WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota women's soccer team steps out of conference play on Wednesday, as the Cardinals welcome UW-River Falls to Ochrymowycz Field for a 7 p.m. nonconference matchup.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (2-3-1 Overall) vs. UW-River Falls Falcons (0-5-1 Overall)
 
Childhood Cancer Awareness Month:
• To show their support of Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, the Cardinals will be wearing specially designed gold uniforms (the color for childhood cancer) for Wednesday's game against UW-River Falls. After the game these shirts will be auctioned off with all proceeds benefiting Brighter Tomorrows, an outreach to families touched by childhood cancer. In addition, all Brighter Tomorrows families in attendance will be invited onto the field during the playing of the National Anthem | Brighter Tomorrows Homepage
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video | GameDay Program
 
Last Action:
•  Saint Mary's—September 18, 2016 * Superior, Wis.: The Cardinals erupted for four second-half goals en route to a 4-0 nonconference win over UW-Superior | Recap
• UW-River Falls—September 17, 2016 * River Falls, Wis.: The Falcons gave up three goals in the game's final 20 minutes, as Saint Benedict handed UW-River Falls a 3-0 nonconference setback | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. UW-River Falls—Their Last Meeting:
• September 1, 2015 * River Falls, Wis.: In 2014, Saint Mary's got a pair of goals from Emily Loof (Colorado Springs, Colo.) to beat UW-River Falls 2-1 in the teams' nonconference season opener. The same two teams took the field to kick off the 2015 season—and once again, the winning team found the back of the net two times. Unfortunately, this time around, it was the Falcons who had the upper hand, scoring single goals in each half in handing the Cardinals a 2-0 nonconference setback | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals return to Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play on Saturday, traveling to Arden Hills, Minn., for a 1 p.m. showdown with Bethel.
• UW-River Falls: The Falcons return home to River Falls, Wis., on Saturday, entertaining UM-Morris in a 4 p.m. nonconference game.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2016 Roster | 2016 Statistics | 2016 Schedule
• Wednesday's game against UW-River Falls is the second of back-to-back nonconference games for the Cardinals. … Saint Mary's and UW-River Falls have split their last two meetings, with the winning team scoring two goals both times. The Cardinals won 2-1 in 2014, with the Falcons taking last year's meeting 2-0. … The Cardinals' five goals last weekend—one against Saint Benedict last Saturday and four vs. UW-Superior on Sunday—came from five different players. … Becca Dup (Albert Lea, Minn.) collected the Cardinals' goal in Saturday's 4-1 loss to Saint Benedict. … Emily Loof (Colorado Springs, Colo.), Abby Lafko (Gilbert, Ariz.), Hailey Cottle (Orting, Wash.), and Bridgette Leverich (Verona, Wis.) scored vs. UW-Superior Sunday. … With their goals against UW-Superior, Loof, Lafko, and Cottle moved into a tie for the team lead in goals (2) with Emma Schaefer (Roseville, Minn.) and Maddy Wallraff (Blaine, Minn.). … Schaefer and Wallraff are the team's points leader with six—one more than Leverich—while Aubrie Cornell (Columbia, Mo.) owns a team-high three assists. … Schaefer and Wallraff each scored two goals in the Cardinals' 7-2 win over Martin Luther on Sept. 5. It was the fourth multiple-goal game of her career for Schaefer, while it was the first time in her career that Wallraff has scored twice in a game. … The Cardinals' seven goals in their 7-2 nonconference win over Martin Luther on Sept. 5 were a season high. All seven goals came after Saint Mary's surrendered back-to-back tallies to the Vikings in the game's opening 20 minutes. … The Cardinals' seven goals against Martin Luther were the most since netting seven against both UW-Superior and Bethany Lutheran during the 2014 season. … Cottle's goal against Martin Luther on Sept. 5 was her first as a Cardinal. … Loof collected the Cardinals' first goal of the season, scoring in the game's 72^nd minute against Luther on Sept. 1. … Loof has now scored at least one goal in all three seasons at Saint Mary's. … Gabriella Pederson (Chaska, Minn.)—who made five saves against Saint Benedict last Saturday—stopped the only shot she faced against UW-Superior on Sunday for her second collegiate shutout. … Pederson recorded her first collegiate shutout against Benedictine on Sept. 9—without having to record a save. … Pederson, who has started five of the Cardinals' six games in goal, has posted a pair of career-high eight-save performances this season. The freshman stopped eight shots in her first collegiate start against Luther on Sept. 1, and equaled that effort against Augsburg on Sept. 13. … Pederson owns a 1.57 goals-against-average and has made 25 saves in 515 minutes played. … Sarah Sieracki (Schererville, Ind.) picked up the win in goal against Martin Luther on Sept. 5, stopping four of the six first-half shots she faced. … All five of the Cardinals goals last weekend came in the second half. Saint Mary's has now scored 16 of its last 35 goals in the game's second half. … The Cardinals' 0-0 deadlock against Benedictine on Sept. 9 was their first tie since a 3-3 stalemate against Gustavus on Oct. 1, 2014. … The Cardinals' game against Benedictine was also Saint Mary's first 0-0 tie since Oct. 2, 2010, when the Cardinals and Concordia played 110 minutes of scoreless soccer. … The Cardinals' 7-2 win over Martin Luther on Sept. 5 snapped a 12-game road losing streak, dating back to a 7-1 win at Bethany Lutheran on Sept. 23, 2014.
 
Scouting The UW-River Falls Falcons:
2016 Roster | 2016 Statistics | 2016 Schedule
• The Falcons head into Wednesday's nonconference game against Saint Mary's still searching for their first win. UW-River Falls dropped its first two games of the year—3-1 to St. Olaf and 2-1 to St. Catherine—before battling Gustavus to a 0-0 deadlock. Since that Sept. 7 tie, the Falcons have lost three straight—5-1 to Hamline, 2-0 to St. Thomas, and 3-0 to Saint Benedict. … UW-River Falls' first seven games this season will be against teams from the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. … The Falcons surrendered three goals in the game's final 20 minutes in last Saturday's 3-0 loss to Saint Benedict. … Three of UW-River Falls' six games have been decided by shutout—the Falcons are 0-2-1 in those three contests. UW-RF has managed just one goal in each of its other three contests. … Abby Soderholm has accounted for two of the team's three goals, while also leading the Falcons with four points. … Keri McKenzie owns UW-River Falls' other goal, and Carrie Anderson boasts a team-leading two assists. … UW-RF has used three different goalkeepers this season, led by Erica Cimochowski, who has started five of the team's six games, compiling a 2.40 goals-against-average, while making 26 saves. … Haley Crosby made her first collegiate start in goal against Saint Benedict last Saturday, stopping seven of the 10 shots she faced. … Two of UW-River Falls' three goals have come in the second half. On the flip side, the Falcons have allowed 15 goals—six in the first half, and nine in the second.… Starting with Wednesday's contest at Saint Mary's, the Falcons play four of their next five games on the road—the lone exception, Saturday's home contest against UM-Morris.