I don’t have much of an introduction for this week. I’ve determined that of the three sports seasons, winter playoffs are my favorite. You’ll see why below. 

Women’s basketball (22-6, 14-4): Three playoff wins result in MIAC title

You read that correctly. Your Bethel University women’s basketball team capped off a 3-0 week in the MIAC tournament with a 62-55 victory over one-seeded Concordia College in Saturday’s MIAC Championship game. It’s the program’s second conference playoff title; the first came in 2020. 

There’s so much to talk about. First, Bethel started hot with a suffocating (catch that?) performance Tuesday at home against the College of St. Scholastica. The Royals started the game, continued the game and finished the game hot, leading by 33 at halftime and ultimately winning 87-57. 

Simply put, it was too easy for the Royals, who shot 49% from the floor. Junior forward Emily Erickson led all scorers with 24 points as she continued her dominant junior season. Her success continued with her 1,000th career point coming on a layup early in the fourth quarter. 

Bethel dominated down low, outscoring the Saints 50-18 in the paint, and capitalized on 15 turnovers, which it turned into 18 total points. 

The Royals drove to St. Peter Thursday for a rematch of last season’s MIAC playoff championship against Gustavus Adolphus College. I was worried about this game — Gustavus has proven to be a demon of Bethel’s in recent seasons. But Bethel head coach Jon Herbrechtsmeyer’s squad conquered those demons with a 73-66 MIAC semifinal win. 

Erickson one-upped her Tuesday performance with a 27-point game on 10-of-15 from the floor. Senior point guard Colette Duininck added 14 points and seven steals. 

On paper, Gustavus and Bethel played as close as two heavyweights can get. It certainly helped that Gustavus matched each of Bethel’s 29 turnovers. The high turnover numbers likely contributed to both teams shooting over 50%. 

The Gusties cut their deficit to one midway through the fourth quarter, but an Erickson layup and clutch three-pointer by senior forward Elly Schmitz put the game out of Gustavus’s reach for the last five minutes. 

This set up a Saturday championship against the MIAC’s best team in the regular season – Concordia – who the Royals beat twice, despite losing to the next four best teams. 

It’s hard to beat a good team thrice, as they say, but Bethel pulled off the hard task thanks to a consistent three-point shooting performance and a clean offensive slate. The Royals shot 35% from the arc and committed just eight turnovers. They also allowed just one Cobber to score double digits: sophomore forward Kaia Gack, who totaled 10 points. 

Erickson led the way in scoring once again, but this time with a modest 15 points. Junior forward Cally Peterson followed with 14 points and Duininck added 12. 

Now, after securing the conference’s automatic bid into the NCAA Division III tournament, the Royals host the NCAA tournament Round of 64 this weekend. Bethel takes on Millsaps College Friday, with the winner playing the winner of the University of Wisconsin-Platteville and Coe College Saturday. 

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Men’s hockey (14-12-1, 9-7-0): Royals conquer Ole demons but fall to Johnnies

Is it that show Riverdale that says something about the “epic highs and lows of high school football?” I have no idea. But this week demonstrated the highs and lows of Division III college hockey. 

After being eliminated from the MIAC tournament two years in a row by St. Olaf College, the Royals decided the third time is indeed the charm and defeated the Oles 5-2 in the MIAC quarterfinal Wednesday. 

But, playing on short rest as a result of the Wednesday match, the high was short-lived as Bethel fell 4-1 in the MIAC semifinal to St. John’s University Saturday. 

Bethel junior forward Joe Westlund capitalized on a power play to put the Royals up 1-0 in the first period before St. Olaf responded seven minutes later. Five minutes after that, senior forward Tyler Kostelecky gave the Royals the lead once again. The Oles tied it again in the second period before an offensive onslaught in the third period gave Bethel the victory. 

Bethel outshot St. Olaf 55-32 in the game. 

That trend continued Saturday as the Royals totaled 52 shots to the Johnnies’ 30, but St. John’s goaltender Jon Howe proved too sturdy for Bethel to overcome as he knocked away 51 of those shots. 

Bethel senior goaltender Austin Ryman struggled in his last career game between the pipes for the Royals. He proved solid in several one-on-one opportunities, but the Royals allowed too many of them, leading to a 4-1, season-ending loss. 

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Women’s hockey (14-10-2, 8-9-2): Miracle season comes to a close in St. Peter

All good things must end. After winning six consecutive games to end the regular season, the Bethel University women’s hockey team met its match in a 2-0 MIAC quarterfinal loss at Gustavus. 

The Royals took after the men in outshooting their opponent, 26-20, but to no avail. 

Regardless, it was an incredible and fun season for women’s hockey. It now remains up to basketball to carry out this season’s legacy of Bethel women’s sports. 

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This is unique to Penner’s Pen, but I’d be flamed for ignoring it. 

For the fourth straight season, the Bethel University men’s indoor track team is MIAC champions. The women’s team also claimed third place. 

There’s not a lot else I can say, but Bethel claimed several event titles, and I’d honestly be plagiarizing if I listed them in writing here, so read them here instead. We also talk about it on Double Coverage. 

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And just like that, winter sports are (nearly, thanks to women’s basketball) done. It’s been a blast. Baseball officially started with big wins at U.S. Bank Stadium Thursday, but there will be plenty of that to talk about in the spring. Softball is coming, as well. 

Until next time, stay tuned for national tournament content from women’s basketball, check out Gregory Alan Isakov and call your parents. 

Love y’all.