WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota fastpitch softball team returns home to the Saint Mary's Field on Thursday, as the Cardinals entertain Bethel in a 3:30 p.m. Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference doubleheader.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (2-0 MIAC | 8-6 Overall) vs. Bethel Royals (3-1 MIAC | 12-10 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats | GameDay Program
 
Last Action:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals kicked off MIAC play in style on Tuesday, collecting 4-3 and 14-5 wins over Carleton in Northfield, Minn. | Recap
• Bethel: The Royals erupted for 21 runs in collecting a conference sweep of Macalester Tuesday in St. Paul, Minn., beating the Scots 9-6 and 12-4 | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. Bethel—A Year Ago:
• April 21, 2014: The Royals erupted for three runs in the first inning—and added five more in the third—before holding off a seventh-inning Saint Mary's rally in handing the Cardinals an 8-5 setback in Game 1 of their conference doubleheader at Ona Orth Athletic Complex in Arden Hills, Minn. And the Royals were at it again in Game 2, as BU scored five times in its first at-bat and never looked back, completing the sweep with a 7-0 victory | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals are back on their home diamond on Monday, hosting Gustavus in a 2:30 p.m. conference doubleheader.
• Bethel: The Royals are off until Wednesday, when they welcome Saint Benedict to the Ona Orth Athletic Complex in Arden Hills, Minn., for a 3:30 p.m. conference doubleheader.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2015 Roster | 2015 Statistics | 2015 Schedule
The Cardinals kicked off their conference schedule with a sweep of Carleton, winning 4-3 and 14-5. The 4-3 victory was Saint Mary's eighth one-run game of the season, while the 14-5, six-inning Game 2 victory was its second win shortened by the eight-run rule. … With their sweep, the Cardinals head into Thursday's DH vs. Bethel having won four of their last five. … Four of the Cardinals' six losses have been by one run—including a 10-inning, 8-7 loss to Saint Vincent College and a 5-4 setback against sixth-ranked Trine. … The Cardinals boasted five players—Stanzy Snyder (Johnston, Iowa / 3-for-6), Kali Aldrich (Rochester, Minn. / 3-for-6), Alex Raske (Chicago, Ill. / 3-for-6), Kathi Opsahl (Elk River, Minn. / 3-for-8), and Ashley Betzold (Farmington, Minn. / 3-for-9)—who had three hits in the Cardinals' sweep of Carleton on Tuesday. … Raske scored five times vs. the Knights, while she and Opsahl each drove in five runs. … With her three hits vs. Carleton, Opsahl pushed her team-leading batting average to .396, with Snyder also hitting above .300 at .375. … Opsahl also leads the team in at-bats (48), hits (19), doubles (5), RBIs (18), and total bases (24). … Snyder shares the team lead in doubles (5) and total bases (24), while also leading the Cardinals with two triples and nine walks. … Fueled by her five runs scored on Tuesday, Raske pushed her team-leading runs total to 14. … After failing to hit a home run in their first 12 games, the Cardinals launched two against Carleton on Tuesday Betzold and Raske launched round-trippers vs. Carleton Tuesday—Betzold clubbing a two-run Game 1 shot, while Raske blasting a three-run shot in Game 2. … Betzold's home run was the first of her collegiate career. … Opsahl has collected at least two hits in seven of the Cardinals' 14 games, while also amassing five multiple-RBI games. … Opsahl's five RBIs in Game 2 vs. Carleton Tuesday marked the second time in her collegiate career the sophomore has driven in five runs in a game. … Betzold—who collected the pitching win in both games vs. Carleton Tuesday—has been the Cardinals' workhorse in the pitcher's circle, logging 72.0 innings. The sophomore right-hander has compiled a 6-5 record and a 2.24 ERA in a team-high 12 appearances. … Betzold has thrown seven complete games in nine starts with a team-best 37 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 2.55 ERA in 22 IP. … The Cardinals have outscored their opponents in each of the first five innings, but have been outscored 24-15 after the fifth inning. … The Cardinals have held their opponents to two runs or less in six of their eight wins. … Saint Mary's scored a season-high 14 runs in its 14-5, six-inning victory over Carleton Tuesday. It was the second time this season the Cardinals have plated 10 or more runs—having also scored 13 in a season-opening 13-1 win over Wartburg on Feb. 21.
 
Scouting The Bethel Royals:
2015 Roster | 2015 Statistics | 2015 Schedule
With the sweep of Macalester, Bethel improved to 3-1 in conference play, with the lone loss a 10-9, eight-inning affair against nationally ranked St. Thomas. The Royals bounced back from that extra-inning loss to beat the Tommies 7-2 in Game 2. … BU's Game 2 victory over St. Thomas snapped the Royals' 16-season, 37-game losing streak vs. the Tommies. … Bethel enters Thursday's showdown at Saint Mary's hitting .308 as a team, and boasts seven players who are hitting .300 or better—led by Anna Nichols (.400), Jessica Brown (.397) and Caroline Kivisto (.397). … Kelsey Anderson (.384) owns the team lead in hits (28), runs (24), doubles (6), RBIs (20), total bases (48), and walks (11). … Kivisto boasts a team-best .667 slugging percentage, having belted nine extra-base hits—five doubles and four home runs—among her 25 hits. … Bethel has blasted 15 home runs through 22 games, led by Kivisto and Anderson with four each. … Brown has accounted for 10 of the team's 22 stolen bases this season. … Anderson has recorded team-highs with nine multiple-hit games—including the team's only four-hit showing, going 4-for-4 with four RBIs against Utica on March 15—while also delivering six multiple-RBI games. … Abbie Bircher is currently riding a team-high eight-game hitting streak, while Brown has reached base safely in 10 consecutive contests. … The Royals have relied on three pitchers to do the majority of the work this season—Lindsay Edeen (6-4, 2.72 ERA) has logged a team-high 56.2 innings, with Karli Persson (3-5, 3.63 ERA) adding 54.0 innings and Anderson (3-1, 2.29 ERA) chipping in 36.2. … Edeen leads the pitching staff in wins (6), starts (8), and complete games (5). … Persson has struck out a team-best 32 batters, six more than Edeen. … Eight of the Royals' 10 losses have been by two runs or less—including six one-run losses. … BU has scored nine or more runs in a game seven times. The Royals' 12-run outburst in their 12-4 Game 2 win over Macalester Tuesday was a season-best.