Contact: Drew Sauer, Assistant Sports Information Director, 630-637-5324

May 18: NCAA Division III Midwest Regional Championship hosted by UW-La Crosse, No. 3 seed North Central (30-10) vs. No. 6 seed Luther College (32-12)
First Pitch: 4:30 p.m., Copeland Park
Tournament Website: http://www.uwlathletics.com/index.aspx?path=2016_ncaa_regional
Live Stats: http://sidearmstats.com/uwlax/baseball/
Live Video: http://www.uwlathletics.com/sports/2016/5/15/2016-ncaa-iii-midwest-regional-broadcasts.aspx?path=2016_ncaa_regional

Setting the Scene: 56 teams were selected to this year's NCAA Division III Tournament field, with four regionals featuring eight teams and four regionals hosting six teams. All eight regional sites will play a double elimination format, with the eight winners of each regional meeting in Appleton, Wis. for the NCAA Division III Championship at Fox Cities Stadium, May 27-June 1. The Cardinals enter the tournament with an overall record of 30-10 and received the No. 3 seed in the regional, taking on No. 6 seed Luther College (Iowa) on Wednesday, May 18 at 4:30 p.m. at Copeland Park.  This mark's the program's ninth NCAA Regional appearance, also qualifying in 1975, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1991, 1994, 1998 and 2010.

Tournament Field: UW-La Crosse received the No. 1 seed, while Concordia University Chicago enters the eight-team field with the No. 2 seed.  Also playing in the regional are the College of St. Scholastica (Minnesota), seeded fourth, followed by St. John's University (Minnesota) with the fifth seed, Kalamazoo College (Michigan) at No. 7 and Beloit College (Wisconsin) at No. 8.

About North Central: North Central earned a share of their second straight College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) regular season championship this season and earned an at-large bid to this year's NCAA Division III Tournament, the ninth appearance in program history and the first since 2010.  The Cardinals enter the regional ranked 16^th in the latest D3baseball.com/NCBWA top 25 poll.

North Central's 30-10 record ranks fifth on the program's single-season wins list.  Head Coach Ed Mathey earned career win No. 550 earlier this season, while the Cardinals CCIW Championship is the fifth under Mathey in his second stint as head coach.

Nick Sotiros currently leads the team batting .405 this season, while his 22 doubles shattered the program's single-season record and currently rank fourth nationally.  He also leads the team with 66 hits, four triples, three homeruns, 41 RBI, 105 total bases and a .644 slugging percentage.

Chris Hill's 19 doubles are good for second on the team, while ranking 16^th nationally in the category.  Hill is tied with Sotiros for the team homerun lead with three, while starting all 40 games behind the plate this season.  Freshman Jeremy Quade has started all 40 games in center field with a 1.000 fielding percentage, while also leading the team with 176 at-bats, 43 runs scored and 22 stolen bases.

The Cardinal pitching staff features four five-game winners, as Andrew Houser and Evan Blunk are each 5-0.  2015 second team All-American Bryan Polowy is 5-2 with a 3.81 ERA, leading the team with 37 strikeouts.  Russell Hoh leads the team with a 1.96 ERA, posting a 3-1 mark with 30 strikeouts over 41 1/3 innings, while Jordan Van Dyck is 4-2 over eight starts, leading the team with 52 innings pitched.

Nick Anderson is also 5-2, primarily working in 14 games out of the bullpen, posting a 1.95 ERA over 32 1/3 innings.  Nick Rogalski has posted three saves while leading the team with 17 appearance out of the bullpen with a 2.61 ERA, while Michael Sweeney has surrendered just one earned run in his 16 appearances this season.

Scouting Luther: Winners of the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC), Luther enters the regional with an overall record of 32-12.  The Norse currently rank 13^th nationally with 105 doubles this season, led by Mitch Knippenberg's 20, good for seventh nationally.  Knippenberg also leads the team batting .377 with a team-leading 47 RBI, 89 total bases and a .610 slugging percentage.  Jon Opdahl leads the team with 57 hits, while Czenvic Rojer has smacked a team-high six homeruns this season.

Nate Beckman's 9-2 record leads the Luther staff, while ranking ninth nationally in wins.  His 77 2/3 innings pitched lead the staff, while posting a 2.90 ERA and five complete games.  Mason Whitham leads the team with 15 appearances, all out of the pen, posting a 2-0 record with a 2.18 ERA.

Scouting UW-La Crosse: UW-La Crosse (34-8) will host the Midwest Regional for the second straight season, earning the automatic bid after winning the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) tournament championship and come in ranked fourth in the latest D3baseball.com/NCBWA top 25 poll.  The Eagles head into the regional leading all of Division III in hitting, batting .363 this season while ranking third in the nation averaging 9.2 runs per game.  UW-La Crosse also ranks fifth in hits (501), seventh in doubles per game (2.5) and seventh in slugging percentage (.514).

Outfielder Taylor Kohlwey is leading the nation batting .493 this season, while also leading the country in hits (82) and runs scored (65).  His 19 doubles, 138 total bases and .831 slugging percentage also lead the team.  Justin Anderson leads the team with nine homeruns on the season, while ranking second in the nation with 69 RBI.

Caleb Boushley leads the UW-La Crosse pitching staff with a 8-0 record to go along with a 1.83 ERA, striking out a team-leading 68 batters over 73 2/3 innings.  Logan Mallek is 3-0 in 12 appearances in relief with a 1.69 ERA and 37 strikeouts over 26 2/3 innings pitched.

