HOMESTEAD, Fla.. — The Saint Mary's University baseball team found itself leading both of its games in the sixth inning.

In the opener against Ramapo (N.J.), the Cardinals were able to make that lead stand up. In the second against Bowdoin, however, the couldn't, as SMU settled for a 3-1 win over Ramapo and a 5-4 loss to Bowdoin during the first day of SMU's spring trip.

"I thought we played OK," said SMU coach Nick Whaley. "I didn't think we hit the ball exceptionally well, but our pitchers did a pretty nice job and we made some nice defensive players. Overall, I was pretty pleased with our effort."

The Cardinals wasted little time taking control against Ramapo, scoring once in the first inning on an RBI double by David McMahon (Coon Rapids, Minn.), then adding two more runs in the second on a squeeze bunt by Eric Froistad (North St. Paul, Minn.) and an RBI single by Aaron Smolinski (White Bear Lake, Minn.).

And with Eric Williamson (St. Charles, Minn.) on the mound, three runs was more than enough, as the SMU junior held Ramapo to just one hit over four innings, walking one and striking out one. Nick Steig (Osseo, Wis.) came on in relief, setting Ramapo down in order in the fifth and sixth, before surrendering a one-out solo home run in the top of the seventh.

"Eric and Nick both pitched well," Whaley said. "And we made the plays defensively behind them."

The Cardinals' bats were held in check through the first four innings, managing just a fourth-inning single by Smolinski through the first four innings. Bowdoin, meanwhile, scored single runs in the second and third off SMU starter Cory Kanz (Oronoco, Minn.) to take a 2-0 advantage.

The Cardinals cut the gap to two, 3-1, on an RBI single from Froistad in the fifth, then took the lead with three runs in the top of the sixth. McMahon's RBI triple and Phil Hocking's (Apple Valley, Minn.) RBI single highlighted the three-run outburst.

Unfortunately, the Cardinals' one-run lead was short-lived as Bowdoin tagged SMU reliever Rob Hollnagel (La Crosse, Wis.) for three runs in the bottom of the sixth on back-to-back doubles from Tim Lora and Mark King, and an RBI single from Dave McCleod to seal the win.