Photo From PlayNorthStar

VALLEY CITY, N.D. (PlayNorthStar.com) – The North Star Athletic Association (NSAA) announced its eighth edition of the softball Players-of-the-Week Monday.  Lauren Jurek of Bellevue (Neb.) was selected as the Pitcher-of-the-Week.  Marissa Hawkins of Valley city State (N.D.) was named as the Player-of-the-Week.

North Star Athletic Association Softball Pitcher-of-the-Week
Lauren Jurek – Bellevue (Neb.) – Junior – pitcher – Bellevue, Neb. – Jurek tossed a four-hit complete game shutout in Bellevue (Neb.) 7-0 victory over Dickinson State (N.D.), propelling to a 3-1 record in the four-game series.  She recorded four strikeouts and only issued one walk in the game.  Offensively, Jurek tallied two doubles and drove in three runs during the four-game series.

North Star Athletic Association Softball Player-of-the-Week
Marissa Hawkins – Valley City State (N.D.) – Senior – infielder – St. Paul, Minn. – Hawkins was near perfect at the plate as Valley City State (N.D.) went 4-0 record in North Star Athletic Association home four-game series versus Viterbo (Wis.).  She registered an astounding .917 batting average after going 11-of-12 at the plate.  She smashed four home runs and collected 11 RBIs. in the series.  Hawks registered a slugging percentage of 2.083 (4 home runs, 2 doubles, 5 singles).  She totaled 25 bases.

Recap from last week’s games
Bellevue (Neb.), receiving votes in the latest NAIA Softball Coaches’ Top 25 national poll, went 3-1 record in the North Star Athletic Association action on April 8-9.  The Bruins swept the doubleheader 5-0 and 9-2 on April 8.  BU and DiSU split their doubleheader on April 9, with Bellevue winning the first game 7-0 while the Blue Hawks on the series finale by the score of 4-0.  Bellevue is 24-11 overall record and 10-2 NSAA conference record.

Dickinson State swept the doubleheader with Viterbo (Wis.) in La Crosse, Wis. on April 4 by the score of 1-0 in the first game and rallied back for a 11-9 victory in the second game.  The Blue Hawks are 13-21 overall record and 5-7 NSAA conference record.

Valley City State (N.D.) played its first home contests of the season as they swept the four-game series with Viterbo on April 9-10.  The Vikings swept a rare tripleheader over the V-Hawks on April 9 by the scores of 14-1, 10-2, and 14-6.  VCSU closed out the series with a 15-5 victory over VU on April 10.  Valley City State is 22-13 overall record on the season.  Viterbo is 3-25 overall record and 0-12 NSAA conference record.

Dakota State (S.D.) swept the doubleheader with Presentation (S.D.) at Northern State’s (S.D.) new softball field on April 9.  The Trojans won the scores of 3-1 and 14-8 to improve their overall record to 10-15 and 7-3 record in the league.  The Saints fell to 10-15 overall record and 4-6 NSAA conference record.

Mayville State (N.D.) swept the NSAA doubleheader with Waldorf (Iowa) 6-4 and 14-1 in five inning son April 9.  Both teams were unable to finish their four-game series on April 10 due to weather.  The Warriors are 5-17 overall record and 5-5 record in the North Star contests, while the Comets are 7-18 overall record and 4-6 NSAA record.

Looking Ahead
Dakota State (S.D.) and Presentation (S.D.) are scheduled to complete their four-game series Monday (today) in Aberdeen.  The Trojans step aside their conference play on Tuesday afternoon as they play Briar Cliff (Iowa) in a doubleheader.

Viterbo (Wis.) stays on the road Tuesday as they play Waldorf (Iowa) in the North Star conference action.  The Warriors head to Iowa Wesleyan on Wednesday for a non-conference doubleheader.

Stay tuned to your school’s athletic website this weekend for the upcoming North Star Athletic Association scheduled contests this weekend.  Due to incoming winter storm and blizzard forecasted in North Dakota, the four-game series between Mayville State (N.D.) and Dickinson State (N.D.) had been postponed.

Friday and Saturday schedule includes Dakota State at Viterbo; Valley City State (N.D.) at Presentation (S.D.) and Bellevue (Neb.) at Waldorf (Iowa).

Monday’s Games
Dakota State (S.D.) @ Presentation (S.D.) – Doubleheader – 1 p.m.

Tuesday’s Games
Viterbo (Wis.) @ Waldorf (Iowa) – Doubleheader – 1 p.m.
Briar Cliff (Iowa) @ Dakota State (S.D.) – Doubleheader – 3 p.m.

Wednesday’s Games
Waldorf (Iowa) @ Iowa Wesleyan – Doubleheader – 2 p.m.

Friday’s Games
Valley City State (N.D.) @ Presentation (S.D.) – Doubleheader – 1 p.m.
Dakota State (S.D.) @ Viterbo (Wis.) – Doubleheader – 2 p.m.
(RV) Bellevue (Neb.) @ Waldorf (Iowa) – Doubleheader – 3 p.m.
Mayville State (N.D.) @ Dickinson State (N.D.) – POSTPONED

Saturday’s Games
Dakota State (S.D.) @ Viterbo (Wis.) – Doubleheader – 12 p.m.
(RV) Bellevue (Neb.) @ Waldorf (Iowa) – Doubleheader – 12 p.m.
Valley City State (N.D.) @ Presentation (S.D.) – Doubleheader – 1 p.m.
Mayville State (N.D.) @ Dickinson State (N.D.) – POSTPONED

2022 NSAA Softball Conference Standings