WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University women's hockey team closes out its two-game conference series against Concordia on Saturday, as the Cardinals host the Cobbers for a 2 p.m. contest at the SMU Ice Arena.


The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (3-9-3 MIAC | 6-12-4 Overall)
vs. Concordia Cobbers (9-3-3 MIAC | 13-4-3 Overall)

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Last Night:
Concordia scored two goals in each of the first two periods in handing the Cardinals a 5-2 setback at the SMU Ice Arena.

SMU vs. Concordia — A Year Ago:
November 12, 2010: The Cardinals scored three unanswered goals, rallying from a 2-1 deficit to take a 3-2, third-period lead, but surrendered the game-tying goal with three minutes remaining in regulation in settling for a 3-3 tie against the Cobbers at the Moorhead Sports Center.
November 13, 2010: SMU scored once in the second to push their lead to 2-0, then got a third-period hat trick from Haley Coolsaet (Grosse Island, Mich.), as the Cardinals cruised to a 5-2 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference victory over the Cobbers at the Moorhead Sports Center.

Up Next:
The Cardinals close out their 2011-2012 season next weekend against Bethel. SMU hosts the Royals on Senior Night next Friday at 7 p.m. at the SMU Ice Arena, then the two teams square off again Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m. at the Schwan's Super Rink in Blaine, Minn. … Concordia, meanwhile, heads to Minneapolis, Minn., for a pair of conference games against Augsburg next weekend. The Cobbers and Auggies square off at 7 p.m. on Friday, then are back on the ice Saturday at 2 p.m.

Saint Mary's Cardinals News and Notes:
2011-12 Roster | 2011-12 Statistics | 2011-12 Schedule | 2011-12 Media Guide
After playing back-to-back games against the No. 1 team in the conference (Gustavus) last weekend, the Cardinals now entertain the MIAC's No. 2 team for two games this weekend. … Saturday's game against Concordia is the second straight home game for SMU, which closes out its season playing three of its last four games at the SMU Ice Arena. … Breanna Peterson (Macomb, Mich.) and Erin Stenseth (Eau Claire Wis.) scored their seventh goals of the season to account for SMU's two goals vs. Concordia Friday. … Peterson has now scored in three of the Cardinals' last four games. … Stenseth and Peterson lead the team in goals with seven each, while Nicole Olson (New Brighton, Minn.) owns a team-best eight assists. … Peterson and Olson share the team lead in points with 13. The duo are two of five players with 10 or more points this season — Stenseth, Haley Coolsaet (Grosse Island, Mich.) and Mary DeBartolo (Chicago, Ill.) are the other three, each with 12 points. … Olson — who has owned the team's points lead in each of the last two seasons — 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.) — who stopped a season-high 40 shots in notching her second shutout of the season and fourth of her collegiate career against Saint Benedict on Feb. 4 — finished with 23 saves against Concordia Friday. … Gustafson's 40-save effort against Saint Benedict on Feb. 4 was just three saves shy of her career best 43 saves against UW-Eau Claire on Nov. 6, 2010. … Gustafson enters Saturday's game against Concordia with a 2.51 goals-against-average and a .911 save percentage. … With their 5-2 loss to Concordia Friday, the Cardinals have now scored two goals or less in 11 of their 12 losses this season. … SMU has surrendered five goals in each of its last two games, having lost 5-0 to Gustavus last Saturday. … Last Saturday's 5-0 loss to Gustavus was just the second game this season in which SMU failed to score. The other was a 3-0 setback at the hands of Lake Forest on Oct. 29. … On the flip side, SMU has also won two games by shutout this season — a 1-0 decision over Hamline on Nov. 11 and a 1-0 victory over Saint Benedict on Feb. 4. … SMU has held its opponent to one goal or less seven times this season. … With their 1-1 tie against Augsburg on Jan. 28, the Cardinals have now equaled the school record for ties in a season at four. … SMU, which has played six overtime games this season, is still looking for its first overtime win of the season (0-2-4). …  SMU is 1-2-7 in its last 10 overtime games. … SMU's five goals vs. the Auggies in the Cardinals' 5-2 win on Jan. 27 equaled their highest offensive output of the season. SMU also scored five goals in a 5-3 win over St. Norbert on Nov. 4. … SMU's opponents have scored first in 15 of the Cardinals' 22 games this season. … Forty-five of the 61 goals allowed by SMU this season have come after the first period.

Concordia Cobbers News and Notes:
2011-12 Roster | 2011-12 Statistics | 2011-12 Schedule
With their 5-2 win over Saint Mary's Friday, the Cobbers locked up a spot in the MIAC playoffs. … With Friday's win, the Cobbers have now won four straight and are 4-1-1 in their last six games. … The Cobbers, who opened the season 10-1-1 in their first 12 games, have not lost back-to-back games this season. … Concordia has played three overtime games this season — with all three ending in ties. … Breann Julius scored one of Concordia's five goals vs. SMU Friday and has now scored three goals in CC's last three games. … Madison Gendreau netted a pair of goals vs. the Cardinals Friday, while Ali Nelson and Brooke Rundell accounted for the Cobbers' other two goals vs. SMU Friday. … Becca Hendrickson — who stopped all nine Piper shots in last Friday's 3-0 win over Hamline for her first collegiate shutout — kicked out 15 Cardinal shots Friday. … Concordia's nine shots allowed vs. Hamline last Friday were the fewest surrendered by the Cobbers since the 2000-2001 season, when CC held St. Olaf to seven shots. … With his goal Friday, Julius pushed her team-leading total to 17, three more than Abby Taffe. … Katelyn Dold owns a team-best 17 assists, while Taffe's 27 points are a team-high. … Taffe is one of five Cobbers with 10 or more points. Dold (26), Julius (24), Gendreau (19) and Nelson (14) are the other four. … Concordia's 68 goals have come from 14 different players, while 18 Cobbers have recorded at least one point. … The Cobbers have used three different goaltenders this year, with Hendrickson owning a team-best 1.60 goals-against-average and an .887 save percentage in four appearances, while Tamara Twite and Desiree Goret each boast 2.69 GAAs, Twite's in 11 games and Goret's in five. … The Cobbers have scored first in 14 of their 20 games this season, going 10-1-3. CC is just 3-3 when its opponent scores first. … The Cobbers have won six games at home and seven on the road — CC is 6-3-3 on its home ice, while going 7-1-0 away from the Moorhead Sports Center.