DSU softball senior weekend at Thue Field versus Bismarck State (N.D.)

Softball 4/23/2026 7:06:00 PM Nick Huntimer, Dakota State University Sports Information Director

Trojans host Bismarck State (N.D.) in Frontier Conference four-game series home finale

Paws (dog) at the Park Friday; DSU softball seniors recognition Saturday at Thue Field

April 23, 2026

THIS WEEK'S PREVIEW
The Dakota State University Trojan softball team (13-31 overall record, 5-19 Frontier Conference record) hosts Bismarck State (N.D.) (15-29, 10-13 Frontier Conference record) in the Frontier Conference four-game series finale at Thue Field. The doubleheader starts Friday (Paws at the Park) at 2 p.m. and concludes the four-game series with a doubleheader Saturday afternoon at 12 p.m.

The Trojan softball team will be honoring their five seniors after the conclusion of the four-game series late Saturday afternoon at Thue Field.

QUICK HITS
*All eight Frontier Conference teams are concluding their regular season schedule with a four-game series this weekend, ending with Carroll (Mont.) at Mayville State (N.D.) on Sunday-Monday.
*Dakota State plays their final home games of the 2026 season Friday and Saturday. This will be the first home games since April 14 when they swept Waldorf (Iowa) in a non-conference doubleheader at Thue Field.
*The Trojans are 3-1 record at home, including the Frontier Conference doubleheader split with Bellevue (Neb.). DSU is seeking their first home field winning record since the 2024 season (5-3 record at Thue Field).
*Dakota State has won the last three home contests at Thue Field, starting on March 30 with a 5-4 victory over the Bruins.
*Paws at the Park will be held on Friday, followed by Seniors Day on Saturday. The Trojan softball team will be recognizing their five seniors after the conclusion of the four-game series with Bismarck State Saturday afternoon.

2025-26 STATS COMPARISON


Batting Average	.269	.276
Runs	210	149
On-Base %	.364	.344
Slugging %	.398	.384
Home Runs	19	15
Hits	318	299
Doubles	83	51
Triples	6	11
Stolen Bases	58	41
Walks	160	107
Fielding %	.941	.940
ERA	6.33	6.41

SCOUTING THE MYSTICS
Brady Dutchak begins his second season with the Bismarck State softball team, his first as head coach for the Mystics. This is Bismarck State's first season as a member of the NAIA and the Frontier Conference.

The Bismarck State offense is led by Brielle Wrangham, who is batting .405 with a 1.200 OPS and six home runs and 29 RBI on the season. The Bismarck State pitching staff is pitching to a 6.53 team ERA and a .370 batting average against.

This will be the first ever meeting between Bismarck State and Dakota State.

DAKOTA STATE SOFTBALL SENIORS
The Dakota State University Trojan softball team will be honoring their five seniors after the conclusion of the Frontier Conference four-game series on Saturday late afternoon at Thue Field.

The five seniors are Maycee Bricker, Katie Hanson, Hannah McFarland, Roanna Riggins, and Mason Usselman. Bricker, McFarland, Riggins, and Usselman had been with the Trojans for all four years. Hanson was a junior transfer and joined the DSU softball team in 2024-25 season.

FRONTIER CONFERENCE POSTSEASON TOURNAMENT
The first-ever Frontier Conference softball postseason tournament takes place at Bravera Field at Sanford Sports Complex in Dickinson, N.D. The eight-team double elimination format gets underway on Thursday, April 30, and runs through Sunday, May 3 with the championship game. Monday, May 4 is the rain date.

All eight teams will be playing one game on the first day of the postseason tournament, starting at 10 a.m. (Mountain Time). The tournament continues on Friday, May 1, with loser's out and winner's out games.

The winner of the postseason tournament will receive the league's automatic bid to the NAIA Softball National Tournament Opening Round on May 11-13 at campus sites announced by the national office later.

Stay tuned to the fcsports.org for the official bracket and pairings information when it becomes official after this weekend's regular-season finale.

LAST TIME OUT
Dakota State (S.D.) played their final Frontier Conference four-game series road trip last Sunday-Monday, visiting the ng the conference leader Dickinson State (N.D.) at Bravera Field on Sanford Sports Complex. The Blue Hawks took the four-game series sweep over the Trojans.

