Game 1 Box Score | Game 2 Box Score

ARDEN HILLS, Minn. - The Bethel Royals trailed the visiting Saint Mary's Cardinals 6-4 in the bottom of the seventh inning in game two of their doubleheader when Ashley Lindberg (Jr., Sartell, Minn.) stepped to the plate with two runners on base. Facing a two-strike count, Lindberg laced a single to score Lisa Patnode (Jr., Princeton, Minn.) and Lauren Habisch (Jr., Lakeville, Minn.), which tied the game. The next batter, Lynnae Thompson (Jr., Stewartville, Minn.), turned on an inside pitch and sent a towering blast over the left field fence for a walk-off home run, capping off a dramatic 8-6 come from behind win over the Cardinals, giving Bethel a two game sweep as the Royals won game one 5-1.

Bethel looked strong as they took the field to start game one, and they held the Cardinals offense to no runs and one hit. That hit would be one of only four pitcher Rebecca Akerson (So., Lakeville, Minn.) would allow throughout the game. Akerson also had two strikeouts in her seven innings of work. She allowed just one run in the complete game victory, though it was unearned. Akerson would also come in to pitch the seventh inning of game two and subsequently earned her second victory of the afternoon.

A day after facing #4 nationally ranked St. Thomas, any opposing pitcher's offerings would have looked like slow motion, allowing the Royals to tee off and score runs. And that's what Bethel did their first time at bat, scoring two runs on an RBI single by Lauren Habisch (Jr., Lakeville, Minn.), one of three hits and three RBIs she would have on the day.

The Royals didn't score again until the fifth when the team had a series of three hits, started by a single by Patnode, followed closely by a double from Kelly Berg (So., South Haven, Minn.) and then one from Habisch. The efforts brought in two runs, and after adding one more in the sixth, the Royals clinched the 5-1 victory.

As game two began Bethel could only hope for a similar performance, and at the bottom of the first it looked to be just that. Berg hit a homerun - a solo blast to dead centerfield - followed closely by another double from Habisch. Then again, in the second, the Royals brought home two more players, bringing their total to three. But in the top of the third the Cardinals were finally able to rally, and scored two runs of their own – though in the bottom of the inning a double by Berg aided in another run for the home team.

In the fifth the Cardinals gathered even more prowess and tallied three runs, making the score 5-4 in their favor. And in the seventh, when they brought another girl across home plate, it seemed as though the tide was changing. That is, until four Bethel players stepped up to do what needed to be done to get the win.

Thompson's home run was the first of the season for her, and it gave Bethel its first two-game series sweep of the Cardinals since Bethel joined the MIAC for softball in 1994.

The wins bring Bethel to 12-10 overall and 4-2 in conference, while Saint Mary's loss drops them to 13-7 overall, 5-3 in the MIAC. The Royals will try to sustain their momentum, as their next game is scheduled for Thursday at 4 p.m. against the visiting UW-River Falls Falcons.