SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - The No. 17 Augustana baseball team continues its home stretch with a doubleheader against Southwest Minnesota State at Ronken Field. First pitch is slated for 1:30 p.m.

Complete action can be followed on GoAugie.com/Live and the GoAugie app, presented by The Original Pancake House. The app can be downloaded in the App Store or Google Play. 

Series History
The Vikings are 66-46 against SMSU and are 38-16 in Sioux Falls. The two teams met for a single nonconference game on April 3 when Sam Siegel and Parker Mooney each had three hits to lead the Vikings to a 13-6 victory. 

The Mustangs
SMSU is 23-15 overall and 17-12 in the NSIC after taking two of three from Winona State last weekend. Jeremy Ische is 80-140 overall in his sixth season as a head coach and 23-15 in his first season at the helm for the Mustangs. 

The SMSU offense touts one of the best players in the region in Chase McDaniel. The senior shortstop leads the team with a .433 average, 1.188 OPS, 44 RBI and 48 runs scored. Also producing at a high level is Isaac Nett. The senior outfielder ranks third on the team with a .364 average and leads the team with 11 home runs and 12 stolen bases. The Mustangs average 7.5 runs per game. 

The Mustangs project to throw Ansen Dulas and Shay Endres in the two-game set as both threw in midweek action against Northern State last week. Dulas ranks 18th in the country and second in the NSIC with 11.77 K/9 and comes off an outing in which he gave up a pair of runs in six innings en route to a victory. Endres has been a pleasant surprise for the Mustangs, holding a 3-1 record with a 3.03 ERA in 35 2/3 innings. The team holds a 5.17 ERA in 296 innings. 

The Vikings
Augustana is 33-6 overall and 24-4 in NSIC play after a sweep over Concordia-St. Paul. The 0.846 win percentage is the sixth best mark in the country. AU is on a 16 game win-streak, breaking a program record set by the 2015 team and is the longest current streak in the country. The Vikings are 11th in the country with 9.6 runs per game. Tim Huber is 580-262-1 in 16 seasons as the head coach of the Vikings.

The Arms
The pitching staff for Augustana have been dominant, leading DII with 10 shutouts,12.3 K/9, 1.18 WHIP, and 3.65 K/BB rates. They also rank third with 7.20 H/9, and ninth in ERA at 3.68.

Ashton Michek and Caleb Saari have been at the head of a staff that ranks among the nations best. Michek has a 2.15 ERA (13th in NCAA) with 68 strikeouts in 54 1/3 innings, and Saari holds a 3.44 ERA and 1.05 WHIP in 49 2/3 innings of action. He has 59 strikeouts and has allowed an opponents batting average of .210. Freshman Riley Rothschadl has a 2.30 ERA and 20 strikeouts in 15 2/3 innings of work. 

Opening the season out of the 'pen and cementing a spot in the rotation, Mariano Gomez has been electric. Gomez has a 2.00 ERA and .183 opponents batting average with 60 strikeouts in 36 innings, and J.D. Hennen has also shined in his first season of extended work, striking out 48 in 33 innings while allowing an opponents batting average of .210. 

True freshman Will Henry has also been impressive in relief, holding a 1.76 ERA and 0.65 WHIP while striking out 25 in 15  1/3 innings. Kai Taylor and Tom Sun have been lethal out of the bullpen as well, combining for 32 strikeouts in 26 2/3 innings while allowing a .154 and .214 opponents batting average, respectively. 

The Bats
Jack Hines has been the best offensive player in the country this season, batting a league-high .445 with a 1.406 OPS, program record-tying 17 home runs, 66 RBI, and 56 runs scored while adding 13 steals. 

In NSIC action, the numbers get even better. In 28 games against NSIC foes, Hines is hitting .452 with a 1.492 OPS, knocking out 14 of his 17 home runs and driving in 52 of his RBI against the conference. He also has 104 total bases, 18 more than the next highest total. 

Nationally, Hines is second in the country in RBI per game (1.69), second in slugging percentage (.918), tied for fourth in RBI (66), fifth in total bases (134), seventh in home runs per game (0.44), eighth in batting average (.445), ninth in runs per game (1.44), and ninth in home runs (17). He is the only player in the country to rank in the top 10 for each statistic. 

Also asserting himself atop the league with power numbers is Dirk Dirksen. After a slow stretch, he has caught fire. He ranks just behind Hines in the conference with a .826 slugging percentage (12th nationally), 1.286 OPS, and is second with 15 home runs. In NSIC only games, he ranks second with a 1.285 OPS, second with an .824 slugging percentage, and 11 home runs. The senior catcher is 14th in the country with .38 home runs per game and 19th in home runs while slashing .339/.484/.826.

Max Mosser is second on the team with a .392 batting average (31 for 79) and leads the team with a .495 on-base percentage. Behind them is Luke Ballweg, whose .345 average, seven home runs, and 1.179 OPS  are all good for third on the team. Parker Mooney has been a key contributor with a .325 average, 1.117 OPS, seven home runs, and 25 RBI. 

Jason Axelberg is batting .316 with four home runs and 26 RBI in 35 games and 20 starts. Joe Kolbeck has provided a spark in 36 games this season, hitting .320 with 25 RBI, 34 runs scored, eight stolen bases, and a 1.031 OPS. 

Nick Banowetz is hitting .297 with a team-high 17 stolen bases, and Trevor Winterstein is up to .289 with 16 stolen bases. 

As a team, AU ranks fourth in the country with a .578 slugging percentage, fourth in home runs per game with 1.74, 28th with a .436 on base percentage, 32nd with a .325 batting average, and 41st with 2.03 steals per game.

16 AU hitters have recorded multi-hit games, led by 20 from Hines. He has now recorded a hit in 34 of 39 games to open the season, and has reached base in 38 of 39 games. 

Number 50
On April 13 in the second game of a doubleheader at Winona State, Drey Dirksen broke the program record with his 50th career home run. The home run put him ahead of Nate Baumann's record of 49 that had stood since 2011. For more on Dirksen's record-breaking path, visit HERE.

Dirksen caught fire to elevate the Viking offense, going on a hot streak that helped get him in position to reach the milestone. Dirksen hit .517 (18 for 38) with eight home runs and 17 RBI in over the course of 12 games. The Vikings were 12-0 and averaged 9.2 runs per game over that stretch.