ST. PAUL, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota women's basketball team hits the road on Wednesday, traveling to Hamline's Hutton Arena for a 7 p.m. Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference matchup against the Pipers.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (13-3 MIAC | 19-4 Overall) at Hamline Pipers (1-15 MIAC | 3-20 Overall)

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Last Action:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals scored the game's first 10 points, and never took their foot off the gas in rolling to an 85-56 win over St. Olaf last Saturday at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap
• Hamline: The Pipers' Chelsey Bonsante scored a team-high 17 points, but Hamline was no match for high-powered Gustavus in a 75-41 MIAC loss last Saturday in St Peter, Minn. | Recap

Saint Mary's vs. Hamline—Earlier This Year:
• January 20, 2016 * Winona, Minn.: After managing just six points in the first 5:43—and staring at a 6-6 deadlock with visiting Hamline—the Cardinals scored the final 12 points of the opening quarter and never looked back, dealing the Pipers a 70-55 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference setback at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. Hamline—A Year Ago:
• December 3, 2014 * St. Paul, Minn.: After six straight nonconference games—all victories—Saint Mary's began defense of its Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference regular-season title against Hamline. And for the Cardinals, the beat goes on. Saint Mary's collected its seventh straight victory to open the season, putting four players in double figures as the Cardinals handed Hamline an 80-72 setback at Hutton Arena | Recap
• January 28, 2015 * Winona, Minn.: For the second time in as many meetings with the Pipers, Molly O'Toole poured in a career high 23 points—and the Cardinals needed every one of them. Fueled by O'Toole's second career-best effort vs. the Pipers this season—capped by a pair of win-clinching free throws with 2.5 seconds remaining in regulation—the Cardinals held off Hamline for a 68-65 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference victory at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals close out their regular-season schedule on Saturday, traveling to St. Thomas' Schoenecker Arena in St. Paul, Minn., for a 1 p.m. showdown with the Tommies.
• Hamline: The Pipers return home to Hutton Arena in St. Paul, Minn., on Saturday, entertaining Bethel in a 3 p.m. regular-season finale.

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—slipped to second place in the conference standings with last Wednesday's loss at Bethel. With two games remaining in the regular season, St. Thomas leads the league at 14-2, followed by Saint Mary's (13-3), Concordia (12-4), Gustavus (12-4), Bethel (10-6), and Saint Benedict (9-7).
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2015-16 Roster | 2015-16 Statistics | 2015-16 Schedule
• Saturday's win over St. Olaf was the final regular-season home game for the Cardinals, who improved to 9-2 on their home court this season, while going 10-2 on the road. … The Cardinals are 44-5 at the Saint Mary's Gym over the past four years. … This year's senior class—Bridget Pethke (New London, Wis.), Micaela Meredith (Bloomington, Minn.), and Haley Trom (Hampton, Minn.)—will leave Saint Mary's as the winningest class in program history, heading into the final week of the regular-season having amassed an 83-22 overall record, along with one conference regular-season title and an NCAA national tournament berth. … With their win over St. Olaf last Saturday, the Cardinals head into Wednesday's showdown at Hamline having won four of its last five. … Playing in her final regular-season home game, Pethke poured in a game-high 18 points, added nine assists and hauled in seven rebounds against St. Olaf last Saturday. … With her ninth and final assist of the afternoon against St. Olaf—a dish that led to an Alexa Huisman (Adrian, Minn.) 3-pointer with seven minutes remaining—Pethke moved into a tie for the most career assists in program history with 372,  a record that Lisa Janikowski has held since she graduated in 1987. … Pethke—who dished out a career-high 10 assists against Augsburg on Dec. 9—owns a team-leading 137 assists, ranking her No. 3 all-time, just 14 helpers shy of the single-season school record of 151, set by Michele Gensler in 1990-91 … Pethke—who has started every game she has played in a Cardinal uniform—has eclipsed the 100-assist mark twice in her collegiate career. … Pethke was one of a season-high five Cardinals to score in double figures against St. Olaf last Saturday. Meredith (11), Emma Schaefer (Roseville, Minn. / 11), Sam Jones (White Bear Lake, Minn. / 11), and McKenzie Sommers (Arlington, Minn. / 10) were the others. … Bridgette Audette (Big Lake, Minn.) missed her first career double-double by one point vs. Bethel on Feb. 10, finishing with nine points and a career-best 12 rebounds. … Meredith—who has now netted 10 or more points in 17 of the team's 23 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 fourth 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. … Sommers equaled her collegiate best with 12 points against Macalester on Jan. 23, while Trom tied her career high with 15 points against St. Catherine on Jan. 6, and Huisman recorded a career-high 14 points against Carleton on Dec. 16. … The Cardinals have had six different players lead them in scoring this season. … The Cardinals head into their conference showdown at Hamline Wednesday boasting a pair of players averaging in double figures—Blattner (16.6 ppg) and Meredith (14.5 ppg). … Blattner owns a team-best 201 rebounds (10.6 rpg). … Saint Mary's—which knocked down a season-high 12 treys against St. Olaf last Saturday—has made 139 3-pointers. … The Cardinals boast four players—Schaefer (37), Meredith (29), Pethke (27), and  Huisman (25)—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 70.7 ppg. … Saint Mary's 85-point effort in their 85-56 win over St. Olaf last Saturday marked the fifth 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 Hamline Pipers:
2015-16 Roster | 2015-16 Statistics | 2015-16 Schedule
• Wednesday's game against Saint Mary's is the first of back-to-back home games for the Pipers, who are still searching for their first win at Hutton Arena this season (0-8). … Hamline's 75-41 loss to Gustavus last Saturday pushed the Pipers' season-high losing streak to 12 straight. HU has not won in 2016, with its last win a 68-64 victory over Colorado College on Dec. 29. … Chelsey Bonsante scored a team-high 17 points in the Pipers' loss to Gustavus last Saturday. … Bonstante, who has led the team in scoring in each of its last three games, has netted 1,034 career points during her four-year collegiate career. … The Pipers have had a player score 20 or more points nine times this season—including season-highs of 29 and 32 points by Bonsante. … Hamline enters Wednesday's showdown with Saint Mary's boasting two players averaging in double figures—Bonsante (15.8 ppg) and Chloe Graves (13.9 ppg). … Hamline has five players—Emily Behrman (99), Bonsante (96), Graves (96), and Alison Bartak (94)—who have collected 90 or more rebounds. … Graves also owns a team-leading 91 assists, while Behrman's 47 steals are a team-high. … Bonsante (51) and Graves (35) have accounted for 86 of the team's 108 3-pointers this season. … Hamline is averaging 56.1 ppg and scored a season-high 83 points in an 83-56 win over Crown on Nov. 30. … HU has been held under 60 points in 14 of its 20 losses—including its last eight straight.