The Saint Mary’s baseball team plays its third straight home doubleheader on Thursday, as the Cardinals play host to Gustavus in a 2:30 p.m. MIAC twinbill at Max Molock Field.

SAINT MARY’S CARDINALS

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2024: 8-2 MIAC, 15-9 Overall

GUSTAVUS GUSTIES

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2024: 4-4 MIAC, 12-11 Overall

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SMU-GAC * LAST MEETING:

April 23, 2024 * Winona, MN

L, 5-1; W, 5-4 * Series History

SAINT MARY’S * LAST ACTION:

April 13, 2024 * Winona, MN

St. Olaf * W, 12-4; L, 7-4

GUSTAVUS * LAST ACTION:

April 13, 2024 * Duluth, MN

St. Scholastica * W, 5-2; L, 8-6

SAINT MARY’S * UP NEXT:

April 20, 2024 * Collegeville, MN

Saint John’s * 1:00/3:30

GUSTAVUS * UP NEXT: 

April 18, 2024 * St. Peter, MN

Crown * 2:30/5:00

SAINT MARY’S SCOUTING REPORT:

• FOR THE RECORD: The Cardinals head into their conference doubleheader against Gustavus sitting at 15-9 through the first 24 games of the season, while boasting an 8-2 mark in conference play.

• LAST TIME OUT: The Cardinals erupted for 12 runs in opening their MIAC doubleheader against St. Olaf with a 12-4 win last Saturday, but SMU could not complete the conference sweep, falling in the nightcap 7-4.

• HOME SWEET HOME: The Cardinals’ doubleheader against Gustavus is the third straight home twinbill for SMU, which will hit the road for eight consecutive games — including conference DHs at Saint John’s, Bethel, and Concordia, and nine-inning nonconference games at UW-La Crosse and UW-Stout … Saint Mary’s is 7-2 on its home turf this season, while sitting at 8-7 away from Max Molock Field.

• SWEEPING UP: The Cardinals have played seven doubleheaders this season, sweeping five and going 1-1 in the other two. SMU has swept Illinois College (5-2, 10-5), Saint Joseph’s (4-2, 11-3), Hamline (1-0, 7-2), Carleton (22-2, 9-3), and Augsburg (2-1, 3-2), while splitting with Macalester (W, 9-3, L, 14-4) and St. Olaf (W, 12-4, L, 7-4).

• STREAK-SNAPPER; The Cardinals had their season-high six-game winning streak ended with their 14-4, Game 2 loss to Macalester on April 6. … SMU’s 7-0 victory over UW-Superior on March 28 snapped the Cardinals’ season-high three-game losing streak. 

• AT THE PLATE: Ryan Csida (Kimberly, Wis.) leads the team with a .379 batting average, going 33-for-87. He is one of five Cardinals boasting batting averages of .300 or better, being joined by Cameron Weber (Holmen, Wis. / .373), Tanner Bauman (Willmar, Minn. / .357), Brinton Anderson (Pulaski, Wis. / .352), and Mason Coyle (Madison, Wis. / .304).

• ON THE RUN: The Cardinals have scored 149 runs through their first 24 games this season …. Weber leads the team with 24 runs scored, three more than Csida and seven up on Coyle. Riley Bauman (Stratford, Wis. / 14), Cam Miller (Kimberly, Wis. / 14), and Anderson (11) have also crossed home plate more than 10 times. … Miller, Coyle, and Riley Bauman have all scored a single-game season-high three times this season. … Weber and Riley Bauman each scored a single-game season- and career-high four runs in 2023 — Weber against Bethany Lutheran on April 30 and Bauman vs. Hamline on May 2.

• RUNS A PLENTY: The Cardinals scored 22 runs in beating Carleton 22-2 in the opening game of the Cardinals MIAC sweep of Carleton on April 5. The 22 runs were the most in a game since SMU beat Graceland 23-3 on March 25, 2015.

