By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director
 
NEW ULM, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota women's soccer team kicks off its 2018 season on Friday, traveling to Martin Luther for a 4:30 p.m. nonconference game against the Knights.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (2017 Final Record: 5-11-2 Overall) at Martin Luther Knights (2017 Final Record: 8-9-2 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video

Last Action:
• This afternoon's game is the season-opener for both the Cardinals and the Knights
 
Saint Mary's vs. Martin Luther—Their Last Meeting:
• September 5, 2016 * New Ulm, Minn.: Down 2-0 before the game was even 20 minutes old, the Cardinals erupted for three first-half goals—including a tally by Emma Schaefer (Roseville, Minn.) with less than a minute remaining—and never took their foot off the accelerator, cruising to a 7-2 victory over the Knights | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals open the home portion of their schedule on Sunday, entertaining Lawrence in a 2 p.m. nonconference game at Ochrymowycz FIeld.
• Martin Luther: The Knights are back in action on Wednesday, heading to River Falls, Wis., for a 4:30 p.m. nonconference game against UW-River Falls.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2018 Roster | 2018 Schedule | 2018 Statistics
• The Cardinals boasts a pair of players who earned MIAC post-season honors a year ago—Kendall Archer (Draper, Utah) was named First-Team All-MIAC, while Abby Lafko (Gilbert, Ariz.) was an honorable-mention selection. … Emily Loof (Colorado Springs, Colo.) closed out the season as the team's goal-scoring leader with seven, one more than Mary Loy (Burien, Wash.) and Becca Dup (Albert Lea, Minn.). … Dup also finished the season leading the team both assists (7) and points (19). … Natalie Ruegsegger (Billings, Mont.) netted the game-winner in the Cardinals' 1-0 win over UW-River Falls on Sept. 20. It was the sophomore's first collegiate goal. … Saint Mary's had nine players net their first collegiate goals last season—Ruegsegger, Archer, Loy, Erin McElligott (New York City, N.Y.), Anissa Barrios (Gilbert, Ariz.), Marissa Carlyle (San Jose, Calif.), Sarah Egbert (Colorado Springs, Colo.), Mackenzie Waters (Highlands Ranch, Colo.), and Mary Arnold (Winona, Minn.). … Saint Mary's 10-goal outburst in its 10-0 win over Finlandia on Sept. 9 was its highest single-game offensive performance since blanking Northland 10-0 during the 2007 season. … The Cardinals' 10 goals against Finlandia on Sept. 9 came from eight different players—Loy and Dup each scored twice, while Loof, Archer, Egbert, Waters, Barrios, and Carlyle accounted for the others. … Loof recorded her second collegiate hat trick in Saint Mary's 7-1 win over Bethany Lutheran on Sept. 6. Both of Loof's hat tricks have come against Bethany Lutheran, the first coming on Sept. 23, 2014. … The two-goal game by Dup against Finlandia on Sept. 9 was the first of her collegiate career, while Loy scored two goals in a game twice this season—having also notched two in her collegiate debut against Lawrence. … Both Dup and Loy picked up a pair of assists in the Cardinals' win over Bethany Lutheran on Sept. 6—it was Dup's second two-assist game of the season and the first of her collegiate career for Loy. … All four goals in the Cardinals' season-opening win over Lawrence last season were scored by freshmen. Loy scored twice, while Waters and Arnold accounted for the other two. … Loy's goal in the 21^st minute against Lawrence on Sept. 1 was the Cardinals' first goal of the season. … Gabriella Pederson (Chaska, Minn.) and Zoe Boleneus (Spokane, Wash.) shared the goalkeeping duties last season, with Pederson compiling a 1.66 goals-against-average and .763 save percentage in 10 starts, while Boleneus put together a 1.25 GAA and .828 save percentage in eight starts. … Both Pederson and Boleneus finished the season with a pair of shutouts. … Boleneus stopped all five shots she faced in the Cardinals' 1-0 overtime win over UW-River Falls on Sept. 20 for her first collegiate shutout. … Boleneus made a career-high 15 saves in the Cardinals' 3-1 loss to St. Catherine on Sept. 30. … Boleneus' 15-save effort was the most by a Saint Mary's goalkeeper since Miranda Halling stopped 15 against Macalester on Sept. 22, 2012. It was also just three saves shy of the school-record 18-save performance by Cassie Hulett against Bethel on Sept. 14, 2010. … Pederson finished with a season-high 11 saves in the Cardinals' 4-2 loss to Hamline on Oct. 14. … Pederson made 10 or more saves twice last season, and five times in her two-year collegiate career—including a career-high 11 saves twice. … The Cardinals closed out the season owning a 3-5-1 record on their home turf, while going 2-7-0 away from Ochrymowycz Field. … Saint Mary's surrendered two goals in seven of its 11 losses last season. … The Cardinals played six overtime games a year ago—Saint Mary's beat UW-River Falls 1-0, tied Gustavus (0-0) and Concordia (0-0), and dropped 2-1 OT decisions to Ripon, St. Olaf, and Macalester. … The Cardinals' win over UWRF on Sept. 20 snapped a five-game winless streak (0-4-1) in overtime games. … Saint Mary's double-overtime ties against Gustavus on Oct. 10 and Concordia on Oct. 28 marked the second straight season in which the Cardinals have played to a 0-0 draw. Saint Mary's and Benedictine played 110 minutes of scoreless soccer in 2016. … Eight of Saint Mary's final 12 games were decided by one goal or less. … The Cardinals outscored their opponents 33-28. The Cardinals' 33 goals were the most since scoring 44 goals during the 2007 season. … The Cardinals' two ties last season—both 0-0 decisions—were the most since 2006, when Saint Mary's played to three draws. … The Cardinals' two 0-0 ties mark the first time since the 2002 season that they have played to a 0-0 deadlock twice in one season. … Saint Mary's closed out the year 5-2-0 in nonconference play last season—beating Lawrence, Bethany Lutheran, Finlandia, Nebraska Wesleyan, and UW-River Falls, while falling to Ripon and UW-Stout. … With their 7-1 win on Sept. 6, the Cardinals improved to 4-0-0 all-time against Bethany Lutheran—outscoring the Vikings 23-2. … The Cardinals have beaten Bethany Lutheran 7-1 in each of their last two meetings.
 
