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 play host to St. Catherine in a 7 p.m. Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference matchup.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (10-2 MIAC | 16-3 Overall) vs. St. Catherine Wildcats (4-8 MIAC | 9-9 Overall)
 
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Last Action:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals needed every bit of a game-ending 8-2 run, as Saint Mary's held off upset-minded Carleton 65-59 in a Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference game last Saturday at the Knights' West Gym in Northfield, Minn. | Recap
• St. Catherine: For the second time in as many meetings with nationally ranked St. Thomas, the Wildcats' game with the Tommies was decided by five points or less. This time around, however, the Wildcats would not repeat their 67-63 upset win on Dec. 12, as the Tommies handed SCU a 72-67 MIAC setback last Saturday at UST's Schoenecker Arena in St. Paul, Minn. | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. St. Catherine—Earlier This Year:
• January 6, 2016 * St. Paul, Minn.: Saint Mary's got a career-high 27 points from Brandi Blattner—including 11 of the team's final 17 points—and the Cardinals rallied from a nine-point fourth-quarter deficit en route to a 71-67 victory over the Wildcats at Butler Center | Recap

Saint Mary's vs. St. Catherine—A Year Ago:
• January 21, 2015 * Winona, Minn.: The Cardinals outscored St. Catherine by a combined 38-26 over the final 10 minutes of each half, as Saint Mary's pulled away to hand the Wildcats an 80-70 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference setback at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals take to the road on Saturday, heading to St. Joseph, Minn., for a 3 p.m. conference showdown with Saint Benedict.
• St. Catherine: The Wildcats return home to Butler Center in St. Paul, Minn., on Saturday, as the Wildcats host Augsburg in a 3 p.m. MIAC contest.

Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2015-16 Roster | 2015-16 Statistics | 2015-16 Schedule
• With their 65-59 win over Carleton last Saturday, the Cardinals improved to 10-2 in conference play and maintained a share of the top spot in the conference standings with St. Thomas, one game in front of both Concordia and Gustavus. … Last Wednesday's loss to Augsburg snapped the Cardinals' two-game winning streak—and was just the second time this season Saint Mary's has lost on its home court. The Cardinals are now 7-2 at the Saint Mary's Gym this season and 42-5 over the past four years. … The Cardinals have had six different players lead them in scoring this season. … Micaela Meredith (Bloomington, Minn.) scored a team-high 20 points against Carleton last Saturday. … Meredith has now scored 20 or more points in a game five times this season—including a career-high 24-point effort against St. Thomas on Jan. 15. … Meredith was one of four Cardinals to score in double figures against Carleton last Saturday—Brandi Blattner (Eyota, Minn. / 17), Bridget Pethke (New London, Wis. / 10), and Emma Schaefer (Roseville, Minn. / 10) were the others. … Saint Mary's has now had four players score 10 or more points in a game three times this season. … Along with her 17 points, Blattner also hauled in a game-high 16 rebounds en route to her ninth double-double of the season. … Blattner has recorded 10 or more rebounds in nine straight games and 12 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. … Blattner has netted 20 or more points five times in the Cardinals' last eight games, and eight times this season. … 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 team-, game-, and 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.) equaled 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 head into their conference showdown against St. Catherine boasting a pair of players averaging in double figures—Blattner (16.6 ppg) and Meredith (14.1 ppg). … Blattner owns a team- and conference-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 117 assists and 59 steals. … With her 117 assists this season, Pethke has eclipsed the 100-assist mark for the second time in her collegiate career. … Pethke is currently sitting fourth all-time in career assists, just 20 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 115 3-pointers. … The Cardinals boast three players—Schaefer (32), Meredith (25) and Huisman (21)—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 81-point effort in its 81-56 win over Macalester on Jan. 24 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. … Saint Mary's had its season-opening eight-game winning streak snapped with a 68-44 loss to UW-Stevens Point on Dec. 19. … Two of the Cardinals' three losses this season have come against nationally ranked teams—No. 14 UW-Stevens Point and No. 19 St. Thomas. … 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 St. Catherine Wildcats:
2015-16 Roster | 2015-16 Statistics | 2015-16 Schedule
• Wednesday's game at Saint Mary's is the second of back-to-back road games against the top two teams in the conference—SCU dropped a 72-67 decision at St. Thomas last Saturday. … The Wildcats' five-point loss to St. Thomas snapped their two-game winning streak. … After opening the season 7-2—including a season-opening five-game winning streak—St. Catherine has gone 2-7 in their last nine contests. … The Wildcats had three players score in double figures against St. Thomas last Saturday—LaShay Holt (18), Mari Lee (15), and Aurda Clark (15). … Holt has now scored in double figures in six straight games and 16 times in the team's 18 contests to date. … Holt netted a season-high 33 points in the Wildcats' 79-69 loss to St. Olaf on Jan. 16. … Holt's 33-point effort against St. Olaf—which including a school-record eight 3-pointers—was not only a career-high, but also the second-highest single game performance in scoring history. … Holt owns five double-doubles, including a 19-point, 10-rebound effort against Carleton last Wednesday. … The Wildcats head into Wednesday's showdown at Saint Mary's with two players averaging in double figures—Holt (16.4 ppg) and Clark (13.0 ppg). … Holt also owns a team-leading 128 rebounds (8.0 rpg) and has amassed a team-best 45 steals. … Clark is the team's assist leader with 48, and is one of five Wildcats with 20 or more helpers this season. … St. Catherine has drained 107 3-pointers—including three games netting 10 or more treys. … The Wildcats have five players with 10 or more—led by Shauna Horsch (27) and Holt (25). … St. Catherine is a averaging 64.9 ppg and has scored 80 or more points twice this season—including a season-high 89-point effort in an 89-58 win over Crown on Nov. 16. … St. Catherine is 4-4 on its home court this season, while going 5-5 away from Butler Center.