Baseball | 5/5/2025 3:59:00 PM

CROOKSTON, Minn. - The University of Minnesota Crookston baseball team will commence their third-consecutive NSIC Tournament appearance Wednesday, May 7 in Sioux Falls, S.D. The Golden Eagles are the seventh seed. Minnesota Crookston will open the tournament Wednesday, May 7 at 6 p.m., at Sioux Falls Stadium - The Birdcage. Minnesota Crookston will take on second-seed Augustana University.

Minnesota Crookston vs. Augustana
Wednesday, May 7 - 6 p.m.
Sioux Falls Stadium - The Birdcage
Live Stats -usfcougars.com/sidearmstats/baseball/summary
Live Video (Pay-Per-View) - www.nsicnetwork.com

Thursday, May 8 - 6 p.m. (if win), 12 p.m. (if lose)
The Birdcage (if win), Ronken Field (if lose)

The winner of Wednesday's game will advance to play the winner of Wayne State College and the University of Minnesota Duluth Thursday, May 8 at 3:30 p.m., at The Birdcage. The loser of Wednesday's game will go to the playback bracket and will take on the loser of Wayne State and Minnesota Duluth Thursday, May 8 at 12 p.m., at Ronken Field. The tournament is a double-elimination format.

The Golden Eagles are 6-14 all-time at the NSIC Tournament. In their last three appearances, Minnesota Crookston has posted a 6-6 mark. Their most wins in a tournament came in 2021 when they went 3-2. The Golden Eagles posted a 2-2 mark in 2023, and went 1-2 at the tournament in 2024. Minnesota Crookston is 0-2 in the NSIC Tournament against Augustana, with their most recent loss coming in a 6-5 loss to the Vikings in 2023 in the tournament. Against the current field of the NSIC Tournament, Minnesota Crookston is 1-1 against Wayne State, 0-1 versus Southwest Minnesota State, 1-0 versus UMary, 0-3 against Minnesota State, and 1-2 against St. Cloud State. The Golden Eagles have never played Sioux Falls or Minnesota Duluth in a tournament game. 

Minnesota Crookston comes into the tournament with a 23-27 (20-20 NSIC) mark. The Golden Eagles have made the NSIC Tournament seven of the last 10 seasons. They have had over 20 conference wins in each of the last three seasons, and have posted 20 wins or more in eight of the last 10 seasons. Augustana comes in with a 36-14 (30-10 NSIC) record. The Golden Eagles and Vikings split their regular-season series 2-2 March 21-23 at Ronken Field. 

Minnesota Crookston Projected Starters
R-Sr. C/RF 19 Danny Wensloff, Roseau, Minn., .222, 13 R, 2 3B, 14 RBI
R-Jr. C/1B 28 Brock Larsen, Blaine, Minn., .265, 25 R, 5 2B, 4 HR, 21 RBI
Sr. 2B 20 Kobe Senn, Fargo, N.D., .243, 26 R, 3 2B, 23 RBI
Sr. 3B 2 Sawyer Satrom, Portland, N.D., .260, 39 R, 6 2B, 3 3B, 3 HR, 27 RBI
So. SS 1 Caden Kappes, Wahpeton, N.D., .159, 12 R, 2 2B, 9 RBI
R-Jr. LF 6 Americo Sculati, Golden Valley, Minn., .278, 33 R, 11 2B, 4 3B, 7 HR, 32 RBI
Fr. CF 27 Dylan Debilzen, Parkers Prairie, Minn., .369, 47 R, 13 2B, 3 3B, 1 HR, 28 RBI
So. RF/1B 17 Aaron Wensloff, Roseau, Minn., .305, 33 R, 13 2B, 7 HR, 35 RBI
Jr. DH/1B 32 Josh Dykhoff, Wadena, Minn., .333, 43 R, 13 2B, 13 HR, 55 RBI

