How does an athlete decide the next step of their journey? Bryn Elsenpeter, senior infielder for Winona State University, started her post-secondary career with Central Michigan University. Moving away from her second year, she made the difficult decision to find a new home for the rest of her collegiate career. Warrior Head Coach Greg Jones reached out to Elsenpeter while she was in the transfer portal. After a swift visit, she decided to commit to the softball program. A road paved towards personal and team-wide success for the new Warrior.
Elsenpeter’s first season with Winona State was filled with plenty of notable successes. Some of these highs included a monster performance against California University of Pennsylvania on Mar. 7, 2025. On this day, she recorded three hits, three runs and five RBIs against the Vulcans. She would help the Warriors pick up a dominant 15-6 victory. This success day highlights the accomplishments Elsenpeter achieved this season with the team.
Elsenpeter talked about her impact as a voice for the locker room.
“I would say just like being a teammate and like, I think that’s so much more important and does a really good job of that this year, just as a whole, like supporting each other whether you’re playing softball or not.”
For the 2025 season, Elsenpeter secured a batting average of .320 in 51 appearances. She also secured 41 hits, 34 runs and 33 RBIs to total out her third campaign. As a team, Winona State finished regular season with 40 wins and 13 losses, picking up the three-seed in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) Tournament. They went on to go to the championship game, dropping that contest against Augustana. During the tournament, Elsenpeter finished with three hits and two runs. She looks like she will take the next step for her final spring with the Warriors.
The genesis of the 2026 season has been a solid beginning for Elsenpeter. In the early stages, she has a .333 batting average with 12 hits, nine runs and 10 RBI through the first 12 games of Winona State softball. Her best performance was against William Jewell College, where she had three hits in four appearances, including 2 RBI. This stat line is just a small sample of the impact that Elsenpeter has on the team.
Elsenpeter mentioned her goals for her final season.
“I think it’s an obvious goal to win the NSIC Tournament. I think this team can do it, and we know we can get there.”
Winona State has started the season off 13-2 after their trip to Shawnee, Kan. Elsenpeter picked up six hits and two home runs over the weekend. The Warriors will be in action in Florida over spring break. As conference play begins after the intermission, expect to see Elsenpeter continue her pursuit of strong finish to an exceptional career.
