ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Concordia-St. Paul baseball team (20-14, 12-13 NSIC) will look to carry their momentum from last week against Winona State (13-22, 10-15 NSIC) for a midweek doubleheader on Thursday before concluding the week with a three-game weekend series against No. 16 Augustana (S.D.) (27-6, 19-4 NSIC) this weekend.
 
The road trip will begin in Winona, Minnesota with a doubleheader at 1:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. from Loughrey against the Warriors. Action against the Vikings will begin with a doubleheader at 1:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. on Saturday and will conclude on Sunday at 12:00 p.m. from Ronken Field in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
 
WATCH ONLINE - NSIC NETWORK
Powered by the NSIC Network, all Northern Sun home and away baseball games will be broadcast online, free of charge, weather permitting. Visit www.nsicnetwork.com/cspbears to watch the Golden Bears. Away games will feature production by the host institution, while home games are broadcast using BlueFrame Technology with the play-by-play call of Dan Flanagan, voice of the Golden Bears for over a decade. Flanagan is a St. Paul native who professionally trained in broadcasting at Fordham University in New York where he was the voice of the basketball and football teams, among other sports. NSIC Network Announcement & FAQ
 
DOWNLOAD THE APP
Fans can download the CSP Bears fan app, free of charge and available in the App Store or on Google Play. The app contains rosters, schedules, scores, stats, news, social media and more! Customize your options to get notifications to your favorite teams, as well. Search "CSP Bears" in the app store to stay up-to-date on Golden Bear athletics.
 
FOLLOW ON SOCIAL MEDIA
Not able to watch or keep an eye on live stats? Check in on social media by following our Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram feeds. Each platform will have different levels of engagement. Twitter will offer scoring updates, Instagram will feature live look-ins and engaging content and Facebook is a great place to get links to previews, recaps and more. Simply search for CSP Bears on any of the platforms and remember to #BeGolden
 
NSIC STANDINGS
Following an impressive 4-1 conference homestand last week, the Golden Bears jumped a spot in the NSIC rankings. They currently reside in eighth place, just behind Sioux Falls (13-12 NSIC) and Southwest Minnesota State (13-11 NSIC).
 
Augustana (19-4 NSIC) moved into the top spot after going 5-0 last week against Sioux Falls and Winona State. Minnesota State (19-5 NSIC) and St. Cloud State (17-7 NSIC) round out the top 3.
 
The eight-team double elimination NSIC Tournament takes place May 8-11, hosted by the University of Mary at Veterans Memorial/Municipal Ballparks in Mandan & Bismarck, North Dakota. The tournament will be streamed on the NSIC Network, with tournament passes or single game access available for purchase.
 
SEASON LEADERS
Nick Thimsen has been phenomenal at the plate during his senior campaign. The Minnetonka, Minnesota native has slashed .426/.513/.783 with 55 hits, 47 RBIs, 43 runs and 16 walks. He has been an extra-base machine with an NSIC-leading 16 doubles and the fifth-most 10 home runs.
 
Bennett McCollow has also shined at the plate with 52 hits, 44 runs, 37 RBIs and 19 walks. The Bloomington, Minnesota native has also shown his ability to produce extra-base hits with 11 doubles, four home runs and a triple.
 
Mason Nadolney 14 home runs are tied for the second most in the NSIC, just one homer behind Jack Hines from Augustana. Noah Juliar's four triples are the second-most in the conference, only one behind Owen Latendresse of SMSU.
 
On the bump, Korey Dahlberg (4-2) improved his earned run average to 5.36 with his third complete game of the season, and he leads the team with a WHIP of 1.35. The junior righty has worked 45.1 innings this season with 33 strikeouts and has walked only 11 batters.
 
Gavin Rusch (3-2) has also been effective with 30 strikeouts in 40.2 innings, while Ian Segna (4-0) possesses a perfect record in his freshman season after seven starts in the Navy and Gold.
 
Eric Lundell (4-2)(3) has shined with a 2.63 earned run average and 25 strikeouts from the bullpen with four wins and three saves in 12 appearances. Matt Sherman (3-2)(1) has also been an anchor from the bullpen with 23 strikeouts in 23.1 innings pitched after 14 relief appearances.
 
LAST TIME OUT
CSP had an excellent showing last week against two of the highest-rated teams in the conference. The Golden Bears finished the five game homestand 4-1 from Bob Barnes Field after splitting with the Huskies on Wednesday and sweeping the Wildcats in the weekend series.
 
The conference-leading Concordia offense was on fire with a team batting over a .396 batting average, a .484 on-base percentage and a .748 slugging percentage. The Golden Bears hit 15 home runs as a team, highlighted by grand slams from Juliar and Will Husemann. In addition, they scored 52 runs and had 50 RBIs while also having 23 batters reach safely via walk.
 
Werner was strong from the plate in the five-game stint with a slash line of  .588/.682/1.118. The senior collected 10 hits, including a pair of homers and three doubles, while driving in 12 runners and tallied eight runs of his own.
 
Thimsen and McCollow also shined with nine hits and six RBIs. The duo combined for five home runs, while Nadolney added three homers and Juliar provided a pair of homers of their own.
 
