PHOENIX, Ariz. — The Saint Mary's University baseball team heads south for its spring break from March 6-10, as the Cardinals get set to play 10 games at the Russ Matt Invitational in a six-day stretch beginning with a doubleheader against Northern State University at 11 a.m. on March 4.

The Cardinals' Spring Trip Matchups:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (2012: 0-0 Overall | 2011: 11-27 Overall) vs.
March 4: Northern State Wolves (2012: 0-0 Overall | 2011: 11-25 Overall), 11 a.m.
March 5: Benedictine U. at Springfield Bulldogs (2012: 0-0 Overall | 2011: 18-21 Overall), 9:30 a.m.
March 6: Concordia-Chicago Cougars (2012: 0-0 Overall | 2011: 35-10 Overall), 9:30 a.m.
March 8: Simpson Storm (2012: 0-3 Overall | 2011: 23-18 Overall), 10 a.m.
March 9: Albright College Lions (2012: 2-3 Overall | 9-25 Overall), 5 p.m.
March 10: Lewis & Clark College Pioneers (2012: 0-11 Overall | 5-32 Overall), 9 a.m.

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Last Action:
This week's games at the Russ Matt Invitational will be the season openers for Saint Mary's, Northern State, Benedictine University at Springfield, and Concordia-Chicago. … Simpson is still looking for its first win of 2012, after opening 0-3 at the Ozarks Baseball Classic in Clarksville, Ark. … Albright, meanwhile, will have played nine games before their spring trip-opener against Saint Mary's on March 9, and Lewis & Clark will have 13 games under their belt before their Phoenix-opener against Saint Mary's on March 10.

Cardinals vs. Spring Trip Field — Their Last Meeting:
SMU and Concordia-Chicago met twice at last year's Russ Matt Invitational, with Concordia coming away with 12-5 and 9-5 victories. … The Cardinals have not faced Simpson since the 1987 season, when the two teams split their season-opening doubleheader. … SMU's Russ Matt games against Northern State, Benedictine University at Springfield, Albright and Lewis & Clark will be the first in program history.

Cardinals Up Next:
The Cardinals play the first of three straight doubleheaders at the Metrodome in Minneapolis, Minn., squaring off against Cornell (Iowa) in a 10 p.m. nonconference twinbill.

Saint Mary's Cardinals News and Notes:
2012 Roster | 2012 Schedule | 2011 Statistics
Curt Swanson (Woodbury, Minn.) enjoyed a banner junior season in 2011, hitting a team- and career-best .356, while also leading the team in at-bats (132), hits (47), and total bases (59). … Swanson, who put together hitting streaks of 11 and eight consecutive games, had at least one hit in 30 or the team's 36 games, while reaching base safely in 33 of his 36 games played. … Swanson owned 15 multiple-hit games, while Jon Schlemmer (De Pere, Wis.) recorded a team-leading seven multiple-RBI games — including a 6-RBI effort against Concordia-Wisconsin on March 11. …  Vince Lulic (Mendota Heights, Minn.) returns after sharing the team lead in doubles with 11, while Schlemmer had a team-high three triples. … Lulic opened the season with a team-best 12-game hitting streak. … The Cardinals hit seven home runs in 2011, with Swanson and graduated senior Andrew Warren hitting two each, while Schlemmer, graduated senior Chris Bogie (St. Paul, Minn.) and Pat Krieger (Mendota Heights, Minn.) accounted for the other three. … The home runs were the first of their collegiate careers for Bogie, Schlemmer and Krieger. … Bogie's home run came in his final at-bat in his final game at Max Molock Field on May 4 against Bethel, while Krieger's HR came in the first game of SMU's regular-season finale against St. Thomas. He also notched his first collegiate triple in that game and drove in all four runs in an 11-4 loss to UST. … Schlemmer closed out his first season as a Cardinal with a team-leading 23 RBIs, while also compiling a team-high .462 slugging percentage. … leads the Cardinals in RBIs (23) and slugging percentage (.477). …  Schlemmer finished as one of eight Cardinals with 10 or more RBIs. … Warren closed out his four-year collegiate career having started 130 consecutive games. … SMU's top three pitchers in 2011 all graduated. Andrew Ruf (Chippewa Falls, Wis.) tossed a team-high 50.2 innings in 2011, with Bogie (42.0 IP) and Gary Seifert (Prescott, Wis. / 41.1 IP) close behind. … Ruff and John Henderson (Bloomington, Minn.) shared the team lead in appearances (11), while Henderson owned a team-leading 2.45 ERA. … Bogie and Ruff were the team-leaders in wins (2), with Bogie also leading the pitching staff with 26 strikeouts. … SMU finished 7-0 when leading after the sixth inning. … The Cardinals played in four extra-inning games, going 2-2 — including back-to-back eight-innings wins over UW-Stout on April 29 and Bethel on May 4. … Six of the Cardinals' 11 wins this season came on their home field.

