WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota volleyball team returns to Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play on Saturday, as the Cardinals welcome Concordia to the Saint Mary's Gym for a 3 p.m. matchup.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (2-2 MIAC * 11-6 Overall) vs. Concordia Cobbers (1-3 MIAC * 3-9 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video | GameDay Program
 
Their Last Action:
• Saint Mary's—September 29, 2017 * Winona, Minn.: The Cardinals dropped the first two sets of their MIAC match against Saint Benedict by identical 25-19 scores and could not recover in falling to the Blazers 3-0 at the Saint Mary's Gym. | Recap
• Concordia—September 29, 2017 * Northfield, Minn.: The Cobbers suffered their second straight conference setback, falling to Carleton 3-0 | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. Concordia—A Year Ago:
• October 1, 2016 * Moorhead, Minn.: The Cardinals, coming off a 3-1 win over Saint Benedict on Friday that included a 25-9 loss in the opener set, left little doubt in their Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference match against Concordia, breezing to a 3-0 victory at Memorial Auditorium | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals are now off until next Friday, when they welcome Carleton to the Saint Mary's Gym for a 7 p.m. conference showdown.
• Concordia: The Cobbers return home on Wednesday, entertaining Hamline in a 7 p.m. contest at Memorial Auditorium in Moorhead, Minn.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2017 Roster | 2017 Statistics | 2017 Schedule
• Saturday's match against Concordia is the second of four straight home matches for the Cardinals. … Friday's 3-0 loss to Saint Benedict was just the Cardinals' second loss on their home court. Saint Mary's owns a 4-s record at home, while going 7-4 away from the Saint Mary's Gym—including 5-1 in neutral-court matches. … Despite Friday's loss to Saint Benedict, the Cardinals head into Saturday's showdown with Concordia having won five of their last eight matches. … Saint Mary's has put together three, three-match winning streaks this season. On the flip side, the Cardinals have yet to drop back-to-back matches. … With their 3-2 win over St. Catherine on Sept. 23, the Cardinals have played seven, five-set matches this season—beating Carthage, Central-Iowa, No. 8 Washington (Mo.) University, Bethel, and St. Catherine, while falling to UW-Oshkosh and Lawrence. Saint Mary's played just one five-setter a year ago. … Brandi Blattner (Eyota, Minn.) posted her team-leading eighth double-double of the season against Saint Benedict Friday night, notching 13 kills and 10 digs. … Blattner—who recorded 13 double-doubles a year ago—has now posted 10 or more kills in five straight matches and 12 times this season. … Blattner was one of three Cardinals to record double-doubles against the Wildcats on Sept. 23—Brittney Hanson (Janesville, Iowa) and Lillian Braun (Kasson, Minn.) posted 26 assists/13 digs and 23 assists/14 digs, respectively. … The double-doubles were the sixth of the season for both Hanson and Braun. … Hanson, who led the team with 23 assists against Saint Benedict Friday, has now posted 20 or more assists in 12 of the Cardinals' 16 matches—including three matches of 30 or more helpers. … With her 23 assists against St. Catherine on Sept. 23, Braun has recorded 20 or more assists five times this season—including a career-best 29 assists in Saint Mary's 3-1 win over Wisconsin Lutheran on Sept. 8. … Clare Tack (St. Charles, Ill.) posted a career-high 38 digs against St. Catherine on Sept. 23 en route to earning MIAC Setter/Libero of the Week honors. … Tack's 38 digs vs. the Wildcats were the most in a match since Theresa Perrini recorded 41 against Augsburg on Oct. 24, 2008. … Blattner—an AVCA Second-Team All-American a year ago—heads into Saturday's match against Concordia with a team-leading 196 kills, followed by Gloria Kitange (Rochester, Minn. / 121), and Rachel Kedl (Lamberton, Minn. / 120). … Kitange and Kedl both posted career highs in kills in the Cardinals' 3-2 win over Central-Iowa on Sept. 2. Kitange led the way with a team-high 16 kills, one more than Kedl. … Hanson and Braun have shared the setting duties all season, with Hanson boasting a team-leading 396 helpers, with Braun close behind with 290. … Hanson posted a season-high 38-assist effort against Lawrence on Sept. 16. …  Braun and Hanson lead the team in aces with 20, two more than Tack. … Tack boasts a team-best 276 digs, while Blattner (161), Hanson (158), Braun (139), and Carley  Cronen (Kandiyohi, Minn. / 121) have also eclipsed the 100-dig plateau. … Cronen notched a career-best 22 digs in Saint Mary's 3-1 win over Wisconsin Lutheran on Sept. 8. … The Cardinals picked up their first win in program history against Washington (Mo.) University at the UW-Oshkosh Tournament on Sept. 8, handing the eighth-ranked Bears a 3-2 setback. … With its 3-2 win over Bethel on Sept. 12, Saint Mary's snapped a three-match losing streak vs. the Royals—dating back to a 3-1 win in the opening round of the 2014 MIAC Playoffs. … With their 3-1 showing at the Ripon Red Hawk Classic on Sept. 15-16, the Cardinals have now gone 3-1 in each of their three regular-season tournaments this season. … With their 3-1 performance at the season-opening Ground Round Sugar Loaf Classic, the Cardinals are now 7-1 in their last two Classic appearances—and 13-3 in their last four. … The Cardinals, who closed out the MIAC regular-season with an 8-3 record a year ago—earning the conference's No. 4 seed in the post-season tournament for the second straight year. … The Cardinals made their fourth straight MIAC Playoff appearance last season, falling to Bethel 3-1 in the opening round. … The Cardinals, who closed out the MIAC regular-season with an 8-3 record a year ago—earning the conference's No. 4 seed in the post-season tournament for the second straight year. … The Cardinals made their fourth straight MIAC Playoff appearance last season, falling to Bethel 3-1 in the opening round.
 
Scouting The Concordia Cobbers:
2017 Roster | 2017 Statistics | 2017 Schedule
• Saturday's match against Saint Mary's is the second straight road contest for the Cobbers, who have played 10 of their first 12 matches away from Memorial Auditorium this season. … All three of Concordia's wins have come on the road this season—CC is 0-2 at home and 3-7 on the road—including 2-4 in neutral-court matches. … Haley Cuppett posted a team-high nine kills and Emma Chandler added eight in the Cobbers' loss to Carleton Friday. … Cuppett enters Saturday's match at Saint Mary's owning a team-best 119 kills, with Brianna Carney a close second with 98. … Carney boast a team-best .274 attack percentage through 14 matches. … Jill Klaphake and Lexi Turn have shared the setting duties for the Cobbers this season—Klaphake boasts a team-high 204 assists, while Turn owns 175 helpers. … Klaphake also leads the squad with 12 service aces, three more than Stephanie Baker. … Baker is the team's dig leader with 156. … Two of Concordia's three wins this season have gone the maximum five sets—CC beat Buena Vista 3-2 on Sept. 1 and Lakeland 3-2 on Sept. 16. On the flip side, six of the Cobbers' nine losses—including both during their current two-match losing streak—have been 3-0 sweeps.