LAKE FOREST, Ill. — The Saint Mary's University women's hockey team officially kicks off the 2014 portion of its schedule on Sunday, as the Cardinals square off against Lake Forest in a 7 p.m. nonconference game.

The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (2-6-0 Overall) at Lake Forest Foresters (5-3-2 Overall)

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Last Action:
The Cardinals have been off since Dec. 6-7, when SMU dropped a pair of Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference games to St. Catherine. The Wildcats scored four unanswered goals in beating SMU 5-3 on Dec. 6, then used a three-goal third period to erase a 3-1 Cardinal lead in completing the sweep with a 4-3 victory on Dec. 7. … Lake Forest has also been off since Dec. 6-7, when the Foresters cruised to a pair of wins over Finlandia, routing the Lions 10-2 on Dec. 6 and 7-0 the following day.

SMU vs. Lake Forest — Their Last Meeting:
October 28, 2011: The first game of the season unfolded pretty much the way SMU coach Terry Mannor expected — some good and some not-so-good. And the end result pretty much said the same thing, as the Cardinals settled for a 2-2 nonconference tie against Lake Forest at Alumni Memorial Rink in Lake Forest, Ill.
October 29, 2011: After watching his team control play for the first 20 minutes of their nonconference game against Lake Forest, SMU coach Terry Mannor issued a warning to his players in the locker room between the first and second periods. Unfortunately for the SMU head coach, his Cardinals didn't heed his warning, as the Foresters erupted for three second-period goals and never looked back in handing Saint Mary's a 3-0 nonconference setback in the second game of their two-game series.

Up Next:
The Cardinals and Foresters square off again on Monday in the second game of ther two-game nonconference series. Puck drop is slated for 4 p.m. at Alumni Memorial Rink in Lake Forest, Ill.

Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2013-14 Roster | 2013-14 Statistics | 2013-14 Schedule
Sunday's game against Lake Forest is the first of five straight nonconference games for the Cardinals. … SMU's six goals against St. Catherine on Dec. 6-7 came from six different players — McKenna Parent (Anoka, Minn.), Macki Fadness (Eau Claire, Wis.), Brittany Therrien (Brooklyn Park, Minn.), Breanna Peterson (Macomb, Mich.), Katie LeTourneau (White Bear Lake, Minn.) and Kassie Lien (Grantsburg, Wis.). … Parent enters Sunday's game against Lake Forest having scored in three of the team's last five games. … Peterson, who leads the team with five assists and eight points, shares the team lead in goals (3) with Parent and Therrien. … Peterson recorded the fourth three-point game of her collegiate career against Saint Benedict on Nov. 23, recording a goal and two assists in SMU's 4-0 win. … SMU boasts four players who have scored their first goals in a Cardinal uniform this season — Lien, Jane Hannula (Coon Rapids, Minn.), Jesse Cwik (Chicago, Ill.) and Lindsay Paschke (New Prague, Minn.). … SMU's 21 goals have come from 12 different players. … SMU has scored two shorthanded goals this season. Peterson, who led the nation with three short-handed goals a year ago, recorded her first short-handed tally in the third period against UST on Nov. 17, while Lien scored a shortie against CSB on Nov. 23 — also in the third period. … Sarah Gustafson (Esko, Minn.) stopped 54 shots against St. Catherine on Dec. 6-7 — including a season-high 33-save effort in the Saturday rematch on Dec. 7. … Gustafson recorded her first shutout of the season and sixth of her career — including at least one in each of her four collegiate seasons — with a 23-save effort against Saint Benedict on Nov. 23 … Gustafson heads into Sunday's game against Lake Forest with a 3.26 goals-against-average and an .888 save percentage. … SMU has scored 11 of its 21 goals in the second period — while netting five goals in both the first and third periods. … On the flip side, SMU's opponents have scored 11 of their 28 goals in the middle period. … The Cardinals have scored first in five of their eight games — including both of their wins. SMU is still looking for its first win when its opponent scores the game's first goal (0-3-0). … SMU's Nov. 26 game against ninth-ranked St. Scholastica marked the second time this season SMU has faced a team ranked in the USCHO.com Top 10. SMU dropped an 8-2 decision to sixth-ranked Gustavus to open the season. … The Cardinals have now faced St. Scholastica twice in the program's history — with the Saints winning both games 2-1. … The Cardinals' 3-1 win over Saint Benedict on Nov. 22 snapped the Cardinals' season-opening three-game losing streak.

Scouting The Lake Forest Foresters:
2013-14 Roster | 2013-14 Statistics | 2013-14 Schedule
The Foresters head into their nonconference series against Saint Mary's having won two straight, while going 4-1-1 in their last six games. … Sunday's game against the Cardinals is just the fourth home game of the season for Lake Forest, which has played seven of its first 10 games on the road. … Lake Forest recorded its top two offensive performances in routing Finlandia on Dec. 6-7 — scoring a season-high 10 goals in a 10-2 victory on Dec. 6, while added seven goals in a 7-0 win in the teams' rematch a day later. … The Foresters' 7-0 victory over Finlandia on Dec. 7 was their second shutout of the season. Lake Forest also blanked Concordia (Wis.) 4-0 on Nov. 15. … The Foresters play two Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference foes in a seven-day span — squaring off against Saint Mary's on Sunday and Monday, before hosting Bethel on Friday and Saturday. … Michelle Greeneway scored five goals in the Foresters' sweep of Finlandia — scoring three times in the 10-2 win, while adding two more a day later. … Alex Stensland finished with six assists against the Lions — collected three helpers in each of the two games. … Greeneway enters Lake Forest's two games against Saint Mary's leading the team in goals (14) and points (19). … Greeneway is one of five Foresters with 10 or more points through 10 games — Melissa Paluch (13), Morgan Pope (13), Logan Taylor (12) and Stensland (11) are the others. … Stensland is the team's assist leader with 11. … Casey Hartfield has appeared in all 10 games in goal for Lake Forest, compiling a 2.50 goals-against-average and an .898 save percentage. … Hartfiel has stopped 185 of the 206 shots she's faced this season. … Lake Forest has scored 22 of its 49 goals in the second period. … Lake Forest has scored first in six of its 10 games, going 4-1-1. The Foresters are 1-2-1 when their opponent nets the game's first goal.