Saint John's baseball begins a five-game stretch over three days with a 2:30 p.m. doubleheader at Carleton on Tuesday, April 8, in Northfield. The Johnnies then host Hamline for a 2:30 p.m. doubleheader on Wednesday, April 9, before welcoming Minnesota-Morris for a nine-inning non-conference game at 4:30 p.m. Thursday, April 10, in Collegeville.

GAME COVERAGE
-Tuesday, April 8, at Carleton (in Northfield): Live Stats | Live Video

-Wednesday, April 9, vs. Hamline (in Collegeville): Live Stats | Live Video

-Thursday, April 10, vs. Minnesota-Morris (in Collegeville): Live Stats | Live Video

A LOOK AT THE JOHNNIES: No. 18 Gustavus Adolphus handed Saint John's (12-9, 2-2 MIAC) a doubleheader sweep, 17-6 and 12-4, yesterday (Sunday, April 6) at Haugen Field at Becker Park.

The Johnnies issued 20 free passes (18 walks and two hit batsmen) in 16 innings and committed six errors. The Gusties, meanwhile, batted .419 (18-for-43) with runners on base, including .406 (13-for-32) with runners in scoring position, and .404 (19-for-47) with one out or less on the day.

Game 1 – Gustavus Adolphus 17, Saint John's 6
SJU built a 3-1 lead after three innings thanks to an unearned run in the second inning and a pair of extra-base hits in the third. Senior third baseman Joe Becker (New Prague, Minn.) walked with two outs in the third and scored on a triple off the bat of senior first baseman Owen Best (Aurora, Colo./Regis Jesuit), who crossed the plate on a double from junior right fielder Brendan Hemr (Blaine, Minn./Centennial) in the next at-bat.

The Gusties, however, responded with six runs on four hits in the top of the fourth inning and broke the game open further with 10 runs in the over the next three frames (two in the fifth and four each in the sixth and seventh).

Becker launched his team-leading sixth home run of the season, a two-run shot, in the seventh inning and drove in the Johnnies' sixth and final run with an RBI single – the 200th hit of his career – with two outs in the seventh.

Senior Connor Hartley (Inver Grove Heights, Minn./Rosemount) took the loss for SJU, allowing seven runs on five hits in four innings.

Game 2 – Gustavus Adolphus 12, Saint John's 4
GAC jumped out to a 5-0 lead thanks to five runs (two earned) on four hits, coupled with two SJU errors, in the top of the second inning.

Sophomore designated hitter Zach Helfmann (St. Louis Park, Minn.) led off the bottom half of the second with a towering homer down the left-field line for his fifth of the season. 

The visitors tacked on a homer of their own in the top of the fourth inning and SJU matched it with a manufactured run in the bottom half. Sophomore left fielder Alex Matchey (Stillwater, Minn./Stillwater Area) doubled for his second-consecutive at-bat to start the frame, moved to third on a groundout and scored on a sacrifice fly from junior center fielder Owen Amrhein (Waconia, Minn.).

SJU cut its deficit to 6-3 with a single run in the bottom of the sixth inning, but the Gusties responded with six runs over the next three innings to put the game away.

Best ended the game's scoring with a two-out, RBI single in the bottom of the ninth inning.

The home team was 3-for-20 with runners on base, including 1-for-12 with runners in scoring position, in the loss.

Senior Will Fazio (Minneapolis, Minn./Blake) suffered his first loss of the season (3-1), allowing six runs (three earned) on seven hits in five innings.

Matchey led SJU's bats with a 3-for-4 performance in the nightcap.

Becker (3-for-6) and Hemr (3-for-9) matched Matchey with three hits on the afternoon. Hemr extended his reached-base streak to 15 games, including a hit in 13-straight contests.

200 HITS: Becker became the second Johnnie in program history to eclipse 200 career hits yesterday against Gustavus and now has 201 in his career, eight from the record of 209 owned by Max Jackson '19. 
 
STAT COMPARISONS
Batting Average  
-SJU, .315
-CAR, .281
-HU, .254
-UMM, .253

Slugging Percentage
-SJU, .482
-CAR, .446
-UMM, .338
-HU, .327

On-Base Percentage
-SJU, .404
-CAR, .393
-UMM, .373
-HU, .357

ERA
-SJU, 5.24
-UMM, 5.69
-HU, 8.02
-CAR, 8.37

Opponent Batting Average
-SJU, .258
-UMM, .288
-CAR, .293
-HU, .344

Fielding Percentage
-CAR, .965
-UMM, .963
-SJU, .951
-HU, .938
 
A LOOK AT THE KNIGHTS: Carleton (6-8, 0-2 MIAC) saw its losing streak slip to five games with a pair of extra-inning defeats – 3-2 (8 inn.) and 3-1 (9 inn.) – on Saturday (April 5) at Bethel. Junior Will Schnepf leads the team with a .471 batting average (16-for-134) and is 1-0 with a 0.45 ERA, .121 opponent batting average and 16 strikeouts in four starts (20 innings) on the mound. Junior outfielder Sam Gossard leads the team in hits (20), home runs (3), RBI (16) and stolen bases (5) with a .400 average.
 
