MACOMB, Ill. - The Fighting Leatherneck softball team will make the long trek up to Fargo, N.D. to face the Bison of North Dakota State in an important three-game Summit League series...The two team's will kick-off action Friday (April 6) with a doubleheader beginning at 2 p.m. at Ellig Sports Complex, and then conclude the series with a single tilt at 12 p.m. Saturday (April 7).

A LOOK AT THE BISON: The North Dakota State Bison sit 24-12 overall on the season, and 8-1 in the conference...The Bison sit first in The Summit League...In their most recent contest NDSU won two-of-three games against IPFW at home...NDSU is led by Krista Menke in the circle who recently picked up her fourth consecutive Summit League Pitcher of the Week honor...The right-handed hurler remains undefeated (7-0) in league play and is tied for the third-most Pitcher of the Week honors in a single season... At the plate, the Bison are led by Taylor Mortensen who is batting at a .321 clip with 35 hits, 23 RBI, and 26 runs scored..The Bison are led by Darren Mueller who is in the midst of his 11th season at the helm.

THE SERIES: The Fighting Leathernecks trail NDSU 11-5 heading into this weekend...Last season the Bison took two-of-three in Macomb...The two team's faced one another in the 2009 and 2010 Summit League Championship game with the Bison coming out victorious each time.

The Breakdown:

April 6-7 • Three-Game Series
Friday's Doubleheader Begins at 2 p.m.
Saturday's Single Tilt Begins at 12 p.m.

Western Illinois Leathernecks (20-15, 10-2)
vs.
North Dakota State Bison (24-12, 8-1)

Radio (Free)
Leatherneck Sports Network (88.3 FM)
Radio Talent: Matt Fischer
Listen to 88.3 FM broadcasts online for free HERE

Video (Subscribers Only)
NDSU All Access
Listen HERE

LAST TIME OUT: Western most recently played host to the Northern Iowa Panthers at Mary Ellen McKee Stadium on Tuesday, April 3rd, and were defeated 8-0 in six innings.

WINNING: The Leathernecks' winning streak came to an end at 10 games after a loss to Southern Utah Saturday (March 24)...The last time Western has earned more consecutive victories was in 2003 when it earned 11 straight...Western has continued to roll, however, having won 14-of their last-16 games.

MARSHALL BREAKING RECORDS: On April 1, 2012, freshman infielder Sammy Marshall stole her 43rd base this season setting both a new Western Illinois and Summit League single-season record...In the fourth inning of the contest, Marshall singled up the middle before stealing her 43rd bag of the season etching her name into the record books, topping past Leatherneck standout Venus Taylor who stole 42 bases in 1997.

MARSHALL CHASING RECORDS: If the freshman speedster Sammy Marshall can steal five more bases, and remain a perfect 100% on the base paths for the remainder of the season she will break the NCAA Division I record for the most stolen bases without being caught stealing in a season...The NCAA all-time record for stolen bases in a single-season is 80.

GOSS IS BOSS: Senior infielder Jamie Goss, who last season set a new Western single-season record for RBI with 47, owns 143 career runs batted in, which currently ranks second in Western Illinois program history (#1 Bridget Maxwell with 153), and seventh in Summit League program history, 36 away from the top spot of 179.

IN THE NATION (4/2/12): Freshman infielder Sammy Marshall leads the nation in stolen bases, averaging 1.27 per game (38 total)...Freshman catcher Lia Romeo sits 6th nationally in hit by pitches (0.47 per game)...Senior infielder Jamie Goss sits 13th in sacrifice flies (3.0), and 20th in triples (3.0)...As a team, Western ranks fifth in double plays per game as a team with 0.57 per gam, and 11th in stolen bases per game (2.07).

IN THE SUMMIT LEAGUE (4/2/12): Western Illinois ranks second in Summit League batting with an average of .289, and third in pitching with a team ERA of 2.91...In league games this season, Western ranks first in batting with a BA .348, and fourth in pitching with an ERA 2.59...Individually, freshman infielder Sammy Marshall ranks first in three league categories: hits (1.47 per game, 50 total), runs (1.09 per game, 37 total), and stolen bases (1.29 per game, 44 total)...Senior infielder Jamie Goss leads the league in runs batted in with 30 (.88 per game).

SUMMIT LEAGUE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Western Illinois freshman infielder Sammy Marshall has been named Summit League Player of the week three times this season, first on February 13th, second on March 19th, and most recently on April 2nd...Senior infielder Jamie Goss is the only other Leatherneck to have earned the honor this season, doing so on March 26th.

SCHOLAR-ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: Two Western Illinois softball players have been named Scholar Athlete of the Week this season, first junior Kelsey Michelini on March 12th, then freshman Sammy Marshall who earned the honor March 19th.

COLLEGE SPORTS MADNESS: Fighting Leatherneck infielder Jamie Goss was tabbed Summit League 'Player of the Week' by College Sports Madness on April 2nd.

RECRUITS: Two Western Illinois softball 2012 recruits, Tierney Bottino and Kaycee Hart, were named to the Softball Preseason Top 100 Players of Illinois list as released by the Chicago Sun-Times on March 9..."It's exciting to see that the Chicago Sun-Times chose Tierney Bottino and Kacyee Hart in their top 100 players to watch this season," head coach Holly Van Vlymen said. "They are very talented players and I am excited to have them coming in as Leathernecks in the fall."

KEEPING THE DYNASTY ALIVE: The Leathernecks entered the 2012 campaign looking to get back to their recent dominance in The Summit League...Western Illinois has won three of the past five regular-season conference championships (2007, 2009 and 2010)...The Leathernecks won the league tournament in 2008 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament, where they defeated Drake for the team's first-ever NCAA Tournament win...Head coach Holly Van Vlymen has been named as the league's "Coach of the Year" three times during her tenure with the Leathernecks...Under her guidance, Western Illinois had the league's Pitcher and Freshman of the Year in 2007 and 2009, and has had 30 players named as All-League selections.

LEATHERNECKS PICKED 5TH IN PRESEASON POLL: The Fighting Leatherneck softball squad was picked fifth in the 2012 Summit League Preseason Poll as announced by the league office on Feb. 2nd...The poll was voted on by the league's nine head coaches...The Leathernecks, who received 38 points in the poll, finished fifth in The Summit League last season with a 19-27 overall record, and a 14-10 league mark.

UP NEXT: The Leathernecks will take its road swing to Madison, Wis. to face the Badgers of Wisconsin for a doubleheader beginning at 3 p.m. on Tuesday, April 10th.