WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota women's hockey team opens the 2017 portion on its schedule at home on Friday, as the Cardinals entertain Lake Forest in a 7 p.m. nonconference game at the Saint Mary's Ice Arena.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (4-6-1 Overall) vs. Lake Forest Foresters (10-2-0 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video | GameDay Program
 
Last Action:
• Saint Mary's—December 10, 2016 * Stevens Point, Wis.: The Cardinals scored a pair of third-period goals in handing UW-Stevens Point a 3-1 nonconference setback at K.B. Willett Arena | Recap
• Lake Forest—December 2-3, 2016 * Lake Forest, Ill.: The Foresters erupted for 19 goals in cruising to a sweep of Finlandia—beating the Lions 10-1 on Dec. 2, and completing the sweep with a 9-1 victory the following day | FU Recap 1 * FU Recap 2
 
Saint Mary's vs. Lake Forest—A Year Ago:
• January 9, 2016 * Lake Forest, Ill.: Saint Mary's did something only two other teams have been able to do against third-ranked Lake Forest—score first. Unfortunately for the Cardinals, the Foresters may not have scored first, but they did score second—and third—as Lake Forest scored the game's final two goals in handing Saint Mary's a 2-1 nonconference setback at Alumni Memorial Rink | Recap
• January 10, 2016 * Lake Forest, Ill.: Lake Forest erupted for three goals in the first period and added an insurance tally late in the third in handing the Cardinals a 4-2 setback at Alumni Memorial Rink | Recap
 
Up Next:
• The Cardinals and Foresters return to the Saint Mary's Ice Arena on Saturday for the second game of their two-game nonconference series. Game time is slated for 2 p.m.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2016-17 Roster | 2016-17 Statistics | 2016-17 Schedule
• After four straight road contests, the Cardinals return home for three consecutive home games—this weekend's nonconference series against Lake Forest, and next Friday's MIAC showdown with St. Thomas. … The Cardinals' 3-1 win over UW-Stevens Point on Dec. 10 snapped their season-high five-game losing streak. … After scoring just four goals during their five-game slide—including a span of 229 scoreless minutes—the Cardinals scored three times in their win over UW-Stevens Point on Dec. 10. … Saint Mary's three goals against UW-Stevens Point on Dec. 10 came from three different players—Hannah Croonquist (St. Paul, Minn.), Lindsay Paschke (New Prague, Minn.), and Jane Hannula (Coon Rapids, Minn.). … Croonquist's first-half tally vs. the Pointers was the first of her collegiate career. … Croonquist became the fourth player to net her first goal as a Cardinal this season, joining Anya Hafiz (Woodbury, Minn.), Natalie Ryan (Village of Lakewood, Ill.), and Bailey Wendt (Coon Rapids, Minn.). … Hafiz, who recorded at least one point in each of the Cardinals' first six games this season—including four multiple-point games—heads into this weekend's nonconference series against Lake Forest leading or sharing the team lead in all three offensive categories—goals (6), assists (4), and points (10). … Jamie Henderson (Madison, Wis.) is tied for the team lead in assists (4) and is second in goals (4). … Hafiz's goal at 9:50 of the opening period against Marian was her first collegiate goal—as well as the Cardinals' first goal of the season. … Ashley Corcoran (Red Wing, Minn.) recorded a season- and career-high 38 saves in Saint Mary's 3-1 win over UW-Stevens Point on Dec. 10. … Corcoran has now made 30 or more saves in each of her last three starts—having also posted back-to-back 30-save efforts against UW-Eau Claire on Nov. 26 and Concordia on Dec. 3. … Marah Shields (Mitford, Mich.) finished with a season-high 33 saves against UW-Eau Claire on Dec. 9. … Shields has now made 30 or more saves in four of her five starts this season. … Corcoran owns a team-leading 2.82 goals-against-average and an .906 save percentage, while Shields has a 4.31 GAA and an .883 save percentage. … Saint Mary's scored a pair of shorthanded goals against St. Olaf on Nov. 17—back-to-back tallies by Hannula and Lien less than a minute apart midway through the second period. … Nine of the Cardinals' 26 goals have come on special teams—five power-play and four shorthanded. … The Cardinals' six goals in their 6-3 win over St. Olaf on Nov. 17 were a season high—and the highest single-game offensive output since scoring six against both Marian and Hamline during the 2009-2010 season. … Saint Mary's has scored 10 goals in the second period and 11 in the third, while the Cardinals' opponents have netted 17 goals in the second and 19 in the third. … Saint Mary's has allowed just three first-period goals—one against Concordia on Dec. 4 and two vs. UW-Eau Claire on Dec. 9. … The Cardinals have scored first in six of their 10 games—going 3-2-1. Saint Mary's is 1-4-0 when its opponent scores first. … Four of the Cardinals' 10 games have been decided by one goal or less—Saint Mary's opened the season with one-goal wins over Marian (4-3) and St. Norbert (5-4), and added a 2-2 tie vs. Bethel and a 4-3 loss against St. Olaf. … Saint Mary's wins over Marian and St. Norbert on Oct. 28-29 marked the first time the Cardinals have opened the year with back-to-back wins since beating the same two teams to open the 2010-11 season. … The Cardinals' combined nine goals against St. Olaf on Nov. 17 and Nov. 19 are the most in a two-game weekend series since netting nine in sweeping Marian 6-0 and 3-2 on Jan. 9-10, 2010. … Saint Mary's and St. Norbert scored seven third-period goals in their nonconference game on Oct. 29—including five in the game's final 1:33.  
 
