05/10/07

Their 18-0 win over UM-Morris in the 2007 UMAC tournament semifinals not only sends the Saints into Friday evening's championship game but their 13th shutout of the season also ties the NCAA Division III record for most shutouts in a season.

The team that set that record in 1999? St. Scholastica.

Mark Moriarty (8-2) pitched six strong innings for the Saints (35-6) in earning the win. After giving up three consecutive singles in the bottom of the first, Moriarty retired 12 batters in a row before surrendering a two-out walk in the sixth. His outing finished with Morris scoring no runs on five hits, one walk and six strikeouts.

Nick Hervin (1-7) took the loss for the Cougars (9-20) pitching three and two-thirds innings and surrendering 11 runs on seven hits and five walks.

Pick an offensive star of the night for the Saints, there were so many to choose from.

Was it Brandon Swartz whose two hits drove in the first runs of the game with a double in the first and a single in the third?

Or Blake Eller who doubled once, walked twice, picked up two RBI and scored four runs?

And then there was younger brother Grant Eller. All he did was hit a pair of towering homeruns over the left field fence in consecutive at-bats, one a solo shot to lead off the fifth and the other a two-run shot in the sixth.

Sean Claugherty smacked a bases-clearing double in the fourth to collect three RBI, catcher Mike Lewis had a triple and single driving in two runs and gave way behind the plate to Seth Harvey who added a single and two-RBI double himself.

The Saints pounded out 16 hits for 18 runs, including a 10-run fourth in which they sent 16 batters to the plate.

Meanwhile, Morris had a total of three baserunners after the first inning and only one reached second base on Moriarty and Eric Hagen who came on in relief and pitched a perfect seventh inning for the Saints.

The win means the Saints will play for their 11th consecutive UMAC championship Friday night. Their opponent will be the winner of a Northland College, Morris match-up -- the two teams the Saints have already beaten in the tournament -- earlier in the day.