By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director
 
WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota volleyball team returns to Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play on Wednesday, as the Cardinals host St. Olaf in a 7 p.m. matchup at the Saint Mary's Gym.
 
The Matchups:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (4-5 MIAC, 13-12 Overall) vs. St. Olaf Oles (5-4 MIAC, 21-6 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video | GameDay Program
 
Last Action:
• Saint Mary's—October 19-20, 2018 * Winona, Minn.: The Cardinals split their two conference games over the weekend, riding the 68-assist effort from Lillian Braun (Mantorville, Minn.) to a 3-2 win over Hamline, before dropping a 3-0 decision to St. Thomas the following afternoon | Hamline Recap * St. Thomas Recap
• St. Olaf—October 20, 2018 * Northfield, Minn.: The Oles went 1-1 in their two conference matches last weekend, dropping a 3-1 decision to Saint Benedict on Friday, before rebounding with a 3-2 victory over Concordia the next day | Saint Benedict Recap * Concordia Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. St. Olaf — Their Last Meeting:
• October 25, 2017 * Northfield, Minn.: The Cardinals entered their conference showdown with St. Olaf tied for fourth place in the standings and needing just one win — and a Bethel loss—in their final two matches to lock up a post-season invitation. Thanks to a 3-0 loss to the host Oles, however, Saint Mary's exited Skoglund Center deadlocked with Bethel for the sixth and final playoff spot—and still needing a win, or a Royals' loss, to earn that playoff berth | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals close out the regular-season portion of their schedule on Friday, hosting nationally ranked Gustavus in a 7 p.m. conference contest at the Saint Mary's Gym.
• St. Olaf: The Oles return home to Skoglund Center for their regular-season finale on Friday, hosting Carleton in a 7 p.m. MIAC matchup.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2018 Roster | 2018 Schedule | 2018 Statistics
• Wednesday's match against St. Olaf is the third of four straight home matches for the Cardinals. … Saint Mary's enters their final two regular-season matches sitting in seventh place, one game back of the sixth and final MIAC Playoff spot — currently held by Wednesday's opponent, St. Olaf. Saint Mary's final regular-season match on Friday is against league-leading Gustavus (9-0). … With their 3-2 win over Hamline last Friday, the Cardinals improved to 6-1 in five-set matches this season — the lone blemish being a 3-2 loss to Northwestern on Oct. 12. … Lillian Braun (Mantorville, Minn.) set a single-match school record with 68 assists against Hamline last Friday. It was the second time this season the Cardinal junior has eclipsed the 60-assist mark, having notched 63 helpers against Luther on Sept. 1. … Braun accounted for 68 of the team's 70 assists vs. Hamline last Friday. … With her 68-assist effort against the Pipers — and 27 more against St. Thomas the following afternoon — Braun has now amassed a single-season career-high 947 assists. … Braun, who added 12 digs to her 68 assists against Hamline, leads the team with 12 double-doubles. … Saint Mary's boasted a season-high five players with 10 or more kills against the Pipers Friday — led by Brandi Blattner (Eyota, Minn.) with 21. Linnaea Wallis (Dresser, Wis.) and Rachel Kedl (Lamberton, Minn.) each chipped in 15 kills, with Gloria Kitange (Rochester, Minn.) and Brittney Flom (Kenyon, Minn.) each adding 11. … Blattner's 21 kills against Hamline Friday marked the fourth time this season the senior has eclipsed the 20-kill plateau. She also recorded 21 kills against Luther on Sept. 1 and vs. Northwestern on Oct. 12, while delivering a season-high 22 kills vs. Lakeland on Sept. 9. … With her fourth kill against Saint Benedict on Sept. 28, Blattner became the 13^th player in program history with 1,000 career kills. … Blattner — who owns a team-leading 335 kills and is second on the team with 10 double-doubles — heads into Wednesday's match against St. Olaf sitting 11^th all-time with 1,124 career kills. … Kitange's 16 kills against UW-La Crosse last Wednesday were a career high. … Kedl is currently second to Blattner in kills with a career-high 209, while Brittney Flom (149), Kitange (115), and Wallis (110) have also eclipsed the 100-kill mark. … Along with her 947 assists, Braun also shares the team in service aces (22) with Grace Gilles (Apple Valley, Minn.) and Hayley Weber (Gladbrook, Iowa). … DeJaye Baab (Wabasha, Minn.) — who notched 25 digs against Hamline last Friday — one shy of her career high — is the team's digs lead with 386, while Blattner (266), Braun (241), Weber (213), and Carley Cronen (Kandiyohi, Minn. / 145) have also eclipsed the 100-dig plateau. … Baab — who has posted 20 or more digs eight times this season — put together a single-match career-high 26 digs against Luther on Sept. 1. … Weber recorded a career-high 20 digs in the Cardinals' 3-1 win over St. Catherine on Sept. 22. … Saint Mary's is 4-7 in three-set matches, 3-4 in matches decided in four sets, and 6-1 in matches extended to a fifth set. … The Cardinals had their season-opening four-match winning streak snapped with a 3-0 loss to UW-Stevens Point in the opening day of the UW-Stevens Point Tournament on Sept. 8. … With their 4-0 performance at the season-opening Ground Round Sugar Loaf Classic, the Cardinals are now 11-1 in their last three Classic appearances—and 17-3 in their last five.
 
Scouting The St. Olaf Oles:
2018 Roster | 2018 Statistics | 2018 Schedule
• Wednesday's match against Saint Mary's is the final road contest of the season for the Oles, who boast a 16-5 record away from their home court. … St. Olaf enters the final week of the regular season holding down the sixth and final MIAC Playoff berth, one game in front of both Saint Mary's and Concordia. The Oles close out their regular-season schedule on Friday against Carleton (2-7). … Last Friday's 3-1 loss to Saint Benedict snapped the Oles' seven-match winning streak — a streak that included a stretch of five consecutive 3-0 victories. … St. Olaf enters Wednesday's matchup against Saint Mary's boasting six players with 100 or more kills — led by Lauren Rewers (318), Summer Reid (266), and Megan Grimes (203). Katelyn Lannom (171), Alison Currey (147), and Morgan Marxer (142) have also eclipsed the 100-kill plateau. … Rewers, Grimes, Reid, Lannom, Currey and Marxer have accounted for 1,261 of the team's 1,281 total kills through 27 matches. … Lexi Wall has amassed a team-leading 917 assists, with Brynne Gray chipping in 181. … St. Olaf has recorded 158 services aces, led by Rewers (28), Haley Langeslag (25), Wall (23), and Reid (22). … Langeslag is the team's digs leader with 469. She is one of five Oles with 100 or more digs — being joined by Reid (228), Emily Jarnigan (209(, Wall (198), and Rewers (191). … Fifteen of the Oles' 21 wins this season have been 3-0 sweeps. St. Olaf is 15-2 in three-set matches, 3-3 in four-setters, and 3-1 in matches that have gone the maximum five sets.