Catching up with former area athletes: Trio of locals helping Southwest Minnesota State baseball

MARSHALL, Minn. — A trio of area standouts are having success with the Southwest Minnesota State University baseball team this spring, as the Mustangs play their Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference schedule.

The trio includes Alexandria native and sophomore pitcher Craig Lasley and Mitchell High School alums Brady Brosz and Peyton Nash.

Lasley leads the team in earned-run average as a reliever, with a 0.96 ERA in 9 1/3 innings pitched in four appearances. He has allowed five hits, one run and struck out five after facing 50 batters. Opponents are hitting .167 against him, also an SMSU-leading figure. Lasley sat out the 2020 season as a redshirt and did not play in any games in 2021, making this his first season with regular playing time.

Nash, a left-handed hitter who plays outfield as a redshirt freshman, has appeared in 12 games and started five, with a batting average of .227. He has two runs scored, two RBIs and two doubles in his games this season, striking out just once in 22 at-bats. It is his first season getting playing time after redshirting in 2021.

Brosz, a 6-foot-5 right-handed pitcher, has appeared four times and thrown four innings, with seven hits and four runs allowed, two strikeouts and a save, with an ERA of 9.00.

SMSU is 8-15 for the season and 1-10 in conference play. The Mustangs will host Augustana for a three-game series on April 9-10 for the team’s first home games of the season.

BISMARCK, N.D. — University of Mary softball player Rachael Laetsch, a native of Salem, is playing for the Marauders in her senior season.

Laetsch, a catcher and outfielder who bats right-handed, has played in 13 games this season, including seven starts, hitting .292 at the plate. She has two doubles, five runs scored, a home run and four RBIs and five walks. She has also had an eight-game streak of reaching base earlier in the season. In 2021, Laetsch led the team in home runs (five) and RBIs (18).

Mary (3-24, 1-6 NSIC) travels to Sioux Falls to take on Augustana in a doubleheader on Saturday, April 9.

SIOUX FALLS — Parkston native Jacob Lee has been a leading golfer for the Augustana University men’s golf team during its 2022 season, with the Vikings hosting a tournament this weekend in Sioux Falls.

The left-hander Lee was ninth individually at the Rocky Mountain College Intercollegiate meet in Henderson, Nevada in mid-March with a two-day score of 148. It was his second top-10 individual finish of the season. Two weeks later, at the NSIC Preview meet in Blue Springs, Missouri, Lee had a 66th place finish (84-76—160), helping the Vikings finish 10th over 36 holes in the 18-team meet.

For the season, Lee is averaging 77.9 strokes per round, which is second-best on the team behind Alex Stanz (77.6).

Augie will host an invitational over two days at Elmwood Golf Course in Sioux Falls on Saturday and Sunday, while preparing for the three-day NSIC Championships on April 14-16 in Blue Springs, Missouri.