WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University women's hockey team honors its six graduating seniors on Senior Night, as the Cardinals begin their final weekend of the season Friday against Bethel at the SMU Ice Arena.


The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (4-9-3 MIAC | 7-12-4 Overall)
vs. Bethel Royals (9-6-1 MIAC | 11-9-3 Overall)

GameDay Live On The Web:
Live Stats | Streaming Audio/Video | Video Preview | GameDay Program | Senior Salute

Last Action:
The Cardinals picked up a conference point against MIAC playoff-bound Concordia last weekend at the SMU Ice Arena. The Cobbers collected a 5-2 win in last Friday's opener, while SMU rebounded to battle Concordia to a 2-2 deadlock in the teams' rematch on Saturday. … Bethel, meanwhile, kept its post-season playoff hopes alive last weekend, sweeping Saint Benedict 3-1 and 4-2 at Bethel Arena in Blaine, Minn.

SMU vs. Bethel — A Year Ago:
January 21, 2011: After managing just a single goal in each of its last three games, the Cardinals came up empty in their Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference game against Bethel, as the Royals scored once in all three periods in handing SMU a 3-0 setback at the Schwan's Super Rink.
January 22, 2011: Nicole Olson (New Brighton, Minn.) and Sheree Haslemore (Gore, New Zealand) scored early in the first and second periods, respectively, as the Cardinals snapped a four-game losing streak with a 2-1 MIAC win over the Royals at the SMU Ice Arena.

Up Next:
The same two teams will close out the regular season on Saturday, as the Cardinals travel to Bethel Arena in Blaine, Minn., for a 4 p.m. conference rematch against the Royals.

Saint Mary's Cardinals News and Notes:
2011-12 Roster | 2011-12 Statistics | 2011-12 Schedule | 2011-12 Media Guide
Friday's game against Bethel is the final home game for SMU graduating seniors Nicole Olson (New Brighton, Minn.), Sheree Haslemore (Gore, New Zealand), Dana Kreuser (Maplewood, Minn.), Rachel Gates-Vickery (New Brighton, Minn.), Alex Braun (Darwin, Minn.) and Madeline Lenz (White Bear Lake, Minn.). … Saturday's Senior Night will be the second for Gates-Vickery, who was also a four-year starter on the SMU women's soccer team. … After playing back-to-back game against the No. 1 (Gustavus) and No. 2 (Concordia) teams in the conference standings the past two weeks, the Cardinals close out their season with back-to-back games against the conference's No. 3 team in Bethel. … Last Saturday's 2-2 tie against Concordia was the Cardinals' school-record fifth tie of the season. …  SMU, which has played seven overtime games this season, is still looking for its first overtime win of the season (0-2-5). …  SMU is 1-2-8 in its last 11 overtime games. … Breanna Peterson (Macomb, Mich.) and Erin Stenseth (Eau Claire Wis.) accounted for the Cardinals' four goals last weekend, each scoring once in both games. … Peterson has now scored in four of SMU's last five games. … Stenseth and Peterson share the team lead in goals with eight each, while Nicole Olson (New Brighton, Minn.) and Mary DeBartolo (Chicago, Ill.) own a team-best eight assists. … Peterson is the team's points leader with 14. She is one of five Cardinals entering the final weekend of the season with 10 or more points — Stenseth (13), Olson (13), DeBartolo (13) and Haley Coolsaet (Grosse Island, Mich. / 12) are the other four. … 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. … Olson enters her final two collegiate games ranking in the top 10 all-time in career points (8th / 63), goals (7th / 30) and assists (10th / 33). … SMU's 44 goals have come from 12 different players, while 18 of the 20 Cardinals who have played this season have notched at least one point. … 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 54 saves against Concordia last weekend. … 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 this weekend's series against Bethel with a 2.48 goals-against-average and a .914 save percentage. … SMU has scored two goals in three of its last four games. … With their 5-2 loss to Concordia last Friday, the Cardinals have scored two goals or less in 11 of their 12 losses this season. … SMU has recorded a pair of shutout victories 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. …  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' 23 games this season. … Forty-seven of the 63 goals allowed by SMU this season have come after the first period.

Bethel Royals News and Notes:
2011-12 Roster | 2011-12 Statistics | 2011-12 Schedule
With their 3-1 and 4-2 sweep of Saint Benedict last weekend, the Royals enter the final weekend of the regular season tied with St. Thomas for third in the race for one of the five MIAC post-season tournament berths. One point against the Cardinals will secure Bethel a spot in the conference playoffs. … Bethel squares off against Saint Mary's riding a two-game winning streak. The Royals are also unbeaten in their last four games (3-0-1). … Cristina Masten enters Bethel's showdown with Saint Mary's as the team-leader in goals with 15. … Anna Carlson owns a team-best 19 assists, while Biz Huss has a team-high 24 points. … Carlson is one of four Royals with 10 or more assists, while Huss heads up a group of six Bethel players with 10 or more points. … The Royals' 63 goals have come from 13 different players. … Five of Masten's 15 goals have been game-winners. … Jess Newstrom has seen the majority of the action between the pipes, compiling a 2.27 goals-against-average and a .922 save percentage in 17 games. … Bethel has outscored its opponents by one goal, 63-62, through 22 games. BU holds a 16-15 scoring edge in the first period an a 26-24 advantage in the third. The Royals' opponents own a 22-20 advantage in the middle period. … The Royals have scored first in 14 of their 22 games, going 8-4-2. BU is just 2-5-1 when its opponent scores first.