NORTHFIELD, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University fastpitch softball team hits the road on Tuesday, traveling to Carleton for a 3:30 p.m. Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference doubleheader against the Knights.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (0-0 MIAC | 6-6 Overall) at Carleton Knights (0-2 MIAC | 5-11 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
Live Stats
 
Last Action:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals have been off since March 6, when they completed their 10-game spring trip to Clermont, Fla., with a pair of one-run games—beating Rose-Hulman 1-0, while falling to John Carroll 6-5 | Recap
• Carleton: The Knights managed just a single run in both ends of their conference-opening doubleheader at Hamline Saturday in St. Paul, Minn., as the Pipers dealt Carleton a pair of 9-1 setbacks | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. Carleton—A Year Ago:
• April 8, 2014: Trailing 3-0, Saint Mary's cut the Carleton lead to 3-2, and, after the Knights grabbed a 4-2 advantage, the Cardinals again crept within one—only to leave the game-tying run on base in the bottom of the seventh inning of Carleton's 4-3 Game 1 victory at Saint Mary's Field. The teams traded roles in the nightcap, as Saint Mary's jumped out to comfortable 5-0 lead after two innings. The Knights, however, refused to follow the Game 1 script—not only catching the Cardinals with a five-run fifth, but also adding four more unanswered runs and holding off a late Saint Mary's rally to complete the sweep with a 9-8 victory | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals return home on Thursday, hosting Bethel in a 3:30 p.m. conference doubleheader at Saint Mary's Field.
• Carleton: The Knights are back on their home field in Northfield, Minn., on Thursday, entertaining Macalester in a 3:30 MIAC twinbill.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2015 Roster | 2015 Statistics | 2015 Schedule
The Cardinals head into their conference doubleheader against Carleton  boasting a 6-6 record—including a season-opening 13-1, 2-0 sweep of Wartburg, and a 4-6 showing during their 10 games in Clermont, Fla. … Four of the Cardinals' six losses have been by one run—including an 10-inning, 8-7 loss to Saint Vincent College and a 5-4 setback against sixth-ranked Trine. … Kathi Opsahl (Elk River, Minn.) heads into Saint Mary's showdown with Carleton as the team's offensive leader, boasting team highs in batting average (.400), hits (16), doubles (5), and RBIs (13). … Stanzy Snyder (Johnston, Iowa), who is second to Opsahl with a .353 batting average and 12 hits, owns a team-leading two triples, eight walks, 21 total bases, and .618 slugging percentage. … Opsahl has collected at least two hits in six of the Cardinals' 12 games, while also amassing four multiple-RBI games. … Ashley Betzold (Farmington, Minn.) has been the Cardinals' workhorse in the pitcher's circle, logging 61.0 innings. The sophomore right-hander has compiled a 4-5 record and a 2.07 ERA in a team-high 10 appearances. … Betzold has thrown six complete games in seven starts with a team-best 32 strikeouts. … Katie Homan—who notched her first collegiate pitching win with a complete-game three-hitter in a 4-1 win over Misericordia on March 2—is 2-1 with a 2.45 ERA in 20 IP. … The Cardinals have outscored their opponents in each of the first five innings, but have been outscored 20-11 after the fifth inning. … Seven of Saint Mary's 12 games have been decided by one run. The Cardinals are 3-4 in those seven contests. … The Cardinals have held their opponents to two runs or less in all six of their wins. … Saint Mary's scored a season-high 13 runs in a 13-1 over Wartburg on Feb. 21.
 
Scouting The Carleton Knights:
2015 Roster | 2015 Statistics | 2015 Schedule
After opening with wins in five of their first eight games, the Knights have now dropped eight straight. … Carleton has been held to three runs or less in every game during its current eight-game slide—the Knights have been outscored by a combined 48-15 during that span. … Corrie Lucchesi enters Tuesday's showdown with Saint Mary's boasting a .409 batting average. … Lucchesi is one of six Knights players batting above .300—Micaela LaRose (.392), Katie Eppard (.389), Cassie Clarke (.365), Mia Orans (.344), and Caroline Duke (.326) are the others. … Eppard owns the team lead in at-bats (54), runs (16), hits (21), doubles (4), and stolen bases, while LaRose has belted a team-best 15 RBIs. … Clarke has accounted for four of the team's five home runs and boasts a team-best .635 slugging percentage. … As a team, the Knights have scored a season-high 10 runs twice—beating Millikin 10-2 on March 1 and dropping Ripon 10-2 on March 10. … Carleton has used three pitchers this season, led by Kaelin Davis, who owns a 2-7 record and a 3.56 ERA in a team-high 55 innings. … Davis has made 10 starts—completing nine of them—and leads the squad with 42 strikeouts. … Maddie Freyberg (2-2, 4.94 ERA) and LaRose (1-2, 6-44 ERA) had tossed 22.2 and 21.0 innings, respectively. … Tuesday's games against Saint Mary's will be the first home contests for the Knights. … Carleton has held its opponent to five runs or less in all five of its wins, and the Knights are 4-1 when limiting the opposition to two runs or fewer. … On the flip side, Carleton is winless (0-6) when plating two runs or less, and has not won (0-10) when trailing after the fourth inning.