LAST SPRING: SJU batted .493 (34-for-69) with 16 extra-base hits (10 doubles and six home runs) in a doubleheader sweep of Carleton last April 13 (2024) in Collegeville. The Johnnies erased a 5-1 deficit with 12-straight runs for a 13-8 victory in game one and erupted for 14 runs over the final five innings of game two – including a walk-off grand slam from Becker to invoke the 10-run rule – in a 20-9 win to complete the sweep. Six Johnnies totaled four hits or more on the afternoon (five scored four runs or more).

Becker finished 4-for-9 with three home runs, 10 RBI and five runs scored in the twin bill. His nine RBI in game two alone tied the program record set by Bob Ilg on April 22, 1959, at Macalester. 

Game 1 – Saint John's 13, Carleton 8
SJU found the scoreboard first in the bottom of the second inning when center fielder Jordan Amundson '24 posted a leadoff double and scored when Carleton's left fielder mishandled a single off the bat of left fielder Jack Schleper '24.

The Knights, however, responded with a five-run top of the fourth inning on three hits to gain a 5-1 lead.

A solo home run from Becker made it 5-2 in the bottom of the third inning before SJU erupted for five runs in the fourth, four in the fifth and two in the sixth. 

First baseman Jackson Peter cut the Johnnies' deficit to 5-4 with a two-run blast in the bottom of the fourth inning – his third long ball of the season and sixth as a Johnnie – and a pair of RBI singles from right fielder Rodney Erickson '24 and second baseman Owen Dauk '23 kept the rally alive for a 7-5 lead.

Erickson added a sacrifice fly prior to Dauk's three-run homer in the bottom of the fifth inning and a pair of RBI singles from senior catcher Blake Mellgren (Northfield, Minn.) and junior shortstop Reed Marquardt (Lindstrom, Minn./Chisago Lakes) ended SJU's scoring in the sixth for a 13-5 margin. Mellgren led SJU with five hits (5-for-7) on the day.

Carleton's Ryan Chang deposited an 0-2 pitch over the center-field fence for a three-run homer with two outs in the top of the seventh inning for the game's final runs.

Hartley went the distance, allowing the eight runs on 11 hits (10 singles) with six strikeouts to improve his season record to 4-2.

Game 2 – Saint John's 20, Carleton 9 (8 inn.)
The Johnnies jumped out to a 6-0 lead after the first two innings, but Carleton posted a five-run third and tied the game in the fourth.

SJU answered with a three-run fourth inning and never looked back. The home team scored three runs or more in six of the eight innings.

The Johnnies' top-six hitters in the lineup combined to go 15-for-27 with 16 RBI and 14 runs scored in the win.

Quinn Krueger '24 earned the win in relief, allowing two runs on three hits in two innings. Fazio was credited with an unearned run in two innings of work and Jeremy Klick pitched a scoreless eighth inning.
 
SERIES HISTORY: Saint John's leads the series over Carleton with a 57-20 record since 1984, including a 26-9 mark in Northfield. 

A LOOK AT THE PIPERS: Hamline (5-15, 0-2 MIAC) suffered its fifth- and sixth-straight losses with a home sweep to St. Olaf – 10-1 and 10-6 in 10 innings – on Sunday (April 6) at CHS Field in St. Paul. Fifth-year first baseman Tyler Johnson leads the Pipers in batting (.329), hits (26), runs (18), doubles (5), home runs (3), RBI (20) and stolen bases (8). Senior Dalton Maxwell is 2-2 with a 4.88 ERA, .289 opponent batting average and 21 strikeouts in a team-leading 31.1 innings this spring.

LAST SPRING: A pinch-hit grand slam with one out in the bottom of the sixth inning lifted Hamline to a 5-1 win in game one but SJU batted 8-for-17 with runners on base and 5-for-9 with runners in scoring position in the 8-4 victory in the nightcap last April 8 (2024) in St. Paul. The Johnnies left nine men on base and batted only 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position (2-for-13 with runners on) in the loss.

Game 1 – Hamline 5, Saint John's 1
An infield single with two outs – a pitch after the umpire flinched on calling strike three to end the inning – came around to score on an RBI single to give Hamline a quick 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning.

SJU left the bases loaded in the third and fourth innings, and left the tying run on third base in the fifth. The Johnnies final broke through with the game-tying run in the top of the sixth inning. Schleper started the frame with a double and advanced to third on a groundout from Best. Peter walked before Mellgren roped an RBI single through the left side of the infield to tie the game at 1-1. A strikeout and groundout ended the threat, however.

