WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University women's basketball team is back in action on Saturday, hosting Macalester in a 1 p.m. conference contest at the SMU Gym.




The Teams:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (7-6 MIAC / 9-7 Overall)
Macalester Scots (6-8 MIAC / 6-11 Overall)

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Last Action:
Cherie Kulig (Independence, Wis.) scored a game-high 19 points as the Cardinals held off a second-half Bethel rally to beat the Royals 61-47 in a conference game at the SMU Gym Wednesday. … Macalester, meanwhile, boasted five players in double figures, as the Scots knocked off St. Catherine 71-58 in St. Paul, Minn., on Wednesday.

Earlier This Year:
December 4, 2010: Trailing by three at the break, the Cardinals regrouped in the second half, whittling away at the Scots' lead, before finally taking just their second lead of the game, 55-53, with 7:29 remaining — and SMU never looked back in beating Macalester 66-60 in St. Paul, Minn.

A Year Ago:
December 2, 2009: Macalester pulled down 17 offensive rebounds — including three huge offensive boards off missed free throws in the final minutes that helped secure the Scots' 61-48 conference victory at the SMU Gym.

January 20, 2010: Macalester raced out to a 28-point first half lead and never let the Cardinals back into the ball game in handing SMU a 91-63 MIAC setback in St. Paul, Minn.

Up Next:
The Cardinals hit the road to start a busy week on Monday, traveling to Moorhead, Minn., for an MIAC showdown against high-powered Concordia. Tip off is set for 4:45 p.m. … Macalester, meanwhile, returns home for the first of two straight games at the Leonard Center on Monday, as the Scots host Gustavus in a 7:30 p.m. conference game.

Saint Mary's Cardinals News and Notes:
Today's game against Macalester is the fifth straight home game for the Cardinals, who play five of their last eight games on the road, beginning Monday at Concordia. … Cherie Kulig (Independence, Wis.) scored a season-high 19 points in leading the Cardinals to their 61-47 win over Bethel Wednesday. … Kulig's output against the Royals was her highest since netting a career-best 24 against Hamline on Jan. 6, 2010. … Jamie Stefely (Lisle, Ill.) scored 12 points against Bethel, but had her streak of double-doubles snapped a two, finishing with eight rebounds. … Stefely, who scored a career-high 21 points and added 10 boards against Augsburg on Jan. 12, has now accounted for three of the team's four double-doubles this season. She and Jessica Thone (Woodbury, Minn.) each had a double-double against Macalester on Dec. 4, with Thone scoring 13 points and adding 10 rebounds, while Stefely had 10 points and 10 boards. … Jess Miller (Carver, Minn.), who became the ninth player in program history to reach 1,000 career points with her 21-point effort against St. Catherine on Jan. 12, enters today's game against Macalester averaging a team-best 13.3 ppg and has scored 1,067career points. She is currently seventh all-time — surpassing Amy Burns with her 10 points against Bethel Wednesday. … Miller enters today's game vs. Macalester having started every game of her collegiate career — a span of 91 consecutive starts. … Kulig drained two of the Cardinals' three 3-pointers against Bethel Wednesday. SMU has now made 59 3-pointers, led by Miller with 14, and Kulig and Thone with 12 each. … The Cardinals' 74 points against Augsburg on Jan. 12 marked the second-highest offensive output of the season. SMU netted a season-best 76 points in a 76-57 win over St. Catherine on Jan. 12. … The Cardinals made 26 of 37 free throws vs. St. Olaf on Jan. 5 — both were season highs. The 26 FTM and 37 FTA were also the most since SMU went 35-for-50 from the charity stripe vs. Hamline on Jan. 7, 2001. … Bethel's 47 points Wednesday marked the fourth time this season SMU has held its opponent under 50 points. The Cardinals have also held 14 of their 16 opponents under 70 points. Only Saint Benedict (73) and Hardin-Simmons (74) have scored more than 70 points against the stingy Cardinal defense. … SMU has outscored its opponents 963-929, including 522-470 after halftime. … Five of SMU's nine wins have come on the road | 2010-2011 Overall Statistics

Macalester Scots News and Notes:
With their 71-58 win over St. Catherine Wednesday, the Scots have now won two straight and four of their last five. … Macalester's 71 points against the Wildcats were the Scots' third-highest offensive output of the season. Macalester scored a season-high 83 points in an 83-82 overtime win over St. Olaf on Jan. 15, and netted 82 in an 82-46 rout of Augsburg on Dec. 11. … Wednesday's win over St. Catherine snapped a seven-game road losing streak for the Scots. Macalester is 5-3 on its own court and 1-7 on the road. … The Scots boasted a season-high five players in double figures against St. Catherine Wednesday. Junior sisters Shannon and Jessica Rene led the way with 13 points each, while Erin Bloomfield-Bortz, Audrey Mills and Holly Schiedermayer all added 10 points. … Majra Mucic enters today's game against Saint Mary's as the Scots' leading scorer, averaging 13.9 ppg, while Jessica Rene is second at 9.8 ppg. … Mucic is also averaging a team-leading 10.4 rebounds-per-game. … Mucic has scored in double figures in 11 of the team's 16 games, while adding 10 or more rebounds 10 times this season. … The Scots have had a different leading scorer in each of their last four games. … All six of Macalester's wins have come in conference play | 2010-2011 Overall Statistics