Baseball | 3/17/2025 11:49:00 AM

CROOKSTON, Minn. - The University of Minnesota Crookston baseball team is set for a four-game series at Augustana University. The Golden Eagles will play the Vikings Friday, March 21 at 3:30 p.m. Saturday's doubleheader will take place at 1 and 3 p.m., while the Sunday finale will begin at 12 p.m.

Minnesota Crookston has won the last two games in the series. Prior to that, Augustana had won eight consecutive games. 

Minnesota Crookston at Augustana
Friday, March 21 - 3:30 p.m.
Ronken Field, Sioux Falls, S.D.
Live Stats - https://goaugie.com/sidearmstats/baseball/summary
Video - https://nsicnetwork.com/goaugie/

Saturday, March 22 - 1 and 3 p.m.
Ronken Field, Sioux Falls, S.D.
Live Stats - https://goaugie.com/sidearmstats/baseball/summary
Video - https://nsicnetwork.com/goaugie/

Sunday, March 23 - 12 p.m.
Ronken Field, Sioux Falls, S.D.
Live Stats - https://goaugie.com/sidearmstats/baseball/summary
Video - https://nsicnetwork.com/goaugie/

University of Minnesota Crookston
Projected Starters
Sr. C 29 Kodi Miller, Grand Rapids, Minn., .200, 2 R, 1 2B, 1 HR, 2 RBI
R-Jr. C/1B 28 Brock Larsen, Blaine, Minn., .278, 7 R, 1 2B, 2 HR, 7 RBI
Or So. 1B 17 Aaron Wensloff, Roseau, Minn., .308, 11 R, 2 2B, 4 HR, 11 RBI
Sr. 2B 20 Kobe Senn, Fargo, N.D., .270, 11 R, 2 2B, 8 RBI
Sr. 3B 2 Sawyer Satrom, Portland, N.D., .239, 17 R, 1 3B, 3 HR, 14 RBI
So. SS 1 Caden Kappes, Wahpeton, N.D., .190, 5 R, 2 2B, 5 RBI
Or Fr. SS 5 Kyler Miller, Grand Rapids, Minn., .154, 3 R, 1 2B, 1 RBI
R-Jr. LF 6 Americo Sculati, Golden Valley, Minn., .288, 14 R, 4 2B, 5 HR, 11 RBI
Fr. CF 27 Dylan Debilzen, Parkers Prairie, Minn., .373, 11 R, 5 2B, 7 RBI
R-Jr. RF 21 Connor Bushbaum, Saginaw, Minn., .311, 10 R, 5 2B, 1 3B, 6 RBI
Jr. DH 32 Josh Dykhoff , Wadena, Minn., .290, 11 R, 5 2B, 4 HR, 20 RBI

Top Pitchers
Jr. RHP 32 Josh Dykhoff, Wadena, Minn., 4-0 2.57 ERA, 28.0 IP, 28 K, 2 BB
So. LHP 37 Nate Benning, Browerville, Minn., 0-2 7.40 ERA, 20.2 IP, 10 K, 8 BB
Jr. LHP 8 Kyle Odenbach, Thompson, N.D., 0-3 9.17 ERA, 17.2 IP, 20 K, 11 BB
R-Jr. RHP 16 Isaac Roers, Stacy, Minn., 1-1 6.28 ERA, 14.1 IP, 11 K, 5 BB
Jr. RHP 3 Isaac Wensloff, Roseau, Minn., 0-2 5.17 ERA, 15.2 IP, 12 K, 5 BB
R-Sr. RHP 25 Nate Grafsgaard, Devils Lake, N.D., 0-0 1.93 ERA, 9.1 IP, 3 saves, 13 K, 5 BB
Jr. LHP 39 Joey Connelly, Eden Prairie, Minn., 0-0 2.70 ERA, 3.1 IP, 4 K, 2 BB
R-So. RHP 30 Jaxson Bennett, Saginaw, Minn., 0-0 7.04 ERA, 7.2 IP, 3 K, 3 BB
R-Sr. RHP 13 Jacob Mathiason, Rockford, Minn., 0-1 2.25 ERA, 4.0 IP, 2 K, 3 BB

Minnesota Crookston is seeking consistency heading into this week's Augustana series. They have had strong moments in 18 games. The Golden Eagles are 7-11 (4-4 NSIC) entering the series. They have a series win over Wayne State College, and a series loss to the University of Sioux Falls. 

At the plate, they are hitting .271, with 105 runs scored, 28 doubles, 19 home runs, and 93 RBI. Dylan Debilzen (Fr., OF, Parkers Prairie, Minn.) has had a stand-out season as a rookie. He is swinging .373, with 11 runs scored, five doubles, and seven RBI. Connor Bushbaum (R-Jr., OF, Saginaw, Minn.) comes in hitting .311, with 10 runs scored, five doubles, and six RBI. Aaron Wensloff (So., IF/OF, Roseau, Minn.) has been on a roll lately. He is hitting .308, with 11 runs scored, four home runs, and 11 RBI. Americo Sculati (R-Jr., OF, Golden Valley, Minn.) leads the team with five home runs, while Josh Dykhoff (Jr., RHP/DH, Wadena, Minn.) is coming off a three home run weekend. 