Northern State Wolves News and Notes:
2012 Roster | 2012 Schedule | 2011 Final Statistics
Northern State, coming off an 11-25 season a year ago, was picked to finish 11th in the preseason Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference preseason coaches' poll. …   NSU senior Zach Miller and junior Sean Winslow were tabbed as the Wolves' Player and Pitcher to Watch, respectively, by the NSIC coaches. … Miller was amongst the team leaders at the plate last season, finishing the year with a .304 average in 102 at-bats. He led the team with four home runs to go along with his nine doubles and two triples for a .549 slugging percentage.  He also scored 18 runs for the Wolves, third on the squad. … Winslow appeared in 11 games and made nine starts on the mound for the Wolves in 2011.  The left-hander finished with a 3-4 record and a 5.04 ERA in 50 innings pitched. … Graduated senior Michael Cross led the team with a .309 batting average in 2011, while also boasting a team high with 20 runs scored and four triples. … Jose Figueroa was second on the team with a .307 batting average, while Ronnie Sellers led the team in at-bats (114) and hits (33). … Winslow, Thane Lees and Kris Keating all made a team-high 11 pitching appearances a year ago, with Lees boasting a 4-0 record and a 2.51 ERA, with one save in 28.2 IP. … Trent Bestland (50.2), Lucas Jung (50.1) and Winslow (50.0) all tossed 50 or more innings a year ago, with Jung and Winslow each finishing one win behind team-leader Lees.

Benedictine U. at Springfield Bulldogs News and Notes:
2012 Roster | 2012 Schedule | 2011 Final Statistics
Benedictine, in its first year as a member of the NAIA, played as an independent a year ago. The Bulldogs begin play in the America Midwest Conference in 2012. … BU enters 2012 coming off an 18-21 season a year ago. … David Maziarz hit a team-leading .357 in 2011. … Maziarz was one of six Bulldogs to hit .300 or better last season. … Trevor McGrath and Kyle Krager were the only players to play 36 of the team's 37 games in 2011. … McGrath hit .352, while leading the team in runs (21), hits (38), doubles (9) and slugging percentage (.454). … Krager, meanwhile, hit .325, and finished second to McGrath with 19 runs and 37 hits. He also drove in a team-best 25 runs, shared the team lead in doubles (9), and owned a .447 slugging percentage. … As a team, the Bulldogs hit seven home runs, led by Brandon Miles with two. … A.J. Gand threw a team-high 43.0 IP, going 5-0 with a 5.23 ERA. … The Bulldogs boasted 11 pitchers who logged 10 or more innings. … Jake Hill appeared in a team-high 11 games, going 2-1 with a 1.53 ERA. … Tristan Molumby fanned a team-best 29 battes last season, while also earning four wins in 10 appearances. … Eight of the Bulldogs' 18 wins came on their home turf. BU was 8-7 at home and 10-14 on the road.

Concordia-Chicago Cougars News and Notes:
2012 Roster | 2012 Schedule | 2011 Final Statistics
The Cougars finished 2011 with a school record 35 wins and a winning percentage of .778. Their 20-2 conference record was the all-time best in the history of the Northern Athletics Conference. … Concordia was a perfect 14-0 at home last season. … The Cougars' Cam Stephens and Nick Skala were recognized in the list of 2012 Preseason NCAA Division III All-Americans by D3baseball.com. Stephens was a first-team preseason pick, while Skala was an honorable-mention selection. … Stephens — named a Second-Team All-American by D3baseball.com in 2011 — enjoyed a breakout season a year ago, hitting .453 (63-for-139) with 34 runs and 45 RBIs. Stephens recorded a .691 slugging percentage on the strength of 19 doubles, one triple and four homers. … Skala, meanwhile, hit .390 in 43 games last spring with team-leading 10 homers and 63 RBIs. Skala carried a .446 on-base percentage and a robust .678 slugging percentage. … In June 2011, Skala was selected in the 37th round of the Major League Baseball draft by the Baltimore Orioles, but elected to return to Concordia for his final season of eligibility. … Micah Buss pitched a team-best 63.0 IP, compiling a 5-1 record and a .257 ERA in 10 starts. … Anthony Collaro and Brenden Schulz each collected a team-high seven wins, while Collaro also fanned a team-high 50 batters, one more Buss. … Pat Conlin and Tim Milroy combined for 10 of the team's 12 saves in 2011, with Conlin picking up six and Milroy adding four. … As a staff, Concordia pitchers combined for a 3.24 ERA.

