By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director
 
ST. PAUL, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University women's soccer team returns to conference play on Saturday, as the Cardinals head to Hamline's Paterson Field for a 3:30 p.m. MIAC matchup against the Pipers
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (1-6-1 MIAC, 8-6-1 Overall) at Hamline Pipers (1-7-0 MIAC, 5-7-0 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video
 
Last Action:
• Saint Mary's — October 23, 2019 * River Falls, Wis.: Jordyn Matthews (Seattle, Wash.) scored both Cardinal goals, as Saint Mary's closed out the nonconference portion of its schedule with a 2-1 win over UW-River Falls | Recap
• Hamline — October 19, 2019 * St. Paul, Minn.: St. Thomas erupted for four, first-half goals in dealing the Pipers a 4-1 conference setback | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. Hamline — Their Last Meeting:
• October 13, 2018 * Winona, Minn.: The Cardinals erupted for three times in the first half en route to their first Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference win of the season — a 4-0 drubbing of Hamline at Ochrymowycz Field | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals return to conference play on Wednesday, heading to St. Paul, Minn., for a 7 p.m. MIAC matchup against Macalester.
• Hamline: The Pipers are back at Paterson Field in St. Paul, Minn., on Wednesday, playing host to Gustavus in a 3:30 p.m. conference showdown.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2019 Roster | 2019 Schedule | 2019 Statistics
• Saturday's game at Hamline is the second of three straight road games for the Cardinals. … Wednesday's 2-1 win over UW-River Falls was the final nonconference game of the season for the Cardinals, who closed out their non-league slate with a perfect 7-0-0 record. … Wednesday's win over UW-River Falls was the Cardinals' eighth win of the season — equaling last year's win total. It's the most wins in a season since Saint Mary's finished 9-8-1 in 2009. … Saint Mary's 2-1 win over UW-River Falls Wednesday pushed its unbeaten streak to three straight (2-0-1). … Saint Mary's three games during their current unbeaten run have all been decided by one goal or less. Along with the 2-1 win over UW-River Falls, the Cardinals also tied Carleton (1-1) on Oct. 15 and beat Concordia (1-0) on Oct. 19. … Jordyn Matthews (Seattle, Wash.) scored both of the Cardinals' goals in Wednesday's 2-1 win over UW-River Falls. … Matthews has now scored two or more goals in a game five times this season. … Matthews recorded her first collegiate hat trick on Oct. 2, accounting for all three Cardinal goals in the 4-3, double-overtime loss to St. Olaf, while netting a pair of goals against UW-River Falls Wednesday, Marian on Sept. 6 and Ripon two days later. … Matthews' hat trick vs. St. Olaf on Oct. 2 was the Cardinals' first since Emily Loof netted three goals against Bethany Lutheran on 6, 2017. … With her two goals against UW-River Falls, Matthews pushed her team- and conference-leading total to 15. … Matthews' 15 goals are the most in a season since 1995, when Julie Giebe scored 17. … Matthews also leads the team in points with 33, while sharing the team lead in assists (3) with Mary Loy (Burien, Wash.) and Nicole Thompson (Riverside, Calif.). … Matthews scored the Cardinals' first goal of the season, finding the back of the net at 31:39 of the opening half against Edgewood on Aug. 30. It was not only the Cardinals' first goal of the season, but also the first of Matthews' SMU career. … Genesis Capacio (Las Vegas, Nev.) scored her first collegiate goal in the second OT in the Cardinals' 1-0 win over Concordia on Oct. 19. … The Cardinals boast six players who have scored their first collegiate goals this season. Along with Capacio, the Cardinals also have gotten collegiate first from Matthews, Claire Fletcher (Woodbury, Minn.), Avery Sutton (Minneapolis, Minn.), Haylee Queen (Spokane, Wash.), and Abbi Mazurek (Darien, Ill.) — who all achieved the feat against UW-Superior on Oct. 7 — while Nicole Thompson (Riverside, Calif.) scored her first collegiate goal and added an assist for her first multiple-point game in a Cardinal uniform in Saint Mary's 3-0 win over Martin Luther on Sept. 14. … Gabriella Pederson (Chaska, Minn.), who made a season-high six saves against St. Catherine on Sept. 17, picked up her sixth shutout of the season and 13th of her collegiate career with a two-save effort against Concordia on Oct. 19. … Pederson has compiled a 0.97 goals-against-average and .729 save percentage in 13 starts this season. … Alexis Nguyen (West Corvina, Calif.) made her first collegiate start in goal for the Cardinals against Bethel on Oct. 12, finishing with four saves, and added a career-high five saves in her second career start against Carleton on Oct. 15. … The Cardinals' 1-0, two-overtime win over Concordia on Oct. 19 was their third overtime game of the season. … All three of Saint Mary's overtime games have gone into the second extra 10-minute session. … Saint Mary's has scored 15 goals in the first half, while also netting 15 goals after halftime. On the flip side, Saint Mary's opponents have netted nine goals in the first half and nine after halftime. … Six of the Cardinals' eight wins this season have been by shutout. Four of the Cardinals' six losses, meanwhile, have been by one goal — the lone exceptions, a 2-0 setback against Saint Benedict on Oct. 5 a 4-0 loss to Bethel on Oct. 12. Saint Mary's other four losses include a 4-3, double-overtime loss to St. Olaf, a 1-0 setback to Augsburg, and 2-1 losses to both St. Catherine and Gustavus — with both 2-1 games decided in the final three minutes of regulation. … The Cardinals scored a season-high eight goals in an 8-0 nonconference win over UW-Superior on Oct. 7. It was the highest offensive output since Saint Mary's scored 10 goals against Finlandia on Sept. 9, 2017. … Saint Mary's 1-0, 2 OT win over Concordia on Oct. 19 marked the third straight meeting between the two teams that has gone into a second overtime. Saint Mary's is 1-1-1 in those three contests. … Saint Mary's three goals in its 4-3, 2 OT loss to St. Olaf on Oct. 2 were the most scored in a loss since netting three in a 6-3 setback to No. 9 Loras on Oct. 9, 2013. … Saint Mary's 2-1 loss to St. Catherine on Sept. 17 snapped the Cardinals' season-opening four-game winning streak. It was the first time since the 2009 season that Saint Mary's had opened the year with four consecutive wins. … The Cardinals' 1-1 tie against Carleton marked the second straight meeting between the two teams that has been extended to a second OT. Saint Mary's beat Carleton 3-2 a year ago in two overtimes, snapping a 13-game losing streak vs. the Knights. … Saint Mary's loss to St. Catherine on Sept. 17 was its second straight one-goal loss to the Wildcats, who beat the Cardinals in 3-2 in double overtime a year ago. … Saint Mary's 8-0 win over UW-Superior on Oct. 7 moved the Cardinals to 7-0-0 against the Yellowjackets all-time. Saint Mary's holds a 25-1 scoring edge vs. the Yellowjackets — including shutouts in each of the last six meetings. … With their 3-0 win over Martin Luther on Sept. 14, the Cardinals improved to 6-0-0 all-time vs. the Knights — outscoring MLC 34-5 in their six meetings. … Fueled by their six nonconference wins this season, the Cardinals are now 10-1-0 in nonconference play over the last two years — the lone blemish a 2-0 loss to nationally ranked Loras on Sept. 8, 2018 … With their 3-0 win over Ripon on Sept. 8, Saint Mary's has now outscored the Red Hawks 30-8 in their last nine meetings. … Saint Mary's 2-1 win over Edgewood on Aug. 30 marked the third straight year in which the Cardinals have won their season opener. … 
 
