THE OPENING PITCH: The University of Minnesota Duluth  puts its six-game winning streak to the test on Monday and Wednesday with a pair of Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference series. The Bulldogs will take on the University of Mary at James S. Malosky Stadium Monday starting at 12:00 p.m. The Wolves will welcome UMD for a double header Wednesday at the Presentation College Dome in Aberdeen, S.D.

SCOUTING REPORT ON MARY: The Marauders are 13-15 overall and 4-4 in conference action heading into Sunday. Mary plays a double header with St. Cloud State before playing UMD. The Marauders are coming off a sweep over Northern State in its latest outing.

Mary is eighth in batting average (.302), sixth in on-base percentage (.374), and fifth in slugging percentage (.443) in the NSIC. It is fifth on walks but have the fourth most strikeouts in the NSIC. On the mound, the Marauders are last in ERA (5.68), 13th in opposing batting average (.321), 11th in strikeouts per game (3.8) and last in walks allowed per game (3.8).

Kasidy Chileen leads Mary at the plate hitting .407 in 25 games. Rebekkah Keller is nine points below her with a .398 batting average. She has a team-high 20 runs and 13 stolen bases (13-for-13). Haley Berube (.296) has a team-high 22 RBI and Kylie Alto leads the team with five home runs. The Marauders will lead off with Brienn Backes in game one. She has a 9-5 record with a 5.19 ERA. She posted 56 stakeouts and 47 walks. Either Kaitlyn Alvarado (2-3 in five starts) or Madison Jahner (2-7 in eight starts) will be on the circle for game two. 

SCOUTING REPORT ON NORTHERN STATE: The Wolves are 12-22 and 4-8 in the NSIC this season. They have split the last two conference series, most recently at Minnesota Crookston on Saturday.

Northern State is fourth in batting average (.316), sixth in on-base percentage (.376), and seventh in slugging percentage (.422) in the NSIC. It leads the NSIC in sacrifice flies (9) and is prone to hitting into double plays (NSIC-high seven). On the mound, the Wolves are next-to-last in ERA (4.68), 10th in opposing batting average (.293), 14th in strikeouts per game (3.3) and 15th in walks allowed per game (3.6).

Rachel Reinke is the clubhouse leader in batting. She is hitting a team-leading .411 and a team-high .621 slugging percentage. She has eight doubles and four home runs. Kennady Thompson is next in line with a .371 batting average. She leads her teammates with seven homers and 23 RBI on the season. Jen Martin (.362) is the other lone Wolf to have at least 20 RBI this season. The Wolves will have Jamie Fisher and Andrea Cherney in the circle. Fisher is 3-12 with a 5.64 ERA in 13 starts. Cherney is 4-8 with a 4.14 ERA in 15 starts. She has a team-high 44 strikeouts.

HOW THEY RANK: Here is how UMD and its opponents stack up head-to-head with its respective records, in the NSIC, and in the National Fastpitch Coaches' Association poll.

LAST AT BAT: The Bulldogs ran their winning streak to six after beating Minot State University for their third straight sweep. UMD beat 4-3 in the opener and 4-1 in the nightcap of the double header. Freshman infielder Emma Frost blasted a home run in each contest. Sophomore infielder Jordyn Thomas had a team-high three hits in the series. Freshman Sam Pederson threw a complete-game three-hitter in game one. She walked three and fanned three. Junior Breanna Swint allowed only one run in her complete game effort. She gave up seven hits but issued no free passes.

SCORE FIRST: Scoring first doesn't always lead to victories but it is close. The Bulldogs have a combined 109-22 (.832) record dating back to 2015. They are 11-1 this season when having more hits in a ballgame.

STRIKE EARLY: The need to jump ahead and play with the lead has been important during the first 29 games. UMD is 14-0 this season when leading after the third inning. Meanwhile, when tied or trailing heading to the fourth, UMD is just 3-12. 

APPROACHING 200: Head coach Jen Walter is nearing her 200th game as the Bulldog manager. Walter has managed 196 games in her fourth season and holds a record of 131-65 (.668). She will hit game No. 200 in the second game of the double header against Northern State. 

100 CAREER RIBBIES: Junior infielder Lauren Oberle notched her 100th collegiate hit earlier this season and needs six more RBI to reach the triple-digit mark.

STRAIGHT MONEY: Pitching has been a key component to UMD's six-game winning streak and no one been better than junior pitcher Breanna Swint. The right hander has gone 3-0 in all three of her starts and also notched a save -- her fourth career -- in another. Swint has given up four runs in 19 innings  and holds a 0.74 ERA during that span. Opponents have a .162 batting average against Swint in her last three games.

STAY FROSTY: Freshman infielder Emma Frost is swinging a dangerous bat over the last six games. Frost has a .615 batting average in her four starts. She is 8-for-13 at the dish with four extra-base hits including three home runs. She has six RBI and seven runs during the stretch.

THOMPSON THRIVING: Another freshman putting together a strong stretch of games during the winning streak is Erin Thompson. The outfielder has been an extremely tough out to get with an on-base percentage at .700, going 3-for-6 at the plate and has also drawn four walks.

DIALED IN: Sophomore infielder Jordyn Thomas has been the Bulldogs most consistent batter this season. Thomas has at least a share of the lead in: batting average (.345), hits (30), doubles (9), home runs (5), runs driven in (19), total bases (56), on-base percentage (.394) and slugging percentage (.644).

GREEDY WITH RUNNERS: Slap hitter Lauren Greeder has excelled with runners in scoring position. The junior outfielder carries a .255 batting average his season but is hitting a team-high .583 with runners in scoring position.

MILE MARKER 100: Jen Walter became the fastest coach in program history to reach 100 wins. Walter reached the historical mark in the first game against Northern State on Thursday. She attained 100 victories in 145 games while former head coach Jen Banford reached 100 wins in 182 games. 

PILING UP THE HITS UNDER WALTER: Since the arrival of the new manager, UMD is 101-8 when it out-hits the opposition. That is roughly 59.2 percent of the total games under Walter's tenure (109 of 184) that they have out-hit the opposition. 

THE FIRST OF MANY: Freshman pitcher Sam Pederson established one of many firsts over the opening weekend. Pederson grabbed her first collegiate start against No. 20 Arkansas Tech, where she struck out four batters. She recorded her first career win in complete-game fashion against Southeastern Oklahoma State. Also, she ripped her first hit of her young career in that game as well.

SHUTOUT SAM: Freshman pitcher Sam Pederson pitched  her first-ever shutout gem in the NSIC opener versus St. Cloud State. Pederson fired 96 pitches allowing three hits and three walks. She notched a career-high five strikeouts as well.

SPEAKING OF FIRSTS: Freshman infielder Emma Frost cracked her first collegiate home run in her fourth career game. Frost bombed a two-run shot in the seventh inning against Southeastern Oklahoma State. She had her first hit as a Bulldog earlier in the second inning.

SPEAKING OF FIRSTS II: Freshman infielder Bre Bresnahan connected on her first-ever collegiate hit in the first game of the double header against Wayne Stat. Bresnahan, who has appeared in nine games off the bench this season, drew two walks in her first eight plate appearances before singling up the middle in the fifth inning.

ON DECK: The Bulldogs host Minnesota State University Mankato and Concordia University, St. Paul in a pair of NSIC double headers at home on the weekend of April 13-14. Both series are originally slated to be played at Junction Avenue Field.