• FOR THE RECORD: The Cardinals closed out 2021 with a 30-16 overall record, including ga 16-8 mark in conference play, good for third place in the MIAC standings
?• A YEAR TO REMEMBER: The Cardinals captured their first-ever MIAC Playoff title — beating St. Thomas 6-3 in the championship game. … Saint Mary’s made its first NCAA National Tournament appearance in 28 years, opening with a 15-13 win over Aurora, before falling to both Northwestern (Minn.) 3-1 and Johns Hopkins 7-2.
• A LONG TIME COMING: Saint Mary’s appearance in the NCAA Regional marked the first time since 1993. Saint Mary’s finished 4-2 in regional play that year, falling to UW-Oshkosh 6-0 in the opener, before bouncing back with wins over UW-Whitewater (5-3), Concordia (12-7), and UW-Oshkosh (4-2), before falling to the Titans 5-2 in the championship game.
• MAKING HISTORY: The Cardinals’ win over Aurora in their NCAA Regional opener on May 28 was their program-record 30th of the season. SMU surpassed the previous single-season record of 28 with its 6-3 win over St. Thomas in the MIAC Playoff title game on May 22. … Saint Mary’s has now won 20 or more games five times under current head coach Nick Winecke. … Speaking of records, the Cardinals also stole a program-record 88 bases, while also breaking the single-season school record for games played with 46. … Individually, Will Matthews surpassed Willie Doll ’16 for the single-season record in doubles (18) and Tyler O’Brien has shattered the program marked for times hit by a pitch with 17.
• ON A ROLL: The Cardinals closed out the year having won five of their last eight, eight of their last 12, and nine of their last 14.
• STREAK-SNAPPING: Saint Mary’s first 6-3 win over St. Thomas in the MIAC Playoffs on May 21 snapped a five-game losing streak against the Tommies, while the Cardinals’ 17-5 win over Gustavus a day earlier ended a three-game, post-season slump against the Gusties.
• AT THE PLATE: Taylor Anderson closed out the year as the team’s batting champion, hitting .341, while Justin Weinberg (.337), Matthews (.321) and Andy Tepp (.303) also hit above .300 among players with 80 or more at-bats. … Weinberg finished as the team-leader in at-bats (163), runs (40), and hits (55). … Matthews led the team in doubles (18), RBIs (35), total bases (79), and slugging percentage (.506).
• STRINGING IT TOGETHER: Weinberg boasted a team-best 17 multiple-hit games, two more than Matthews. Anderson put together back-to-back four-hit games in SMU’s first two NCAA Regional games, with Weinberg and Joey Costello also recording four hits in a game this season. Tepp, meanwhile, led the team lead with 11 multiple-RBI games.
• RUNNING THE BASES: Tepp closed out his senior season having hit safely in each of the Cardinals’ last 13 gams — while reaching base safely in their final 26 games. … Joey Costello had his season- and career-high 13-game hit streak snapped against St. Thomas on May 21, was on base in SMU final 19 straight games.
• GOING YARD: Tepp and Weinberg each hit home runs against Aurora in SMU’s NCAA Regional opener against Aurora on May 28 — it was Saint Mary’s second multi-home run game of the year. … Weinberg and Matthews lead the team with three home runs each, one more than both Liam Belleveau and Tyler O’Brien, while Tepp and Jack Arndt (Coon Rapids, Minn.) own the other two. … Belleveau’s HR vs. Concordia on April 17, and O’Brien’s and Arndt’s round-trippers against Augsburg on April 11, were all collegiate firsts.
