By
DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director
WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota fastpitch softball team recorded nine walks in the opening game of their Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference doubleheader against St. Olaf Sunday afternoon.
Unfortunately for the Cardinals, the game was anything but a walk in the park.
Saint Mary's managed just one hit — an RBI single by
Amber Chow (West St. Paul, Minn.) in the seventh inning — and St. Olaf pitcher Julie Graf struck out 14 batters in leading the Oles to a 3-2 Game 1 win at the Saint Mary's Field.
And things didn't go much better for the Cardinal offense in Game 2 — unless you were named Chow, that is.
The Cardinal sophomore went 3-for-3, accounting for three of Saint Mary's five hits, as St. Olaf rode a six-run fourth inning in completing the conference sweep with a 9-1, six-inning victory in the nightcap.
The Cardinals appeared to get Game 1 off on the right foot, loading the bases in their first at-bat.
Hallie Schmeling (Onalaska, Wis.) opened with a walk, moved to second on a wild pitch and advanced to third on a passed ball.
Roni Stevens (Delano, Minn.) followed with the Cardinals' second walk and
Justine Schultz (Winona, Minn.) was hit by a pitch to load the bases.
Graf — who entered the game with 134 strikeouts through 14 games — wiggled out of the jam, fanning Chow,
Erin Sullivan (Wisconsin Rapids, Wis.), and
Tara Nikolich (Chicago, Ill.) to end the threat.
The Oles broke the scoreless deadlock in the top of the third, getting an RBI groundout from Kaleigh Santmyer, and added another run in the fourth to push their lead to 2-0.
The Cardinals had runners on first and second in both the fourth and fifth innings — thanks to four Graf walks — but could not take advantage of the free passes.
The Cardinals induced two more walks in the bottom of the seventh — both with one out — and scored their first run when relief pitcher Rachel Neiderhorn's throw to first on a grounder by pinch-hitter
Paige Gudmundson sailed into right field, plating
Marissa Kleckler (Oregon, Wis.).
After Neiderhorn surrendered the Oles' ninth walk, Graf returned to the pitcher's circle for the Oles, and Chow welcomed her with an RBI single to left, scoring Gudmundson to pull the Cardinals within one, 3-2.
Graf, however, stifled the threat, inducing Sullivan to strike out — her 14th of the game — to seal the Ole win.
The Cardinals had as many hits in the first inning of Game 2 as they had in all seven innings of the opener — and again it was Chow coming through, lacing an RBI single to score Gudmundson and knot the game at 1-1.
St. Olaf broke the tie in a big way in the fourth, scoring six times — highlighted by a two-run, bases-loaded double by Ally Bode and a two-run home run off the bat of Emily Carr — to give the Oles' a 7-1 cushion.
The Oles added a pair of runs in the sixth, one via their second home run of the game — a solo shot by Bode — and the other on back-to-back Cardinal errors to round out the scoring.
With her 3-for-3 performance in Game 2, Chow accounted for four of the Cardinals' six hits on the day, while also driving in two of Saint Mary's three runs.
The Cardinals (1-3 MIAC, 5-13 overall) hit the road on Wednesday, traveling to Carleton's Ele Hansen Field in Northfield, Minn., for a conference doubleheader against the Knights. First pitch is set for 3:30 p.m.