Lundell played a vital role for the pitching staff that finished the week with 19 strikeouts. The Illinois native collected his fourth win of the season against St. Cloud State and added a pair of saves against Wayne State. He battled through 5.2 innings with four strikeouts and allowed only one earned run.
 
Dahlberg also had one of his best performances of the season in the victory against Wayne State on Saturday. The Farmington, Minnesota native went seven innings on the bump with four strikeouts, allowing only one earned run to finish with a team-leading 1.29 earned run average.
 
On Wednesday, the Golden Bears split the midweek series against the defending NSIC Tournament Champions, St. Cloud State. In game one, after dropping an early lead and finding themselves down by as many as seven runs, Concordia used a heroic eight-run sixth inning to secure a wild 12-11 comeback victory against the Huskies. However, in game two, CSP struggled to keep up with the high-powered SCSU offense. St. Cloud opened the game with a nine-run lead and used four runs in the final frames to claim the run-rule victory, 15-5.
 
CSP concluded the week with their first weekend series sweep against the Wayne State Wildcats in program history. In game one of the Saturday doubleheader, Concordia used strong pitching from starting pitcher Dahlberg and a steady offensive showing that was capped off with an explosive seven-run sixth inning to claim the opening game of the doubleheader, 10-1. The second game of the series was a different narrative, as CSP weathered the early Wildcat storm that saw them trailing by nine runs in the opening two innings, eventually getting the bats hot with seven home runs in the 18-14 comeback thriller. They secured the series sweep after claiming the 7-4 win highlighted by McCollow's 3-run home run.
 
SERIES HISTORY AGAINST WSU
The Golden Bears and the Warriors have met 85 times since April 21, 2000, with the Warriors holding a slim 45-40 series advantage. WSU claimed the first five matchups of the series, including the inaugural series in Winona. CSP's longest winning streak from 2016 to 2017 saw the Golden Bears outscore the Warriors 52-27 during that stint. Last year, the two teams split a doubleheader in a pair of high-scoring contests at Barnes Field. CSP has scored 453 times with an average of 5.33 a game against the Warriors.
 
ABOUT THE WARRIORS
WSU posted a 24-28 (18-16 NSIC) record in the 2023 campaign and was picked to finish eighth in the NSIC Preseason Coaches' Poll with 101 points.
 
The Warriors hold a 13-22 (10-15 NSIC) record this season and are after dropping their last five games to Augustana and Minnesota State last week.
 
In non-conference play, Winona State got off to a bumpy start with seven straight losses to begin the season. However, they ended the non-conference play with some momentum after claiming their final three games against Davis & Elkins (W.Va.), Thomas More (Ky.) and Notre Dame (Ohio).
 
So far in NSIC play, the Warriors have claimed the series against Bemidji State and UMary. They swept the Beavers in a four-game series at home, where they outscored them 47-14. Against Mary, WSU claimed the opening three games before falling in the finale. Additionally, three of their 15 losses in conference play have been by three runs or less.
 
The player to watch for Winona State is  #35 Cole Fuecker. The junior has slashed .348/.429/.570 with 47 hits, 32 runs, 20 RBIs, and 18 walks. He has collected 19 extra-base hits with 12 doubles, four home runs and three triples.
The pitcher to watch is #23 Peter Tveite (2-4). The senior righty has an ERA of 4.71 and a WHIP of 1.13 after 36.1 innings pitched. He has collected 43 strikeouts and has walked 10 batters this season.
 
SERIES HISTORY AGAINST AUGIE
The Golden Bears and Vikings have met 43 times since 2007, with the Vikings holding a 38-5 series advantage. Augustana is currently riding a 10-game winning streak, with the last Golden Bear win coming in 2019 with a 1-0 victory in Boone, Iowa. The most significant win for CSP in the series was an 8-5 win back in 2009, as the four other victories were by two runs or less. Concordia has scored 143 runs with an average of 3.33 runs a game.
 
ABOUT THE VIKINGS
Augustana posted a 47-21 (28-7 NSIC) record in the 2023 campaign and was picked to win the conference with 169 points and 13 first-place votes. The Vikings ended the season on an impressive run as they were the seventh seed in the Division II College World Series.
 
This season, the Vikings hold a 27-6 (19-4 NSIC) record and are first in the NSIC conference standings.
 
Augie picked up right where they left off from last season with an 8-2 non-conference record. They collected wins over Regis (Colo.), Missouri Western State, Drury (Mo.), Upper Iowa and Southwest Minnesota State.
 
They started conference play strong with a 19-4 record. They have claimed the series against Bemidji State, Minnesota Duluth, UMary, Sioux Falls and Winona State. They split their four-game series against St. Cloud State and dropped a doubleheader to Minnesota Crookston, which makes up their four losses in NSIC play.
 
The player to watch for Augustana is #23 Jack Hines. The senior has slashed .439/.489/.943 with 54 hits, 58 RBIs, 49 runs, and seven walks. He has collected 28 extra-base hits with 15 home runs, seven doubles and five triples.
 
The pitcher to watch is #8 Ashton Michek (2-4). The sophomore lefty has an ERA of 2.28 and a WHIP of 1.08  after 47.1 innings pitched. He has collected 58 strikeouts and has walked 14 batters this season.