SAINT MARY’S CARDINALS

Home | Roster | Stats | Schedule

2023 Final: 15-20 Overall

BETHANY LUTHERAN VIKINGS

Home | Roster | Stats | Schedule

2023 Final: 25-11 Overall

 LUTHER NORSE

Home | Roster | Stats | Schedule

2023 Final: 25-18 Overall

LIVE ON THE WEB:

Follow Along: Live Stats * Video

MIAC: BB Home * Standings * Schedule

Social: Facebook * Twitter * Instagram * YouTube

SMU-BLC * LAST MEETING:

April 30, 2023 * Mankato, MN

W, 19-9 * Series History

SMU-LUTHER * LAST MEETING:

March 13, 2022 * Sioux City, IA

L, 7-6; W, 7-6 * Series History

SAINT MARY’S * LAST ACTION:

May 7, 2024 * Winona, MN

Carleton * W, 9-3; L, 10-2

BETHANY LUTHERAN * LAST ACTION:

May 19-20, 2024 * La Crosse, WI

UW-L * L, 10-0; Buena Vista * L, 12-2

LUTHER * LAST ACTION:

May 11-12, 2023 * Cedar Rapids, IA

Loras * L, 13-3; Coe * W, 4-2

U. of Dubuque * L, 3-2

SAINT MARY’S * UP NEXT:

March 3-9, 2024 * Davenport, FL

Illinois College * Dominican * Marian

UW-Oshkosh * Benedictine * St. Joseph’s

BETHANY LUTHERAN * UP NEXT: 

March 3-5, 2024 * Tacoma, WA

Puget Sound * Willamette

LUTHER * UP NEXT: 

March 2-3, 2024 * Leavenworth, KS

Hamline * Augustana

SAINT MARY’S SCOUTING REPORT:

• FOR THE RECORD: The Cardinals closed out the 2023 season sitting at 15-20 overall, including a 9-11 showing MIAC play.

• POST-SEASON HONORS: Saint Mary’s Addison Hochevar (Lake Geneva, Wis.) and Mason Coyle (Madison, Wis.) were both selected to the 2023 All-MIAC Team.

• GETTING SOME (VERY) EARLY SWINGS: Sunday’s season-opener against Bethany Lutheran and Monday’s game against Luther mark the earliest games played on Max Molock Field in program history. Saint Mary’s has never played a game in February on its home field.

• ON A HIGH-OCTANE ROLL: The Cardinals closed out the season winning seven of their last nine — scoring 79 runs in those seven victories … SMU’s 19-run outburst in routing Bethany Lutheran 19-9 on April 30 marked the highest run production since March 1, 2017, when the Cardinals blitzed Finlandia 19-4. … SMU also set season-highs in hits (17), RBIs (18), doubles (5), triples (2), and walks (10) against Bethany Lutheran on April 30.

• BIG INNING EXPLOSIONS: The Cardinals scored five or more runs in an inning in four of their last eight games a year ago. SMU put together back-to-back five-run sixth innings in its sweep of Concordia on April 28, before scoring six third-inning runs against Bethany Lutheran three days later. Saint Mary’s followed that up with a nine-run seventh inning in its 14-2 win over Hamline on May 2. … SMU’s nine-run effort against Hamline was its highest single-inning effort since plating 10 runs against the Pipers in a 19-2, MIAC Tournament win on May 13, 2013.

• REACHING 100: Cameron Weber (Holmen, Wis.) and Addison Hochevar (Lake Geneva, Wis.) each reached the career century mark in 2023. Weber heads into his senior year with 107 career games played and 106 hits, while Hochevar will enter his final year in an SMU uniform boasting 142 career strikeouts.

• AT THE PLATE: Saint Mary’s boasted four players who finished with batting averages above .300 in 2023, led by Mason Coyle (Madison, Wis.), who finished the year 39-for-104 en route to a team-best .375 average. Weber was second on the team, hitting .359, followed closely by Riley Bauman (Stratford, Wis.) at .335 and Brandon Merfeld (La Crosse, Wis.) at .305. … As a team, Saint Mary’s is hitting .280 (297-for-1061).

