simply the best! - Saint Mary's University of Minnesota

national tournament, the Cardinals
were as calm, cool and collected as
ever.
When the going got tough — the
Cardinals got tougher.
“We approached (the Chapman)
game just like every other game to
this point,” said third baseman Gina
Rizzardi, who went 1-for-2 with an
RBI in the title-clinching win over
Chapman and finished with a .364
batting average in the team’s four
championship-series games. “You
can’t get yourself too caught up in all
the hype and stuff. We knew what we
were playing for, but we also knew
that if we were going to win it, we
needed to stay focused and calm.”
If the Cardinals did have any
title-game jitters, they were quickly
calmed by the bat of freshman
Jackie Huegel, who laced a two-out,
versity fastpitch softball team was
busy taking turns hugging the national
championship trophy, coach Tschida
looked a little uncomfortable.
After 46 games, his team had
just accomplished what had only
been a dream four months ago —
they had won the school’s first-ever
NCAA Division III national team
championship, beating Chapman 5-0
in the title game in Salem, Va., to
complete a perfect 4-0 run through
the national tournament.
Yet, there Tschida stood, in the
middle of Diamond No. 1 of the
James I. Moyer Sports Complex, with
a sort of blank look on his face.
“What do we do now?” he asked.
For the first time all season,
Tschida was at a loss.
There were no games to scout,
pitches to chart or players to study.
“Coach Tschida is always so prepared,”
said SMU junior Jill Hocking,
who went 1-for-4 against
Chapman and scored one of the Cardinals’
five runs.“He spends so many
hours scouting other teams, breaking
down films … there’s no question his
hard work is one of the big reasons
we are national champions.”
“It’s amazing how much he
knows,” said Jennifer Meyer, who
was one of five Cardinals named to
the all-tournament team, after hitting
.400 with two singles, a double, a
triple and a home run in the national
tournament. “He didn’t get a chance
First-team All-American
Jill Hocking delivers
one of her three hits
during the Cardinals’ run
to the NCAA Division III
national championship
in Salem, Va.
to scout (The College of) New Jersey,
but after the first time through the
order, he knew what pitches were
coming. I couldn’t believe it.”
More important than his ability
to read opposing pitchers, or his talent
for decoding the opposition’s
signs, is Tschida’s ability to bring out
the best in his players. Whether it’s
by throwing 800-plus pitches in batting
practice, or by taking extra time
to school a young pitcher on her riseball
or curve, Tschida always has the
time to work with his players.
“Coach Tschida is always there
for us,” said Laura Miller, the alltournament
designated hitter. “He
has a way of always bringing out the
best in all of us. He keeps us levelheaded
and focused — and when you
get this far (the national tournament),
that’s invaluable.”
“We feed off his heart,” said
senior Teisha Smith, who was the
tournament’s top pitcher, throwing
three complete-games, posting two
shutouts and carrying a 1.04 ERA.
“You can see his love for the game,
and we just eat that up.
“He has put in a lot of extra time
with this team and this is his championship
as much as it is ours.”
“We’ve been on a mission all
season,” explained Tschida. “We’d
approach every day, every game, as a
mission. And after each game, we’d
prepare for the next mission.
“Now, there are no more missions.”
How about this one: Sit back,
relax and enjoy your first national
championship.
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