The strike zone shrunk for Kody Dalen '24, who issued three-straight walks to load the bases with one out in the bottom of the sixth inning. Klick came on in relief, but pinch hitter Jack Rheineck smacked the first pitch he saw over the right-field wall for the go-ahead grand slam.

Dalen took the loss (2-2 record), allowing four runs on five hits in 5.1 innings. He struck out four and walked five. 

Game 2 – Saint John's 8, Hamline 4
SJU broke out of the gate with seven hits and scored six two-out runs in the top of the first inning. Amundson tripled home a run and scored when the throw skipped into the SJU dugout. Schleper followed with his second double of the day (35th of his career) and scored on an RBI single off the bat of designated hitter Andrew Mahlke '24. Peter reached on an infield single and Mellgren tallied his second RBI single of the afternoon to make it 4-0. Marquardt ended the scoring with a two-run double.

The Pipers loaded the bases with a single and two walks (one intentional) with nobody out in the bottom of the second inning, but pitcher Griffin Larson '24 tallied three-straight strikeouts to end the inning. HU later cut its deficit to 6-4 with four runs on four hits in the bottom of the fifth inning.

SJU tacked on some insurance with another two-out rally in the top of the eighth inning. Marquardt followed a walk from Mellgren with a single, his career-high third of the game, before Erickson made it 7-4 with an RBI single. A wild pitch plated Marquardt for the four-run lead (8-4). The visitors finished 9-for-22 (.409) with two outs on the day.

Larson improved to 3-0 on the year with the win, allowing the four runs on six hits in five innings. He struck out six and walked three. Larson entered the day as the NCAA Division III leader in both ERA (0.47) and hits allowed per nine innings (2.37) and was fourth in WHIP (0.68).

Krueger held HU in check for the four-inning save. He allowed only one hit with five strikeouts in relief.

Marquardt led the Johnnies' bats with a 4-for-7 performance in the twin bill, while Amundson and Mellgren added three hits apiece.

SERIES HISTORY: SJU boasts a 47-20 lead in the series against Hamline since 1993, including a 26-6 record in Collegeville. The Johnnies have won nine of the last 10 games against the Pipers on their home diamond.

A LOOK AT THE COUGARS: Minnesota-Morris (9-14, 6-3 UMAC) completed at three-game sweep at Northland (Wis.) today (April 7) with a 16-3 win in seven innings, the Cougars' second 10-run-rule victory of the series. Prior to today's game, senior David Steffen was the team leader in batting (.333), hits (29), runs (18) and doubles (5), and was second in RBI (16) and stolen bases (10). Senior Jacob Schaaf was 3-0 with a 3.81 ERA, .198 opponent batting average and 17 strikeouts in 26 innings.

LAST YEAR: SJU rolled to a 15-2 win in seven innings over Minnesota-Morris last April 10 (2024) on its home diamond. The Johnnies took advantage of eight free passes (five hit batsmen and three walks) and clubbed seven extra-base hits (three doubles, two triples and two home runs) in the victory.

SJU scored a run or more in five of the six innings and built a 12-0 lead after the third. A sacrifice fly from Amundson and a wild pitch gave the home team an early 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning, followed by back-to-back five-run frames.

A bases-loaded wild pitch made it 3-0 in the bottom of the second inning before Erickson placed a two-run triple to center. Dauk brought in Erickson with a sac fly and Becker crushed his team-leading sixth home run of the season to left field to give SJU a 7-0 lead. 

Best led off the bottom of the third inning with a solo blast over the video board in right field for his first homer of the season and second in an SJU uniform. Singles from Peter and Marquardt sandwiched a hit-by-pitch of Mellgren to load the bases. Erickson plated Peter on a groundout and RBI singles off the bats of Dauk, Becker and Schleper enabled the Johnnies to bat around and increase their lead to 12-0.

An RBI groundout from Amundson and an RBI double from Schleper, his second two-bagger of the day, pushed SJU's lead to 14-0. Ryan McGie erased the shutout for Minnesota-Morris with a two-run double off the left-field fence in the top of the sixth inning.

Marquardt roped a one-out double down the right-field line and senior second baseman Ryan Janzen (St. Cloud, Minn./Cathedral) brought him in to end the game's scoring with a two-out triple.

Sophomore Carter Theisen (Rosemount, Minn.) made the start and earned his first collegiate win, allowing one hit in five scoreless innings. He struck out seven and walked one.

Each of the Johnnies' first six batters in the lineup drove in a run or more. Schleper led the way with a 3-for-4 performance with two doubles and a pair of RBI. Becker was 2-for-3 with three runs scored and two RBI, while Marquardt was 2-for-3 with three runs. Erickson drove in three and scored twice, and Dauk was 1-for-2 with a pair of RBI and runs scored. 

SERIES HISTORY: The Johnnies are 19-21 all-time against Minnesota-Morris, including an 11-9 record in Collegeville. The record improves to 12-8 (8-2 on the home diamond) since 1980. SJU has won each of the last eight meetings overall with a 92-25 run differential.