Winona, Minn. – After getting off to their best start in school history, with four wins over Bemidji State and St. Cloud State, the Golden Eagles will open up NSIC play this weekend and will bring their 4-0 record into Winona State
 
The Golden Eagles are off to their best start in school history, thanks in large part to the bats. Brock Reller (Jr., OF, Grand Forks, N.D.) was just named the NSIC Player of the Week for the second straight week. The lefty outfielder has six home runs on the season, along with 15 RBI's, 10 runs scored and has 31 total bases. Reller also has a whopping OPS of 2.287 and a slugging percentage of 1.722, which leads the NSIC and the nation. Reller leads the conference in home runs, RBI's, slugging percentage and triples. The offense has been led by experience, including Landyn Swenson (R-Sr., OF, Devils Lake, N.D.), Will Zimmerman (R-Sr., SS, Park River, N.D.) and Mason Ruhlman (R-Sr., 2B, Algonac, Mich.). Swenson leads the team in hitting with a .529 average, including tied for the team lead with nine hits. Zimmerman has shown a power surge as well, hitting .462 on the season, with three home runs and 13 runs scored, which leads the conference. Ruhlman is third on the team with two home runs and is hitting .429 on the season. Eli Jung (Jr., OF, Dickinson, N.D.), Bobby Chu (R-Sr., C, Redwood City, Calif.) and Ben Bryant (So., 2B, Fargo, N.D.) have also had really good starts to their season as well.
 
As a team, the Golden Eagles have a whopping eight hitters with an average of .300 (minimum of 10 at-bats). Minnesota Crookston is tied for first in the conference with a .384 team batting average, as well as being tied with St. Cloud State with 16 home runs. The Golden Eagles lead the conference in both slugging percentage (.818) and walks taken (39). The Golden Eagles are averaging 16.2 runs per game through four games.
 
Nationally, the Golden Eagles rank first in home runs per game (4.00) and on-base percentage (.519). The maroon and gold is also second in the nation in scoring (16.2 runs per game) and slugging percentage (.818) and triples per game (1.50). They are also fourth in the nation in batting average as a team (.384)
 
On the bump, Jake Dykhoff (Jr., RHP, Wadena, Minn.) had a good debut for the maroon and gold. In the first victory over SCSU last week, the Wadena native went 6.0 innings pitched, giving up just one run on six hits, while striking out nine Husky hitters. Conner Richardson (Jr., P, Grand Forks, N.D.) also got the start against the Huskies. Richardson went 5.2 innings, giving up just two earned runs on four hits and striking out four. Matt Nelson (So., RHP, Afton, Minn.) and Jayden Grover (R-Sr., RHP, Cooperstown, N.D.) each earned the start against Bemidji State and pitched well. Minnesota Crookston will look to continue that strong starting pitching this weekend to kick off NSIC play.
 
How to Follow
Saturday, March 20
Minnesota Crookston at Winona State
NSIC Game
Loughrey Field / Winona, Minn.
12 P.M. (7 inning game) / 2 P.M. (9 inning game)
Live Stats - https://winonastatewarriors.com/sidearmstats/baseball/summary
 
Sunday, March 21
Minnesota Crookston at Winona State
NSIC Game
Loughrey Field / Winona, Minn.
12 P.M.
Live Stats - https://winonastatewarriors.com/sidearmstats/baseball/summary
 
Scouting the Warriors
The Warriors head into this weekend's NSIC opener with a 3-2 record, including a 2-1 win over Maryville University last Sunday. This weekend's games with the Golden Eagles will kick-off a 10 game home stand for the Warriors.
 
Offensively, the Warriors are led by Sam Kohnle, who leads his Warriors with a .429 average and 4 RBI's. Derek Baumgartner and Tanner Williams are the only two Warriors with home runs this season. As a team, WSU hits .233 and has scored 31 runs in five games. The Warriors scored 15 runs earlier this year in a loss to McKendree, which was their highest run total since last season, when they defeated Southwest Baptist, 16-5.
 
On the hill, Bailey Banaszynski, Kyle Gendron and Dillon Whittaker have eaten up a ton of innings this season for the Warriors. Banaszynski is 1-0 on the season with a 2.89 ERA, while striking out 14 hitters, which lead the Warriors. Gendron is 2-0 on the season with a 4.09 ERA in 11 innings pitched, while striking out 12, which is second on the team. The Warriors have a deep and solid pitching staff. It should be a good battle between the pitching staff of Winona State and one of the best offenses in the nation in the Golden Eagles.