St. Thomas Live Video and Live Stats |
St. Benedict Live Video |
St. Benedict Live Stats
THIS WEEK'S GAMES: The Blue Devils (2-2, 0-0 WIAC) are off to Minnesota this weekend to take on a pair of Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) schools, traveling to the University of St Thomas (1-1) one last time, Saturday, March 20 with a 1 p.m. start in St. Paul, Minn. The Blue Devils return to Minnesota Sunday, March 21 to take on the College of St. Benedict (3-1). Time of the game has yet to be decided. Snow and ice covered the St. Benedict field earlier this week and if the turf field is cleared, game time is scheduled for 1 p.m. But if the game is to be played at the St. John's University Dome, the doubleheader will get underway at 11 a.m. The St. Benedict game is not the only game to be dependent on the weather. Stout has already seen weather force a change in the schedule. After adding a doubleheader at Luther College, for Wednesday, March 17, a snowstorm that moved through northern Iowa Monday forced the game to be postponed one week to Wednesday, March 24 at 2 p.m.
SPECTATOR POLICY: Fans are allowed at St. Thomas, but a face mask must be worn at all times and social distance must be maintained. The spectator policy for the St. Benedict game will depend upon where the games will be played. If the game is outside, St. Benedict is allowing 150 fans in the grandstands – masked and socially distant. If fans want to bring their own chairs they are more than welcome to sit outside the outfield fence. Restrooms will be available, but no concessions. If the games are moved inside there will be no spectators allowed. Both schools will provide a live video stream and live stats.
THE 2021 WIAC SCHEDULE: Teams will play their usual 14-game regular-season league schedule, while the conference tournament has been expanded to eight teams with quarterfinal games between the No. 8 seed/No. 1 seed, No. 7 seed/No. 2 seed, No. 6 seed/No. 3 seed and No. 5 seed/No. 4 seed on May 11. The winning teams will advance to the semifinals on May 13. The quarterfinal and semifinal games will be hosted by the higher seed. The championship will feature the two semifinal winners in a three-game series on May 15 and 16 (if necessary) at the higher seed. The teams will also play several non-conference games among themselves.
2021 UW-Stout Schedule
Date / Opponent / Time or Result
Sat, Feb 27 / vs. UW-Superior / W 8-6, W 7-6
Fri, March 5 / vs. Bethel / L 12-0 (5); L 2-0
Sat, March 20 / at St. Thomas / 1 p.m.
Sun, March 21 / at St. Benedict / 11 a.m. or 1 p.m. start
Wed, March 24 / at Luther / 2 p.m.
Sat, March 27 / at Bethany Lutheran / 1 p.m.
Sun, March 28 / at Crown College / 2 p.m.
Thu, Apr 8 / UW-Eau Claire* / 3 p.m.
Sat, Apr 10 / at UW-La Crosse* / 1 p.m.
Wed, Apr 14 / at UW-River Falls* / 2 p.m.
Sat, Apr 17 / UW-Whitewater* / 2 p.m.
Tue, Apr 20 / at UW-Eau Claire / 4 p.m.
Sat, Apr 24 / at UW-Platteville* / 2 p.m.
Wed, Apr 28 / UW-La Crosse / 4 p.m.
Fri, Apr 30 / UW-Oshkosh* / 4 p.m.
Tue, May 4 / UW-River Falls / 4 p.m.
Fri, May 7 / UW-Stevens Point* / 7 p.m.
