MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota women's hockey team heads to Ed Saugestad Rink on Friday, as the Cardinals square off against Augsburg in the first game of their two-game Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference series. Game time is slated for 7 p.m.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (4-5-1 MIAC | 5-10-2 Overall) at Augsburg Auggies (7-2-1 MIAC | 10-6-1 Overall)
 
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Last Action:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals earned a split in their two-game MIAC series against Hamline last weekend, beating the Pipers 4-2 at the Saint Mary's Ice Arena last Friday, before falling 2-1 in overtime in the rematch a day later at Oscar Johnson Arena in St. Paul, Minn. | HU Recap 1 * HU Recap 2
• Augsburg: The Auggies are coming off a conference sweep of Concordia at Ed Saugestad Rink in Minneapolis, Minn., last weekend, posting back-to-back 3-0 victories over the Cobbers | CC Recap 1 * CC Recap 2
 
Saint Mary's vs. Augsburg—A Year Ago:
• February 6, 2015 * Winona, Minn.: A week after scoring two goals in the game's waning minutes—and adding the game-winner two minutes into overtime—in a 3-2 win over St. Olaf, the Cardinals surrendered the game-tying goal midway through the third period and had to settle for a 1-1 tie against Augsburg at the Saint Mary's Ice Arena | Recap
• February 7, 2015 * Minneapolis, Minn.: For the second game in a row, Saint Mary's entered the third period of its Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference game against Augsburg clinging to a 1-0 lead. Unlike the previous night, however—when Augsburg scored the only goal of the final period to salvage a 1-1 tie—it was the Cardinals who would find the back of the net in the third period, as Saint Mary's blanked the Auggies 2-0 at Ed Saugestad Rink | Recap
 
Up Next:
• The Cardinals and Auggies head to the Saint Mary's Ice Arena on Saturday for the second game of their two-game conference series. Game time is set for 2 p.m.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2015-16 Roster | 2015-16 Statistics | 2015-16 Schedule
• Last Saturday's 2-1 loss against Hamline marked the 15th time in the last 16 games—and the 25th time in their last 29 contests—that the Cardinals have played a game decided by two goals or less. … Saint Mary's 2-1 loss to Hamline was its fifth overtime game this season—and the Cardinals are still searching for their first win (0-3-2). The Cardinals' last overtime win was a 3-2 victory over St. Olaf on Jan. 31, 2015. … Saint Mary's played six OT games a year ago, going 2-1-3. … Both of Saint Mary's ties this season have been 1-1 decisions. … With their 4-2 win over Hamline Friday, the Cardinals snapped their season-high seven-game winless streak (0-6-1). … Saint Mary's four goals against the Pipers last Friday were the most since the Cardinals dropped Concordia by the same 4-2 count on Dec. 4. … Kassie Lien (Grantsburg, Wis.) scored twice, while McKenna Parent (Anoka, Minn.) and Molly Abraham (Sterling Heights, Mich.) each scored once against Hamline last Friday. Jane Hannula (Coon Rapids, Minn.) netted Saint Mary's lone goal in Saturday's rematch with the Pipers. … Lien's two goals marked the second time in her collegiate career that the junior has scored two goals in a game. … Jamie Henderson (Madison, Wis.), who has scored a goal in seven of the Cardinals' last 12 games, is the team-leader in goals with nine and points with 13. … Lien leads the team in assists with seven, one more than Parent. … Parent, who posted her first collegiate two-goal game in the Cardinals' 4-2 win over Concordia on Dec. 4, is second to Henderson in points with 12. … Henderson and Parent each recorded their first collegiate three-point games against St. Olaf on Nov. 21, while Macki Fadness (Eau Claire, Wis.) and Lien both notched career-best two-assist nights in that same game. … Maddy Wallraff's (Blaine, Minn.) second-period goal against UW-Eau Claire on Jan. 2 was the first of her collegiate career. … Tori Herrmann (Elk River, Minn.), who made 25 saves against Hamline Friday, recorded a season-high 38 saves against St. Thomas on Jan. 15—it was the fourth time in seven starts that the senior has stopped 30 or more shots. … Marah Shields (Milford, Mich.) made 43 saves in the Cardinals' 2-1 OT loss to Hamline last Saturday. … Shields has now made 30 or more saves in four of her seven starts this season. … Ashley Corcoran (Red Wing, Minn.) stopped 42 St. Norbert shots in her collegiate debut between the pipes on Nov. 28. …Herrmann has made seven starts in goal for the Cardinals, going 4-2-1 with a 1.85 goals-against-average and .944 save percentage, with Shields (7 starts, 2.47 GAA, 940 save percentage) and Corcoran (3 starts, 2.47 GAA, .924 save percentage) close behind. … Herrmann collected her first collegiate assist in the Cardinals' 1-1 tie against Bethel on Nov. 14. … Shields—who owns a team-best 252 saves—recorded a school-record 79 saves in the Cardinals' 2-0 loss to UW-Superior on Oct. 31. … The 79-save effort—which ranks No. 6 all-time in NCAA Division III history—is 24 saves more than the previous record of 55, set by Nikki Jung against Gustavus on Jan. 21, 2005. … Shields made 22 saves in the first period, 33 in the second, and 24 in the third en route to her 79-save performance. … The Cardinals have scored first in all five of their wins this season (5-5-0). Saint Mary's is 0-5-2 when its opponent nets the game's first goal. … The Cardinals' five-goal effort against UW-Superior in their 5-2 season-opening win on Oct. 30 was the Cardinals' highest offensive output since netting five goals in a 5-3 win over Hamline on Feb. 23, 2014. … The Cardinals' games against St. Thomas on Jan. 15-16 marked the third and fourth straight games against teams ranked in the Top 5 of the latest USCHO.com national poll. Along with their two conference games vs. No. 4 St. Thomas, Saint Mary's dropped 2-1 and 4-2 decisions to third-ranked Lake Forest the previous weekend. … With their 5-2 win over UW-Superior on Oct. 30, the Cardinals snapped a four-game season-opening winless streak (0-3-1). Saint Mary's last season-opening win was a 5-0 victory over Marian on Oct. 29, 2010. … Saint Mary's is coming off an 11-win season a year ago—the Cardinals' highest win total since going 11-11-3 during the 2010-11 season.
 
