2021 Great Plains Athletic Conference Championships
Morningside College Jensen Family Softball Complex Wednesday-Thursday, May 5-6, 2021
MORNINGSIDE MUSTANGS
CONCORDIA UNIVERSITY
O. N 00 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 15 16 17 18 19 20 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 36 37 38 39 40 42 43 45
NO. 1 2 4 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 14 17 21 23 24 25 26 31 32 33 34 35 36
NAME Sydney Gesink Mackenna Sidzyik Ellie Cropley Mykel Gray Josie Baxter Carrington Entringer Mia Barozzo Katherine Wurtz Sydney Struve Carson Cameron Lexie Stolen Brittany Turnquist Hope Rose Brooke Haage Micki Twedell Morgan Nixon Ashlyn McMillen Katie Murphy Kennedee Jones Ashton Whited Taylor Richter Breanna Tjebben Alyx Curran-Lewis Makenna Bonneau Alex Nelson Holly Severance Emma Christensen Justine Lovato Halleigh Kokenge Emily Thompson Cara Forsblom Vanessa Bohuslavsky Madison Treiber Jess Walker Kailani Peru Andi Hays Rylee Olson Tori Misiaszek Sydney Petersen Lisa Bolton
YR. POS. So. INF R/R Fr. INF R/R Jr. OF L/L Jr. UT L/L Jr. OF L/L Jr. OF L/L Fr. UT R/R Jr. UT L/L Fr. UT R/R Sr. OF R/R Sr. INF R/R So. OF R/R Fr. C R/R Fr. IF R/R So. OF L/L Jr. INF R/R Fr. UT R/R So. C R/R Fr. IF L/L Sr. C R/R So. INF R/R Jr. INF R/R So. OF L/L Fr. UT R/R Sr. P R/R So. IF R/R Fr. UT R/R Fr. OF R/R So. OF R/R Sr. INF R/R So. OF R/R So. UT R/R So. P/OF R/R Sr. INF R/R Fr. UT R/R Sr. P/OF R/R So. INF L/L So. UT R/R So. IF R/R So. P R/R
HOMETOWN Sioux Center, Iowa Omaha, Neb. Sioux City, Iowa Ames, Iowa Lincoln, Neb. Baltic, S.D./Baltic Santa Paula, Calif. Omaha, Neb. Granville, Iowa Herman, Neb. Sioux City, IA Alta, Iowa South Sioux City, Neb. LeMars, Iowa Sioux Falls, S.D. Omaha, Neb. Blair, Neb. Sioux Falls, S.D. Ankeny, Iowa Elkhorn, Neb. Rock Valley, Iowa Fort Dodge, Iowa Plattsmouth, Neb. Lincoln, Neb. Sioux Falls, S.D. Las Vegas, Nev. Sergeant Bluff, Iowa Colorado Springs, Colo. Sioux Falls, S.D. Brandon, S.D. Cedar Falls, Iowa David City, Neb. Vermillion, S.D. Plattsmouth, Neb. Colorado Springs, Colo. Elkhorn, Neb. Hardwick, Minn. Mitchell, S.D. Omaha, Neb. American Canyon, Calif.
Head coach: Jessica Jones-Sitzmann Assistant coaches: Mackenzie Neely, Brooke Lyman, Mara Amsberry
NAME Jerzi Rowe Kylee Nixon Ashley Evans Julia Van Wey Shelby Ziegler Creighton Taylor Caitlyn McGarvie Maggi Hughes Taylor Zehendner Hailey Wilson Mara Hjermstad Allysia Thayer Zoe Flores Hhana Haro Camry Moore Grace Boganowski Molly Vander Hamm Brena Brown Brooke Townsend Tori Homolka Jenessa Jarvis Regan Karel Dawn Pettyjohn
POS. YR. P Fr. L/L INF So. R/R P Fr. R/R INF Fr. R/R OF Fr. R/R OF Fr. R/R OF Fr. R/R INF Fr. R/R INF So. R/R C Fr. R/R INF So. R/R C Jr. R/R P Fr. L/L INF Jr. R/R INF/P So. R/R INF Fr. R/R C Fr. R/R OF Fr. R/R P Fr. R/R INF Jr. R/R OF Jr. R/R OF So. R/R UTIL So. R/R
HOMETOWN Gretna, Neb. York, Neb. Westminster, Colo. San Diego, Calif. Waco, Neb. Gretna, Neb. Valparaiso, Neb. Sabetha, Kan. Pleasanton, Neb. Cozad, Neb. Gretna, Neb. Etiwanda, Calif. Port Lavaca, Texas Garden Grove, Calif. Crete, Neb. Omaha, Neb. Firth, Neb. Broken Arrow, Okla. Long Beach, Calif. Swanton, Neb. Vail, Ariz. Seward, Neb. Green Bay, Wisc.
