ST. JOSEPH, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota women's soccer team returns to Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play on Friday, as the Cardinals head to Saint Benedict for a 3:30 p.m. showdown against the Blazers.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (0-5-0 MIAC * 5-6-0 Overall) at Saint Benedict Blazers (2-2-1 MIAC * 6-2-1 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video

Last Action:
• Saint Mary's—September 30, 2017 * St. Paul, Minn.: The Cardinals surrendered three unanswered goals, including two in the second half—one on an own goal and the other on a deflection off a Saint Mary's player—as St. Catherine dealt SMU a 3-1 conference setback | Recap
• Saint Benedict—September 30, 2017 * Arden Hills, Minn.: The Blazers scored single goals in each half in dealing Bethel a 2-0 setback at Ona Orth Athletic Complex | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. Saint Benedict—Their Last Meeting:
• September 17, 2016 * Winona, Minn.: The Blazers erupted for three goals in the game's opening 20 minutes—including two in a span of less than two minutes—in handing the Cardinals a 4-1 setback at Ochrymowycz Field | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals return home to Ochrymowycz Field on Tuesday, hosting Gustavus in a 4 p.m. conference matchup.
• Saint Benedict: The Blazers hit the road on Tuesday, traveling to St. Paul, Minn., for a 4 p.m. MIAC showdown against St. Catherine.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2017 Roster | 2017 Statistics | 2017 Schedule
• Friday's game against Saint Benedict is the second of back-to-back road games for the Cardinals. … The Cardinals are 3-2-0 on their home field this season, while going 2-4-0 away from Ochrymowycz Field. … Saint Mary's 2-1 loss to Bethel on Sept. 27 was its fourth straight game decided by one goal—the Cardinals beat UW-River Falls 1-0, while falling to St. Olaf, Augsburg, and Bethel—all by 2-1 counts. … The Cardinals' 1-0 win over UW-River Falls on Sept. 20 was their third overtime game of the season—Saint Mary's dropped 2-1 OT decisions to Ripon and St. Olaf earlier this year. … The Cardinals' win over UWRF also snapped a five-game winless streak (0-4-1) in overtime games. … Saint Mary's 2-0 conference-opening loss to St. Thomas on Sept. 12 snapped the Cardinals' two-game winning streak—while also marking the only time this season Saint Mary's has failed to score at least one goal. … Saint Mary's has surrendered two goals in five of its six losses this season—the lone exception, a 3-1 setback to St. Catherine last Saturday. … The Cardinals have outscored their first 10 opponents 29-13. … The Cardinals' 29 goals through 11 games are the most since scoring 44 goals for the entire 2007 season. … Maddy Wallraff (Blaine, Minn.) scored her first goal of the season to account for the Cardinals' tally in last Saturday's 3-1 loss to St. Catherine. … Natalie Ruegsegger (Billings, Mont.) netted the game-winner in the Cardinals' 1-0 win over UW-River Falls on Sept. 20. It was the sophomore's first collegiate goal. … Saint Mary's now has had nine players net their first collegiate goals this season—Ruegsegger, Erin McElligott (New York City, N.Y.), Kendall Archer (Draper, Utah), Anissa Barrios (Gilbert, Ariz.), Marissa Carlyle (San Jose, Calif.), Sarah Egbert (Colorado Springs, Colo.), Mary Loy (Burien, Wash.), Mackenzie Waters (Highlands Ranch, Colo.), and Mary Arnold (Winona, Minn.). … Emily Loof (Colorado Springs, Colo.) leads the team with six goals, while Becca Dup (Albert Lea, Minn.) and Loy are second with five each. Dup—who notched her team-leading sixth assist against Bethel on Sept. 27—also owns the team lead in points (16). … Dup's 16 points are two more than both Loy and Loof. …  Saint Mary's 10-goal outburst in its 10-0 win over Finlandia on Sept. 9 was its highest single-game offensive performance since blanking Northland 10-0 during the 2007 season. … The Cardinals' 