Aberdeen, S.D. – The Northern State University softball team will head south this Thursday through Saturday for four games from Missouri. Northern is set to face Missouri Western and Northwest Missouri State at 2 and 4 p.m. on Thursday. They will then match-up against Missouri Southern at 4 p.m. on Friday and Central Oklahoma at 1 p.m. on Saturday. All games will be played from the Griffon Softball Field in St. Joseph.
 
QUICK HITS ON THE WOLVES

• Northern enters the weekend with an 8-10 record overall
• The Wolves are hitting .327 as a team, with 167 hits, 96 runs scored, 87 RBI, 23 doubles, 11 homeruns, and ten stolen bases
• Defensively they hold a .950 fielding percentage with 351 putouts, 161 assists, and 27 errors
• The NSU pitching staff has a 4.37 ERA through 117.0 innings pitched with 62 strikeouts and a .279 opponent batting average
• Rachel Reinke and Jamie Fisher lead the team hitting.420 and .409 this season
• Reinke has a team high 21 hits, 13 runs scored, and five doubles
• Jen Martin has also recorded a team leading 21 hits, as well as 17 RBI and four homeruns with a .350 batting average
• Andrea Cherney and Makenzie Merritt each have three wins this season on the mound, with Cherney posting a staff leading 2.69 ERA and .225 opponent batting average
• The freshman also leads the Wolves with 29 strikeouts through 41.2 innings pitched, and one save

 
ABOUT MISSOURI WESTERN

• The Griffons are 13-12 overall this season
• Mo West is hitting .301 as a team with 215 hits, 141 runs scored, 119 RBI, 46 doubles, 22 homeruns, six triples, and 24 stolen bases
• They have a .959 fielding percentage with 496 putouts, 224 assists, and 31 errors
• The pitching staff posts a 4.32 ERA through 165.1 innings pitched with 99 strikeouts and a .306 opponent batting average
• Brea Blanton leads the offense hitting .426 on the year with 20 hits and 17 RBI
• Morgan Frost is second on the team with a .395 average and a team high 30 hits, 18 runs scored, and seven doubles
• Kaili Hinds leads the staff with a 6-3 record, 2.92 ERA, and .284 opponent average
• Missouri Western is led by head coach Jen Bagley Trotter in her 18^th season at the helm

 
LAST MATCH-UP

• Northern defeated Mo West 9-8 a season ago
• Jamie Fisher led the Wolves offense, going 3-for-3 with two doubles, two runs scored, and two RBI
• Courtney Sjerven, Jenna Helgeson, and Kennady Thompson each tallied two hits as well in the win
• Makenzie Merritt tallied the win, while Fisher recorded the save
• The Wolves are 2-5 all-time versus the Griffons

 
ABOUT NORTHWEST MISSOURI STATE

• The Bearcats enter the weekend with a 3-9 record overall
• NWMSU is hitting .294 this season with 95 hits, 45 runs scored, 45 RBI, 16 doubles, ten homeruns, two triples, and four stolen bases
• Defensively they are fielding at a .945 clip with 216 putouts, 58 assists, and 16 errors
• The pitching staff posts a 5.95 ERA through 73.0 innings pitched with 52 strikeouts and a .323 opponent batting average
• Kaitlyn Weis leads the team hitting .417 on the year with 15 hits, 12 RBI, ten runs scored, and four homeruns
• Regan Thompson has two of the team's three wins on the mound, and leads the staff with a 4.20 ERA and 25 strikeouts
• Northwest is led by head coach Ryan Anderson in his 13^th season at the helm

 
LAST MATCH-UP

• The Wolves were shutout by the Bearcats, 6-0 in 2018
• NSU recorded just four team hits in the loss from Sjerven, Helgeson, Katie Dawson, and Natalie Gabbert
• Northern is 2-8 all-time versus Northwest Missouri State, with their lone victories coming in 2014 and 2015

 
ABOUT MISSOURI SOUTHERN

• The Lions enter the weekend with a 9-10 record overall
• Missouri Southern is hitting .320 as a team with 171 hits, 104 runs scored, 95 RBI, 31 doubles, 15 homeruns, six triples, and 25 stolen bases
• They have 366 putouts, 149 assists, and 19 errors defensively, with a .964 fielding percentage
• The pitching staff posts a 4.53 ERA through 122.0 innings pitched with 73 strikeouts and a .295 opponent batting average
• Erika Lutgen and Lexi Ferrari lead the team hitting .390 this season with 23 hits
• Ferrari has a team high 21 RBI and four homeruns this season with a .678 slugging percentage
• Abby Atkin leads the team on the mound with a 5-4 record, 4.36 ERA and 42 strikeouts
• MSSU is led by head coach Hallie Blackney in her third season with the program

 
LAST MATCH-UP

• The Wolves fell to the Lions 3-2 when the two team's matched up back in 2017
• Shayla Steinley led the offense in the game, going 3-for-4 with a double, one run, and run RBI
• Jenna Helgeson added two hits, while Madison Rutter notched a double
• Northern is 0-5 all-time versus Missouri Southern

 
ABOUT CENTRAL OKLAHOMA

• The Bronchos enter the weekend with a 24-1 record overall, and are undefeated in MIAA play
• UCO is ranked No. 2 in the most recent NFCA Top-25 Poll
• Central Oklahoma is hitting .365 as a team with 254 hits, 209 runs scored, 190 RBI, 64 doubles, 18 homeruns, ten triples, and 27 stolen bases
• They post a .959 fielding percentage with 487 putouts, 208 assists, and 30 errors
• The pitching staff has a 2.28 ERA through 163.0 innings pitched with 104 strikeouts and a .260 opponent batting average
• UCO leads the country in doubles per game (2.54) and sits top-5 in batting average, scoring, slugging percentage (.563), and double plays per game (0.60)
• JoBi Heath leads the offense with a .446 average, 37 hits, 37 RBI, and 19 doubles
• Hazel Puemple and Carli Jones are hitting .417 each with 35 and 30 hits respectively
• Sydney McLeod leads the staff with a 1.81 ERA, closely followed by Bailey McKittrick with a 1.83 ERA. The pair each have 11 wins this season and a combined 89 strikeouts
• Central Oklahoma is led by head coach Cody White in his sixth season at the helm

 
LAST MATCH-UP

• The Wolves and Bronchos have not faced each other in the history of the program