WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University volleyball team, coming off an impressive 3-0 victory over Macalester on Friday at the SMU Gym, are back on their home court Saturday at 3 p.m., playing host to Bethel in another key conference match.

The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals: 5-3 MIAC / 19-8 Overall
Bethel Royals: 3-5 MIAC / 11-15 Overall

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Last Action:
The Cardinals made quick work of Macalester Friday, getting 18 kills from Sarah Gardner (Rochester, Minn.) and 13 from Jessica Mate (St. Charles, Ill.) in cruising to a 3-0 victory at the SMU Gym. Bethel, meanwhile, dropped a heartbreaker to Augsburg in Minneapolis, Minn., Friday, rallying from two sets down to force a fifth set, only to come up short, 3-2.

Last Meeting — October 24, 2009:
Jessica Mate (St. Charles, Ill.) picked up a team-high 15 kills and Brittany Cherwinka (Faribault, Minn.) dished out 48 assists, but it was not enough, as Bethel cruised to a 3-1 conference win over the Cardinals in Arden Hills, Minn.

MIAC Playoff Picture — Top 6 Earn MIAC Berths:
SMU enters today's match against Bethel tied for the No. 4 spot in the race for one of the MIAC's six conference tournament berths. St. Thomas (8-1), St. Olaf (7-1) and Concordia (7-1) all have one loss, while Saint Benedict (6-3) and SMU both have three. Augsburg (5-4) is sixth with four losses, and Bethel (3-5) and St. Catherine (3-5) each have five. A win over the Royals and a St. Catherine loss to Augsburg today would lock up a playoff berth for the Cardinals.

Saint Mary's Cardinals News and Notes:
Brittany Cherwinka (Faribault, Minn.) dished out 32 assists against Macalester Friday night, giving her 674 for the season and 3,001 for her Cardinal career. Cherwinka currently ranks second all-time program history in career assists. … Sarah Gardner (Rochester, Minn.) collected a match-high 18 kills, while Jessica Mate (St. Charles, Ill.) chipped in 13 against Macalester Friday. … Gardner leads four SMU players with 100 or more kills, boasting a team-best 355, while Mate is second with 294, followed by Amy Kujak (River Falls, Wis. / 233) and Carissa Hahn (Hutchinson, Minn. / 145). … Kujak also leads the team in attack percentage at .315. … Gardner enters this weekend's matches with 1,327 career kills. She currently ranks No. 4 all-time, just 34 kills shy of the No. 3 spot, currently held by Amanda Edmond. … Mate, meanwhile, heads into Saturday's match against Bethel with 1,246 career kills, putting her at No. 7 all-time, three kills behind Kirsten Rouzer for No. 6. …SMU has five players with 20 or more aces, led by Gardner with 32 and Kujak with 30. … SMU's victory over Macalester was its 12th 3-0 sweep of the season. The Cardinals' last three wins have all been 3-0 victories. … SMU is also a perfect 3-0 in five-set matches, thanks to two 3-2 wins over Loras and 3-2 victory over Central-Iowa. … With their 2-2 finish at the North Central (Ill.) Invitational last weekend, the Cardinals finished 2010 with a 13-3 record in the four tournaments they appeared in. … Six of SMU's eight losses — including last Friday's 3-1 setback to No. 12 Hope and Saturday's 3-0 loss to No. 9 Calvin — have come against nationally ranked teams.

Bethel Royals News and Notes:
Caitie Helle collected a team-leading 16 kills in Bethel's loss to Augsburg Friday, while Kate Smith and Betsy Naatjes combined for 44 assists. … Nicole Wiredt enters today's match vs. SMU with a team-high 267 kills, while Amy Werner is close behind at 258. The duo are two of five Bethel players boasting at least 100 kills through 26 matches. … With her 18 assists vs. Augsburg Friday, Naatjes pushed her team assist lead wto 518, while Smith has chipped in 442 assists. … As a team, Bethel has compiled 176 aces, led by Haley Toter's 37 and Smith's 32. … Valerie Smith is Bethel's dig leader with 412. … Friday's match vs. Augsburg was Bethel's third five-setter of the season. The Royals are 1-2 in matches that go the distance. … Seven of the Royals' 11 wins have been 3-0 sweeps. … Friday's loss was the third straight for the Royals.