Game Summary

WINONA, Minn. — With a 5-1 record, Saint Mary's University women's basketball coach Kim Fierke was feeling pretty confident about what her Cardinals had already accomplished.

Confident, but definitely not overconfident.

After all, despite five wins in their first six games, Fierke knew her Cardinals hadn't faced a team with the potency of Saturday's opponent, Gustavus.

“It's no secret that (the Gustavus game) is our biggest test so far,” Fierke said before tip-off. "I know our players are going to refocus and be ready to go — they know how important this game is and they aren't about to put anything but their best game on the court.”

And Fierke was right, the Cardinals put together one of their best performances of the young season.

Unfortunately, their best wasn't quite enough, as Gustavus escaped with a nail-biting 78-74 victory, handing SMU its first conference loss in four contests.

"It was a great game, a real battle from start to finish," Fierke said. "We grabbed a six-point lead early, but that was the biggest lead either team had. It was a seesaw affair that went right down to the wire — and that's all you can ask for an as a coach, for your team to be in position to win at the end."

Problem was, Gustavus was in the same position — and the Gusties found a way to pull it out.

"We sent them to the free throw line too much, and in the end, that was the difference," said Fierke, whose team put Gustavus to the line 25 times, with GAC converting 20 of those tries. "We put them to the line and they made us pay for it."

Jaimie Lee (Eden Prairie, Minn.) led a trio of Cardinals in double figures with 18 points, while Alissa Erichsen (Spring Valley, Minn.) and Amy Burns (Winona, Minn.) chipped in 16 and 14 points, respectively.

"I was very happy with our effort, we played a good game — Gustavus just played a little better," said Fierke. "We're going to win our share of (close) games like that, and, unfortunately, we're going to lose a few, too."

The Cardinals don't have long to dwell on the loss, with Concordia in town Sunday afternoon.

"Having to play back-to-back games is both good and bad," explained Fierke. "It's good because it doesn't allow us to spend much time worrying about (the loss to Gustavus). On the other hand, back-to-back games against two of the league's best can really take its toll.

"But (Concordia) is in the same boat — they had to play a tough game (Saturday, a two-point loss to St. Olaf)," continued Fierke. "We'll be ready."