• ON THE RUN: The Cardinals plated 189 runs in 35 games last season. Riley Bauman has scored a team-leading 35 runs — including seven in a DH sweep of Hamline on May 2. Weber was second on the team with 27 runs scored, followed by Coyle with 22, Merfeld with 18, and Trevon VanEgtern (La Crosse, Wis.) with 16. … Weber and Riley Bauman each scored a single-game season- and career-high four runs in 2023 — Weber against Bethany Lutheran last Sunday and Bauman vs. Hamline on May 2.

• HIT PARADE: Weber finished the year atop the team lead in hits with 47, six more than Riley Bauman, with Coyle (39), Merfeld (36), VanEgtern (28), and Daniel Marxen (Maple Grove, Minn. / 27) having also reached the 20-hit plateau. … Weber collected a team-best 14 multiple-hit games, one in front of Riley Bauman. … Weber’s five hits against Bethany Lutheran on April 30 were a season- and career-high, and marked the first time SMU had a player record more than three hits in a game in 2023.

• HIT NO. 1 AS A CARDINAL: Saint Mary’s had seven players record their first collegiate hits last season — Ryan Campbell (New Berlin, Wis.), Jaxon Vance (Eau Claire, Wis.), Daniel Sherman (Richfield, Minn.), Patrick Schork (Janesville, Wis.), Reese Berg (Green Bay, Wis.), Alex Crusan (Bloomington, Minn.), and Noah Lahner (Waukesha, Wis.).

• EXTRA, EXTRA: Saint Mary’s collected 72 extra-base hits a year ago — 49 doubles, 12 triples, and 11 home runs. … Coyle led the team with 10 doubles, three more than Weber, while Merfeld, Weber, Riley Bauman, and Marxen each had a team-best two triples, with Coyle, Boeckman, Schork, and Campbell owning the team’s other four three-baggers.

• BOMBS AWAY: SMU hit 11 home runs in 2023. Riley Bauman led the way with five round-trippers, while Coyle was second with three. VanEgtern, Boeckman, and Marxen accounted for the Cardinals’ other three HRs. … Bauman’s first home run of the season against Franklin on Feb. 26 was the first of his collegiate career, while Boeckman’s two-run bomb against Bethany Lutheran on April30 was his first as a Cardinal.

• DRIVING ‘EM IN: Coyle and Riley Bauman owned the team lead in RBIs last season with 29 and 26, respectively, with Marxen (23), VanEgtern (15), Merfeld (14), Weber (13), and Tanner Bauman (10) also reaching double figures. … Riley Bauman led the team with eight multiple-RBI games, one more than both Coyle and Marxen. … Coyle recorded a career-high five RBIs against Hamline on May 2, while Riley Bauman and Sam Schneider (St. Joseph, Minn.) each delivered career-high four-RBI games in 2023.

• OUCH: The Cardinals were hit by a pitch 32 times in 35 games in 2023, led by Weber, who was beaned six times. … SMU had a player hit by a pitch twice in a game five times.

• CATCH ME IF YOU CAN: Saint Mary’s finished with stolen 76 bases on 92 attempts last season, led by Weber (17-for-20), Riley Bauman (12-13), and Tanner Bauman (8-10). SMU got at least one stolen base from 17 different players. 

• STREAKING: Weber closed out the 2023 season riding a 15-game hitting streak, while Merfeld had his 10-game hit streak — second-longest behind Weber’s — stopped in SMU’s final game of the season. … Coyle reached base safely in each of the Cardinals last 18 contests…. Coyle was one of four Cardinals who reached base safely in at least the last 10 games of the season — Weber (15), Marxen (13), and Riley Bauman (12) were the other three. 

• ON THE MOUND: Saint Mary’s used 14 different pitchers last season — including four who logged 30 or more innings. Timmy Smith (South St. Paul, Minn. / 6-2, 4.42 ERA) led the staff with 55.0 IP, followed by Hochevar (3-5, 2.65 ERA, 54 1/3 IP), Andrew Fischer (La Crosse, Wis. / 2-4, 6.95 ERA, 45 1/3) and TJ Bergland (Farmington, Minn. / 1-3, 5.85 ERA, 32 1/3 IP). … Dylan Westcott (Holmen, Wis. / 0-4, 3.92 ERA) made a team-leading 12 appearances — all in relief — while Hochevar made a team-leading 10 starts, one more than Smith and two in front of Fischer.

