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MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — It only took one swing of the bat for the Saint Mary's University baseball team to take the lead in the opening game of its nonconference doubleheader against UW-Superior Thursday at the Metrodome.

And what a swing it was.

With runners on second and third, Kyle Servais (Westby, Wis.) laced a 1-1 offering over the fence in left for a three-run home run and a 3-1 Cardinal advantage — an advantage the Cardinals would not relinquish.

Although the end was a little closer than coach Nick Winecke would have preferred, as Sam Nord (Mendota Heights, Minn.) needed to work out of a first-and-third, one-out jam to preserve the Cardinals' 6-5 victory.

SMU didn't have any big hits in their arsenal in the rematch. UW-Superior pitcher Dan Genrich limited the Cardinals to just five hits — and a single, seventh-inning run — as the Yellowjackets earned a spit with a 3-1 Game 2 victory.

Fueled by Servais' three-homer — the first of his collegiate career — the Cardinals padded that advantage to 6-1, taking advantage of three UW-Superior errors to score three unearned runs, one in the fourth and two in the fifth.

UW-Superior, however, decided to give Winecke a few gray hairs, as the Yellowjackets scored four times in the sixth, and had runners on first and third with one out in the seventh — only to have Nord come on and get a strike out and a fly out to secure the win.

Willie Doll (Amherst, Wis.) was the only Cardinal with more than one hit, as the SMU freshman went 3-for-3 and scored a run to pace the eight-hit attack. Matt Biagini (Maplewood, Minn.) picked up his second win on the mound, going the first five innings, allowing four runs on five hits.

Genrich and SMU starter Justin Kronebusch (Altura, Minn.) were locked in a pitcher's duel for the first four innings, with both hurlers throwing blanks.

The Yellowjackets would break through the fifth, scoring getting a one-out, two-run double by T.J. Evanson and a two-out, RBI single from Tom Fairbanks to take a 3-0 lead.

SMU finally broke through against Genrich in the seventh on a sacrifice fly by Steph Scatassa (Westchester, Ill.), but it was too little, too late.

Doll continued to fuel SMU's offensive attack, going 2-for-3 with a double, while Kevin Gannon (Roselle, Ill.), Mike Feriancek (River Falls, Wis.) and David Barry (Apple Valley, Minn.) accounting for the Cardinals' other three hits.

The Cardinals (9-5 overall) are now off until at least Thursday, having had Saturday's MIAC-opener at Bethel and Monday's home-opener against Luther already postponed due to unplayable field conditions. SMU is scheduled to host Viterbo in a 2:30 p.m. nonconference doubleheader at Max Molock Field.