SPEARFISH, S.D.-  The Black Hills State Yellow Jackets (9-14 (6-6 RMAC)) are coming off a big-time, intense series win over the New Mexico Highlands Cowgirls where they took three out of four versus NMHU with all three wins coming by one run. It included two come from behind victories as well. The Yellow Jackets will now head to Chadron to face the Chadron State Eagles (3-18 (3-9 RMAC)) in their closest road trip of the season. BHSU will look to get their second straight conference win on Friday and Saturday this weekend.
 
KNOW BEFORE YOU GO
Date/Time/Location (All Times MT): Friday, March 13 at 12 and 2 PM at CSC Softball Field in Chadron, Neb.
Saturday, March 14 at 11 AM and 1 PM at CSC Softball Field in Chadron, Neb.
The dates of these games were moved up a day due to inclement weather in the area.

Live Streaming: Beginning in the 2025-26 season the RMAC Network will now move to Pay-Per-View. Fans can purchase a single game pass ($10), monthly ($25) or annual subscription ($130). Individuals with bhsu.edu or yellowjackets.bhsu.edu email address can still take advantage of the Peak Pricing Promotion by using the code Y26-RMACEDU.
Tickets: The first day of the series will be free access as the game was moved, but Saturday's game tickets can be purchased at the link above.
 
