CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Virginia softball team (15-10) closes out a five-game homestand on Tuesday (March 15) when the Cavaliers host North Dakota State (13-12) in a 5 p.m. contest at Palmer Park.

HOW TO FOLLOW THE ACTION
Tuesday afternoon’s game will stream live on ACCNX and is available through the ESPN app and ESPN.com. Live stats are also available and links to both the stream and live stats are at VirginiaSports.com. Fans can also get updates by following the program’s official Twitter account (@UVASoftball).

NOTING THE HOOS
• Lauren VanAssche and Abby Weaver had hot bats last week to lead the Cavaliers at the plate.
• VanAssche is coming off a .545 week at the plate with three runs scored and a team-leading five RBI.
• Weaver hit .500 with a walk-off home run against No. 24 Notre Dame in game one for her first home run of 2022.
• The walk-off home run was the second of 2022 for UVA who got one from Tori Gilbert against South Alabama.
• Sarah Coon continues to find ways on base as she extended her streak to 20 consecutive games reaching base.
• Virginia is coming off a series win over No. 24 Notre Dame – the first over a ranked opponent since 2010.
• In that weekend series, Aly Rayle worked 12.0 innings allowing one run against a potent Irish offense.

THE SERIES WITH NORTH DAKOTA STATE
• Virginia and North Dakota State meet for only the second time when the teams face off on Tuesday night.
• The Bison lead the series after picking up a 5-1 win over the Cavaliers in the 2013 season.
• That meeting came in Baton Rouge at the Purple & Gold Classic hosted by LSU.

A LOOK AT THE BISON
• North Dakota State comes into the midweek contest with a 13-12 record after a trip to the West Coast.
• The Bison faced No. 11 Oregon, Oregon State and Portland State in six games over the weekend, going 1-5.
• Dez Cardenas leads the Bison offense with a .372 average and is one of four players hitting above .300 to date.
• As a team, NDSU is hitting .289 with 13 home runs and have scored 157 runs this season.
• Paige Vargas leads the Bison in the circle with a 6-4 record and a 2.57 ERA through 73.2 innings of work.
• Vargas has a team-leading 78 strikeouts to 15 walks and opponents are hitting .230 against her.

ON DECK FOR THE HOOS
Following the Tuesday night matchup against North Dakota State, the Cavaliers will go back out on the road to resume ACC play with a three-game series at NC State. The series opens with a single game at 6 p.m. on Friday (March 18) at the Dail Softball Stadium.