By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director
 
COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota baseball team kicks off conference play on Sunday, heading to Saint John's Becker Park for a 1 p.m. Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference doubleheader against the nationally ranked Johnnies.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (0-0 MIAC, 8-8 Overall) at #20 Saint John's Johnnies (0-0 MIAC, X-X Overall), 1 p.m.
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video
 
Last Action:
• Saint Mary's—March 28, 2019 * Reynolds Field * Roseville, Minn.: The Cardinals scored four runs in both games of their nonconference doubleheader against St. Scholastica, falling to the Saints 12-4 in the opener, before bouncing back with a 4-1 victory in the nightcap | Recap
• Saint John's—March 23-24, 2019 * Becker Park * Collegeville, Minn.: The Johnnies took two of three against Luther, sandwiching 6-4 and 2-1 wins around a 12-7 loss in the teams' three nonconference games | Day 1 Recap * Day 2 Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. Saint John's — Their Last Meeting:
• May 3, 2018 * Max Molock Field * Winona, Minn.: The Johnnies collected their second MIAC sweep in as many days, beating Saint Mary's 4-0 in the opener and 3-2 in the nightcap. Justin Weinberg (Eagan, Minn.) did his part to ignite the Cardinal offense, collecting five hits — Saint Mary's lone single in Game 1, and a 4-for-4 effort in Game 2. Unfortunately, the rest of the Cardinals could not follow suit, combing for just four hits in the second game | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals are back on the road for a pair of conference games on Wednesday, heading to Carleton's Mel Taube Field in Northfield, Minn., for their showdown against the Knights. Game 1's opening pitch is set for 2:30 p.m.
• Saint John's: The Johnnies take to the road on Wednesday, traveling to Moorhead, Minn., for their MIAC twinbill against Concordia. Opening pitch in Game 1 is scheduled for 2:30 p.m.
 
Scouting the Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2019 Roster | 2019 Schedule | 2019 Statistics
• Saint Mary's two games against Saint John's are the 17th and 18th of 20 straight road games to open the season for the Cardinals, who do not play their home opener until April 6, when they host St. Olaf in a 1 p.m. MIAC doubleheader. … Saint Mary's snapped a three-game losing streak with its 7-4 win over North Central (Ill.) on March 24. The Cardinals opened the season with four straight wins, before going 2-4 in their final six contests. … The Cardinals hit .275 as a team during its four games in Carol Stream, Ill., last weekend. … Matthew Piechowski (Hutchinson, Minn.) went 5-for-7 and Justin Weinberg (Eagan, Minn.) finished 4-for-7 in the Cardinals' nonconference split against St. Scholastica on Thursday. Andy Tepp (Stevens Point, Wis.) delivered a two-run Game 1 double vs. the Saints, while Piechowski drove in two of the Cardinals' four runs in the nightcap vs. CSS. … Fueled by his 5-for-7 effort, Piechowski raised his batting average to a team-leading .448, percentage points above Weinberg, who is second with a .404 batting average. … Piechowski and Weinberg are two of six Cardinals with 30 or more at-bats who are hitting above .300, being joined by Will Matthews (Geneva, Ill. / .340), Andy Tepp (Stevens Point, Wis. / .333), and Liam Belleveau (Middleton, Wis.). … Piechowski also leads or shares the team lead in at-bats (58), runs (18), hits (26), triples (3), home runs (1), total bases (36), slugging percentage (.621), on-base percentage (.529), and stolen bases (7). … Piechowski belted his first collegiate home run — a grand slam — in the Cardinals' 11-1, season-opening win over Cabrini on Feb. 24 … Dixon Irwin (Red Wing, Minn.) notched his first collegiate three-hit game against Concordia-Moorhead on March 22. … Belleveau went 2-for-4 — picking up his first two collegiate triples — in the Cardinals' win over Milwaukee School of Engineering on Feb. 25. Belleveau then recorded his first collegiate three-hit game, while posting career-highs with three RBIs and three runs scored against Rose-Hulman the following day. … Taylor Anderson (Waukesha, Wis.), Hunter Gustafson (Webster, Wis.), and Joe Bauer (Pine Island, Minn.) collected their first collegiate hits during the Cardinals' spring trip. … Saint Mary's has collected 158 hits this season, including 38 for extra bases — 30 doubles, seven triples, and one home run. … The Cardinals, who set a single-game school record with 16 walks against Milwaukee School of Engineering on Feb. 25, have drawn 86 walks through 16 games this season — led by Tepp with 13 and Matthews with 12. … The Cardinals have recorded 47 multiple-hit games, led by Piechowski with nine and Weinberg with seven. … Tepp leads the team with six multiple-RBI games, one more than Matthews. … Weinberg heads into the Saint John's doubleheader riding a nine-game hitting streak, while Piechowski has hit safely in each of the Cardinals' last seven games. … Weinberg's nine-game hitting streak is a season- and career-high. … Tepp had reached base safely in the Cardinals' first 12 games, before being held off the base paths in the Cardinals' 12-5 loss to Wheaton on March 23. … Ryan Wolfe (Wabasha, Minn.) has logged a team-high 23.1 innings, while Eli Morison (Minneapolis, Minn. / 18.2 IP), James Green (East Bethel, Minn. / 18.1 IP), Tyler Stilp (Lindstrom, Minn. / 12.0 IP), and Jonathan Cieminski (Fountain City, Wis. / 11.1 IP) have also thrown more than 10 innings this season. … Morison (2-2, 8.20 ERA) picked up his second win of the season — moving into a tie for the team lead with Green — against St. Scholastica Thursday, allowing just one run on two hits in five innings. … Kodey Kiel (Owatonna, Minn.) boasts a team-best 0.93 ERA in six appearances (9.2 IP), while Green is 2-0 with a 2.45 ERA and Wolfe is 1-1 with a 2.70 ERA. … Green — last year's MIAC Rookie of the Year — has thrown six or more innings in all three of his starts this season. … Green has struck out a team-leading 29 batters, followed by Wolfe (21), Morison (12), and Kiel (11). … Kiel worked a scoreless, one-hit seventh against St. Scholastica Thursday for his team-leading third save. … Luke Gilbertson (Windom, Minn.) earned his first win in a Cardinal uniform — allowing two runs on four hits in four innings in Game 2 against MSOE on Feb. 25, while Jake Kramlinger (White Bear Lake, Minn.) and Kiel each recorded their first collegiate saves — Kramlinger's vs. MSOE on Feb. 25 and Kiel's against Neumann on March 1. … The Cardinals have used 14 different pitchers, with Stilp having made a team-leading nine appearances. … Saint Mary's has outscored its opponents 117-112, including 20-9 in the first inning and 17-5 in the fifth. … Saint Mary's has scored three or more runs in all 16 of their games this season. … Saint Mary's scored a season-high 14 runs in its 18-14 loss to Rose-Hulman on Feb. 26. … The Cardinals have scored in the first inning in nine of their 16 games and have scored first 12 times, going 6-6. … Saint Mary's 9-7, 11-inning loss to Concordia last Friday was its first extra-inning game, and the Cardinals' longest game since dropping a 7-6, 13-inning decision against Wartburg on Feb. 27, 2017. … The Cardinals are 8-3 when leading after the sixth inning, but are winless (0-5) when trailing heading into the seventh inning. … The Cardinals — who made their second MIAC Playoff appearance in the last three years, and their fifth in the last seven seasons a year ago — were picked to finish fifth in the 2019 MIAC Preseason Coaches' Poll.
 
