NORTHFIELD, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University women's hockey team closes out its nonconference schedule against a conference foe on Saturday, as the Cardinals travel to St. Olaf for a 3 p.m. game against the Oles.


The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (1-1-2 MIAC | 2-3-3 Overall)
at St. Olaf Oles (4-1-1 MIAC | 4-4-3 Overall)

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Last Action:
The Cardinals are coming off a split of their two-game nonconference series against UW-Eau Claire last weekend, as SMU beat the Blugolds 2-1 in Eau Claire, Wis., on Friday, then dropped a 3-1 decision to UW-EC a day later at the SMU Ice Arena. … St. Olaf, meanwhile, has been off since Jan. 3, when the Oles dropped a 4-3 nonconference decision to St. Scholastica in Duluth, Minn.

SMU vs. St. Olaf — Earlier This Year:
December 2, 2011 — The Oles scored four unanswered goals — including the game-winner with 37 seconds remaining in overtime — to rally for a 5-4 victory over the Cardinals at the SMU Ice Arena.
December 3, 2011 — In a span of 17 seconds, the Cardinals went from a 0-0 tie to staring a 2-0 deficit, as St. Olaf used that 17-second, two-goal burst to hand SMU a 3-1 conference setback at the Northfield Ice Arena.

SMU vs. St. Olaf — A Year Ago:
January 15, 2011: St. Olaf jumped out to a 3-0 lead and never looked back in handing the Cardinals a 5-1 nonconference setback at the SMU Ice Arena. Nicole Olson (New Brighton, Minn.) netted SMU's lone goal against the Oles.
February 25, 2011: St. Olaf outscored SMU 2-1 in the third period in handing Saint Mary's a 2-1 conference setback at the SMU Ice Arena.
February 26, 2011: Trailing 2-1 and needing to win for any shot at an MIAC playoff berth, the Cardinals surrendered a pair of third-period goals in falling to St. Olaf 4-2 in Northfield, Minn.

Up Next:
The Cardinals return to conference play next weekend, hosting St. Thomas in a 2 p.m. MIAC game at the SMU Ice Arena on Saturday, then traveling to the St. Thomas Ice Arena in Mendota Heights, Minn., for the 2 p.m. conference rematch vs. the Tommies on Sunday.

Saint Mary's Cardinals News and Notes:
2011-12 Roster | 2011-12 Statistics | 2011-12 Schedule | 2011-12 Media Guide
With their split against UW-Eau Claire last weekend, the Cardinals and Blugolds have now split each of their last three two-game nonconference series. … The Cardinals' 2-1 win over UW-Eau Claire last Friday snapped their five-game winless streak (0-3-2). … Erin Stenseth (Eau Claire, Wis.) and Brittany Therrien scored the Cardinals' two goals vs. UW-Eau Claire last Friday, while Mary DeBartolo (Chicago, Ill.) scored the Cardinals' lone goal in Saturday's 3-1 loss. … Therrien has now scored in two of the Cardinals' last three games, having also netted SMU's lone goal in a 3-1 loss to St. Olaf on Dec. 3. … Stenseth also assisted on Therrien's game-winner last Friday vs. UW-Eau Claire, giving the SMU junior her first two-point game of the season. It was also the fourth two-point game of Stenseth's career. … Stenseth's goal vs. UW-Eau Claire was her team-leading fourth of the season and her two points moved her into a tie for the team lead in points (7) with Nicole Olson (New Brighton, Minn.). … Olson — who has led the team in scoring in each of the last two seasons — and Haley Coolsaet (Grosse Island, Mich.) own a team-best four assists, one better than Stenseth and Breanna Peterson (Macomb, Mich.). … Olson recorded her first collegiate hat trick and her first collegiate five-point game in SMU's 5-3 win over St. Norbert on Nov. 4. … Sarah Gustafson (Esko, Minn.) made 19 saves in Friday's win over UW-Eau Claire, while Megan Brantley (Goodyear, Ariz.) made a career-high 32 saves in the rematch with the Blugolds Saturday. … Gustafson enters Saturday's third meeting with St. Olaf  with a 2.07 goals-against-average and a .903 save percentage. … SMU's 5-4 loss to St. Olaf on Dec. 2 marked the fourth time this season the Cardinals have played an overtime game. It was the first OT game that did not end in a tie. … SMU is now 1-1-6 in its last eight overtime games. …  SMU has surrendered the first goal of the game in seven of their 12 games this season. … The Cardinals are 1-16-2 in the last 19 games in which their opponent scores first — the lone victory being their 5-3 win over St. Norbert on Nov. 4. … Twenty-two of the 30 goals allowed by SMU this season have come after the first period. … SMU's 2-2, season-opening tie against Lake Forest on Oct. 28 marked the first time the Cardinals have opened a season with a tie since battling UW-River Falls to a 2-2 deadlock to kick off the 2006-07 season.

St. Olaf Oles News and Notes:
2011-12 Roster | 2011-12 Statistics | 2011-12 Schedule
Saturday's game against Saint Mary's is just the third home game for the Oles, who are a perfect 2-0-0 on their home ice this season. … Saturday's game is the first of three straight home contests for St. Olaf. … The Oles' 4-3 loss at St. Scholastica on Jan. 3 snapped their two-game winning streak. … After going 0-2-3 in its first five games, St. Olaf is 4-2-0 in its last six games — including a 5-4, 3-1 MIAC sweep of Saint Mary's on Dec. 2-3. … Kristen Latta netted a pair of goals vs. St. Scholastica on Jan. 3, while Lisa Turri accounted for the Oles' other goal vs. the Saints. … Nicole Stumpf enters Saturday's game against Saint Mary's with team highs in assists (10) and points (13). … Taylor Orr has netted a team-leading five goals and is second to Stumpf in points with eight. … Eleven different players have scored at least one for through 11 games for the Oles, while 17 of the 20 players who have appeared in a game this season have recorded at least one point. … Ali McKeever and Sam Ubl have shared the goaltending duties for the Oles this season, with McKeever appearing in eight games, while Ubl has played in six. McKeever owns a 2.55 goals-against-average and a .920 save percentage, with Ubl right behind her with a 2.76 GAA and a .917 save percentage. … St. Olaf has scored first just three times this season — going 2-0-1. … The Oles have been outscored 16-9 in the first period, but own a 20-14 scoring advantage in the game's final 40 minutes.