JACKRABBITS OPEN 2025 SEASON IN TEXAS

Week 1: South Dakota State at East Texas A&M Leadoff
When	Friday, Feb. 7 - Sunday, Feb. 9
Location	Commerce, Texas (Cain Family Field)
Stream (only for games vs. East Texas A&M)	ESPN+
Stream (remaining games)	Lion Athletics YouTube
Tournament Central	LionAthletics.com
Live Stats	GoJacksLive.com
South Dakota State	Game Notes

South Dakota State begins its 2025 season in the Lone Star State. The Jackrabbits are slated to participate in the East Texas A&M Leadoff in Commerce, Texas. SDSU is scheduled to play six games across three days. The Jacks get their tournament appearance started with an 11:30 a.m. meeting against Stephen F. Austin on Friday. They close the day out against the host Lions at 4:30 p.m.

SDSU will also face Texas Southern during its stay in Commerce. The Jackrabbits have played all three opponents during their program history. Then freshman Akayla Barnard threw a three-hit, complete-game shutout -- while then junior Mia Jarecki had an RBI single -- in SDSU's 2-0 victory over East Texas A&M last Feb. 16 in their lone all-time meeting.

Two seasons ago saw the Jackrabbits split a doubleheader at Stephen F. Austin. SDSU is 2-1 all-time over the Lumberjacks. The Jacks have faced Texas Southern once which resulted in a 7-3 victory in 2013.

The story for the Jackrabbit softball team is one featuring a tale of new faces. SDSU had eight letterwinners, and nine seniors, a season ago that completed their collegiate careers. A majority of that group led the Jackrabbits to four consecutive Summit League regular season championships. The four regular season crowns were the first in the program's history, along with a pair of NCAA Division I Tournament appearances in 2021 and 2022, also a program first.

SDSU has a total of 16 active newcomers on the roster this season. That number is among the most at the Division I level. The Jackrabbits' newcomer total trails East Tennessee State (20), Liberty (20) and Charleston (18). SDSU's underclassmen total of 22 is also one of the largest in the country.

The Jackrabbits will lean on their contingent of upperclassmen for leadership during the 2025 campaign. One of those players is senior second baseman Mia Jarecki. The Papillion, Neb., native sits among the best in program history in several career categories. Jarecki currently ranks second in on-base percentage (.429), fourth in batting average (.345), fifth in slugging percentage (.561), sixth in triples (9), 11th in home runs (19) and walks (63), as well as 12th in runs scored (108). Jarecki was The Summit League 2024 Player of the Year for her performance during her junior season. Jarecki hit a team-leading .392 behind 67 hits. She finished the year with seven doubles, four triples and nine home runs. She also had 28 RBIs, 109 total bases, scored 48 times, stole 11 bases, and slugged .637.

She was named to The Summit League's Preseason Players to Watch List along with Akayla Barnard. The rising sophomore pitches and plays in the outfield for the Jackrabbits. A season ago, Barnard had a 5-2 record in the circle with a 4.16 ERA. She also batted .253.

Senior Brooke Dumont returns following a First Team All-Conference 2024 campaign. A starter in 48 games at catcher last season, Dumont hit .288 behind 36 hits which included five home runs and 13 doubles. She recorded 27 RBIs, scored 15 runs and slugged .512.

Seniors Alli Boyle and Madi Conklin return as regular starters. Boyle hit .256 a season ago while playing primarily first base in over 40 games. Conklin played in 24 games and served as SDSU's designated player regularly by the end of the year.

Coverage Information
South Dakota State's games against host East Texas A&M will be streamed on ESPN+, while the remaining games will be streamed on the Lions' athletic department YouTube Page which is available on the Tournament Central page. Live stats for all six games the Jackrabbits play in are available on GoJacksLive.com. For more information about Jackrabbit softball, you can follow the team social media accounts (@GoJacksSB) or visit the team page at GoJacks.com.

-GoJacks.com-

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Akayla Barnard

Alli Boyle

Madi Conklin

Brooke Dumont

Mia Jarecki

Completed Event: Softball versus Augustana on October 5, 2025 ,

Completed Event: Softball versus Minnesota Crookston on September 28, 2025 ,

Completed Event: Softball versus Sioux Falls / Morningside on September 21, 2025 ,

Completed Event: Softball versus SMSU on September 14, 2025 ,

Completed Event: Softball versus #3 South Dakota on May 9, 2025 , Loss , 2, to, 3 , 8 Inn.

Completed Event: Softball versus #1 Omaha on May 9, 2025 , Loss , 6, to, 8 , 9 Inn.

South Dakota State University Athletics