Photo by Jake McNeill: Southwest Minnesota State shortstop Abby Russell (left) pivots to complete a double play throw during a softball doubleheader against Wayne State on April 10 at Mustang Field in Marshall.

MARSHALL — Heading into the final weekend of the regular season, the Southwest Minnesota State softball team sits in 10th place in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference. With just 10 teams making the conference tournament, the Mustangs’ final home games against Minnesota State on Saturday could make or break SMSU’s postseason aspirations.

The Mustangs enter the final weekend at 19-30 overall and 10-16 in the NSIC. The only team that can still pass the Mustangs is Northern State. The Wolves swept the Mustangs on April 13, giving Northern State the tiebreaker. Still, at 7-13, the Wolves would either need to sweep both of its doubleheaders against Bemidji State and Minnesota Crookston if SMSU splits its two games against Minnesota State, or the Wolves would need to win three out of four if the Mustangs get swept.

The cushion that the Mustangs have heading into the weekend could prove to be key as SMSU hasn’t defeated Minnesota State since 2018.

Minnesota State comes into Friday’s matchup in sixth place in the NSIC, sitting on a 37-15 overall record and a 17-9 conference record. Yet, they’ve struggled lately with losses in four of their last five games against Augustana, Wayne State and Winona State.

The Mavericks have a deep lineup this year with six of their eight qualified batters putting together an OPS over .800. Leading the way for the Mavs are Kylie Sullivan and Gianna Lara. Sullivan’s .992 OPS is a team-high and her .432 trails only Ellie Tallman’s .450. Lara is right behind Sullivan with a .964 OPS as well as a team-high 40 RBIs. Her seven home runs also rank 11th in the NSIC.

In the Mustangs’ corner, shortstop Abby Russell has been the leader of SMSU’s offense. She racked up four hits in last weekend’s games against Concordia-St. Paul and Winona State, including a pair of RBIs and a double in a win over CSP. Her .875 OPS, .417 on-base percentage and four triples are all team-highs.

Jillian Noel has been particularly adept at getting clutch hits for the Mustangs. Her 36 RBIs are only three fewer than the next two Mustangs combined. Her .834 OPS and .369 on-base percentage are both second only to Russell and her two home runs on the year tie freshman Emma Humpal for a team-high.

Still, the Mavericks’ primary strength is its pitching, where they have two of the top 10 pitchers in terms of ERA in the NSIC. Graduate student McKayla Armbruster ranks third in the NSIC with a 1.76 ERA while freshman Maddie Oetzmann ranks ninth at 2.33. Ambruster’s 140 strikeouts also rank third in the conference while Oetzmann’s .243 batting average allowed ranks seventh.

Karlie Miller has led the Mustangs in the circle so far this year, sitting at seventh in the NSIC with 115 strikeouts on the year. Miller’s 3.40 ERA and 1.61 WHIP are also both team-bests.

After the Mustangs fell 13-3 in the first game of their doubleheader against the No. 2 team in the NSIC, Concordia-St. Paul last, weekend, Miller started the second game and held the Golden Bears to just one run over seven innings. 

Morgyn Otte has also been solid for the Mustangs this year, putting together a 4.78 ERA and 1.68 WHIP.

SMSU’s games against Minnesota State on Saturday are scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. at Mustang Field.