SIOUX FALLS – The University of Sioux Falls Softball Team (10-11, 0-0 NSIC) will open up their 30-game Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference schedule in Marshall, Minn., on Tuesday (March 26) as they face Southwest Minnesota State (5-7, 0-0 NSIC) in a doubleheader starting at 2 p.m.

Follow all the action
To follow USF, fans are encouraged to check out the twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube accounts for all 17 USF Athletics accounts at usfcougars.com/socialmedia. Live stats for all USF Softball home games are available at usfcougars.com/livestats and links to live stats for all NSIC games are on the USF Softball schedule.  Weather permitting, all USF Softball home games will be streamed for free through Stretch Internet at usfcougars.com/watch and links to away games are on the USF Softball schedule.

USF looks to get back on track
USF will look to end a four-game losing streak as they begin the NSIC portion of their schedule. Recently (March 21-22) at the Emporia State Softball Classic, USF fell, 4-1, to Northeastern State (March 21), despite Francesca Mickelson hitting her first homerun of the season. In the second game of the ESU Softball Classic, Courtney Mathews tossed a complete game with seven strikeouts, but the Cougars dropped a, 2-1 decision against Central Missouri (March 22). USF wrapped up the road trip with a 9-4 loss to Pittsburg State (March 22).

Series History: Cougars hold 8-4 edge over SMSU
Following last season's regular season sweep, USF took an, 8-4 all-time series lead over Southwest Minnesota State. USF won the opener as Sydney Nieveen's had a walkoff homerun in the 11th inning for an 11-10 win. Then, USF picked up the sweep as Breanna Black tossed a complete-game 7-0 shutout in game two. In their 2017 series, USF swept the regular season contests with SMSU, but was eliminated from the NSIC Tournament with two losses to the Mustangs. With a 2-2 record against SMSU in 2017, the Cougars moved to 6-4 against SMSU since joining the NSIC in 2012-13. At home, USF picked up 3-2 and 7-3 wins during the 2017 regular season before dropping games 5-4 and 4-2 in the postseason.

Freshman outfielder Lexie Swift opens season with big start
Freshman Lexie Swift has been a force at the plate during her freshman campaign as she has posted a team leading .724 slugging percentage with five doubles, two triples and two homeruns in 58 at bats. Swift is also hitting a team-high .466 at the plate with 27 hits in 58 at bats, while driving in eight RBI. Swift has drawn 14 walks and holds a .581 on-base percentage while scoring a team-high 17 runs on the year.

Hove, Mickelson and Nieveen provide veteran presence
Senior Emily Hove has enjoyed a strong nonconference schedule during the opening month of the season. She has registered a .643 slugging percentage with four doubles, one triple and six homeruns along with a team leading 19 RBI. Hove is posting a .300 batting average with 21 hits in 70 at bats, while also sporting a .311 on base percentage and recording 12 runs scored on the year. Following her standout performance during the Florida spring break trip Hove was awarded the NSIC Softball Player of the Week honors on March 18. This was Hove's first career NSIC Player of the Week honor and was the second USF player this season to be recognized. Hove has moved to sixth on USF's DII all-time list with 17 home runs and ranks fourth with 86 RBIs.

Junior outfielder Francesca Mickelson, who has started in all 21 contests this season, is hitting .232 with 13 hits in 56 at bats. She has recorded seven runs and seven RBI with a .393 slugging percentage after hitting her first homerun of the season in the 4-1 loss to Northeastern State. All-league infielder Sydney Nieveen is hitting .300 with eight RBI through 21 games. Nieveen has scored 13 runs with an on-base percentage of .391 on the year. Emmie Uitts has hit the first two home runs of her career and added six RBI with a .405 slugging percentage.

Mathews and Hoshaw anchor Cougar pitching staff
Courtney Mathews, a junior right hander from Lee's Summit, MO., who was named the NSIC Pitcher of the Week in an announcement by the league on Feb. 5, has been the ace in the rotation for USF so far this season. Mathews has a 5-4 record in 13 appearances and nine starts with five complete games and one shutout in 57.2 innings pitched. Mathews has posted a 2.31 era and has held opponents to a .281 batting average. On the season, Mathews has given up 64 total hits and recorded 39 strikeouts while walking just 10 batters.

Senior Kerrigan Hoshaw has had a solid start to the season on the mound posting a 3-4 record in 11 appearances and seven starts. She holds a 4.35 era and has held opponents to a .295 batting average. She has pitched 46.2 innings and has recorded two complete game efforts. Hoshaw has struck out 35 batters while allowing 24 walks on the season. In USF's DII era, Hoshaw ranks first all-time with nine shutouts and first with 346 strikeouts. She is second at USF in wins (43), appearances (102), starts (87), innings (490.1) and third in complete games (35). Hoshaw recently hit her 25^th career home run, which ranks third all-time in USF's DII era.

Preseason Forecast - USF picked 8th in NSIC Poll
The Cougars, which have had 30 or more wins five straight years, were picked eighth in the NSIC Preseason Coaches Poll which was released Jan. 23 by the league office. USF received 135 points and finished just behind Concordia-St. Paul, which earned 140 points for seventh. The 2019 NSIC Softball Tournament will consist of the top ten teams in the NSIC final standings competing in a double elimination format on May 2-4 at the RYFSA Complex in Rochester, Minnesota. USF's players to watch included pitcher Kerrigan Hoshaw and infielder Sydney Nieveen.