LIVE COVERAGE

This Week: The University of Mary softball team is set to play three conference doubleheaders this week beginning with Northern State University in Aberdeen, S.D. on Tuesday, April 15 at 2 p.m. U-Mary be at home for the weekend as it hosts St. Cloud State University on Friday, April 18 at 1 p.m. and University of Minnesota Duluth on Saturday at noon.
 
Follow Along: Livestats for all three doubleheaders can be found at goumary.com/coverage.
 
Social: In game updates will be posted on the Marauders official Twitter page @umarysports. You can also check out the Marauders official Facebook page "Marauder Athletics". Be sure to give softball's official Twitter a follow as well @umary_softball.
 
Records:
U-Mary 22-16 (7-7 NSIC)     
Northern State 9-23 (2-14 NSIC)       
St. Cloud State 8-22-1 (2-11-1 NSIC)     
Minnesota Duluth 18-16 (4-5 NSIC)     
 
History vs. NSU: Dating back to 2006, U-Mary has a 17-3 record against Northern State, including an 11-1 advantage in conference meetings. The Marauders have lost two of their last three meeting with the Wolves, prior to which they had a 15 game winning streak. U-Mary is 9-1 in road games against Northern State since 2006.
 
History vs. SCSU: Dating back to 2006, U-Mary has a 12-7 record against St. Cloud State, including an 8-2 advantage in conference meetings. The Marauders have lost two of their last three meeting with the Huskies, prior to which they had won seven straight meetings. U-Mary is 8-5 in road games against SCSU since 2006.
 
History vs. UMD: Dating back to 2008, U-Mary has a 4-17 record against Minnesota Duluth, including a 1-9 record in conference meetings. The Marauders won the most recent matchup of the series, prior to which they had lost 13-of-14 against the Bulldogs. U-Mary is 0-4 in road games against UMD since 2008.
 
Last Season vs. NSU: Last season's scheduled meeting between U-Mary and Northern State was cancelled. In 2012 the Marauders split with the Wolves winning the opener 3-2, before falling in the second game 6-4.

Last Season vs. SCSU: Cherlyn Trujillo was dominant in the circle leading U-Mary to a split against St. Cloud State. In game one U-Mary got down late and was unable to comeback as they fell 2-1. In game two the Marauders rallied late as they held on for a 4-0 victory. Trujillo got the nod for the Marauders in both games pitching all 13 innings including a complete game shutout in the second game. Picking up her 13th win of the season, the lefty struck out 11 while walking just one.
 
Earlier this season vs. UMD: Behind a seventh inning offensive explosion, U-Mary defeated Minnesota Duluth 10-3. Tied 3-3 heading to the seventh, the Marauders scored seven runs on five hits and took advantage of one Bulldogs error. Freshman Amber Gamboa was a perfect 4-for-4 at the plate, drew a walk and scored a run. Julissa Perales went 3-for-4, including a double, and had two RBI.
 
Last Season vs. UMD: Forced to play indoors due to the weather, U-Mary was swept by Minnesota Duluth in St. Cloud. Tied late in the game, U-Mary stumbled as they dropped game one 5-1. The Marauders got up early in game two, but consecutive five run innings by the Bulldogs were too much to overcome as they dropped game two 11-2. Jessica Alvarado was one of the few bright spots for the Marauders going 3-for-6 on the night and scoring a run.

Predictions: After finishing ninth in the NSIC last season, U-Mary was selected to finish in ninth again this season. After finishing 11th in the NSIC last season, Northern State was tabbed by the coaches to finish there again in the preseason poll. After finishing 10th in the NSIC last season, St. Cloud State was tabbed eighth in the preseason coaches poll. After finishing first in the NSIC last season, Minnesota Duluth received one first place votes, but was tabbed fourth in the coaches poll.
 
U-Mary: The Marauders enter the week winners of three of their last four games, including a sweep of Concordia-St. Paul. Offensively U-Mary is ranked 33rd in the nation in batting average at .329 and is averaging 5.3 runs per game. The Marauders allow 3.8 runs per game, 3.1 of which are earned. U-Mary's offense is lead by 2013 all-region performer Allison Brown, who is hitting .422 with 32 RBI. Anchoring a strong pitching staff, Cherlyn Trujillo has posted a 2.09 ERA with 124 strikeouts in 117.1 innings.
 
NSU: The Wolves enter the week losers of their last three games, including a pair losses to Winona State. Offensively NSU has struggled to hit the ball consistently hitting .234 as a team and averaging just 3.1 per game. The Wolves allow 6.2 runs per game, 5.9 of which are earned. Rachel Albright is leading NSU's offense with a .311 batting average and 20 RBI. Kami Smesmo has been the Wolves most reliable pitcher posting a 4.24 ERA, with 63 strikeouts in 100.2 innings.
 
SCSU: The Huskies enter the week losers of their last four after being swept by No. 13 Augustana and Wayne State last weekend. Offensively SCSU is hitting .254 as a team and averaging just 2.7 runs per game. The Huskies have allowed 5.7 runs per game, 4.6 of which are earned. Breana Canova is leading SCSU in batting average at .352 and RBI at 18. Kelly Franks has been leaned on heavily in the circle for the Huskies pitching 100.1 innings, while maintain 3.42 ERA and striking out 105.
 
UMD: The Bulldogs enter the week losers of two of three last weekend including being swept by No. 13 Augustana. Offensively UMD is hitting .282 and averaging 4.4 runs per game. The Bulldogs have allowed just 3.7 runs per game, 3.4 of which are earned. Jordan Rice is leading UMD with a .375 batting average and 28 RBI and 26 runs scored. Starting 21 games for the Bulldogs Cayli Sadler is leading the UMD pitching staff with a 2.53 ERA and 120 strikeouts in 146.2 innings.
 
Last Week: U-Mary had outstanding individual performances from both Kristin Ormsby and Cherlyn Trujillo as they paced the Marauders to a 3-1 record. The Marauders split with MSU Moorhead and swept Concordia-St. Paul. Ormsby went 7-for-13 with three home runs, a 1.308 slugging percentage, a .600 on base percentage and eight RBI. Trujillo picked up all three of U-Mary's as she struck out 34 batters in 22.2 innings and allowed just four earned runs.
 
On Deck: The Marauders will conclude the regular season next week as they play a trio of Northern Sun doubleheaders. U-Mary will be on the road against Bemidji State University on April 23 and will conclude the regular season at home with Wayne State College on April 26 and Augustana College on April 27. U-Mary's match-up with Wayne State will serve as Breast Cancer Awareness Day and its doubleheader against Augustana will mark Senior Day for Allison Brown and Cherlyn Trujillo.

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