ST. PAUL, Minn. — For the second straight game, the Saint Mary's University of Minnesota women's soccer team struck first in its Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference showdown with St. Catherine Saturday.
 
Unfortunately for coach Neil Cassidy, similar to Wednesday's 2-1 loss to Bethel—in which the Royals scored a pair of unanswered goals to knock off Saint Mary's—the Cardinals could not make that first-half lead stand up.
 
St. Catherine took advantage of a Saint Mary's own goal—as well as a goal that caromed in off a Cardinal player—in the second half, as the Wildcats scored three unanswered goals to deal SMU a 3-1 conference setback.
 
Maddy Wallraff (Blaine, Minn.) scored her first goal of the season in the 12th minute, but the Wildcats would get the equalizer before halftime, as Shannon Hickey netted her third of the season off a SCU corner kick in the 31^st minute to make it 1-1 at the break.
 
St. Catherine grabbed the lead for good two minutes into the second half as Saint Mary's knocked the ball into its own net for an own goal, before Allie Bird iced the win with her first of the season—drilling a shot off a Cardinal defender and past Saint Mary's goalkeeper Zoe Boleneus (Spokane, Wash.) nine minutes later.
 
Boleneus finished with a career-high 15 saves in goal for the Cardinals, while Tayler Koop made a pair of first-half saves in goal for the Wildcats.
 
Saint Mary's (0-5-0 MIAC, 5-6-0 overall) is back in conference action—and back on the road—on Friday, traveling to St. Joseph, Minn., for a 4 p.m. MIAC showdown with Saint Benedict.