WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota women's basketball team returns to the Saint Mary's Gym on Wednesday, as the Cardinals host Augsburg in a 7 p.m. Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference game.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (9-1 MIAC | 15-2 Overall) at Augsburg Auggies (4-6 MIAC | 9-8 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video | Video Preview | GameDay Program
 
Last Action:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals put three players in double figures—including a 26-point, 12-rebound double-double by Brandt Blattner (Eyota, Minn.)—as Saint Mary's rolled to an 81-56 conference win over Macalester last Saturday at Leonard Center in St. Paul, Minn. | Recap
• Augsburg: The Auggies held a 14-5 lead after the game's opening quarter, but Gustavus used a 21-8 second-quarter burst to take the lead for good, and hand Augsburg a 60-54 conference setback last Saturday at Gus Young Court in St. Peter, Minn.  | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. Augsburg—Earlier This Year:
• December 9, 2015 * Minneapolis, Minn.: The Cardinals, trailing by two after three quarters, erupted for 25 fourth-quarter points—while holding host Augsburg to just 10—as Saint Mary's rallied for a 64-51 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference victory at Si Melby Hall | Recap

Saint Mary's vs. Augsburg—A Year Ago:
• December 6, 2014 * Winona, Minn.: The Cardinals—ranked No. 14 in the latest USA Today Sports Coaches Poll and No. 16 in the D3hoops.com Top 25—raced out to leads as big as 22 in the first half, but had to survive a 20-0 Augsburg second-half run to dispatch of the Auggies 66-57 in a Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference game at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap
• January 24, 2015 * Minneapolis, Minn.: The Cardinals once again played the majority of the game from out front—in fact, after giving up a game-opening basket to the Auggies' Bridget Bednar, the Cardinals scored nine unanswered points and never relinquished the lead. But for the second straight meeting, no matter how hard the Cardinals tried, no lead was safe. Fortunately, the Cardinals used a five-minute, game-ending 8-4 run to turn a two-point, 43-41 lead into a 51-45 victory at Si Melby Hall | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals hit the road on Saturday, heading to Carleton's West Gym in Northfield, Minn., for a 3 p.m. MIAC game against the Knights.
• Augsburg: The Auggies return home to Si Melby Hall in Minneapolis, Minn., on Saturday, for a 3 p.m. conference showdown with Concordia.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2015-16 Roster | 2015-16 Statistics | 2015-16 Schedule
• With their win over Macalester on Saturday, the Cardinals have now won back-to-back games, and remain atop the MIAC standings, one game in front of St. Thomas, and two games ahead of Concordia, Gustavus and Saint Benedict. … With their 70-55 win over Hamline last Wednesday, the Cardinals improved to 7-1 on their home court this season, while pushing their record to 42-4 at the Saint Mary's Gym over the past four seasons. … Both of the Cardinals' losses this season have come against nationally ranked teams—No. 14 UW-Stevens Point and No. 19 St. Thomas. … Saint Mary's boasted three double-figure scorers against Macalester last Saturday, led by Brandi Blattner (Eyota, Minn.) with a game-high 26 points. McKenzie Sommers (Arlington, Minn.) equaled her collegiate best with 12 points and Alexa Huisman (Adrian, Minn.) chipped in 11 points. … Blattner's 26-point effort against Macalester last Saturday was one point shy her career high—recorded in back-to-back games against St. Catherine and St. Olaf on Jan. 6 and Jan. 9. … Blattner—whose 27 points are the highest single-game output since Bridget Pethke (New London, Wis.) tossed in 32 points against St. Olaf on Jan. 29, 2014—has scored 20 or more points six times this season, including four of her last six games. … Blattner hauled in a game-high 12 rebounds against Macalester last Saturday en route to her seventh collegiate double-double. … Blattner has recorded 10 or more rebounds in seven straight games and 10 times this season. … Blattner hauled in a career-high 19 rebounds in Saint Mary's win over UW-Eau Claire on Nov. 29. It was the Cardinals' highest single-game rebounding performance in the last two decades. … Micaela Meredith (Bloomington, Minn.) scored a team-, game-, and career-high 24 points against St. Thomas on Jan. 15. … Meredith's 24-point effort against the Tommies marked the fourth time this season the senior has netted 20 or more points in a game. … Pethke collected 10 rebounds and dished out nine assists against Hamline last Wednesday—both efforts were one shy of her collegiate bests. … Meredith recorded her first collegiate double-double against Lawrence on Dec. 30, scoring 13 points and hauling in a team-, game-, and career-high 11 rebounds. … The Cardinals have had six different players lead them in scoring this season. … The Cardinals had 11 players see court time against Carleton on Dec. 16—and all 11 scored at least two points. … Haley Trom (Hampton, Minn.) equaled her career high with 15 points against St. Catherine on Jan. 6, while Huisman recorded a career-high 14 points against Carleton on Dec. 16. … The Cardinals head into their conference showdown against Augsburg boasting a pair of players averaging in double figures—Blattner (16.2 ppg) and Meredith (14.2 ppg). … Blattner owns a team- and conference-best 173 rebounds (10.2 rpg), while Pethke—who dished out a career-high 10 assists against Augsburg on Dec. 9—leads the team with 105 assists and 54 steals. … With her 105 assists this season, Pethke has eclipsed the 100-assist mark for the second time in her collegiate career. … Saint Mary's—which knocked down a season-high 11 treys against UW-La Crosse on Nov. 24—has made 104 3-pointers. … The Cardinals boast three players—Emma Schaefer (Roseville, Minn. / 28), Meredith (23) and Huisman (20)—with 20 or more 3-pointers. … The Cardinals have made a season-high 26 free throws in a game twice this season—at Saint Benedict on Nov. 22 and vs. Gustavus on Dec. 2. … As a team, the Cardinals are averaging 71.1 ppg. … Saint Mary's 81-point effort in last Saturday's 81-56 win over Macalester marked the fourth time this season the Cardinals have scored 80 or more points—including a season-high 88 points in their season-opening win over Crown on Nov. 21. … Saint Mary's scored 80 or more points three times a year ago—including a season-best 90 points in a 90-58 MIAC Playoff win over Gustavus on Feb. 24. … Saint Mary's held Crown to just seven first-half points in its season-opening 88-34 win over the Storm. It was the fewest points allowed in a half in program history, breaking the old mark of 14 set by the 2013-14 team—also against Crown. … The Cardinals put four players in double figures in last Wednesday's 70-55 win over Hamline—it was the second time this season Saint Mary's has had four double-figure scorers in a game. … Saint Mary's had its season-opening eight-game winning streak snapped with a 68-44 loss to UW-Stevens Point on Dec. 19. … Saint Mary's has opened the season with eight consecutive wins—and nine wins in their first 10 games—in back-to-back seasons. … The Cardinals' 13-1 start to the season was the best 14-game start since the 2013-14 season, when Saint Mary's opened 19-1 en route to its latest conference championship and NCAA Division III national tournament berth. … Saint Mary's played one overtime game last season—a 79-73 win over Concordia on Feb. 7. The Cardinals are 3-0 in their last three overtime games. … The Cardinals made their fourth straight appearance in the MIAC Playoffs a year ago. Saint Mary's has won at least one playoff game during its current four-year run. The Cardinals reached the MIAC semifinals in 2011-12, 2012-13, and 2014-15, while reaching the conference playoff title game in 2013-14.
 
