From March 20 to March 24, the St. Olaf Baseball Team played a game a day in central Florida against other NCAA Division III teams from across the states. The team was at the RussMatt invitational, a “spring break” tournament that hosts over 250 NCAA, NAIA, and JUCO teams across all divisions.
The Oles started play against Rowan University of Glassboro, N.J. on March 20, in Chain of Lakes Park in Winter Haven, Fla. The Oles won 3-2. The game was tied 2-2 after the 8th inning until Breckin Hadley ’26 hit an infield walk-off with all three bases covered and one out in the bottom of the 10th inning.
The next two days, the Oles played against Augustana College of Rock Island, Ill. and University of Wisconsin Stevens Point, losing both games.
Rallying after defeat, the Oles then played and won back-to-back games against Lawrence University of Appleton, Wis., winning 10-3 and 12-4 respectively.
The final game of the tournament played by the Oles was against Colby College of Waterville, Maine. St. Olaf won a run-rule victory, while Jack Alley ’25 hit the first two home runs of his career, while Mason Buck ’26 hit his first as an Ole. A run-rule victory is a game won via the run-rule, which allows for games to end early when one team has a significant lead over the other. The lead in this case was 17-4.
