By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director
 
ARDEN HILLS, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota women's soccer team returns to Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play on Wednesday, as the Cardinals head to Bethel's Ona Orth Athletic Complex for a 4 p.m. matchup against the Royals
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (0-2-0 MIAC, 5-3-0 Overall) at Bethel Royals (2-1-0 MIAC, 7-2-0 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video
 
Last Action:
• Saint Mary's—September 22, 2018 * Winona, Minn.: Augsburg erupted for five goals in the second half, as the Auggies dealt the Cardinals a 6-0 conference setback at Ochrymowycz Field | Recap
• Bethel—September 24, 2018 * New Ulm, Minn.: The Royals peppered the Martin Luther net with 35 shots on goal — scoring seven times — as Bethel rolled to a 7-1 nonconference win over the Knights | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. Bethel—A Year Ago:
• September 27, 2017 * Winona, Minn.: Bethel scored a pair of unanswered goals in dealing Saint Mary's its third-straight one-goal setback — a 2-1 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference decision at Ochrymowycz Field | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals are back in Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference action on Saturday, returning home to Ochrymowycz Field for a 1 p.m. matchup against St. Catherine.
• Bethel: The Royals are back in action on Saturday, traveling to St. Joseph, Minn., for a 1 p.m. MIAC contest against Saint Benedict.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2018 Roster | 2018 Schedule | 2018 Statistics
• Saturday's game against Augsburg was the second straight home game for the Cardinals, who play three of their next four contests on their home turf. … With their 2-1 win over UW-River Falls last Wednesday, the Cardinals have now allowed one goal or less in all five of their victories this season — and in each of their 10 wins over the past two seasons. … Maura Michener (Winona, Minn.) and Mary Loy (Burien, Wash.) each scored their team-leading fifth goals of the season against UW-River Falls last Wednesday. … Michener, who scored in each of the team's first three games, has now scored a goal in two of the Cardinals last three games. … Kassie Arriaga (Chula Vista, Calif.) is second to Michener and Loy with four goals — including back-to-back penalty kick goals against UW-Stout and Coe. … Arriaga and Melina Rodriguez (Des Moines, Iowa) netted their first collegiate goals vs. Martin Luther on Aug. 31, while Megan Kowalis (Castle Rock, Colo.) scored her first two collegiate goals against Lawrence two days later. … Loy posted her first collegiate two-goal game against Lawrence on Sept. 2. … Becca Dup (Albert Lea, Minn.) picked up a goal and an assist against Coe on Sept. 9 for his first multiple-point game this season. … Arriaga and Dup share the team lead in assists with two, while six other Cardinals own one assist through seven games. … With her second-half tally against UW-River Falls last Wednesday, Loy now owns three of the Cardinals' five game-winning goals this season, with Michener and Dup accounting for the other two. … Gabriella Pederson (Chaska, Minn.), who has started all eight games in goal for the Cardinals, equaled her season-high with nine saves against Augsburg last Saturday. The junior goalkeeper also made nine saves against No. 22 Loras on Sept. 8. … Pederson needed to make just one save combined in recording back-to-back shutouts against Martin Luther and Lawrence to open the season. … With her two shutouts this season, Pederson owns six career shutouts—two in each of the last three seasons. … Pederson heads into Wednesday's showdown at Bethel owning a 1.88 goals-against-average and a .706 save percentage. … Pederson has stopped 36 of the 51 shots she's faced this season. … The Cardinals hold a 137-103 advantage in shots attempted through eight games — including a 74-51 edge in shots on goal. … Saint Mary's did not allow a single shot attempt in its 7-0 win over Lawrence on Sept. 2. … The Cardinals' seven goals against Lawrence were not only a season high, but also the most since scoring 10 in a 10-0 rout of Finlandia on Sept. 9, 2017. … Saint Mary's has scored 14 of its 19 goals in the second half — including six of seven against Lawrence on Sept. 2. … With their win over Coe on Sept. 9, Saint Mary's improved to 4-1-0—equaling its five-game start of a year ago. … The Cardinals' 2-0 loss to No. 22 Loras on Sept. 8 snapped their season-opening three-game winning streak. … The Cardinals' 4-0 win over Martin Luther on Aug. 31 marked the second straight year in which Saint Mary's opened the year with a victory—and the second straight year in which SMU kicked off the year with a 4-0 triumph. Saint Mary's beat Lawrence to open the 2017 campaign.
 
Scouting The Bethel Royals:
2018 Roster | 2018 Statistics | 2018 Schedule
• With their convincing 7-1 win over Martin Luther on Monday, the Royals pushed their winning streak to three straight. It is the second time this season BU has strung together three consecutive wins. … Bethel has outscored its opponents 13-2 during its current three-game win streak — and by a combined 28-2 in its six wins. … Bethel's seven goals against Martin Luther Monday marked the second time this season BU has netted seven or more goals in a game — the Royals erupted for a season-high eight goals in routing Bethany Lutheran 8-0 on Sept. 6. … Britney Monteon enters Wednesday's game against Saint Mary's leading the Royals in goals (7), assists (6), and points (20). … Rachel Waterman is second to Monteon in both goals (6) and points (13). … The Royals have gotten goals from 12 different players. … Monteon (4) and Brooke Ogne (2) have accounted for six of the team's seven game-winning goals — Maggie Sipe owns the other. … Sipe recorded a season-high three goals in the Royals' 7-1 win over Martin Luther. … The Royals hold a whopping 135-35 advantage in shots on goal through nine games. … Kaylee Peterson has started seven of the team's nine games in goal, compiling a 0.68 goals-against-average and an .840 save percentage. … Peterson has stopped 21 of the 25 shots she's faced, while accounting for three of the team's four shutouts. … Hannah Van Sickle has started the Royals' other two games in goal, boasting a 2.32 GAA and .500 save percentage. … The Royals are a perfect 4-0-0 on their home field this season, while going 3-2-0 away from Ona Orth Athletic Complex.