Scouting The Augsburg Auggies:
2015-16 Roster | 2015-16 Statistics | 2015-16 Schedule
• Wednesday's game against Saint Mary's is the third straight road game for the Auggies, who are 6-3 away from Si Melby Hall this season. … Last Saturday's 60-54 loss to Gustavus was just the second in the last six games for the Auggies. … Augsburg has put together two, three-game winning streaks this season. … Maria Loughlin led the Auggies with 20 points in their loss to Gustavus last Saturday. … Loughlin has now sored 20 or more points three times in her last six games. … Bridget Bednar scored in double figures for the second straight game, finishing with 13 points against GAC. … Loughlin heads into Wednesday's game against Saint Mary's averaging a team-best 12.8 ppg, while Jessica Lillquist and Bridget Bednar are close behind at 8.8 ppg and 8.6 ppg, respectively. … Lillquist owns a team-best 87 rebounds (5.1 rpg), while Loughlin is also the team-leader in assists (56), steals (42) and blocked shots (9). … The Auggies have posted two double-doubles this season—Lillquist had season-highs of 32 points and 15 rebounds against North Central on Nov. 27, while Hannah Steinhaus posted 11 points and 11 boards against St. Olaf on Dec. 2. … Augsburg has knocked down 71 3-pointers this season, with Loughlin (36) and Allison McKee (14) accounting for 50 of them. … As a team, Augsburg is averaging 60.7 ppg, and has scored 70 or more points twice—including a season-high 80-point effort in an 80-71 win over North Central (Minn.) on Nov. 27. … Augsburg has been held under 60 points in seven of its eight losses this season.