MANKATO, Minn. - The Bethany Lutheran baseball team will have a critical UMAC series this weekend as they travel to Minnesota Morris. The Vikings, who enter with a 20-12 overall record and a 13-2 mark in conference play, will face Morris—currently 15-15 overall and 11-4 in the UMAC—on Friday at 3 p.m., followed by a doubleheader on Saturday starting at 2 p.m.



The Series
Bethany holds the all-time series lead 41-11 over Morris and has won the past six contests between the teams. 

Scouting the Vikings
Bethany has been led this season by Eli Fest, who is batting .430 and reaching base at a .544 clip—both tops in the UMAC. Aidan Russell ranks second in the conference in both categories, hitting .400 with a .514 on-base percentage, while Xander Meissner leads the UMAC in slugging percentage at .733, powered by nine home runs and 14 doubles.On the mound, Adryen Tietz, Trent Ash, and Sean Gamble have started all 15 conference games for the Vikings, each averaging over 9.0 strikeouts per nine innings and posting an ERA under 3.35.

Scouting the Cougars
Through 30 games this year, Minnesota Morris has been led by David Steffen who is batting .359 this year with a team-leading 32 RBI and has also added 29 runs scored. Bradie Black has been finding his way on base at a high rate for Morris, as he has an on base percentage of .440 thanks to 29 free passes while also added 33 runs scored and 18 stolen bases to lead the team. Jacob Schaaf has been one of the top starters in the rotation for Morris, as he's started five games and has a 3.81 ERA in 26.0 innings.