Tue, May 11 / WIAC First Round / TBA
Thu, May 13 / WIAC Second Round / TBA
Sat, May 15 / WIAC Championship / TBA
UW-STOUT: Stout will carry a large, 25-player roster, led by seniors, first baseman
Meghan Kelly, catcher
Michala Belter and pitchers
Melea Bruns and
Sommer Kunstmann. Juniors
Jessica Christiansen,
Korin Hall,
Kelly Beck, Maddie Kleinschmidt,
Addison Murry,
Kaylee Peterson, and
Shannon Jones, sophomores
Kayli Pfeffer,
Kate Funk,
Allegra Larson,
Maggie O'Brien, and
Mackensie Wolterstorff, and freshmen
Ashley Jacobson,
Katelyn Belleau,
Taylor Mancl,
Alyssa Albrecht,
Jordan Caby,
Lexy Kupczak,
Amanda Shipley and
Bella Anderson make up the remainder of the roster. It was 356 days in between games from when the 2020 season was canceled to when the Blue Devils opened with UW-Superior, Feb. 27. Following a 19-18 overall record in 2019, Stout went 3-1 last season before the season came to a premature end after a pair of games March 8, 2020, in Rosemount, Ill. Practices resumed in the fall in a socially-distanced way and, at the beginning, in pods to keep the numbers down on the field. Indoor practice resumed in late January with the entire team working together.
Becky Iaccino begins her sixth season as the Blue Devil head coach. She is assisted by
Chris Iliopoulos, Jessica Stine and Sam Hintzman.
AT THE PLATE: Korin Hall leads the Blue Devils and the WIAC, batting .778 (7-9) with seven runs scored in two games played.
Kelly Beck is hitting .500 (5-10) over four games (sixth in the WIAC).
Michala Belter has appeared in three games and is hitting .429 (3-7).
Meghan Kelly and
Kayli Pfeffer leAd the team in RBI with four each. Kelly is batting .417 (5-12) and Pfeffer has made the most of her two hits. Hall and
Aliyah Smetana each have two stolen bases.
IN THE CIRCLE: The Blue Devils will rely on seniors
Melea Bruns and
Sommer Kunstmann in starting roles and junior
Madee Kleinschmidt and sophomore
Mackensie Wolterstorff in relief roles. Wolterstorff and Kleinschmidt are both 1-0, while Bruns and Kunstmann have each absorbed a loss. Over 5.2 innings pitched, Wolterstorff has 11 strikeouts and one walk.
BLUE DEVILS LAST TIME OUT: The Blue Devils opened the season with an 8-6, 7-6 sweep of UW-Superior, Feb. 27 - and the two wins gave Blue Devil head coach
Becky Iaccino her 100th career win.
Korin Hall and
Mackensie Wolterstorff swept WIAC player of the week honors. Hall went 7-for-9 (.778) at the plate with a double and scored seven runs over the two games. Wolterstorff came on in relief to pick up the win in the second game 7-6 decision over UW-Superior in the season opener on Feb. 27, going four complete innings, allowing no runs, striking out eight and walking none, while facing 14 batters. |
Superior Game Story and Statistics | But the Blue Devils' second doubleheader didn't go so well, falling to Bethel University, 12-0, 2-0, March 5 at the Augsburg Indoor Dome. |
Bethel Game Story and Statistics
SCOUTING THE UNIVERSITY OF ST. THOMAS: This will be the final time the Blue Devils and the Tommies meet. St. Thomas will not only be exiting the MIAC, but the NCAA Division III as the athletic program makes the unprecendented jump from Division III to Division I next season. The Tommies opened the 2021 season with a split with St. Olaf College, downing the Oles, 7-2, in the opener, March 12, but losing 8-6 in the nightcap. St. Thomas holds a 14-4 advantage in the series and have won the last 11 meetings. Stout's last win over St. Thomas came April 4, 1997, a 3-0 win in Menomonie. |
Softball Website |
Schedule |
Coaching Staff |
Last Time Out |
Statistics |
SCOUTING THE COLLEGE OF ST. BENEDICT: The Blazers are 3-1 overall, after splitting the opening weekend with UW-La Crosse, winning the first 5-3, but dropping the second game, 10-5, March 13. The Bennies posted 4-0 and 11-0 wins over Gustavus went 7-for-12 with three doubles, two home runs and five RBIs over the four games. Adolphus, March 14. Junior transfer Katie Carlson was selected as the MIAC softball athlete of the week after opening weekend. She is currently sixth in the MIAC with a .583 batting average, fourth with seven hits and leads the league in both home runs and doubles. St. Benedict holds a 6-1 lead in the series and have won the last six meetings dating back to 2014. Stout's only win over St. Ben's came during the 1996 season, a 12-5 win. St. Ben's is scheduled to play UW-Eau Claire Saturday. |
Softball Website |
Schedule |
Coaching Staff |
Last Time Out |
Statistics |
COACHES: Blue Devil coach
Becky Iaccino (82-76 Stout / 100-96 overall) is in her sixth year as the head coach of the Blue Devils with the 2021 season. Iaccino played professionally in Italy
from 2003 to 2011 and with the Italian National team from 2005-07. She has been the head coach at Marian University where she was selected as conference coach of the year, and has eight years of experience as an assistant coach at Division I and Division III programs. (80-74, 98-94 before 2021 season began).
