/24, 3/26/24, 4/15/24) 

Others Top Performers  - Players
Molly Houts (BSU)
- Batted .353 after collecting six hits in 17 at bats through six games
- Led the team with four RBI and hit one double to total seven bases
- Had an OPS of .888 with a slugging percentage of .412 and on-base percentage of .476
- Walked a team-high three times and was hit by pitch once
- Stole one base
Alexis Monty (CSP)
- Slashed .571/.962/.625 in CSP’s six games this past week
- Tallied 12 hits with five doubles, six RBIs and one home run
- Hit 6-6 combined with two walks in Concordia’s sweep vs. UMary on Sunday
- Smacked a double and a 3RBI home run in game one against the Marauders
- Put up three hits, a double and two stolen bases in game two vs. UMary
- Tallied two hits with a double in CSP’s 10-6 victory against Minnesota State
- Is up to 19 doubles on the season which is second in program history and leads the NSIC
- Leads the NSIC with a .535 batting average and a .589 on-base percentage
Nicole Schmitt (UMD)
- Went 10-of-17 over six games for the Bulldogs
- Was 4-of-4 against Sioux Falls with 8 RBIs that included two home runs and a double
- The first baseman had a total of 11 RBIs and three doubles and a .350 batting average
- Has a career season best 15 doubles on the season
- Tied her single season home run high of five, set her freshman season
Annika Norman (MSUM)
- Hit for a .583 average with six RBIs and a pair of runs scored for MSUM across four wins this week
- Also had a .583 on-base percentage during the week
- Went 5-for-7 at the plate in two games against UMary, driving home three runs in the second game alone
- Drove in two more runs to jumpstart the Dragon offense in a 6-3 game one win over SMSU on Sunday
- Brought home an equalizing run in game two against the Mustangs
Gabi Dawyduk (MINOT)
- Led the way as the Beavers won 5-of-6 games on the week
- Handed Concordia, St. Paul its first two losses in NSIC action
- Led the offense going 9-for-20 at the plate with 8 RBIs and her first home run of the season
- In the circle, won all 3 of her starts allowing just six earned runs and striking out three
Ashley Fauske (NSU)
- Led the Northern State starters hitting .400 in their week against MINOT and SMSU
- Recorded a team high six hits, including one triple
- Added two runs scored, two RBI, a sacrifice fly, and sacrifice bunt
- Played perfect defense with a 1.000 fielding percentage
Abby Russell  (SMSU)
- Led SMSU at the plate posting a .526 clip (10 for 19) over the week
- Tallied a team-best 10 hits over the week including a double and triple while plating five runs
- Committed just two errors over six games while posting a 1.000 fielding percentage at shortstop
- Drew a squad-high four walks and stole two bases on two attempts
- Posted a season-high three hits in both games at MSUM
Maggie Fitzgerald (SCSU)
- Slashed .500/.500/.944 in the Huskies 3-3 week
- Went 9-for-18 with two doubles and eight RBIs, hitting the teams only two home runs
- Hit two sacrifice flies and scored six runs
- Went 2-for-4 with two solo home runs in a 3-2, 12-inning loss at Bemidji State

Others Top Performers  - Pitcher
Stella Dolan  (BSU)
- Posted a 1-1 record in the circle with five appearances and made three starts
- Pitched 28.2 innings and totaled an ERA of 2.44 and held opponents to a .261 batting average
- Collected 24 strikeouts while walking just three batters
- Pitched a career-high 10 innings and allowed just two runs and struck out a career-high 12 batters against SCSU on April 10
- Pitched a complete game shutout against Wayne State April 14 allowing just four hits, one walk and struck out four
Erica McCullough (CSP)
- Posted a 1.77 ERA with 18 strikeouts in 27.2 innings pitched this past week
- Picked up three wins pushing her total to 21 on the season
- Gave up seven earned runs in five appearances and only walked four batters
- Pitched a shutout with four strikeouts in CSP’s 8-0 victory against UMary
- Threw seven strikeouts in Concordia-St. Paul’s 5-4 win against Minnesota State
- Fourth in program history with an NSIC-leading 21 wins
Lauren Dixon (UMD)
- Went 3-0 last week with wins over Minnesota State, Sioux Falls and Crookston
- Pitched her first career no hitter Wednesday against UMC
- Tallied eight strikeouts, and set UMD's career starts by a pitcher record
- Pitched her 74th complete game as a Bulldog, also a new program record and had 11 strikeouts
- Had 30 strikeouts in three games over 17.0 innings
- Posted a 1.49 ERA over those three games
Azalya Lopez (MSUM)
- Pitched a pair of complete games, hurling 14 innings and fanning a total of 10 batters
- Struck out eight in a 9-2 win over Mary on Thursday afternoon
- Settled in during the late innings to help MSUM secure a sweep over SMSU on Sunday afternoon
- Held opposing batters to a .290 average with a weekly ERA of 2.00
Emma Eickhoff (SCSU)
- Went 2-1 with a 2.42 ERA during SCSU's 3-3 week
- Started five games (one complete game) and pitched 26.2 innings
- Struck out 21 batters and only issued three walks
- Set new single-season best marks for wins (10) and strikeouts (82) over the weekend
Izzy Howe (WSU)
- Was a productive force in the Winona State pitching circle over the weekend
- Earned wins in both starts on the road
- Allowed just one hit in 4 innings of work vs. UMary
- Struck out 12 while walking just 2 over her two appearances
- Conceded just 5 hits overall
NSIC Softball Players of the Week
2/5/24
Player: #28 Reese Holzhueter – St. Cloud State
Pitcher: #50 Grace Glanzer - Augustana
2/13/24
Player: #16 Shaelyn Grant – Minnesota Crookston
Pitcher: #3 Taylor Coleman – Northern State
2/20/24
Player: #1 Sam Keller – Winona State
Pitcher: #55 Justyce Porter - St. Cloud State 
2/27/24
Player: #13 Gianna Lara – Minnesota State
Pitcher: #22 Maddie Oetzmann – Minnesota State
3/4/24
Player: #18 Riley Rosenthal - Concordia-St. Paul
Pitcher: #22 Maddie Oetzmann – Minnesota State (2)
3/11/24
Player: #44 Alexis Monty - Concordia-St. Paul 
Pitcher: #24 Lauren Dixon – Minnesota Duluth
3/18/24
Player: #44 Alexis Monty - Concordia-St. Paul (2)
Pitcher: #77 Azalya Lopez – MSU Moorhead
3/26/24
Player: #10 Torri Chute – Augustana
Pitcher: #50 Grace Glanzer - Augustana (2)
4/1/24
Player: #44 Alexis Monty - Concordia-St. Paul (3)
Pitcher: #77 Azalya Lopez – MSU Moorhead (2)
4/8/24
Player: #10 Torri Chute – Augustana (2)
Pitcher: #50 Grace Glanzer - Augustana (3)
4/15/24
Player: #25 Kennedy Buckman – Augustana
Pitcher: #50 Grace Glanzer - Augustana (4)

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 27 team national championships and crowned 113 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.