• PITCHING FIRSTS: Smith tossed his first collegiate nine-inning complete game against Northwestern on March 22 and then tossed his second nine-inning complete game in SMU’s 5-4 win over Gustavus on April 23. … Bergland recorded three career firsts in SMU’s 10-0 win over Hamline on May 2 — his first collegiate win, shutout, and complete game. … Fischer tossed his first collegiate complete game in SMU’s 6-0, Game 1 loss to Saint John’s on April 7. … Alec Amin earned his first collegiate pitching win against Bethany Lutheran on April 30 in three innings of relief of Andrew Milner (Eau Claire, Wis.), who made his first collegiate start against the Vikings, surrendering four runs on five hits in four innings. … Eric Charest (Blaine, Minn. / 1-0, 6.43 ERA, 7.0 IP) picked up his first collegiate pitching win against Calvin on March 2. The freshman also collected his first save in a Cardinal uniform with one inning of scoreless relief in SMU’s 3-2 win over MSOE on Feb. 27. … Eric Stomberg (0-2, 4.26 ERA) made his first collegiate start and Jaxon Vance (Eau Claire, Wis.) delivered his first collegiate save against UW-Eau Claire on Thursday.

• SAVING THE DAY: Westcott led the staff with three saves last season, while Charest, Stomberg, and Vance each owned one save.

• FANNING THE FLAMES: The SMU pitching staff combined to strike out 176 batters in 35 games a year ago, led by Hochevar with 52, Smith with 29, and Fischer with 28. … Hochevar fanned a career-high 10 batters in a 1-0 loss to Franklin. … Smith struck out a career-high eight batters against Northwestern on March 22.

• CRUNCHING THE NUMBERS: The Cardinals scored 189 runs in 35 games in 2023, including nine or more runs nine times. … Saint Mary’s did not lose (4-0) when scoring at least 10 runs. … SMU finished 15-10 when scoring at least three runs, but were winless (0-10) when held under three runs. On the flip side, SMU allowed six runs or more in 13 of its 20 losses, including a season-high 13 runs in its 13-9 loss to Aurora on March 21. … The Cardinals were 15-3 when leading or tied after the sixth inning, but closed out the year 0-17 when trailing heading to the seventh. … SMU played three extra-inning games in 2023 — beating UW-Eau Claire 8-7 in eight innings, while falling the Blugolds 5-4 in 10 and losing to Aurora 13-9 in 10 innings on March 20.

BETHANY LUTHERAN SCOUTING REPORT:

• FOR THE RECORD: The Vikings head into their season-opening nine-inning showdown against Saint Mary’s coming off a 25-11 season, including an 18-3 mark in UMAC play.

• LAST TIME OUT: Bethany Lutheran made a quick exit from the NCAA Tournament a year ago, dropping a pair of 10-run decisions to UW-La Crosse (L, 10-0) and Buena Vista (L, 12-2) on May 19-20 in La Crosse, Wis.

• OWNING THE UMAC: The Vikings won both the UMAC regular season and Tournament Championships last season, gaining their third appearance to the NCAA Tournament since 2018. … After beginning the season 7-8 overall and 3-3 in the UMAC, Bethany Lutheran went on to win 15 consecutive regular-season conference games to claim the UMAC title on the final weekend of the season.

• LEADING THE CHARGE: BLC closed out 2023 with seven players who hit .300 or better with at least 80 at-bats. Brad Bickmann boasted a team-best .409 batting average, followed by Eli Fest (.396), Aidan Russell (.380), Ben Hopper (.368), Matt Verdugo (.310), Liam Peterson (.320), and Hunter Pearce (.305). … Russell, Hopper, and Peterson all started a team-leading 35 games a year ago.

• ON THE RUN: Peterson and Russell each scored a team-high 43 runs a year ago and were two of nine Vikings to cross home plate at least 20 times. Verdugo chipped in 38 runs, with Fest and Hopper adding 34, while Vaughn Pouncy (27), Pearce (26), Malachi Santiago (24), and Bickmann (20) also scoring at least 20 runs. 

