By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director
 
ST. PAUL, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University men's soccer team knew it was going to need a little help in its quest for the program's first Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference post-season berth.
 
The Cardinals entered the day one point behind Tuesday's opponent, fifth-place Macalester, and deadlocked with Saint John's for the sixth and final post-season spot. And since the Johnnies owned the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Cardinals, Saint Mary's could not afford to end the regular-season tied with SJU.
 
In other words, a win over Macalester was a must — and a Saint John's loss would be a much-appreciated bonus.
 
The Scots and Johnnies, however, refused to cooperate.
 
Not only did Saint John's record a 2-1 victory over Bethel earlier in the day, but the Scots then delivered the Cardinals' post-season hopes a knockout blow, dealing Saint Mary's a 4-0 setback at Macalester Stadium.
 
Floyd Krom got the Scots on the board in the 15th minute, beating Cardinal goalkeeper Sam Morris (Hockinson, Wash.) with a shot into the lower left-hand corner for a 1-0 Macalester lead.
 
The Scots would push their lead to 2-0 before the halftime break, as Will Orser converted on a penalty kick in the 39th minute.
 
And, unfortunately for the Cardinals, it was more of the same in the second half, as Macalester scored twice — the first by Nick Moore in the 51st minute and the second by Joey Stern in the 80th minute — to seal the win.
 
Morris was busy between the pipes for the Cardinals, recording a career-high eight saves, while Scots' goalkeepers Cade Fink and Ryan Davies combined on a three-save shutout.
 
The Cardinals (4-5-0 MIAC, 8-9-0 overall) — who had their three-game winning streak snapped with the loss — close out the regular-season portion of their schedule on Saturday, returning home to Ochrymowycz Field for a 1 p.m. MIAC showdown against St. Thomas. The Scots (5-3-1 MIAC, 7-5-4 overall) are on the road for their regular-season finale on Saturday, traveling to St. Peter, Minn., for a 1 p.m. conference matchup against Gustavus.