Scouting Concordia Chicago: Concordia Chicago (32-11) is the lone team in the regional on North Central's regular season schedule, as the Cardinals came away with a 13-6 win on Apr. 19, as the Cougars won the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) to qualify for the regional and come in ranked 13^th in the D3baseball.com/NCBWA top 25 poll.

The Cougars a lot of speed in their lineup, ranking second in Division III in steals per game (2.85), while ranking third nationally in doubles with 116 on the season.  Joe Silva leads the team with 25 stolen bases, while Bryan VanDuser is close behind with 21.  VanDuser also leads the team with 64 hits, 44 runs scored and 18 doubles, to go along with a .356 average.  Andrew Massey is batting .410 on the season ranking second on the team with 16 doubles and 32 RBI, while Mitch Wilson has driven in a team-leading 33 runs.

On the mound, Eric Palmer leads the Cougar staff with a perfect 6-0 record and a miniscule 1.48 ERA in 11 starts, leading the team with 80 strikeouts over 67 innings.  Brian Musielak is 5-0 in 16 appearances out of the bullpen with a 1.33 ERA, while Robert Lock has posted a 1.15 ERA in 13 appearances out of the pen.

Scouting St. Scholastica: St. Scholastica enters the tournament with an overall record of 31-9, winning the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC).  The Saints pitching staff has been spectacular this season, ranking third among all NCAA Division III institutions with a 2.77 team ERA, led by Jordan Risse's 7-0 record with a 2.24 ERA in 10 starts, striking out 78 over 60 1/3 innings.  Jake Turner has posted six saves in 11 appearances out of the bullpen with a 2.16 ERA.

The Saints are batting .338 as a team, good for 12^th in the nation, led by Austin Colvard's .425 average, starting all 40 games this season while leading the team with 68 hits and 47 runs scored.  Steven Neutzling and Sam Christofferson lead the team with five homeruns each, while Neutzling also leads the team with six triples, 44 RBI and a .657 slugging percentage.

Scouting St. John's: St. John's won the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC), coming in with a record of 28-12.  The Johnnies offense has been paced by Patrick Strey's .405 batting average, leading the team with 60 hits, 19 doubles, five homeruns, 46 RBI, 98 total bases and a .662 slugging percentage.

The Johnnies staff has combined for a 4.29 ERA this season, as Nick Noack is 7-1 with a 1.63 ERA and one save in 14 appearances, primarily out of the bullpen.  Alex Kendall leads the team with 53 strikeouts over 69 1/3 innings, posting a 6-2 record with a 2.86 ERA.

Scouting Kalamazoo: Kalamazoo comes in with a record of 24-18-1, qualifying for the tournament after winning the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) tournament.  Jack Clark has started all 43 games for the Hornets, batting a team-high .371 with 53 hits, 30 RBI, 30 walks and a .500 on-base percentage.  Jordan Wiley has swiped a team-leading 25 bags, while Ian Kobernick leads the team with 13 doubles and 34 runs scored.

Ryan Orr leads the Hornet pitching staff with an 8-3 record and three saves, ranking third in the nation with eight complete games.  He has posted a 1.71 ERA, striking out 70 batters over 84 1/3 innings. 

Scouting Beloit: Beloit won the Midwest Conference tournament to qualify for the tournament, posting a 27-12 record overall this season.  The Buccaneers have drawn 216 walks this season, ranking fifth among all NCAA Division III schools, as Mike Gulve's 35 base on balls rank 12^th nationally.  Kam Sallee leads the way batting .354 with 52 hits, also leading the team with five homeruns, 35 RBI, 75 total bases and a .510 slugging percentage.

The Buccaneer staff has been anchored by Ryan Kaveney, posting an 8-3 record over 10 starts, leading the team with 85 strikeouts and 85 innings pitched.  Jamie Huntley has recorded four saves in 15 appearances, primarily working out of the pen.

Cardinals in the Record Book: Nick Sotiros' 22 doubles this season shattered the previous record of 18 set in 1996, while Chris Hill's 19 doubles this season rank just behind Sotiros.  Sotiros also ranks tied for sixth on the program's single-season hits record, while brother Dan Sotiros is tied for third with five sacrifice flies this season.  Jeremy Quade needs just two at-bats to tie the program's single-season record of 178 set in 2010, while also ranking third with 22 stolen bases.  Michael Mateja's 18 steals this season currently rank tied for 10^th on the single-season list.

Bryan Polowy ranks in the top-10 in multiple career pitching categories including fourth with 18 wins and 197.0 innings pitched, while ranking eighth in strikeouts with 142 and games started with 26.  Jordan Van Dyck's 49 career appearances ranks ninth on the all-time list, while Polowy and Andrew Houser are tied for sixth with two career shutouts.

Team Single-Season Records: The Cardinals rank in the top 10 in nearly every category, ranking third in sacrifice flies (22) and putouts (1,069), fourth in assists (437), fifth in doubles (86), triples (17), stolen bases (83) and wins (30), while also ranking sixth in runs (305), eighth in hits (433) and ninth in RBI (259) and saves (seven). 

National Rankings: Nick Sotiros' 22 doubles currently rank fifth among all Division III players, three behind the national lead, while Hill's 19 doubles currently rank 18^th.  As a team, the Cardinals rank 37^th nationally averaging 2.18 doubles per game, while ranking 38^th averaging .43 triples per contest.