• HIT PARADE: Hopper banged out a team-leading 54 hits in 2023, one more than Hopper. Verdugo and Peterson each chipped in 40 hits, with Pouncy adding 37, and Bickmann and Fest delivering 36. … Russell closed out the year with a team-high 16 multiple-hit games,, on more than Hopper and three up on Verdugo. Peterson (12), Bickmann (11), and Fest (10) also reached double-figures in multiple-hit games.

• EXTRA, EXTRA: Bethany Lutheran finished with 112 extra-base hits last season, including 70 doubles, 23 triples, and 19 home runs. … Hopper led the team in both doubles (9) and triples (5), with Russell adding eight doubles, Pearce delivering seven, and Bickmann, Fest, Pouncy, and Santiago all belting six. … Along with Hoppers five triples, Russell chipped in four, and Bickmann and Pouncy each added three. 

• BOMBS AWAY: The Vikings’ 19 home runs in 2023 came from nine different players — led by Russell with five. Bickmann, Hopper, and Peterson closed out the year with three round-trippers, with Reed Brown, Pouncy, Lucas Reiff, Izaak Stevens, and Henry Laue accounting for the other five.

• DRIVING ‘EM HOME: BLC closed out the year with 10 player who reached double figures in RBIs, led by Russell with 41, Hopper with 34, Bickmann with 31, and Peterson with 30. … Russell amassed a team-leading 12 multiple-RBI games, while Bickmann and Pouncy each put together a team-best five-RBI games.

• STREAKING ALONG: Bickmann and Pearce each put together hitting streaks of 10 or more last season, with Pearce hitting safely in 10 straight, while Bickmann owned a team-best 12-game hit streak. … Fowler comes into 2024 with the team’s longest active streak at six. … The Vikings had five players reach base safely in at least 20 consecutive games, led by Verdugo, who reached safely in 26 straight contests.

• ON THE MOUND: Conor Merton and Gavin Jacobsen were the workhorses of the Vikings’ pitching staff, tossing 58 2/3 and 51 innings, respectively. … Jacobsen finished with a team-high 10 starts and compiled a 1-3 record and a 4.41 ERA. Brody Curtiss (6-2, 5.36 ERA. 43 2/3 IP) was second on the team with nine starts, followed by Merton (5-1, 5.52 ERA) with eight. Jackson Huiras (2-1, 4.33 ERA) made a team-high 12 appearances — all in relief — with Jacobsen, Merton, Ty Vollmar (2-0, 6.98 ERA, 19.1 IP), and Conner Side (2-0, 3.60 ERA, 15.0 IP) all appearing in 11 games.

• SAVING THE DAY: BLC pitchers collected six saves a year ago, led by Bickmann (2-0, 1.84 ERA) with three and Huiras with two. Vollmar earned the Vikings’ other save.

• FANNING THE FLAMES: As a staff, Bethany Lutheran pitchers struck out 337 batters, including a team-best 85 by Jacobsen. Merton (48) and Curtiss (45) also ended the year with 40+ strikeouts.

• CRUNCHING THE NUMBERS: Bethany Lutheran closed out the 2023 campaign outscoring its opponents 343-215 – including holding a scoring advantage in every inning but the third, where the Vikings were outscored 38-26. … Bethany Lutheran finished the season 19-1 when scoring 10 or more runs, and 17 of its 25 wins were by at least five runs. … BLC scored 20 or more runs twice a year ago, plating 20 in a 20-0 win over Martin Luther on April 12, and scoring a season-high 29 in routing Otterbein 29-19 on March 5. … The Vikings were 9-0 when holding their opponent to two runs or less. … BLC was 20-1 when leading after the sixth inning. … 

The Vikings played one extra-inning game in 2023, falling to UMN Morris 11-10 in 12 innings on April 3.

LUTHER SCOUTING REPORT:

• FOR THE RECORD: The Norse head into their first three games of the season — Sunday at home against Carleton and Monday at Saint Mary’s — on the heels of a 25-18 campaign a year ago, including a 17-7 mark in A-R-C play.

• LAST TIME OUT: Luther reached the American Rivers Conference Tournament a year ago, opening with a 13-3 loss to Loras on May 11, before bouncing back with a 4-1 win over Coe on May 12. The Norse had their post-season run end, however, with a 3-2, elimination-game loss to the University of Dubuque later that day.  