Scouting the Saint John's Johnnies
2019 Roster | 2019 Schedule | 2019 Statistics
• The Johnnies head into their conference-opening doubleheader against Saint Mary's sporting a 15-4 overall record — including a 13-3 showing in their two spring trips to Fort Myers, Fla., and Tucson, Ariz. … The Johnnies — ranked No. 20 in the latest ABCA Poll — kicked off the season winning their winning their first eight games — a streak that was snapped with a 7-3 loss to U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (N.Y.) on March 8. … The Johnnies have dropped just 10 of their last 59 regular-season games, dating back to 2017. … Saint John's boasts a .316 team batting average through 19 games. … The Johnnies have five players with 50 or more at-bats who are hitting above .330 — Jack Schramel (.379), Jack Wingerd (.373), Wyatt Ulrich (.354), Max Jackson (.351), and Michael Gruber (.338). … Jackson leads the team with 26 hits. He is one of five Johnnies with 20 or more hits, being joined by Schramel (25), Ulrich (23), Wingerd (22), and Gruber (22). … Wingerd has belted a team-best nine doubles, while Ulrich owns a team-leading three of the team's nine triples. … SJU has hit three home runs through 19 games — Joey Stock (.318) owns two of the three round-trippers, with Schramel launching the other. … Schramel is also the team-leader in RBIs with 18, while Wingerd owns a team-best .525 slugging percentage and .519 on-base percentage. … Saint John's is 32-for-35 in stolen base attempts, led by Jackson who is a perfect 14-for-14. … Jackson and Schramel have each put together a team-best nine multiple-hit games — including four three-hit performances from Schramel. … Schramel has amassed five multiple-RBI games, one more than Ulrich. … Wingerd put together the Johnnies' longest consecutive-game hitting streak, a nine-game run earlier this year. Hunter Lindquist's six-gamer is SJU's longest active hitting streak. … Wingerd heads into SJU's matchup with Saint Mary's having reached base safely in all 19 games, while Thomas Meland has reached safely in each of the team's last 17 contests. … The Johnnie pitching staff, which owns a 3.67 team ERA, includes six pitchers who have logged 10 or more innings this season — led by Jake Dickmeyer (3-0, 0.33 ERA, 27.0 IP), Bennett Wiggins (3-2, 4.03 ERA, 22.1 IP), Danny Kuhn (3-0, 3.50 ERA, 18.0 IP), and Mason Miller (2-0, 3.21 ERA, 14.0 IP). … Wiggins has made a team-leading six appearances — including three starts — and is one of 10 Johnnie hurlers to appear in at least three contests. … Dickmeyer owns the team's three complete games — including a pair of shutouts — and also leads the staff with 24 strikeouts. … Led by Dickmeyer's 24 Ks, Johnnie pitchers have amassed 139 strikeouts through 19 games and opposing batters are hitting just .256. … Saint John's has outscored its opponents 147-80 — including 16-4 in the fourth, 11-3 in the fifth, and 37-9 in the sixth. … The Johnnies have held their opponents to two runs or less in 10 of their 15 wins. On the flip side, SJU has scored six or more runs in 11 of those 15 victories — including an 18-run effort in beating UW-Superior 18-3 on March 18. … Saint John's is 11-1 when scoring the game's first run, and is unbeaten (12-) when leading after the sixth inning. … The Johnnies have played one extra-inning game this season, beating Thiel College 10-7 on March 6.