SIOUX FALLS. – Due to weather and field conditions, the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference baseball series between the University of Sioux Falls and Bemidji State has shifted to locations in Nebraska. USF and BSU will play a doubleheader at Millard North High School in Omaha, Neb., beginning at 7 p.m. on Saturday, March 17. The two teams will also play a doubleheader on Sunday in Plattsmouth, Neb., with a 1 p.m. start.

Weather in Sioux Falls calls for a low of 27 on Saturday and a high around 38 with precipitation excepted tonight into Saturday. The Sunday forecast in Sioux Falls is projected for a low of 33 and a high of 47 degrees. As a result, both universities have agreed to a site change.

Quick take on matchup
USF is 0-10 after its pre-conference schedule has conclude and now face BSU. The Cougars opened the season with three  losses to Metro State, 5-2, 14-3 and 17-8 on Feb. 16-18 before falling to Rogers State, 2-0 and 3-0; and Drury, 5-0, 4-1 on March 2-4. This week (March 13-14), USF dropped 13-12, 8-4, and 13-6 decisions at Colorado School of Mines.Bemidji State has also started slow with two wins in 10 games. The Beavers have lost five straight and own wins over Maryville (Mo.), 13-5; and Upper Iowa, 7-4, in nonconference play.

Fans can follow the action this week on twitter at @USF_Athletics or by  live stats.

USF comes into series hitting .238 with nine home runs
Entering NSIC play, USF ranks 11th in the league with a .238 batting average and have hit nine home runs, which ranks third in the NSIC, in 10 games. USF has a .313 on-base percentage and is slugging at .349. On the mound, the Cougars have a .7.30 ERA, allowing 108 hits and 66 earned runs in 81 1/3 innings.

USF, which was picked 11th in the NSIC Preseason Coaches Poll, is led by head coach Grant Hieb, who is 19-41 in his second season with the program. The Cougars opened the season with three straight losses to Metro State when they were outscored 36-to-13. In a four-game series in Springfield, Mo., the Cougars' offense struggled at .172 over four games and no extra base hits as Rogers State and Drury won four straight games to send USF to 0-7 on the season.  Against Colorado School of Mines, USF scored 22 runs with 33 hits and swatted six home runs, including a season-best four in a heart-breaking 13-12 setback. In that game, Matthew Minnick, who had a season-best five hits and four RBI, slammed a three-run home run for a 10-6 lead but CSM rallied to win in walk-off style in the bottom of the ninth inning.

Opponent review - Bemidji State is hitting .233

BSU, directed by 13th-year head coach Tim Bellow, ranks 13th in the league in hitting at .233 and has one home run and 45 RBI. BSU is slugging .302 with a .336 on-base percentage.  The Beavers will enter play with an 8.89 earned run average with 83 earned runs and 121 hits in 84 innings. Drake Wawro is leading the Beavers with a .316 average and has four RBIs. Scott Litchy is also hitting over .300 at .308 with a .426 on-base percentage and .538 slugging mark. He has MSU's only home run and lead the team in RBIs with seven. On the mount, Connor McNallan has made three starts with a 1-1 record and 4.72 earned run average. Jackson Back (0-2, 15.63 era) Alex Meyer (0-2, 10.45 era) have each made two starts. Travis Carruth (0-2, 5.23 era) has appeared in three games with a start as has Jake Olson (1-0, 3.38 era).

Rehwaldt earns POW honors for first time
Junior first baseman Josh Rehwaldt hit .727 in the opening weekend of play (Metro State, Feb. 16-18) and picked up his first-ever Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Player of the Week honor on Feb. 20. Rehwaldt, a 6-6, 240 pound standout from Burnsville, Minn., registered eight hits in 11 at bats (.727) against Metro State. He also had two home runs, six RBIs and two runs scored. Rehwaldt was named by NSIC coaches as "Player to Watch" in the preseason.

The team leader in hits with 19 (7th, NSIC), Rehwaldt has a .487 batting average, which ranks seventh in the NSIC while his .533 on-base percentage stands ninth in the league. This season, he has four multi-hits games, including five base knocks in six trips on March 13 against Colorado School of Mines. He has an RBI in five different games and multi-RBIs in three contests.

Rehwaldt, a business major at USF, has 12 career HRs, 99 RBI, 165 hits, and 92 runs in making 109 career starts. He also has 24 multi RBI games and 52 multi-hit games. A year ago Rehwaldt was named to the All-NSIC first team after ranking in top 10 in eight NSIC hitting categories. He also became USF's first-ever NCAA DII all-region player with his selection to the 2017 National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) DII squad.

Merriam leading USF with three home runs
Connor Merriam, who ranks second on USF with 10 hits, has found his home run bat with three home runs in the past two games. With three home runs, he ranks second in the NSIC.  In his career, the senior catcher has totaled 14 home runs and 75 RBI. He is hitting .263, slugging. 526 with a .300 on-base percentage.

Gavin, Maes lead improving pitching staff
On the mound, seniors Dylan Gavin and Stuart Maes turned in standout performances against Rogers State but due to the short turnaround time, neither started in the Colorado School of Mines series. Since its opening weekend and a staff ERA of over 12.00, USF has had improved pitching, with the ERA currently resting at 7.30. USF has been hurt by inconsistent control as they have walked 66 in 81 1/3 innings and just 40 strikeouts. They have also give up the long ball with opponents registering 16 on the year. O

Gavin, who was also named by the NSIC as a preseason "Player to Watch" on USF, stands 0-2 but registered a second straight solid start. In two starts, Gavin owns a 3.21 ERA as he has allowed nine hits and five earned runs in 14 innings of work. In addition, he has a team-high 10 strikeouts, including a career-best eight (7 2/3 innings) in his last start, a 2-0 setback to Rogers State.

Senior Stuart Maes tossed his first career complete game in a 3-0 setback to Rogers State on March 3 in Springfield, Mo.  In his first start of the season and fourth in his career, Maes (0-1) allowed just four hits and one earned run (three total runs) in eight innings while registering a strikeout and two walks. Unfortunately for Maes, the Cougars were unable to push across a run as they were held to six hits. Maes, who made an appearance in the Colorado School of Mines series in relief, has a 5.06 ERA and is 0-2 in three appearances.

Freshman starters Alex Loosbrock (6.97 ERA) and Brandon Roesler (8.74 ERA) also have had solid performances. Loosbrock is 0-1 in three appearances, including a pair of starts. As for Roesler, he is 0-2 in three appearances with two starts.  Out of the bullpen, USF has had solid work from Anthony Reese, who is 0-1 with a 1.93 ERA in three starts at 4 2/3 innings. Christian Lazar (7.20 ERA) has done most of the heavy lifting out of the pen with seven appearances and five innings. Spencer Dokken has a 5.79 ERA in four appearances and 4 2/3 innings.