By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director
 
WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota women's basketball team returns to Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play on Tuesday, as the Cardinals entertain St. Olaf in a 7 p.m. showdown at the Saint Mary's Gym.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (1-2 MIAC, 5-4 Overall) vs. St. Olaf Oles (0-3 MIAC, 2-8 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video | GameDay Program
 
Last Action:
• Saint Mary's—December 9, 2017 * Winona, Minn.: Bethel outscored Saint Mary's 16-9 in the second quarter and 21-18 in the third and held off a furious fourth-quarter rally in dealing the Cardinals a 70-67 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference setback at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap
• St. Olaf—December 9, 2017 * St. Joseph, Minn.: The Oles managed just 19 points in the second, third, and fourth quarters combined, as St. Olaf dropped a 52-34 MIAC decision to Saint Benedict at Claire Lynch Hall | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. St. Olaf—A Year Ago:
• February 4, 2017 * Winona, Minn.: Brandi Blattner (Eyota, Minn.) erupted for 16 second-half points to finish with a game-high 28 in the Cardinals' conference showdown with St. Olaf at the Saint Mary's Gym. Unfortunately for the Cardinals, Blattner's effort was not enough, as St. Olaf closed the game on a 10-2 run in handing Saint Mary's a 60-57 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference setback | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals are now off until Dec. 30, when they travel to La Crosse, Wis., for a 2 p.m. nonconference game against Viterbo.
• St. Olaf: The Oles do not return to action until Jan. 3, when they entertain Bethel in a 7 p.m. MIAC matchup at Skoglund Center in Northfield, Minn.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2017-18 Roster | 2017-18 Schedule | 2017-18 Statistics
• Tuesday's game against St. Olaf is the second straight home game for the Cardinals. … Last Saturday's 70-67 loss to Bethel was the Cardinals' first setback on their home court—having beaten Martin Luther (61-60) and St. Scholastica (76-53) in their first two home contests. … Six of Saint Mary's nine games this season—including three of the Cardinals' five wins—have been decided by seven points or less. … The Cardinals have scored 60 or more points in 17 of their last 18 wins—the lone exception, a 56-52 win over Macalester on Jan. 4, 2017. … The Cardinals put three players in double figures in their three-point loss to Bethel last Saturday. Abby Winter (Winona, Minn.) scored a game- and career-high 25 points, while Brandi Blattner (Eyota, Minn.) and Savannah Bleess (Kenyon, Minn.) each chipped in 13. … With her 25-point effort against Bethel, Winter became the first Cardinal besides Blattner to score 20 or more points this season. … Bleess' 13 points against the Royals last Saturday were a career-best. … Saint Mary's boasts four players who have recorded single-game career highs of 10 or more points this season—Winter (25), Hallie Schmeling (Onalaska, Wis. / 15), Bleess (13), and Rachel Kedl (Lamberton, Minn. / 10). … Blattner has scored 20 or more points in four of the Cardinals' last five games. … Blattner poured in a season-high 27 points in the Cardinals' 69-59 loss to Augsburg on Dec. 2. The 27-point effort was just one shy of her single-game career high—28-point showings against both Bethel and St. Olaf last season. … Along with her 27 points against Augsburg on Dec. 2, Blattner also hauled in a season-high 15 rebounds en route to her fifth double-double of the season and 23rd of her career. … Blattner has hauled in 10 or more rebounds 30 times over the last three seasons. … Kedl recorded a career-best 10 rebounds against Augsburg on Dec. 2. She is the second Cardinal freshman to post 10 or more boards in a game this season—Winter recorded an 11-rebound effort in Saint Mary's season-opening win over Martin Luther on Nov. 15. … Winter hauled in a team-best nine rebounds against Bethel Saturday, marking the second time this season the freshman has missed her first collegiate double-double by one board. … The Cardinals put a season-high five players in double figures in their 74-70 win over the University of Dubuque on Nov. 21. … Blattner (18.4 ppg) and Huisman (12.0 ppg) enter Tuesday's conference game against St. Olaf averaging in double figures. … Blattner also leads the team in rebounds with 86 (9.5 rpg). … Saint Mary's boasts seven players—Kirsten Keefe (Chatfield, Minn. / 22), Blattner (20), Schmeling (18), Bleess (14), Ewelina Schlomann (New Berlin, Wis. / 12), Winter (12), and Huisman (12)—with 10 or more assists. … Blattner holds the team lead in steals with 10, one more than Keefe. … The Cardinals, who finished with 141 3-pointers a year ago, knocked down a season-best 13 treys against UM-Morris on Nov. 18. … The Cardinals' 13 3-pointers vs. UM-Morris on Nov. 18 are the most since raining in 14 against St. Catherine on Jan. 22, 2005. … Saint Mary's has drained 64 3-pointers through nine games—with 11 different players knocking down at least one. … Huisman—who delivered six 3-pointers against Carleton last Wednesday—leads the Cardinals with 26 treys. … Saint Mary's had six different players net a 3-pointer against UM-Morris on Nov. 18. … The Cardinals enter Tuesday's game against St. Olaf averaging 67.2 ppg, while limiting their opponents to a 64.6 ppg scoring average. … Saint Mary's one-point victory over Martin Luther on Nov. 15 was its second one-point win in the last two years—with both being decided by a 61-60 final score. The Cardinals dropped Carleton 61-60 in overtime last season. … The Cardinals' 81-point effort against UM-Morris on Nov. 18 was a season-high, and the most since scoring 81 in an 81-79 win over Augsburg on Jan. 11, 2017. The last time Saint Mary's scored more than 81 points was during the 2015-16 season, when the Cardinals scored 85 in beating St. Olaf 85-56 on Feb. 13, 2016. … With their 61-60 win over Martin Luther on Nov. 15, the Cardinals have now won their season-opener in each of their last six seasons, dating back to a 63-58 loss to Elmhurst on Nov. 22 , 2011.
 
