WINONA, Minn. – The St. Olaf College softball team completed its third Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) sweep of the season by topping Saint Mary's University by scores of 5-2 and 5-1 on Sunday afternoon at SMU Softball Field.

Facing a Saint Mary's team (19-7, 7-3 MIAC) that was coming off a sweep of No. 10-ranked Bethel University and was receiving votes in this week's National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Division III Top 25 Coaches' Poll, St. Olaf (15-11, 6-4 MIAC) held a potent Cardinals' offense in check and scored six seventh-inning runs in the two wins. The sweep pulled the Oles within one game of the Cardinals in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) standings nearing the midway point of conference play.

Saint Mary's entered the day hitting .354 as a team and averaging 7.7 runs per game this season, but three St. Olaf pitchers held the Cardinals a .188 batting average (9-for-48) and three runs (one earned) over 14.0 innings of work for a 0.50 ERA. The Cardinals were 2-for-17 (.118) with runners on base and 1-for-10 (.100) with runners in scoring position, while the Oles were 9-for-27 ( .333) with runners on and 8-for-21 (.381) with runners in scoring position. Senior Hannah Peschel and junior Amelia Christenson combined to drive in nine of St. Olaf's 10 runs on the afternoon.

The Oles head to Augsburg University on Wednesday, April 17 for a 3:30/5:30 p.m. doubleheader against the Auggies.

St. Olaf 5, Saint Mary's 2 | Box Score

Senior Jenna Peschel held Saint Mary's to five hits and two unearned runs in a complete-game effort to lead St. Olaf to a 5-2 victory in the opener. The senior did not walk a batter and had one strikeout in her second victory of the season.

The Oles scored single runs in the first and third to take a 2-0 lead before the Cardinals answered with two unearned runs in the fourth to tie it up. St. Olaf broke the tie with a run in the fifth and added a pair of insurance runs in the seventh to hand Saint Mary's just its second MIAC loss of the season.

Senior Shreya Ashok was 3-for-3 with two stolen bases and two runs scored in her fourth game of the season with at least three hits. Christenson and classmate Medora Rylee both had two-hit games, as Rylee was 2-for-4 with a run scored and Christenson was 2-fo-4 with two RBI. Hannah Peschel also knocked in two runs and with sacrifice flies and scored once.

Christenson got the scoring started in the top of the first with a two-out RBI single to left that scored Ashok, who reached on a one-out single and stole second with two outs. Saint Mary's threatened to tie the game or take the lead in the bottom of the first, putting runners on second and third with one out, but Hannah Peschel made a diving catch in shallow center field and doubled the runner off second to end the inning.

In the top of the third, Rylee and Ashok started the inning with back-to-back singles and a throwing error on Ashok's bunt single allowed both runners to get into scoring position. Hannah Peschel followed with a sacrifice fly to left to score Rylee, although Saint Mary's avoided further damage to keep its deficit at 2-0.

The Cardinals took advantage of an error to score two runs in the bottom of the fourth to tie the game at 2-2, but the Oles proceeded to break the tie in the next frame. Jenna Peschel led off the inning with a bunt single, stole second, got to third on a single by Rylee, and scored two batters later on another Hannah Peschel sacrifice fly.

Jenna Peschel worked around a two-out double in the bottom of the sixth to keep St. Olaf's lead intact before the Oles added to their lead in the top of the seventh. With runners on the corners and one out, Christenson singled on a hard-hit grounder to first base to score Ashok and senior Katie Weisheit followed with a line-drive single off the first baseman's glove to bring in Hannah Peschel.

After the fourth-inning throwing error, Jenna Peschel retired 11 of the final 12 Cardinal hitters to finish off her second complete game of the season.

St. Olaf 5, Saint Mary's 1 | Box Score

Sophomores Roxanne Ring and Madyn Singleton combined to limit Saint Mary's to one run on four hits and four walks over seven innings in game two. Ring received a no-decision after giving up one run on three hits with two walks over 5.2 innings. Singleton improved to 4-2 with 1.1 innings of shutout relief, allowing one hit and two walks.

Kenzie Gatz held St. Olaf to five hits in the game, but Hannah Peschel delivered the go-ahead, bases-clearing double to break a 1-1 tie in the seventh inning. Christenson was the lone hitter on either team with multiple hits in the nightcap, going 2-for-4 with a pair of RBI singles.

Christenson knocked in the first run of the game in the top of the third with a single to left after coming to the plate with the bases loaded and two outs. Saint Mary's manufactured a run in the bottom of the fourth with a single, a stolen base, a sacrifice bunt, and a ground out to tie the game at 1-1.

The teams remained deadlocked at 1-1 until the top of the seventh when Hannah Peschel delivered the big blow with a three-run double. After the Cardinals intentionally walked Ashok to fill the bases with out one, Peschel lined a double into left-center field to score Ashok, Rylee, and Jenna Peschel to put St. Olaf ahead 4-1. In the next at bat, Christenson dropped a single into left field to score Hannah Peschel from third and give the Oles a four-run cushion.

After stranding the go-ahead run at second by getting the final out of the sixth, Singleton got a double-play grounder to fifth-year senior Maya Patty at shortstop to end the game after Saint Mary's put two runners on with one out in the final half inning.