ARDEN HILLS, Minn. – The College of Saint Benedict softball team (25-13, 17-5 MIAC) is on a roll. On Saturday (May 3), the Bennies, led by five hits and four RBI from senior Megan Erickson and standout pitching from Olivia Wallace and Ellie Peterson, swept a MIAC doubleheader against Bethel (19-20, 12-10 MIAC) by scores of 8-0 (5 innings) and 4-3 at Ona Orth Athletic Complex.

As a result, St. Benedict has extended its winning streak to eight straight to conclude the regular season. CSB is now 25-13 on the season and 17-5 and second place in the MIAC.

MIAC Playoffs - CSB will face St. Olaf/St. Catherine winner on May 10 in Winona
The Bennies, which recorded their 14^th season of 25 wins or more in their 50-year history, have clinched a first-round bye in the MIAC Playoffs and earned the No. 2 seed. CSB will play the winner of the No. 3 St. Olaf (14-8) and No. 6 St. Catherine (10-12) at 1:30 p.m., on Saturday, May 10. Then, the winner of the semifinals games square off at 4 p.m., in the MIAC Playoff Championship with that winner earning the MIAC's automatic bid to the NCAA DIII Softball Tournament.

By the Numbers – 8-game winning streak
During the eight-game winning streak, Erickson has 15 hits in 23 at bats for a .652 batting average, 1.000 slugging mark and .615 OBP with five extra base hits and 12 RBI. In the last six games, she is 14-of-19 for a .737 batting average, 1.158 slugging and .750 OBP with nine RBI, and 22 total bases. Bryn Ruhberg is 10-of-20 for a .500 average with nine RBI while Lily Tremel has 12 hits in 27 at bats for a .444 average.

CSB has a team batting average of .377 in the eight-game run with 64 runs, 83 hits and 19 extra base hits.

In the circle during those eight games, CSB has had a 1.82 ERA with Wallace and Peterson both recording 4-0 records and combining for six complete games. Wallace has a 1.50 ERA with nine strikeouts and Peterson a 1.64 ERA with 12 strikeouts during the eight-game run.

Against Bethel – Bennies hit and pitch to sweep
As for today, Erickson closed out her final regular season with five hits in six at bats, driving in four runs. Treml was 4-of-7 with three RBI and tied the school record for walks in a season with 24 (Gabby Spencer, 2023). In addition, CSB's Bryn Ruhberg, who set a school season record with 15 hit by pitch and career mark of 25, heads into the playoffs ranked seventh for a season on-base percentage of .509 and 10^th with a .682 slugging percentage. As a team, CSB scored 12 runs on 19 hits and hit .352 while owning a 1.75 ERA in the circle. Peterson and Wallace allowed a total of three total runs and had five strikeouts with just one walk in the sweep.
 
Game 1 – Saint Benedict 8 Bethel 0 (5 innings)
Senior Megan Erickson and first-year Lily Treml each drove in three runs to lead CSB to an 8-0 win over Bethel in game one. Erickson had three hits, including a run-scoring double, two runs scored and three RBI. Treml had two hits, including a three-run triple, plus a walk which tied the season school record for walks (Gabby Spencer, 24, 2023).

In the circle, Ellie Peterson moved to 11-8 on the season; earned her 39^th career win while tossing her third shutout of the season and ninth of her career. She held the Royals to four hits and had a pair of strikeouts while throwing just 59 pitches in five innings.

In the second inning, Sammy Muetzel's RBI single gave CSB a 1-0 lead before Treml hit a two-out triple and plated three runs for a 4-0 advantage. In the third frame, Erickson's second hit of the game - a double – plated Olivia Tautges, who had singled. Then Addy Bowne delivered a run-scoring single to centerfield for a 6-0 advantage. Erickson had third hit of the game, a two-run run-scoring double, which gave CSB an 8-0 lead in the fourth inning. 

Game 2 – Saint Benedict 4 Bethel 3
Junior Olivia Wallace threw a complete game and earned her 11^th win of the season as the Bennies earned a 4-3 win over Bethel in game two.

Megan Erickson again led the offense with two hits and an RBI while both Bryn Ruhberg and Olivia Van Hout also contributed two hits in the victory.

Wallace (11-4) had her eighth complete game of the season by scattering 11 hits and three runs while tossing 117 pitches. She had three strikeouts for CSB.

The Bennies opened the scoring in the first inning as Erickson had an RBI single, and, with the help of a Bethel error, CSB led, 2-0. Bethel answered with a run in the home half of the inning to cut the lead to 2-1. In the fifth inning, Tuscany Ballot delivered an RBI single as the Bennies took a 3-1 lead. Cat Smetana's RBI extended the advantage to 4-1 before Bethel rallied with two runs in the seventh inning.