JACKRABBITS & ROOS MEET IN KANSAS CITY

Thursday, April 2

Kansas City, Mo.

3 p.m.

South Dakota State University

Kansas City

Mia Buske

Photo by: Jenna Batka

4/1/2026 2:00:00 PM | Softball

By: Andrew Pedersen

Games 41-43: South Dakota State (20-20, 5-1) vs. Kansas City (9-20, 0-6)
When	Thursday, April 2 (3 PM DH) - Friday, April 3 (11 AM)
Location	Kansas City, Mo. (Urban Youth Academy)
Stream	Summit League Network
Live Stats	KCRoos.com
South Dakota State	Game Notes
Kansas City	Home Page

South Dakota State continues its Summit League schedule with an adjusted slate as the Jackrabbits head to Kansas City to take on the Roos at the Urban Youth Academy. The series begins with a 3 p.m. doubleheader on Thursday, then wraps up with an 11 a.m. game on Friday.

The series was originally set to be played at SDSU's Jerald T. Moriarty Field, but was changed due to the anticipated weather conditions in the region. The Jacks now have one remaining home series this season with SDSU scheduled to host St. Thomas in Brookings from April 24-26.

SDSU is 20-20 overall, and 5-1 in Summit League play, following a three-game sweep over North Dakota at Jerald T. Moriarty Field. SDSU extended its win streak over the Fighting Hawks to 18 and has now won six straight regular season series versus UND. The Jacks improved to 71-31 all-time over the Hawks.

South Dakota State is 30-21 all-time against Kansas City. The Jackrabbits have won 13 consecutive meetings against the Roos. SDSU's last loss to Kansas City on its home field came in 2019.

The Jackrabbits were boosted by multiple performers in their most recent series. The three-game series against North Dakota saw seven different Jacks hit over .400. That included Bria Riebel (.778), Abby Gentry (.600), Amanda Vacanti (.556), Akayla Barnard (.556), Quinn Marnocha (.500), Ella Berlage (.444) and Emma Christensen (.429).

Riebel put together a spectacular series from a numbers standpoint. With a 7-for-9 effort at the plate, six of her hits came via extra bases. She hit home runs on back-to-back days, while she totaled four doubles over the three-game span. Barnard scored a team-high seven runs against UND while Gentry and Christensen matched Riebel with four RBIs.

SDSU also received significant performances in the circle in the series. Akayla Barnard logged a complete-game five-inning shutout in a start for the Jacks, along with claiming a save in two innings of scoreless relief. Tayler Baker pitched four innings of relief and registered a 1.75 ERA in her showing. Amanda Vacanti made a start and didn't allow a run in three innings pitched.

South Dakota State has some of the best hitting numbers in the conference as the Jackrabbits head into their 41st game of the season. The Jackrabbits lead the conference in doubles (77) and hits (341). They rank second and 14th, respectively, in those categories among all Division I softball program.s The Jacks also rank second in the league in average (.315), RBIs (220) and total runs scored (235).

Following the series against Kansas City, SDSU will be at the midway point of its Summit League slate of games. The Jackrabbits are still scheduled to play at Omaha (April 17-19), versus St. Thomas and at North Dakota State (April 30-May 2).

Kansas City enters a now home series for the Roos with a 9-20 record. The Roos are 0-6 to begin The Summit League slate. Kansas City was swept by St. Thomas by scores of 8-2, 4-1 and 15-4. The Roos also lost three games to current league leader Omaha by 9-0, 8-0 and 10-0 scores. Ella Husak (.305) and Leilani Bustamante (.304) lead the Roos in hitting, while Delilah Robles carries Kansas City in the circle with a 6-10 record and 3.43 ERA.

Coverage Information
The entire Summit League softball regular season will stream on The Summit League Network powered by Midco Sports Plus. Live stats for all three games the Jackrabbits play the Roos are available on KCRoos.com. For more information about Jackrabbit softball, you can follow the team social media accounts (@GoJacksSoftball) or visit the team page at GoJacks.com.

-GoJacks.com-