WINONA, Minn. - In their final outing of the season, the Saint Mary's baseball team (22-16) made it a memorable one, closing out the 2025 campaign at home on Senior Day with a sweep of one of the conference's top teams, the Bethel Royals (28-11).
 
The Cardinals took down the Royals with a 7-3 victory in game one, followed by a 7-5 win in game two.
 
GAME ONE
 
Senior Will Boeckman had himself a tremendous senior day after recording three hits, including a home run and a double, while driving in two runs and even scoring twice. 
 
The Cardinals took an early lead, scoring four runs in the first inning!
 
Stephen Golden got things rolling with a leadoff single and moved into scoring position on a double by Boeckman. Senior Riley Bauman then drove in Golden with a groundout, before Daniel Sherman followed with an RBI single and Sam Knickerbocker laid down a sacrifice bunt to bring in another run. Alex Hanneman capped the productive inning with an RBI single, giving Saint Mary's an early 4-0 lead.
 
In the bottom of the fifth, the Cardinals added to their lead. 
 
Golden walked and scored on Boeckman's two-run homer to left field. Bauman followed with a walk, stole second, and was driven in by senior Brinton Anderson's double, stretching the lead to 7-1.
 
Bethel attempted a comeback in the top of the seventh after getting the bases loaded and reducing the deficit to 7-3. 
 
However, the Cardinals maintained their lead and secured the victory with a final score of 7-3.
 
GAME TWO
 
Golden led the way at the plate in game two, going three-for-four with a double, an RBI, a run, and a stolen base. Bauman added two hits and two RBIs, while Reese Berg chipped in with two hits and two RBIs of his own. 

Eric Stomberg was sharp in relief, tossing six scoreless innings with four strikeouts. 

The game began with Bethel taking an early 3-0  lead in the first inning but there was senior day magic in store.
 
The Cardinals responded in the bottom half, with Golden hitting a double followed by Bauman's RBI single to center, closing the gap to 3–1 after the first.
 
In the fourth inning, the Cardinals capitalized on Bethel's defensive miscue, leveling the score at 3–3.
 
Saint Mary's offense continued in the fifth, beginning with Boeckman's single. Bauman followed with an RBI double, and Berg's two-run single to center put  the Cardinals ahead 6–3 after five innings.
 
Bethel's bats were silenced from the second through the seventh innings, unable to score against the Cardinals pitching. 
 
In the eighth inning, Bethel managed a two-run homer bringing the score to 6–5.
 
In the bottom of the eighth, the Cardinals added an insurance run and gave the team the final laugh as they were able to come away with a final conference sweep of the season.
 
Saint Mary's finished fifth in the conference, just missing out on a MIAC playoff spot, with only the top four teams advancing. The Cardinals did their part to stay in the hunt, but St. Olaf's sweep of Carleton the day before clinched the final playoff spot and ended Saint Mary's postseason hopes.
 
The team's 22-win campaign marked their best season since 2021.