By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director
 
WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota men's soccer team kicks off Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play on Wednesday, entertaining fourth-ranked St. Thomas in a 4 p.m. matchup at Ochrymowycz Field.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (0-0-0 MIAC, 3-1-0 Overall) vs. #4 St. Thomas Tommies (0-0-0 MIAC, 4-0-0 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video * GameDay Program
 
Last Action:
• Saint Mary's—September 8, 2018 * Pella, Iowa: The Cardinals surrendered three goals in the second half in dropping their first game of the season, a 3-0 nonconference setback at the hands of Central-Iowa | Recap
• St. Thomas—September 9, 2018 * Naperville, Ill.: Jacob Makela scored with five minutes remaining in regulation to send the game into overtime, and Lucas Horton netted the game-winner five minutes into the extra session to lift No. 6 St. Thomas to a 3-2 win over North Central (Ill.) | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. St. Thomas—Their Last Meeting:
• September 13, 2017 • St. Paul, Minn.: St. Thomas broke a 1-1 tie with a goal in the 58^th minute, as the fifth-ranked Tommies snapped the Cardinals' four-game winning streak with a 2-1 MIAC win at UST's South Field | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals hit the road on Saturday, traveling to Northfield, Minn., for a 3:30 p.m. conference showdown against St. Olaf at the Oles' Rolf Melby Field.
• St. Thomas: The Tommies return home to UST's South Field in St. Paul, Minn., on Saturday, hosting Saint John's in a 3:30 p.m. MIAC contest.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2018 Roster | 2018 Schedule | 2018 Statistics
• Last Saturday's game at Central-Iowa was the third straight road game for the Cardinals. … The Cardinals' 3-0 loss to the Dutch last Saturday snapped their season-opening three-game winning streak. The Cardinals have now started the season 4-0-0 and 3-1-0 in their last two seasons. … Eli Szymanski (La Crosse, Wis.) and Johnluke Nahorski (Minnetonka, Minn.) scored their first collegiate goals in Saint Mary's season-opening 3-1 win over North Central on Aug. 31, while Klaus Friedli (Marshfield, Wis.) tallied his first goal in a Cardinal uniform in Saint Mary's 4-1 victory over Crown on Sept. 4. … Szymanski, who also scored one of Saint Mary's three goals against Martin Luther on Sept. 1, picked up his first collegiate two-assist game against Crown on Sept. 4 and has now recorded at least one point in three of SMU's four games this season. … Josh Balsiger (Camas, Wash.), Chris Beiersdorf (Arlington Heights, Ill.), and Kyle Lichttenegger (De Pere, Wis.) joined Friedli as goal-scorers against Crown on Sept. Sept. 4. … Szymanski heads into Wednesday's conference-opener against St. Thomas leading the team in assists (3) and points (7), while sharing the team lead in goals (2) with Balsiger. … Mateo Means (Dallas, Texas) and Wally Barros (Santa Maria da Boa Vista, Brazil) sit second to Szymanski with two assists each. … Alberto Centeno (Elk Grove Village, Ill.), who stopped a season-high four shots against North Central in the Cardinals' season-opening 3-1 win on Aug. 31, finished with three saves against Central-Iowa last Saturday. … Michael Maniak (Wisconsin Dells, Wis.) has stopped all five shots he's faced in goal this season—making three saves against Martin Luther on Sept. 1 and stopping both shots he faced in relief of Centeno against Crown on Sept. 4. … As a team, the Cardinals have scored three or more goals in all three of their wins this season—netting three goals in wins over Martin Luther (3-1) and North Central (3-0), and tallying a season-high four goals in beating Crown 4-1. … Saint Mary's has scored four goals in the first half, while netting six goals after the break. … The Cardinals hold a commanding 31-18 advantage in shots on goal through four games. … With their 3-1 win over North Central on Aug. 31, the Cardinals have now won their season-opener in each of their last four seasons. … 
 
Scouting The St. Thomas Tommies:
2018 Roster | 2018 Statistics | 2018 Schedule
• Wednesday's conference-opener against Saint Mary's is the third straight road game for the Tommies, who will play their next three contests on their home turf. … The Tommies enter Wednesday's game at Saint Mary's ranked No. 6 in the United Soccer Coaches Poll. … With the come-from-behind overtime win over North Central last Sunday, the Tommies pushed their season-opening winning streak to four. … After posting back-to-back-to-back shutout wins to open the season against UW-Superior, Knox (2-0), and Lake Forest (4-0), the Tommies surrendered their first two goals of the season in last Sunday's 3-2 OT win over North Central (Ill.). … The Tommies' 11 goals this season have come from six different players. Will Kidd, Jack Barry,, Jacob Makela, Lucas Horton, and Josh Grzesiak have all scored twice, while Halvor Houg owns UST's other goal. … Horton scored goals in both games last weekend—including the OT game-winner against North Central (Ill.)—earning him MIAC Athlete of the Week honors. … Along with his two goals, Kidd also leads the team in assists (3) and points (7). … Barry is second to Kidd in both assists (2) and points (6). … St. Thomas' four game-winning goals have come from four different players—Kidd, Makela, Horton, and Houg. … Aidan Hogan has started three of UST's four games in goal, compiling a 0.65 goals-against-average and a .600 save percentage. … Hogan has stopped three of the five shots he's faced this season. … Troy Louwaggie did not have to make a save in posting a shutout in his lone start of the season. … St. Thomas, which holds a 51-16 advantage in shots attempted—including 29-5 in shots on goal—has scored 10 of its 11 goals after halftime. … The Tommies won their second-straight MIAC regular-season title a year ago, finishing conference play a perfect 10-0-0. UST reached the NCAA quarterfinals, before losing to North Park 1-0. … UST was a unanimous pick to repeat as conference champions in the MIAC Preseason Coaches Poll.