Head coach: Shawn Semler Assistant coaches: Breena Martinez, Bre Hamilton, Billy Baugh and Alan Moore
DOANE UNIVERSITY
MOUNT MARTY UNIVERSITY
NO. NAME POS. YR. HOMETOWN 1 Ashley Jacobson P R/R Jr. Omaha, Neb. 2 Kailyn Wiseman OF R/R Jr. Sutton, Neb. 4 Amber Lyons C R/R Fr. Canyon Lake, Calif. 5 Jade Hill INF L/R Fr. San Diego, Calif. 7 Angelina Esqueda INF R/R Fr. Las Vegas, Nev. 8 Jadyn Hunt OF L/L Fr. Elkhorn, Neb. 10 Morgan Queen OF R/R Fr. Salina, Kan. 11 Blaire Edeal UTL R/R Jr. Lexington, Neb. 12 Sarah Theiler P/UTL R/R Fr. Arlington, Neb. 14 Emily Haines P R/R Fr. Folsom, Calif. 15 Brea Murnan P R/R Jr. Omaha, Neb. 16 MacKenzie Hurst-Munden C/INF R/R Fr. Lincoln, Neb. 17 Haley Kennedy INF L/R Jr. Lincoln, Neb. 18 Megan Elliott INF R/R Fr. Simi Valley, Calif. 19 Josie Schnakenberg P R/R Jr. Wahoo, Neb. 21 Anna Ganzel INF R/R Fr. Springfield, Neb. 22 Kayla Miller C R/R Fr. Yuciapa, Calif. 23 Shelby Downard P R/R So. Marysville, Kan. 25 Kierney Skiles OF R/R Fr. Gretna, Neb. 27 Alicia Vint UTL L/R So. Onalaska, Wash. 29 Payton Cooley UTL R/R Fr. Omaha, Neb. 30 Jayden Young C R/R Fr. Iowa City, Iowa 32 Cecily Kaluza P R/R Jr. Vallejo, Calif. 34 Amanda Insalaco OF R/R Fr. Spanish Fork, Utah Head coach: Jordan Olson Assistant coaches: Kelsey Bernhardt, Erin Skinner
NO. 1 2 3 4 5 7 8 9 10 12 15 17 18 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
NAME Abigail Thomas Adrianna Somerville Sarah Hart Ally Serrano Sami Noble Tara Oren Karlee Arnold Makenzi Rockwell Maureena Vornhagen Madison Van Wyhe Elsie Marquardt Emma Kerns Adley Swanson Jill Orwig Emma Burns Molly McCloud Kelly Amezcua Maria Rosario Garcia Bailey Kortan Abigail Page Rose Kinyon Tianna Gomez Kaylee Rogers Melissa Hagedorn
YR. POS. Jr. OF R/R Jr. OF R/R So. OF R/R Sr. INF R/R Fr. OF R/R Jr. INF R/R Sr. C R/R Sr. INF L/R Jr. P/INF L/L Jr. OF R/R Fr. INF R/R Jr. INF R/R Sr. INF L/R Sr. P R/R So. C/INF R/R Jr. INF R/R So. C/INF L/L Sr. INF R/R So. UTL R/R So. INF L/R Jr. UTL R/R Sr. P R/R So. P/INF R/R Fr. C/INF R/R
HOMETOWN Loretto, Minn Blue Diamond, Nev. Oxnard, Calif. Corona, Calif. Corona, Calif. Sioux Falls, S.D. Parker, Colo. Aberdeen, Wash. Kearney, Neb. Baltic,S.D. Yankton, S.D. Omaha, Neb. Fruita, Colo. Norfolk, Neb. Rapid City, S.D. Rapid City, S.D. Riverside, Calif. Northglenn, Colo. Tabor, S.D. Atkinson, Neb. Rapid City, S.D. Highland, Calif. McKinney, Tex. West Point, Neb.
Head coach: Tate Bruckner Assistant coaches: Ramon Romero, Kayla Bryant, Jessica Nickolite, Karlee Hallock, Andy Sprakel
Morningside College, Concordia University, Doane University, and Mount Marty University converge on the field at Jensen Family Softball Complex Wednesday and Thursday, May 5 and 6, for the Morningside College section of the 2021 Great Plains Athletic Conference Championships. Regular-season champion Midland University hosts the other pod with the University of Jamestown, Northwestern College, and Briar Cliff University joining the Warriors. The winners from each section go to the highest remaining seeds’ site for the championship series Saturday, May 8 with an automatic bid to the 2021 National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics’ tournament on the line.
