WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University baseball team steps out of conference play on Thursday, as the Cardinals host Cornell (Iowa) in a 2:30 p.m. nonconference doubleheader at Max Molock Field.
 
The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (6-11 Overall) vs. Cornell Rams (11-7 Overall)
 
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Last Action:
The Cardinals settled for a conference split against Saint John's on Sunday, as SMU opened with a 4-2 Game 1 win, before falling 6-3 in the nightcap at Max Molock Field. … Cornell picked up a pair of wins on Sunday, beating Knox 5-2 and 4-3 in 14 innings in Mount Vernon, Iowa.
 
SMU vs. Cornell — Their Last Meeting:
March 25, 2013: Despite stranding nine runners on base, the Cardinals snapped a three-game losing streak, outlasting Cornell, 4-3, at the Metrodome in Minneapolis, Minn. — thanks to a single swing of the bat by Willie Doll (Amherst, Wis.). Doll launched his second home run of the season — a towering, one-out shot to left field in the top of the ninth inning — lifting the Cardinals to their eighth win of the season.
 
Up Next:
The Cardinals return to Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference action on Saturday, traveling to St. Peter, Minn., for a 1 p.m. conference doubleheader against Gustavus. … Cornell hits the road on Saturday, traveling to Beloit, Wis., for a pair of games against Beloit College. First pitch is set for 1 p.m.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2014 Roster | 2014 Statistics | 2014 Schedule
SMU's 6-3 Game 2 loss to Saint John's Sunday snapped the Cardinals' two-game winning streak. … SMU's 6-0 victory vs. Hamline on April 2 was its first shutout of the season and first since blanking Augsburg 2-0 in eight innings on May 5, 2013. … With their 4-2 victory over Saint John's — and their 6-0 win and nine-run effort in the 9-9 suspended Game 2 vs. Hamline on April 2, the Cardinals have now scored four or more runs in 13 of their 17 games. … Three of SMU's last five losses have been by one run — including 7-6 and 5-4 setbacks vs. Wheaton (Ill.) on March 21-22. … The Cardinals did not have a player with more than one hit in its doubleheader against Saint John's last Sunday. Only Paul LaNasa (Mahtomedi, Minn. and Ben Buerkle (Roseville, Minn.) had hits in both games. … Kevin Miley (St. Paul, Minn.) collected SMU's fourth four-hit game of the season, going 4-for-4 in the nine-inning 9-9 suspended Game 2 against Hamline on April 2. Kevin Gannon (Roselle, Ill.), Pat Krieger (Mendota Heights, Minn.) and Steph Scatassa (Westchester, Ill.) have also put together single-game 4-for-4 performances this season. It was the first collegiate 4-for-4 showing for all four. … Miley also launched his first collegiate HR in that Game 2 contest against Hamline. … Zach Wolfe (Wabasha, Minn.) owns the Cardinals' other home run this season, a three-run shot against Concordia-Chicago on March 6. … SMU boasts seven players who are hitting above .300, led by Scatassa (.389), Tommy Merkelis (Calumet City, Ill. / .364) and Ben Buerkle (Roseville, Minn. / .357). … Buerkle — who is riding a 17-game hitting streak — is the team-leader in runs (15), triples (2), RBIs (15), slugging percentage (.554), and shares the team lead in walks with eight. … Gannon (.323) and Doll (.300) share the team lead in hits (21), while Doll also tops the team in at-bats (70), doubles (7) and stolen bases (11). … Buerkle also leads the team with five multiple-RBI games, while Doll is the team-leader with six multiple-hit contests. … Doll and Gannon are the only two Cardinals to have played in all 18 games this season. … Steph Scatassa (Westchester, Ill.) picked up his first win of the season, going 5 2/3 innings, allowing two runs on four hits, while striking out three. … Ben Johnson (Brooklyn Park, Minn.) recorded his team-leading second win of the season, tossing 5 1/3 innings of five-hit shutout ball against Hamline on April 2. … Johnson, who owns a 2-1 record and a 4.07 ERA, has tossed a team-high 24 1/3 innings. … Johnson is one of six SMU pitchers to have logged 10 or more innings this season. … Scatassa is the team's strikeout leader with 21, four more than Johnson. … Johnson, Chris Bartosz (Woodridge, Ill.) and Ben Dobosenski (Westmont, Ill.) all recorded their first collegiate pitching wins during SMU's spring trip to Tucson, Ariz. … SMU scored a season-high 10 runs in its 10-2 Game 1 win over St. Olaf on March 7. On the flip side, the Cardinals have surrendered 10 or more runs four times this season and are winless (0-10) when allowing six or more runs in a game. … The Cardinals have scored first in five of their six wins. SMU is 1-8 when its opponent scores first and 2-8 when its opponent scores in the first inning. … SMU is 6-0 when leading after the sixth inning, but are 0-10 when trailing after the sixth. … The Cardinals have played four doubleheaders this season — splitting all four of them. SMU won the opener in splits vs. Morningside, St. Olaf and Saint John's, while rallying from a 9-3 Game 1 loss to Bethany Lutheran for a 7-2, split-clinching win.
 
Scouting The Cornell Rams:
2014 Roster | 2014 Statistics | 2014 Schedule
With their sweep of Knox on Sunday, the Rams pushed their winning streak to three straight. … Cornell is now 5-2 in its last seven games. … The Rams have scored 10 or more runs three times this season — including a season-high 14 runs in a 14-0 win over Lakeland on March 9. … Cornell's 14-inning win over Cornell in Game 2 Sunday was the Rams' first extra-inning game of the season. … The Rams boast six players who are hitting above .300, led by Beriah Quick (.426) and Brandon Davis (.395). … Quick also leads the team in hits (29), doubles (4), RBIs (16), total bases (35), slugging percentage (.515) and walks (8), while sharing the team lead with three stolen bases. … Nate Streb has scored a team-best 18 runs, while Chuck Rocker has accounted for a team-best two of the Rams' three triples. … Wyatt Kurzejeski, Buddy Matern and Max Freilinger have accounted for Cornell's three home runs. … Quick and Streb are the only Rams to have started all 18 games this season. … Tyler Samson boasts a 3-0 record and 2.65 ERA, Kyle Stennes has logged a team-high 25 1/3 innings. … Jeremy Ryan is the team's ERA leader at 1.14 in five appearances, while being second to Stennes with 23 2/3 innings pitched. … Cornell boasts three pitchers with 10 or more strikeouts, led by Stennes with 19. … Cornell has outscored its opponents 26-9 in the first inning. The Rams are 7-2 when scoring in the first inning and 8-3 when scoring the game's first run. … Cornell is 6-0 when holding its opponents to two runs or less, and the Rams have held their opponent under five runs in 10 of their 11 wins. … Cornell is 10-0 when leading after the sixth inning.