By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director
 
MOORHEAD, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota women's basketball team is back in conference play on Wednesday, as the Cardinals head to Concordia's Memorial Auditorium for a 5 p.m. conference showdown with the Cobbers.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (5-3 MIAC, 9-6 Overall) at Concordia Cobbers (4-4 MIAC, 7-8 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video
 
Last Action:
• Saint Mary's—January 12, 2019 * Winona, Minn.: The Cardinals scored almost as many points in the second quarter (27) as Macalester netted in the first half (28) en route to a 65-56 win over the Scots at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap
• Concordia—January 12, 2019 * Moorhead, Minn.: Concordia was outscored 22-7 in the first quarter and could not chip into the Bethel lead in falling to the Royals, 83-48, at Memorial Auditorium | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. Concordia — Earlier This Year:
• December 5, 2018 * Winona, Minn.: The Cardinals, who surrendered 23 second-quarter points and were staring at a 38-33 halftime deficit in their MIAC game against Concordia, came out of the break and scored 19 of the third-quarter's 24 points, turning that eight-point deficit into a 52-43 advantage — and an eventual 66-55 conference victory at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap


Saint Mary's vs. Concordia — A Year Ago:
• February 7, 2018 * Moorhead, Minn.: Kirsten Keefe (Chatfield, Minn.) scored a career-high 14 points — and Saint Mary's survived scoring just a combined 14 points in the second and third quarters — to drop Concordia 49-44 at Memorial Auditorium | Recap
  
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals are back on the road on Saturday, heading to St. Thomas' Schoenecker Arena for a 1 p.m. conference showdown against the nationally ranked Tommies.
• Concordia: The Cobbers travel to Gustavus' Gus Young Court in St. Peter, Minn., on Saturday for a 1 p.m. MIAC matchup against the Gusties.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals: 
2018-19 Roster | 2018-19 Schedule | 2018-19 Statistics
• Saturday's game against Macalester was the Cardinals' second straight home game — and the fifth home contest in their last six games. Saint Mary's is now 5-3 on its home court this season. … Wednesday's game against Concordia, meanwhile, is the first of back-to-back road games for the Cardinals. … Last Saturday's 65-56 win over Macalester was the Cardinals' second straight victory. … Brandi Blattner (Eyota, Minn.) scored a season-high 22 points to lead the Cardinals against Macalester last Saturday, while Claire Patterson chipped in 11 points. … Blattner's 22-point effort marked the fourth time this season the Cardinals have had a player score 20 or more points in a game. … Blattner has now scored 20 or more points 22 times in her four-year collegiate career — including a career-best 30 points against Augsburg on Jan. 27, 2018. … Along with her 22 points, Blattner also hauled in 12 rebounds for her fourth double-double of the season — and 34th of her collegiate career. … Blattner has now recorded 10 or more rebounds in three straight games — and five times this season. … Blattner shares the team lead in double-doubles with Rachel Kedl (Lamberton, Minn.), who notched her fourth double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds against Hamline on Jan. 2. … Brooklyn Paulson (Holmen, Wis.) scored a game- and career-high 23 points in the Cardinals' 73-62 loss to Augsburg on Jan. 5. … Paulson has accounted for Saint Mary's other three games of 20 or more points this season — having also scored 20 points against both Carleton on Dec. 1 and St. Scholastica on Nov. 20. … Paulson knocked down a single-game career-high seven 3-pointers en route to her 23-point showing against the Auggies on Jan. 5. Paulson's seven 3-pointers were one shy of the school record, set by Ashley Luehmann on Jan. 22, 2005. … The Cardinals have had six different players lead the team in scoring this season. … Saint Mary's boasts eight players who have recorded a single-game career-high of 10 or more points this season — Paulson (23), Maggie Robertson (Orland Park, Ill. / 19), Kedl (16), Jada Biermeier (Eau Claire, Wis. / 15), Caily Landers (Palos Heights, Ill. / 12), Isabel Bettag (Maple Park, Ill. / 11), Michele Remer (Grand Forks, N.D. / 11), and Mary Wintroath (Suffern, N.Y. / 10). … Robertson recorded her first collegiate double-double against Carleton on Dec. 1, scoring a career-best 19 points and added a career-high 11 rebounds. … Kedl hauled in a career-high 12 rebounds against Bethany Lutheran on Nov. 24. … Saint Mary's has put four players in double figures in a game three times this year — vs. Nebraska Wesleyan on Nov. 17, against Bethany Lutheran on Nov 24, and vs. North Central (Ill.) on Dec. 22. … Blattner heads into Wednesday's conference showdown at Concordia leading the team in scoring, averaging 14.8 ppg. Paulson is also averaging in double figures (12.3 ppg), followed by Kedl (7.2 ppg) and Robertson (6.3 ppg). … Kedl is the team's rebounding leader with 96 (6.9 rpg), while Blattner (81, 8.8 rpg), Kirsten Keefe (Chatfield, Minn. / 64, 4.6 rpg), Remer (55, 4.2 rpg), and Robertson (52, 4.2 rpg) have also recorded 50 or more boards this season. … Saint Mary's has three players with 40 or more assists — Keefe (54), Hallie Schmeling (Onalaska, Wis. / 41), and Patterson (40). … Keefe also leads the team in steals with 17, five more than Kedl. … Saint Mary's is shooting 39.7 percent from the field (359-for-905), while knocking down 176 of 262 free throws (65.3 percent). … The Cardinals have drained 85 3-pointers, led by Paulson with 40. … The Cardinals recorded a season-high nine 3-pointers against Augsburg on Jan. 5. Saint Mary's has now hit seven or more 3-pointers in a game six times this season. … As a team, the Cardinals are averaging 65.3 ppg, while allowing points at a 61.3 ppg clip. … Saint Mary's hauled in a season-high 56 rebounds against Carleton in the teams' first meeting on Dec. 1. … The Cardinals have scored 70 or more points five times this season — including two games of 80 or more points. … Saint Mary's season-high 87 points against Nebraska Wesleyan on Nov. 17 are the most since tossing in 88 in beating Crown 88-34 on Nov. 21, 2015. … Carleton's 48 points on Jan. 9 were the fewest allowed by the Cardinals this season. … Saint Mary's 72-57 win over North Central (Ill.) on Dec. 22 was the final nonconference game of the season for the Cardinals, who went 4-3 against non-MIAC opponents. … The Cardinals picked up their first win under head coach David Foley with their 87-76 triumph over Nebraska Wesleyan on Nov. 17. … Three of the Cardinals' first four games were against teams they had never faced before — Bethany Lutheran on Nov. 24, and Simpson and Nebraska Wesleyan on Nov. 16-17. … The Cardinals — picked sixth in the MIAC Preseason Coaches' Poll — made their sixth MIAC Playoff appearance in the last seven years last season.
 
