BILLINGS, Mont. – Kicking off the second half of Great Northwest Athletic Conference play this weekend, the Montana State University Billings baseball team will host No. 10 Northwest Nazarene University in a four-game series.
 
Doubleheaders are scheduled for 1 p.m. on Friday and noon on Saturday at Dehler Park, with live video available online here and live statistics available online here.
 
The Yellowjackets (5-19, 5-11 GNAC) enter the series in fourth place in the GNAC standings, while Northwest Nazarene (19-5, 13-3) has a two-game lead over Western Oregon University at the top of the standings. MSUB trails third-place Central Washington by four games with 16 games left on the regular-season schedule. The top-three teams in the final conference standings qualify for the GNAC Baseball Championships, set for May 20-21 at Northwest Nazarene.
 
The Yellowjackets will have a notable home field advantage down the stretch of the season, with three of their final four series being played in the Magic City. MSUB plays at Saint Martin's University next weekend, before closing the regular season hosting Western Oregon on April 29-30 and Central Washington on May 7-8.
 
MSUB was last in action on April 2-3, in a 3-1 series defeat at Central Washington University. This weekend marks MSUB's second home series of the year, after the 'Jackets took 3 of 4 games against Saint Martin's on March 19 and March 21 in their 2021 home debut.
 
CIPRIANO AMONG GNAC LEADERS: Senior Daniel Cipriano leads the conference in home runs with 11, RBIs with 37, slugging percentage at .916, and total bases with 76. The senior enters the week second in conference history with a .392 batting average, and he is the GNAC's all-time leader in on-base percentage at .509 and slugging percentage at .832. Cipriano also ranks second in GNAC history with 36 home runs, as he enters the week trailing record holder Chandler Tracy of Saint Martin's by seven long balls.
 
RILEY CONTINUES TO SET TABLE: Leadoff hitter Will Riley had another productive series last time out, going 6-for-17 and scoring three runs against the Wildcats. Riley leads the GNAC with 39 hits, while ranking fourth in hitting at .406 and in slugging percentage at .698 and second in runs scored with 28. Riley's five home runs are tied for third most on the team and his 21 RBIs are tied for second most.
 
CANTWELL HAS PRODUCTIVE WEEKEND: Senior first baseman Tanner Cantwell went 9-for-15 against the Wildcats, and hit his sixth home run of the season to move him to second on the team behind Cipriano. Cantwell upped his batting average to .341, and he is reaching base at a clip of .462 while slugging .659. Cantwell joins Cipriano and Riley as the only three Yellowjackets to have started all 24 games this spring.
 
GREEN EXTENDS HITTING STREAK: Carson Green went 7-for-20 against the Wildcats and extended his hitting streak to 12 games in the process. The streak his now tied for the 11th longest in school history, and Green has used the success at the plate to raise his season batting average to .308. Green has provided power out of the second spot in the lineup as well, with four home runs, seven doubles, and 19 RBIs.
 
No. 10 Northwest Nazarene Nighthawks
2021 Record: 19-5, 13-3 GNAC (1st place)
All-Time Series: MSUB 56, NNU 53
Series at Billings: MSUB 26, NNU 24
Last Meeting: NNU 4, MSUB 0 (at Nampa, ID – March 12-13, 2021)
 
Cruising to the top of the GNAC baseball standings, Northwest Nazarene received its highest ranking so far as it climbed to No. 10 in the latest National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association top-25. NNU is coming off a pair of walk-off wins over Western Oregon University last weekend, and enters the week with a two-game lead over the Wolves in the standings.
 
Ryan Dearing leads the team in hitting at .398, while John Gonzalez and Grant Kerry are tied for second in the GNAC with seven home runs apiece. The NNU offense averages 8.25 runs per game, and is the GNAC's leader in stolen bases with 44 in 52 attempts this spring.
 
NNU's pitching staff owns the top ERA in the league at 3.74, with Ben Johnson, Kyle Ethridge, Shane Martin, and Sasha Jabusch being the regular starters used. Johnson holds a 2.96 ERA while Ethridge leads the team with 43 strikeouts in his 30 1/3 innings of work.