Mankato, MN. – The Dominican University Softball Team travels up to Minnesota for the Bethany Lutheran Dome Tournament to start their 2026 season with four games in two days.

Series History vs. Bethany Lutheran College:
   All-Time Record / Streak/: 7-0 / DU W7
-Dominican and Bethany Lutheran first played on 3/9/2011 in Florida. The Stars won 10-1 in 5 innings.
-This will be the first contest between DU and BLC that has not been played in Florida.
-The Stars have run ruled the Vikings 4 of their 7 contests.
-Dominican averages 9.86 runs per game against Bethany Lutheran.
-DU beat BLC 5-3 last season in Winter Haven, Florida.
-The Stars largest victory against the Vikings is 11-0 in 2016 and 12-1 in 2024.
 
Series History vs. St. Olaf College:
   All-Time Record / Streak/: 0-0 / N/A
-This will be the first matchup between Dominican and St. Olaf.
 
Series History vs. #5 Saint Mary's University (Minn):
   All-Time Record / Streak/: 1-0 / DU W1
-Last season, Dominican and Saint Mary's played on 3/3/2025 in Winter Haven, Florida. The Stars won 6-3.
 
Series History vs. Hamline:
   All-Time Record / Streak/: 0-0 / N/A
-This will be the first matchup between Dominican and Hamline.
 
 
DU in Review:
-This will be Dominican Softball's first games of the 2026 season.
-In the 2025 season, the Stars went 31-12 overall with a 19-5 conference record.
-DU was the second seed in the NACC tournament and made it to the semi-finals before falling to Benedictine University.
-The 2026 season marks the 19^th season with Head Coach Cristina Lukas at the helm. Coach Lukas reached the 500-win mark in the 2025 season and is ready to add to that total this season.
-As a team last season, the Stars hit with a .344 batting average while holding a 2.58 ERA.
-DU will look to improve its fielding this year, coming off a year with 56 errors and holding a 95.4% fielding percentage as a team.
-The Stars will look to make the NACC conference tournament for the 5^th straight season.
 
Familiar Faces:
-Dominican returns Senior third basemen Ryley Davis, who took a big jump offensively for the Stars last season. Ry. Davis hit .360 in her junior campaign with 25 RBI's and 9 doubles in her 125 at bats. The now senior was third on the team in batting average, with the requirements met of two plate appearances per game. Davis played in 41 of the 43 games last season while starting in 39 of those games.

-Senior Paytin Salfi will look to be back in the outfield this season after suffering an injury in the latter part of the 2025 season. The senior right fielder held a batting average of .333 last season with 17 RBI's and 42 total bases. On the defensive end, Salfi made some spectacular plays while holding a .971 fielding percentage and recording only one error in 35 total chances.

-Sophomore Isabella Olmos returns to the Dominican lineup for her second season. Olmos, being a huge part of the DU offense last season, will look to continue that trend here in the 2026 season. The now sophomore broke the single-season record in stolen bases, going 29 for 29 in stolen base attempts. Olmos was not just a speedster on the base paths; she held a .355 batting average with 75 total bases, 7 doubles, 3 triples, and 4 home runs. Isabella led the team in at-bats with 141 and played and started in 42 games last season.

-Junior catcher Kailee Diaz Randall is ready to make a big jump in her junior season. Randall had a batting average of .310 last season, along with 13 walks and 5 hit-by-pitches. The Junior catcher also recorded 40 total bases and 27 hits while playing in 37 games and starting in 32 of those.

-Sophomore Raegyn Davis had an incredible freshman season and is looking to make her mark on the NACC in her sophomore campaign. Rae. Davis hit .361 last season and led the team with 5 triples and a home run. The now sophomore put up stats in every category by also collecting 9 doubles, 34 RBI's, and 70 total bases, and holding a .526 slugging percentage.
 
-Sophomore Rhiannon Rubio is ready for her sophomore season after coming off a freshman year, where she held a 9-3 record in the circle in 79.2 innings pitched. Rubio collected 63 strikeouts and threw 3 complete games while holding opponents' batting averages to just .280. The now sophomore threw in 19 games last season while starting in 15 of those games.
-Junior Liberty Rivard will be back in the circle with a possible bigger role. Rivard held the team's best ERA last season, holding a 1.88 ERA in her 15 games pitched. The now junior threw in 44.2 last season while keeping opponents' batting averages to just .261. Rivard held a 3-2 record in her sophomore season.
 
Scouting Report:
-Bethany Lutheran College is 3-1 overall in the 2026 season, with all four games being at home.
-The Vikings beat St. Olaf (7-2), Augsburg (11-3 in 6 innings), and Hamline (6-2).
-BLC lost to #5 Saint Mary's, Minnesota (0-4).
-Bethany Lutheran is hitting .301 as a team through 4 games and has a team ERA of 2.85. Opponents are hitting .240 off BLC pitching and have given up three home runs in four games.
-The Vikings have a .959 fielding percentage and have recorded 5 errors, while their opponents have recorded 11 errors while playing Bethany Lutheran.
-BLC finished their 2025 season with a 30-15 overall record and made it to the NCAA Tournament, where they went 2-2 in the tournament, beating Greenville and Nebraska Wesleyan and losing to Illinois Wesleyan twice.
 
Scouting Report:
-St. Olaf is 1-1 on their young 2026 season.
-The Oles beat Crown College in 5 innings to the score of 9-1.
-Through two games, St. Olaf has a .250 batting average as a team, and their team ERA is 2.92.
-The Oles currently have a .926 fielding percentage while recording 4 errors in 54 total chances.
-Last season St. Olaf went 24-16 overall and held a 14-8 conference record. The Oles got knocked out in the MIAC semi-finals, losing to College of Saint Benedict 3-2.
 
Scouting Report:
-#5 Saint Mary's, Minnesota, is 4-0 overall on the 2026 season, beating Northwestern (MN), Nebraska Wesleyan, Bethany Lutheran, and UW River Falls.
-The Cardinals have scored 23 runs while only giving up 2 runs in four games; their last two games have been shutout wins.
-SMU is hitting .320 as a team with 4 homeruns through four games.
-Not only can the Cardinals swing it, but they are also currently holding a 0.27 team ERA and have struck out 31 opponent batters.
-Saint Mary's, Minnesota, is holding a .972 fielding percentage and has only recorded 3 errors on 106 total chances.
-In the 2025 season, SMU went 44-7 and a perfect 22-0 in their conference. The Cardinals made it all the way to the Division III College World Series before exiting to Randolph-Macon College. They were 21-2 on their home field and 10-0 on the road last season.
 
Scouting Report:
-Hamline is currently 0-2 on their 2026 season, losing to Nebraska Wesleyan and Bethany Lutheran.
-The Pipers have given up 12 runs while only scoring 4 runs through two games.
-Hamline is currently hitting .212 and has struck out 11 times as a team in their two games.
-The Pipers pitchers are holding a 4.67 ERA, while their opponent pitchers are holding a 1.50 ERA against Hamline.
-HU is currently fielding it at a .964 rate with 2 errors on 56 total chances.
-Hamline finished the 2025 season with a 17-23 overall record and a 7-15 record in their conference. The Piper failed to make the MIAC conference tournament.