Scouting The St. Olaf Oles:
2017-18 Roster | 2017-18 Statistics | 2017-18 Schedule
• Tuesday's game against Saint Mary's is the second straight road game for the Oles, who have played eight of their first 10 games away from Skoglund Center. … Last Saturday's 52-34 loss to Saint Benedict pushed St. Olaf's losing streak to a season-high four games. … Seven of St. Olaf's eight losses have come during losing streaks of three and four games. … Makenna Ash scored 15 points and Samantha Tisa added 10 as the duo accounted for 25 of the Oles' 34 points in last Saturday's 52-34 loss to Saint Benedict. … Along with her team-high 15 points, Ash also hauled in a team-best 11 rebounds en route to her third double-double of the season. … Ash enters Tuesday's game against Saint Mary's averaging a team-high 11.7 ppg. She is the only Ole averaging more than nine points a game. … Ash owns the Oles' top two single-game scoring performances this season, scoring 18 points vs. Crown on Nov. 25 and 15 against St. Scholastica on Nov. 15. … Ash is also the team-leader in rebounds with 90 (9.0 rpg), while Keegan Mulvihill boasts a team-high 15 assists—one more than Ella Skiren and Tisa. … Skiren has collected a team-leading 22 steals, two more than Mulivhill. … The Oles are shooting 34 percent from the field through 10 games (186-for-554), but are just 28-for-155 (18 percent) from behind the 3-ponit line. … Margret Andersen and Skiren lead the team with seven and six 3-pointers, respectively. … St. Olaf is averaging 50.4 ppg, while the Oles' opponents are scoring at a 63.4 ppg clip. … The Oles' 34 points against Saint Benedict last Saturday were a season low and marked the second time this season St. Olaf has been held under 40 points—STO managed just 38 points in a 52-38 setback against Calvin on Nov. 24. … St. Olaf's 63 points in a 69-63 loss to St. Scholastica on Nov. 15 were a season-high.