Saturday Live Stats/Video | Sunday Live Stats/Video

ST. JOSEPH, Minn. – The College of Saint Benedict softball team's bats were uncharacteristically quiet Thursday afternoon in a pair of MIAC losses to Bethel. The Bennies have two opportunities to get back on track and back in the W column this weekend as they host St. Olaf starting at 1 p.m. Saturday then travel to Hamline for a 1 p.m. doubleheader on Sunday.
 
Fans are welcome at both CSB's home field and at Hamline. All fans must mask and practice social distancing at both fields. Live stats for Saturday's home game will be here, and live stats and video for Sunday are available here.
 
ABOUT THE OLES
St. Olaf is the last remaining team undefeated in MIAC play heading into the weekend, and comes to St. Joe on an eight-game winning streak after sweeping Saint Mary's Thursday. Hannah Matthies leads the Oles and the MIAC with a .548 batting average, and she has 23 hits and 28 RBIs. Julie Graf recently became the 21st pitcher in Division III history to reach the 1,000-strikeout milestone.
 
ABOUT THE PIPERS
Hamline is 3-9 overall and 0-6 in the league and looking to snap a six-game losing streak heading into the weekend. The Pipers take on Augsburg on Saturday afternoon in Minneapolis. Theresa Klinnert leads the team with a .379 batting average and 11 hits, and Megan Rubbelke has a team-high four doubles and five RBIs. In the circle, Alex Molloy has a 3.25 ERA and Klinnert leads the team with 27 strikeouts in seven appearances.
LAST MEETING
CSB and St. Olaf split a MIAC doubleheader in 2019 in St. Joseph. The Oles won the first game 2-1 thanks to 15 strikeouts from Julie Graf, but CSB came back to win the second game 3-1 thanks to a solid performance on the mound from Grace Gilmore. She gave up just five hits and struck out eight batters.
 
CSB and Hamline split a 2019 doubleheader in St. Paul with the Pipers winning the first game 5-1 and CSB taking the second 4-0. Hamline had just three hits in the first game but took advantage of four CSB errors to pull away for the win. Mo Burns had a pair of RBI singles and Ally Hjort gave up just three hits in the second-game win.
 
THE STORYLINE
Both Elly Novak and Ally Hjort threw well in the circle Thursday, but the team's offense couldn't get anything going. The team managed just eight hits in the doubleheader, and the Bennies look to change that Saturday afternoon. CSB hopes to get back on track at the plate to relieve some of the pressure from the team's pitchers.
 
WHO TO WATCH:
Katie Carlson and Lauren York both doubled Thursday in the first game against Bethel, and Gabby Spencer had two of the team's three hits in the second game. Spencer is sixth in the MIAC with 22 total hits and 17 RBIs. Elly Novak gave up just five hits and struck out six as she picked up her first loss of the season in Game 1. She has 95 Ks to her name so far in 2021. Ally Hjort struck out four batters in the second game.