• HIT PARADE: Csida leads the Cardinals with 33 hits. He is one of two Cardinals with 30+ hits, being joined by Weber (31), while Riley Bauman (25), Coyle (24), and Daniel Sherman (Excelsior, Minn. / 21) have delivered at least 20 hits. Anderson is one hit shy of joining the 20-hit club. … Csida has put together a team-leading 12 multiple-hit games — all 12 being two-hit games — while Riley Bauman delivered a single-game season-high four hits against Dominican on March 4.

• EXTRA, EXTRA: Fifty-two of the Cardinals’ 220 hits this season have been for extra bases, including 36 doubles, eight triples, and eight home runs. … Coyle is the team-leader in doubles with six, one more than Csida and Riley Bauman, while Riley Bauman leads the team with three triples, one up on Tanner Bauman.

• BOMBS AWAY: Riley Bauman has clubbed three of the team’s eight home runs. Golden owns a pair of round-trippers, with Coyle, Csida, and Will Boeckman (Big Lake, Minn.) accounting for the other three. … Boeckman belted SMU’s first home run of the season, a two-run shot against Bethany Lutheran on Feb. 25. … Csida launched his first collegiate HR — a lead-off shot against Benedictine on March 8 — while Golden belted his first two home runs as a Cardinal against Carleton on April 5. … Golden’s two HRs in Game 1 against Carleton on April 5 marked the first time SMU has had a player hit two HRs in a game since Ben Buerkle and Jake Barry each hit two round-trippers during the 2017 season.

• DRIVING ‘EM IN: Weber has delivered a team-best 20 RBIs, followed by Csida (18), Riley Bauman (17), and Coyle (15).. Anderson has also reached double figures with 12 runs batted in. … Sherman accounted for all four RBIs in SMU’s 4-2 win over Saint Joseph’s on March 9. Sherman is one of four SMU players with a four-RBI game, being joined by Riley Bauman, Weber, and Anderson. RBIs … Weber own a team-best six multiple-RBI games, one more than Riley Bauman.

• STREAKING: Weber heads into SMU’s DH against Gustavus riding a season-high nine-game hitting streak. He is the second player to have a nine-game hit streak this season, being joined by Csida, who also owns an active eight-game hitting streak. … Csida has reached base safely in all 24 games this season. … Weber closed out the 2023 season riding a 15-game hitting streak, and picked up at least one hit in each of SMU’s first four games this season, before going 0-for-6 against Dominican on March 4.

• OUCH: The Cardinals, who were hit by a pitch 32 times in 35 games in 2023, have already been plunked 34 time this season — with Weber and Csida both getting hit a team-leading seven times.

• CATCH ME IF YOU CAN: Saint Mary’s is 63-for-78 in stolen base attempts this season, with Weber leading the way, going 24-for-27, followed by Riley Bauman (9-for-10), Riley Bauman (8-for-10) and Coyle (7-for-8). … With his first-inning Game 2 steal against St. Olaf last Saturday, Weber became the program’s single-season stolen base leader with 24, one more than Will Doll ’16, who set the previous mark of 23 during the 2014 season. … SMU stole a school-record 11 bases in its Game 1 win over Carleton on April 5, with Weber setting a single-game school record with four steals. … With their 63 stolen bases, SMU is 25 steals shy of the single-season school record of 88, set during the 2021 season.

• ON THE MOUND: Saint Mary’s has used 15 different pitchers this season, with Addison Hochevar (Lake Geneva, Wis. / 3-3, 4.96 ERA) leading the way with 32 2/3 innings pitched. Eric Stomberg (St. Paul, Minn. / 4-1, 3.25 ERA), Andrew Fischer (La Crosse, Wis. / 1-2, 3.76 ERA, 26 1/3 IP), and Dylan Westcott (Holmen, Wis. / 3-0, 2.16 ERA, 25.0 IP) have also logged more than 20 innings. … Fischer has made a team-leading nine pitching appearances, one more than Westcott, while Hochevar leads the staff with seven starts. … Fischer and Hochevar own SMU’s two complete games.

