This season, the North Dakota State softball team has outscored opponents 47-10 in the opening inning. A big contributor to the Bison’s quick start is senior shortstop Logan Moreland.
Hitting second in the lineup, Moreland leads the team with a .418 batting average. She also leads the team in home runs and runs scored.
For the senior, the key to her offensive efficiency has been her mental approach to the game.
“The mentality I have been having is that the pitcher is not going to beat me twice,” the Woodland, California, native said.
It’s not very often when she is beat at the plate, only striking out 21 times this season.
If the pitcher is not going to beat her, then there is no way Moreland is going to let the catcher beat her once she is on base. On 23 stealing attempts, she hasn’t been caught once this season. She leads in the team in bases swiped.
So far this season, Moreland has helped guide the Bison to a 9-0 start to Summit League play, while boasting a 27-13 overall record.
One of those losses was last week against the University of North Dakota, something that Moreland said did not worry her too much.
“There were a couple of things we were not doing well against UND with runners in scoring position,” Moreland said. “But we talked about it as a team and we know there is some things we can do better.”
Do better they did, as the team rebounded with a conference sweep of South Dakota State last weekend. Moreland went 5-for-10 from the plate, with six RBI and touching home four times herself.
The ability to bounce back has been a big one for the team, including Moreland’s favorite moment of the season back in March. During a pre-season tournament, the Bison faced off with the Alabama Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, managing to split two games with the then-No. 2 ranked team in the nation.
“This probably the coolest thing I have been a part of, aside from the championships,” Moreland said that’s what she was thinking before the game.
She would end up scoring the winning run of the game that day.
Her goals for the rest of the season are simple.
“Hopefully finishing on top,” she said with a grin. Making a deep run in the conference tournament is top priority, but Moreland said she would be pleased if a regular season title came along with that.
Off the field, Moreland is a human development and family science major and minors in Psychology. She said that her favorite class is adolescent development, which is the area she wants to focus on.
Outside of the classroom, Moreland described herself as “pretty quiet until I get to know people more.”
Without a doubt, she has gotten to know her team well because you do not have to be at a softball game to hear the noise that comes out of the dugout.
The Bison return to action Saturday and Sunday against the Western Illinois University Leathernecks at the Ellig Sports Complex in Fargo.