JACKS START SECOND HALF OF LEAGUE SLATE WITH ORU

Friday, April 17

Brookings, S.D.

3 p.m.

South Dakota State University

Oral Roberts

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Photo by: Dave Eggen/Inertia

4/16/2026 12:11:00 PM | Baseball

Oral Roberts (20-14, 11-1 Summit) at South Dakota State (12-21, 6-6 Summit)

When	Friday-Sunday, April 17-19 • 3 p.m. Friday \| • 2 p.m. Saturday \| • 1 p.m. Sunday
Where	Erv Huether Field \| Brookings, South Dakota
TV	Summit League Network powered by Midco Sports Plus • Friday's Broadcast \| • Saturday's Broadcast \| • Sunday's Broadcast
Radio	KJJQ 910 AM \| GoJacks.com/Watch
Live Stats	GoJacksLive.com
Game Notes	South Dakota State \| Oral Roberts \| The Summit League
Social Media	Twitter \| Instagram

The South Dakota State baseball team will attempt to get back in the thick of the Summit League race as it hosts conference-leading Oral Roberts in a three-game weekend series.

The series opener is set for 3 p.m. Friday at Erv Huether Field. Saturday's matchup is scheduled for a 2 p.m. start, with Sunday's series finale slated for 1 p.m. With cold temperatures in the forecast, a decision whether to stay with the scheduled start times for the final two games of the series will be made after Friday's contest.

All three games of the series will be available for viewing on the Summit League Network streaming platform powered by Midco Sports Plus, with local radio coverage on KJJQ 910 AM.

SDSU enters the weekend with a 12-21 overall record and in third place in the Summit League standings the first time through a double round-robin schedule with a 6-6 mark. Since being swept at Oral Roberts to open league play, the Jackrabbits have won each of their last three Summit series two games to one and opened a 10-game homestand Tuesday afternoon with a 13-3, seven-inning nonconference victory over Midland (Neb.).

Oral Roberts, meanwhile, has compiled a 20-14 overall record and an 11-1 ledger in The Summit League. The Golden Eagles ran their league winning streak to 11 games before suffering an 8-7, 12-inning setback at Omaha in their series finale on April 12. ORU also dropped a 5-3 home decision to Central Arkansas on Tuesday.

Updates of Jackrabbit baseball will be available throughout the week via X/Twitter (@GoJacksBaseball) and through GoJacks.com.

THE SERIES: Friday's series opener between South Dakota State and Oral Roberts will mark the 110th all-time meeting between the two programs on the baseball diamond. ORU has held the upper hand in the series, which dates back to 1971, by an 86-23 count, including 12 wins in a row dating back to the 2024 season.

The Golden Eagles swept the first series of the 2026 campaign, which was played March 13-15 at Chapman Park in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Following are brief recaps of the three games:

Game 1: Oral Roberts 4, SDSU 3 (March 13 at Tulsa, Oklahoma)
• W-Jack Hill (2-0). L-Drew McDowell (0-1).

Oral Roberts scored twice in the bottom of the eighth and held off the Jackrabbits for a one-run victory in the Summit League opener for both teams.

Tyler Brodrick drove in Wailele Kane-Yates with a base hit for the go-ahead run and Martell Davis scored later in the frame on a wild pitch for a 4-2 lead.

SDSU scored one in the ninth after Nate Wachter and Dayton Franke opened the inning with back-to-back singles. The Jackrabbits' first two runs — in the third and fifth innings — were both unearned.

ORU opened the scoring with two runs in the third inning on a solo home run by Makani Tanaka and an RBI single by Cooper Kelly.

Game 2: Oral Roberts 3, SDSU 1 (March 14 at Tulsa, Oklahoma)
• W-Jackson Farrell (1-0). L-Austin Henry (0-1). Save-Kash Ferris (1).

For the second day in a row, ORU scored two runs in the bottom of the eighth inning to break a tie.

Tyler Brodrick started the game-winning rally by drawing a one-out walk and scored on a pinch-hit single up the middle by Will Edmunson. The Golden Eagles added an insurance run later in the inning on a safety squeeze by Hudson Ellis.

ORU plated a first-inning run after two Jackrabbit errors, but SDSU tied the game in the top of the third on an RBI double by Nolan Grawe that brought Luke Wroblewski home after a walk.

Jackrabbit starter Sam Schlecht did not allow an earned run over 5 2/3 innings.

Game 3: Oral Roberts 12, SDSU 2 [8 inn.] (March 15 at Tulsa, Oklahoma)
• W-Weston Rouse (1-0). L-Sam Novotny (1-2).

Oral Roberts scored multiple runs in each of its last three innings of batting, finishing off a sweep of the three-game series with a 12-2, eight-inning victory.

