TUCSON, Ariz. — The Saint Mary's University baseball team kicks off its 2014 season with a 10-game spring trip to Tucson, Ariz. SMU opens with games against Concordia-Chicago and Arizona Christian University on March 3.

SMU's Spring Trip Schedule:
Monday, March 3, 2014 | Kino Sports Complex
SMU Cardinals (2013: 19-17 Overall) vs. Concordia-Chicago Cougars (2013: 39-7 Overall), 11 a.m. (MST) | Live stats
SMU Cardinals vs. Arizona Christian Firestorm (2014: 4-11 Overall), 3 p.m. (MST)
Tuesday, March 4, 2014 | Kino Sports Complex
SMU Cardinals vs. Morningside (Iowa) Mustangs (2014: 3-3 Overall), 9 a.m. (MST)
Thursday, March 6, 2014 | Kino Sports Complex
SMU Cardinals vs. Concordia-Chicago Cougars, 10 a.m. (MST) | Live stats
Friday, March 7, 2014 | Kino Sports Complex
SMU Cardinals vs. St. Olaf Oles (2013: 20-15 Overall), 1 p.m. (MST)
Saturday, March 8, 2014 | Kino Sports Complex
SMU Cardinals vs. Bethany Lutheran Vikings (2013: 14-16 Overall), 9 a.m. (MST)
Sunday, March 9, 2014 | Kino Sports Complex
SMU Cardinals vs. Simpson Storm (2013: 18-23 Overall), 9 a.m. (MST)

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SMU vs. Spring Trip Field — Their Last Meeting:
SMU vs. Concordia-Chicago
March 4, 2013: The Cardinals banged out nine hits against the Cougars, but managed just one run — a seventh-inning solo home run off the bat of Zach Wolfe (Wabasha, Minn.) — as Concordia-Chicago handed SMU a 6-1 setback in Tucson, Ariz.
March 9, 2013: After dropping a 6-1 decision to Concordia-Chicago during the first day of their spring trip, SMU was looking forward to getting another shot at the Cougars during the final day of their trip. Unfortunately, the second time around wasn't any better, as Concordia-Chicago scored three runs in the bottom of the first inning and never relinquished the lead in handing the Cardinals a 7-4 nonconference setback.
SMU vs. St. Olaf
April 27, 2013: It took the Cardinals' offense the first seven innings of their Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference doubleheader against the Oles to finally heat up. After managing just one run in dropping the opener, 3-1, the Cardinals' bats came to life in the night — using a four-run third inning to erasing an early St. Olaf lead and lift SMU to a 5-2 victory and a split in the conference twinbill at Max Molock Field.
SMU vs. Simpson
March 6, 2013: Just hours after getting a game-winning, walk-off single by Willie Doll (Amherst, Wis.) in the bottom of the 11th inning of a 4-3 SMU win over Iowa Wesleyan, the Cardinals were at it again — and then some — in their nonconference nine-inning game against Simpson. This time it was Kyle Servais (Westby, Wis.) to the rescue, as the senior delivered a two-out walk-off single, scoring Vince Lulic (Mendota Heights, Minn.) from third in the bottom of the 12th inning and lifting the Cardinals to a 7-6, come-from-behind win over the Storm in Phoenix, Ariz.
SMU vs. Arizona Christian, Morningside (Iowa) and Bethany Lutheran
This week's games against Arizona Christian, Morningside (Iowa) and Bethany Lutheran will be the first in program history.

SMU Up Next:
The Cardinals head to Wheaton, Ill., on March 21-22, for two nonconference games against both Edgewood and Wheaton. After a road doubleheader at UW-La Crosse on March 26, SMU opens MIAC play at home, hosting St. Thomas in a 1 p.m. doubleheader at Max Molock Field.

Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2014 Roster | 2013 Final Statistics | 2014 Schedule
SMU had a pair of  players earn post-season MIAC honors a year ago — Tyler Krysiak (Bloomington, Minn.) was named All-MIAC First-Team, while Willie Doll (Amherst, Wis.) was selected to the All-MIAC Defensive Team. … The Cardinals made their second straight MIAC Tournament appearance in 2013, falling to third-seeded Augsburg 5-4 in 11 innings. … SMU's 11-inning loss to Augsburg in the MIAC Tournament was its seventh extra-inning game of the season. The loss also snapped SMU's 12-game extra-inning winning streak, dating back to a 4-3 loss to Cornell on March 19, 2011. … SMU split six of its 10 conference doubleheaders. The Cardinals recorded sweeps against Augsburg and Carleton, and were swept by St. Thomas and Concordia — both playoff qualifiers. … David Barry (Apple Valley, Minn.) closed out the season with a team-best .388 batting average. He was one of five Cardinal regulars who boasted batting averages above .300. … Doll and Kevin Gannon (Roselle, Ill.) finished as the team-leaders in hits with 37 each — four more than junior Paul LaNasa (Mahtomedi, Minn.). … Doll also led the team in runs (26), home runs (4) and total bases (57). … Gannon — who was named to the 2013 Capital One Academic All-District Team — owned a team-best 23 RBIs and 14 walks. … The Cardinals hit nine home runs this season. Along with Doll's team-high four, Zach Wolfe (Wabasha, Minn.) hit three, and Gannon, Kyle Servais (Westby, Wis.) and Jon Schlemmer (DePere, Wis.) accounted for the Cardinals' other three. … Doll hit his first collegiate round-tripper against Illinois Institute of Technology on March 8. … Gannon— who reached base safely in each of the Cardinals' first 20 games — finished the year reaching base in 33 of the team's 36 games. … Gannon also had a hit in 28 of the team's 36 contests. … Barry recorded the first four-hit game of his collegiate career against Saint John's on April 24 — it was the Cardinals' only four-hit effort this season. Barry went 4-for-4 to account for four of the team's five Game 1 hits vs. the Johnnies. … Gannon posted his first collegiate six-RBI game against Illinois Institute of Technology on March 8. … Doll owned a team-best 10 multiple-hit games, while Barry, Servais and Schlemmer boast a team-leading five multiple-RBI games. … Pat Krieger (Mendota Heights, Minn.) set a school record, walking five times in the Cardinals' 12-inning win over Simpson on March 6. … As a team, the Cardinals swiped 59 bases on 74 attempts — led by Doll with 14 steals in 15 tries and Gannon, who was a perfect 11-for-11. … Krysiak became the single-season and career record-holder with his two saves against Carleton on May 8. Krysiak recorded saves in five of his last six appearances last season and is now the single-season (7) and career (13) saves leader. … The Cardinals had seven pitchers who threw 20 or more innings last season — Teddy VanRanst (St. Paul, Minn. / 34.2 IP), Steph Scatassa (Westchester, Ill. / 34.2 IP) and Justin Kronebusch (Altura, Minn. / 33.0 IP). … A.J. Redders (Middleton, Wis.) made a team-high 18 appearances last season, one more than Krysiak and Sam Nord (Mendota Heights, Minn.). … Nineteen of the Cardinals' 36 games were decided by two runs or less. … SMU was 7-4 in one-run games this season. … The Cardinals finished 12-2 when outhitting their opponent and 13-0 when leading after the sixth inning. … SMU's 2-0 shutout win over Augsburg on May 5 was its third shutout win in a one-week span — the Cardinals also blanked Gustavus 3-0 on April 28 and Saint John's 2-0 in the opener of their MIAC DH on April 24. … SMU's early season seven-game winning streak was the longest winning streak since the Cardinals won nine straight during the 2001 season.

Scouting The Concordia-Chicago Cougars:
2014 Roster | 2013 Final Statistics | 2014 Schedule
The Cougars enter the 2014 season on the heels of a 39-7 showing a year ago. … Concordia-Chicago swept through the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference Tournament, winning four straight games to earn their third straight NCAA tournament berth. … After going 0-4 in their first two trips to the NCAA regionals, the Cougars went 3-2 at the 2013 NCAA Central Regional, with both losses coming to top-seeded Webster. … Ranked No. 13 and No. 16 in two national preseason polls, the Cougars have been tabbed as overwhelming favorites to repeat as Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference champions. … The Cougars return 23 letterwinners from last year's 39-7 team. … Concordia-Chicago — which compiled a school-record 16-game winning streak in 2013 — boasted an NCAA Division III-leading .848 winning percentage a year ago. … The Cougars return three of their four 2013 ABCA All-Region selections — Dan Kluss, Steve Cox and Thomas Gier. … Gier led the Cougars' offense with a .358 batting average (59-165) in 43 games, while also driving in a team-leading 44 runs. … Seventeen of Giers' 59 hits went for extra bases (13 doubles, two triples, two homers), accounting for a .497 slugging percentage. … Kluss (8-1) was ace of the Cougars' starting rotation, tying the CC single-season record for wins with eight. … Kluss tossed a team-leading 76 innings with a 2.49 earned run average and 67 strikeouts against 20 walks. … Cox, who made 17 relief appearances and went 13-13 in save opportunities a year ago, was named a D3baseball.com Preseason All-American. … Cox allowed just one unearned run in his 16.0 innings, while striking out 20 and walking just four. … The Cougars closed out 2013 with a perfect 19-0 record on their home field. … In his three seasons as head coach at Concordia-Chicago, Adam Smith has led the program to a 107-33 record (.764).

