NDSU Baseball Begins NCAA Regional Against Arkansas in Fayetteville on Friday

THIS WEEK
The fourth-seeded North Dakota State (20-32) baseball team is set to face Arkansas (43-13) in the opening round of the NCAA Regional in Fayetteville, Ark., on Friday. First pitch is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. CT at Baum-Walker Stadium. The Razorbacks are the top seed in the regional and No. 3 national seed. Second-seeded Kansas and third-seeded Creighton will also face each other at the regional site.
 
COVERAGE
All of the opening round games at the Fayetteville Regional will be available on ESPN+ for subscribers. All of the games will also feature live statistics.
 
LAST TIME OUT
NDSU upended top-seeded Oral Roberts in game two of the Summit League Championship title game, 4-2, to win its third Summit League Tournament championship in program history and first since 2021. NDSU combined for 10 strikeouts with Danny Lachenmayer picking up his eighth save of the season. The Eagan, Minn., native tossed a season-high seven strikeouts with no runs, two walks and two hits over 3.1 innings. The Bison totaled nine hits with Jake Schaffner going 2-of-4 at the plate with two runs and one stolen base. Colten Becker also added two hits on three appearances.
 
THE BISON RETURN TO THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
NDSU will return to the NCAA Tournament for the third time in the Division I era. In their last appearance in 2021, the Bison traveled to Stanford in Stanford, Calif., and faced Stanford, Nevada and UC Irvine. NDSU topped Nevada, 6-1, in an elimination game to earn its first NCAA Regional victory in the Division I era. NDSU also qualified for the 2014 Regional hosted by Oregon State in Corvallis, Ore.
 
TESTING OURSELVES AGAINST THE BEST
Entering the week, the Bison have played the No. 1 non-conference strength of schedule in the nation and No. 77 overall strength of schedule, which is the highest in the Summit League. The Bison have also been positioned as high as No. 22 this season in the RPI rankings. NDSU faced five teams in the regular season that went on to qualify for the NCAA Tournament, including Alabama, Dallas Baptist, Creighton, LSU and Oklahoma State. The Bison posted a 1-7 record in those games with the only win coming against Creighton on April 8.
 
SUMMIT LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP TIDBITS
– NDSU won its third Summit League Tournament in program history (2014, 2021, 2025).
– It marked the first Summit League Tournament championship under fourth-year head coach Tyler Oakes. He also guided the Bison to their first-ever Summit League regular season title in his first season in 2022.
– The Bison opened the tournament with back-to-back shutout victories after topping Omaha, 1-0, and Oral Roberts, 4-0. It marked the first time since 2013 that NDSU opened the tournament with back-to-back shutout performances.
– The Bison pitching staff combined for a 1.22 ERA with 32 strikeouts over four games. NDSU limited its opponents to a .169 batting average with 21 hits, 12 walks and five runs.
 
ALL-SUMMIT LEAGUE BISON
NDSU earned seven All-Summit League selections with Jake Schaffner, Nolan Johnson and Danny Lachenmayer on the first team. Dante Smith and Logan Knight garnered a spot on the second team, while Davis Hamilton and Sam Canton were named to the honorable mention list. Schaffner was also named the Defensive Player of the Year and Johnson was the Pitcher of the Year.
 
SCHAFFNER ON TOP OF THE LINEUP CARD
Jake Schaffner has been the leadoff hitter in all 52 games this season and has registered a team-best .384 batting average, .489 slugging percentage and .443 on-base percentage. He also leads the Summit League with 81 hits and a team-best 46 runs. His 84 hits rank 31st in the nation and tied for second with Bennett Hostetler (2021) on the Bison single-season list. The Janesville, Wis., native has notched a hit in 45 of 52 total games this season. He also ranks second in the Summit League with 18 stolen bases on 23 attempts. Schaffner surpassed the 100 career hits milestone this season with 148 and has a .362 batting average over his first two seasons.
 
SCHAFFNER IN SUMMIT LEAGUE PLAY
In Summit League play this season, Jake Schaffner logged a hit in 25 of 28 games with 17 multiple hit games. He notched a .408 batting average and ranked second in the league with 49 hits. Schaffner was also slotted second with 12 stolen bases and a .980 fielding percentage. He was the first player in program history to be named the Summit League Defensive Player of the Year and was a first team selection in each of his first two seasons.
 
SCHAFFNER NAMED SEMIFINALIST FOR BROOKS WALLACE AWARD
Jake Schaffner was one of the top 30 shortstops in the nation to be named a semifinalist for the 2025 Brooks Wallace Award, which recognizes the nation’s top shortstop. He was one of two players in the Summit League named to list, joining Carter Sintek from South Dakota State.
 
THE FRIDAY STARTER
Nolan Johnson has started a career-high 15 games and totaled a career-best 77 strikeouts over 82.2 innings this season. His 77 strikeouts rank second in the Summit League this season. Johnson helped guide the Bison to a 6-3 win over Omaha on April 4 after tossing a career-best 10 strikeouts over 7.0 innings with no walks and no runs. Johnson sent the Mavericks down in order each of the first five innings and retired his first 17 batters before Omaha connected on a two-out single in the sixth inning.
 
JOHNSON IN SUMMIT LEAGUE PLAY
Nolan Johnson became the first pitcher in program history to be named the Summit League Pitcher of the Year and also garnered All-Summit League First Team honors for first time in his career. The Lakeville, Minn., native led the league with 55 strikeouts over nine starts. He posted at least seven strikeouts in five starts and was slotted third with a 3.34 ERA in league play. The Lakeville, Minn., native was also named the Summit League Peak Pitcher of the Week twice and posted four starts with at least seven strikeouts.
 