Scouting The Martin Luther Knights:
2018 Roster | 2018 Schedule |  2018 Statistics 
• The Knights enter Friday's season-opener on the heels of an 8-9-2 season a year ago—including a berth in the UMAC post-season tournament, where they lost to Northland 1-0 in the opening round. … Martin Luther closed out 2017 having dropped five of its last six—including back-to-back one-goal losses to Northland in its final two games. … The Knights head into their season-opener against Saint Mary's without the services of graduated seniors Sarah Kell—a First-Team All-UMAC pick last season—and All-UMAC Second-Teamer Emily Muir. MLC does return honorable-mention selections Lydia Bitter, Erin Feddersen, and Morgan Hill. … Hill closed out the season as the Knights' leader with 18 points. She also shared the team lead in goals (7) with Bitter and assists (4) with Hailey Johnson. … Martin Luther's 31 goals came from nine different players. … Bitter (3) and Martha Balge (2) accounted for 5 of the Knights' seven game-winning goals last season. … MLC finished 4-for-5 in penalty kicks a year ago, led by Bitter, who was 3-for-3. … Feddersen started 16 of the team's 19 games in goal, compiling a 1.25 goals-against-average and a .798 save percentage. … Feddersen, who made 75 saves, recorded three shutouts. … Feddersen made a season-high 10 saves twice a year ago, stopping 10 shots in a 2-0 loss to Dordt on Sept. 27, while equaling that feat in a 3-0 loss to Bethel on Oct. 3. … The Knights outscored their opponents 33-27 last season—holding a 17-16 advantage in the first half, and a 16-11 cushion after the break. … MLC played in four overtime games a year ago—the Knights beat UW-Superior (1-0), fell to St. Scholastica (1-0), and tied Buena Vista (1-1) and Northland (0-0). … Martin Luther closed out the 2017 season going 3-3-1 on its home field. The Knights were 5-6-0 on the road.