Box Score Game Summary

WINONA, Minn. — It took a little longer than expected, but the Saint Mary's University women's hockey team picked up its first win of the season Friday evening.

And it could not have come at a better time.

Stuck in the midst of a season-opening four-game winless streak, the Cardinals were in dire need of a win as they opened Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play by hosting Augsburg Friday at the SMU Ice Arena.

Fueled by goals from Amy Madden (East Grand Rapids, Mich.), Jessica Ribish (Elm Grove, Wis.) and Laura Mueller (St. Paul, Minn.), a win is exactly what the Cardinals got, as SMU rolled to a 3-1 victory.

"Obviously, we would have liked to have gotten our first win a little earlier than this, but it still feels good to finally put a win on the board," said SMU coach Terry Mannor, whose team opened the season with a 2-2 tie vs. UW-River Falls, but then dropped three straight heading into Friday's MIAC opener. "The fact that this was a conference game made (the win) that much sweeter. Our conference is so balanced, every (MIAC) game is important — last year there were just two points separating the third- and sixth-place teams, so we can't afford to take any games off."

The Cardinals were certainly on top of their game Friday, scoring single goals in all three periods, before the Auggies foiled SMU goalie Nikki Jung's (Inver Grove Heights, Minn.) bid for a shutout with their lone goal with just 2:08 remaining in regulation.

"Augsburg got the better of us last year — taking three of four points — so it was nice to turn the tables on them a bit tonight," said Mannor. "Everyone's feeling pretty good right now, but we've got to make sure we put this game behind us when we step on the ice again tomorrow (at Augsburg).

"They aren't going to roll over and play dead, we are going to have to play another solid game is we are going to beat them again."