KNIGHT MODE ACTIVATED
Logan Knight has made 14 starts with 65 strikeouts over 77 innings this season. His 65 strikeouts rank fourth in the Summit League. He is also the first Bison pitcher since 2018 to record two shutouts in the same season. He helped lift the Bison to a 3-0 win at Oral Roberts on March 15 and posted his first career complete game shutout with a season-high seven strikeouts across a career-high 9.0 innings with no walks. It marked the first complete game shutout in a nine-inning game for a Bison pitcher since Cade Feeney accomplished the feat against Western Illinois on April 9, 2021. He added his second complete game shutout with three strikeouts over a 9.0 innings in the 4-0 win over Oral Roberts in the Summit League Tournament on May 22.
 
PUT THE GAME ON LOCK
Danny Lachenmayer is slotted second in the Summit League and 35th in the nation with eight saves this season, including five in Summit League play. His eight saves rank tied for fourth place on the Bison single season list. He is also slotted third on the team with 53 strikeouts over 34.2 innings with 17 walks. The Eagan, Minn., native is also holding opponents to a .179 batting average with a 2.60 ERA.
 
LACHENMAYER ON NCBWA MIDSEASON STOPPER OF THE YEAR WATCH LIST
Danny Lachenmayer was named to the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) Midseason Stopper of the Year watch list. Lachenmayer is one of only six freshmen to earn a spot on the watch list, joining Brendan Conner (UAB), Cason Evans (LSU), Kade Eudy (TCU), Walker McDuffie (North Carolina) and Dylan Volantis (Texas). He also joins Conner Floyd from Oral Roberts as the only Summit League pitchers on the list.
 
EXPERIENCE IN THE BULLPEN
Reese Ligtenberg and Skyler Riedinger both return this season out of the bullpen. Last season, Ligtenberg made 31 relief appearances, which set the NDSU single-season record for appearances. His 31 appearances led the Summit League and ranked 27th in the nation. He has totaled 72 appearances over five seasons, which ranks fifth in Bison history.
 
Riedinger made a career-high 29 appearances last season, which was the second-most in a single-season in Bison history. The Bismarck, N.D., surpassed Kyle Kingsley (2010-13) for the most appearances all-time in Bison history with 84.
 
THE CHALLENGING SCHEDULE AHEAD
The Bison are scheduled to play 52 total games and will face nine different opponents across 22 total non-conference games. Of that group, five teams qualified for the NCAA Tournament last season, including Dallas Baptist, Alabama, LSU, Tulane and Oklahoma State. The schedule also boasts three teams ranked in the USA Today Preseason Coaches Top 25 Poll, including No. 3 LSU, No. 17 Oklahoma State and No. 21 Dallas Baptist.
 
SUMMIT LEAGUE PRESEASON POLL
The Bison were picked fourth in the Summit League preseason poll with 17 total points and one first place vote. Oral Roberts was picked first with 22 points and three first place votes.
 
SUMMIT LEAGUE PLAYERS TO WATCH
Sophomore infielder Jake Schaffner and senior left-handed pitcher Nolan Johnson were named to the Summit League Players and Pitchers to Watch list. Schaffner, who was named to the All-Summit League First Team last season, recorded a team-best .337 batting average and .436 on-base percentage last season to go along with a team-high 64 hits. Johnson appeared in six games last season with a career-best five starts and registered a 2.73 ERA before an injury sidelined him March.
 
RETURNING ALL-SUMMIT LEAGUE PLAYERS
NDSU earned eight All-Summit League selections last year and return three from that group this season. Shortstop Jake Schaffner was named to the All-League First Team in his freshman season, while outfielder Sam Canton and right-handed pitcher Logan Knight were named to the honorable mention list.
 
BISON PLAY IN BIG TIME VENUES
Under fourth-year head coach Tyler Oakes, the Bison have made a habit of scheduling a challenging non-conference schedule in preparation of Summit League play and have done it in some of the best venues in college baseball. Over the last three seasons, the Bison have played in front of five of the largest road crowds in program history since 1977. Earlier this season, NDSU played in front of 10,446 fans at LSU on March 5, the highest road attendance in program history.
 
#PROBISON
NDSU has had eight incoming or current players selected in the MLB Draft since 2013. Joey Danielson became the 14th NDSU player selected in the MLB Draft dating back to 1968 after the Texas Rangers picked him in the 17th round last season. It marked the second straight season NDSU had a current pitcher selected in the draft after Cade Feeney was picked by the Boston Red Sox in the 13th round in 2023. Bennett Hostetler was also selected in the 18th round of the 2021 MLB Draft by the Miami Marlins. He was recently named to the opening day roster for the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp, the Triple-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins.
 
WHO’S BACK?
NDSU returns 16 letterwinners this season, including five starters that played in at least 50 percent of the games last season. The roster also features 14 seniors: Alex Urlaub, Sam Canton, Luis Garcia, Colten Becker, Sam Roberts, Logan Knight, Seth Thompson, Cole Mahlum, Alex Karns, Austin Bergum, Hayden Sylte, Reese Ligtenberg, Leland Wilson and Skyler Riedinger.
 
WELCOME TO THE SQUAD
The Bison welcome 14 newcomers this season: Alex Urlaub, Evan Gustafson, Will Mann, Tate Martin, Sam Roberts, Tommy Simon, Tyman Long, Luke Shannahan, Ethan Swaby, Danny Lachenmayer, Dante Smith, Cade Wiegert, Garrett Shupe and Luke Agnew.
 
STEIL JOINS COACHING STAFF
Jack Steil joined the NDSU coaching staff as the Director of Operations this offseason after spending two seasons with the Bison from 2023-24. He’s the second former Bison player on the coaching staff, joining Trent Keefer, who played at NDSU from 2014-15.