Top Pitchers
Jr. RHP 32 Josh Dykhoff, Wadena, Minn., 6-5 3.27 ERA, 77.0 IP, 79 K, 6 BB
Jr. RHP 3 Isaac Wensloff, Roseau, Minn., 4-2 5.13 ERA, 52.2 IP, 36 K, 17 BB
So. LHP 37 Nate Benning, Browerville, Minn., 3-3 6.49 ERA, 51.1 IP, 37 K, 24 BB
Jr. LHP 8 Kyle Odenbach, Thompson, N.D., 1-7 7.92 ERA, 44.1 IP, 37 K, 19 BB
Sr. RHP 15 Max Weber, St. Paul, Minn., 1-0 5.46 ERA, 28.0 IP, 22 K, 19 BB
R-Sr. RHP 25 Nate Grafsgaard, Devils Lake, N.D., 0-2 4.21 ERA, 9 SV, 29 K, 17 BB
R-Sr. LHP 4 Caden Edwards, Duluth, Minn., 1-3 5.00 ERA, 27.0 IP, 23 K, 15 BB
R-Jr. RHP 16 Isaac Roers, Stacy, Minn., 6-4 5.64 ERA, 44.2 IP, 42 K, 12 BB
Jr. LHP 39 Joey Connelly, Eden Prairie, Minn., 0-0 2.16 ERA, 8.1 IP, 10 K, 5 BB

Minnesota Crookston comes into the NSIC Tournament hitting .275, with 323 runs scored, 77 doubles, 13 triples, 42 home runs, and 287 RBI. The Golden Eagles have been guided by the impressive play of leadoff hitter Dylan Debilzen (Fr., OF, Parkers Prairie, Minn.), who is swinging .369, with 47 runs scored, 13 doubles, a home run, and 28 RBI. Josh Dykhoff (Jr., RHP/DH, Wadena, Minn.) has had a strong junior season, batting .333, with 43 runs scored, 13 home runs, and 55 RBI. Aaron Wensloff (So., IF/OF, Roseau, Minn.) has been an important factor for the Golden Eagles, hitting .305, with 33 runs scored, seven home runs, and 35 RBI. Americo Sculati (R-Jr., OF, Golden Valley, Minn.) is hitting .278, with 33 runs scored, 11 doubles, seven home runs, and 32 RBI.

On the hill, the U of M Crookston has a 6.05 ERA, with 337 strikeouts, and 178 walks. Dykhoff paces the Golden Eagles with a 6-5 mark and a 3.27 ERA in 77 innings. He has 79 strikeouts, and six walks. Isaac Wensloff (Jr., RHP, Roseau, Minn.) has been steady for the Golden Eagles, with a 4-2 record and a 5.13 ERA in 52.2 innings, with 36 strikeouts. Out of the bullpen, Nate Grafsgaard has been one of the top closers with nine saves. Isaac Roers (R-Jr., RHP, Stacy, Minn.) has six wins as a reliever and has pitched 44.2 innings, exclusively out of the bullpen.

Augustana Projected Starters
C 41 Ryan Clementi, .299, 29 R, 8 2B, 1 HR, 20 RBI
Or C 28 Jake Lundquist, .211, 16 R, 1 HR, 7 RBI
1B/DH/RF 10 Joshua Koskie, .312, 31 R, 6 2B, 5 HR, 27 RBI
Or 1B 18 Ragan Pinnow, .299, 17 R, 8 2B, 3 HR, 16 RBI 
Or 1B 12 Sam Siegel, .307, 32 R, 10 2B, 1 HR, 32 RBI
2B 43 Bjorn Lind, .329, 18 R, 5 2B, 14 RBI
3B 1 Troy Berg, .324, 34 R, 12 2B, 2 3B, 3 HR, 35 RBI
Or 3B 15 Joe Kolbeck, .263, 18 R, 3 2B, 1 3B, 14 RBI
SS 19 Kobe Eikmeier, .347, 32 R, 4 2B, 2 3B, 1 HR, 21 RBI
LF/2B 23 Jack Hines, .453, 49 R, 12 2B, 2 3B, 6 HR, 55 RBI
CF 3 Trevor Winterstein, .382, 66 R, 12 2B, 2 2B, 8 HR, 42 RBI
RF/LF 14 Carter Heinsch, .356, 28 R, 4 2B, 2 3B, 2 HR, 23 RBI
DH 6 Jason Axelberg, .351, 47 R, 8 2B, 1 3B, 17 HR, 61 RBI