BLACK HILLS STATE STORYLINES

• Black Hills State currently sits at 9-14 after splitting their first RMAC series versus Adams State losing the first two games of the series and winning the second two series and then taking three out of four versus New Mexico Highlands in the home opening series. In this series, BHSU won all three games by one run with two of them being come from behind walk-off wins. The Yellow Jackets were down 11-1 in game two versus NMHU and came back to win 12-11 in the eighth inning.
• Outside of BHSU's Oklahoma trip, five of the Green and Gold's nine other losses have come by less than two runs including both of the losses to Adams State. Six of BHSU's wins have also come by that same margin.
• The Yellow Jackets are currently top 80 in the country in nine different stats. They are 32^nd in hit by pitches (16), 35^th in doubles (37), 53^rd in doubles per game (1.61), 54^th in strikeouts per seven innings (5.62), 54^th in walks (75), 60^th in hits (177),  69^th in RBIs (102), 77^th in total runs (110), and 80^th in home runs (11).
• The team took BHSU to their first ever RMAC tournament last season after leading BHSU to a 27-27 (25-19 RMAC) record, which finished sixth in the conference. They had five All-RMAC players, one RMAC Pitcher of the Year, and one All-Region player last year.
• Last year, the Yellow Jackets set 20 separate team records. They were single-season doubles (102), single-season triples (12), single-season walks (177), single-season wins (27), single-season road wins (20), single season RMAC wins (25), single-season hits (468), single-season RBIs (272), single-season runs (290), single-season total bases (699), single-season at-bats (1487), single-season games played (52), single-season pitcher strikeouts (295), single-season sacrifice flies (20), single-season sacrifice bunts (43), single-season hit by pitches (39), single-season batting average (.315), single-season on-base percentage (.397), and single-season slugging percentage (.470).
• BHSU landed at seventh in the RMAC Preseason Coaches' Poll with 64 points. It is the highest ranking BHSU has received in a preseason coaches' poll in their RMAC history. They are currently in sixth at 6-6.
• The three wins in the first weekend at the Bubble was the most wins in the first weekend in the D2 era. It is also the second time BHSU has entered the second weekend at .500.
• Kaitlyn Geschwill, a newcomer for the Yellow Jackets, made probably the biggest impact a newcomer can make in her first weekend with her new team: she won RMAC Pitcher of the Week. She has a 4.27 in 57.1 innings and has appeared in 17 of the 23 games this season. She has an RMAC-leading 65 strikeouts compared to only 35 earned runs. She has only allowed 17 extra base hits. Besides strikeouts, she's also leading the conference in strikeouts per seven innings (7.8) and is tied for first in pitching appearances (17). The Central Lakes College transfer had a huge weekend out of the bullpen for BHSU in her RMAC POTW weekend. She pitched in five of the six games, threw 15 innings with a 2-1 record, only allowing two earned runs and seven hits on a .93 ERA and 22 strikeouts. She bounced back after a rough outing in Oklahoma, where she had a 3.15 ERA, 17 strikeouts and only six earned runs in 13.1 innings, including a complete game shutout in game four versus Adams. She then dominated in her home debut versus NMHU pitching two complete games and winning both in pitcher's duels only allowing four earned runs in those two games and in game two she went seven innings with only three hits allowed and one earned run in the 2-1 win.
• Desi Hernandez is coming off an excellent freshman season where she was named All-RMAC honorable mention. Hernandez is hitting a team-leading .367 with 11 RBIs, five doubles, two home runs, eight runs scored, and 33 total bases. She has a .550 slugging percentage and a .424 on-base percentage. On the fielding side, she has six caught stealing, which is second in the RMAC and 27^th in the country. She had a career-high four hits three going 4-4 in both games against New Mexico Highlands and Colorado School of Mines while going 4-5 in BHSU's game two versus NMHU this year. She has hit 15 of 19 games this year and has reached base in 17 of 19 games. In Edmond, Hernandez had five hits and went 2-for-4 against Cameron. She made her way back to the lineup in Pueblo and went 4-for-9 (.444) with a double and an RBI. She had a dominant performance versus the Cowgilrs going 6-for-14 (.429) with five RBIs, five runs, two doubles, and a two-run home run in game two.
• Carly Reyes Mims is also coming off a major freshman season and was also named All-RMAC Honorable Mention last season. She is in the record book once for being tied for fifth in single-season doubles (11). Reyes Mims started the season off very hot. She is hitting .347 with a  OPS of 1.072 with a .583 slugging percentage and a .489 on-base percentage. She has 25 hits and 23 runs in 23 games with 15 walks, 11 RBIs, three home runs, two triples, and four doubles. She is fourth in runs per game (1.05), and seventh in runs (22). In Edmond, she went 3-3 versus Oklahoma Baptist and 1-3 versus Central Oklahoma. In game one versus Adams, she went 1-for-2 with two runs scored. She had four hits and three runs scored in Pueblo with a hit in each of the last three games. She just had the best weekend of her career last year by going 6-for-14 (.429) with six RBIs, five runs, two doubles, a triple, and two home runs with a 1.143 OPS slugging percentage and a .556 on-base percentage. She had two walk-offs in games one and two, including a two-run walk-off home run in game one.
• Caylee Mann was the top player for BHSU early and was another transfer who made an immediate impact. She has a .347 batting average with a .900 OPS, a .583 slugging percentage, and has 16 RBIs with six runs scored, seven doubles and two home runs. She is ranked fourth in the RMAC in sacrifice flies with two. She had an RBI in five of the six games in the Bubble and she has two games with three RBIs while having three hits in both of those games. She had two RBIs in Broomfield and in game two, she went 2-4 with an RBI. In game one versus CSUP, she went 2-for-3 with a home run. She had a massive weekend versus Highlands, where she went 7-for-13 (.538), with four doubles, two RBIs, and an .846 slugging percentage.
• Freshman Jessica Melendez is sitting in fourth on the offense with a .323 batting average with 14 runs scored, six RBIs and four doubles. She saw her seven game hit streak end on Sunday versus Pueblo, but she had a really strong Adams State series where she hit .429 with a .500 slugging percentage and a .500 on-base percentage. She had four runs scored and two RBIs. In game two, she went 3-for-4 with a run scored and then had two RBIs in game three. She had two hits and two runs versus CSUP. In game two versus Highlands, she went 4-for-5 with two doubles, two RBIs, and three runs scored. The four hits was a career-high for her.
• Sammie Kaufman-Warner, a freshman, is absolutely dominating for BHSU and is continuing to make a big impact early. She has a .315 batting average, a .521 slugging percentage, a .378 on-base percentage, and has 23 hits, 21 RBIs, and 13 runs scored with six doubles and three home runs. This includes a walk-off inside-the-park home run versus Adams in game three. She has a run in 12  of 23 games, a hit in 15 of 23, an RBI in 13 of 23, and has reached base in 17 of 23. She earned her first RMAC Player of the Week nod two weekends ago for going off in Broomfield with a .636 batting average, a 1.071 slugging percentage, nine RBIs, five runs scored, three doubles, and a walk-off, inside the park home run.
•  Alyssa Wong was named to All-RMAC Gold Glove team and started this year with a .250 batting average, .455 on-base percentage with 15 walks, 12 hits, three doubles, and 11 runs scored. She has reached base in all but four games and this past weekend, she went 3-for-8 with four walks and four runs scored. She had two runs scored in Pueblo.
• Head Coach Ashlyn Englehorn is the first Jacket head coach to win Coach of the Year since Amy Gurney did it in the DAC in 2008. She is entering her third season as head coach of the Yellow Jackets and has a overall record of 71-126, a BHSU record of 51-77 , and a RMAC record of 45-57. She led BHSU to first RMAC Tournament berth in program history in 2025 after being picked to finish ninth in preseason coaches poll. Helped the Green & Gold finish with their first winning record in program history since 2009. In her first two seasons as head coach, she has won nine RMAC series, with six being this year. In the previous 12 seasons, BHSU had won a total of eight RMAC series. She also helped BHSU break their program wins record, program road wins record, and program RMAC wins record, along with multiple other program statistical records. 