Scouting The Arizona Christian University Firestorm:
2014 Roster | 2014 Statistics | 2014 Schedule
The Firestorm — an NAIA school and member of the Golden State Athletic Conference — will have already played 12 games when they take the field against Saint Mary's on March 3, compiling a 4-11 record. … Arizona Christian, which finished 33-25 a year ago — marking the second straight 30-plus win season for the Firestorm. …  Seth Neely is coming off a First-Team NCCAA All-America, NCCAA All-West Region and All-GSAC season in 2013. Neely, who led ACU with a .399 batting average (73-183), and set school single-season records with 17 doubles, 46 RBIs, and 116 total bases — while also hitting eight home runs and scoring 33 runs — is hitting .260 with a pair of home runs and RBIs through 15 games this season. … Tanner Stokey is the team's offensive leader through its first 15 games this season, hitting a team-best .397, while also leading the squad in at-bats (58), runs (10), hits (23), triples (2), total bases (31) and slugging percentage (.534). … The Firestorm have already hit 10 home runs this season. … Ismael Castro has tossed a team-high 31 innings this season, going 0-2 with a 4.94 ERA in five starts. … Dean Jackson and Tommy Lay are second to Castro in innings pitched with 28.1 each, while Jackson also leads the team in complete games (2) and strikeouts (17). … ACU is 1-4 when scoring the game's first run, and 3-7 when its opponent scores first.

Scouting The Morningside (Iowa) Mustangs:
2014 Roster | 2014 Statistics | 2014 Schedule
Morningside — an NAIA institution and member of the Greater Pacific Athletic Conference (GPAC) — is coming off a 22-27 season in 2013. … The Mustangs were picked to finish third in the GPAC Preeason Coaches' Preseason Poll. … Morningside enters its spring trip to Tucson, Ariz., with eight games under its belt, going 3-3 — including wins in each of its last three games. … Cole Halgerson closed out 2013 with a team-best .336 batting average. … A.J. Stalert was second to Halgerson with a .323 batting average, while also leading the team in runs (29), hits (51), triples (5), total bases (69), slugging percentage (.437), walks (27) and on-base percentage (.422). …Halgerson and Stalert each recorded 14 multiple-hit games last season, while Stalert also put together a team-high eight multiple-RBI games. …  Josh Gross accounted for all three of Morningside's home runs a year ago. … The Mustangs stole 77 bases in 2013, led by Travis Hanson with 18 and Staiert with 17. … Lance Spongberg made a season-high 15 pitching appearances, compiling a 2.03 ERA  with two saves and 33 strikeouts in 31.0 IP. … Jeff Gacke notched a team-leading five pitching wins, while also leading the team in complete games (2), innings pitched (58.0) and strikeouts 45. … Fifteen of Morningside's 22 wins came on the road last year.

