ST. PAUL, Minn. – This weekend's 4-game NSIC series between Concordia-St. Paul (6-12, 2-6 NSIC) and Northern State (4-11, 0-8 NSIC) has had some alterations.
 
Initially scheduled for four games over three days from Friday through Sunday on campus, the series has been relocated to Veterans Field at Minnetonka High School and will feature doubleheaders on Friday at 9:30 a.m. and Saturday at 1:30 p.m.
 
The Golden Bears and Wolves are aiming to dodge cold and rain/snow conditions on Sunday with the schedule changes.

BROADCAST INFORMATION
The 4-game series will feature a single, static HD camera setup with a view from the Veterans Field press box behind home plate slightly faded towards the third base dugout. The play-by-play call will be from veteran broadcaster Tanner Hoops, the voice of the Sioux Falls Canaries and University of Minnesota volleyball program while also working as a studio host for Gopher football and hockey. 

Hoops is filling in for Dan Flanagan, the voice of the Golden Bears who will be on assignment covering CSP softball at the University of Northwestern in Roseville this weekend.
 
ABOUT THE GOLDEN BEARS
The Golden Bears have had an up-and-down start to the 2025 season, going 6-5 after an 0-2 start. But the club will now look to bounce back from a 5-game skid, with four of the five losses by a combined seven runs with those four games being decided by three runs or less including a pair of 1-run losses.
 
Of Concordia's six NSIC losses, three have been 1-run losses and four have been by three runs or less as the team looks to trend back in the win the column this weekend.
 
The Golden Bears and their opponents have eerily similar season slash lines, as well, with CSP hitting .287/.389/.429 compared to .291/.400/.423 by the opposition with both CSP and opponents hitting 52 extra-base hits with CSP out-homering opponents 16-11. The proximity in slash line also reflects the season run margin, with CSP outscored by just 10 runs, 136-126, less than a half run per game on 18 games.
 
Noah Juliar has led the lineup, hitting a team-best .408 (29-71) while adding a .469 OBP and .549 slugging percentage. He leads the team with seven doubles and is tied for the team lead with 14 RBIs while ranking third on the squad with 16 runs scored while playing error-free right field in all 18 contests.
 
Bennett McCollow has a team-best 1.150 OPS (.354/.488/.662), leading the team in OBP and SLG with a team-high five home runs and 19 runs scored. He's tied for the team-high with 12 walks and has made only two errors defensively while playing 15 of his 18 games at second base. His 10 extra-base hits lead the roster.
 
The balanced lineup features production from everywhere, with all eight players qualified for the batting title (3.0 PA per team game played) producing at least 10 RBIs, while the team has also provided starts to seven additional players.
 
Third baseman Will Husemann is tied with Juliar with the team-lead in RBIs (14), second on the team in homers (4) and runs scored (18) while adding a .301/.386/.521 slash line. Catcher Trett Joles is right with him with a .314/.426/.529 slash, 13 runs, three homers and 11 RBIs in 15 games as the starting backstop has been given some early season breathers from the workload behind the plate.
 
Freshman Eric Berg has been a breakout performer early in the year, ranking third on the team in hitting at .327 (17-52) in his first 16 games, drawing 14 starts with versatility between DH (8), left field (4) and first base (2). He's second on the team with six doubles and has scored eight runs while knocking in 10.

Veteran Kal Brohmer has also been versatile between left field (12), first base (4) and DH (1), getting on base regularly with a .392 clip, a 12-9 BB-SO rate, 10 runs and RBIs.
 
Centerfielder Kaden Johnson has stolen seven bases in as many tries while adding punch with four doubles, and shortstop Koby McBroome has drawn 10 walks and stolen four bags while batting at or near the top of the order, providing two doubles, a triple and two homers.
 
The most notable platoon players so far include first baseman Charlie Harms who has a strong .362 OBP with 11 walks in 16 games played while drawing 10 starts at first, scoring seven and driving in six runs with a positive BB-SO ratio (11-7). Backup catcher Eli Nelson has been productive in his role, as well, slugging .455 to lead platoon players while starting in six games behind the plate and appearing in eight overall. He's slugged three extra-base hits among his five total hits with doubles and a home run and has seven RBIs. Infielder Jack Setterlund has played in 11 games and secured five starts with three at second base and two at shortstop. He leads the platoon players with a .238 average (5-21), has scored and driven in four runs and only struck out three times in 21 at bats.
 
The Golden Bears have been using Fritz Meyer (0-3, 11.37), Korey Dahlberg (0-2, 8.44), Ian Segna (1-1, 4.00) and Gavin Rusch (0-1, 7.50) for the 4-game series pitching rotation. The team does not announce upcoming starting pitchers, and Leo Bustos (1-0, 0.00) and Reece Piontek (0-0, 9.69) have each started twice while Andrew Boeser (1-1, 17.36) has also picked up a spot start this year.
 
