Game 1 Box Score / Game 2 Box Score

WINONA, Minn. — It took the Saint Mary's University fastpitch softball team a while to get going, but once the Cardinals got into a groove, they were unstoppable as they rolled to a 3-0, 9-1 doubleheader sweep of Carleton Wednesday afternoon.

Carleton held the Cardinals' high-powered offense to one run and just three hits through five innings, but SMU's bats came to life in the bottom of the sixth, scoring twice — the first on an RBI single by Gina Rizzardi (Woodbury, Minn.) and the second on Annie Hovde's (Cottage Grove, Minn.) RBI double — to put the game out of reach. Rizzardi and Hovde both finished with two hits to pace the Cardinals' six-hit attack.

Three runs was more than enough, however, as Jill Hocking (Apple Valley, Minn.) tossed a complete-game one-hitter, allowing just a fourth-inning single by Carleton's Cecily Schrader, while striking out nine and walking two.

With their bats wide awake, the Cardinals (9-1 MIAC, 19-5 overall) — who have now won 13 straight — made quick work of the Knights in the second game, scoring once in the first, third and fourth innings, then adding two more in the fourth and two in the sixth.

Jennifer Meyer (Oconomowoc, Wis.) and Jackie Huegel (Alta Vista, Iowa) led the Cardinals' 13-hit attack, as both went 3-for-3. Huegel belted a solo home run among her three hits, while Meyer scored three times and stole three bases. Hocking chipped in a pair of hits in two plate appearances — and drove in three runs — while Rizzardi was 2-for-3.

Jennifer Gonerka (St. Paul, Minn.) improved to 8-1 with her four-hitter. The sophomore walked one and struck out two.