By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director
 
WINONA, Minn. — The first time the Saint Mary's University of Minnesota men's basketball team squared off against Gustavus this season, the Cardinals halted a 35-game road losing streak against Gustavus — beating the Gusties 86-81. It was Saint Mary's first win in St. Peter, since beating GAC 86-82 in overtime during the 1982-83 season.
 
And the Cardinals had so much fun, they decided to replicate that performance in the teams' Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference rematch on Saturday — with yet another streak-snapping outcome.
 
Make that two streaks.
 
The Cardinals, who put a season-high five players in double figures, used an 11-1 game-ending run to pull away from Gustavus 79-64 Saturday afternoon at the Saint Mary's Gym — and in the process, Saint Mary's not only snapped its season-high eight-game losing streak, but the Cardinals also completed their first season sweep of the Gusties since beating GAC 86-78 and 91-81 during the 1979-80 season.
 
The Cardinals held the upper hand for the majority of the opening half, leading by as many as seven, only to have Gustavus close on a 7-0 run to take a three-point, 33-30 lead into the locker room at the break.
 
Gustavus picked up where it left off to open the second half, using another extended run — this one 11 unanswered points — to grab a seven-point, 47-40 lead with 12 minutes remaining.
 
The Cardinals regained the lead, 52-51 on a Bradley Hill (Matteson, Ill.) field goal with under nine minutes on the clock, and the two teams would trade leads six times, before Saint Mary's too control — using a 15-3 burst, including scoring 11 of the game's final 12 points, to ice the victory.
 
And the series sweep.
 
Sawyer Rosner (Phelps, Wis.) finished with a game-high 18 points for the Cardinals, who also got double-figure scoring from Hill (14), Kevin Gleason (Minneapolis, Minn. / 12), Eli Cave (St. Paul, Minn. / 12), and Caden Freetly (Farmington, Minn. / 11). Along with his 11 points, Freetly also hauled in a game- and career-high 12 rebounds for his first collegiate double-double.
 
The Cardinals shot 52.7 percent from the field (29-for-55) — including a 10-for-24 showing from behind the 3-point line — while also adding an 11 of 13 effort from the free throw line.
 
Spencer Rollefson finished with 15 points and Brandon Snoberger added 12 in the losing effort for Gustavus (5-9 MIAC, 8-11 overall), which shot 41.5 percent (22-for-53) with five 3-pointers and a 15-for-22 showing at the charity stripe.
 
The Cardinals (3-11 MIAC, 7-12 overall) are back in action on Wednesday, traveling to St. Olaf's Skoglund Center for a 7 p.m. MIAC showdown against the Oles.