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WINONA, Minn. — If Wednesday's Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference match against Hamline were played in Las Vegas, Saint Mary's University volleyball coach Mike Lester might want to consider heading straight to the blackjack tables — because his Cardinals' gave him plenty of aces.

SMU collected a season-high 11 aces — including four from Amy Kujak (River Falls, Wis.) and three from Cathy Rennie (Pine Island, Minn.) — as the Cardinals swept past Hamline 3-0 (25-14, 25-18, 31-29) at the SMU Gym.

“The main thing we wanted to do tonight was come out and play well,” said SMU coach Mike Lester, whose Cardinals entered the match ranked No. 24 in the latest AVCA Top 25. “The past few weeks we have been playing just OK, so it was nice to see us get off to a good start and play well.”

The third set of the match was easily the most exciting, as SMU fell behind 24-19, before a furious comeback foiled Hamline's only chance at victory.

The Cardinals went on a 6-0 run to tie the set at 24-24, and then won in overtime, with the crowd on its feet.

“That (third set) shows you a lot about the people who were on the court,” said senior Jessica Mate (St. Charles, Ill.), who had 11 kills and hit a team-leading .474. “With a 2-0 lead, a lot of teams could have just waited for the next set, but we were able to battle back.”

Sarah Gardner (Rochester, Minn.) collected a match-high 12 kills for the Cardinals, while a trio of setters — Rennie (16), Brittany Cherwinka (Faribault, Minn. / 15) and Rachel Monterastelli (Wonder Lake, Ill. / 13) — dished out 47 assists.

The Cardinals, who improve to 3-1 in the MIAC and 10-3 overall, now turn their focus to the MIAC-IIAC Border Battle in Dubuque, Iowa, a tournament that will have major regional implications.

“This weekend will determine a lot as far as the region rankings go,” Lester said. “We have some key wins already, but it would be nice to get a few more.”