• LEADING THE CHARGE: Luther closed out the 2023 season boasting four players who hit .300 or batter, led by Cullen Stamp, who compiled a .339 batting average. Aiden Michna (.331), Joshua Matanich (.321), and Gabe Atkins (.300) also reached the .300 average, while Noah Sebben (.299) and Peyton Lindmark (.289) were percentage points shy of joining the club.

• ON THE RUN: Stamp led the team in runs scored last season, crossing the plate 46 times. He was one of seven Norse with at least 20 runs scored in 2023 — Sebben (42), Charlie Rubendall (31), Lindmark (30), Atkins (27), Matanich (22), and Michna (20) were the others. … Rubendall scored a season-high six times against Wesleyan (Conn.) on March 19.

• HIT PARADE: Stamp amassed a team-leading 59 hits a year ago, eight more than Matanich and 10 up on Sebben. Rubendall was fourth on the team with 48 hits, followed by Atkins with 45, Lindmark with 44, and Michna with 41. … Luther had seven players record 10 or more multiple-hit games last season, led by Stamp with 16 and Matanich with 15. … Michna belted a single-game, season-high six hits against Wesleyan (Conn.) on March 19.

• EXTRA, EXTRA: Luther finished 2023 with 415 hits, including 125 for extra bases — 85 doubles, 15 triples, and 25 home runs. … Michna (15) and Stamp (14) led the team in doubles, with Matanich, Sebben, and Rubendall all adding 11 two-batters, while Stamp accounted for six of the team’s 15 triples.

• BOMBS AWAY: The Norse had eight player account for their 25 home runs last season, led by Sebben with eight home runs and Matanich with seven. Mark Prince finished the year with four round-trippers, and Michna, Atkins, and Stamp all chipped in two. … Matanich, Sebben and Prince all owns two-home run games a year ago.

• DRIVING ‘EM HOME: Sebben drove in a team-leading 38 runs in 2023, four more than Matanich, with Rubendall also reaching the 30-RBI mark with 30 runs batted in. … Sebben boasted a team-high nine multiple-RBI games, followed by Matanich with eight, and Mark Prince with seven. … Michna delivered a whopping 10 RBIs in Luther’s XX-XX win over Wesleyan (Conn.) on March 19.

• STREAKING ALONG: Rubendall closed out the 2023 season with the team’s longest hitting streak, collecting hits in 16 consecutive game, while Matanich’s six-game hit streak was the Norse’s longest active streak to end the year. … Stamp ended 2023 reaching base safely in each of Luther’s last 31 games.

• ON THE MOUND: Ryan Manternach hurled a team-leading 74 1/3 innings, compiling a 5-3 record and a 4.48 ERA. Manternach was one of four Luther pitchers to log more than 30 innings, being joined by Harry Blum (5-3, 2.12 ERA, 72 1/3 IP), Nick Dufoe (4-3, 5.93 ERA, 58 1/3 IP), and Nolan Klocke (4-2, 1.83 ERA, 44 1/3 IP). … Kaleb Thiesse (0-1, 7.88 ERA, 24.0 IP) made a staff-high 16 appearances — all in relief — with Josh Stratton (4-2, 4.34 ERA, 30 1/3 IP) close behind with 15 appearances. … As a staff, Luther finished 2023 with a 4.83 ERA and an opposing batting average of .264. … 

• SAVING THE DAY: Thiesse and Klocke shared the team lead with three saves apiece, with Blum collecting the team’s other save.

• FANNING THE FLAMES: Luther pitchers combined to strike out 320 battels last season and boasted five hurlers with at least 30 Ks. Blum led the way for the Norse, fanning 69, followed by Klocke with 55, Manternach with 47, Dufoe with 45, and Stratton with 32. … 

• CRUNCHING THE NUMBERS: The Norse closed out 2023 batting .279 as a team, collecting 415 hits in 1486 at-bats, with 85 doubles, 15 triples, and 25 homes, while driving in 237 runs and boasting a .407 slugging percentage. … Luther amassed 60 stolen bases on 77 attempts a year ago. … The Norse set game-highs for runs (32), at-bats (49), hits (29), RBIs (29), and home runs (3) in a 32-4 rout of Nebraska Wesleyan on March 25, 2023.