SDSU held one-run leads after solo home runs by Keagen Jirschele in the second inning and Dayton Franke in the top of the sixth before ORU took control with three runs in the home half of the sixth to grab a 4-2 lead. The Golden Eagles scored four more runs in both the seventh and eighth innings to put the 10-run rule into effect.

Tyler Brodrick was 3-for-3 with three RBIs, including a sacrifice fly, to pace the Golden Eagles, with Martell Davis and Keaton Campbell also tallying three hits.

SHORT HOPS: Following are some more quick notes regarding the South Dakota State baseball team heading into this weekend's series against Oral Roberts:

Seven Jackrabbit games in March were decided by one run, including both games of their mid-week series March 17-18 at Oklahoma State. Overall, SDSU is 1-7 in one-run games this season.
SDSU scored 21 runs in each of the last two games of its Summit League series at Northern Colorado in late March, marking the first time since an April 28, 2010, home doubleheader against North Dakota (won 21-10 and 21-8) that the Jackrabbits scored 20-plus runs in consecutive games.
The Jackrabbits tallied double-digit runs in an inning for the second and third times this season, scoring 12 runs in the eighth inning of the March 28 game at Northern Colorado, followed by a 10-run seventh inning the next day.
SDSU previously set a program single-game record by scoring 17 runs in the fourth inning of its 19-11, series-opening win at Incarnate Word on Feb. 17 in San Antonio, Texas. Each of the first 12 batters of the inning reached base safely and a total of 21 men went to the plate in the frame.
The Jackrabbits have won via the 10-run rule four times in their last 10 games and have outscored their Summit League opponents by a 100-60 margin.
Nolan Grawe extended his overall hitting streak to 14 games with the first four-hit game of his career in the April 14 win over Midland Over his 14-game hitting streak, which began March 17 at Oklahoma State, Grawe is batting .379 (25-for-66) with 20 RBIs and 17 runs scored. He has notched an extra-base hit in nine of the games during his hitting streak, including a run of six consecutive games from March 21-29, en route to a .636 slugging percentage (six doubles, four triples two home runs) during his current hot streak.
Grawe tied an SDSU single-season record with a 19-game hitting streak during his freshman season in 2025. The Cedar Rapids, Iowa, native set an SDSU freshman record with 69 hits last season and collected his 100th career hit March 25 at Creighton.
Grawe enters the week with 113 career hits, which includes 25 doubles. He currently leads the team with 44 hits, 13 doubles, four triples, 28 runs scored and a .526 slugging percentage. He also ranks second on the squad with 30 runs batted in.
Nic Werk has provided a boost to the Jackrabbit offense over the last 25 games, including recording a career-best six-game hitting streak from Feb. 28-March 8. Eight of his 22 hits have been doubles, including a bases-clearing, three-RBI two-bagger in the April 11 series finale at St. Thomas. Werk registered a .900 on-base percentage in the two-game series at Oklahoma State (4-for-5 with five walks) and has reached base safely in a career-best 15 consecutive games entering this weekend's series.
A utility player, Werk has made 14 starts at second base, eight in left field, two at shortstop and one in right field since his return to the lineup.
Jackrabbit catchers Nate Wachter and Luke Jones are hitting a combined .452 (19-for-42) with runners in scoring position this season. A redshirt freshman from Blair, Nebraska, Wachter leads the team by batting .464 (13-for-28) with runners in scoring position, while Jones is 6-for-14 (.429 average). Jones went 2-for-3 with two RBIs in the April 11 series finale at St. Thomas, then recorded a career-best three hits, including a double, Tuesday afternoon against Midland. Adding to Wachter's résumé as a clutch hitter, 11 of his 17 RBIs have come with two outs.
Luke Wroblewski has been one of SDSU's top hitters in recent weeks, batting .361 (13-for-36) with two home runs, 14 RBIs and 17 runs scored in nine games. He also has compiled a .583 slugging percentage, a .455 on-base percentage and all five of his stolen bases on the season. The graduate transfer began his hot streak by going 3-for-3 with a pair of stolen bases March 25 at Creighton. He hit a three-run homer in the March 27 series opener at Northern Colorado, followed by a 2-for-4, four-RBI performance on March 28 and a 3-for-4 day at the plate in the March 29 series finale in which he doubled twice, scored three times and drove in four runs. A graduate transfer, Wroblewski has played the last five games in center field, spelling an injured Owen Siegert.
Wroblewski led off the April 11 series finale at St. Thomas with a home run, marking the first time the Jackrabbits have opened a game with a round-tripper since Bryce Ronken at Northern Colorado on May 4, 2024. Wroblewski's leadoff blast was the lone home run SDSU hit in the three-game series against the Tommies.
Freshman outfielder Carter Taylor walked three times in both games of an April 10 doubleheader at St. Thomas. Taylor reached base for a fourth time in the opener with an RBI infield single.
Left-hander Tristan Augedahl has logged three-plus innings in recording both of his saves so far this season. Augedahl tossed 3 2/3 hitless and scoreless innings to close out SDSU's 13-5 victory in Game 1 of a March 21 doubleheader against North Dakota State, then threw 3 1/3 scoreless frames in the first game of an April 10 twinbill at St. Thomas to wrap up a 7-2 Jackrabbit win. Augedahl also has a pair of victories this season and has notched 29 strikeouts in 22 1/3 innings pitched.
The Jackrabbits used nine pitchers in their April 8 game at Minnesota. Junior college transfer Dylan Richardson logged a career-best three scoreless innings to lead the pitching staff. Conversely, SDSU used only six pitchers — two in each game — in their three-game weekend series at St. Thomas.
The Jacks turned three double plays in their March 11 game at Kansas State, marking the first time since a Feb. 24, 2024, game at New Mexico that SDSU accomplished the feat. In 2026, SDSU has 20 double plays to its credit and is fielding at a .978 clip.
Both Dayton Franke and Brady Brown were hit by pitches three times in a game in February. Franke was plunked three times in the Feb. 17 series opener at Incarnate Word, while Brown was hit three times in the Feb. 22 series finale at Tarleton State.
In all, Jackrabbit players have been hit by pitches a total of 64 times in 2026. Luke Luskey has been hit by a pitch 12 times to lead the team, followed by Dayton Franke with 11. Carter Taylor was hit by pitches in consecutive innings of an April 8 game at Minnesota, bringing his total to eight.
Luskey tallied his 100th career RBI with a run-scoring double in the first inning of Game 2 of the March 21 doubleheader against North Dakota State and enters the week with 114 RBIs after notching a run-scoring single in the first inning of Tuesday's game against Midland. Luskey posted consecutive three-RBI games against Minnesota (April 8) and the series opener at St. Thomas (April 10) in action last week.
Luskey also leads active Jackrabbit players with 28 career home runs, putting him three away from moving into the SDSU career top 10.