SCOUTING THE FIELD MORNINGSIDE The host Mustangs, the overall second seed, enter with a 40-7 record under head coach Jessica Jones-Sitzmann. It’s the seventh time in her tutelage the program has reached the rarified territory. Mside, ranked No. 11 on the current NAIA coaches poll, looks to re-establish itself this week after having dropped three of its last four to conclude the regular season. Staving off a three-game skid after an excellent pitching duel in game one went the way of University of Jamestown standout Kat Miska by a 1-0 count May 1, the Maroon battled back in the nightcap of the conference campaign finale. Junior Katherine Wurtz worked around a home run and four walks to pick up the circle win, highlighted by six strikeouts. On the offensive end, junior outfielder Ellie Cropley rapped three hits, drove in a run, and scored two. Fellow upperclasswomen junior infielders Bre Tjebben and Morgan Nixon tallied RBI, too, to send the Maroon to a 6-3 victory at UJ’s Trapper Field. Freshman pitcher Lisa Bolton went toe-to-toe with Miska, one of the league and region’s top pitchers. She struck out two and allowed only four hits and two walks. Senior designated hitter Ashton Whited did gather a pair of safeties against the Jimmies’ starter. Still, Miska worked around those and three other singles to hold on for the triumph. Jones-Sitzmann’s squad has proven to be balanced. A team .337 batting average led by Nixon with a top two national best 65 RBI and a .399 batting average that includes 14 home runs and 11 doubles and Cropley who’s hitting .376 with 19 doubles, two triples and 13 home runs combines well with a pitching staff that has accumulated a minuscule 2.19 earned run average. Bolton’s 16-3 record, 2.07 ERA and 95 strikeouts top the list followed by Wurtz with 12 victories, a 2.36 ERA and 69 Ks and senior Alex Nelson with 11 wins, a 2.69 ERA and 48 strikeouts.
CONCORDIA The Bulldogs, coached by Shawn Semler, are one of the hotter teams coming in, having won nine of their last 11 including five in a row. CU, sporting a 29-9 record, swept past Dakota Wesleyan University in their regular season concluder May 2 by 8-0 and 9-0 scores. Sophomore Camry Moore has been one of the league’s and nation’s more imposing pitchers. She ranks 11th nationally with three saves and in the top 25 in victories (17). Her 1.66 earned-run average is among the country’s best 40 (No. 38). The offense is led by Moore and junior infielder Hhana Haro. Moore, showing off her versatility, harbors a .392 batting average with 11 doubles, three triples and five home runs which have led to 35 RBI. Haro isn’t far behind with a .373 mark, seven doubles, a triple and two big flies for 20 RBI.
DOANE DU has claimed six of its last seven which includes taking a pair from fellow pod member MMU May 1 by 4-3 and 8-6 counts. Head Jordan Olson’s squad stands 25-22. The Tigers are led by the power-hitting duo of sophomore pitcher Shelby Downard and freshman catcher Kayla Miller. Downard has slugged 11 home runs and 14 doubles as part of a .359 batting average, while Miller is hitting .360 with five big flies and eight doubles. Downard’s also second on the pitching staff with eight victories. She and junior Josie Schnakenberg have accumulated better than 100 innings in the circle with Schnakenberg’s 13 wins and 163 strikeouts topping the duo.
MOUNT MARTY Head coach Tate Bruckner’s Lancers split their final four regular season contests, sweeping past Northwestern College and dropping a pair of nailbiters against Doane in the last week. Sophomore catcher/infielder Emma Burns has been one of the conference and nation’s top plate power producers this season. She ranks fifth in total bases per contest (2.917) and 13th in slugging percentage (.814) and hits per game (1.611). She tallies a stratospheric .450 batting average which includes 11 doubles, three triples and 10 home runs. Senior infielder Makenzi Rockwell adds to that with seven long balls and 10 doubles to spotlight a .387 average. Junior Maureena Vornhagen and senior Jill Orwig lead the pitching staff. They both have seven wins to their credit. Vornhagen’s 106 strikeouts are first for the team.
2021 GPAC CHAMPIONSHIPS MORNINGSIDE SECTION SCHEDULE Wednesday, May 5, 2021
Thursday, May 6, 2021
Game #1: (3) Concordia (29-9, 15-7) vs. (6) Doane (25-22, 12-10) – 10 a.m.
Game #5 Winner Game #4 vs. Loser Game #3 – Noon
Game #2 (2) Morningside (40-7, 18-4) vs. (7) Mount Marty (19-18, 10-12) – Noon
Game #6 Winner Game #3 vs. Winner Game #5 – 2 p.m.
Game #3 Winner Game #1 vs. Winner Game #2 – 2 p.m.
Game #7 If necessary (Game #6 winner/loser) – 4 p.m.
Game #4 Loser Game #1 vs. Loser Game #2 – 4 p.m.