NORTHFIELD, Minn. – The Saint Mary's University volleyball team, having locked up a post-season berth with a regular season-ending 3-1 conference win at Gustavus, kicks off Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Tournament action Tuesday, traveling to St. Olaf for a 7 p.m. match against the third-seeded Oles.
The Records
No. 6 Saint Mary's Cardinals (5-5 MIAC, 6th / 21-8 Overall)
No. 3 St. Olaf Oles (9-2 MIAC, 3rd / 25-3 Overall)
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Last Action: The Cardinals locked up the sixth and final MIAC Tournament berth last Saturday, dropping Gustavus 3-1 in the teams' regular-season finale in St. Peter, Minn. St. Olaf, meanwhile, also closed out the regular season with a 3-1 win, stopping Carleton in Northfield, Minn.
Last Meeting: October 28, 2009: The Cardinals and Oles met less than a week ago. Sarah Gardner (Rochester, Minn.) collected a team-best 14 kills and Jessica Mate (St. Charles, Ill.) added 13, but it was not enough, as St. Olaf knocked off SMU 3-1 in Northfield, Minn.
2008 MIAC Tournament Rewind: SMU kicked off last year's conference tournament with a bang, as the sixth-seeded Cardinals knocked off third-seeded Saint Benedict 3-2 in the first of two quarterfinal matches, while fifth-seeded St. Olaf did the same to fourth-seeded Concordia with a 3-2 victory. In the semis, second-seeded Gustavus blanked SMU 3-0 and top-seeded St. Thomas took care of St. Olaf 3-1. The Tommies then earned the MIAC's automatic NCAA Tournament berth with a 3-1 win over GAC in the conference tournament's championship match.
The 2009 Tournament Breakdown: SMU and St. Olaf square off in one of two MIAC quarterfinal matches. No. 5 Concordia travels to No. 4 Augsburg for Tuesday's other quarterfinal matchup. Saint Benedict, while finished in a first-place tie with St. Thomas for the regular-season conference title, earned the tourney's No. 1 seed, while the Tommies settled for No. 2. Those two teams will host the quarterfinal winners on Thursday — Saint Benedict will host the Concordia-Augsburg winner, while St. Thomas awaits the SMU-St. Olaf winner.
Saint Mary's Cardinal Notes: The Cardinals are making their second straight MIAC Tournament appearance. SMU was also the No. 6 seed a year ago, knocked off third-seeded Saint Benedict 3-2 in the quarterfinals, before falling to Gustavus 3-0 in the semis. … SMU enters tonight's match ranked No. 5 in the latest NCAA Division III Central Region Poll. … Saturday's win over Gustauvs not only snapped the team's two-game losing streak, but was also the Cardinals' 21st of the season. It's the most wins in a season since SMU finished 21-10 during the 2004 campaign. … Amy Kujak (River Falls, Wis.) finished with a match-high 16 kills in the Cardinals' regular season-ending win over Gustavus, while Sarah Gardner (Rochester, Minn.) chipped in 15. … Brittany Cherwinka (Faribault, Minn.) continued her stellar senior season, dishing out 54 assists vs. GAC Saturday. It was the sixth time this season the senior setter has notched 50 or more assists. … Cherwinka, who recorded her 2,000th career assist on match point in SMU's 3-1 win over Northwestern on Oct. 20, has now recorded 1,077 for the season. … Courtney Runge (St. James, Minn.) collected 20 digs vs. Gustavus Saturday, giving the senior outside hitter 1,036 digs in her four-year collegiate career, ranking her eighth all time. … SMU posted season highs in digs (85) and kills (79) in its 3-2 win over St. Catherine on Oct. 14. The Cardinals' 79 kills are the most since recording 83 kills in a five-set, 3-2 win over Saint Benedict on Sept. 24, 2004. … Jessica Mate (St. Charles, Ill.), who recorded 15 kills vs. Gustavus Saturday, has now had 10 or more kills in seven of her last eight matches. … Runge, Mate and Gardner have all eclipsed the century mark in both kills and digs, with Runge boasting 280 kills and 342 digs, while Mate has 326 kills and 132 digs, and Gardner has totaled a team-leading 353 kills and 168 digs. … Tara Rasmussen (Kasson, Minn.)leads the team in digs with 440 and is one of six Cardinals with 100 or more digs. … The Cardinals enter today's match boasting a 9-3 record in three-set matches, a 7-3 mark in four-set matches, and SMU is 5-2 in five-setters.
St. Olaf Ole Notes: The Oles enter tonight's match ranked seventh in the latest NCAA Central Region Poll and No. 22 in AVCA Top 25 National Poll. … St. Olaf has rebounded from a 3-0 loss at Saint Benedict on Oct. 23 to win back-to-back matches to close out the regular season. … St. Olaf's loss to Saint Benedict snapped the Oles' 15-match winning streak – their longest since 1996, when St. Olaf won 16 in a row and reached the NCAA semifinals. … St. Olaf boasts an 8-1 record on its home floor, while going 17-2 on the road. … Kim Smisek, who collected a team-leading 17 kills in St. Olaf's season-ending win over Carleton, leads the team with 468 kills, while also hitting .306. … Smisek has collected 10 or more kills in all 28 Ole matches this season, including a season-best 31-kill performance in St. Olaf's five-set win over Luther on Oct. 2. … Kelly Prunty has dished out 1,108 assists this season, while Alyssa Williams has collected a team-best 427 digs, leading five St. Olaf players with 100 or more digs. … The Oles are 14-1 in three-set matches, while going 9-2 in four-setters. St. Olaf has only played two matches that have gone five sets, winning both.
