Saint John's plays host to nationally-ranked St. Thomas for its home finale at 2:30 p.m. today at Saint John's Field in Collegeville. – Listen Live (KJNB)

A LOOK AT THE JOHNNIES: Saint John's (19-6, 11-5 MIAC) swept Hamline with a pair of one-run wins, 3-2 and 10-9, at home last Saturday (April 26). SJU chipped away with singles runs in each of the first three innings in game one's 3-2 win and posted a four-run eighth inning in game two's comeback victory.

A DAY FOR TRIPLES: Senior outfielder Joe Lampe (Osceola, Iowa/Clarke) recorded four triples in the sweep of Hamline, 3-2 and 10-9, April 26, including the bases-clearing triple that gave SJU a four-run eighth inning in game two's comeback win. The four triples were to four different areas of the field: down the right-field line and to left (game one), then to right-center and left-center (game two). He currently leads SJU in extra-base hits (13), RBI (18), slugging percentage (.658) and outfield assists (3).

.957: Lampe had a hit in each of the six games last week to bat .391 (9-for-23) with five triples and a home run, for a .957 slugging percentage, six RBI and seven runs scored as SJU collected a 5-1 record. He now has six triples on the year, which ties an SJU season record with Jim Meyer (1986) and Greg Thoma (1994).

WHAT A WEEK FOR "JT": Senior catcher/pitcher Justin Thompson (Chanhassen, Minn./Chaska) posted a 1-0 record with three saves, a 1.50 ERA and a .190 opponent batting average in four appearances, 12 innings, last week. He made a spot start, the first of his career on the mound, in game two against Macalester April 22, and allowed his first two runs this season (earned or unearned) after the first four batters reached safely. Thompson went the distance, however, allowing four hits in the final eight innings (seven total) and struck out seven in the complete-game, nine-inning victory (5-2). He allowed a total of one hit and struck out four in three separate innings in which he earned saves (one vs. Concordia April 21 and two vs. Hamline April 26) the rest of the week. Thompson has a 0.86 ERA and a .160 opponent batting average with nine saves and 24 strikeouts (to four walks) in 12 appearances, 21 innings, this season. In two starts behind the plate, Thompson threw out all three attempted base-stealers and batted .600 (3-for-5) with a double and a run scored. He is currently riding a six-game hit streak (.438, 7-for-16 over the stretch).

9/10: The two saves against Hamline increased Thompson's season total to nine, one away from Joey Long's school record of 10 set in 2012. Thompson is also second in SJU history with 10 career saves, eight away from Long's record of 18.

TOP THREE ARMS: SJU boasts the top three pitchers, in regard to ERA (pitched 0.8 innings per team game), in the MIAC (all games): Thompson (0.86 ERA), freshman Derek Graves (1.19 ERA; Mora, Minn.) and sophomore Patrick Strey (1.29 ERA; Apple Valley, Minn./Eastview).

1B/DH COMBO: The first base and designated hitter combo of senior Tony Gazich (Arden Hills, Minn./Mounds View) and junior Tom Druk (Plymouth, Minn./Orono), which debuted April 19 at Carleton, has combined for a .383 batting average (23-for-60) with 10 runs scored and six RBI in the last eight games. Druk has a hit in each of the last eight games for a .448 average (13-for-29), while Gazich has 10 hits (.323) with six runs scored since taking over for the injured Josh Groth (Fridley, Minn.) at first base.

.244: Both pitching staffs enter today's doubleheader having allowed opponents to bat .244 this season. SJU boasts a league-leading 2.72 ERA with 136 strikeouts (to 78 walks) in 195 innings pitched. The Tommies, meanwhile, have a 3.40 ERA with 236 strikeouts (to 95 walks) in 249 innings.

LOB: The Johnnies have left 217 men on base in 25 games (188 innings), an average of 8.7 per game (1.2 per inning). UST has left 232 runners on the basepaths in 32 games (237 innings), an average of 7.3 per game (0.98 per inning).

A LOOK AT THE TOMMIES: St. Thomas (25-7, 14-2 MIAC) saw its 14-game win streak come to an end as it went 2-2 against Bethel and Carleton last week. Senior outfielder Tim Kuzniar leads the MIAC (all games) in batting average (.471) and slugging percentage (.769), while junior outfielder Ben Podobinski leads the league in triples (9) and is second in hits (52). Kuzniar, Podobinski and senior first baseman Tyler Peterson have combined for 53 of the team's 100 extra-base hits (27 doubles, 16 triples, 10 homers). Sophomore lefty Eric Veglahn (2.08 ERA, .206 avg., 39 innings) and junior Colin Wendinger (3.12 ERA, .265 avg., 40.1 innings) are both 5-0 on the year. Veglahn and reliever Tommy Danczyk (2.45 ERA, .221 avg., 36.2 innings) have combined for 77 strikeouts (to 16 walks).

LAST YEAR: Then-No. 5 St. Thomas batted .519 (14-for-27) with runners in scoring position and tallied multiple runs in six of the 14 innings in a doubleheader sweep, 16-3 and 10-1, at SJU last April 25 (2013) in Collegeville. The Tommies strung together four consecutive two-out hits, led by Peterson's solo homer with a 0-2 count, to gain a 2-0 lead in game one. UST added another run in the second before SJU cut its deficit to 3-2 with a pair of runs in the third but left the bases loaded. UST answered with seven runs on five extra-base hits in the fourth inning and added six more in the fifth. SJU ended the scoring with an unearned run in the sixth. Junior Tyler Delwiche (Andover, Minn./Totino-Grace) took the loss in his second varsity start, allowing eight runs on seven hits in 3.1 innings. Strey and junior Kurt Jantscher (Plymouth, Minn./Robbinsdale Armstrong) combined for two hitless innings of relief.

The Tommies jumped on junior Jack Hamilton (Minnetonka, Minn./Hopkins), his first varsity start, for three first-inning runs in game two and added four more in the third. The Johnnies' lone run came in the fifth. Jantscher started the inning with his first collegiate triple and scored on a groundout off the bat of Lampe. SJU batted .176 (9-for-51) on the day, while UST scored 26 runs on 27 hits, including 13 extra-base hits (nine doubles and four home runs).

SERIES HISTORY: St. Thomas holds a 39-15 lead in the series since 1991, including a 13-7 record in Collegeville and a 6-2 mark in postseason play.