ST. PETER, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota women's basketball team hits the road for the second time this week on Saturday, as the Cardinals head to Gustavus' Gus Young Court for a 1 p.m. conference game against the Gusties.
 
The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (9-6 MIAC | 15-7 Overall) at Gustavus Gusties (9-6 MIAC | 15-7 Overall)
 
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Last Action:
• Saint Mary's: After the opening 20 minutes of Wednesday's Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference game, Saint Mary's had Saint Benedict right where they wanted them—in the Cardinals rear-view mirror. Five minutes into the second half, however, and that all changed. The Blazers erupted for 18 unanswered points to open the second half and left the Cardinals in the dust, dealing Saint Mary's a 73-54 conference setback at Claire Lynch Hall in St. Joseph, Minn. | Recap
• Gustavus: Concordia scored 18 unanswered points and never looked back in handing the Gusties a 72-59 conference setback Wednesday at Memorial Auditorium in Moorhead, Minn. | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. Gustavus—Earlier This Year:
• January 10, 2015: In the teams' 40-minute Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference showdown at the Saint Mary's Gym, the Gusties owned runs of 10-0 and 16-0, while Cardinals put together runs of 16-1 and 20-2. Fortunately for the Cardinals, those two runs—and their combined 36-3 scoring advantage—proved just enough, as Saint Mary's held off the Gusties 74-67 to snap its season-high four-game losing streak | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. Gustavus—A Year Ago:
• January 18, 2014: Saint Mary's had to overcome a 10-point first-half deficit—not to mention trailing by eight midway through the second half—before using a late 21-5 burst to secure a 67-58 conference victory over Gustavus at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap
• February 15, 2014: The Cardinals needed overtime to shake upset-minded Gustavus—getting four points from Courtney Euerle (Litchfield, Minn.) and three from Bridget Pethke (New London, Wis.) in the five-minute extra session en route to a 69-62 conference victory at Gus Young Court in St. Peter, Minn. | Recap
 
