ST. GEORGE, Kan. – The search for warmer – or at least less wintery – weather has led the Minot State baseball team to Kansas where the Beavers will open NSIC action playing a three-game series against the University of Sioux Falls, which is hosting the neutral-site series.
The two teams will play a single game on Sunday, March 19, starting at 2 p.m. at Rock Creek Senior High School, then a doubleheader on Monday, March 20, with first pitch at 10:30 a.m.
The Beavers also are scheduled to play a doubleheader Tuesday, March 21, at Ronken Field in Sioux Falls, S.D., against Augustana, with first pitch at 1:30 p.m.
The Vikings, who host Southwest Minnesota State this weekend, are scheduled to play the Mustangs in Omaha, Neb., on Sunday, and Council Bluffs, Iowa, on Monday. No change for Tuesday's doubleheader between Minot State and Augustana has been announced.
The Beavers, who have had two weeks off, roll into the league openers having won 3-of-4 in each of their three previous weekend series, giving them confidence as they take on a Sioux Falls team with just one win this season. The Cougars (1-13 overall) do have the advantage of having played over the past weekend in Florida, though.
Offensively, USF is still looking to find its rhythm as the Cougars are hitting .287 as a team, average 5.35 runs per game, and have hit just seven homers in 14 games.
As for the Beavers (9-3), they've been an offensive machine so far this season hitting a league-best .358, which includes 26 home runs and 10.25 runs per game. And while the Cougars have seven home runs on the season, the Beavers hit six in a single game, a 14-6 win at Southwestern Baptist on March 5.
That offense has made things easy on an equally dominating Beaver pitching staff led by seniors
Bryant Bagshaw and
Dominick Parkhurst, who each are 3-0 on the season. Bagshaw, twice named NSIC Pitcher of the Week, has a 1.00 ERA with 17 strikeouts in 18 innings, while Parkhurst has a 3.18 ERA with 11 Ks in 11 1/3 innings.
Also adding a 2-0 record in three starts is junior
Craig Schmich, who has a 4.24 ERA with a team-high 22 Ks in 17 innings.
Offensively, junior
Gunnar Kozlowitz leads the way with an overpowering .480 batting average. He also is one of three players with five home runs already this season, a team-high 21 RBIs, and he already has one NSIC Player of the Week honor to his name, as well.
And he just leads the way for the big-booper Beavers as junior
Mark Ossanna is hitting .458 with four homers and 12 RBIs, senior
Derek Kay is hitting .420 with five home runs and 16 RBIs, junior
Brent Riddle is hitting .412 with four homers and 20 RBIs, and junior
Javier Gutierrez is batting .318 with five homers and 15 RBIs.
They'll look to rough up the Cougar pitching staff led by Grayson Skinner (1-2), who has the team's lone win, a 7.90 ERA, and nine Ks in 13 2/3 innings.
Part-time starter Ben Serie (0-1) leads Sioux Falls in ERA at 4.28, while starters Jack Gray (0-0) and Garrett Oswald (0-0) each have 11 strikeouts to lead the Cougars staff in that category.
As for Tuesday's foe, Augustana is off to a much better start than their in-state rivals the Cougars as the Vikings (11-9) are led by a pitching staff that ranks No. 2 in the NSIC with a 4.52 ERA and a league-best 198 strikeouts.
Caleb Saari leads the Vikings on the mound as he is 3-1 with a 3.41 ERA and an NSIC-high 40 Ks in 29 innings, while teammate Seth Miller (1-1) is No. 2 in strikeouts with 30 in 25 1/3 innings, along with a 5.33 ERA.
Offensively, the Vikings are hitting just .272, but they also have 19 home runs and average 5.7 runs per game, just enough to boast a winning record helped out by their strong pitching staff.
