SAINT MARY’S CARDINALS

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• 2022: 7-5 MIAC, 15-14 Overall

GUSTAVUS GUSTIES

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2022: 7-3 MIAC, 20-6 Overall

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SMU v. GAC * A YEAR AGO:

L, 10-3; W, 9-5 * L, 6-4 * W, 17-5

Series History

SAINT MARY’S LAST ACTION:

April 21, 2022 * Winona, MN

Augsburg * L, 6-3; W, 5-3

GUSTAVUS LAST ACTION:

April 21, 2022 * St. Peter, MN

Northwestern * W, 9-2; W, 5-0

SAINT MARY’S UP NEXT:

April 27, 2022 * Winona, MN

Saint John’s * 2:30

GUSTAVUS UP NEXT:

April 26, 2022 * Moorhead, MN

Concordia * 2:30

• FOR THE RECORD: The Cardinals head into their road MIAC doubleheader against Gustavus sitting at 15-14 overall, including a 7-5 showing in conference play — which has them sitting fourth in the standings through their first 12 games of conference play.

• LAST TIME OUT: Saint Mary’s had to settle for a split in its conference doubleheader against Augsburg Thursday at Max Molock Field. The Auggies used a pair of home runs and a five-run third-inning to beat the Cardinals 6-3 in the opener, while SMU turned the tables in the nightcap, scoring four times in the first inning and riding the stellar pitching of Addison Hochevar (Lake Geneva, Wis.) and Andrew Fischer (La Crosse, Wis.) to a 5-3 win in Game 2. 

• HOME SWEET HOME: After three straight home doubleheaders, the Cardinals close out the season playing seven of their final nine contests on the road — the lone exception, next Wednesday’s MIAC home doubleheader against Saint John’s.

• LEADING THE CHARGE: Trevon VanEgtern (La Crosse, Wis.)  leads the Cardinals with a .355 batting average, going 33-for-93 — including a perfect 3-for-3 effort in last Tuesday’s Game 1 win over Hamline — while fellow regulars Brandon Merfeld (La Crosse, Wis.) and Cameron Weber (Holmen, Wis.) are also hitting above .300, sitting at .333 and .307, respectively. … As a team, the Cardinals are hitting .266 (240-for-902).

• ON THE RUN: The Cardinals have scored 148 runs in 29 games, with Merfeld and Weber leading the way, scoring 28 and 24 runs, respectively. Tanner Bauman (Willmar, Minn. / 16), VanEgtern (15), Tyler O’Brien (Belle Plaine, Minn. / 13), Mason Coyle (Madison, Wis. / 12), Daniel Marxen (Maple Grove, Minn. / 11), and Ben Coons (Kimberly, Wis. / 10) have also scored 10 or more runs this season. … Merfeld scored a single-game season- and career-high four runs in against Rose-Hulman on March 3.

• HIT PARADE: The Cardinals have six players who have recorded at least 20 hits this season, led by VanEgtern with 33 and Weber with 31. Merfeld has collected 28 — including five against Augsburg on Thursday — followed by Marxen (27), O’Brien (27), and Coons (23). … VanEgtern, Merfeld, and Weber lead the team with eight multiple-hit games, one more than Marxen, O’Brien, and Coons. … SMU had three players collect three hits in Game 2 against Bethel on April 13 and has now had seven players record three hits in a game. … As a team, SMU has amassed 62 multiple-hit games.

• EXTRA, EXTRA: Saint Mary’s has belted out 69 extra-base hits through 29 games, including 50 doubles, five triples, and 14 home runs. … Merfeld leads the team with nine doubles, one more than O’Brien and two in front of Weber. … SMU’s five triples have come from four different players. Weber owns two, and Merfeld, O’Brien, and Coyle have accounted for the other three.

• BOMBS AWAY: With their two home runs against Bethel on April 13, the Cardinals pushed their home run total to 14. Marxen leads the way with four HRs, one more than VanEgtern, and two in front of Mason Coyle (Madison, Wis.) and Jake Mercado (Belle Plaine, Minn.). Coons, Weber, and Merfeld own the Cardinals’ other three round-trippers. … All seven SMU home run hitters this season have belted their first career HRs this season.

• DRIVING ‘EM HOME: As a team, Saint Mary’s has driven in 127 runs through 29 games, led by Marxen with 24 and O’Brien with 17. VanEgtern is third on the team with 16 RBIs, followed by Weber with 12, Jack Arndt (Coon Rapids, Minn.) with 11, and Coons with 10. … Arndt delivered a career-high five RBIs in Saint Mary’s 9-7 win over Grove City on Feb. 28, while Marxen — who leads the team with six multiple-RBI games — has driven in a career-best four runs twice this season. 

