ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Concordia-St. Paul softball team (22-18, 9-11 NSIC) is preparing for their first home games since April 2^nd, playing 12 games on the road in that stretch of time. The Golden Bears are set to host Bemidji State on Friday and Minnesota Crookston on Saturday. Both doubleheaders are scheduled to start at 12 p.m.
 
With two weeks left of the regular season and five conference doubleheaders left, CSP is currently in a three-way tie for the last playoff spot. However, there are four teams that are only one game ahead of the Bears in the standings, making a lot of different outcomes possible as the regular season wraps up.
 
LAST TIME OUT
The Golden Bears most recently headed to Winona to take on the nationally ranked Warriors, falling in game one 1-0 and in game two 11-3 in five innings. WSU scored in the bottom of the seventh inning to win the first game and used a big fourth inning in the second game to end the game in five innings.
 
Each team only had three hits in the first game, as junior Kali Kaestner kept pace with Winona State's Jordyn Kleman, who was named the preseason pitcher of the year earlier this season. This was Kaestner's second start in a row where she gave up four hits or less.
 
The Golden Bears had their first baserunner in the game in the fifth inning when Hannah Carlson singled to centerfield. Katie Carlson also walked in the inning, putting Hannah Carlson in scoring position, but neither were able to score. CSP once again had runners on in the sixth as both Emma Adamek and Carlie Hart singled, but once again were held scoreless. In the bottom of the seventh, WSU opened the inning with a single and bunted the runner over, allowing her to score on a single to left center giving them the 1-0 win.
 
In game two, the Warriors held a 7-5 advantage in hits, but also capitalized on five walks and two hit batters to get some extra runners on base. The Bears held a 3-1 lead in the game, taking over the lead in the top of the fourth inning when Adamek doubled scoring both Cam Veenbaas and Katie Carlson. Winona State answered these runs with a big inning, scoring 10 runs on six hits. They then held CSP in the top of the fifth to give them the run-rule victory.
 
BEMIDJI STATE SERIES HISTORY
Concordia owns an impressive 34-7 record against the Beavers, who have been consistent opponents since 2000. To start the series, the Bears won 19 out of the first 20 games, but recently Bemidji State has won three of the last five. However, CSP was unable to play Bemidji State in their NSIC contests last season due to weather, but had defeated them 11-3 earlier in the year in a non-conference matchup. The Golden Bears are a perfect 8-0 when playing the Beavers at home.
 
LAST MEETING VS. BSU
The Bears and the Beavers last met in the Dragon Beaver Bash early last season, for a non-conference contest at the West St. Paul dome. In the game, CSP recorded 14 hits and capitalized on two Beaver errors to claim a five-inning, 11-3 victory.
 
Bemidji State took a 3-1 lead after the first inning, using three singles and a pair of doubles to score their three runs. These were the only runs they would get, though, as Kaestner came in to relieve Samantha Sullivan and pitched four scoreless innings, giving up no hits.
 
Concordia regained the lead in the second inning, scoring four runs on four hits. CSP added two more runs in each of the next three innings to cruise to an 11-3 win.
 
Nine different Golden Bears tallied at least one hit in the contest with Hannah Carlson going 3-3 and Veenbaas going 2-2. Both Nicole Thompson and Justine Schattner led the team in RBIs, each driving in three runs.   
 
ABOUT THE BEAVERS
Bemidji State is 22-22 on the year with a 5-15 record in conference play. Their NSIC wins have been over Minnesota Crookston (2), Sioux Falls, Northern State, and MSU Moorhead. Most recently, the team is coming off a pair of losses to Minnesota Duluth and they enter this weekend's games with an eight game losing streak.
 
The Beavers are hitting for a team .291 batting average and have five players hitting .300 or better. Offensively, they are led by senior Jessica Burlingame, who has a .394/.435/.606 slash line and is a perfect 17-17 in stolen bases. She has also driven in 29 runs, the second most on the team. Nine different players in their lineup have hit at least one home run and senior Makayla Pagel leads the team with 35 runs batted in.
 
BSU's top pitcher is found in sophomore Stephi Dullum who has pitched 119 innings and has posted a 9-11 record on the season. Dullum has a 2.41 ERA and is holding opponents to a .280 average. She has struck out 74 batters on the year while walking only 15.
 
MINNESOTA CROOKSTON SERIES HISTORY
Entering this weekend's doubleheader, the Bears hold a dominant 38-1 all-time record against the Golden Eagles. Their only loss to UMC to date took place in 2002 and CSP has now won the past 35 games straight. When playing at home, Concordia has posted a 9-0 record.
 
LAST MEETING VS. UMC
The Golden Bears swept Minnesota Crookston in last year's meeting, when the teams had to play in the West St. Paul due to weather and field conditions. CSP won the first game 11-3 before taking game two 12-4.
 
In game one, Concordia scored three runs in the first inning, but UMC answered with two runs of their own in the bottom of the inning. The Bears kept up the offensive pressure, though, scoring in four of the last five innings to claim the win.
 
CSP had 18 hits in the game, which proved to be the most of any game all season for the Bears. Both Hart and Thompson had impressive games at the top of the lineup for CSP, combining for seven hits and four runs. Aryka Knoche, Hannah Carlson, and Lily Langevin all had two hits in the game as well. Sullivan earned the win in the circle for Concordia, giving up three runs on six hits and four walks, while striking out three.
 
In game two, both teams had over 10 hits, but CSP took advantage of seven walks and four UMC errors to go on to win 12-4. Hart and Thompson once again paced the Golden Bear offense, combining for seven hits, five RBIs, and half of the team's runs.
 
Knoche collected the win in the circle, pitching the first five innings and giving up four runs on 11 hits. Kaestner came in for the final two innings, not allowing a single hit.
 
ABOUT THE GOLDEN EAGLES
Minnesota Crookston has a 13-31 season record and is 2-18 in NSIC games. The Golden Eagles recorded NSIC wins over Sioux Falls (1-0) and Northern State (4-3). The Eagles have lost their last nine games, most recently being swept by St. Cloud State. UMC will also play Minnesota State before facing the Golden Bears on Saturday.
 
The Golden Eagles are hitting for a .255 average while allowing opponents to hit for a .341 average. The team has recorded a .943 fielding percentage and has hit 18 homers and stolen 25 bases. Junior Malia Pula is one of UMC's top hitters, hitting for a .291 average and .454 slugging percentage. She is leading the team in hits (41) and is tied for the most RBIs (23).
 
Sophomore Taylor Graven and junior Paige Pitlick have pitched the most innings for the Golden Eagles, with both over 100 innings pitched. Graven has a 4.24 ERA on the season and is 5-8 with 68 strikeouts. Pitlick is 6-17 on the year with a 4.27 ERA and a team-leading 87 K's.