On the bump, Minnesota Crookston has a 6.54 ERA, with 125 strikeouts, and 76 walks. Dykhoff has anchored the starting staff. He is an unblemished 4-0, with a 2.57 ERA in 28 innings. He has struck out 28, and walked just two. Isaac Wensloff (Jr., RHP, Roseau, Minn.) has a 5.17 ERA in 15.2 innings, with 12 strikeouts, and five walks. The bullpen is led by closer Nate Grafsgaard (R-Sr., RHP, Devils Lake, N.D.), who has a 1.93 ERA and three saves in 9.1 innings, with 13 strikeouts. Joey Connelly (Jr., LHP, Eden Prairie, Minn.) has a 2.70 ERA in 3.1 innings, with four strikeouts. 

Augustana University
Projected Starters
So. C 28 Jake Lundquist, Elko New Market, Minn.,  .105, 3 R, 1 RBI
Or Jr. C/DH 41 Ryan Clementi, Lincoln, Neb.,.333, 13 R, 5 2B, 9 RBI
Sr. 1B 12 Sam Siegel, Sioux Falls, S.D., .293, 14 R, 3 2B, 17 RBI
Fr. 2B 43 Bjorn Lind, Duluth, Minn., .444, 1 R, 1 2B, 1 RBI
Jr. 3B 1 Troy Berg, Dickinson, N.D., .351, 14 R, 5 2B, 2 HR, 10 RBI
Or R-Jr. 3B 10 Joshua Koskie, Medina, Minn., .333, 8 R, 2 2B, 2 HR, 10 RBI
Fr. SS 19 Kobe Eikmeier, Elkhorn, Neb., .359, 15 R, 1 2B, 1 3B, 10 RBI
Or Sr. SS 15 Joe Kolbeck, Brandon, S.D., .259, 7 R, 2 2B, 5 RBI
Sr. LF 23 Jack Hines, Lombard, Ill., .393, 16 R, 3 2B, 14 RBI
Sr. CF 6 Jason Axelberg, Monticello, Minn., .377, 19 R, 4 2B, 1 3B, 6 HR, 25 RBI
Sr. RF 3 Trevor Winterstein, Omaha, Neb., .390, 23 R, 1 3B, 5 HR, 13 RBI
Sr. DH 9 Nate Davis, Sioux Falls, S.D., .286, 1 2B, 4 RBI
Or Jr. DH 34 Cole Goeser,  Elkhorn, Neb., .143, 1 R, 1 2B, 3 RBI

Top Pitchers
Sr. LHP 49 Mariano Gomez, San Pedro Sula, Honduras, 2-0 1.00 ERA, 18.0 IP, 25 K, 7 BB
Jr. LHP 8 Ashton Michek, Bangor, Wis., 2-1 4.79 ERA, 20.2 IP, 27 K, 11 BB
Jr. LHP 24 Ethan Cole, Fond du Lac, Wis., 2-2 6.61 ERA, 16.1 IP, 15 K, 10 BB
Sr. RHP 32 Harry Blum, Fridley, Minn., 0-1 5.84 ERA, 12.1 IP, 9 K, 2 BB
Jr. RHP 30 J.D. Hennen, Alexandria, Minn., 2-0 5.74 ERA, 15.2 IP, 25 K, 8 BB
Sr. RHP 20 Kai Taylor, Chandler, Ariz., 1-1 3.86 ERA, 9.1 IP, 10 K, 2 BB
Fr. RHP 33 Joel Van De Stroet, Inwood, Iowa, 0-0 1.80 ERA, 5.0 IP, 5 K, 2 BB
So. RHP 2 Maddox Foss, Chaska, Minn., 0-0 0.00 ERA, 4.2 IP, 4 K, 2 BB
Sr. RHP 21 Aidan Torpey, Sydney, Australia, 1-0 11.25 ERA, 4.0 IP, 4 K, 2 BB

Augustana comes into the week with a 10-6 (6-2 NSIC) mark. The Vikings are coming off a 47-10 mark in 2024. They made it to the 2024 Central Regional, where they lost two games and were eliminated. The Vikings have a new look to the 2025 roster, but their line-up is anchored by four returning starters. Jack Hines leads the way, batting .393, with 16 runs scored, three doubles, and 14 RBI. Trevor Winterstein is black in the fold, he comes in swinging .390, with 23 runs scored, five home runs, and 13 RBI. Jason Axelberg is batting .377, with 19 runs scored, six home runs, and 25 RBI. The top new bat in the lineup has been freshman Kobe Eikmeier, who is hitting .359, with 15 runs scored, one double, one triple, and 10 RBI.

On the mound, Augie is anchored by southpaw Mariano Gomez, who is 2-0 with a 1.00 ERA in 18 innings. He has struck out 25, and walked seven. Lefty Ashton Michek is 2-1, with a 4.79 ERA in 20.2 innings. Out of the bullpen, Kai Taylor has one save, with a 3.86 ERA in 9.1 innings, with 10 strikeouts. 

As a team, Augustana is hitting an impressive .315, with 149 runs scored, 32 doubles, 15 home runs, and 130 RBI. On the hill, the Vikings have a 4.95 ERA, with 144 strikeouts, and 58 walks.