Scouting The St. Olaf Oles:
2014 Roster | 2013 Final Statistics | 2014 Schedule
The Oles enter the 2014 season on the heels of a 20-15 season a year ago. … Jack Schechinger, an ABCA Third-Team All-Region selection — not to mention a First-Team All-MIAC and Third-Team D3baseball.com All-Region pick — led St. Olaf in virtually every offensive category a year ago. Schechinger led the team in average (.396), hits (42), homers (3), RBIs (29) and slugging percentage (.575) and was second in runs (24), doubles (10) and walks (13). … Schechinger also had 13 multi-hit games and had hitting streaks of eight (March 7-24) and six (April 30-May 7) games in 2013. … Nick Kulla joined Schechinger as a D3baseball.com All-Region pick a year ago, after hitting .354 with a team-best 26 runs and 22 RBIs. … Kulla, who made just one error in 144 chances at second base — while turning 14 double plays — owned a team-leading nine-game hitting streak on the Oles' trip to Florida in March and had four multi-hit games over the team's final six contests. … As a team, St. Olaf hit .303 and boasted seven individuals who hit .300 or better. … Alex Lampert tossed a team-high 52.2 innings last season, owning a 3.93 ERA and a team-leading five wins. … Lampert also led the team in complete games (4) and shared the team lead in strikeouts (38) with Anders Dzurak. … Kyle Watson made a team-high 12 pitching appearances, posting a 4.35 ERA and a 3-1 record. … St. Olaf had five pitchers who logged 20 or more innings last season. … Trent Friedrich accounted for all three of the Oles' saves in 2013. … St. Olaf played just 10 of its 35 games at home — the Oles finished with 16 of their 13 wins on the road.

Scouting The Bethany Lutheran Vikings:
2014 Roster | 2013 Final Statistics | 2014 Schedule
Bethany Lutheran qualified for its eighth consecutive UMAC Postseason Tournament a year ago, after finishing tied for second with a 10-4 mark. The Vikings dropped their postseason contests to Northwestern and Martin Luther to finish with a 14-16 overall record. … Bethany Lutheran, which hit .292 as a team a year ago, boasted six regulars with batting averages above .300 — led by Joe Tuholsky (.377) and Adam Geiger (.352). … Geiger also led the team in at-bats (105), runs (21), hits (37), triples (1), total bases (48) and walks (10). … Geiger put together 10 multiple-hit games — including three four-hit performances — and owns a team-leading 17-game hitting streak. … Dylan Gass and Mitch Sellers shared the team lead with five multiple-RBI contests. … Gass finished with a team-best 22 RBIs last season, while Clint Aretz belted four of the Vikings' 16 home runs. … Bethany Lutheran stole 26 bases in 2013, with Geiger leading the way ewith six. … Cory Ferm, a Third-Team ABCA and D3baseball.com selection, was dominant on the mound in his first year in a Vikings' uniform last season. In four UMAC starts, Ferm did not allow an earned run in 30 innings of work, going 4-0 with three complete-game shutouts, 41 strikeouts. … Ferm finished with a 6-3 record and 1.30 ERA in 11 starts. He tossed a team-leading 69.1 innings, owned five complete games and posted 85 strikeouts against just 18 walks. … Ferm highlighted his first season as a Viking with a no-hitter against Martin Luther. … Bethany Lutheran played just five of its 30 games at home — but were victorious in all five. … The Vikings were 10-5 when scoring the game's first run, and a near-perfect 8-1 when their opponent scored two runs or less.

Scouting The Simpson Storm:
2014 Roster | 2013 Final Statistics | 2014 Schedule
Fueled by seven wins in their last 10 games, the Storm finished 18-23 last season. … Simpson will again by led at the plate by Tyler Craig, an ABCA All-Central Region First Team selection a year ago. … Craig established himself as one of the most feared power hitters in the Iowa Conference in 2013, leading the league with 45 RBIs, 14 doubles and 97 total bases. He also hit seven home runs, while carrying a .342 batting average and slugging .614. … Craig's 45 RBIs are the most by a Simpson player since 2004, when three players drove in 46 or more runs. … Craig was one of five Storm regulars to hit above .300 last season — Brett Crable (.383), Jake Barr (.343), Blake Heitmeier (.324) and Tyler Crandell (.316) were the other four. … Crable and Barr shared the team lead with 35 runs each, while Barr also led the team in at-bats (172) and hits (59). … Simpson swiped 23 bases in 2013, led by Michael Chia with seven and Crandell with six. … On the mound, the Storm had four pitchers who logged 43 or more innings — led by Junior Rodriguez, who tossed 70 innings in 16 appearances. … Gage Reis finished with a team-leading 4.19 ERA and 5-3 record, while Matt Pennings recorded a team-best six saves in 21 appearances and Rodriguez finished with a team-high 31 strikeouts, three more than Reis. … Simpson scored 10 or more runs six times — all wins — including a season-high 16-run effort in a 16-7 win over the University of Dubuque on May 6. … On the flip side, The Storm were limited to two runs or less nine times, going 1-8 — the lone exception a 2-1 victory over Luther on April 13.