By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director
 
WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University men's soccer team closes out the regular season on Saturday, as the Cardinals entertain league-leading St. Thomas in 1 p.m. conference matchup at Ochrymowycz Field.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (4-5-0 MIAC, 8-9-0 Overall) vs. St. Thomas Tommies (8-1-0 MIAC, 10-3-3 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video
 
Last Action:
• Saint Mary's­­—October 29, 2019 * St. Paul, Minn.: Macalester scored a pair of goals in each half, as the Scots dealt the Cardinals a 4-0 conference setback at Macalester Stadium | Recap
• St. Thomas—October 25, 2019 * St. Paul, Minn.: Halvor Houg scored the game's only goal in the 74^th minute, breaking a 0-0 deadlock and lifting the Tommies to a 1-0 MIAC win over Macalester at Macalester Stadium | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. St. Thomas — Their Last Meeting:
• September 12, 2018 * Winona, Minn.: Saint Mary's surrendered goals early and late in the first half and could not claw its way out of the two-goal hole, as St. Thomas — the two-time defending conference champion and currently ranked No. 4 in the country — dealt the Cardinals a 2-0 setback at Ochrymowycz Field | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: Saturday's game is the season finale for the Cardinals, and the last collegiate game for graduating seniors Michael Maniak (Wisconsin Dells, Wis.), Jimmy Perreault (Batavia, Ill.), Zack Bracken (Osseo, Minn.), Josh Balsiger (Camas, Wash.), Kyle Lichttenegger (De Pere, Wis.), Robbie Sobczak (Cloquet, Minn.) and Yael Calderon (Los Angeles, Calif.).
• St. Thomas: The Tommies have already locked up one of the top two seeds for next week's MIAC Tournament and earned a first-round bye. St. Thomas will host a second-round game on Wednesday at 2 p.m.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2019 Roster | 2019 Schedule | 2019 Statistics
• Saturday's season finale against St. Thomas is the Cardinals' ninth home game of the season — Saint Mary's is 5-3-0 on its home turf, while going 3-6-0 away from Ochrymowycz Field. … Tuesday's 4-0 loss to Macalester snapped the Cardinals' season-high three-game winning streak. … Saint Mary's enters Saturday's showdown against league-leading St. Thomas boasting eight wins this season — the most in a season since finishing 8-9-1 in 2017. The last time the Cardinals have won nine games in a season was 2000, when they posted a 9-8-1 overall record. … Eli Szymanski (La Crosse, Wis.) scored three of the Cardinals' four goals in their 4-1 win over Hamline on Oct. 26, with Johnluke Nahorski (Minnetonka, Minn.) accounting for Saint Mary's other goal. It was Szymanski's first collegiate hat trick and marked the second time this season the sophomore has posted a multiple-goal game — having netted two goals against Simpson on Sept. 25. … Saint Mary's has had a multiple-goal scorer in two of its last three games — Josh Balsiger (Camas, Wash.) scored a pair of goals against Martin Luther last Wednesday. … Balsiger has scored two goals in a game twice this year, also scoring twice against Marian on Aug. 30. … Balsiger's two goals against Martin Luther on Oct. 23 gave him a single-season career-high 10 this year — and moved him into a tie for the No. 4 spot all-time in career goals scored (21) with Eric Brown (1998-01). Balsiger is also fourth all-time in career points with 55, four back of No. 3 Mike Schmitt (2003-06). … With his three goals against Hamline on Oct. 26, Szymanski moved into a tie with Balsiger for the team lead with 10. … The 10 goals by both Balsiger and Szymanski mark the first time since 1989 that the Cardinals have boasted two players with 10 or more goals in the same season. Jared Rasmussen and Doug Freeman each netted 10 goals during that 1989 season. … Along with his 10 goals, Balsiger also heads into Saturday's season finale against St. Thomas leading the team in both assists (5) and points (25). … Szymanski is second to Balsiger with 23 points. … Bracken is second to Balsiger in assists with four. … Balsiger recorded a career-best three assists vs. North Central on Sept. 19 — marking the second time this season the Cardinals have had a player post a three-assist game. Bracken achieved the feat against Marian on Aug. 30. … Balsiger's five-point game against North Central on Sept. 19 was not only a career-best, but also the highest individual total since Andrew Jaworski's five-point effort against Bethany Lutheran in 2014 — and was one point shy of the single-game school record. … One of Szymanski's three goals against Hamline on Oct. 26 came on a penalty kick. The sophomore is now a perfect 3-for-3 in PKs this season. … The goals by Sean Flandrick (New Richmond, Wis.), Wally Barros (Santa Maria da Boa Vista, Brazil), and Zack Bracken (Osseo, Minn.) in Saint Mary's 7-0 win over Martin Luther on Oct. 23 were collegiate firsts. The trio joins Armin Jasenac (Brooklyn Center, Minn.) and Garrett Jackson (West Linn, Ore.) as players who have netted their first collegiate goals this season. …  Szymanski, Jacob Clements (Holmen, Wis.) and Garrett Jackson (West Linn, Ore.) have also put together two-goal games this season. … Nahorski scored one of the Cardinals' five goals in their season-opening win over Marian on Aug. 30, and has now scored in the Cardinals' first game of the year in each of the last two seasons. … Clements scored the season's first goal at 7:00 of the first half against Marian on Aug. 30. … Sam Morris (Hockinson, Wash.) recorded a career-high eight saves in the Cardinals' 4-0 loss to Macalester Tuesday. The eight saves were three more than his previous career best of five. … Morris, Michael Maniak (Wisconsin Dells, Wis.), and Connor Petrich (Arden Hills, Minn.) combined on the shutout against Martin Luther last Wednesday. … Saint Mary's 7-0 shutout of Martin Luther on Oct. 23 was the fourth combined shutout of the season for the Cardinals. Maniak and Morris did not have to make a save in blanking Marian on Aug. 30, while Maniak and Petrich combined on the shutout against North Central on Sept. 19, with Maniac making the lone save in the first half. Perreault and Morris each made one save — Perreault's in the first half and Morris' in the second — in recording the combined shutout in the Cardinals' 2-0 win over Edgewood on Sept. 7. … Perreault, who made a then-career-high six saves against Simpson on Sept. 25, doubled that performance against Augsburg on Sept. 28, finishing with 12 saves. … The Cardinals' four goalkeepers have combined to post a 2.22 goals-against-average and a .672 save percentage. … The Cardinals' 2-1 overtime win over Bethel on Oct. 12 pushed their unbeaten streak against the Royals to five (4-0-1) — while also snapping their season-high three-game losing streak. … Saint Mary's has played two overtime games this season — beating Augsburg 4-3 on Sept. 28 and Bethel 2-1 on Oct. 12. … The Cardinals' 4-3 win over Augsburg on Sept. 28 not only snapped their two-game losing streak, but was also Saint Mary's first victory over the Auggies since Oct. 15, 2005 — a span of 13 games. … The Cardinals' four goals in their 4-3 victory over Augsburg on Sept. 28 were the most in a one-goal win since beating Cal State-East Bay 4-3 on Oct. 28, 2005. …The Cardinals scored a season-high nine goals in their 9-0 rout of North Central on Sept. 19. The nine goals were the most since Saint Mary's scored 11 in an 11-1 win over Presentation during the 2013 season. … Saint Mary's nine-goal outburst against North Central was also the third-highest offensive performance in program history, ranking behind the 10 goals scored vs. Rockford in 2006 and the 11 scored vs. Presentation in 2013. … The Cardinals have scored 15 goals in the first half, while netting 27 after halftime. On the flip side, 21 of the 38 goals allowed by the Cardinals have come in the second half. … The Cardinals opened the season with six straight games decided by shutout. Saint Mary's opened the year with a 5-0 win over Marian, and followed that up with a 4-0 loss to Loras, a 2-0 win over Edgewood, a 1-0 loss to Central-Iowa, a 9-0 win over North Central, and a 2-0 setback at the hands of Gustavus. … The Cardinals did not allow Martin Luther a single shot attempt on Oct. 23. It was the second time this season Saint Mary's has held an opponent without a shot, having also blanked Marian on Aug. 30. … Saint Mary's attempted a season-high 45 shots vs. Martin Luther on Oct. 23 — including a season-best 23 on goal. … Saint Mary's 7-0 win over Martin Luther on Oct. 23 was their final nonconference game of the season. The Cardinals finished 4-4-0 mark against non-MIAC foes. … With their 5-0 win over Marian on Aug. 30, the Cardinals have now won their season opener in each of their last five seasons. … The Cardinals' 5-0 win over Marian on Aug. 30 was their fourth straight win over the Sabres — all via shutout.
 
