Baseball 4/3/2026 8:52:00 PM Nick Huntimer, Dakota State University Sports Information Director

DSU baseball hosts Valley City State (N.D.) in Frontier Conference 4-game series at Flynn Field

Four-game series relocated to Flynn Field in Madison, S.D., on Monday and Tuesday at 1 p.m. (doubleheader on each day)

April 3, 2026

THIS WEEK'S PREVIEW
The Dakota State University Trojan baseball team (12-18 overall record, 4-4 Frontier Conference record) is scheduled to play their first Frontier Conference home four-game series Monday and Tuesday at Flynn Field (S. Egan Ave.) in downtown Madison, S.D. Due to winter storm that impacted North Dakota, the four-game series with Valley City State (N.D.) (14-15 overall record, 1-7 Frontier Conference record) was forced to be relocated from Valley City, N.D. to Madison. The four-game series will consists of two doubleheaders on each day, starting at 1 p.m.

The Trojans' conference nine-inning home game versus No. 3 Bellevue (Neb.) scheduled for Tuesday has been postponed to allow all Frontier Conference schools to play their four-game series on Monday and Tuesday. The make-up date has not been set.

QUICK HITS
*All three Frontier Conference four-game series had been forced to relocate and made up due to snowstorm in the Midwest region this weekend.

*Dakota State was originally scheduled to play four-game series at Valley City State (N.D.) this year. That four-game series had been relocated to Flynn Field with DSU as the home team in the series. It is tentatively scheduled for first home games this season for Dakota State.

*The Trojans-Bellevue (Neb.) single 9-inning Frontier Conference game scheduled for Tuesday at Flynn Field has been postponed to a later date.

*Dakota State is scheduled to play a nine-game home stand at Flynn Field through April 14 versus Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.).

2025-26 STATS COMPARISON


Batting Average	.283	.295
Runs	182	206
On-Base %	.380	.391
Slugging %	.410	.461
Home Runs	18	31
Hits	254	270
Doubles	47	53
Triples	6	3
Stolen Bases	27	46
Walks	40	119
Fielding %	.963	.963
ERA	7.48	8.57

SCOUTING THE VIKINGS
Alec DeMaria enters his third season as the head coach at Valley City State (N.D.). During his tenure, the Vikings compiled a 41-65 record.

Valley City State went 1-3 at the Frontier Conference Jamboree, opening with a 11-1 victory over Bismarck State (N.D.) before dropping their remaining three contests to Dakota State (S.D.) 16-6, Dickinson State (N.D.) 6-5, and (4) Bellevue (Neb.) 12-3.

Last weekend, Valley City State was swept by (4) Bellevue (Neb.), giving up an average of 15.5 runs per game.

The Viking offense is led by Hunter Logan, who is batting .316 while leading the team in RBI with 27. On the mound, Valley City State is led by Connor Martin. The left-hander has recorded a 5.63 earned run average through 48 innings of work this season. He has a 4-3 record and has a batting average against of .229.

Last season, the Trojans recorded a 5-0 record against Valley City State, including a dramatic comeback victory in the North Star Athletic Association conference post-season tournament in Dickinson, N.D. Dawson Portner hit a grand slam in the top of the ninth inning to lift the Trojans to a 5-4 victory against Valley City State.

DSU has won eight straight in the series against VCSU, including 14 of the last 15 meetings.

LAST TIME OUT
Dakota State played their first Frontier Conference four-game series on the road last weekend at Haaland Field, visiting Bismarck State (N.D.). The Mystics came with a 3-1 series victory over the Trojans.

Dakota State took the first lead of the game in the top second inning before Bismarck State plated four runs in the bottom half of the inning for a 4-1 lead. After each team scored a run in the third inning, the Mystics added four runs in the bottom fourth frame to balloon their lead to 9-2. The Trojans mounted a comeback after scoring a run in the top fifth and four runs in the top sixth inning but fell short by the score of 9-7.

Connor Raney and Chris Vinson each hit a home run and collected two RBIs for DSU. Cameron DeMaria added a double. Aidan Perry, Camaron Haller, and Hunter Den Boer each recorded a hit. Ryland Carroll recorded the setback on the pitching circle after pitching 3 2/3 innings. Kellan Johns and Cole Drumheller each pitched 2 1/3 scoreless innings in relief.

The Trojans won the second game of the four-game series, highlighted by an eight-run offense production in the top third inning. After both teams scoring twice in the first inning, Perry drilled a 2-RBI double to extend DSU's lead to 4-2 in the top second. DSU poured in eight runs in the top third inning, thanks to DeMaria's grand slam. The Trojans never trailed for the rest of the game, earning a 17-9 win to earn a doubleheader split after the first day.

