By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director
 
WINONA, Minn. — It may have been an exhibition game, but the Saint Mary's University women's hockey team's performance Saturday afternoon certainly put a smile on first-year coach Sarah Murray's face.
 
The Cardinals erupted for five goals — including two each in the second and third periods — as they rolled to a 5-0 victory over Northland at the Saint Mary's Ice Arena.
 
Natalie Ryan (Village of Lakewood, Ill.) — coming off an all-conference year last season — scored a pair of goals for the Cardinals, while Sophia Zebro (Oak Grove, Minn.), Delaney Wolf (Bismarck, N.D.), and Sydney Green (East Bethel, Minn.) accounted for Saint Mary's other three goals. Green and Wolf also picked up assists, while Jordan Modjeski (South Lyon, Mich.) recorded a pair of helpers.
 
Ryan opened the scoring with the only goal of the first period at 8:03. Zebro and Ryan netted the Cardinals' two second-period goals — Zebro's at 6;25 and Ryan's with eight seconds remaining — to push the advantage to 3-0 heading into the third period.
 
Wolf found the back of the net just 50 seconds into the final stanza, and Green rounded out the scoring with a goal at 11:26.
 
All three goalies saw action for the Cardinals, with Ary Ziakas (Palatine, Ill.) stopping four shots in the first period, while Jordan Keeley (St. Peter, Minn.) and Rachel Miller () made five saves in both the second and third periods.
 
The Cardinals officially kick off their 2019-20 season on the road on Nov. 2-3, heading to the Arrington Ice Arena in Adrian, Mich., for a pair of games against the Bulldogs. The two teams will square off at 7 p.m. EST on Nov. 2, before returning for a 2 p.m. EST matinee the following day.