The seventh-ranked (Class 1A) St. Edmond softball team begins their quest to get back to the state tournament here Wednesday night at Rogers Park.

After receiving an opening-round bye, the Gaels host Bishop Garrigan in a 1A, Region 7 quarterfinal. First-pitch is set for 7 p.m.

The Golden Bears (9-15 overall) knocked off Harris-Lake Park to advance on Monday, 18-2.

St. Edmond (21-10) won the North Central Conference for a fourth consecutive season this year, with the last three being outright titles.

Mariah Myers, a senior and University of Iowa commit, is hitting .603 with 10 home runs, nine doubles, four triples, 49 runs scored, 35 stolen bases and 34 RBI. She has been walked a state-leading 44 times and hit three more.

Classmate Lauren Gibb, who will play at Iowa Central in the fall, is batting .552 with 20 extra-base hits, 35 RBI and 29 runs scored while stealing 30 bases. Faith Shirbroun, a junior and a Keiser (Fla.) University commit, has 29 steals, a .402 average, six homers, 10 doubles and 41 runs scored.

Sophia Schlienz is also hitting over .400, while Myrah Lemon, Toryn Helle, Ansley Oswald and Hadley Oswald all have averages over .300.

As a team, St. Edmond has hit 24 home runs, 68 doubles, 16 triples and scored 256 runs with 133 walks and 190 steals.

Helle has taken over as the ace, going 12-5 with 84 strikeouts and a 2.16 earned run average.

Bishop Garrigan is paced by Alyssa Haugland, Jenna Peterson and Zoe Montag, who are all hitting over .400. Hannah Merron leads the team in RBI, while Haugland, Merron, Montag and Lillian Erpelding-Wickman each have over 10 steals.

Freshman Brooklyn Berte and eighth-grader Rikiya Nelson are the leaders in strikeouts.

The Gaels have dominated the series with their former NCC rivals, winning 12 of the last 14 meetings overall. St. Edmond has won seven of eight in the series, with the Golden Bears scoring a 5-0 win in 2021.