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK: South Dakota State has had three players selected as Kwik Star Summit League Baseball Peak Performers of the Week so far this season, with Luke Luskey becoming the latest Jackrabbit to be honored on March 24.

A junior from Green Isle, Minnesota, Luskey batted .429 (6-for-14) with seven RBIs and compiled a .579 on-base percentage in four games against Oklahoma State and North Dakota State. All six of his hits went for extra bases — three doubles and three home runs — as he finished the week with a 1.286 slugging percentage.

Luskey opened the week with a double and home run in a March 17 game at Oklahoma State. In the first game of a March 21 doubleheader against North Dakota State, he hit two home runs and added a run-scoring double as he tallied five RBIs in a Jackrabbit victory, then added an RBI double in Game 2 as the Jackrabbits swept the twinbill to win the series. Luskey also scored five times and reached base on two walks and three hit by pitches during the week.

The two-homer game against NDSU marked the fourth time in his career he has hit two home runs in a game.

Luskey is the second Jackrabbit to receive the weekly award this season, joining freshman outfielder Carter Taylor on Feb. 24.

A freshman from Missoula, Montana, Taylor batted .522 (12-for-22) over five games and notched multiple hits in four of those contests. In his first career start, Feb. 17 at Incarnate Word, he went 4-for-6, including hitting his first collegiate home, driving in two runs and scoring twice in a 19-11 Jackrabbit victory. The following day he closed the series with a 3-for-5 performance at the plate that included three RBIs. Taylor, who hit safely in all five games last week to extend his overall hitting streak to six games, tallied two hits in both the Feb. 20 series opener and Feb. 22 finale at Tarleton State.

For the week, his totals included four runs scored and five RBIs.

In addition, right-hander Sam Schlecht was named the Kwik Star Summit League Peak Pitcher of the Week for his performance in a Feb. 28 victory at Central Arkansas.

A senior from Maple Grove, Minnesota, Schlecht carried a shutout into the sixth inning, stretching his scoreless innings streak to 10 before giving up a two-run home run. He struck out a season-high seven batters, walked only one and scattered four hits in improving to 2-1 on the season as the Jackrabbits held on for an 8-5 victory.

PRESEASON POLL: South Dakota State has been picked to finish fourth in the upcoming Summit League baseball race, according to a preseason poll conducted among the league's six head coaches and announced Feb. 11.

The Jackrabbits totaled 12 points in the poll and are coming off a 2025 campaign in which they compiled a 16-36 overall record, including a 12-18 mark in The Summit League. SDSU returned to the four-team Summit League Baseball Championship, marking the 14th time in 16 years of Division I eligibility that the Jackrabbits qualified for the double-elimination tournament.

