For Immediate Release
Monday, April 22, 2024
NSIC Media Relations

NSIC Player of the Week
#20 Andrea Cain (IF/OF, 5-5, So., R/R, Sioux Falls, S.D. / Brandon Valley HS) - Augustana
- Slashed .500/.560/1.182 as Augustana clinched its fourth straight NSIC regular season title
- Blasted five home runs in 22 at bats with 13 RBIs
- Was 11-for-22 at the plate with 11 runs score as the Vikings extended their win streak to 22

NSIC Pitcher of the Week
#24 Lauren Dixon (LHP, 5-6, Sr., L/L, Sobieski, Wis. / Pulaski HS) – Minnesota Duluth
- Went 3-0 in three appearances with three complete games
- Recorded 27 strikeouts, including 14 against MSUM
- Now has 20 complete games on the season 
- Allowed one earned run on the week on 11 hits in 20.0 innings
- Named NSIC Pitcher of the Week for the second time this season (3/11/24)

Others Top Performers  - Players
Molly Houts (BSU)
- Batted .444 over six games collecting eight hits in 18 at bats
- Hit one double and drove in five runs
- Slugged .500 and had an on-base percentage of .545 for an OPS of 1.045
- Scored five runs, walked three times and totaled nine bases
- Collected a hit in all six games during the week 
- Improved her hit streak to eight games and reached base streak to nine
Francesca Villaneda (UMary)
- Drove in the winning runs in both the Marauders wins at Northern State
- Knocked in the go-ahead run in the 9th inning of a 9-5 win against the Wolves
- Drove in the lone run of a 1-0 victory over NSU in game two
- Was 12-for-21 (.571/.571/.667) with two doubles, three runs scored and five RBIs in six games
- Had hits in all six games and multiple hits in five
- Posted three hits in game two against BSU with two RBIs
- Went 5-for-7 with two doubles and three RBIs against the Beavers
Elle Tallman (MSU)
- Went 6-11 at the plate last week in four games
- Had five total hits against Wayne State on Senior Day
- Improved batting average to .409 on the season
Anna LaCount (MINOT)
- Hit .471 (8-for-17) with 3 doubles and 6 RBIs in seven games
- She also added an RBI sacrifice fly
- Defensively, she threw out 1-of-2 base stealers as catcher, made 15 putouts, and had 3 assists
Emma Barta (USF)
- Went 7-for-12 with a double and four RBIs while leading the Coo to a 3-1 weekend
- Drew two walks and struck out just once in four games
- Recorded a .938 fielding percentage on the weekend with 13 catches, 10 assists and two putouts
Maggie Fitzgerald (SCSU)
- Went 7-for-16 (.438) over six games for the Huskies
- Hit two home runs and two doubles
- Drew seven walks, recorded six RBI and scored five runs
- Had an OPS of 1.509 with a .938 slugging % and a .609 on-base %
Carly Engelhardt (WSU) 
- Has a batting average of .329
- Went 2 for 5 at the plate in the SMSU series
- Was walked and had 2 homeruns in the SMSU series collecting 5 RBIs between both games
- Had a .329 batting average in both SMSU games


Others Top Performers  - Pitcher
Grace Glanzer (AUGIE)
- Appeared in four games and recorded an era of 0.33 with three wins
- Pitched in 21 innings and only allowed nine hits and one run with two shutouts
- Pitched three complete games and only walked four batters
Stella Dolan (BSU)
- Made 5 appearances and three starts and went 3-1 with two complete games and one shutout
- Posted a 2.84 ERA in the circle over 24.2 innings holding opponents to just 29 hits and 10 earned runs
- Struck out nine batters and held opponents to a .302 batting average
- Began the week with a 5-inning shutout at Minnesota Crookston 
- Held the Golden Eagles to just five hits and struck out four on April 17
- Pitched all 7 innings in a 6-5 win at UMary allowing two earned runs off six hits and struck out three
Makayla Wigern (CSP) 
- Posted a 2.10 ERA in 10 innings pitched in CSP’s contests this weekend
- Threw nine scoreless innings in 10 innings pitched
- Pitched a season-high three strikeouts in Concordia’s game against Augustana
- Allowed a .225 batting average over the weekend
- Only allowed two hits with a strikeout in three innings pitched against Southwest Minnesota State
Azalya Lopez (MSUM)
- Pitched a total of 24 innings across three appearances and three wins
- Had an ERA of 1.16 in those performances
- Surrendered just four earned runs while striking out a total of 15 batters
- Pitched a complete game against Minot State, fanning six while allowing only three hits in a 3-1 win
- Shut out Minnesota Duluth in another complete game performance
- Struck out four in a 3-1 win, allowing one unearned
- Pitched all 10 innings in MSUM's 4-3 marathon win over St. Cloud State on Sunday afternoon
- Held the Huskies without a baserunner across the fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh innings in that contest
- Limited batters to a .197 average in her appearances
Gabi Dawyduk  (MINOT)
- Picked up a pair of NSIC wins for the Beavers
- Recorded her third shutout of the season in a 1-0 win over Bemidji State on Sunday
- Held a 1.35 ERA in 20.2 innings as she allowed just 4 earned runs in 3 appearances 
- Struck out 12 opposing batters
Campbell Petrick (USF)
- Two complete game shutouts going 2-0 on the mound while leading USF to a 3-1 week
- Recorded seven strikeouts while giving up just two walks and just two runs on the week
- Recorded a season high of three assists against and no walks against SMSU
Justyce Porter (SCSU) 
- Made four relief appearances and pitched 12.1 innings in the Huskies six games
- Posted a 1.70 ERA and held opposing batters to a .270 average
- Struck out five batters and only allowed one extra base hit
- Pitched 2.0 innings, allowing just one hit in a combined shutout against MSUM
Izzy Howe (WSU) 
- Collected 10 strikeouts against SMSU in five innings
- Had a 2.76 ERA against SMSU
- Only allowed 3 hits against SMSU
- Has a season ERA of 2.76
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)
4/15/24
Player: #20 Andrea Cain - Augustana
Pitcher: #24 Lauren Dixon – Minnesota Duluth

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.