DeMaria earned a game-high seven RBIs and three hits for Dakota State. Raney and George Hogan each added three hits. Perry had a double and two RBIs. Haller, Cameron Kittridge, and Den Boer each had two hits. Hogan and Den Boer collected two RBIs. Austin Armstrong started the game for DSU, working for 4 2/3 innings and recorded nine strikeouts. Ian Beer earned his first win of the season after working 1 2/3 innings in relief. Johns tossed 2 2/3 shutout innings in relief, recording five strikeouts.

On the second day of the doubleheader, Dakota State led 4-3 after four innings. The Mystics rallied back in the bottom seventh to tie the game at 4-4 and forced an extra inning. BSC secured a 5-4 victory after winning in the bottom eighth inning with one out.

Raney led the Trojans with three hits and an RBI. Perry added a double and two RBIs. Den Boer tallied two singles and an RBI. Kittridge, AIden Barfuss, and Vinson each recorded a single. Hayden Leighty tossed five innings on the pitching mound for DSU and recorded nine strikeouts. Collin Grimmel worked for 1 1/3 innings in relief, while Brody Thompson took the setback after working for one inning and three strikeouts.

DSU kicked off the four-game series finale with a 2-0 lead after two innings. BSC answered with two runs in the bottom third to tie the game at 2-2 before the Trojans overtook the lead in the top fourth 4-2 after Kittridge's 2-run home run. Tye Mystics scored six runs in the bottom fourth inning to take an 8-4 lead and held off the Trojans 10-8 to take the series victory.

Kittridge went 3-for-4 at the plate with a home run, double, single, and drove in three runs for Dakota State. Raney added a home run and two RBIs. Perry, Haller, and Hogan each had two hits. Barfuss had a double and two RBIs. Max Woll started the game on the pitching mound, working for 3 2/3 innings. Alex Ferrin took the defeat after tossing an inning before Braylon Bear pitched 1 1/3 scoreless innings in relief.

Dakota State played their fifth straight game on their third consecutive day as they return home late Sunday night and head to Mitchell for a non-conference contest with rival Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.) the next day. The Trojans took the first lead in the top first inning before the Tigers scored five runs in the bottom half for a 5-1 lead. DSU shut down DWU in the next eight innings as they rallied back in the top ninth inning to tie the game at 5-5 and forced the extra inning. Dakota State scored twice in the top 10th inning and held off Dakota Wesleyan's comeback in the bottom of the 10th for a 7-6 victory.

The Trojans extended their winning streak to seven games in the series with the Tigers, where they will meet for the second time at Flynn Field on April 15. Raney led the Trojans with three singles. Perry had three walks and three runs. Hogan and DeMaria each had two hits. DeMaria registered four walks. Kittridge and Barfuss each had a hit and two RBIs. Den Boer had a single and an RBI. Caleb Hoppe started the game for DSU, while Johns earned the victory after holding the Tigers to one run in nine innings and registered nine strikeouts. Thompson earned his second save of the season after closing the game with the final two outs.

DAKOTA STATE IN THE FRONTIER CONFERENCE RANKINGS
According to the NAIA-PrestoStats as of Friday, Cameron DeMaria leads the Frontier Conference with 42 runs batted in (RBIs). He is also fourth with .400 batting average prior to the four-game series with Valley City State (N.D.).

Connor Raney leads the Frontier Conference with 17 stolen bases for DSU. He is 17-for-18 on stolen base attempts. Austin Armstrong is tied for third in the league with three saves.

The Trojans are fourth in the conference with .295 team batting average, and .391 on-base percentage. The Trojans are tied for third in the Frontier Conference with .461 slugging percentage. DSU also tied for second best fielding percentage in the conference, registering .963 fielding percentage.

2026 DSU BASEBALL TEAM LEADERS

· Hits: Cameron DeMaria—38 hits

· Batting Average: Cameron DeMaria—.400 batting average (38-of-95 at-bats)

· Slugging Percentage: Cameron DeMaria—.705 slugging percentage (23 singles, 8 doubles, 7 home runs)

· Runs Batted In (RBI): Cameron DeMaria—42 RBIs

· Doubles: Aidan Perry—8 doubles

· Triples: Connor Raney—2 triples

· Home Runs: Cameron DeMaria—7 home runs

· Total Bases: Cameron DeMaria—67 total bases

· Runs Scored: Connor Raney—37 runs

· Walks: Aidan Perry—20 walks

· Hit-by-Pitch: Cameron DeMaria—10 hit-by-pitches