ARDEN HILLS, Minn. – For the second time in program history the Bethel University baseball team is headed to the NCAA Division III Championships following a sweep of the MIAC regular season and playoff title. The Royals head to St. Louis where they open up the regional round against Wooster. The four-team double-elimination event hosted by Webster University will be played at Lloyd Hopkins Field in Alton, Illinois.
 
The third-seeded Royals (33-9) squares off with the second-seeded Fighting Scots (30-14) on Friday, May 20 at 4:30 p.m. The other matchup between top-seeded Webster and fourth-seeded Crown is at 1 p.m.
 

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

Friday, May 20
Game 1: #1 Weber vs. #4 Crown • 1 p.m.
Game 2: #2 Wooster vs. #3 Bethel (MN) • 4:30 p.m.
 
Saturday, May 21
Game 3: Loser of Game 1 vs. Loser of Game 2 • 2 p.m.
Game 4: Winner of Game 1 vs. Winner of Game 2 • 5 p.m.
Game 5: Winner of Game 3 vs. Loser of Game 4 • 8 p.m.
 
Sunday, May 22
Game 6: Winner of Game 3 vs. Winner of Game 5 • 1 p.m.
Game 7: If necessary played if team with one loss wins game six
 
Winner advances to face winner of Denison Regional in Supers
 

TICKETS, PARKING & FIELD LOCATION

• Admission for all fans is $5 each day. Children under five are free. CASH ONLY
• Parking is free for all games.
• Field address: 98 Arnold Palmer Rd., Alton, Ill., 62018 (use address of stadium when searching in Maps)
 

BETHEL BASEBALL WEEKEND NOTES

SERIES HISTORY VS THE FIELD
• Against Wooster the Royals are 0-6 all-time having met with the Fighting Scots in Fort Myers, Fla. during their spring break trips.
• Versus Crown the Royals are 14-1 all-time that includes a win over the Polars back on March 28 this year at Hargis Park where BU won 12-2. The Royals lone loss to Crown came back in 2021 where they split a doubleheader inside U.S. Bank Stadium.
• Bethel and Webster, should they matchup this weekend, will play their first all-time meeting
 
LEADING OFF WITH CARLSEN
• Sophomore outfielder Matthew Carlsen has hit in the leadoff spot in every game for the Royals where his .449 batting average ranks 17th nationally.
• While he's on a current four-game on base streak, his longest streak of the year came at 30 games.
• Carlsen has a program single-season record 53 RBIs, 71 hits and 107 total bases.
 
THE STAFF
• BU's pitching staff under coach Tim Beasley has been lights out with a 3.22 ERA that ranks seventh nationally and is top 25 with five shutouts this year.
• The Royals opponents don't get to many free passes with the Royals holding a 2.40 walks allowed per nine innings mark that ranks fourth nationally. A 3.01 strikeout-to-walk ratio ranks 15th.
• At the MIAC Playoffs, they issued one walk in each of the three games while giving up only five runs over the 27 innings and striking out a combined 21 hitters.
• The freshman arm of Max Sutter ranks 27th nationally with a 1.85 ERA while posting a 7-2 record in 11 starts with six complete games. He has struck out a team-leading 63 hitters and only given up eight walks in 73 innings of action.
• Senior Marcus Krupke, who got the win in the MIAC Championship, is also 7-2 with three complete games and a 3.67 ERA.
• Southpaw Ty Koehn is 4-0 in nine appearances and eight starts. He posts a 2.36 ERA in 42 innings of work with 53 strikeouts.
 
THE RAABE FILE
• In his 11th season with the Royals, head coach Brian Raabe was named the MIAC Coach of the Year for the second time with his previous selection coming in 2015.
• It's the fourth time under the skipper that BU has had a 30-plus win season.