Simpson Storm News and Notes:
2012 Roster | 2012 Schedule | 2012 Statistics
The Storm, coming off a 23-18 season a year ago, are still looking for their first win of the season, having dropped all three games during their trip to Clarksville, Ark., on Feb. 17-19. … If their first three games of the season are any indication, the Storm are going to have little trouble scoring runs. Simpson plated 21 runs in their first three 2012 contests — including 10 runs twice, falling to Millsaps (11-10) and Westminster (Mo.) (13-10). … The Storm return five returning starters from 2011, led by Tyler Crandell, a Second-Team All-IIAC selection, after hitting .338 with four doubles, five triples, one home run and 23 RBIs. … The Storm will be without the services of graduated senior Drew Yarkosky, the team's offensive MVP after hitting .350 with 22 RBIs. … Chris Dorff is back to fuel the Simpson pitching staff. Dorff was a First-Team All-IIAC selection as a sophomore in 2010, while posting a 3.94 ERA and 6-6 record during in junior campaign in 2011. … Dorff also struck out 63 and picked up a pair of saves in 77.2 innings of work. … As a team, the Storm hit .383 with 48 doubles, 20 triples and eight home runs. … Simpson finished 7-3 at home, while going 16-15 away from Indianola, Iowa.

Albright Lions News and Notes:
2012 Roster | 2012 Schedule | 2012 Statistics
Albright is coming off a 9-25 season a year ago that included a 3-15 mark in the Commonwealth Conference. … The Lions enter 2012 without the services of graduated senior Justin Danser who led the team in batting average (.368) and stolen bases (10). He collected 46 hits — including 10 for extra bases — scored 25 runs and drove in 19.  … Albright's 2012 roster includes 14 freshmen. … Tom Canuso (.333, 15 RBIs) and Nate Peiffer (.316, 2 HRs, 14 RBIs) are back after solid 2011 seasons, that included being named Second Team All-Commenwealth Conference. … Canuso enters his senior season needing just 15 hits to reach 100 career hits. … Veterans Matt Rehrig (2-5, 6.36 ERA) and Tyler Storms (2-2, 2.45 ERA) are expected to lead the Lions' pitching staff. … Rehrig boasted a team-high 40 strikeouts a year ago. … 2010 graduate Casey Lawrence led all Toronto Blue Jays minor leaguers last year with 14 victories, pitching with Single A Lansing Lugnuts and Dunedin Blue Jays.

Lewis & Clark Pioneers News and Notes:
2012 Roster | 2012 Schedule | 2012 Statistics
The Pioneers are coming off a 5-32 season in 2011 — including a 3-21 mark in the Northwest Conference — and open 2012 without the services of seven graduated seniors. … Lewis & Clark is still searching for its first win of 2012, opening on an 11-game losing streak. … Nick Lavin, one of six Pioneers to have started all 11 games this season, boasts a team-best .371 batting average, going 13-for-35 with seven runs scored and a team-leading 10 RBIs. … Lavin is one of four Pioneers hitting over .300 this season. … Parker Dane, who is second to Lavin with a .357 batting average, is the team-leader in at-bats (42) and hits (15). … Eric Hyun (.308) has scored a team-high nine runs. … Lewis & Clark has hit four home runs this season. … Michael Ball has thrown a team-leading 22.1 innings, going 0-2 with a 5.64 ERA. … Ryan Strombom is second on the team in innings pitched (20.0), while compiling a 5.40 ERA and an 0-3 record. Strombom has fanned nine batters, tops on the team. … Kyle Tibbett has made a team-leading five pitching appearances, and owns 0-1 record and a 1.42 ERA. … All 11 of Lewis & Clark's games this season have been played on the road.