AWARDS AND HONORS: 2021:
Korin Hall was named the WIAC position player of the week and
Mackensie Wolterstorff the WIAC pitcher of the week after a season-opening sweep of UW-Superior, Feb. 27.
ON DECK: The Blue Devils are scheduled to travel to Bethany Lutheran College, Saturday, March 27 and to Crown College, Sunday, March 28.
A LOOK AT THE 2021 WISCONSIN INTERCOLLEGIATE ATHLETIC CONFERENCE (WIAC) TEAMS
MADISON, Wis.--After a shortened 2020 campaign due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) softball teams are thrilled to return to the field for the 2021 season.
Teams will play their usual 14-game regular-season league schedule, while the conference tournament has been expanded to eight teams with quarterfinal games between the No. 8 seed/No. 1 seed, No. 7 seed/No. 2 seed, No. 6 seed/No. 3 seed and No. 5 seed/No. 4 seed on May 11. The winning teams will advance to the semifinals on May 13. The quarterfinal and semifinal games will be hosted by the higher seed. The championship will feature the two semifinal winners in a three-game series on May 15 and 16 (if necessary) at the higher seed.
In 2019, UW-Whitewater secured the 13th regular-season conference championship in program archives, while UW-La Crosse won the WIAC tournament for the third time. The Warhawks and Eagles, along with UW-Eau Claire, represented the conference in the NCAA Division III Championship. It was the second time in three seasons that three teams from the WIAC participated in NCAA postseason action.
Team Capsules (Records Indicated are Entering the 2021 season)
UW-Eau Claire
Head Coach: Leslie Huntington; 20th season at UWEC; 499-263-2
Letterwinners Returning: 18
Starting Position Players Returning: 6
Pitchers with Starting Experience Returning: 3
Pitchers with Saves Returning: 1
Returning All-WIAC: Mikayla McEnery, Sr., OF (2018-First, 2019-First); Abbey Place, Sr., C (2019-First)
Notable Returning Position Players: Bailey Sillman, Sr., OF; Katelyn Yute, Sr., INF/OF; Meghan Witt, Jr., INF
Notable Returning Pitchers: Morgan Sivak, Sr., RHP
UW-La Crosse
Head Coach: Chris Helixon; 20th season (16th at UWL); 403-323-1 (overall) / 351-229 (UWL)
Letterwinners Returning: 16
Starting Position Players Returning: 8
Pitchers with Starting Experience Returning: 2
Pitchers with Saves Returning: 0
Returning All-WIAC: Kendra Leis, Jr., 1B/3B, (2019-First); Sabrina Scardamaglia, Sr., C/OF (2019-Honorable); Mia Schmidtke, Sr., OF (2018-First, 2019-First); Sydne Shattuck, Sr., RHP (2019-First)
Notable Returning Position Players: Katie Block, Sr., SS; Emily Knight, Jr., 2B; Allison Oster, Sr., OF
Notable Returning Pitchers: Maddie Muelken, Sr., RHP; Rachel Niederkorn, Jr., RHP
UW-Oshkosh
Head Coach: Scott Beyer; 8th season at UWO; 166-81
Letterwinners Returning: 11
Starting Position Players Returning: 9
Pitchers with Starting Experience Returning: 3
Pitchers with Saves Returning: 2
Returning All-WIAC: Natalie Dudek, Sr., SS (2017-Honorable, 2019-Honorable); Amanda McIlhany, Sr., 2B (2019-Honorable); Claire Petrus, Sr., RHP/DP (2018-Honorable, 2019-First); Acacia Tupa, Sr., OF (2018-First, 2019-First)