• SAVING THE DAY: Fischer picked up his team-leading third save of the season with three innings of scoreless relief in SMU’s 2-1, Game 1 win over Augsburg on April 9. … Westcott and Mason Windschitl (Excelsior, Minn.) each own one save. … Windschitl’s save against Augsburg on April 9 was the first of his collegiate career.

• FANNING THE FLAMES: The SMU pitching staff has combined to strike out 123 batters in 24 games this season, led by Fischer with 25 and Stomberg with 24. … Fischer has struck out a single-game season-high seven batters twice this season — against Luther on Feb. 26 and vs. Saint Joseph’s on March 9.

• MIAC HONORS: Hochevar was named MIAC Pitcher of the Week on April 1, after putting together his third career complete game, a one-hit gem in beating Hamline 1-0 on March 30, while Weber collected his first weekly honor, earning MIAC Player of the Week accolades on April 8 – thanks to hitting .471 and stealing nine bases in SMU’s four games that week.

• THROWING UP ZEROS: The Cardinals’ 7-0 win over UW-Superior on March 28 and their 1-0 victory over Hamline two days later marked the first time SMU has posted back-to-back shutouts since blanking Augsburg (1-0) and Bethel (1-0) in late April, 2019.

• COMEBACK KIDS: The Cardinals put together three, five-run innings to beat Illinois Chicago (twice) and Marian during their eight-game spring trip. SMU scored five runs in the fifth inning of 5-2 and 10-5 wins over Illinois Chicago on March 3, before racking up five runs in the bottom of the ninth inning of a 7-6, walk-off win over Marian two days later.

• GETTING SOME (VERY) EARLY SWINGS: SMU’s season-opener against Bethany Lutheran on Feb. 25 and its game against Luther the followed day marked 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.

• CRUNCHING THE NUMBERS: As a team, the Cardinals are hitting .296 (220-for-742), including 52 extra-base hits, while scoring 149 runs and boasting 123 RBIs. SMU’s pitching staff, meanwhile, boasts a 5.47 ERA. … Saint Mary’s has scored at least three runs in 22 of its 24 games this season, including 10+ runs four times — in wins over Illinois College (10-5), Saint Joseph’s (11-3), Carleton (22-2), and St. Olaf (12-4). On the flip side, SMU has surrendered 10 or more runs five times this season, going 0-5 in those five contests. … The Cardinals are 13-0 when holding their opponent to less than six runs, and are 13-1 when leading or tied after the sixth inning.

GUSTAVUS SCOUTING REPORT:

• FOR THE RECORD: Gustavus arrives at Max Molock Field sporting a 12-11 overall record, including a 4-4 mark through the first eight games of its conference slate.

• LAST TIME OUT: The Gusties are coming off a split of its MIAC doubleheader against St. Scholastica last Saturday in St. Peter, Minn. GAC got off on the right foot, posting a 5-2 win in the opener, only to have the Saints turn the tables with an 8-6 win in the nightcap. 

• SPLITTSVILLE: With their 5-2 win and 8-6 loss to St. Scholastica, Gustavus has now split its last two conference doubleheaders, having also beaten (15-11) and lost (7-0) to Bethel on April 9.

• LIMPING IN: With their back-to-back splits against Bethel and St. Scholastica in their last two twinbills, the Gusties are just 2-6 in their last eight contests.

• LEADING THE CHARGE: Gustavus heads into its conference showdown against Saint Mary’s boasting seven players who are hitting above .300, including two — Chris Knowles (.422) and Bryce Novak (.413) — boasting batting averages above .400. … Brady Schmitz (.369), Sam Schneider (.351), Drake Siens (.350), Gavin Baker (.322), and Danny Gavin (.317) also have batting averages north of .300.

• ON THE RUN: Gustavus has plated a whopping 197 runs in 23 games and has five players who have scored 20 or more runs. Novak leads the run-brigade with 30, followed by Siens with 27 and Knowles with 24. Schmitz (22) and Baker (22) have also crossed home plate 20+ times. … Knowles scored a single-game season-high five times against Concordia (Wis.) on March 4.

