WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota women's basketball team returns to the Saint Mary's Gym on Saturday, as the Cardinals host St. Olaf in a 3 p.m. Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference contest.

The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (12-3 MIAC | 18-4 Overall) vs. St. Olaf Oles (7-8 MIAC | 12-10 Overall)

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Last Action:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals rallied from a 20-7 first-quarter deficit, but came up just short in the end, as Bethel held off a furious four-quarter run to hand Saint Mary's a 77-74 conference setback Wednesday at Robertson Center in Arden Hills, Minn. | Recap
• St. Olaf: The Oles were held to 15 second-half points, as Gustavus dealt St. Olaf a 77-40 conference setback Wednesday at Gus Young Court in St. Peter, Minn. | Recap

Saint Mary's vs. St. Olaf—Earlier This Year:
• January 9, 2016 * Northfield, Minn.: The Cardinals got 27 points from Brandi Blattner (Eyota, Minn.)—the Saint Mary's freshman's second straight 27-point performance—and outscored the Oles 13-2 in the game's final six minutes in handing St. Olaf a 57-46 MIAC setback at Skoglund Center | Recap

Saint Mary's vs. St. Olaf—A Year Ago:
• January 7, 2015 * Northfield, Minn.: With 10 seconds remaining in their Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference game against St. Olaf, it appeared Saint Mary's was on its way to a key conference victory. Unfortunately for the Cardinals, things aren't always as they appear. St. Olaf's Betsy Daly scored on a driving layup with 1.6 seconds remaining in regulation, erasing a one-point Cardinal lead and lifting the Oles to a 66-65 victory over Saint Mary's at Skoglund Center | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals are back on the road on Wednesday, heading to Hamline's Hutton Arena in St. Paul, Minn., for a 7 p.m. conference game against the Pipers.
• St. Olaf: The Oles are on the road on Wednesday, heading to St. Thomas' Schoenecker Arena in St. Paul, Minn., for a 7 p.m. MIAC battle against the Tommies.
 
The MIAC Playoff Picture:
• Four teams have already punched their tickets to the MIAC Playoff dance—St. Thomas, Saint Mary's, Concordia and Gustavus. The Cardinals—who locked up a spot in the MIAC Playoffs for the fifth straight year with last Saturday's win over Saint Benedict—slipped to second place in the conference standings with Wednesday's loss at Bethel. With three games remaining in the regular season, St. Thomas leads the league at 13-2, followed by Saint Mary's (12-3), Concordia (11-4), Gustavus (11-4), Bethel (10-5), and Saint Benedict (9-6).

Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2015-16 Roster | 2015-16 Statistics | 2015-16 Schedule
• After back-to-back road games, the Cardinals return home Saturday for their final regular-season contest at the Saint Mary's Gym. … Saint Mary's—winners of five of their last seven—are 8-2 on their home court this season, while going 10-2 on the road. … The Cardinals are 43-5 at the Saint Mary's Gym over the past four years. … Saturday's game is the final regular-season home game for seniors Bridget Pethke (New London, Wis.), Micaela Meredith (Bloomington, Minn.), and Haley Trom (Hampton, Minn.). … This year's senior class will leave Saint Mary's as the winningest in program history, heading into Saturday's contest having amassed an 82-22 overall record, along with one conference regular-season title and an NCAA national tournament berth. … Wednesday's 77-74 loss to Bethel snapped the Cardinals' three-game winning streak. … Meredith led a trio of Cardinals in double figures against Bethel Wednesday, scoring 16 points. Emma Schaefer (Roseville, Minn.) chipped in 15, while Sam Jones (White Bear Lake, Minn.) added 11. … Bridgette Audette (Big Lake, Minn.) missed her first career double-double by one point vs. the Royals, finishing with nine points and a career-best 12 rebounds. … Meredith—who has now netted 10 or more points in 16 of the team's 22 games—scored a team-high 23 points against St. Catherine on Feb. 3. It was the sixth time this season the Cardinal senior has netted 20 or more points in a game. … Meredith's 23-point effort vs. St. Catherine was one point shy of her career-best 24-point showing against St. Thomas on Jan. 15. … Brandi Blattner (Eyota, Minn.), who owns nine double-doubles and had hauled in 10 or more rebounds in ninth straight games—and 12 times this season—missed her third game of the season against Bethel due to an appendectomy. … Blattner—who has scored 20 or more points eight times this season—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. … Blattner scored a career-high 27 points in back-to-back games against St. Catherine and St. Olaf on Jan. 6 and Jan. 6—it was the highest single-game output since Pethke tossed in 32 points against St. Olaf on Jan. 29, 2014. … Meredith recorded her first collegiate double-double against Lawrence on Dec. 30, scoring 13 points and hauling in a career-high 11 rebounds. … McKenzie Sommers (Arlington, Minn.) equaled her collegiate best with 12 points against Macalester on Jan. 23, while Haley Trom (Hampton, Minn.) tied her career high with 15 points against St. Catherine on Jan. 6, and Alexa Huisman (Adrian, Minn.) recorded a career-high 14 points against Carleton on Dec. 16. … The Cardinals have had six different players lead them in scoring, and have had four players score 10 or more points in the same game three times this season. … The Cardinals head into their conference showdown with St. Olaf Saturday boasting a pair of players averaging in double figures—Blattner (16.6 ppg) and Meredith (14.6 ppg). … Blattner owns a team-best 201 rebounds (10.6 rpg), while Pethke—who dished out a career-high 10 assists against Augsburg on Dec. 9—leads the team with 128 assists and 67 steals. … With her 128 assists this season, Pethke has eclipsed the 100-assist mark for the second time in her collegiate career. … Pethke is currently sitting third all-time in career assists with 383, just nine helpers shy of record-holder Lisa Janikowski's 392 assists from 1983-87. … Saint Mary's—which knocked down a season-high 11 treys against UW-La Crosse on Nov. 24—has made 127 3-pointers. … The Cardinals boast four players—Schaefer (35), Meredith (27), Pethke (24), and  Huisman (22)—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 70.0 ppg. … Saint Mary's 81-point effort in their 81-56 win over Macalester on Jan. 23 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. … The Cardinals had 11 players see court time in their first meeting against Carleton on Dec. 16—and all 11 scored at least two points. … 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. … Two of the Cardinals' four losses this season have come against nationally ranked teams—No. 14 UW-Stevens Point and No. 19 St. Thomas. … 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.
 
Scouting The St. Olaf Oles:
2015-16 Roster | 2015-16 Statistics | 2015-16 Schedule
• Saturday's game against Saint Mary's is the second of three straight road games for the Oles, who are 5-4 away from Skoglund Center this year. … After opening the season 8-3—including a season-high six-game winning streak—the Oles are 4-7 in their last 11 contests. … St. Olaf was held to a season-low 15 second-half points in their loss at Gustavus Wednesday. The Oles were outscored 46-15 over the game's final 20 minutes. … Betsey Daly netted a team-best 12 points vs. Gustavus, while Afton Wolter also finished in double figures with 10 points. … Daly heads into Saturday's game at Saint Mary's as the only Ole averaging in double figures at 12.5 ppg. … St. Olaf has had a player score 20 or more points in a game four times—including a season-best 26-point showing from Daly against Bethel on Feb. 3. … Daly is the team-leader in rebounds with 185 (8.4 rpg). … Makenna Ash has also eclipsed the 100-rebound plateau this season, amassing 146 boards. … Lauren Gutierrez and Woo Bandel are the team-leaders in assists with 67 and 61, respectively, while Bandel also boasts a team-best 43 steals. … Ash (17) and Zoe Hansen (16) have combined for 33 of the team's 62 blocks. … St. Olaf has knocked down 135 3-pointers this season, led by Wolter with 43. … St. Olaf, which is averaging 58.2 ppg, has scored 70 or more points in a game six times—including a season-high 85 in an 88-85 double-overtime loss to Bethel on Feb. 3. … The Oles have outscored their opponents in every quarter but the fourth, where their opponents hold a 308-287 scoring advantage.