ST. JOSEPH, Minn. -- With an eight-game winning streak, the No. 2 seeded College of Saint Benedict softball team (25-13) will face No. 3 seeded St. Olaf (24-15) in the MIAC Softball Playoff Semifinals at 1:30 p.m., on Saturday, May 10 in Winona, Minn.

After finishing 17-5 in the conference (25-13 overall), St. Ben's earned a No. 2 seed with its second-place finish and a first-round bye in the MIAC Playoffs. No. 3 St. Olaf defeated St. Catherine, 6-5, to advance to play CSB. The Oles sit 24-15 overall and finished the season at 14-8 in MIAC play.

 In the other semifinal, host and top seed Saint Mary's (32-3, 22-0 MIAC) will play No. 4 Macalester (27-14, 13-9 MIAC) at 11 a.m., in the other playoff semifinal game. The two teams that win in the semifinal round advance to the MIAC Playoff Championship at 4 p.m., on Saturday, also in Winona.

All-time CSB has a 6-15 record in MIAC Playoff games. A year ago, CSB dropped a 5-3 decision to Bethel in the semifinals. In 2023, CSB defeated St. Olaf, 8-1, in the playoff semifinals before dropping a 1-0 decision to No. 1 Bethel in the playoff title game. In 2022, No. 2 St. Olaf defeated no. 3 CSB, 7-4. St. Olaf and CSB also met in 2018 with the Bennies taking a 5-4 win in the playoffs.

In its 50th season, St. Ben's has accumulated 843 wins and 526 conference victories since their establishment in 1975. Last weekend the Bennies closed out the regular season by sweeping Bethel, 8-0, 4-3, in road MIAC games on May 3.

Scouting St. Olaf
St. Olaf, which is directed by ninth-year head coach Kayla Hatting, sits 24-15 after its 6-5 win over St. Catherine in the opening round of the MIAC playoffs.  St. Olaf has won four its past five games, including a sweep of Concordia (4-3, 9-2) on May 3 and a split with Macalester (2-0, 1-2) on April 27. The Oles rank third in hitting at .308 with 12 home runs, .409 slugging and .382 on-base percentage. In the circle, St. Olaf was fifth in the MIAC with a 3.06 ERA. Medora Rylee leads the team with a .453 batting average and .555 on-base percentage while Amelia Christenson is hitting .336 and Elle Brandt had six home runs and 24 RBI. In the circle, the Oles are led by Roxanne Ring with a 12-3 record and 2.15 ERA.

Series History
St. Benedict leads the all-time series with St. Olaf by a 53-28 advantage. The Bennies and Oles split a doubleheader on April 9 with a 7-1 CSB game one win before St. Olaf captured game 2, 3-2. In the last 10 games, CSB has a 7-3 edge although St. Olaf won the first-ever game between the programs, 7-1. In the MIAC playoffs, CSB has a 2-1 edge. In 2023, CSB defeated St. Olaf, 8-1 in the playoff semifinals before dropping a 1-0 decision to No. 1 Bethel. In 2022, No. 2 St. Olaf defeated no. 3 CSB, 7-4. St. Olaf and CSB meet in 2018 with the Bennies taking a 5-4 win in the playoffs.

Inside the Numbers – Saint Ben's
The Bennies are second in the MIAC with a .325 team batting average and lead the league in extra-base hits (102), doubles (63), and triples (21). They rank second in slugging (.475) and OBP (.385) and have 67 stolen bases in 77 attempts.

Erickson wins MIAC honors for 2nd time this year
Senior Megan Erickson of the College of Saint Benedict softball team, who hit .833 with four RBI in a sweep of Bethel on Saturday (May 3), earned the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) Player of the Week. Erickson is the 26th CSB player to earn the MIAC Offensive Player of the Week title, and the 46th overall when including MIAC Pitchers of the Week. She earned her second MIAC Player of the Week (February 24, 2025) and the fifth overall CSB player to be recognized this season, joining Bryn Ruhberg (Player of the Week) on March 24; and Cat Smetana (Player of the Week) and Olivia Wallace (Pitcher of the Week), who were both honored on March 3. In the 8-0 and 4-3 sweep of Bethel in Arden Hills, Minn., on May 3, Erickson was 3-for-3 with a double, three RBI, and a pair of runs scored in an 8-0 game-one win before going 2-for-3 with another RBI in the 4-3 regular-season finale. The senior played catcher for the first game before moving out to left field for game two. She also had two runs scored, a double, 1.000 slugging and .833 on-base percentage with two putouts in the field in helping CSB extend its winning streak to eight games. During CSB's 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.  

Player Notes _ Hitting

• Cat Smetana (Jr., IF) is hitting .397 (6th MIAC), with a 1.008 OPS (11^th, MIAC), and 52 hits (2^nd, MIAC). The junior has 40 RBI (2nd MIAC), 13 doubles (5^th, MIAC), and a .588 SLG (9^th, MIAC).
• Olivia Tautges (Jr., IF) is hitting .386 (9th MIAC) with a 1.046 OPS (7^th, MIAC), and has three home runs, 25 RBI, and MIAC-best five triples (T-1st).
• Bryn Ruhberg (Jr., C/OF) is batting .386 (10th MIAC), with a team-best 1.191 OPS (3^rd, MIAC), and five home runs (T-3^rd, MIAC), 33 RBI (4^th, MIAC), .682 SLG (2^nd, MIAC), .509 OBP (3^rd, MIAC), and a league-leading 15 HBP. She holds CSB's career record with 26 HBP.
• Lilly Treml (Fr.) is hitting .352 and leads the MIAC with 24 walks (tied for CSB all-time mark) and her .466 on-base percentage ranks sixth in the league.
• Megan Erickson – Erickson is fourth on the team with a .352 average, totaling 39 hits, 13 extra base hits, including three homers, 28 RBI, .532 slugging and .358 on-base percentage. She has a 1.000 fielding percentage with 101 putouts and nine assists. Additionally, she has a .322 career batting average with 124 hits (15^th all-time at CSB), 32 doubles (tied for 4^th all-time at CSB), nine home runs (tied for 9^th all-time at CSB). 92 RBI, .491 slugging (22^nd, 
• Olivia Van Hout is hitting.351 with 22 stolen bases (25 attempts).
• Izzy Guttenfelder (Fr.) – is .444 with a 1.019 OPS and has a .519 slugging mark.

In the circle - 

• Ellie Peterson (Jr.) – 11-8 on the year, 3.17 ERA, 72 strikeouts, and 13 complete games. With 39 career wins, she ranks 6th all-time at CSB. Her career status includes 357 innings, 37 complete games, and 258 strikeouts. In her career, she has a 2.84 earned run average and a .241 batting average by opponents.
• Olivia Wallace (Jr.) – 11-4 record, team-best 2.10 ERA, three shutouts, and eight complete games across 15 starts.