• HIT PARADE: Novak owns a team-leading 38 hits — going 38-for-92 en route to his .413 batting average — and is one of seven Gusties who have amassed 20 or more hits. Knowles (35) and Schmitz (31) have also belted 30+ hits, with Siens (28), Baker (20), Gavin (20), and Schneider (20) all reaching the 20-hit plateau. … GAC has three players — Novak (12), Schmitz (11), and Knowles (10) — with 10 or more multiple-hit games. … Siens lashed out a season-high five hits against Howard Payne on March 7. … Thirteen different Gusties have posted a multiple-hit game this season.

• EXTRA, EXTRA: Ninety-two of Gustavus’s 268 hits have gone for extra bases, including 55 doubles, 10 triples, and 27 home runs. … Novak is the team-leader in doubles with 10, one more than Baker and two up on Knowles. GAC has gotten at least one double from 14 different players. … Novak, Schmitz, Kohls, Knowles, and Andrew Glovich have all had two doubles in a game this season. … Gavin and Siens share the team lead in triples with two, while Novak, Knowles, Brayden Kohls, Isaac Becker, Mitch Casperson, and Tomas Nelson have all collected one three-bagger.

• BOMBS AWAY: Gustavus’s 27 home runs have come from nine different players, led by Siens and Knowles, who own eight and seven round-trippers, respectively. Becker has launched three HRs, with Novak, Casperson, and Joe Burns each chipping in two. … Siens and Knowles have both posted two home runs in a game this season — Siens against Howard Payne on March 7 and Knowles vs. Sul Ross State three days later.

• DRIVING ‘EM HOME: GAC has nine players with 10 or more RBIs, including three — Knowles (35), Siens (26), and Baker (20) — who own 20+ RBIs. … Knowles is the team-leader with 10 multiple-RBI games, including delivering a single-game season-high eight RBIs against Sul Ross State on March 10.

• STREAKING ALONG: Novak and Knowles have both put together lengthy hitting streaks this season — Knowles hitting safely in 15 straight games and Novak owning a season-high 16-game hit streak. Schmitz and Ross Hebel, however, boast the team’s longest active hit streak and seven straight. … Novak has reached base safely in all 23 games this season.

• ON THE MOUND: Gustavus has used 17 different pitchers this season, with seven logging at least 10 innings on the mound. Adam Biewen (3-1, 2.97 ERA) leads the staff with 36 1/3 innings pitched, followed by Casperson (4-2, 3.45 ERA, 28 2/3 IP) and Luke Siegle (4-2, 5.55 ERA, 24 1/3 IP). … Jackson Thielen and Benny McDonald lead the team in appearances with nine and eight, respectively — all in relief — with Biewen and Siegle owning a team-best six starts. … Biewen and Casperson posted GAC’s two complete games, and Thielen owns the team’s lone save.

• FANNING THE FLAMES: The Gustavus pitching staff has struck out 175 batters, including 33 by Casperson and 32 from Siegle. Biewen (29) and Nick Hentges (22) have also fanned more than 20 batters this season. … Casperson struck out a single-game, season-high 12 batters against Augsburg on March 29.

• CRUNCHING THE NUMBERS: As a team, Gustavus is hitting .347, going 268-for-772, with 55 doubles, 10 triples, 27 home runs, 197 runs scored, and 185 RBIs. The GAC pitching staff, meanwhile, owns a 5.48 ERA, with opponents hitting .269 off them. … Gustavus has scored 10 or more runs in a game eight times this season — including three 15-run outings, a 17-run outburst, and a season-high 22 runs scored in a 22-2 win over Northwestern (Minn.) on Feb. 26. … On the flip side, GAC has surrendered 10+ runs in a game four times, including 12 in a 12-9 loss to UW-La Crosse, and a season-high 14 in falling to Washington (Mo.) University 14-8. … Along with their 22 runs, the Gusties also set season-highs for hits (20), RBIs (20), triples (3), and home runs (4) in their 22-2 win over Northwestern on Feb. 26.