Game Notes - Upper Iowa || Minnesota State || Northern State || MSU Moorhead || Northern SunTHE SCHEDULE & LIVE OPTION LINKSÂ
| Thursday, April 10 | Saturday, April 12 | Sunday, April 13 |
Games 29-30
at Minnesota State NSIC Doubleheader begins at 2 p.m. | Games 31-32
vs. Northern State NSIC Doubleheader begins at 1 p.m. | Games 33-34
vs. MSU Moorhead NSIC Doubleheader begins at 12 p.m. |
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THIS WEEK IN PEACOCK SOFTBALL... Upper Iowa's matchup with Minnesota State University, Mankato - one of the best teams in the Northern Sun - will be postponed one day due to the frost coming up to field level in Mankato, Minnesota. The Peacocks and Mavericks (28-6, 12-0 NSIC) are still scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. UIU will conclude the week at home on Saturday and Sunday at the Eischeid Softball Complex. The Peacocks will host Northern State (8-18, 1-9 NSIC) at 1 p.m. on Saturday before entertaining MSU Moorhead (7-19, 3-9 NSIC) on Sunday at noon.
LAST WEEK... UIU split all three NSIC doubleheaders this past week to move into eighth in the conference standings with a 4-4 mark. On Tuesday in the Peacocks' home opener, UIU dropped an early decision to Wayne State, 11-1, but bounced back with a resounding 11-0 win in game two. The win over the Wildcats was fueled by a three-run home run from
Lauren Marlinghaus and a grand slam from
Erica Kirgan - her seventh jack of the season. Thanks to those two bombs, UIU led 9-0 after two innings and entrusted pitcher
Brooke Redmond to seal the win. She did just that, as she went five innings allowing just three hits and no runs to earn the victory and improve to 8-6 this year. A day later, Redmond picked up another win and
Katie Mnichowicz went yard against U-Mary as the Peacocks defeated the Marauders 6-4 in game two of their series. That momentum carried over into Sunday's matchup with Minot State, but it was
Jacqueline Flood who had her best performance in weeks from the rubber. Flood gave up just four hits and three runs to a potent Beaver offense as UIU snapped the Beavers' seven-game win streak with a 5-3 victory. Marlinghaus added her fourth home run of the season in that game with a two-run bomb in the first inning.
ON DECK... The Peacocks will host one more conference doubleheader before they hit the road again. After facing Northern State and MSU Moorhead this upcoming weekend, UIU will play host to Concordia, St. Paul on Tuesday at 2 p.m. Following that twin bill, the Peacocks will take to the road to play Southwest Minnesota State and Sioux Falls.
THE SERIES... Upper Iowa is winless against Minnesota State since the Peacocks made the jump to NCAA Division II; UIU is 0-16 against the Mavericks. The teams' doubleheader was cancelled due to poor weather conditions. UIU holds a solid 10-5 lead in its series with the Wolves of Northern State, which dates back to the 2006 season. The Peacocks and the Wolves did not play last year due to poor playing conditions. The Peacocks evened their series with MSU Moorhead last season thanks to a sweep at home. UIU is now 7-7 against the Dragons and have won three in a row against their foes from the North.
SLICK "MNICH"... Junior shortstop
Katie Mnichowicz earned a team-high .474 batting average and scored a team-high five runs this past week as the Peacocks split all three of their conference doubleheaders. The Peacock captain also had three doubles, three RBIs and connected on her third home run of the season and fourth of her career as the Peacocks battled Wayne State, U-Mary and Minot State. Mnichowicz's home run came on Saturday as she helped her team defeat U-Mary, 6-4. A day later in Minot, UIU's shortstop earned two RBIs and a double to help the Peacocks snap a seven-game Beaver win streak and a 10-game home win streak that dated back to the 2012 season. Furthermore, Mnichowicz's .789 slugging percentage was tops on the team, while her .524 on-base percentage was good for second. Finally, the Palatine, Illinois native added to her league-leading assist numbers as she recorded 16 over the past six games. She now has an NSIC-best 89 this year.
FLOOR IT "LAUREN"... No slugger had a better week last week than
Lauren Marlinghaus, who put her foot on the gas pedal and blew by the competition. The O'Fallon, Illinois native connected on two home runs, earned five hits and five RBIs this past week, while posting the second-best slugging percentage on the team at .688. Her first home run of the week and second of the season came on Tuesday against Wayne State. Marlinghaus connected on a three-run bomb in the top of the first to give her team the momentum. UIU later sealed that win, 11-1. The sophomore's third home run of the season came this past Sunday at Minot State as she propelled her team to a 5-3 victory. Marlinghaus earned two RBIs in that game as UIU snapped a seven-game Beaver win streak and a 10-game home win streak that dated back to the 2012 season. Marlinghaus is also currently ranked in the NSIC as she holds the 11th spot in the conference with 53 assists on defense.
YOU'RE NOT IN KANSAS ANYMORE... Upper Iowa Head Coach Amanda Bradberry saw dominant performances from the rubber this past week, especially from
Brooke Redmond, who leads the team with a 2.76 ERA. Redmond - a Basehor, Kansas native - posted a pair of wins, while taking one defeat in three appearances last week. On Tuesday, she went five scoreless innings against Wayne State, allowed just three hits and struck out seven Wildcats. Redmond is currently ranked 13th in the conference with a 2.76 ERA. She also holds the 14th spot for strikeouts (56), 11th spot for wins (9), and the 16th ranking in both innings pitched (88.2) and opposing batting average (.275).
LIVE STATS... If you can't make it to Fayette for this weekend's pair of twin bills, then catch the live stats or live video links above provided free-of-charge by the Upper Iowa Athletics department. Live stats will also be available for Thursday's games versus the Mavericks, just click here.