10 goals against Finlandia on Sept. 9 came from eight different players—Loy and Dup each scored twice, while Loof, Archer, Egbert, Waters, Barrios, and Marissa Carlyle (San Jose, Calif.) accounted for the others. … Loof recorded her second collegiate hat trick in Saint Mary's 7-1 win over Bethany Lutheran on Sept. 6. Both of Loof's hat tricks have come against Bethany Lutheran, the first coming on Sept. 23, 2014. … The two-goal game by Dup against Finlandia on Sept. 9 was the first of her collegiate career, while Loy has now scored two goals in a game twice this season—having also notched two in her collegiate debut against Lawrence. … Both Dup and Loy picked up a pair of assists in the Cardinals' win over Bethany Lutheran on Sept. 6—it was Dup's second two-assist game of the season and the first of her collegiate career for Loy. … All four goals in the Cardinals' season-opening win over Lawrence were scored by freshmen. Loy scored twice, while Waters and Arnold accounted for the other two. … Loy's goal in the 21^st minute against Lawrence on Sept. 1 was the Cardinals' first goal of the season. … Zoe Boleneus (Spokane, Wash.) made a career-high 15 saves in the Cardinals' 3-1 loss to St. Catherine last Saturday. … Boleneus' 15-save effort was the most by a Saint Mary's goalkeeper since Miranda Halling stopped 15 against Macalester on Sept. 22, 2012. It was also just three saves shy of the school-record 18-save performance by Cassie Hulett against Bethel on Sept. 14, 2010. … Boleneus has now made 10 or more saves in two of her last three starts, having also stopped 11 against Augsburg on Sept. 23. … Gabriella Pederson (Chaska, Minn.) finished with a season-high 10 saves in the Cardinals' loss to St. Thomas on Sept. 12. The 10 saves marked the ninth time in her collegiate career the sophomore has made eight or more saves—including three 10-save efforts and a career-high 11-save showing against Carleton on Oct. 29. … Pederson boasts a 1.25 goals-against-average and has made 26 saves in six appearances. … Boleneus owns a 1.44 GAA and has stopped 39 of the 47 shots she's faced in her five starts in goal. … With their 7-1 win on Sept. 6, the Cardinals improved to 4-0-0 all-time against Bethany Lutheran—outscoring the Vikings 23-2. … The Cardinals have beaten Bethany Lutheran 7-1 in each of their last two meetings.
 
Scouting The Saint Benedict Blazers:
2017 Roster | 2017 Statistics | 2017 Schedule
• After opening the season with four straight wins, the Blazers are 2-2-1 in their last five contests. … Last Saturday's 2-0 win over Bethel snapped CSB's two-game winless streak (0-1-1). … Both of Saint Benedict's last two wins have been by shutout—1-0 over UW-River Falls on Sept. 17 and 2-0 over Bethel last Saturday. On the flip side, CSB has been blanked in both its losses—falling to St. Thomas 3-0 on Sept. 16 and to St. Olaf 1-0 on Sept. 23. … Megan Thompson heads into Friday's matchup against Saint Mary's leading the team in goals (6) and points (13). … Jane Koch has delivered a team-high four assists. … The Blazers' 17 goals have come from eight different players. Jenna Kleason is second on the team with three goals, while Koch and Sydney Sherek both have two. Maren Noble, Sydney Bramer, Kelsey Tatarek, and Mara Flaherty have netted CSB's other four goals. … Thompson owns three of the team's six game-winning goals. … Kendall Koenen has started all nine games in goal and has played all but 33:44 between the pipes this season. Koenen owns a 1.13 goals-against-average and an .818 save percentage. … Koenen has stopped 45 of the 55 shots she's faced and has recorded three shutouts. … Saint Benedict scored a season-high five goals in a 5-1 win over Nebraska Wesleyan on Sept. 1. CSB also owns a pair of three-goal games—beating UW-Eau Claire 3-2 on Sept. 9 and topping Loras by the same score the following day. … Three of CSB's six wins have come on their home field. The Blazers are 3-1-1 at home and 3-1-0 away from CSB Soccer Field.