• STREAKING ALONG: Arndt, O’Brien, and Coons have all put together season-high eight-game hitting streaks this season, but Merfeld’s four-game run is SMU’s longest active hit streak. … Merfeld has reached base safely in each of SMU’s last eight contests. 

• ON THE MOUND: Saint Mary’s has used 12 different pitchers through its first 29 games — and boasts eight hurlers who have logged more than 10 innings. Luke Gilbertson (Windom, Minn.) leads the Cardinal staff with 46 1/3 innings pitched, followed closely by Addison Hochevar (Lake Geneva, Wis.) and Jordan Zabel (Elgin, Minn.) with 38 2/3 IP and 33 2/3 IP, respectively. … Andrew Fischer (La Crosse, Wis. / 3-1, 4.78 ERA) leads the staff in appearances with 11, three more Justin Haugo (Springfield, Minn. / 1-1, 3.63 ERA), Gilbertson (2-3, 5.05 ERA), Hochevar (2-4, 4.42 ERA), Zabel (2-4, 4.33 ERA), and Dylan Westcott (Holmen, Wis. / 0-1, 3.75 ERA). … Hochevar and Gilbertson lead the staff with eight starts.

• COMPLETING WHAT THEY STARTED: Gilbertson and Zabel tossed back-to-back complete games in SMU’s spring trip-ending split against Northwestern on March 5. Gilbertson allowed four runs on seven hits in a 6-4 win, while Zabel surrendered five runs on six hits in suffering the 5-1, Game 2 loss. The complete game was the first of Zabel’s career, while Gilbertson owns four career complete games.

• PITCHING FIRSTS: Timmy Smith (South St. Paul, Minn.) picked up his first collegiate pitching win and Westcott earned his first save as a Cardinal in SMU’s 14-10 win over Concordia on Feb. 27. Smith allowed three runs – only one of which was earned — on five hits in four innings of relief, while Wescott worked a scoreless ninth. Westcott picked up save No. 2 the following day, working a one-run ninth in SMU’s 9-7 win over Grove City. … Fischer set Wheaton down in order in the bottom of the seventh to preserve SMU’s 3-2 win and in his first save in a Cardinal uniform. … Haugo notched his first career save in SMU’s Game 2 win over Hamline last Tuesday, blanking the Pipers on three hits over the final four innings of the nine-inning contest.

• SAVING THE DAY: Fischer picked up his team-leading fifth save with four innings of shutout relief in SMU’s 5-3 win over Augsburg Thursday. Westcott is second to Fischer with four saves, while Haugo owns the other one.

• FANNING THE FLAMES: The SMU pitching staff has struck out 190 batters through 29 games, led by Hochevar with 44, followed by Gilbertson (28), Fischer (28), Zabel (25), Haugo (19), and Smith (17). … Hochevar struck out a career-high nine batters in SMU’s 3-0, Game 2 loss to Macalester on April 16. The nine Ks were one more than his previous career-best of eight in SMU’s 3-2 win over Wheaton on March 22.

• WALKING OFF: Saint Mary’s and Luther both claimed 7-6, walk-off victories in their nonconference doubleheader split on March 13. Luther got a two-run scoring double to cap a three-run seventh inning in winning the opener, while VanEgtern laced a run-scoring single in the bottom of the 11th to give Saint Mary’s the win in Game 2.

• THIS AND THAT: The Cardinals have scored six or more runs in 11 of their 15 wins — including a season-high 16-run showing in dropping Rose-Hulman 16-7 on March 3. On the flip side, Saint Mary’s has been held to five runs or less in 12 of its 14 losses. … Saint Mary’s has scored in the first inning in eight of its 29 games — going 7-1. … SMU is 13-2 when leading after six innings, but are only 2-11 when trailing heading into the seventh frame. … Saint Mary’s has scored four or more runs in an inning seven times — including a seven-run fourth inning against Hamline on Tuesday, and a season-high eight-run second inning in its 16-7 win over Rose-Hulman on March 3. … Saint Mary’s has played three extra-inning games this season — beating Luther 7-6 in 11 innings on March 13 and topping St. Olaf 5-4 in 10 innings on April 9, before dropping a 2-1, eight-inning decision to Macalester on April 16.

• FOR THE RECORD: The Gusties head into their conference showdown against Saint Mary’s sporting a 20-6 overall record, including a 7-3 mark through their first 10 games of the MIAC season.

• LAST TIME OUT: Gustavus stepped out of conference play on Thursday in St. Peter, Minn., sweeping a pair of games from Northwestern (Minn.). The Gusties erupted for six runs in the bottom of the sixth inning, breaking open a one-run game en route to a 9-2 victory in Game 1. Five Gustie pitchers combined on a one-hit shutout, as Gustavus completed the sweep with a 5-0 win in the nightcap.

