ARDEN HILLS, Minn. – Back-to-back MIAC regular season champions has a nice ring to it! The No. 9 Bethel University softball team kept its perfect conference record in tack Wednesday afternoon pulling out a pair of wins over Saint Mary's, 6-5 and 3-1. The wins earn BU the No. 1 seed and hosting rights of the MIAC Playoffs on Saturday, May 13, start times and matchups will be announced at a later date.
 
Izzy Wilhelm had the walk-off RBI single that propelled the Royals in game one. Trailing for just the second time in MIAC play, BU used a two-run fourth and an insurance run in game two to claim the regular season crown for the third time in program history.
 
Game 1: #9 Bethel 6, Saint Mary's 5
• BU put it on the Cardinals early with a three spot in the bottom of the first. The first four hitters reached with Allie Fauth-Kilgore scoring on an executed double steal with Lexi DeBace. A sacrifice fly from Autumn Earney and Mikaela Girard scoring on a wild pitch capped it out.
• An unearned run for the Cardinals in the second made it 3-1 before BU responded in the third.
• Back in the lineup, Cortney Hokanson roped a single to left scoring one before Sydney Bartels tallied a sacrifice fly deep enough to score Wilhelm.
• The Cardinals got ahold of starter Kayla Simacek in the fifth with a two-RBI single to left.
• SMU tied it up at 5-5 in the sixth with four hits and sending seven hitters to the plate.
• Simacek forced SMU to strand a runner at second in the top of the seventh with BU having its 2-3-4 hitters coming up.
• DeBace started the frame legging out a bunt single to the pitcher. A five-pitch walk to Girard had ducks on the pond for BU.
• Two batters later Earney laced a single to right loading the bases for Wilhelm.
• Wilhelm left no double launching a one hopper of the left field fence for the finishing touches.
   
Game 2: #9 Bethel 3, Saint Mary's 1
• While Simacek had retired nine of the first 10 she faced through three innings, BU had stranded a runner in scoring position twice.
•  Saint Mary's scored first, doing so in the fourth scoring its leadoff single with a sacrifice bunt and then back-to-back singles.
• Despite the unfamiliar territory of trailing in the game, the Royals showed no panic in responding in the bottom half of the frame. Wilhelm showed off the power again with a one-out standup double to left. Bartels drove her in two batters later with two outs on a double that fell just in front of the right fielder.
• BU went up 2-1 as Jordyn Rudolph had her first hit of the day sending one back up the middle scoring Bartels.
• SMU didn't back down with runners at first and second in the fifth, but Simacek had some help from her defense. Kayla Hokanson took a grounder in the hot corner stepping on the bag at third before firing to first for the inning-ending double play.
• The Royals' insurance run came in the sixth as DeBace singled to center scoring Bartels who led off the inning with an infield single.
• Simacek picked up her 28th win of the year striking out four, walking one, and giving up five hits.
 
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BU starts a four-game road stand to close the year Saturday at Carleton. The doubleheader starts at 1 p.m. Read Full Article