ST. JOSEPH, Minn. – The College of Saint Benedict softball team picked up a split with St. Olaf Saturday to stay alive in the hunt for the fourth and final spot in the MIAC Postseason Tournament, but now it needs a little help from around the league.
Heading into Saturday, CSB needed a sweep of the Oles to secure a berth outright. St. Olaf junior pitcher Julie Graf made sure that didn't happen as she struck out 15 to help the Oles to a 2-1 win in Game 1, but
Grace Gilmore came out and held the Oles in Game 2, and CSB snuck away with a 3-1 win and the split.
After Saturday's games, St. Thomas is the outright MIAC regular-season champion with a 19-3 record. St. Kate's is second at 16-6, and the Oles clinched the third seed with the Game 1 win. Hamline is currently in third with a 12-6 record, but has two MIAC doubleheaders left. The Pipers host Concordia Sunday and Bethel Monday, Saint Benedict (14-8 MIAC) needs Hamline to drop at least two games to have a shot at the No. 4 seed.
Save for a few big hits, the first game Saturday was very uneventful.
Kate Deming walked to start, but she was the only base runner Graf allowed until CSB loaded the bases in the fifth inning.
Madison Mikolich singled,
Codi Zwack was hit by a pitch and
Alex Smith walked, but
Olivia McCabe hit a fly ball to right to end the threat.
Ally Hjort was just as effect on the mound for CSB. She struck out five batters in the first three innings, and didn't allow a runner past second until the sixth. St. Olaf got a walk to start the sixth, the second batter reached on an error and a single loaded the bases. An RBI sac fly to center scored the first run of the game, and the Oles scored all the runs they would need on an RBI fielder's choice.
Emilie Antony walked to start the bottom of the seventh and scored on an RBI single by
Alex Smith, but Graf got the final strikeout to end the game.
Deming, Mikolich and Smith had CSB's only hits in the first game. Hjort gave up two runs – one earned – and five hits in seven innings. She had six strikeouts to bring her season total to 105, making her the first CSB pitcher to reach 100 or more strikeouts in a season since
Rachel Nelson in 2014.
In Game 2, Gilmore cmae out and took control of the game early. She walked two batters in the second and gave up a single in the third, but those were the Oles' only base runners until the seventh inning. St. Olaf scored one run on four hits, but Gilmore struck out two in the inning to end the game.
CSB, on the other hand, was able to work a few hits and walks early, and scored all the runs it would need in the fourth.
Kendra Swanson singled and later scored on an RBI triple from Mikolich, and she came around to score on an RBI single from Antony. CSB added one more run in the sixth on an RBI single from Smith.
Smith had two hits to lead CSB, which had eight total hits. Gilmore threw all seven innings and gave up a single run on five hits with eight strikeouts.
CSB is now 26-12 overall and waits until Monday afternoon to learn its postseason fate. The 2019 MIAC Tournament runs Friday through Sunday, May 3-5, at St. Thomas. The Tommies earned the right to host after winning the league's regular-season title.