• HOME SWEET HOME: With their sweep of Northwestern on Thursday, the Gusties improved to 8-0 at home this season. GAC is 3-3 in road games, and 9-3 in neutral-site contests.

• STREAKING ALONG: The Gusties have been red-hot of late, coming into their DH against Saint Mary’s having won nine of the last 11 — with the two losses coming at the hands of league-leading Bethel on Tuesday. Eighteen of Gustavus’ 20 wins have come during two lengthy winning streaks. After opening the season with back-to-back losses to Luther, GAC rattled off a season-high 11 straight wins, before falling to Kalamazoo, 11-4. The Gusties’ 4-1, Game 1 loss to Bethel on Tuesday snapped their seven-game winning streak.

• AT THE PLATE: The Gusties are hitting a whopping .342 as a team through 26 games, and boast six regulars who own batting averages above .300. Jack Hanson leads the way for the Gusties, hitting .495, with Egan Mocchi (.448) and Bryce Novak (.424) also owning batting averages above .400. Gavin Baker (.337), Drake Siens (.337), and Nick Azar (.311) are the other Gusties hitting above .300.

• RUNNING WILD: Hanson has scored a team-leading 40 runs this season. He is one of five GAC players to score 20 or more times this season, being joined by Novak with 29, and Mocchi, Baker, and Siens with 27 runs scored each. … Hanson has scored a single-game, season-high four times twice — against Eedgewood on March 17 and vs. Augsburg on April 13.

• HIT PARADE: Hanson owns the team lead in hits with 50, while Mocchi (39), Novak (36), Siens (31), and Baker (30) have also delivered 30 or more hits through the first 26 games of the season. … Gustavus has amassed 78 multiple-hit games, led by Hanson with 15, Mocchi with 14, and Baker with 10. … GAC has had a player record four hits in a game five times — including twice by Hanson.

• EXTRA, EXTRA: The Gusties have banged out 111 extra-base hits among hits 290 hits this season, including 67 doubles, 14 triples, and 30 home runs. … Siens owns a team-best 14 doubles, two more than Hanson, while Siens’ four triples are also a team-high, one in front of both Novak and Baker.

• GOING DEEP: Hanson and Mocchi have accounted for 14 of the team’s 30 home runs this season, with Hanson owning eight round-trippers, two more than Mocchi. Baker has chipped in four HRs, followed by Siens with three, and Azar and Mitch Casperson with two each.

• DRIVING ‘EM IN: Mocchi leads the Gusties with 41 RBIs, three up on Hanson. Siens and Azar have also recorded more than 20 RBIs through 26 games, with both sitting at 23. … Gustavus boasts 51 multiple-RBI games, led by Hanson with 12 and Mocchi with 11. … Mocchi has driven in five or more runs three times — including a season-high six runs twice — with Hanson also recording a six-RBI game among his two five-plus RBI efforts.

• STREAKING ALONG: Novak and Mocchi both put together lengthy hitting streaks earlier this season — Novak hitting in 13 straight games, while Mocchi boasted a 10-game streak. Novak’s nine-game hit streak is currently, the Gusties’ longest active streak. … Fueled by his two hitting streaks, Novak enters the Gusties’ DH against Saint Mary’s having reached base safely in 23 consecutive games.

• ON THE MOUND: Gustavus has used 18 pitchers this season, and boasts eight hurlers who have logged at least 10 innings. Christian Johnson leads the staff in innings pitched with 32 2/3, followed by Mitch Casperson (24.0 IP), Andrew Gustafson (23.0 IP), and Damon Rademacher (17.1 IP). … Rademacher (1-0, 3.63 ERA) has made a team-high 11 appearances — all in relief — while, Johnson (3-3, 4.13 ERA) and Jack Garrison (3-0, 6.39 ERA) are second with eight appearances each.

• FANNING THE FLAMES: The Gustie pitching staff has struck out 186 batters this season, led by Johnson with 32 and Casperson with 24. Lane Glaser (18), Gustafson (18), Rademacher (18), Luke Siegle (17), Meffert (12), and Garrison (11) have also struck out more than 10 batters this season. … Glaser struck out a single-game, season-high nine batters against Carthage on March 19.

• BY THE NUMBERS: Gustavus has outscored its opponents by a whopping 250-138, and hold a scoring advantage in every inning but the ninth, where the Gusties have been outscored 7-5. … The Gusties have scored 10 or more runs 15 times through 26 games, going 14-1. The lone loss, an 18-12 loss to Luther on March 5. On the flip side, GAC has allowed 10 or more runs in a game five times, 3-2. … Gustavus is 3-1 in one-run games, and 2-1 in games decided by two runs. … The Gusties are 16-2 when scoring in the first inning, and 15-2 when scoring the game’s first run. … GAC is 17-0 when leading after six innings, while going 3-6 when tied or trailing heading to the seventh frame.