Boxscore

NORTHFIELD, Minn. — As seniors, Jenny Schipp (Oakdale, Minn.) and Jenny Gutterman (Shoreview, Minn.) knew heading into the year that this was their final season of collegiate fastpitch softball.

And on March 28, Nikki Fennern joined the duo's farewell tour, as the Saint Mary's University head coach announced that she would be stepping down at the end of the season to become the school's new athletic director.

But that was March — the end of the season was just a distant blip on their radar screen.

That blip smacked the trio head-on Saturday afternoon, as Gustavus pitcher Joyce DeWitz held the Cardinals to one hit — and the Gusties took advantage of four SMU miscues — en route to a 3-0 victory in an elimination game at the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Tournament that officially put an end to their season.

And three stellar collegiate careers.

"It's tough," said a tearful Fennern, whose team closed out its season with a 25-15-1 overall record — including a 2-1, eight-inning loss to GAC and a 7-0 win over Saint Benedict in Friday's opening day of the MIAC's double-elimination tournament. "It's so hard to put into words how I am feeling right now. I am so proud of the way this team performed all season. When you think about the fact that we took the field at the start of the season with a completely new lineup — almost an entirely new team — it's amazing what they accomplished this year.

"Personally, the end of any season is tough, but this one is a little extra-hard," continued Fennern, who complied a 167-74-1 record during her six years at the helm. "To have two players like Gut and Schipp play their final games in a Cardinal uniform is sad — they are probably two of the best players to ever come out of this program and their impact, both on and off the field, is going to be greatly missed.

"As for me, deciding to step down as head coach was one of the toughest decisions I've ever had to make — and I'm not sure the magnitude of it will hit me until the fall when the team returns."

When the Cardinals do return in the fall, one thing is certain — they will return with a bit of a chip on their shoulder after the way the 2006 season ended.

"We did not play well (against Gustavus), and that makes the end of the season that much tougher to take," said Gutterman, who ended her senior year as the Cardinals' offensive leader in virtually every offensive category — including batting average (.418), at-bats (146), runs (38), hits (61), doubles (12), triples (5), total bases (89), slugging percentage (.610) on-base percentage (.445) and stolen bases (23). "I never wanted this day to come — I feel like we should be getting ready for another practice tomorrow. It's just so hard to believe it's over.

"I enjoyed every opportunity I had to wear the Cardinal uniform, and I am going to miss it so much."

Schipp and Gutterman certainly did their part to try and extend the Cardinals' season Saturday, as Gutterman collected SMU's lone hit — a one-out single to left in the sixth — while Schipp tossed a complete-game, four-hitter, allowing just one earned run and striking out three.

"It's hard to believe that we won't be playing (for Saint Mary's) anymore," said Schipp, the team's all-time career leader in strikeouts (545), appearances (99), starts (78), complete games (52), shutouts (22) and innings pitched (516.2). "When we started the season in February, this day seemed so far off — yesterday (after beating Saint Benedict) it seemed so far off.

"It just snuck up on us so fast."

The Gusties got all the runs they would need off Schipp in the fourth, as Emily Klein delivered a one-out double to break a scoreless tie and give GAC a 1-0 lead. the Gusties would add two more runs in the fifth — taking advantage of two more SMU errors — to put the game out of reach.

"It might have eased the pain a bit if we had played better," said Fennern. "We knew going in that this was going to be a one-run type of game — that it was going to be decided by who took advantage of the opportunities that were there for them. Gustavus did that, and you have to give them credit.

"This team accomplished so much this season — no matter what happened today, they should hold their heads high. It's been a remarkable season."