Softball | 3/25/2025 1:26:00 PM

St. Cloud, Minn. – After a site-reversal last weekend for Minnesota Crookston softball, the maroon and gold will head back on the road for a midweek doubleheader with St. Cloud State. The doubleheader will take place in the Husky Dome.
 
Minnesota Crookston earned their first conference win of the season on Friday, defeating Southwest Minnesota State by a run in game two of the doubleheader.
 
How to Follow
Minnesota Crookston @ St. Cloud State
Wednesday, March 26
2 / 4 P.M.
Live Stats -- https://scsuhuskies.com/sidearmstats/softball/summary
Watch Live -- https://nsicnetwork.com/scsuhuskies/
 
Minnesota Crookston (13-18, 1-3 NSIC)
Minnesota Crookston has relied on their youth this season to propel them to their best start through 30 games. Average wise, five of their best hitters are underclassmen, led by Hannah Trzinski (Fr., P/1B, Stevens Point, Wis.), Chayse Doering (Fr., OF, Shakopee, Minn.) and Rayna French (So., C/OF, La Salle, Manitoba), who are each hitting over .300. Madisen Yandle (Fr., SS, Lakeville, Minn.) and Irelyn Spencer (R-So., IF, Rapid City, S.D.) are hitting .289 and .284, respectively. Spencer hit .500 in four games against the Mustangs and Golden Bears. Doering hit an inside-the-park home run in Friday's win over the Mustangs, believed to be the first in Golden Eagle program history.
 
The circle has been similar to the offense for the Golden Eagles, as they have relied on underclassmen to try and get big outs. Delaney Penner (Fr., P, Winkler, Manitoba) has spun the ball exceptionally well this season, having a 2.16 ERA through 35.2 innings and six starts, while also going 4-1 on the season. Charlotte Dombrowski (Jr., P/OF, Valparaiso, Ind.) leads the staff with 27 strikeouts. Alexa Guilford (Jr., P, Crystal City, Manitoba) has been the lockdown pitcher in relief. The junior leads the team with 13 appearances and has three saves, which is 19^th in the entire nation.
 
At 13 wins, Minnesota Crookston is just six wins away from setting the program record for wins in a season, previously set in 2023, when the maroon and gold won 18 games.
 
St. Cloud State (22-8, 1-1 NSIC)
The Huskies, a perennial power in the Northern Sun, are off to another fast start this season. Through 30 games, SCSU has a .733 winning percentage and are coming off a split with another perennial power, Winona State, this past weekend.
 
The Huskies have the best offense in the NSIC in terms of batting average (.331), doubles (54), on-base percentage (.411), runs per game (6.61), total runs (198) and slugging percentage (.506). Needless to say, it's a pick-your-poison type of offense for the Huskies.
 
Brooke Holmes is having a player of the year type of season, leading the Huskies with a .456 average and six home runs and 30 RBI. Reese Holzhueter, Maggie Fitzgerald, Bethany Weiss and Bree Beck are each hitting over .300 on the season. The Huskies have outscored their opponents by 103 runs this season.
 
The pitching has been solid as well for the Huskies. SCSU has a team ERA of 2.50 earned runs per game and have trusted junior Macey Clark and senior Emma Eickhoff to start 28 of their 30 games. Clark and Eickhoff are a combined 18-3 on the season and have 12 complete games, as well. Both have ERA's of below three. Clark has 81 strikeouts on the year, which is top-60^th nationally.