Notable Returning Position Players: Gabby Buikema, So., OF; Natalie Dillon, Sr., OF; Ana Iliopoulos, So., 3B
Notable Returning Pitchers: Sidney Budzinski, So., RHP; Maddie Fink, So., RHP
UW-Platteville
Head Coach: Becca Lowe; 2nd season at UWP; 2-2
Letterwinners Returning: 8
Starting Position Players Returning: 8
Pitchers with Starting Experience Returning: 4
Pitchers with Saves Returning: 2
Returning All-WIAC: Abby Burns, Sr., RHP/2B (2019-Honorable); Shannon Gaul, Senior, 3B (2018-First); Ashton Hoeppner, Senior, RHP (2018-First, 2019-First); Rachel Plautz, Junior, C/OF (2019-Honorable)
Notable Returning Position Players: Caire Bakkestuen, So., 1B; Haili Cota, Sr., OF; Riley Kelsch, Jr., INF; Alejandra Ochoa, Sr., OF
Notable Returning Pitchers: Claire Bakkestuen, So., RHP
UW-River Falls
Head Coach: Amber Dohlman; 9th season (6th at UWRF); 107-147-1 (overall) / 54-91-1 (UWRF)
Letterwinners Returning: 19
Starting Position Players Returning: 9
Pitchers with Starting Experience Returning: 5
Pitchers with Saves Returning: 0
Returning All-WIAC: Molly Kaspar, Sr., OF (2018-First)
Notable Returning Position Players: Rebecca Daley, Sr., OF; Allison Kondzela, Sr., OF
Notable Returning Pitchers: Tayler Fall, Jr., RHP; Juliana Reynolds, So., RHP; Hannah Stegeman, Sr., RHP
UW-Stevens Point
Head Coach: Ryan Konitzer; 5th season (4th at UWSP); 50-74-1 (overall) / 37-49-1 (UWSP)
Letterwinners Returning: 14
Starting Position Players Returning: 8
Pitchers with Starting Experience Returning: 2
Pitchers with Saves Returning: 1
Returning All-WIAC: Sammy Buerger, Jr., C (2019-Honorable); Maddie Candre, Jr., OF (2019-Honorable); Lauren Luedtke, Sr., INF (2018-Honorable, 2019-First/Position Player of the Year)
Notable Returning Position Players: Megan Lawrence, So., OF; Sara Traxel, So., UTIL
Notable Returning Pitchers: Lauren Lindahl, So., RHP; Makenna Tkach, So., RHP
UW-Stout
Head Coach:
Becky Iaccino; 7th season (6th season at UWST); 98-94 (overall) / 80-76 (UWST)
Letterwinners Returning: 16
Starting Position Players Returning: 6
Pitchers with Starting Experience Returning: 2
Pitchers with Saves Returning: 3
Returning All-WIAC:
Melea Bruns, Sr., RHP (2018-Honorable);
Meghan Kelly, Sr., INF ( 2019-Honorable)
Notable Returning Position Players:
Kelly Beck, Jr., OF;
Kate Funk, So., DP/1B;
Korin Hall, Jr., OF
Notable Returning Pitchers: Maddie Kleinschmidt, Jr., RHP;
Sommer Kunstmann, Sr., RHP;
Mackensie Wolterstorff, So., RHP
UW-Whitewater
Head Coach: Brenda Volk; 23rd season at UWW; 651-264-5
Letterwinners Returning: 14
Starting Position Players Returning: 3
Pitchers with Starting Experience Returning: 1
Pitchers with Saves Returning: 0
Returning All-WIAC: Meg Cohrs, Sr., 3B (2017-First, 2019-First); Nikki Mikosz, Sr., C (2016-Honorable); Vera Pflugradt, Jr., OF (2018-First/Position Player of the Year)
Notable Returning Position Players: Taylor Briehl, Sr., OF/C; Kennedy Cox, Jr., C; Kaleigh O'Brien, Sr., 1B
Notable Returning Pitchers: Annie Morelli, Jr., RHP
