WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University volleyball team kicks off its home Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference schedule on Wednesday, hosting St. Catherine in a 7 p.m. contest at the SMU Gym.




The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (1-0 MIAC | 6-4 Overall)
vs. St. Catherine Wildcats (1-0 MIAC | 7-6 Overall)

GameDay Live On The Web:
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Last Action:
The Cardinals have been off since last Wednesday, when they opened conference play in impressive fashion, cruising to a 3-0 win over Macalester in St. Paul, Minn. … St. Catherine, meanwhile, is coming off a 3-1 showing at the St. Catherine Invitational last weekend in St. Paul, Minn. SCU swept Crown (3-0), UW-Stout (3-0) and Bethany Lutheran (3-0), while falling to Luther 3-2.

SMU vs. St. Catherine — Their Last Meeting:
Sept. 21, 2011: After going their first nine contests without playing a match that was decided in four sets, SMU played its second straight four-setter against St. Catherine. And, unfortunately for the Cardinals, the 3-1 decision had the same outcome as the first — a loss. After splitting the first two sets, St. Catherine took control, winning Sets 3 and 4 en route to a 3-1 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference victory over SMU.

Up Next:
The Cardinals are back on their home court on Saturday, hosting Augsburg in a 3 p.m. conference contest at the SMU Gym. … St. Catherine, meanwhile, is also home for an MIAC match on Saturday, hosting Concordia in a 3 p.m. contest at Butler Center in St. Paul, Minn.

Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2012 Roster | 2012 Statistics | 2012 Schedule
After playing six straight road matches, the Cardinals play back-to-back contests on their home court beginning Wednesday against St. Catherine. … With their 3-0 win over Macalester, the Cardinals have now won three straight conference openers. … SMU enters Wednesday's game against St. Catherine riding a three-match winning streak. … The Cardinals have lost just one set during their current season-high three match winning streak — beating UW-Oshkosh 3-1, while blanking Bethany Lutheran and Macalester 3-0. … SMU has won the first set in all six of its victories this season. … Mary Nordick (Plymouth, Minn.) had a match-high 12 kills vs. Macalester last Wednesday, while Jenna Sullivan (Woodbury, Minn.) and Colleen Seba (Maple Grove, Minn.) each chipped in 10. … Sullivan — who collected a career-high 13 kills in SMU's 3-0 win over Bethany Lutheran on Sept. 8 — has now recorded 10 or more kills in four straight matches. … Lexi Assimos (Northbrook, Ill.) finished with 34 assists vs. the Scots — giving her 297 for the season and 1,547 for her three-year collegiate career. … Lex Krogstad (Chicago, Ill.) led the team with 13 digs vs. Macalester, pushing her team-leading dig total to 168. … SMU has recorded 51 services aces this season, led by Cathy Rennie (Pine Island, Minn.) with 13 and Krogstad with 11. … Four of the Cardinals' six wins have been 3-0 sweeps. SMU has not played a five-set match this season. … SMU's 2-2 showing at the Bethany Lutheran Tournament marked just the second time in their last seven regular-season tournaments that SMU has not gone 3-1. … With their 3-1 record at the Ground Round Sugar Loaf Classic on Aug. 31-Sept. 1, the Cardinals improved to 16-2 record in their last four Ground Round Sugar Loaf Classics and are now 42-22 in the tournament's 16-year history.

Scouting The St. Catherine Wildcats:
2012 Roster | 2012 Statistics | 2012 Schedule
St. Catherine's 3-2 loss to Luther snapped the Wildcats' season-high four-match winning streak. … SCU's loss to the Norse also marked the first time this season the Wildcats have gone the maximum five sets. … Four of the Wildcats' last five wins have been 3-0 sweeps. … Brittini Wangerin led the way for the Wildcats at their home tournament last weekend, collecting 45 kills — including a combined 31 in SCU's two Saturday matches. … Nicole Pothen picked up 86 digs over the weekend — recording 43 each day. … With her 45 kills last weekend, Wangerin pushed her team-leading total to 145 (3.54 kps). Wangerin also leads the team with 21 service aces. … Jordyn Wentland and Ashley Kahlow have shared the setting duties for the Wildcats this season. Wentland owns a team-best 202 assists, while Kahlow has accumulated 192. … Pothen enters Wednesday's match vs. SMU with a team-high 227 digs. She is one of three Wildcats with 100 or more digs this season — Wangerin (135) and Kelsey Wirtanen (117) are the other two.