Scouting The Hamline Pipers:
2019 Roster | 2019 Schedule | 2019 Statistics
• Saturday's game against Saint Mary's is the first of back-to-back home games for the Pipers, who have collected four of their five wins this season at Paterson Field. … Hamline's 3-0 win over UW-Stout on Oct. 13 snapped its season-high four-game losing streak, and is in the lone win in the last six contests for the Pipers. … Calley Schmitt and Ashlee Olson head into Saturday's MIAC matchup against Saint Mary's leading the team in goals with five each, one more than Siri Parker and two in front of Anna Browne. … Gaby Diaz owns the team lead in assists with four, with Schmitt, Jenna Sampson, and Carin Currier tied for second with three. … Schmitt is also the team-leader in points with 13, one more than Olson. … Parker has scored two of the Pipers' five game-winning goals, with Schmitt, Olson, and Sampson accounting for the other three. … Lauren Sicora and Melanie Hopkins have shared the goalkeeping duties this season, with Sicora boasting a 2.09 goals-against-average and .814 save percentage in 10 appearances, while Hopkins has notched a 1.87 GAA and .727 save percentage in nine games. … Sicora has stopped 70 of the 86 shots she's faced, with Hopkins chipping in 32 saves on 44 shots. … Hamline has scored 12 goals in each half, while the Pipers' opponents have netted 17 first-half goals and scored 11 goals after the break. … Five of Hamline's nine losses have been by one goal — including overtime losses to Whitworth (1-0) and Saint Benedict (2-1). … Hamline has been held to one goal or less in eight of its nine losses. … The Pipers have scored three of more goals in three of their five wins — including a season-high five-goal effort in routing UM-Morris 5-0 on Sept. 22.