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 Wednesday, as the Cardinals head to Macalester Stadium for a 7 p.m. MIAC matchup against the Scots.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (2-6-1 MIAC, 9-6-1 Overall) at Macalester Scots (2-6-1 MIAC, 2-12-1 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video
 
Last Action:
• Saint Mary's — October 26, 2019 * St. Paul, Minn.: Kassie Arriaga (Chula Vista, Calif.) scored the game's only goal in the 79^th minute, lifting the Cardinals to a 1-0 victory over Hamline at Paterson Field | Recap
• Macalester — October 26, 2019 * St. Paul, Minn.: No. 19 St. Thomas scored the game's only goal in the 35th minute, as the Tommies dealt the Scots a 1-0 conference setback at Macalester Stadium | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. Macalester — Their Last Meeting:
• October 20, 2018 * St. Paul, Minn.: Macalester scored three unanswered goals — erasing an early 1-0 Saint Mary's advantage and handing the Cardinals a 3-1 conference setback at Macalester Stadium | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals close out the regular season on their home turf on Saturday, hosting St. Thomas in a 3:30 p.m. MIAC contest at Ochrymowycz Field.
• Macalester: The Scots hit the road to close out their regular-season schedule, heading to St. Peter, Minn., on Saturday for a 3:30 p.m. conference showdown against Gustavus.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2019 Roster | 2019 Schedule | 2019 Statistics
• Wednesday's game at Macalester is the third straight — and final — road game of the season for the Cardinals. … With their 1-0 win over Hamline last Saturday, the Cardinals pushed their winning streak to three straight — and their unbeaten streak to four (3-0-1). … All three of Saint Mary's wins during its current three-game winning streak have been decided by one goal — the Cardinals sandwiched 1-0 wins over Concordia and Hamline around a 2-1 victory over UW-River Falls. … Last Saturday's 1-0 victory over Hamline was the Cardinals' ninth win of the season — the most wins since 2009, when Saint Mary's finished 9-8-1. … Kassie Arriaga (Chula Vista, Calif.) scored the lone goal in Saint Mary's 1-0 victory over Hamline last Saturday. It was the sophomore's fourth goal of the season. … Jordyn Matthews (Seattle, Wash.) scored both of the Cardinals' goals in Saint Mary's 2-1 win over UW-River Falls on Oct. 23. It was the fifth time this season the sophomore has scored two or more goals in a game. 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 on Oct. 23, 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.) stopped all four shots she faced against Hamline last Saturday en route to her seventh shutout of the season and 14^th of her collegiate career. … Pederson made a season-high six saves against St. Catherine on Sept. 17. … Pederson has compiled a 0.91 goals-against-average and .750 save percentage in 14 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 netting 16 goals after halftime. On the flip side, Saint Mary's opponents have netted nine goals in the first half and nine after halftime. … Seven of the Cardinals' nine 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 2-1 win over UW-River Falls on Oct. 23 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. … 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 Macalester Scots:
2019 Roster | 2019 Schedule | 2019 Statistics
• Wednesday's game against Saint Mary's is the third straight home contest for the Scots, who are 2-4-1 at Macalester Stadium this season. Macalester, which closes out its season at Gustavus on Saturday, is 2-4-0 on its home turf, while going 0-8-1 on the road. … Last Saturday's 1-0 loss to No. 19 St. Thomas pushed the Scots' losing streak to three straight. … All three of Macalester's losses during its current slide have been decided by one goal — falling to St. Catherine (3-2 in overtime), UW-Eau Claire (2-1), and St. Thomas (1-0). … Ten of Macalester's 15 games this season have been decided by one goal or less — including both of the Scots' wins. Macalester beat Bethel 2-1 on Oct. 2 — snapping a season-opening eight-game winless streak (0-7-1) and topped Concordia 2-1 in overtime on Oct. 12. … Alice Bieda has accounted for seven of the Scots' 13 goals, with Carolyn Eckstein and Abby Ecker each netting two goals, while Kate Bond and Maggie Bunker own the other two. … Bieda also leads the team in points with 14. … Macalester's six assists this season have come from six different players — Bond, Georgia Kazemi, Kayla Togneri, Lily Lorenzen, Kate Ellerd, and Claire Stafford. … Eckstein and Ecker own Macalester's two game-winning goals this season. … Macalester has used three different goalkeepers this season, led by Kayla Togneri, who has made nine starts, compiling a 2.21 goals-against-average and .773 save percentage. … Kate Lawhead (2.23 GAA, .784 save %) — has appeared in eight games — including two starts — with Dana Gustafson (0.00 GAA, 1.000) stopping all four shots she's faced in two relief appearances. … Both Togneri and Lawhead have made 58 saves this season. … Macalester has been held to one goal or less in 11 of its 15 games this season. … The Scots have scored a season-high two goals three times — beating Concordia (2-1) and Bethel (2-1), and falling to St. Olaf (3-2). … Macalester has played five overtime games this season, going 2-2-1.