GRAND FORKS, N.D. – The penning of yet another chapter in the history of North Dakota softball is set to begin this weekend in Cedar Falls, Iowa, as the Fighting Hawks, under 11^th year head coach Jordan Stevens, are set for five games across three days at the Doc Halverson UNI-Dome Classic hosted by Northern Iowa. UND opens its 2025 slate on Friday, February 7 against Loyola Chicago at 10 a.m. and will conclude day one action at 3 p.m. against the host Panthers. Saturday's action pits the Hawks and Panthers against each other once again in a 4:30 p.m. start which will precede a nightcap with the Drake Bulldogs at 7 p.m. UND finishes off the weekend in a second matchup against Drake at 12:30 p.m. on Super Sunday.
 
vs. Loyola Chicago
Feb. 7 | 10 a.m.
Series History: 0-2
Last Meeting: March 5, 2022; L, 0-7
Streak: L2
 
at Northern Iowa
Feb. 7 | 3 p.m.
Feb. 8 | 4:30 p.m.
Series History: 2-4
Last Meeting: February 10, 2012; W, 8-4
Streak: W1
 
vs. Drake
Feb. 8 | 7 p.m.
Feb. 9 | 12:30 p.m.
Series History: 1-4
Last Meeting: February 11, 2012; W, 4-3
Streak: W1
 
POLL POSITION
North Dakota softball was tabbed to finish tied for sixth by the Summit League head coaches. The Fighting Hawks received 13 total points as did their in-state neighbors to the south. Poll spots three through seven were decided by just eight points, while Omaha, 2024 champ and preseason favorite this year, received 35 points and five first-place votes with South Dakota State receiving 32 points and the remaining two first-place nods. Last season, the Hawks finished sixth in the league standings with a 6-12 record.
 
KEEP YOUR EYES OPEN
Seniors Jackie Albrecht and Angie Dumlao were named North Dakota's "Pitcher to Watch" and "Player to Watch", respectively. Both players received recognition at the conclusion of the 2024 regular season as Albrecht was named to the All-Summit League second team as a pitcher, while Dumlao was selected as an All-Summit League honorable mention as an infielder.
 
Jackie Albrecht | North Dakota | RHP | Senior | Barrington, Ill.
*2024 All-Summit League Second Team selection (P)…One of six pitchers last spring to boast sub-3.00 ERA (2.93)…One of four league pitchers with a sub-2.00 ERA in league play…Third among Summit League arms in starts (29) and innings pitched (165.0) and fourth in complete games (15), strikeouts (131) and opponent batting average (.233)…Hit just three batters in 738 batters faced (league-low among arms with 90.0+ IP)… 83 strikeouts from becoming program's fourth pitcher with 400 career strikeouts…
 
Angie Dumlao | North Dakota | INF | Senior | Downey, Calif.
*2024 All-Summit League Honorable Mention selection (INF)…Held a top 15 batting average among Summit League hitters (.288)…Led UND with eight multi-hit games…One of four Hawks with three or more multi-RBI games…Led Hawks with .646 OPS…Ranked second on the team with a .320 slugging percentage and 36 hits…Fourth on the team with a dozen RBI…
 
ARMED AND READY
North Dakota returns all 358.1 innings pitched from last season. Albrecht led the Hawks with 165.0 IP, appearing in 32 games with 29 starts as a junior. Senior Makaela Carr tossed 95.2 IP across 25 appearances of which 14 were in a starting role as a junior. Junior Camryn Lasota started 13 games and appeared in eight others totaling 82.2 IP in her sophomore season. Emily Marr, a freshman last spring and Katelyn Strauss, in her junior season, combined for 11 relief outings and 15 IP in 2024.
 
A trio of first-year arms joined the UND pitching staff this season in Unity Nelson, Ginger Savelkoul and Tehya Armstrong.
 
NO SUGAR JOTEN IT
She not only found her way on the basepaths but became familiar with moving around the basepaths as well. Katie Joten's junior year saw her lead the Fighting Hawks in walks (25), HBP (14) and stolen bases (13) and score the second most runs (19). She ranked second in the SL in HBP, third in walks and was one of five SL players with 13 or more stolen bags. Additionally, Joten led the league in defensive assists (126). She is the lone Hawk to return in 2025 that saw action in all 56 games a season ago.
 
