WINONA, Minn. — Battling rain, momentum swings, and a determined Gustavus squad, the No. 4 Saint Mary's softball team (20-2, 6-0 MIAC) powered its way to a hard-fought conference sweep over Gustavus Adolphus (10-12, 4-2) on Saturday. The afternoon carried added meaning, as the Cardinals took the field in honor of breast cancer awareness, playing for something bigger in front of an inspired crowd.

GAME ONE
SMU 6, GAC 3

The Cardinals set the tone early with an explosive second inning and never looked back, collecting nine hits—including three doubles—in the victory.

Makayla Steffes delivered a strong complete-game performance in the circle, allowing three earned runs on four hits while striking out six across seven innings. At the plate, Brianna Nusbaum led the charge with two hits, including a clutch two-RBI double. 

Saint Mary's broke things open in the second inning with a combination of aggressive baserunning and timely hitting. Naleyah Bork ignited the rally with a single before Karli Zetah, running in her place, swiped second. After Amanda Teschky advanced her to third, Zoe Fink executed a perfect bunt single to bring home the game's first run. Moments later, Nusbaum delivered the big blow, a two-run double to right, before eventually coming around to score on Gerber's groundout to cap a four-run frame.

The Cardinals continued to apply pressure in the middle innings, manufacturing runs in both the fourth and fifth. McGinnis came around to score on a sacrifice, while Erin Parker later crossed the plate following Peyton Berg's productive groundout.

Gustavus threatened in the sixth with a two-run homer, but the Cardinals defense remained composed down the stretch, shutting the door with clean, efficient play to secure the win.

GAME TWO
SMU 4, GAC 3

Game two proved to be another tight battle, with the Cardinals once again rising to the occasion in key moments.

Saint Mary's used a crucial two-run fourth inning to gain control, capitalizing on a wild pitch that allowed Breonna Methner to score. The pitching staff combined for seven strikeouts while limiting Gustavus to just five hits.

The Gusties responded in the fifth, stringing together a three-run rally highlighted by an RBI single from Lauren Lambert and a two-run double from Paige Gritzmaker to even the score at 3-3.

Unfazed, the Cardinals answered in the sixth. Abbie Stigler sparked the inning with a leadoff double and later came around to score on a sacrifice fly from Alexandra Gerber, helped along by a defensive miscue, to reclaim a 4-3 advantage.

From there, Saint Mary's locked in defensively, shutting down any final comeback attempt in the seventh to complete the sweep.

With the pair of wins, the Cardinals continued their strong conference start before quickly turning their attention to the road. Saint Mary's wrapped up the day and traveled to Moorhead, Minnesota, where they are set to face Concordia-Moorhead on Sunday at 1:00 p.m.