MOORHEAD, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University women's basketball team kicks off 2014 with a key Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference matchup, as the Cardinals square off against Concordia at 1 p.m. at Memorial Auditorium

The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (3-1 MIAC | 6-1 Overall) at Concordia Cobbers (4-1 MIAC | 6-2 Overall)

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Last Action:
The Cardinals, behind a 28-point effort from Shelby Auseth (Wanamingo, Minn.), erupted for 99 points in cruising to a 99-81 nonconference win over North Central last Saturday in Naperville, Ill.  … The Cobbers have been off since Dec. 14, when they picked up their fourth conference win of the season with a convincing 90-56 win over Hamline at Memorial Auditorium in Moorhead, Minn.

SMU vs. Concordia — A Year Ago:
January 7, 2013: Jessica Thone (Woodbury, Minn.) scored 18 points — including 10 in the first half — and led four Cardinals in double figures, but it was not enough to overcome a sizzling Concordia first half, as the Cobbers handed SMU an 81-68 MIAC setback in Moorhead, Minn.
February 3, 2013: Concordia entered its MIAC showdown with SMU riding a seven-game winning streak that had them perched atop the MIAC standings — one game in front of the red-hot Cardinals, who sported a rather impressive nine-game win streak of their own. Concordia rained down six 3-pointers in the game's opening 20 minutes to build an eight-point halftime lead and the Cardinals never recovered, as the Cobbers maintained its stranglehold on the conference lead with a 64-54 victory at the SMU Gym.

Up Next:
The Cardinals are right back in action on Monday, as SMU returns home for a 7:30 p.m. conference game against Carleton. … Concordia is also back in action on Monday, traveling to Northfield, Minn., for a 5:45 p.m. contest against St. Olaf.

Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2013-14 Roster | 2013-14 Statistics | 2013-14 Schedule
Saturday's game at Concordia is the last of three straight road games for the Cardinals. SMU does not play back-to-back road — or home games — until late January, when they play three consecutive home games in a six-day span. … With their win over North Central last Saturday, the Cardinals pushed their winning streak to three straight. … Along with their three-game winning streak, SMU has also won six of its last seven, 11 of its previous 13 and 20 of the last 23 over the past two seasons. … The Cardinals fell one point short of notching its second 100-point game of the season, having already set a school record with 107 points in a 107-29 win over Crown on Nov. 23. … With their win over North Central last Saturday, the Cardinals pushed their record to 6-1 — marking the second straight season SMU has won six of its first seven games. … Shelby Auseth (Wanamingo, Minn.) scored a season- and career-high 28 points in SMU's 99-81 win over North Central last Saturday. … Auseth's 28-point effort was the highest single-season output since Jess Miller tossed in 29 points against Gustavus on Dec. 7, 2009. … Auseth was one of five SMU players to score in double figures vs. North Central — Courtney Euerle (Litchfield, Minn. / 15 points), Sara Schoenthaler (White Bear Lake, Minn. / 14), Octavia Brown (Broadview, Ill. / 13) and Mariam Awoniyi (Country Club Hills, Ill. / 12) were the others. … SMU has now had five or more players score in double figures in the same game twice this season — the Cardinals boasted six double-figure scorers in its 107-29 win over Crown on Nov. 23. … Euerle has now scored in double figures in six of the team's seven games this season and has scored 10 or more points 33 times in her collegiate career. … Auseth has now led the team in scoring in four of its seven games. … Auseth and Euerle head into Saturday's game at Concordia averaging in double figures at 12.7 ppg and 12.0 ppg, respectively. … Euerle also leads the team in rebounding, hauling in 51 boards (7.3 rpg) in seven games. … Bridget Pethke (New London, Wis.), who leads the team with 37 assists, equaled her career-best with seven assists vs. St. Olaf on Dec. 9. It was the second time this season and sixth time in her collegiate career that Pethke has hit the seven-assist mark. … Saint Mary's drained a season-high nine 3-pointers in its 68-57 win over St. Olaf on Dec. 9 — with Darcey Rice (Eagan, Minn.), Sara Schoenthaler (White Bear Lake, Minn.) and Pethke accounting for all nine. Rice tossed in four treys, while Schoenthaler and Pethke added three and two, respectively. … SMU's nine 3-pointers were the most since tossing in nine against St. Olaf on Jan. 16, 2013. … Fueled by their nine 3-pointers vs. St. Olaf, the Cardinals have now drained 42 treys this season — led by Rice (11) and Schoenthaler (9). … SMU heads into Saturday's game at Concordia averaging 78.7 ppg, while limiting its opponents to just 58.3 ppg. … With their win over Saint Benedict on Dec. 7, the Cardinals improved to 14-1 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. … 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 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.

Scouting The Concordia Cobbers:
2013-14 Roster | 2013-14 Statistics | 2013-14 Schedule
Saturday's game vs. Saint Mary's is the third straight home game for the Cobbers, who are a perfect 3-0 on their home court this season — and 24-4 at Memorial Auditorium over the past three seasons. … Concordia enters Saturday's game against Saint Mary's having won two straight and five of its last six. … The Cobbers poured in a season-high 90 points in their 90-59 rout of Hamline on Dec. 14. … CC's 90-point effort against Hamline was not only a season high, but also the most since the 2009-10 season. … The Cobbers have had five different leading scorers in their first eight games — including Erin Januschka coming off the bench to score a team-best 15 points against Hamline on Dec. 14. … Alexandra Lippert and Alley Fisher head into Saturday's contest vs. Saint Mary's as the team's offensive leaders, averaging 12.6 ppg and 11.5 ppg, respectively. … Fisher and Lippert have recorded CC's top two offensive performances this season — Fisher scored a season-high 26 points against Augsburg on Dec. 11, while Lippert netted 22 points against UM-Morris on Nov. 26. … Lippert also boasts a team-best 52 rebounds (6.5 rpg) and Fisher has drained 15 of the team's 41 3-pointers. … Concordia is averaging 74.9 ppg, while limiting its opponents to just 55.8 ppg. … CC has outscored its opponents 599-446 — including 294-215 in the game's opening 20 minutes. … The Cobbers' lone conference loss of the season was a 78-65 loss on the road against Bethel — the same team that handed SMU its only MIAC loss thus far this season.