Top Pitchers
LHP 8 Ashton Michek, 6-2 3.75 ERA, 57.2 IP, 65 K, 27 BB
LHP 24 Ethan Cole, 4-4 3.95 ERA, 54.2 IP, 55 K, 18 BB
RHP 30 J.D. Hennen, 6-1 4.50 ERA, 50.0 IP, 71 K, 33 BB
RHP 32 Harry Blum, 5-2 4.05 ERA, 4 SV, 46.2 IP, 48 K, 17 BB
RHP 20 Kai Taylor, 3-2 2.06 ERA, 4 SV, 35.0 IP, 31 K, 9 BB
RHP 21 Aidan Torpey, 4-0 3.20 ERA, 1 SV, 25.1 IP, 18 K, 5 BB
RHP 26 Drew Ball, 2-0 3.21 ERA, 14.0 IP, 21 K, 6 BB
RHP 41 Ryan Clementi, 2-1 3.21 ERA, 14.0 IP, 17 K, 6 BB
RHP 7 Jack Sutton, 0-0 2.19 ERA, 12.1 IP, 13 K, 5 BB

Augustana comes into the week hitting .332 as a team, with 448 runs scored, 101 doubles, 49 home runs, and 392 RBI. They are guided by the play of Jack Hines, who is swinging a whopping .453, with 49 runs scored, six doubles, and 55 RBI. Jason Axelberg is hitting .351, with 47 runs scored, 17 home runs, and 61 RBI, while Trevor Winterstein is hitting .382, with 66 runs scored, eight home runs, and 42 RBI.

On the bump, the Vikings have a 4.37 ERA as a team. Southpaw Ashton Michek leads the way with a 6-2 mark and a 3.75 ERA in 57.2 innings. He has 65 strikeouts, and 27 walks. J.D. Hennen is 6-1 with a 4.50 ERA in 50 innings, with 71 strikeouts, while Ethan Cole is 4-4 with a 3.95 ERA in 54.2 innings. Kai Taylor has a 2.06 ERA out of the bullpen with four saves. 

Wayne State Projected Starters
C 28 Casey Prychak, .270, 24 R, 12 2B, 1 3B, 2 HR, 18 RBI
1B 8 Kaden Young, .263, 30 R, 12 2B, 1 3B, 3 HR, 28 RBI
2B 2 Chase Douglas, .315, 43 R, 14 2B, 4 3B, 4 HR, 40 RBI
3B 10 Braden Cannon, .297, 38 R, 9 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 32 RBI
SS 21 Quinn McCafferty, .283, 26 R, 8 2B, 1 3B, 2 HR, 34 RBI
LF 7 Brayden Chaney, .294, 26 R, 4 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 13 RBI
CF 5 Cam Madsen, .308, 44 R, 7 2B, 25 RBI
RF 18 Connor Hunt, .306, 17 R, 2 3B, 12 RBI
Or RF 4 Taylor Gill, .306, 41 R, 10 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 39 RBI
DH 22 Max Heard, .285, 39 R, 19 2B, 2 3B, 7 HR, 46 RBI

Top Pitchers
13 Jackson Shelburne, 5-3 5.40 ERA, 50.0 IP, 48 K, 16 BB
6 Clay Beaumont, 4-1 3.97 ERA, 45.1 IP, 41 K, 21 BB
33 Josh Kilzer, 3-2 3.53 ERA, 35.2 IP, 42 K, 15 BB
19 Kyler Hanson, 1-2 5.65 ERA, 28.2 IP, 19 K, 17 BB
17 Tyson Romero, 1-2 7.27 ERA, 26.0 IP, 24 K, 21 BB
24 Conlin Grady, 1-2 4.97 ERA, 25.1 IP, 23 K, 14 BB
26 Carson Obrecht, 1-1 7.03 ERA, 24.1 IP, 20 K, 19 BB
38 Eli Crnkovich, 3-2 7.71 ERA, 23.1 IP, 26 K, 18 BB
29 Keinan Lentell, 2-0 4.30 ERA, 23.0 IP, 12 K, 10 BB

