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Cardinal Roster
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Cardinal Statistics
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Cardinal Schedule
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MIAC Standings
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MIAC Statistics
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| 2006 Records: 0-0 MIAC, 0-3 Overall |
| Last Week's Results: Christian Bros. U. 4, Saint Mary's 0 / Details Christian Bros. U 6, Saint Mary's 5 / Details Christian Bros. U 9, Saint Mary's 6 / Details |
| Upcoming Events: Mon., March 6: SMU vs. Dickinson St. (at HHH Metrodome), 5:30 p.m. Sat., March 11: SMU vs. MSOE at Wash. U, St. Louis, Mo., 8:45 a.m. Sat., March 11: SMU at Wash. U, 3:15 p.m. Sun., March 12: SMU vs. MSOE at Wash. U, St. Louis, Mo., 8:45 a.m. Sun., March 12: SMU at Wash. U, 3:15 p.m. |
| Cardinal News and Notes: The Cardinals became the first collegiate team in Minnesota to play a game when they took the field for Friday's season-opener against Christian Brothers University in Memphis, Tenn. … Brady Knudsen (Racine, Wis.) had at least one hit in all three SMU games — including the Cardinlas' lone hit in their season-opening 4-0 loss last Friday. Knudsen hit .400 (4-for-10) and drove in two runs with the season's first home run. … Dan Cosgrove (South St. Paul, Minn.) drove in a team-best three runs in SMU's three games. … SMU's pitching staff gave up 13 earned runs, while walking 13 and striking out nine. … The Cardinals gave up the game's first run in two of their three games vs. CBU. … Ten of the 19 runs SMU allowed vs. the Bucs came in the fifth and sixth innings (5 runs each). … Knudsen's home run — a two-run shot in the third inning of Saturday's 9-6 loss — was the Cardinals' lone extra-base hit vs. CBU. |
still searching for 1st victory after going 0-3 vs. CBU
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Who's Hot?
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Brady
Knudsen .400 BA with 1 HR vs. CBU |
And, offensively, the Cardinals did just that.
Unfortunately, they weren't able to parlay that improvement into any wins, as the Bucs completed a perfect 3-0 run vs. the Cardinals with a 9-6 victory last Saturday afternoon.
The Cardinals, who were one out away from being CBU pitcher John Daush's first-ever perfect-game victim in losing their season-opener 4-0, got their offense on track in the second game of Friday's nonconference doubleheader, collecting 10 hits and five runs in a 6-5 setback.
And Saturday, that offensive improvement continued, as SMU scored a season-best six runs on eight hits — including the first home run of the season, a two-run shot by Brady Knudsen (Racine, Wis.) in the third inning — only to come up just short once again, as CBU broke a 6-6 tie with three runs in the bottom of the eighth to ice the 9-6 win.
"We went into these games with a plan to play with a relaxed intensity," said SMU coach Nick Whaley. "We had the intensity, but we didn't allways accomplish the relaxed part.
"We were very tight, especially (in the first game of Friday's doubleheader), which is to be expected with a young group like this playing in their first games," said Whaley, whose team committed seven errors in the three games. "This was a good trip for us. We found ourselves in all kinds of different situations — some we handled well, others we didn't, but that's part of the learning process.
"All-in-all, I was very happy."
CBU jumped on SMU starter Matt Popek (Eagan, Minn.) for six runs, only three of which were earned, in four innings on Saturday, as the Bucs grabbed a 6-2 advantage. SMU plated single runs in the fifth and sixth, then tied the game on a bases-loaded walk to Dan Cosgrove (South St Paul, Minn.) and an RBI sacrifice fly by Nick Winecke (St. Paul, Minn.) in the top of the eighth.
Then came the Bucs' half of the eighth.
SMU reliever Tyler Igou (Spencer, Iowa) hit the first two batters he faced, and the two advanced to second and third on a wild pitch. A one-out walk to Ryne Dahlke loaded the bases and Andrew Griffey followed with an RBI single. Cosgrove, on in relief of Igou, got Rocky Escajadillo to ground to short, but the relay from second baseman Kevin Black (Mahtomedi, Minn.) to first to complete what would have been an inning-ending double play sailed wide, allowing the Bucs' third run of the inning to score.
"Obviously, you hate to travel this far and not be able to come away with a win, but this trip really wasn't about wins and losses," said Whaley. "Our goal was to get a couple games under our belts and get a little bit of a gauge as to where we are at.
"Overall, there were plenty of bright spots — it was a good start for us."