ARDEN HILLS, Minn.—Bethel University's softball team continued their push for the MIAC playoffs Tuesday afternoon at home against Saint Mary's. The Royals (14-14, 9-5 MIAC) swept the Cardinals (16-14, 5-9) by a final score of 4-1 and 7-1. BU needed three runs in the bottom of the sixth of game one to complete the come-from-behind victory. Game two was a different story, however. The Royals jumped out to a 4-0 lead through two innings and never looked back, handing SMU a pair of losses on the day.    
 
Abbie Bircher had a phenomenal day at the plate going 5-for-8 with three runs scored and three RBI. Bircher's five hits helped Behtel finish with 22 total hits on the day, 16 of which were off of Saint Mary's most dominant pitcher Ashley Betzold.
 
Wendy Roberts, who leads the team in batting average, had another great day at the plate going 5-for-6 with two runs scored and an RBI. She helped the Royals to a three-run second inning in game two by distracting the Cardinal defense on a delayed steal, while Abbie Bircher came in to score from third to put the Royals up 4-0. 
 
Both Lindsay Edeen and Karli Persson both pitched exceptionally well. Edeen improved to 7-4 on the season with a complete-game victory, only giving up one run on four hits and fanning six Cardinal batters in game one. Persson, who is now 7-7 on the year and 4-1 in her last six outings, allowed one run on seven hits and had two strikeouts, also sporting a complete-game performance.
 
The Royals travel down to Northfield on Wednesday to face off against St Olaf College, as they continue to fight for that last spot in the MIAC playoffs. First pitch is scheduled for 3:30 p.m.