Up Next:
•  Saint Mary's: The Cardinals kick off a two-game homestand over the final week of the regular season on Wednesday, hosting Carleton in a 7 p.m. conference game at the Saint Mary's Gym.
• Gustavus: The Gusties return to Gus Young Court in St. Peter, Minn., on Wednesday, hosting Macalester in a 7 p.m. conference showdown.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2014-15 Roster | 2014-15 Schedule | 2014-15 Statistics
With Wednesday's loss to Saint Benedict, Saint Mary's slipped into a three-way tie for third place with Gustavus and Concordia with three conference games to play. … Wednesday's setback at the hands of the Blazers also snapped Saint Mary's seven-game winning streak vs. Saint Benedict. … Saturday's game against Gustavus is the second of back-to-back road games for the Cardinals, who close out the regular season with home games against Carleton and Macalester next week. … Emma Schaefer (Falcon Heights, Minn.) scored a team-high 10 points for the Cardinals against Saint Benedict Wednesday. … The Cardinals boasted three players who recorded single-game career-highs vs. Concordia last Saturday—led by Octavia Brown (Broadview, Ill.) with 22. Sam Jones (White Bear Lake, Minn.) chipped in a career-best 16 and Alexa Huisman (Adrian, Minn.) added 12. … The Cardinals have eight players who have recorded single-game career-highs of 10 points or more this season—Molly O'Toole (Plymouth, Minn. / 23), Brown (22), Micaela Meredith (Bloomington, Minn. / 17), Jones (16), Schaefer (15), Natalie Larson (North Branch, Minn. / 14), Huisman (12), and Kayla Lardy (Fairmont, Minn. / 11). … O'Toole has scored 10 or more points in 14 of the team's 22 games—including a season- and career-high 23 points twice. The freshman netted 23 against Hamline on Dec. 3, and equaled that feat in the second meeting against the Pipers on Jan. 28. … O'Toole has eclipsed the 20-point barrier three times this season, while Shelby Auseth (Wanamingo, Minn.) has achieved that feat twice and Brown once. Along with her two 23-point efforts against Hamline, O'Toole recorded 21 points vs. UW-Stout on Nov. 21, and Auseth netted 24 points against UM-Morris on Nov. 16 and 22 points against St. Olaf on Jan. 7. … Auseth was a perfect 12-for-12 from the free throw line en route to her 22-point effort vs. St. Olaf on Jan. 7. …  Saint Mary's had six players score in double figures in its win over St. Catherine on Jan. 21. The Cardinals have now put four or more players in double figures six times this season. … Bridget Pethke (New London, Wis.) recorded her first collegiate double-double against Hamline on Dec. 3, scoring 15 points and adding a career-best 11 rebounds. The junior guard also dished out a career high eight assists. … Pethke's 11-rebound performance vs. Hamline was the second time this season a Cardinal player has recorded 10 or more rebounds in a game—Lardy hauled in a career-best 10 boards against Crown on Nov. 22. … O'Toole and Auseth head into Saturday's conference showdown at Gustavus as the team's scoring leaders, averaging 11.6 ppg and 10.5 ppg, respectively. … O'Toole owns a team-leading 119 rebounds (5.4 rpg), while Auseth has also eclipsed the 100-rebound plateau, heading into the Gustavus matchup with 109. … As a team, the Cardinals drained a season-high 26 free throws in their OT win over Concordia last Saturday. … Saint Mary's knocked down a season-high 12 3-pointers against North Park on Dec. 30. The Cardinals' 12 treys are the most since draining 12 3s against Carleton on Jan. 4, 2010. … As a team, the Cardinals have made 129 3-pointers this season, and have six players with 10 or more treys—Schaefer (29), Schoenthaler (25), Auseth (20), Meredith (20), O'Toole (14), and Pethke (10). … With their 79-73 win over Concordia last Saturday, the Cardinals improved to 7-1 on their home court this season. Saint Mary's is 32-3 at the Saint Mary's Gym over the past three seasons. … The Cardinals' 79-73 win over Concordia last Saturday snapped their two-game losing streak. … Last Saturday's game vs. the Cobbers was also the Cardinals' first overtime game of the season. Saint Mary's last OT game was a 69-62 victory over Gustavus on Feb. 15. … The Cardinals are now 3-0 in their last three overtime games—Saint Mary's last OT loss was a 60-59 setback vs. Concordia on Jan. 29. … The Cardinals have outscored their first 21 opponents 7-4-588 in the game's opening 20 minutes. … The Cardinals have held 15 of their 22 opponents to 30 points or less in the first half. … Saint Mary's is averaging 64.9 ppg, while the Cardinals' opponents are scoring at a 61.5 ppg clip. … Saint Mary's has scored a season-high 80 points twice this season—beating Hamline 80-72 on Dec. 5 and St. Catherine 80-70 on Jan. 21. … The Cardinals have put together winning streaks of eight and six games to account for 14 of their 15 wins. … Saint Mary's season-opening eight-game winning streak was its longest such streak since opening the 1985-86 season by rattling off 19 straight wins. … The Cardinals made their first NCAA national tournament appearance since the 1985-86 season a year ago, falling to UW-Oshkosh 71-61 in the regional semifinal.
 
Scouting The Gustavus Gusties:
2014-15 Roster | 2014-15 Schedule | 2014-15 Statistics
Wednesday's loss to Concordia snapped the Gusties' two-game winning streak. … Saturday's game against Saint Mary's is the first of three straight home games for the Gusties to close out the regular-season. … Mikayla Miller scored a team-high 15 points and led three Gusties in double figures against Concordia on Wednesday. Lindsey Johnson chipped in 13 points and Stephanie Klockmann added 11. … Miller has now led the team in scoring in three of its last four games and four times in the Gusties' last six contests. … Miller, who leads the team with a 17.1 ppg scoring average, has netted 20 or more points six times this season—including a pair of 30-plus games. Miller netted 30 points against Martin Luther on Nov. 16, and poured in a season-high 31 vs. Carleton on Feb. 4. … Johnson also enters Saturday's showdown against Saint Mary's scoring more than 10 ppg, boasting a 10.6 ppg scoring average. … Miller is the team's rebounding leader with 123, also leading the Gusties in assists (81), steals (64) and minutes played (722). … Hannah Howard has also hauled in more than 100 rebounds this season, entering the Saint Mary's contest with 111. … Miller is the only Gustie to have started all 22 games this season. … GAC has drained 84 3-pointers this season—with Miller (29), Johnson (23) and Kelsey Carpenter (21) accounting for 73 of them. … Gustavus has played one overtime game this season, beating UW-River Falls 65-57 on Dec. 30. … Gustavus enters Saturday's game vs. Saint Mary's with a 7-2 record on their home court—the Gusties are 8-5 on the road this season.