• OFFENSIVE FIRST-TIMERS: Costello and Anderson each recorded their first collegiate four-hit games against Aurora on May 28, while Saint Mary’s boasts two other players who have posted their first collegiate three-hit games this season — O’Brien, and Trevon VanEgtern. … Zach Drake’s four runs scored in the nightcap against Crown on March 29 were a single-game career-high and marked the first time since Joe Seegers against Rose-Hulman on March 1, 2018 that a Cardinal has scored four runs in a game. … Belleveau drove in a career-high five runs against Gustavus on May 20 — the most RBIs in a game by a Cardinal this season. VanEgtern, meanwhile, drove in a career-high four runs in SMU’s 14-6, Game 2 loss to the Oles on April 24 — it’s the Cardinals’ only four-RBI game this season.
• ON THE MOUND: Ryan Wolfe (7-4, 3.69 ERA) and Luke Gilbertson (7-0, 3.38 ERA) were the workhorses of the Cardinal pitching staff, tossing 70.2 and 66.2 innings, respectively. … Gilbertson and Wolfe shared the team lead with seven pitching wins, while Wolfe and Addison Hochevar made a team-best 14 pitching appearances. … Jonathan Cieminski leds the Cardinal staff in strikeouts with 41, including a career-high seven in 3.1 innings of relief against Concordia on May 19. … Kodey Kiel picked up his team-leading fifth save with a 1-2-3 ninth inning against Aurora on May 28.
• GOING THE DISTANCE: Wolfe and Gilbertson each threw a team-leading three complete games. The duo own all six of Saint Mary’s complete games this season.
• PITCHING MILESTONES: Gilbertson notched a complete-game, six-hit shutout in Game 2 against Macalester on April 22 for his first collegiate complete game, and first collegiate shutout. … Wolfe tossed a complete-game, one-hit shutout against Augsburg on April 10. Wolfe faced just 22 batters — one over the minimum, and allowed one a third-inning single. It was his third career shutout and fifth career complete game. … Wolfe hurled four innings of one-run, four-hit relief in the MIAC Playoff title game for his first save of his five-year collegiate career. … Wolfe equaled his season- and career-high with nine strikeouts against Northwestern on Saturday. … Justin Haugo (1-1, 1.80 ERA) collected his first collegiate pitching win against Augsburg on April 11, tossing four innings of shutout relief in the Cardinals’ 5-4 victory. … Hochevar (4-1, 2.10 ERA) earned his first win as a Cardinal against Augsburg on March 16, and notched his first collegiate save against Hamline on . … Jordan Zabel (2.2, 5.25 ERA) collected his first collegiate pitching win against Gustavus on March 26. … Cieminski (1-1, 3.38 ERA) recorded his first collegiate save in the nightcap against Carleton on April 6. …
• PITCHING CAROUSEL: Saint Mary’s used a single-game, program-record nine pitchers in its 11-10 win over Carleton on May 12. Four days later, SMU used seven pitchers — one in each inning — in its 6-1 loss to Augsburg last Sunday.
• BY THE NUMBERS: The Cardinals had seven players score two or more runs in their 17-5 MIAC Playoff win over Gustavus on May 21. Weinberg and Matthews each scored three times, while O’Brien, Anderson, Tepp, Costello, and Drake all scored twice. … Saint Mary’s 18 hits against Aurora May 28 equaled their season-high, matching the 18 hits against Carleton on April 12. … The Cardinals’ 17 runs against Gustavus on May 20 were a season high — and the most scored in a game since plating 19 against Finlandia on March 1, 2017. Saint Mary’s scored 10 or more runs in a game seven times. … Saint Mary’s played 15 games decided by two runs or less — including seven one-run contests. SMU is 6-1 in those seven one-run games. … Saint Mary’s 8-7, 10-inning win over Concordia on April 17 is the Cardinals’ first extra-inning game of the season. … Saint Mary’s ended the year 15-0 when holding its opponent to two runs or less — and 18-4 when scoring the game’s first run. … SMU was 24-2 when leading after six innings, and 16-2 when leading heading into the eighth. … The Cardinals’ DH vs. Luther on March 14 was their first home game in 683 days, dating back to a conference DH vs. Gustavus on May 1, 2019.
