MOORHEAD, Minn. -- MSU Moorhead softball will conclude its home schedule for the 2024 season on Saturday and Sunday this weekend as the Dragons are slated to battle both Minnesota Duluth and St. Cloud State. Doubleheaders against the Bulldogs and Huskies are scheduled for noon each day. 

Live video and stats will be available as msumdragons.com. 

The Dragons enter the weekend riding a seven-game winning streak after sweeping a two-game series with Minot State on Thursday afternoon. MSUM's win streak dates back to April 6 when they defeated Sioux Falls, 10-5. Overall, MSUM is 26-16 this season with a 13-7 mark in NSIC competitions. 

In The Circle

Azalya Lopez leads the Dragon pitching staff, holding a 14-5 record with a team-best 2.38 ERA so far this season. Lopez has been dazzling all season, slinging 109 innings for the Dragons with seven complete games and a pair of shutouts.The sophomore has been a master of control so far this season as well, striking out 105 batter to just 28 walks allowed. In total, Lopez holds opposing batters to a .252 average with the Corona, Calif., native sitting five wins shy of tying the single season school record (Julie Vancura, 2007). 

Teagan Clemmons has also come on strong for the Dragons in the past several contests, twirling valuable in both a starting and relief role. Clemmons has pitched 73.2 innings this season with a 3.52 ERA. The Las Vegas, Nev., native has also been adept at finding the strike zone this season, fanning 48 batters to just 14 walks. Clemmons enters the weekend with a 7-5 ledger in the circle. Evey Evans also sees important time for the Dragons, mainly in a starting role. Evans has pitched 36.1 innings so far this year with a 2.12 ERA. 

At The Plate

In overall batting average, Chloe Makinney continues to hit the ball well for MSUM, clipping a team-best .374 average. In NSIC games, Makinney is hitting a whopping .377 with a 1.006 OPS. The true freshman has six doubles this season to go along with 16 RBIs and a team-high 11 stole bases. The single season MSUM record is 17 stolen bases held by Dalee Wikinson. Lopez is also strong at the plate for MSUM, hitting for a .310 average with 26 RBIs, the second highest tally on the roster. Lopez leads the team with 39 total hits in 2024 and a team-best three triples. 

Mack Gallagher has found her groove in conference play and has been able to boost her overall batting average to .296 for the season. In NSIC competition, Gallagher is smashing a team high .396 with a 1.191 OPS and a .698 slugging percentage. Gallagher leads the team in RBIs with 27 this season including a team-high 11 doubles. The sophomore has four home runs this season, pushing her career total to 15, which is four shy of the career school record (Amanda Moore). Evans is tied with Gallagher, also having hit four roundtrippers this season to go with 23 RBIs. In conference play, Annika Norman (.333) and Sam Centeno (.343) are each hitting over .300 from the plate with a combined 15 RBIs. 

In The Field

MSUM is stingy in the field, bolstering the second-highest fielding percentage in the NSIC with a .972 mark. In total, MSUM has only committed 34 errors this season to their opponents 49. Seven Dragons still feature a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage this season (Makinney, Teagan Pranchke, Avery Steffen, Ella Holiman, Hannah Losee, Brynna Farman and Grace Oeltjen). 

Mike Armitage is in his third season as MSUM's head softball coach.