ARDEN HILLS, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University women's basketball team returns from the Thanksgiving break with a conference game at Bethel on Wednesday. Opening tip is set for 7:30 p.m.

The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (1-0 MIAC | 3-0 Overall) at Bethel Royals (0-0 MIAC | 2-0 Overall)

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Last Action:
The Cardinals connected on their first eight field goal attempts, raced out to a 23-0 lead and cruised to a 107-29 nonconference win over Crown on Nov. 23 | Recap … Bethel picked up its second win to open the season on Nov. 26, as the Royals cruised to a 70-61 nonconference victory over UW-River Falls in River Falls, Wis. | Recap

SMU vs. Bethel — A Year Ago:
January 12, 2013: The Cardinals' air-tight defense was once again at its best, as SMU — coming off a win in which it held Macalester to just 14 first-half points — limited visiting Bethel to 19 points over the game's first 20 minutes and cruised to an 85-53 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference victory at the SMU Gym | Recap
February 9, 2013: SMU trailed by as many as five points early in the second half, then took control, turning a one-point, 50-49 lead with 4:28 to play into a 65-56 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference victory at Robertson Center in Arden Hills, Minn. | Recap

Up Next:
The Cardinals return home on Saturday at 3 p.m., as SMU hosts Saint Benedict in a key, early-season showdown at the SMU Gym. … Bethel is also back in action on Saturday, as the Royals head to St. Paul, Minn., for a 1 p.m. conference game against Macalester.

Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2013-14 Roster | 2013-14 Statistics | 2013-14 Schedule
With their 107-29 win over Crown, the Cardinals have now started 3-0 in each of their last two seasons. … Thanks to their 53-44 win over Macalester on Nov. 21, the Cardinals have opened conference play with a victory in each of the last four years. … The Cardinals head into Wednesday's game against Bethel having won eight of their last nine games, and 17 of their last 19, over the last two seasons. … The Cardinals broke a pair of long-standing school records with their 107-29 victory over Crown on Nov. 23. The Cardinals' 107 points were a school record — breaking the previous high of 106 set in a 106-30 win over Carleton on Feb. 19, 1986. SMU's 78-point margin of victory was also a new school record, two points better than the old mark of 76, also set during that Feb. 19, 1986 win over Carleton. … The Cardinals held Crown to just 15 first-half points on Nov. 23, marking the sixth time in the last two years SMU has limited its opponent to 15 or fewer points in the game's opening half. … The Cardinals boasted six players in double figures against the Storm on Nov. 23, led by Emma Schaefer (Roseville, Minn.) and Bridgette Audette (Big Lake, Minn.), who each netted a career-high 13 points. Darcey Rice (Eagan, Minn.) added 12 points, and Bridget Pethke (New London, Wis.), Courtney Euerle (Litchfield, Minn.) and Miriam Awoniyi (Country Club Hills, Ill.) all chipped in 10. … Like Audette and Schaefer, Awoniyi's 10 points vs. Crown were a career high. … SMU got scoring from 12 of the 13 players who saw action against Crown on Nov. 23. … Kayleigh Kloncz (Princeton, Minn.) recorded the Cardinals' milestone baskets vs. Crown on Nov. 23 — hitting baskets for the Cardinals' 100th and 107th points. … Pethke equaled her career-best with seven assists vs. Crown. … With her 10 points against Crown on Nov. 23, Euerle — an All-MIAC honorable-mention and MIAC All-Defensive Team selection for the second straight season last year — has scored 10 or more points 30 times in her collegiate career. … Euerle and Shelby Auseth (Wanamingo, Minn.) — who scored a career-high 16 points in leading the Cardinals against UW-La Crosse on Nov. 16 — enter Wednesday's game against Bethel sharing the team's scoring lead at 12.0 ppg. … Euerle also shares the team's rebounding lead (23 / 7.7 rpg) with Awoniyi. … As a team, the Cardinals have drained 17 3-pointers — including a season-high seven twice (vs. UW-La Crosse and vs. Crown). … SMU heads into Wednesday's game with the Royals averaging 82.7 ppg. … With their win over Crown on Nov. 23, the Cardinals improved to 13-1 on their home court over the last two seasons — the lone loss coming at the hands of regular-season conference champion Concordia on Feb. 3, 2013.

Scouting The Bethel Royals:
2013-14 Roster | 2013-14 Statistics | 2013-14 Schedule
With their win over UW-River Falls, the Royals have now won back-to-back games to open the season. … The Royals have scored 70 or more points in each of their two wins this season — including a season-opening 101-point performance in a 101-53 rout of Bethany Lutheran on Nov. 20. … Bethel's 101 points against Bethany Lutheran were a single-game school record. … Rachel Parupsky, who recorded eight double-doubles a year ago, scored 19 points and added 10 rebounds against Bethany Lutheran, then followed that up with double-double No. 2 against UW-River Falls, tallying 12 points and 10 boards. … Katelyn Vavra scored a team-best 15 points against the Falcons on Nov. 26 — all in the second half, when she went a perfect 5-for-5 from the field. … The Royals enter Wednesday's game against Saint Mary's boasting four players averaging in double figures — led by Parupsky at 15.5 ppg. Kalli Zimmerman (14.5 ppg), Hannah Niewald (12.0 ppg) and Vavra (10.5 ppg) are the other three. … Parupsky also leads the team in rebounding with 20 (10.0 rpg). … Bethel has knocked down 14 3-pointers in its first two games — with Vavra leading the way with four. … Bethel has held its first two opponents to a combined 38 first-half points. … The Royals have outscored their first two foes 71-38 in the first half and 100-76 over the game's final 20 minutes.