Scouting The St. Thomas Tommies:
2019 Roster | 2019 Schedule | 2019 Statistics
• With their 1-0 win over Macalester on Oct. 25, the Tommies pushed their winning streak to a season-high nine straight. St. Thomas has not lost since opening conference play with a 2-1 loss to Gustavus on Sept. 18. … UST enters Saturday's game against Saint Mary's tied with Gustavus for the league lead. The Tommies can earn a share of the conference's regular-season title with a win over Saint Mary's, or a Gustavus loss to Macalester. … St. Thomas has outscored its opponents 22-4 during its nine-game winning streak — including six wins by shutout. … Halvor Houg — who scored the game's only goal in UST's 1-0 win over Macalester in their last game on Oct. 25 — enters Saturday's regular-season finale against Saint Mary's leading the Tommies in both goals (6) and points (12). … Houg has now scored the game's only goal five times in the last two seasons — all 1-0 St. Thomas victories. The Tommies are 11-0-1 when Houg scores. … Jake Amey is second to Houg with four goals, while Jacob Makela, George Marty, and Jack Barry have all scored three times. … Among his six goals, Houg has recorded the lone goal in wins over Washington (Mo.) and Carleton; the game-winning goal in overtime at Augsburg; and a tying-goal in the 85th minute in an eventual 1-1 two-OT tie against Wartburg. … Makela, Marty, and Isaac Eckroth share the team lead with three assists each, while Makela and Marty are second to Houg with nine points. … St. Thomas is a perfect 2-for-2 in penalty kicks — with Houg accounting for both goals. UST has not allowed a PK attempt this season. … St. Thomas has used four different goalkeepers this season, led by Troy Louwagie and Sean Teske. Louwagie has appeared in nine games, compiling a 0.25 goals-against-average and .895 save percentage, while Teske owns a 1.05 GAA and .710 save percentage in eight games played. John Slack (0.00 GAA, .000 save %) and Niklas Martensson (4.27 GAA, .000 save %) have each made one relief appearance. … Saturday's game against Saint Mary's is the second straight road game for the Tommies, who are 6-1-2 on their home turf, while going 4-2-1 on the road. … St. Thomas has played eight games decided by one goal — including all three of their losses. … The Tommies have played six overtime games this season. UST had a stretch of five straight games decided in OT from Sept. 1 to Sept. 13 — tying the University of Chicago (0-0), losing to Luther (3-2), tying Wartburg (1-1), losing to Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (2-1), and tying Redlands (0-0). UST's other OT game was a 2-1 win over Augsburg on Sept. 21.