After finishing second in the conference to St. Thomas, the Gusties will try to claim an automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament by winning the MIAC Championship. They will attempt to avenge the loss to St. Thomas in last year’s championship game.
This weekend the Gustavus Women’s Softball team will participate in the MIAC Playoffs in Mankato. Currently the Gusties are ranked second in the MIAC right behind St. Thomas.
“St. Thomas is always our biggest competition. We lost two very close games earlier in the year, so when we see them again, I expect a similar game,” Sophomore infielder Lisa Klass said. Gustavus is 18-4 in the MIAC and 28-11 overall, while the Tommies are 21-1 in the MIAC and 34-6 overall.
“I think this team of competitive athletes can definitely win the MIAC Playoffs this weekend.
We’re coming in seeded second, but we can still win the whole thing and get that automatic bid to Regionals. We start out playing Bethel, who we can hopefully handle and get our first win out of the way,” Senior outfield Sheila Arnold said. “We would also love the chance to take revenge on St. Olaf, who we split with during the regular season. Our toughest competition in the tournament will be St. Thomas, who we lost to during the regular season. We played two excellent games against them, but couldn’t close them out. I’m confident that this third time we see them we will win. If we get on a roll with our offense and continue to work hard everywhere else, I believe we can take the whole tournament.”
“Our goal now is to win the conference playoff to guarantee us a spot in the regional tournament and then work our way through the tournament, just like last year, until we end up at Nationals and then anything can happen,” Klass said.
The Gusties will face Bethel in the first round of the MIAC Tournament on Friday at 3:00 p.m. at Caswell Park in North Mankato. Bethel is 22-18 overall and 14-8 in the MIAC. Last time Gustavus played Bethel, the Gusties swept winning the first game 10-4 and the second game 3-1.
“The season is definitely going well so far. We are continually getting better and we’re seeing different improvements each game. Coming from a tough tournament in Florida, we’ve really dominated the MIAC, only losing a few close games. Our offense has had its ups and downs, but our defense and pitching has been stellar. When we’re hitting, no one can stop us,” Arnold said.
The Gusties’ most recent series was on May 3 when they swept St. Scholastica. In the first game the Gusties won 7-0. Senior Callie Nelsen pitched a near perfect game, as St. Scholastica was only able to get two hits. Senior infielder Jenna Johnson started things off in the second inning with a leadoff home run. Then, in the fourth inning, the Gusties earned five runs to take a considerable lead over St. Scholastica.
The Gusties improved in their second game, winning 11-2 in five innings. Gustavus started off in the second inning scoring two runs and continued with three runs in the third inning and six in the fourth. Senior Betsie Collins pitched the first four innings and only allowed two hits while striking out three. First-year Kate Rentschler pitched the final inning, allowing one hit.
“The season has been great so far. Even though there were games we maybe should have won but lost, we came out fighting even harder for the next game. Playoffs are right around the corner, and I can’t wait to see what our team can do,” Klass said.
“This team has so much potential and we keep growing with each win and loss. One of the most amazing aspects of this team is the bonds we’ve formed with each other. Being so close and supportive of each other makes us the great team we are. We’re celebrating our progress with each step of the season and really starting to grow into an unstoppable group of girls. I think everyone on this team and all our fans can see how blessed we are to be a part of this program,” Arnold said.