Scouting The Lake Forest Foresters:
2016-17 Roster | 2016-17 Statistics | 2016-17 Schedule
• Lake Forest enters this weekend's nonconference series against Saint Mary's ranked No. 7 in the latest USCHO.com Poll. … The Foresters have been off since Dec. 2-3, when they routed Finlandia 10-1 and 9-1 to push their winning streak to five games. … Lake Forest has now played Finlandia three times this season—outscoring the Lions by a combined 26-3. … Lake Forest's current five-game win streak is its second lengthy winning streak of the year. After splitting its season-opening series against St. Catherine, the Foresters rattled off four straight wins, before dropping a 3-0 decision at third-ranked Adrian. … Lake Forest has scored four of more goals in all 10 of its wins this season—including three by identical 4-3 decisions. … Olivia Spellmire scored three goals and Isabel Regine added two in the Foresters' 10-1 win over Finlandia on Dec. 2, while Allie Girard scored three times and Amanda Boisjolie and Allie Girar each netted a pair of goals in Lake Forest's 9-1 victory a day later. … Lake Forest enters its two games against Saint Mary's this weekend boasting six players with 10 or more points—led by Budde with 22 and Sydney Simone with 21. … Budde is the team's goal-scoring  leader with 11 goals, with Simone boasting a team-high 16 assists. … Thirteen Foresters have accounted for Lake Forest's 63 goals, while all 17 players who have seen action this season have recorded at least one point. …  Spellmire and Julia Unterseher share the team lead with two game-winning goals each. … Twenty-seven of the Foresters' 63 goals have come on special teams—25 power-play goals and two shorthanded tallies. … Jacqueline Audet and Jacque Rogers have shared the goaltending duties this season. Audet owns a 2.29 goals-against-average and .897 save percentage in seven starts, while Rogers boasts a 1.77 GAA and .871 save percentage in five starts. … Lake Forest has outscored its opponents in all three periods—15-5 in the first, 27-11 in the second, and 21-8 in the third. … Lake Forest has scored first in eight of its 12 games, going 7-1-0. The Foresters are 3-1-0 when their opponent nets the game's first goal. … Lake Forest has played one overtime game this season, falling to St. Catherine 3-2 on Oct. 30. … The Foresters are a perfect 6-0-0 on their home ice, while going 4-2-0 away from home.