Scouting The Concordia Cobbers:
2018-19 Roster | 2018-19 Schedule | 2018-19 Statistics
• Wednesday's game against Saint Mary's is the third straight home game for the Cobbers, who are 2-5 at Memorial Auditorium this season. … Saturday's 83-48 loss to Bethel snapped the Cobbers' season-high four-game winning streak. … The Cobbers' 84-57 win over St. Scholastica — which kicked off CC's four-game win streak — also snapped Concordia's season-high five-game losing streak. … Concordia had three players with at least 10 points against Bethel last Saturday — Grace Wolhowe finished with a team-best 11 points, while Elizabeth Birkmeyer, and Autumn Thompson each chipped in 10. … Mira Ellefson heads into Wednesday's matchup against Saint Mary's leading the team in scoring, averaging 12.9 ppg. Wolhowe is also averaging in double figures for the Cobbers, sitting at 10.7 ppg. … Kirstin Simmons has hauled in a team-high 90 rebounds (7.5 rpg), with Ellefson (69, 4.6 rpg), Wolhowe (58, 3.9 rpg), and Birkmeyer (54, 3.6 rpg) also recording 50 or more rebounds through 15 games. … Wolhowe is the team-leader in assists with 53 and owns a team-high 27 steals, six more than Ellefson. … The Cobbers are shooting 40.0 percent from the field (333-for-832) and have dropped 195 of 257 free throw attempts (75.9 percent). … The Cobbers have drilled 107 3-pointers this season, led by Ellefson with 30 and Amber Lingen with 24. … The Cobbers are averaging 64.5 ppg, while their opponents are scoring at a 67.6 ppg clip. … Concordia has scored 70 or more points three times — all Cobber wins. Concordia netted 74 in beating Saint Benedict 74-68, while scoring 81 in an 81-72 win over St. Olaf and tallying a season-high 84 in dropping St. Scholastica 84-57. … The Cobbers' 48 points in their 83-48 loss to Bethel last Saturday were a season-low, and the second time this season Concordia has failed to score 50 points in a game. St. Thomas limited the Cobbers to 49 points in a 79-49 UST win on Dec. 12.