ACTIVELY HIT STREAKING
At the plate, five Hawks carryover active hitting streaks into the 2025 season. Junior Annabeth Carlberg recorded hits in her final three games last spring and junior Brooklyn Morris produced base knocks in her final two games as did Dumlao. Carlberg's hit streak is also UND's longest active reached base safely streak.
 
NOTABLE NUMBERS
83- Strikeouts needed by Albrecht to become just the fourth pitcher in program history with 400 punchouts
51- Percentage of total hits in 2024 that return for Stevens this spring; Hawks look to fill the void offensively left by Johanna Rodriquez (37), Cassie Castaneda (36) and Izzy Haslett (35).
39- Walks + HBP recorded by Joten in 2024; the second highest combined mark in the SL
27- Complete games spun by the Hawks' pitching staff last spring (Albrecht, 15; Carr, 8; Lasota, 4)
16- Games that saw the UND pitching staff fan seven or more batters in 2024
12- 20+ win seasons in UND Softball history of which four have come in the program's DI era
9- Extra-base hits by both Neumayer and Taya Hopfauf in 2024
8- Multi-hit games recorded by Dumlao in 2024
5- Multi-RBI games by Neumayer in 2024
2- UND players returning from the 2024 squad that recorded 30+ hits last spring (Dumlao, 36; Hopfauf, 31)
 
THAT WAS CLOSE
No stranger to tight games, just under half (27) of UND's 56 games in 2024 were decided by two or fewer runs. Of the Hawks' 42 losses, 13 were decided by a single run, while another five were decided by just two runs. On the winning side, North Dakota claimed eight one-run victories among 14 wins in 2024.
 
STEVENS AT THE HELM
Head coach Jordan Stevens enters into year 11 at North Dakota after arriving to Grand Forks following a four-year stint at Valparaiso. In ten seasons guiding the Hawks, Stevens and UND have totaled a program-best 164 victories. He has accounted for 25% of the program's dozen 20+ win campaigns which includes a single-season program record 26 wins in 2018 and just the second three-season stretch of 20+ victories. There have been 19 seasons of at least 17 wins in North Dakota softball history with Stevens responsible for nearly a third of those.
 
SEASON OPENERS
When the Hawks take the field Friday against Loyola Chicago, UND will be looking for its first win in a season opener since the 2019 season. North Dakota upset No. 25 Long Beach State 2-1 at the Marucci Desert Classic in Las Vegas, Nevada. Since 2008-09, the program's first year as a Division I member, UND holds a 5-11 record in season openers and is 2-8 under Stevens. UND previously won season openers in 2017 (Samford; 4-3), 2013 (South Dakota State; 5-3), 2012 (Northern Iowa; 8-4 (9)) and 2010 (Dayton; 3-2).
 
ROAD HAWKS
North Dakota will play its first 37 games of the schedule away from Grand Forks. Harsh temperatures usually prevent the Hawks from opening up any sooner than in the month of April. An April 2 matchup with Mayville State, the first official action scheduled for the brand new Albrecht Field, will be the earliest, barring weather (!), that UND has played in Grand Forks since 2018 when the Hawks hosted Montana in a three-game Big Sky series on March 30-31. The Hawks are unbeaten at home with a 7-0 record in the month of March since the program's inaugural season of 1977.
 
TOP 25 TUSSLES
While mid-major programs blanket the Hawks' schedule this season, there is no shortage of Power 4 opposition or nationally ranked foes. North Dakota is slated to match up against two teams ranked in the National Fastpitch Coaches Association DI preseason Top 25 in No. 22 Washington and No. 23 Oregon. Additionally, the Hawks will meet preseason SL favorite Omaha (23) and Grand Canyon (8) who are both receiving votes to start the season. North Dakota will also battle Power 4 foes in Rutgers, Minnesota and Pittsburg playing the Scarlet Knights and Golden Gophers twice.
 
BRAND NEW DIGS
Officially opened on September 21, 2024, Albrecht Field, the new crown jewel of UND Softball, will allow UND to host games on campus for the first time in program history, features over 500 spectator seats, a special party deck in left field, an LED videoboard and is pet friendly. Large dugouts, a dual-purpose batting cage/bullpen and a state-of-the-art turf playing surface are just a few of the new amenities that UND softball student-athletes will enjoy. The stadium is located across the street from the Frederick D. Pollard Athletic Center and soon-to-be completed Nodak Insurance Company Sports Performance Center, which features new locker rooms, weight room and sports medicine area for the softball program.
 
For more information on North Dakota Softball, follow on social media @UNDsoftball or visit FightingHawks.com.