Scouting The Augsburg Auggies:
2015-16 Roster | 2015-16 Statistics | 2015-16 Schedule
• The Auggies' game against Saint Mary's Friday is their four straight home game. Augsburg is 7-3-1 on their home ice this season. … The Auggies head into Friday's showdown with Saint Mary's riding a three-game winning streak. … Augsburg has not allowed a goal during its current three-game run, outscoring its opponents 8-0—including back-to-back 3-0 wins over Concordia last weekend. … Augsburg's three straight shutouts is the Auggies first such stretch since the 2002-03 season—a 0-0 tie against St. Catherine, followed by 6-0 and 3-0 wins over Saint Benedict. … 
The Auggies have allowed just 10 goals in their 10 wins this season. … Erika Allen extended her shutout streak to three straight games, stopping all 48 shots she faced in back-to-back shutouts over Concordia last weekend—and earning MIAC Athlete of the Week honors. … Allen enters Friday's game against Saint Mary's owning a 1.67 goals-against-average and a .932 save percentage in 13 starts. … Megan Johnson extended her point-scoring streak to six straight games with a goal against Concordia last Saturday. … Johnson leads the team in both goals (9) and points (15), while Callen Naasz is the team-leader in assists with nine. … Johnson's nine goals are the most by an Augsburg freshman since Rachel Hennessy's 20 in the 2011-12 season. … Augsburg boasts three players—Johnson (15), Naasz (13), and Darby Lindgren (10)—with 10 or more points. … Johnson and Naasz have each notched a pair of game-winning goals, while Johnson, Lindgren, and Brenna Nakonechny have all scored two power play goals. … Augsburg's 42 goals have come from 12 different players, while 15 Auggies have recorded at least one point. … Augsburg has outscored its opponents 44-30—including 20-12 in the third period. … The Auggies are 9-2-0 when scoring first, while going 1-4-1 when their opponent nets the game's first goal. … With 10 wins in the books, Augsburg has already surpassed its win total from each of the last two campaigns. The last time the Auggies have won 10 or more games was in 2004-05, when they finished 13-10-3. … Augsburg enters the weekend sitting in second place in the MIAC standings with 15 points, two points behind league-leader St. Thomas.