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WINONA, Minn. — For 12 innings Saturday afternoon, the Saint Mary's University fastpitch softball team could do no wrong in their Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference doubleheader against Bethel.

Over the final two innings of the twinbill, however, the Cardinals could do no right.

SMU, which breezed to a 9-2 victory in the opener — putting a runner on base in every inning, while scoring in five of their six at-bats — picked up right where it left off in Game 2, scoring five runs in the first three innings, and boasting a 5-0 lead heading into the sixth inning.

In those final two at-bats, Bethel would score nine times — including seven in seventh inning — as the Royals earned a split in the conference series with a 9-5 victory in the nightcap.

Alex Raske (Chicago, Ill.) led the Cardinals' 12-hit offensive attack in the opener, going 4-for-4 with three RBIs — including her first collegiate home run. Melanie Hamilton (Homewood, Ill.) and Erin Stenseth (Eau Claire, Wis.) both went 2-for-4, with Hamilton also delivering her first collegiate home run.

SMU scored once in each of the first two inning, added two runs in the third, one in the fourth and four in the fifth in cruising to the Game 1 win.

And the Cardinals picked up right where they left off in the nightcap, scoring twice in the first and three times in the third to grab a 5-0 advantage. That, however, would be the extent of SMU's offensive attack, as Bethel scored two times in the sixth and seven in the seventh — three on a Anja Erlandson home run to right field — to earn the split.

Paige Carter (Rosemount, Minn.) and Nicole Olson (New Brighton, Minn.) each had three hits and Hailey Ohl (Bloomington, Minn.) added two to spark the Cardinals' 14 Game 2 hits.

The Cardinals, who move to 2-2 in the MIAC and 8-6 overall, are back in action on Tuesday, traveling to St. Paul, Minn., for a conference doubleheader against Hamline. First pitch is set for 3:30 p.m.