Segna has been off to a strong start, compiling 21 strikeouts with a 3-1 SO-BB ratio across 18.0 innings with a .265 opponent average. He has pitched 5.0 or more innings in all three starts and mixed in a scoreless relief inning, as well. In his last two starts, he's struck out 16 in 12.0 innings against just three walks.
 
Bustos has also been stellar this year, split between two starts and two relief appearances, working 8.2 innings with just one unearned run allowed on four hits and a .154 average with five strikeouts. He last pitched on Tuesday, getting the start at Upper Iowa and pitching two scoreless innings with three walks in a bullpen game.
 
Liam Bystol has appeared in five games in relief, working 7.2 innings to a 2.35 ERA with seven strikeouts, and Ollie Yuhas has pitched 10.2 innings in five appearances with a 3.38 ERA and a 1-0 record. Jack Greenlun leads the bullpen in innings (13.2), striking out 13 with a 5.93 ERA while pitching in numerous high-leverage situations with a tough-luck 1-4 record as CSP holds a 2-8 record in games decided by three runs or less.
 
IN THE RANKINGS
Team Double Plays/Game, 0.89 (22^nd NCAA, 3^rd NSIC)
Hits/Game: Noah Juliar, 1.61 (49^th NCAA, 4^th NSIC)
Doubles: Noah Juliar, 7 (2^nd NSIC)
Home Runs: Bennett McCollow, 5 (3^rd NSIC)
Hit by Pitch: Trett Joles, 4 (7^th NSIC)
On Base Percentage: Bennett McCollow, .488 (17^th NSIC)
Slugging Percentage: Bennett McCollow, .662 (10^th NSIC)
Stolen Bases/Game: Kaden Johnson, 0.39 (6^th NSIC)
Sacrifice Bunts: Jack Setterlund, 3 (70^th NCAA, 4^th NSIC)
Strikeout-Walk Ratio: Gavin Rusch, 3.40 (7^th NSIC)
Strikeout-Walk Ratio: Ian Segna, 3.00 (8^th NSIC)
Strikeouts/9 Innings: Ian Segna, 10.5 (84^th NCAA, 5^th NSIC)
Walks/9 Innings: Gavin Rusch, 2.5 (5^th NSIC)
 
ABOUT NORTHERN STATE
The Wolves are off to a 4-11 overall start with an 0-8 record in NSIC play and a 4-3 record during non-conference contests.
 
Last year, Northern State finished 12^th in the NSIC (13-26) standings and 18-31 overall and were picked 13^th in the 2025 NSIC Preseason Baseball Coaches' Poll.
 
The Wolves opened the 2025 season with conference games against Minnesota State in St. Peter, Minnesota, dropping all four contests (7-14, 7-14, 5-8, 3-15) to the Mavericks. NSU's second league series was in Tucson, Arizona against Winona State, dropping all four games by three runs or less (7-9, 5-8, 1-4, 12-14).
 
Northern State's non-conference included winning two-of-three from Dakota Wesleyan, with two games in Mitchell, S.D. in a doubleheader sweep followed by a single-game loss five days later in Tucson. NSU also faced Wesleyan (11-8), Carthage (13-16) and Hamline (13-3) in non-conference games in Arizona.
 
The Wolves have been getting the job done defensively, ranking fifth in the league in fielding percentage (.972), a mark that's 34^th in the country, and they lead the conference in double plays with nearly one per game (0.93), the 17^th-best DP rate in the nation.
 
The Wolves have a pair of sluggers with 1.000-plus OPS on the year: Brennan Phillips (1.031) and Nick Friedges (1.009). Phillips leads the team in hitting at .367 (18-49) while adding five walks and 10 HBP for a .500 OBP while slugging five doubles, a homer and a .531 slugging percentage. He's second on the team with 11 RBIs, trailing only Jack Weidner with 15. Friedges, meanwhile, is hitting .320 (16-50) with seven walks and four HBP for a .429 OBP with four doubles and three homers for a .580 SLG, and 10 RBIs.
 
Nicholas Ochoa has a team-high 16 runs and Dillon Castellanos is just behind with 14 with Castellanos leading the team with four stolen bases.
 
NSU's starting rotation consists of Carson Zimmel with four starts (1-3, 8.68), Braxton Kusler with three (1-2, 7.15) and Lance Behrens with three (2-2, 9.20). Kusler has 17 strikeouts in 11.1 innings, but has walked 12 while Behrens is also striking out more than a batter per inning with 16 in 14.2 frames but has issued a .339 opponent average. Both firearms have a 1.90-plus WHIP.
 
Zimmel's 18.2 innings lead the staff, allowing less than a hit per inning (17), but walking 15 against 12 strikeouts.
 
The bullpen features 6.2 innings from Tyler Boyum (2.70 ERA, 1.35 WHIP), 7.2 innings from Kaleb Hubble (3.52 ERA, 1.29 WHIP), 7.0 innings from Hunter Brown (3.86 ERA, 1.29 WHIP) and 9.2 innings from Blake Ask (4.66 ERA, 1.24 WHIP) as the four pitchers have combined for 13 appearances and 31.0 innings, allowing 13 earned runs.