By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director
 
DULUTH, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota women's basketball team is back in action on Tuesday, heading to St. Scholastica's Reif Gym for a 7 p.m. nonconference contest against the Saints
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (1-1 Overall) at St. Scholastica Saints (0-2 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video
 
Last Action:
• Saint Mary's—November 16-17, 2018 * St. Joseph, Minn.: The Cardinals went 1-1 at the season opening Saint Benedict Quinlivan & Hughes Tip-Off Tournament, falling to Simpson 72-62 in their season-opener last Friday, before gaining win No. 1 under head coach David Foley with an 87-76 win over Nebraska Wesleyan the following day | Simpson Recap * NWU Recap
• St. Scholastica—November 16-17, 2018 * Eau Claire, Wis.: The Saints dropped both of their games at the season-opening UW-Eau Claire Tip-Off Classic, falling to UW-Oshkosh 71-44 last Friday, before dropping an 88-69 setback to host UW-Eau Claire the following day | UW-O Recap * UW-EC Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. St. Scholastica — Their Last Meeting:
• November 29, 2017 * Winona, Minn.: Brandi Blattner (Eyota, Minn.) scored a game-high 25 points and Abby Winter (Winona, Minn.) chipped in a career-best 15, as the Cardinals erupted for 20-point first quarter points and never looked back, cruising to a 76-53 nonconference win over the Saints at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals kick off the home portion of their schedule on Saturday, hosting Bethany Lutheran in a 1 p.m. nonconference game at the Saint Mary's Gym.
• St. Scholastica: The Saints are now off until Dec. 1, when they host Augsburg in a 1 p.m. nonconference game at Reif Gym in Duluth, Minn.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals: 
2018-19 Roster | 2018-19 Schedule | 2018-19 Statistics
• Tuesday's game at St. Scholastica is the third straight road game for the Cardinals, who play six of their first nine games away from the Saint Mary's Gym. … The Cardinals picked up their first win under head coach David Foley with their 87-76 triumph over Nebraska Wesleyan last Saturday. … The Cardinals' meetings against both Simpson and Nebraska Wesleyan last weekend were the first in program history. … Brooklyn Paulson (Holmen, Wis.) scored a team- and career-high 16 points in the Cardinals' season-opening 72-62 loss to Simpson last Friday. Jada Biermeier (Eau Claire, Wis.) and Maggie Robertson (Orland Park, Ill.), meanwhile, each notched career-best 15-point efforts in Saint Mary's 87-76 win over Nebraska Wesleyan the following day. … Biermeier and Robertson were two of four players to score in double figures vs. the Prairie Wolves last Saturday — Paulson and Rachel Kedl (Lamberton, Minn.) each chipped in 11 points. … Along with her 11 points, Kedl hauled in 10 rebounds vs. Nebraska Wesleyan for her first collegiate double-double. … Paulson — named to the CSB Quinlivan & Hughes All-Tournament Team — heads into Tuesday's nonconference game at St. Scholastica leading the team in scoring, averaging 13.5 ppg. Paulson is one of three Cardinals averaging in double figures — Biermeier (11.5 ppg) and Robertson (11.0 ppg) are the other two. … Hallie Schmeling (Onalaska, Wis.) leads the team with 11 assists, three more than both Claire Patterson (Marine, Minn.) and Kirsten Keefe (Chatfield, Minn.). … Keefe is also the team leader in steals with five. … As a team, the Cardinals are averaging 74.5 ppg, while allowing points at a 74.0 ppg clip. … Saint Mary's is shooting 40 percent from the field (54-for-133) and has drained 13 3-pointers. … Paulson has accounted for nearly half of Saint Mary's 13 3-pointers, leading the team with seven treys. … The Cardinals' 87 points against Nebraska Wesleyan last Saturday are the most since tossing in 88 in beating Crown 88-34 on Nov. 21, 2015. … The Cardinals — picked sixth in the 2018-19 MIAC Preseason Coaches' Poll — made their sixth MIAC Playoff appearance in the last seven years last season — reaching the semifinals in each of those six appearances.
 
Scouting The St. Scholastica Saints:
2018-19 Roster | 2018-19 Schedule | 2018-19 Statistics
• Tuesday's game against Saint Mary's is the first of three straight home games for the Saints, who finished 8-4 on their home court a year ago. … Saint Mary's is the Saints' first of three nonconference games against teams from the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. CSS will also play Augsburg (Dec. 1) and Concordia (Dec. 30) this season. … Mariah Pearson and Amber Smith each scored a team-high nine points in the Saints' season-opening loss to UW-Oshkosh last Friday. … St. Scholastica posted three players in double figures against UW-Eau Claire last Saturday, led by Kaylee Kennedy with 21. Pearson chipped in 14 points and Alison Huber delivered 13. … Kennedy's 21-point effort and Pearson's 14-point showing against the Blugolds last Saturday were both career-highs. … St Scholastica heads into Tuesday's showdown against Saint Mary's boasting two players — Kennedy (14.5 ppg) and Pearson (11.5 ppg) — averaging in double figures. … Maddy Hailey owns the team lead in rebounds with eight (4.0 rpg), one more than Alison Huber (7, 3.5 rpg). … Huber also owns the team lead in assists with seven, while Kennedy and Danielle Cieluch share the team lead in steals with three each. … St. Scholastica, which is averaging 54.5 ppg, is shooting 40 percent from the field (43-for-107) and has knocked down 11 3-pointers. … Huber has netted a team-high three 3-pointers, with Cieluch and Amber Smith each owning two. … The Saints made the UMAC Tournament for the first time since the 2014-15 season last year and also recorded its highest win total (14) since that same 2014-15 season.