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Saint Mary's University of Minnesota Athletics

THE OFFICIAL SITE OF SAINT MARY'S UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA CARDINAL ATHLETICS
msbutcher
3
Winner Saint Mary's SMU (8-8-1)
0
Minnesota Morris UMM (4-12)
Winner
Saint Mary's SMU
(8-8-1)
3
Final
0
Minnesota Morris UMM
(4-12)
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Saint Mary's SMU 2 1 3
Minnesota Morris UMM 0 0 0

Game Recap: Men's Soccer | | Donny Nadeau, Saint Mary's SID | dnadeau@smumn.edu

Butcher leads way as Cardinals drop UM-Morris

MORRIS, Minn. — Saint Mary's University of Minnesota men's soccer coach Peter Watkins is probably hoping Wednesday's performance against UM-Morris was just a preview of things to come when the Cardinals take the field in a must-win conference showdown against Carleton.
 
The Cardinals, who need to beat the Knights on Saturday—and get a little outside help­—in order to clinch the first MIAC Playoff berth in program history, turned up the offensive heat against the Cougars in the teams' final nonconference game.
 
And got a huge helping hand—make that foot—from sophomore Sean Butcher (Cave Creek, Ariz.).
 
Butcher assisted on both Cardinal goals in the first half, as Saint Mary's raced out to a 2-0 lead after the game's opening 45 minutes and never looked back in handing UM-Morris a 3-0 setback at Cougar Field.
 
Chris Beiersdorf (Arlington Heights, Ill.) got the offensive fireworks started in the 13th minute heading a Butcher free kick past UM-Morris goalkeeper Matt Marshall.
 
Sixteen minutes later, it was Jared Wolt's (Farmington, Minn.) turn to benefit from a Butcher cross, as the freshman also beat Marshall with a header to give Saint Mary's a 2-0 advantage.
 
Josh Balsiger (Camas, Wash.) gave the Cardinals a little breathing room, netting his second of the season off an assist by Garrett Grunke (Verona, Wis.) in the 77th minute.
 
The Cardinals had three goalkeepers combine on the shutout—Albert Centeno (Elk Grove Village, Ill.) started, with Nate Levy (Byron, Minn.) and Jimmy Perreault (Batavia, Ill.) playing the second half. None of the three had to make a save, as Saint Mary's held a 7-0 advantage in shots on goal.
 
The Cardinals, who improved to 8-8-1 overall—the most wins by a Saint Mary's men's soccer team since going 8-8-2 in 2002—return home for Saturday's key conference matchup against Carleton. Saturday will also be the final collegiate home game for Cardinal seniors Nate Blank (Timnath, Colo.), James Larson (Polson, Mont.), Victor Mendoza (Brooklyn Center, Minn.), Brett Heimerdinger (LaGrange, Ill.), and Jim Dreshar (Hugo, Minn.).
 
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