Oral Roberts earned the top spot in the preseason poll with 24 points and four first-place votes. Omaha received the other two first-place votes and tied with defending regular season champion St. Thomas for second place in the survey with 19 points.

North Dakota State (11 points) and Northern Colorado (6 points) rounded out the poll.

The top four teams in league play will advance to the Summit League Baseball Championship May 20-23 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

In addition to the preseason poll, Jackrabbit first baseman Luke Luskey was named a Summit League Player to Watch and Ty Madison was selected as a Summit League Pitcher to Watch.

Luskey, a junior from Green Isle, Minnesota, has earned second-team all-Summit League honors each of the last two seasons. In 2025, he led the league with 14 home runs despite missing the final 12 games of the season due to injury. Luskey also paced the Jackrabbits with 52 runs batted in and a .691 slugging percentage while batting .336.

A senior from Omaha, Madison began the 2025 season in the starting rotation before moving to the bullpen. He made a team-high 22 appearances, striking out 26 batters in 30 innings and posting a 2-2 record.

SUMMIT LEAGUE SUCCESS: South Dakota State has been a consistent winner in The Summit League since it became a league member in 2008. Now in their 19th season as a member of The Summit League, the Jackrabbits have compiled a 245-216 (.531 winning percentage) record in regular season conference games.

SDSU has posted a .500 or better record in league play 10 times and has qualified for the four-team postseason tournament 14 out of the 16 years it has been eligible (no tournament in 2020 due to COVID-19 pandemic).

The Jackrabbits shared a Summit League regular season title in 2010 and won the league's postseason tournament in 2013.

COACH BISHOP: Rob Bishop, who has guided college baseball teams to more than 700 victories, was named head baseball coach at South Dakota State University on Aug. 1, 2016.

Bishop is the ninth head coach in program history and the fourth in the Division I era of Jackrabbit baseball.

Through nine-plus seasons with the Jackrabbits, Bishop holds a 186-259 record at SDSU, including a 115-115 mark in Summit League regular season games. He also has led the Jackrabbits to the four-team Summit League Baseball Championship seven times, highlighted by finals appearances on two occasions — in 2018 and 2023.

The 2023 squad set a school record with 89 home runs in 52 games. SDSU played only one true home game but managed a 24-28 overall record and a winning season in Summit League play with a 13-11 mark. That momentum carried over to the four-team league postseason tournament, where the Jackrabbits made a run to the title game.

SDSU hit a Summit League-best 80 home runs in 2024 and also led the circuit with a .492 slugging percentage.

Overall, Bishop holds a 735-581-1 record (.558 winning percentage) as a collegiate head coach. He earned his 700th career victory in the Jackrabbits' 11-7 win at North Dakota State on April 6, 2024.

Individually, Jackrabbit players have been honored as all-Summit League performers 48 times during Bishop's tenure, including seven all-league selections in 2025.

Prior to becoming head coach at SDSU, Bishop spent six years at NCAA Division II member Montana State University-Billings, where he led the Yellowjackets to back-to-back Great Northwest Athletic Conference regular season titles in 2015 and 2016, attaining the program's first-ever 30-win season with a 30-20 record in 2016.

Previously, Bishop spent 10 years at Miles City Community College in Montana, where his teams won MonDak conference championships every year. His squads also claimed five consecutive junior college region titles and a Northwest District championship in 2007 to advance to the NJCAA Division II College World Series.

Bishop's teams won at least 30 games in all 10 seasons, including four with 40 wins. He ended his tenure at Miles City with a 377-151 overall record. He also served as athletic director the last five years of his tenure at Miles City.

Bishop served as a graduate assistant at SDSU under head coach Mark Ekeland during the 1998 and 1999 seasons. In his first year as a head coach, Bishop led Huron University to the South Dakota Intercollegiate Conference title in 2000 with a 38-18 record.

A 1994 graduate of Jamestown College, Bishop earned NAIA All-America honors during the 1992 and 1994 seasons as an infielder.

THE ROSTER: The 2025 SDSU baseball roster features 34 players from 10 different states and one foreign country (Australia). Of the 34 players, 13 are from Minnesota, five are from Nebraska and South Dakota, three are Iowa natives and two hail from Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota and Washington. Arizona and Wyoming are represented by one player each.

By class, one is a graduate transfer, three are seniors and nine are juniors. The sophomore class consists of 10 players and there is one redshirt freshmen, while 10 are incoming freshmen.

ON DECK: The Jackrabbits continue play at home with an April 22 matchup against Briar Cliff. First pitch is slated for 3 p.m. at Erv Huether Field.

SDSU will then host Northern Colorado in a three-game series April 24-26.

-GoJacks.com-