The Wildcats are guided by Chase Douglas, who is hitting .315, with four home runs, and 40 RBI. Cam Madsen is batting .308, with 44 runs scored, and 25 RBI, while Taylor Gill is swinging .306, with 41 runs scored, five home runs, and 39 RBI.

On the mound, Jackson Shelburne is 5-3 with a 5.40 ERA in 50 innings, with 48 strikeouts. Clay Beaumont comes in with a 4-1 mark and a 3.97 ERA in 45.1 innings, while Josh Kilzer is 3-2 with a 3.53 ERA in 35.2 innings of work. 

Minnesota Duluth Projected Starters
C 3 Michael Gabbard, .204, 14 R, 3 2B, 6 RBI
Or C 23 Caden Klebba, .226, 6 R, 1 2B, 1 HR, 4 RBI
1B 29 Troy Lynch, .390, 43 R, 11 2B, 1 3B, 9 HR, 47 RBI
2B 17 Sam Kliber, .368, 32 R, 12 2B, 2 3B, 30 RBI
3B/DH 25 Gabe Richardson, .263, 28 R, 7 2B, 3 HR, 30 RBI
Or 3B 12 Henry Bushey, .214, 18 R, 7 2B, 2 HR, 14 RBI
SS 2 Joey Flom, .373, 32 R, 10 2B, 1 3B, 3 HR, 27 RBI
LF 19 Hayden Anthony, .316, 17 R, 4 2B, 1 HR, 13 RBI
CF 1 Kade Peloquin, .295, 21 R, 6 2B, 2 3B, 8 HR, 23 RBI
RF 8 Garrett Stauffacher, .333, 38 R, 5 2B, 1 3B, 7 HR, 36 RBI
DH/C 10 Nathan Rosenberg, .344, 46 R, 8 2B, 3 3B, 8 HR, 36 RBI 

Top Pitchers
RHP 24 Henry Wilkinson, 4-2 3.88 ERA, 65.0 IP, 40 K, 19 BB
LHP 31 Brayden Buttweiler, 3-4 4.42 ERA, 57.0 IP, 64 K, 30 BB
RHP 13 Ethan Pettis, 2-4 7.55 ERA, 39.1 IP, 31 K, 20 BB
LHP 33 Ryan Wattermann, 3-0 5.67 ERA, 33.1 IP, 25 K, 11 BB
RHP 23 Caden Klebba, 1-3 6.47 ERA, 32.0 IP, 18 K, 10 BB
RHP 14 Joe Gizzi, 2-4 12.73 ERA, 23.1 IP, 9 K, 14 BB
RHP 11 Zach Kuseke, 4-3 9.78 ERA, 19.1 IP, 16 K, 8 BB
LHP 20 Connor Nygard, 2-0 8.47 ERA, 17.0 IP, 6 K, 7 BB
RHP 15 Cal Smith, 1-0 12.15 ERA, 13.1 IP, 8 K, 9 BB

Minnesota Duluth is led by Troy Lynch, who is hitting .390, with 43 runs scored, nine home runs, and 47 RBI. Joey Flom is hitting .373, with three home runs, and 27 RBI. Kade Peloquin is coming off a NSIC Player of the Week nod and is hitting .295.

On the hill, Henry Wilkinson is 4-2 with a 3.88 ERA in 65 innings, with 40 strikeouts. Lefty Brayden Buttweiler is 3-4 with a 4.42 ERA in 57 innings, while Ryan Wattermann is 3-0 with a 5.67 ERA in 33.1 innings.