Game 1 Boxscore / Game 2 Boxscore
WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University fastpitch softball team had so much fun scoring 11 runs in Saturday's Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference doubleheader against St. Olaf, they decided to do it again in Game 1 of Sunday's conference twinbill against Carleton.
The Cardinals followed up Saturday's 11-0, 11-3 sweep of the Oles, with their third straight 11-run effort, blasting the Knights 11-3 in Sunday's opener.
Things weren't so easy in the nightcap, however, as Carleton pitcher Caitlyn Cornell held SMU to just four hits.
Which proved to be more than enough, as SMU scored the game's only runs in the second inning — parlaying a pair of Carleton errors with a pair of RBI doubles to give the Cardinals the 2-0 victory.
"We knew (Cornell) was their No. 1 pitcher, so we had a feeling beforehand that the second game might be a little closer than the first," said SMU coach Nikki Fennern. "After (Saturday's performance), we were much more relaxed at the plate today. We swung the bats very well, and we got great pitching and near-perfect defense.
"When you can put all three of those things together, you are going to win a lot of ball games."
The offense was certainly there in the first game, as SMU banged out 11 hits, including a pair of doubles from Amy Edge (Mineral Point, Wis.). The Cardinals put the game away early, scoring eight times in the second inning — thanks in part to three Carleton errors which resulted in seven unearned runs. SMU added three more runs in the third — all unearned — to take a commanding 11-0 lead. Carleton scored twice in the sixth and once in the seventh, but it was too little, too late.
SMu's offense took a back seat to the pitching of Hanni Lohmann (Lake Elmo, Minn.) and Jenny Schipp (North St. Paul, Minn.) in the nightcap, as Lohmann went the first 3 1/3, allowing three hits. Schipp relieved in the third with two on and one out, and promptly struck out Liesl Van Ryswyk and Kari Christianson to end the inning — and the only threat the Knights would muster.
Schipp struck out seven of the 13 batters she faced in Game 2, and finished the afternoon with 13 strikeouts, having fanned six in picking up the pitching win in Game 1.
"This was a big weekend for us," said Fennern, whose team snapped a three-game losing streak with their sweep of St. Olaf, and is now 9-7 in the MIAC. "We know that if we are going to make it (to the MIAC postseason tournament) we are going to have to take care of our business. We need to keep playing at the top of our game.
"It's almost like this team has a new attitude right now," continued Fennern. "They are playing with a poise and confidence they didn't have earlier in the year."