 
CHADRON STATE STORYLINES

• Chadron State comes into this series at 3-18 and 3-9 in RMAC play after going 0-9 in non-conference play. The Eagles began their season 0-10 after losing their first ten games and losing by a combined score of 11-87 in their first ten games with six run-rules. They then bounced back and ended up taking two of four from CSU Pueblo with two one-run wins before losing seven in a row to New Mexico Highlands and UCCS before taking the last game of the UCCS series in another one-run win. All three of their wins have been by one-score
• The Eagles gave themselves a hard non-conference schedule facing the number one team in the country in UT Tyler and then facing #13 Angelo State. They then went across the state to Wayne and faced Wayne State and Nebraska Kearney twice losing both.
• The Eagles have a relatively brand new team. They only have three qualified players who were also qualified last year and have only one returning pitcher from their team last year. This is a team that went 22-28 and 18-26 in RMAC play last season.
• CSC is ranked top five in the RMAC in four stats. They are third and 46^th in the country in sacrifice bunts (15), third in strikeout to walk ratio (1.41), fourth in hit batters (8), and fourth in team strikeouts per seven innings (4.31).
• CSC was projected 11^th in the RMAC Preseason Poll with 30 points just behind NMHU and Fort Lewis who had 35 and 32 respectively. They currently sit in a tie for tenth with Adams State at 3-9 in RMAC play.
• Belle Akins has been the top pitcher so far for the Eagles after being the lone returning pitcher from last year's staff. Akins was a one-time RMAC Pitcher of the Week last year after throwing a no-hitter versus Highlands. She has had a pretty solid year this year with six complete games with a 2-7 record to a 5.40 ERA in 57.1 innings pitched with 12 appearances and only 44 earned runs allowed with 40 strikeouts to 22 walks. She has only allowed three earned runs in four of her last five starts including a 9.1 inning outing versus Highlands where she gave up only three. This past weekend versus UCCS, she made two starts only going three innings in her first one before being pulled and then pitching a complete game in the lone win of the weekend giving up only three runs.
• CSC only has two players above a .300 batting average. The first and team-leader is Ella DeLozier, who has a .345 batting average with ten hits in 29 at bats. She had six runs scored, 11 total bases, one double and two walks. She broke her nine-game hitless streak in the finale versus UCCS where she went 1-for-2.
• Their top player is Tiffani Mein, who has a .344 batting average to go along with a 1.042 OPS, a .625 slugging percentage, a .417 on-base percentage with three doubles, two home runs, five RBIs, four runs scored, 20 total bases and 11 hits. She is 31^st in the country in sacrifice bunts per game at .25. She has a three-game hitting streak and a three-game on-base streak. She went 4-for-8 versus the Mountain Lions and had two doubles, a home run, two RBIs, and one run scored in that series.
• Head Coach Skye Koehl is in her first season as head coach of the Eagles and she is 3-18 in her time there. She came to NMHU after spending two years at Otero College. There she had a 47-48 record and actually went 34-14 in conference play. She has an overall record of 50-76

 
SERIES HISTORY

• BHSU is currently losing the series to NMHU 15-45, but have won six of the last eight versus the Eagles winning each of the last two series 3-1. The Yellow Jackets had only won five games since 2015 before these last two years.
• Last season, the Green and Gold took three out of four for only the second series win in program history. They outscored Chadron 19-12 and they only lost the final game of the series 3-2.