ST. PAUL, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota women's basketball team hits the road on Wednesday, as the Cardinals square off against nationally ranked and unbeaten St. Thomas in a Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference matchup at Schoenecker Arena.
 
The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (8-4 MIAC | 14-5 Overall) at #3 St. Thomas Tommies (12-0 MIAC | 19-0 Overall)
 
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Last Action:
• Saint Mary's: Bethel completed its conference sweep of the Cardinals last Saturday, as the Royals raced out to a 10-point halftime lead and continued to pull away in handing Saint Mary's a 78-54 conference setback in Arden Hills, Minn. | Recap
• St. Thomas: Jenna Dockter scored 13 points to lead No. 3-ranked St. Thomas to a 60-37 conference win over Augsburg last Saturday at Schoenecker Arena in St. Paul, Minn. | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. Tommies—A Year Ago:
• January 11, 2014: Courtney Euerle (Litchfield, Minn.) knocked down a pull-up jumper with six seconds remaining in regulation as the Cardinals held off St. Thomas 56-54 in a Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference showdown at the SMU Gym | Recap
• February 8, 2014: St. Thomas snapped the Cardinals' 16-game winning streak, building leads as big as 20 points in the first half — and SMU could not recover — as the Tommies cruised to a 65-48 conference victory at Schoenecker Arena | Recap
• March 1, 2014: Saint Mary's entered the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Tournament title game enjoying a magical season—a season that included the team's first regular-season conference title in 28 years, not to mention its first-ever appearance in the conference tournament's title game. Unfortunately, St. Thomas stood between Saint Mary's and the MIAC Tournament crown—and the automatic berth into the NCAA national tournament that went with it. The Tommies, making their fifth straight appearance in the MIAC Tournament title game, knocked down 9 of 10 free throws over the game's final 1:30 in handing the Cardinals a 71-58 setback at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap
 
Up Next:
•  Saint Mary's: The Cardinals are back on their home court on Saturday, as Saint Mary's entertains Concordia in a 1 p.m. conference contest at the Saint Mary's Gym.
• St. Thomas: The Tommies play their second straight home contest on Saturday, as St. Thomas plays host to Carleton in a 1 p.m. MIAC matchup at Schoenecker Arena.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2014-15 Roster | 2014-15 Schedule | 2014-15 Statistics
Saturday's loss to Bethel snapped the Cardinals' six-game winning streak. It was the second time this year Saint Mary's has suffered a streak-snapping loss to the Royals—Bethel beat the Cardinals 51-47 in their first meeting on Dec. 8, ending their season-opening eight-game win streak. … The Cardinals have now put together winning streaks of eight and six games to account for their 14 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. … With their win over Hamline last Wednesday, the Cardinals improved to 6-1 on their home court this season and are now 31-3 at the Saint Mary's Gym over the past three seasons. … Sam Jones (White Bear Lake, Minn.) and Micaela Meredith (Bloomington, Minn.) each scored a team-leading 11 points against Bethel Saturday. … Molly O'Toole (Plymouth, Minn.) equaled her career high with 23 points against Hamline last Wednesday—including 19 points in the first half. O'Toole's other 23-point effort this season also came against the Pipers on Dec. 3. … O'Toole has led the team in scoring in six of the Cardinals' last seven games. … With her 23 points against Hamline Wednesday, O'Toole has scored 10 or more points in 14 of the team's 18 games this season. … O'Toole has now eclipsed the 20-point barrier three times this season, while Shelby Auseth (Wanamingo, Minn.) has achieved that feat twice. O'Toole scored 23 points vs. Hamline on Dec. 3 and Jan. 28, while adding 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. … The Cardinals have six players who have recorded single-game career-highs of 10 points or more this season—O'Toole (23), Meredith (17), Schaefer (15), Natalie Larson (North Branch, Minn. / 14), Jones (12), and Kayla Lardy (Fairmont, Minn. / 10). … Saint Mary's had six players score in double figures in its win over St. Catherine on Jan. 21—O'Toole (19), Meredith (16), Emma Schaefer (Falcon Heights, Minn. / 12), Octavia Brown (Broadview, Ill. / 11), Sara Schoenthaler (White Bear Lake, Minn. / 10), and Shelby Auseth (Wanamingo, Minn. / 10). … Saint Mary's has put four or more players in double figures five 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 Wednesday's conference showdown with league-leading St. Thomas averaging in double figures at 13.1 ppg and 11.2 ppg, respectively. … O'Toole owns a team-leading 106 rebounds (5.6 rpg), nine more than Auseth. … As a team, the Cardinals drained 22 of their 23 attempts from the charity stripe against St. Olaf on Jan. 7. … 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 117 3-pointers this season, and have six players with 10 or more treys—Schaefer (27), Schoenthaler (20), Auseth (18), Meredith (18), O'Toole (14), and Pethke (10). … The Cardinals, who have been held under 60 points just four times this season have outscored their first 19 opponents 615-505 in the game's opening 20 minutes. … The Cardinals have held 12 of their 19 opponents to 30 points or less in the first half. … Saint Mary's is averaging 65.4 ppg, while the Cardinals' opponents are scoring at a 59.6 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 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 St. Thomas Tommies:
2014-15 Roster | 2014-15 Schedule | 2014-15 Statistics
The league-leading Tommies enter Wednesday's showdown against Saint Mary's riding a season-opening 19-game winning streak—including an 11-0 mark on the road. … The Tommies have now won 13 consecutive road games—and 18 of their last 19—dating back to last season. That's the fourth longest current streak in Division III. Their 11-0 road record this season is tied for the best in all of NCAA basketball. … St. Thomas is ranked No. 3 in the latest D3hoops.com To 25. … The Tommies' 19-0 start is the second best in program history—the 1991-92 team started 27-0 before losing in round two of the NCAA playoffs. … With their 60-37 win over Augsburg last Saturday, the Tommies became the first team—women or men—to secure one of the MIAC postseason playoff spots. They hold a three-game lead over second-place Bethel with six games to go in the MIAC race. … The Tommies have held 12 of their last 13 opponents to 50 points or less. … Among its 19 wins, St. Thomas has had just one game decided by 10 points or less—an eight-point, 60-52 win over UW-Stevens Point on Dec. 30. … Jenna Dockler scored 13 points and Maggie Weiers added 12 against Augsburg last Saturday, while Anna Smith chipped in nine points and 12 rebounds. … Dockler and Weiers lead a balanced St. Thomas offensive attack, averaging 12.7 ppg and 12.2 ppg, respectively. … Weiers owns a team-leading 139 rebounds (8.2 rpg), five more than Smith. … Dockler also boasts a team-best 74 assists, while Smith is the team-leader in steals with 31. … St. Thomas has netted 114 3-pointers this season, led by Katie Stone with 31 and Dockler with 20. … Stone and Dockler are two of five Tommies with 10 or more 3-pointers through 19 games. … St. Thomas sank 11 3-pointers (11 of 27) in its Dec. 19 win over Wartburg—with five different players sinking at least one trey. The 11 3-pointers were a season-high and one off the school record. … As a team, the Tommies—who have won 43 of their last 46 games against MIAC opponents—are averaging 69.4 ppg, while UST's opponents are scoring at a 45.7 ppg clip. … St. Thomas netted a season-high 80 points in an 80-57 win over Saint Benedict on Jan. 24.