The Trojans quickly kicked off the four-game series with a 2-0 lead in the top first inning, thanks to Emmalynn Rabe's 2-RBI single. The Blue Hawks then overtook the lead in the bottom second inning with three runs scored and ballooned their lead to 5-2 after four innings. DiSU scored three times in the bottom sixth, while the Trojans scored once in the top seventh as the Blue Hawks secured an 8-3 victory.

Rabe led DSU with a single and two RBIs. Brenley Goebel added a single and an RBI. Quincy Hartley had a double and a run scored. Julia Maldonado had a single. Maycee Bricker took the setback in the pitching circle, despite tossing a complete game.

Dickinson State scored in each inning in the second game of the four-game series, defeating the Trojans 10-1 in five innings. Hartley and Lara Dolezal each recorded a double in the game. Maldonado recorded a single and an RBI. Alexis Resseguie and Goebel each registered a single. Makenna McGee pitched in the game for DSU.

Dickinson State earned a pair of shutout victories over Dakota State on the second day of the doubleheader. The Blue Hawks won the first game 8-0 in five innings. Ally Morrissey had a double for the Trojans. Dolezal and Rabe each had a hit. Bricker started the game in the circle, working for two innings. McGee pitched the final 2 1/3 innings of the game in relief.

DiSU closed the four-game series with a 5-0 victory over DSU. The Trojans tallied six hits in the game, led by Gabrielle Ortega-Alves with a double and single. Resseguie added a double. Rabe and Hartley each had a single. Grace Kitterman pitched a complete game in the circle, despite the defeat.

TROJANS IN THE FRONTIER CONFERENCE RANKS
According to the NAIA-PrestoStats as of Thursday, Dakota State's outfielder Hannah McFarland is ranked ninth in the Frontier Conference with .409 batting average. She is also ranks sixth in the league with 16 stolen bases. She ranks 14th in the conference with .493 on-base percentage. McFarland records 19 walks this season, which is fifth best in the league.

Emmalynn Rade leads Dakota State with four triples this season, which is tied for second most triples in the Frontier Conference.

Maycee Bricker is 12th in the Frontier Conference with 4.39 earned run average (ERA) for the Trojans. She ranks seventh in the league with 54 strikeouts. She is second in the conference with 105 1/3 total innings pitched this season.

Dakota State is fifth in the Frontier Conference with 299 total hits.

DSU SENIORS IN THE RECORD BOOK
A pair of Dakota State seniors are in the record book prior to the four-game series this weekend versus Bismarck State (N.D.).

Maycee Bricker ranks fourth all-time in innings pitched with a total of 418 2/3 innings since 2022-23 season. She is also fifth all-time with 213 strikeouts. Bricker collected 24 all-time pitching victories, which is fifth all-time and one shy of tying with Dakota Novotny's fourth all-time wins with 25.

Hannah McFarland is third all-time in total at-bats, registering 514 total at-bats since the 2022-23 season. She is four at-bats shy of reaching the school record of 518 at-bats set by Tatum Ronke (2016-19) and Brittany Hill (2012-15). McFarland extended her all-time school record of 134 runs scored and 80 stolen bases for the Trojans.

McFarland also owns the all-time school record of 84 walks, breaking the previous record of 71 walks set by Michelle Evdos from 2022-25.

2026 DSU SOFTBALL TEAM LEADERS

· Hits: Hannah McFarland—47 hits

· Batting Average: Hannah McFarland—.409 batting average (47-of-115 at-bats)

· Slugging Percentage: Alexia Hayden—.592 slugging percentage (4 home runs, 3 triples, 13 doubles, 20 singles)

· Runs Batted In (RBI): Alexia Hayden—32 RBIs

· Doubles: Alexia Hayden—13 doubles

· Triples: Emmalynn Rabe—6 triples

· Home Runs: Quincy Hartley—5 home runs

· Total Bases: Alexia Hayden—71 total bases

· Runs Scored: Emmalynn Rabe—26 runs

· Walks: Hannah McFarland—21 walks

· Hit-by-Pitch: Julia Maldonado—5 hit-by-pitches